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Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XV, Issue 191, 12 August 1880, Page 2

. -rai-iw H' A table-top made from different kinds of New Zealand woods was on exhibition afc the offices of the Emigration Aid Corporation, Westminster, iv May. It is the opinion of the fashionable cabinei makers that furniture made of New Zealand wood would realise high prices. The Oamaru Mail gleans from a circular received by the San Francisco mail that the coming American harvest is confidently expected to furnish a surplus of wheat for export of between 800,000 and 900,000 tous as compared with 600,035 tons exported during the season just closed. The following cruel paragraph appears in the Christchurch Press : — Mr Thompson, of the firm of Miller and Thompson, has recently placed a large piece of looking-glass in the recess of his doorway, facing down High-street, and yesterday ifc was wonderful lo notice the large number of ladies who stopped in front of the shop to look at the music in the window, so much so as to seriously impede the traffic. With reference to the octopus reported at Port Chalmers by the master of the schooner Torea the other day, on her arrival there, Captain Grundy, of the schooner, says it was the most remarkable looking monster he has ever seen at sea. It was about a mile off Cape Egmont. floating and apparently dead. The vessel passed within twenty yards of it, and the captain states that all hands had a good look at it. The portion visible above water was about 9ft in height, that being a part of the body. Its length as seen was quite 30ft, the sides being striped yellow and white. The arms and feelers were black, and appeared to extend fully 50ft from the body. An immense flock of birds was hovering about it. It was a beautifully clear day, about II a.m. when the schooner passed. A despatch has been received from Sir H Yogel urging the colony to go in largely for the cultivation of beetroot, with a view to sugar manufacture, thus creating a new in- , dustry. Sir J. Yogel says that he writes not as Agent-General, but as a colonist having a deep interest in New Zealand, and the subject being one very suitable for reference to the Royal Commission on local iudustries. He conclndes as follows:— "I have noticed of late such a disposition to misconstrue the motives of those who aspire to be useful, that perhaps it is necessary tbat I should add that I am writing these remarks without concern witb any one desiring to embark in the industry to which I refer, and with no present thoughts of doing so myself." A fire occurred near Foxton the other day by which a nine roomed house belonging to Mr C. Simpson was completely destroyed. The most unfortunate part of the whole affair (says the Manawatu Herald) is the fact that a large sum of money — one thousand pounds in notes— was burnt in the fire. Only a few days before, the whole of the cattle on the Bainesse had been sold to M'Lennan, manager of the Oroua Downs Estate, for £1000. Thia sum was paid in notes, beiug made up iv two equal bundles — one of which was rolled up by Mr M'Lennan the other by Mr Simpson. For private reasons, which Mr Simpson has fully explained to the reporter of .the Herald, bufc which the latter is not at liberty to publish, Mr Simpson determined nofc to bank the money for a few weeks, and he therefore secreted it in a portion of the roof, informing no one— -not even his wife — where they were placed. Of course they were burnt, and upon Mr Simpson will fall the loss. The origin of the fire is wrapped in mystery. Whether the fire caught the paper, or whether it ocurred through a defective chimney, there is no meanß of ascertaining. Tlie property was insured in the South British Insurance Company for £850, viz., £500 on the main building, and tbe balance oh the sheds, furniture,

The following are the opinions of the Maori members on the Deceased Wife's Sister Bill :— Major Te Wheoro would support the Bill, because it reminded him of the Maori customs of the old days. Nothing gave him greater pleasure than to see Europeans, come round to their customs. — Mr Tawhai also testified to the fact that this Bill coincided with old Maori customs. Having brought forward a Bill of this sort, he thought that the members supporting it should call themselves Maoris, still he would vote against the Bill. TheM3ill said to him as a Maori — Return j go back lo your old customs.— Mr Tomoana said that before missionaries cttme here this was the law. Now, however, marriage was carried on on a different basis. Maoris who married their deceased wife's sister were those who ignored the Church. He would ask members not to consent to this Bill. They had other matters of more importance to attend to. It came to this, tbat European members were reverting to Maori customs, therefore he would not support the Bill. — Major Te Wheoro suggested that as this was evideutly the adoption of a Maori custom, it was necessary to have children legitimatised and tattooed in order that they 'inightgbe made Maori, according to strict Maori custom. £ A person of mild appearance and attenuated extremities, (says a Christchurch paper) appeared in the prisoners' dock at the R. M. Court, yesterday morniug, charged with the " minor " offence of having been drunk and disorderly. To the magistrate this mild man said: " I want you to give me a chance, Mr . Mellish; you've never given me one yet." For a mild-looking man with attenuated extremities this was not bad, suggesting as it did a backward prospect of crime. On looking up the records it was found that Peter Simple had been in for larcency and other humorous performances on half a dozen different occasions. The Bench sent him up for f orth-eight hours. In the course of the discussion on religious instruction at the Education Board (says the Post) the Chairman (the Hon. C. J. Pharazyn) dwelt on the inconsistency of the proceedings iv Parliament being opened with prayer, while nothing of the sort was allowed in the State Schools. Mr Blair asked if the legislature were any better for the prayers ? (A laugh.) The Chairman s I hope so; they seem very attentive." Mr Blair -. They don't exhibit it in their daily life, at any rate." At this covert " dig," the Board fairly exploded, and Mr Pharazyn did not pursue the subject further. A recent Auckland telegram says:— The contractors for the East Hamilton station road, Waikato, came upon a number of skeletons on Thursday. There was scarcely a dray load of earth taken from the cutting that did not contaiu skulls, large bones, &c. There is an old pah near, and report says that before the Waikato was conquered by the Europeans a whole hapu was surprised near this spot, and completely wiped out. The following extract from a letter received from Okarito by a gentleman in Christchurch takes a very hopeful view of the prospects of the new diggings: — "T — F — came in with over 50ozs of coarse gold. The largest piece weighed loz 2dwts, and several pieces $oz and down to fine. It is a splendid sample of gold. They have not officially reported ifc yet, as they do nob want to cause a rush. They both say tbat there will be room for a large population when the road now being constructed is finished. They got gold over fourteen miles of country, and to the top of the highest hills. They say that it will bs a splendid ground-sluicing country. Mr Mueller, the chief surveyor, saw the gold, and I see by the papers that he has reported the circumstances to the Government. Tenders have been called for another three miles of the road towards the Haast. The wages are lis. per day of eight hours, and it is a pity that some of the able bodied unemployed do nofc make tbeir way to these parts instead of eating the bread of idleness in Christchurch." The weather in New York has been fearfully bad. Only, one American journalist found it cool, and he says a contemporary would surely make a good fourth in the Shadracb, Meshach, and Abednego Trial Stakes. On the authority of the Defence Minister it is stated thafc tbere are in this colony three colonels, nine lieutenant-colonels, 23 majors, 150 captains, and 230 lieutenants. The Wanganui district supplies the bulk of the majors. Says a Southern exchange : — lt is startling, if true, that the amount of our education vote is one-fifth that of the English vote. This was stated as a fact by an honorable member recently. Under the title of " Glimpses through ths Cannon-Smoke," Mr Archibald Forbes is just about to publish a series of sketches, reprints of articles written in the peaceful intervals which have divided his periods of campaigning. The Princess de Sagan, a fashionable frivoler of the French capital, recently bought a black boy, to carry her train, for £40. The editor of a Paris journal has black-leaded hia two youngest and offered them to the lady for £10 each. He is still awaiting a reply. A company of scapegraces meeting a pious old man named Samson, one of them exclaimed : " Ah, now we're safe 1 We'll take Samson along with us, and then, should we be set upon by a thousand Philistines, he'll slay them all." "My young friend," quietly responded the old man, " to do that I should have to borrow your jawbone !" £' The latest device of pickpockets is to tickle with a long coarse hair the noses of ladies who happen tobe looking into shop windows. The lady naturally applies her pocket-hand-kerchief to ber nose, and the thief takes the opportunity of abstracting her purse. ,f The sick man," says Truth " is now little more tbau a putrefying corpse. The Sultan's palace is surrounded by troops and earthworks, behind which the wretched creature cowers in dread of dethronement or assassination. To suppose that Turkey can be regenerated by means of the ruling Turks is to ignore public facts. The first step towards regeneration would be to sweep away their political existence. To treat with them, or to discuss with tbem, is a mere waßte of time. The right to govern means with them the right to rob, and to put down official robbery is to extinguish their 'raison d'etre.' The mistake that as yet has beeu made has been to ha\ c regarded these knaves as statesmen in the European sense of the word. In intrigue, it is true, they are exceedingly clever ; bu. it is intrigue in its lowest form. For the last two or three years their sole aims have been to obtain a loan from Europe, which they may divide among themselves, and to maintain themselves in placo, so as to [ be in a position to profit by the loan, if ever that manna is rained down upon Constantinople."