PATEA DAILY MAIL. Wednesday Evening, Feb. 8, 1882.

Patea Mail, 8 February 1882, Page 2

PATEA DAILY MAIL.

Wednesday Evening, Feb. 8, 1882.

Published every Evening, Price Id. Circulation nearly GOO : average last quarter 510. Politics, Independent.

A Supplement is issued with today’s Mail, containing articles on a forgotten centenary —rivers of the earth —the cat as a sportsman’s companion—thrift among the poor —Thomas Carlyle —Dead Letter Office—absinthe drinkers —what to wear—can animal’s talk ? a conjuror —an indiarubber man—comic extracts —scientific'and useful —wit and humor—story of “ Jack, a Mendicant” —household recipes-—the farm. An Arbitration Case will be heard on Friday at Waitotara, before Mr C. A. Wray, R.M., in which Mr Durie, of Waitotara, claims special value for land taken by Government for railway purposes. Mr H. M. Brewer, agent for the Minister of Lands in matters relating to railway compensation, will represent the Government. He will also resume negociations next week for settling claims to compensation between Patea and Manutahi.

Mr R. E. Mcßae’s usual sale of stock takes place at Manaia on Friday. The inward ’Frisco mail arrived here this afternoon, and has been sorted for delivery. Tenders for the post of librarian to the Patea Institute closed this afternoon. The Committee meet this evening. Cary’s “Juvenile Pirates” are to appear in Patea next Wednesday, in Gilbert and Sullivan’s opera “ Pirates of Penzance.” The School Committee of Patea held a final meeting last evening. The committee has had two secretaries during the year; and the second having left the town, the accounts were not prepared for passing, but are to be finished to-day by Mr J. Black. The committee has not done its work in a flourishing manner. Householders are to meet this evening at 7 o’clock, to elect a fresh committee for the year. It is desirable that parents should manifest a proper interest in the management of the school. The committee has little to do, but that little should be done promptly, when required.

The new Licensing Committee for Patea borough has been elected with the least possible fuss. The publicans appear to have shown more interest in the nominations of suitable men than any other section of the community. Five persons were nominated yesterday, and there being none others, the returning officer, Mr Wray, declared the five elected at noon. They are:— (Candidates.) (NominatorsG. T. Potto... J. Whelan, F. Searling R. Currie A. A. Gower, W. Brown A. Black E. C. Horner, E. Holtham W. Dixon ... F. Doncghue, A.Chisholm W. Howitt ... E. Slattery, C. Dale. He was a Wanganui man, and having the indiscretion to fall asleep at an inn, where he was well known, the story goes that the maids of the house quietly tarred his melancholy countenance, and then decorated his whiskers with fluffy feathers borrowed from a pillow. When the melancholy man woke up,he fancied he was looking through a snow-storm, or that he had grown prematurely old, or that he had fallen asleep and waked up in “another place,” or that he had found his way to Wellington as “another lunatic from Wanganui.” To resolve these doubts he rushed to the Court House, and presented his tarred and feathered face to the R.M. It is said the R.M. laughed at the melancholy man ; but it is difficult to believe any R.M. could be so heartless. The melancholy man was advised to see the sergeant of police, but it is not easy seeing a sergeant when you have to look through a feathery fluff. The sergeant referred him to a bush-jawyer, of whom there are many in Wanganui, though not on the rolls ; and the “ case” is now taking the fearful form of a malicious and defamatory libel of and concerning the melancholy man. . The murderer of the American President is to be hanged on the 30th Jane —a long respite for Guitean. A short shrift would have better met the justice of this outrage on humanity. Bat a pushing insurance agent has offered to “ take ” Gniteau’s life for any sum up to a hundred thousand dollars on the chance of his not being hung. Thalis a ghastly form of insurance gambling. The following . officers have been elected by the Taranaki Agricultural Society for the current year :—President, Mr. A. Staudish ; Committee, Messrs J. Rattenbnry, J. ElMot, H. J. Honeyfield, T. Western, A. Davidson, E. J» Vavasour, J. C. Honeyfield, W. Bewley, E. Olson, H. Newland, N. King, J. Wade, C. W. Govett, and J. G. Davies, the latter being* hon. secretary. A ploughing match is to be held and £ls is proposed for prizes. Mr J. Thompson, engineer to the Waitara Harbor Board, has been instructed to invite tenders for the construction of punts and other apparatus to be used for improvement works on the river.

Three pedestrians from Australia, O’Brien, Freeman, and O’Connor, will give exhibitions in N.Z. towns, as a preliminary before going to America and Europe. It is expected that Taranaki will tins year produce more grain than can ho locally consumed. One Waitara settlor has 300 acres in grain, and anticipates a yield of nearly 40 bushels to the acre of wheat. The capture of midnight gamblers in Jem Mace’s notorious hotel at Melbourne has ied to other revelations. The police are informed of systematic gambling at certain clubs, where large stakes are said to bo lost and won ; hut these private ' “ hells ” are not so easy to suppress. At last meeting of tho Taranaki Harbor Board a memo, was read from the Colonial Treasurer that £6,281 8s 2d had been paid to the credit of the Board, being 25 per’cent. of the sum £25,125 12s 7d, the gross land revenue aebrued within the : Provincial District during the qn?r|er oing ,31st Dee, 1881. The placet! to the credit of the Sinking Fund. The Body of the'late Earl'of Crawford is not yet recovered, after the mysterious snatching and carrying away from the family mausoleum ncaV Aberdeen. The reward offered has only resulted in anonymous letters being sent to the family, that the body won Vibe,found in a certain turnip field, or at some other spot—search proving fruitless. The latest device is to get a trained dog to catch the scent, by smelling at the dead earl’s clothes and at the'coffin and sawdust in the vault; then setting the canine detective loose to follow where instinct leads it. The latest report is that the dog has started “ on the scent,” and that tho police are trying to keep up with it. Where will tiie quest end ?