PATEA DAILY MAIL Published every Evening, Price 1d. Circulation nearly 600 : average last quarter 510. Politics, Independent. Friday Evening, Janry. 13, 1882.

Patea Mail, 13 January 1882, Page 2

PATEA DAILY MAIL Published every Evening , Price Id. Circulation nearly 600 : average last quarter 510. Politics, Independent. Friday Evening, Janry. 13, 1882.

Deafness can be cured in most cases by a simple painless process. So says Professor Thornton, who is staying in Patea a few days, as advertised. He has shown us several testimonials from persons in this colony, who speak of his cures as wonderful; From them we gather that a cure may be instantaneous, or may be a comparative improvement of hearing, depending on the original cause of the deafness. A youth from Waverley came with his father this morning, and after being with the professor-in a room at the Albion Hotel a few minutes, the youth came out with hearing restored. He was spoken to quietly, and could hear like any other person. The father said the boy was very deaf before the operation. We have also seen a testimonial from Wanganui which.is remarkable. The practice of ennobling colonists—even if it be but with letters and ribbons—recalls not a little the history of San Domingo, sometimes called Hayti, and often Hispaniola. This island is divided into two republics, and one of them was the scene of incessant struggles between the negro and mulatto parties. One of the oldest, cruellest, and most imbecile of the negro emperors distributed titles freely. You may read in grave historical works how a certain battle ended in the defeat of the Duke of Marmalade ! It seems a pity that we cannot entirely dispense with titles here. There is talk of dividing Wanganui County into two, in order to abolish or reduce the central establishment of costly servants. It is suggested, on the other hand, that Road Boards should {< merge ” in the county, and so economise the cost of management. Some people may expect this, but the remedy is likely to lie the other way.

St. Andrew’s Church anniversary services at Waverley are announced for Sunday week. Notes on the harvest of the world will be found on the fourth page. Wheat around New Plymouth is said to be looking splendid. A new company for preserving fruit has commenced operations in Dunedin. Taranaki district is declared by the Sheep Inspector to be free from scab. The Albert Hall Company is being formed in New Plymouth to erect a public hall on the site of the unfortunate Oddfellows’ hall. No business worth chronicling at the R.M. Court this morning. The School Committee has postponed its final meeting until a few days before the annual election is due, January 30th. The furniture and effects of the Rev. A. Dasent will be sold by Mr Cowern next Friday, at the parsonage. Mr Dasent takes charge of Karori about the end of the month. Applications are invited for the combined office of engineer and surveyor to the Borough Council. Waitara Harbor Board are inviting tenders for 1,500 feet of protection fascining, recommended by Mr J. Thomson, engineer. The great shooting match came off this morning, and the target was not missed often. Out of a possible score of 100, Color-Sergeat Kitching made 43, and the ex-Mayor of Golbourne made 28. Success has not attended the proposed woollen factory company in Wellington. The provisional directors have met and resolved that “ Owing to the lack of interest displayed by the public, and want of response to the application for shares, the project to form a woollen factory company in Wellington on the basis suggested be for the time abandoned.” Tolls on the Wanganui county roads are to be abolished. The loss will be £SOO a year to the County Council. It is gravely stated that the cost of collecting this £SOO a year has been about £4OO a year. This proportion may remind ratepayers in Patea county that the cost of our central establishment, with the reduced area, is as much as the total income from rates. Shall this continue ? Kereopa got licked last night. He is a bouncing fellow, and having talked big at the Whenuakura hotel, some pakeha gave him a straight tip, which left him star-gazing. This native has a local history. He was Hiroki’s friend and chum up to the time of McLean’s murder, and Kereopa had to give evidence recently in Hiroki’s preliminary trial at New Plymouth. Kereopa is a bully, and often gets into trouble. A Dunedin bricklayer has invented a machine for making gas out of charcoal. This is as absurd as making sunbeams out of cucumbers, but he has successfully conducted experiments, and the local press believe in him. In his wonderful furnace he makes his charcoal hot, passes steam over it—and there’s your luminous gas ready for lighting. •So these reporters assure us. •Scientific men might not believe in it ; for the outcome of carbon and steam could at best be only carbonic acid and hydrogen. But the reporters in Otago —perhaps , not a learned race-—record all these doings seriously. A Wellington journal reports: A quick passage from Auckland, a great part of it overland, has just been made by Mr Hill, of Karori, Leaving Auckland by steamer on Wednesday evening, he arrived at Waitara the next morning. Thence he proceeded by train to Hawera, whence he took coach for Waverley. From the latter place he proceeded the same day by train to Wanganui, which he reached in the evening in time to catch the steamer, which landed him in Wellington next morning. The whole passage was thus accomplished in two nights and one day.

Waitara Wharfage. —The following is an account of revenue collected at Waitara from wharves and shipping from Ist October, 1880, to 31st December, 1881 :—Dues received for wharfage on goods, and for warp and punt hire, £1175 10s 5d ; dues received on shipping, £l7B 3s 4d; ballast supplied, £B7 3s ; dues owing on 31st December, 1881, £lOl 18s 2d. Total, £1542 14s lid. The above embraces the whole of the time during which the wharves have been under the control of the Board,

Contracts for the coal supply of all New Zealand railways have been secured by New Zealand coal proprietors, and with one exception, all below 80s per ton. The result is that nothing but New Zealand coal will be used on our 1300 miles of railway during the current year. A large quantity of grass seed at Ngaire has had to go to waste, from the impossibility of obtaining sufficient labor to save it.