GENERAL NEWS.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5414, 3 August 1878, Page 1 (Supplement)

GENERAL NEWS.

.£II,OOO have been paid iu England recently by Mr. 11. Alsopp, M.R., for six first-class cows. Tuny aro, Sill Duchess of Oueiga and Uuchoss cx TJndcvly 2nd for £7500, and Red dosa of TweeM .E and three other young s’-iodh.-rn heifers for

The British resident* iu California, desirous >f evineng their ro-poci for Lord Beacons!;. Id, are about to forward to him a testimonial, iu the form of a silver, brick, highly polished, swung oa silver standards supported by gold lion;, ad resting upon an inlaid table of Oalio r.iiim woods.

Tho Prince of Wales has accepted the presidency of the Royal Agricultural Soci-' foe the ensuing year. The idiow will be held in London, and will, it is expected, be th largest and most successful ever* known in conn*, ctiott with this society. Parchmcnted cotton, says tho European «V il •f Juno 7, is being used on a small scale as a substitute for wool. Iu America tho raw 'cotton, well cleaned, is left for twenty-hour’ hours iu a solution of one part concentrated sulphuric acid, one part sulphate of glycih-iuo, ,md three parts water, at a temperature of degrees Pain*. It is then wrung between glass rollers until the test paper no longer reddens. After drying the fibres are found to have acquired many of the qualities of sheep’s wool, and for using this cotton for spinning, weaving, or dyeing it has enly to be wrapped in felt. When fabrics are made exclusively with tho transformed material, aud finally have been animalked in the usual way by milk, ammonia, oil, and lime, the fabric can scarcely be distinguished from genuine woollen goods, except by the smell given off in burning them, since the lanified smells just like the natural cotton. The' properties thus acquired by the cotton will, it is thought-,, tend to supersede the ingredient -hitherto used for producing half-woollen goods. In regard to cotton parchment as a substitute for linen, cotton yarn which has been steeped for twenty-four hours in a mixture of two parts concentrated sulphuric acid and three parts water, at 63Adeg. F.hr., w pressed and dried as above ; it not only thus acquires the property of linen yarn, but is also s ronger than the latter. The difference in price, especially in fine numbers such as aro used for cambrics, is, it is alleged, much iu favor of the now process. •The Victoria (B. 0.) Colonist gays thafe a party of Cape Flattery or Makaw Indians, returning from a visit to their friends (the Sutgish of Victoria) encamped the first afternoon out on the beautiful Bay of Metchoseu, Vancouver Islafid. The weather being very line,- most of the party went bathing, and amongst the number a maiden of perhaps eighteen summers, who had accompanied her grauujfather on the trip. Desiring seclusion, she \4iut round a point away from the other bathers, and being known as a bold swimmer, is supposed- to have taken a Header into deep water. However taken, it proved to have been a plunge into tliAarras of death, for when the swimmers reassembled around the camp fire the girl was xmssed, and notwithstanding a diligent search that evening, could; not be found. ‘ Tho following morning with sad hearts the party left ; but very soon’ those in .the foremost canoe on rounding the first point (the water being calm and' clear) *sa\v a .human body, as if seated on the sandy sea bottom,, with what seemed like a flour bag immediately behind it. The natives knew what tliis meant. As soon as th© cauoes got together, two ■of the most active young men managed with daggers so as to disable tho monster (for it was a gigantic devil-fidi), that, the octopus with its victim waji brought to the surface. The foregoing facta have been communicated to our informant by au intelligent and respectable half-breed woman from Metchoseu, who saw the body of the drowned girl with some of the prehensiles of the mol!usk still adhering to it. She compared'tho head of the octopus iu size to that of a fifty pound flour sack,- full; said the tentacles were twelve in number, of different sizes, and the largest about the circumference of a man’s arm.

AVe have receivecl (says the Sydney Tifait) soma interesting particulars relative to tho fate of the four Miami women castaways, who it Will be remembered were picked up by the French vessel Daphne, brought to Sydney, and afterwards despatched to their home by the schooner Stormbird. Our informant states that of the four castaways one died at sea, and the remaining three were returned to their homes, where, however, they met with a reception anything but cordial. They were told that having been looked upon as dead for so long a period their property had been redistributed, and their appearance was provocative of nothing but embarrassment, ©no of them went to Honolulu in the Stormbird, aud obtained a place in an English family, where •she is kindly treated and Ims only to mind a baby. The mission of the Stormbird was, it will he remembered, to visit the various islands in the South Seas for the purpose of obtaining native immigrants for tbe Hawaiian Government, the native population of the Sandwich Islands being of a similar race. Oar correspondent notes her arrival at Honolulu with 85 immigrants, 23 of whom were women. The Hawaiian Board of Immigration determined to retain this first batch in' Oatui for the greater convenience of supervision, but as many as were applied for were allotted as domestic servants in aud about Honolulu ; the remainder were placed on plantations from eight to fifteen miles from the town, and not far from one another. TJie Government took the ship over, and after being refitted she will bo despatched i,o the same region lor another batch of islanders. ; The Government of New South Wales have issued their regulations for the importation of stock. Regulations for similar purposes in Queensland will bo promulgated shortly, no doubt. Victoria, at tlio eleventh hour, but Iran to the prevailing policy of that colony, has withdrawn from the arrangement which was to open her porta for stock imports on a footing similar to that of'New South Wales. The better course now, as it seems to ns, is to allow Victoria to follow bet own course, without further solicitation. She will lie the greatest sutferer in time, and if -she persevere in the obstructive course there will be the more tolling opportunity for seeing who are in the right. The regulations for controlling the passage, lauding, and qnaiia.lue of stock are stringent, aud leave no chance whatever for the lauding of diseased animals amongst the herds of this country. The nature of the diseases against which we are desirous of guarding are now perfectly well understood'. There has been more than suiilcieut experience to clear away the very last doubt emicoripg the safety uj shipping and carrying cattle a long' voyage hv sea. The much shorter voyage to America has proved all sufficient as a safeguard for that conutiy, aud, avhen disease did develop on the way, the position in a ship, at sea, was the more favorable for stamping it out. So it must be in the longer voyage to Australia. Of the absolute safety of the proceeding there is no room for i-easouable doubt. .But, not withstanding this, it is satisfactory to know'that the regulations controlling live stock imports are such as to leave no room for escaping the most minute precautions. Of all the ills which horseflesh is heir, to, perhaps the hone disease, commonly-known as “ ringbone,” is the most puzzling to amateur veterinarians. We have'bsou asked scores of times by correspondents avho either knew very little of ■ tlae disease, or overestimated our power, to publish a cure. What areringhones ? Thu best authorities inform ns that they aru osseous deposits which are found upon the upper and lower pastern bones, and that they generally take the form of a ring round these bones, Tbe lameness of ringbone" precedes 'the deposition of bony matter, and is duo to inllamation. Horses with upright pasterns are more liable than others to suffer from the disease The causes are hereditary, • structural, and incidental. It is acknowledged that it is unwise to breed from horses that have ringbones, unless such may be traced to soma accidental cause. When involves articulation, it invariably causes lameness, which will continue until the formation of anchylosis is completed. Thu treatment recommended by Williams is as fol’ows “ Care mush bo taken to observe how the patient j daces his foot on tho ground. In the foreleg lie always put the heel down fust, in order to throw tils weight on the stiff parts. In such a case a thiu-hocled bar-shoe must bo put on the foot. Tins gives relief by allowing tho animal to throw its weight upon tho hods with the least possible effort. It the horse walks on the too, he mnst be shod with a high-heeled slmo. This only occurs when the ringbone is situated in the hind limbs.”