The Patea Mail. Published Wednesday and saturdays SATURDAY, MAY 6, 1876.

Patea Mail, Volume II, Issue 112, 6 May 1876, Page 2

The Patea Mail. Published Wednesday and saturdays SATURDAY, MAY 6, 1876.

We would remind our readers that the sale of leases of the Town Board sections will take place to-day, at 12 o’clock. All the machinery having been taken out of the Egmont, men aie now engaged clearing out the sand. We believe Captain Daniels is very sanguine of getting her off as soon as the tides make, which will be in a day or so. A meeting of the Carlyle Town Board was held last night to fix the reserve prices upon the respective leases to be submitted to auction this day. As the meeting was private we are unable to furnish a report of the proceedings. One of the largest potatoes we have ever seen, was shown ns at Hawera on Monday last, by Mr Greig. It was grown by Mr E. Dingle, and weighed over 41 bs. The township of Nonnanby is making rapid strides in the building direction, considering the short time it has been in existence. ' Besides a good number of stores and dwelling houses already erected, a public house, blacksmith’s shop, and several other structures will soon be in course of construction. The road through the township we are sorry to say, is in a very bad state, even at the present, and is sure to become almost impassable as winter advances. We would strongly urge upon the responsible parties to get the main road from Hawera gravelled as soon as possible, as great inconvenience will bo expoi ienced by the settlers if the road is allowed to remain long in its present state. \Ye are glad to see that our Ivakaramea friends have sot an example which ought .to bo followed in this town. On Wednesday evening a meeting was held to form a . musical society, and it is with pleasure we notice the earnestness with which the was taken up by the settlers. The ■society was formed, and the following gentlemen were appointed a committee : Messrs S. Dixon, A. Hunter, and H. Williamson ; conductor, Mr J. Patterson; secretary and treasurer, Mr F. Marchant.

Messrs Ashforth and Liffiton, of Wanganui, notify in another column that they will sell, on Tuesday next, at their salerooms, Rutland Chambers, the remaining unsold sections in the township of Norinnnby. As this district is daily increasing in importance, this will give a first-class opportunity of acquiring laud. We are informed by Mr Dale, that the Government are taking steps to cany out the recommendation made to them some time since, with reference to making a road through the bush, at the back of Kakaramoa previous to the sale. Specifications arc now being prepared, and tenders will shortly be called for falling the bush two chains wide, and clearing a dray track through the centre. The Government will find that the cost of the same will be recompensed three-fold at the sale. Had they taken similar action previous to the last sale of hush land in the Okotuku district, there can be no doubt but that portion of the district would now have been inhabited by a number of first-class settlers. A public mooting was held in the Town Hall on Monday evening last, for the purpose of taking into consideration the advisability of forming a branch of the Manchester Order of Odd Fellows in this district. About fourteen were present, and Mr Adams, solicitor, was voted to the chair. Mr J. Lett was appointed to canvass the town to see how many names could be got, previous to writing to Wanganui for the necessary information required. We sincerely hope that a Lodge of Odd Fellows will be established, and strongly advise all those who can to join, more especially the young meu of Patea, as the entrance fee will be a mere nothing to those from 18 to 21 years of age. Mr Lett will take the names of those who feel disposed to join. At a sale of Dr Wallace’s watch and chain, seized for Education rate, at Auckland, a broker ran up the price to £l2, at which the doctor bought them in. A Greytown settler is this year taking twenty tons of potatoes to the acre as a crop. The editor of the Standard says he spent some time weighing one of the potatoes, and found it came to three pounds.

Talk about pumpkins says the Budget — five which wore brought in from the country to day formed a good dray load for a team of bullocks. They were all left at Courtney’s auction room. The biggest of the lot weighed 2131h5, and it took two men to carry it from the dray to the scales. Such a boomer has not before been seen even by the oldest inhabitant. Mr Z. Wells, of Mongoroi, was the grower, and has a few more left of the same kind.

Last session the sum of £IO,OOO was placed on the estimates for the erection of a penal establishment, and in explaining this item on the estimates Mr Bowen said that the whole expenditure on the necessary building would be £20,000, but half of that sum was as 'much as the Government woidd expend during the year. This £20,000 was intended to provide accommodation for 200 long sentenced prisoners, who would be drafted from the different gaols of the Colony into this central establishment. When will America invention reach a climax ? asks the Evening Argus. By the last English ship Dr Lemon received one of the new American writing machines, completely supersedes the use of the pen. In appearance it resembles a sewing machine, excepting that it has a key board like a piano, and is in action very similar to the musical instrument. The letters required are siiown on the keys, and the operator lias merely to touch the keys whiie composing his friendly epistle or business letter. It is said that a writer, who has once learned the use of the apparatus might with moderate dexterity throw oil from 30 to 40 words a minute, while a literary Lit? or Goddard could turn out as many as 60. At this rate a brilliant performer on the writing machine would produce sufficient matter to occupy a column of a newspaper in twenty minutes. Printers will profit by the new invention it it should ever be generally adopted. The writing machine gives forth, not the familiar scrawl which the French call “pattes de mouche,” but printed characters as unmistakeable, right or wrong, as notes from a keyed instrument, At present more than one of the London morning papers have their correspondent’s letters written in Paris, and de livered printed, word for word as the telegraph has transmitted it in London ; and it is also stated that Farjeon, the wellknown novelist, composed duplicates of his last novel for simultaneous production in England and America.

At a recent meeting of the Bath and Bristol branch of the British Medical Association, Mr Thompson brought before the meeting the case of a female lunatic who had swallowed thirteen iron screws, each weighing upwards of 70Ogrs., the patient being still alive. Dr Marshall read a record of the case of a sailor who had swallowed forty clasp knives in ten years and who died soon after swallowing the last six or seven. Several other gentlemen also mentioned similar cases. A breach of promise case is announced as one of the coming sensations at New Plymouth. A volunteer in Invercargill tried the experiment of charging a breech-loading rifle with a muzzle-loading cartridge ; but on firing was astonished to find that the breech flew back, and the powder exploded in his face, all round his eye, and he thought at first, as he expressed it, “ that he had blown his head off.” His face (according to the Southland Times ) for some lime to come will bo tattooed by the powder. The Auckland Penny Savings Bank continues to prosper. Already over 700 accounts have been opened, and the deposits amount to £3OO. This is satisfactory intelligence, and must make many of our youngsters proud indeed to be classed amongst the favored class of bank depositors. We have no doubt ere a couple of years arc over, that the youthful institution will have made rapid and successful strides. —Weekly Herald. In a circular lately issued by the British and Foreign Bible Society, and which is being circulated in New Zealand, consequent upon the presence, in the colony, of the agent for that society (the Rev. BBackhouse), the population of the world is set down at 1,300,000,000 ; there are in total ignorance of the existence of the Holy Scriptures, 700,000,000; during the present century the Holy Scriptures, whole or in portions, have been rendered available to 600,000,000 ; it may be presumed that the Holy Scriptures are known and read by only 200,000,000. The Bibles, Testaments, and portions issued by all societies arc British and Foreign, 73,750,538 ; Hibernia, 3,962,581 ; National of Scotland, 3,803,699 ; British India, 5,184,740 ; Europe, 15,531,720; America, 32,490,136; total, 134,723,414. Private publishers, no returns. Of these, Protestant nations have received one-half, or 67,311,707; in the languages spoken by Great Britain and its dependencies there have been printed 69,000,000. Only 7.000. of Bibles, Testaments, and por tions have been circulated among Jews, Heathens, and Mahomedans, numbering 800.000. Languages : The B. and F. B. Society prints directly in 157, indirectly in 63 ; total, 210, Versions ; including the above, 269 ; by other societies, 27 ; total, 296.

The Customs revenue of the Colony for the quarter ending 31st March last, was £317,743 against £320,523 in the corresponding quarter of 1875. Mr John Hall (for many years Post-master-General of New Zealand), who has just arrived from England, has been resummoned by his Excellency to the Legislative Council.

The first thing a young man does when he sees a friend with a new hat on, is to take it off and serenely try it on his own head. When a young lady sees one of her acquaintances with a new bonnet, she just lifts up her nose, and serenely wonders “ where the thing got that fright.

A Sandhurst mining manager named Costid, who two years ago was sentenced to seven years’ hard labor for embezzling the funds of a company, wss liberated last week —A link in the chain of testimony having been found that exonerates him from the charge. The fact shows the danger of trusting te incomplete circumstantial evidence.

They have a very easy going style of traffic on the main line of railway in Tasmania (says the funny writer in the Australasian.') The train pulls up on being hailed by a passing swagsman desirous of a lift. A few days ago the engine stopped suddenly without any swagsman in sight. The passengers on getting out, found that the driver had seen a snake on the track. So these simple minded people assisted to despatch the reptile with a shovelful of hot coals from the furnace, and having resumed their seats, the train resumed its leisurely journey. Jt is said that sly-grog selling prevails to a considerable extent in Otago. In a late issue of a country paper it is stated upon the authority of an anonymous writer, that hj e visited no less than twenty-one places in the town where he was served with liquor without question. The iMelbourne correspondent of the Otago Guardian says a ladies’ band has been forint ‘d. This novel orchestra consists of three vi olinists and two violoncellists, the complen tents of the band being made up by a pianc and cornet, under the hands of gentlemen players.