The Patea Mail. Established 1875. WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 27, 1882.

Patea Mail, Volume VIII, Issue 976, 27 December 1882, Page 2

The Patea Mail. Established 1875. WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 27, 1882.

The Homeward San Francisco mail will be despatched from Patea to-morrow. ♦ Mr M. F. Christie is reaping some benefit from his holiday. He reached Queenstown (Otago) this morning, and intends to be absent from borne at least another month. Messrs Gr. and F. Horner will hold their monthly stock sale at Manaia on Friday, at 1 o’clock. The entries comprise ISO head of cattle. Attention .is directed to the furniture sale advertised to he held by Mr Dale to morrow. Tin's will be the largest hona fide sale of the kind ever held in Patea and those desirous- of adding articles either useful or ornamental to their homes will have an excellent opportunity for doing so. The country presents a very parched appearance, and rain is badly wanted to give the grass a start again. The few showers whicli have fallen have not done more than lay the dust on the roads. Water, too, is scarce in some parts of the town, and a heavy downpour would be exceedingly welcome. At noon to-day-it appeared as if the popular desire were about to be gratified. The beauties of the river proved a strong attraction to a large number of people on Monday and yesterday, the water being quite alive with boats of every description. Nothing, can be more charming than the scenery in the bnsh through which the river winds, and it ie a wonder that excursions in that direction are not .more frequent. Next season we .hope to see a boating club established and the taste for rowing considerably developed. The picnic held in connection with the Catholic Church took place yesterday. About 8 o’clock, the morning wqs dark and cloudy and a little rain fell, but not enough to keep the dust down which blew in clouds. The picnic was well attended, there being between 200 and 800 adults and children present. There was racing for money and scrambling for lollies for the children, and dancing on the green for the older people. The music was supplied by Messrs "Willis and Sinclair. The cakes, &e, which were of the host, were supplied by Mr Buckley, and the cordials by Mr Deane. Thanks are due to' the ladies and gentlemen who contributed so much to . make the affair a success, Mr Cnllinan and Mr Donnelly especially. A private dance was held afterwards in Mr Donnelly’s hall, at which there were about 30 couples present. Mr W. Dale is about to take his departure from Patea to Auckland where he intends to settle.

New scenery for the representation of H.M.S. Pinafore is now being painted, and the transformation of the stage of the Harmonic Hall into the deck of a man-of-war is proceeding apace. The new dresses for the officers have arrived from New Plymouth, and are of quite a gorgeous description. The cocked hat of the Admiral is said to be the envy' of the “tars” and the admiration of all “his cousins and his aunts.”, A meeting of the directors of the Patea Oil and Fibre Company was held at. the Company’s office on Saturday afternoon. The business was to consider the question of purchasing what seed had been grown in the district. It was resolved that Mr C. F. Barker should wait upon the growers and purchase all the seed they have. This will bo satisfactory news to farmers who have planted npon the faith of the Company- purchasing their crops. With regard to the Fibre it would be extretnely <3esir?vt>le tliat tVie balance of the shares in the company should be taken up at once. They- would then be in a position to deal with this part of the business in a manner equally satisfactoryto the way they have acted in regard to the seed. Farmers should see that it will bo to their interest, to place the companyin a strong position. Wo have been shown a copy of “ The Roy-al Path of Life," a work yust issued by the World Publishing Company. The large number of, testimonials received by the agent from the clergy throughout the colony and in other countries will bo giifficient guarantee (iiat the book is worthy a place in every household. It is splendidly illustrated with steel engravings. A meeting’, to consider the propriety of purchasing Mr Dale’s sawmill, and turning it into a Limited Liability- Company, was held at Mr Barker’s rooms, on Saturday- afternoon. There was a good attendance, considering that the meeting was got up in a hurry, and a warm interest was evinced in the project. A report of the proceedings appears elsewhere. ordinary meeting- of the JPatea West Road Board will be held at Kakaramea on Friday at 4 p.m. The privileges in connection with the Caledonian Sports on Monday next were sold by auction on Saturday- by Mr W. Cowern. The prices realised were as follow; gates, £25, Mr W. Dixon; publican’s booth, £lO ; refreshment stall, £3, were both purchased by- Mr F. McCarthy. ' , The Steward of the Hospital acknowledges Christmas gifts as follow, with thanks :—Mrs Wray, a ham, vegetables, and beautiful bouquet of flowers ; Mr Aitcheson, a roast of beef ; Mr R. Horner, peas : Mr Gowiand, a ham Mr J Richards, a roast of beef ; Mr R. Churchill potatoes. The Kakaramea Sports yesterday were witnessed by about 300 people, the picnics in town, no doubt, preventing many from being present. The races were well contested throughout, and, as the Band was in attendance, a very pleasant daywas spent. Details will bo found in another column. Some of the crops in the Now Plymouth district are looking splendid. Mr Caverhill has 170 acres in linseed, and the yield promises to be a heavy one The wheat, of which there is 300 acres, is looking first-class, being quite .free from smut. Tuscan and velvet chaff are the most noticeable of the varieties sown. During the storms in October, in England, for miles in Gloucestershire (he counlry- was flooded, and. in the suburbs of Bristol hundreds of houses were completely flooded. The Rev. E. A. Fuller rescued an old blind man who was in danger of being drowned in the kitchen of his cottage. The Rev. gentleman, who is the vicar of St. Barnabas, pulling off his coat, waded through the current to the cottage, and brought out the old man on. his back amid the cheers of the spectators. Thomas Porter, a brewer’s drayman, who had been carried away by the current, was found lodged in a tree, and was rescued. He had clung to the tree all night. That Sims Reeves, the great tenor, has lost none of his power seems clear from the following paragraph in a leading London weekly’s notice of the NilssonReeves benefit concert: “The great enthusiasm of the audience was reserved for the delivery of the ‘ Death of Nelson ’ by Mr Sims Reeves, In this the singer’s declamation brings the loss and prowess of a great hero so freshly to the mind that we seem to stand on the deck of the Victory and see the battle and the fall. The mass of listeners on this night appeared transported beyond the bounds of reason, for they clamoured so wildly for a repetition of this trying piece that the singer found himself obliged to come forward and repeat the last verso after his long evening of exertion. His welcome was then uproarious , but never, to our thinking, was an encore more to be deprecated than on this occasion.” A woman named Elizabeth Becker recently sued the San Francisco Safe Deposit Company for lOOOdols., claimed to have been abstracted from one of the safes in the vault of defendant. The plaintiff claimed that she went to a bank and drew 4000d015., which she placed in a satchel, and took it immediately to the vault and placed it in a safe she had rented ; (hat Inter she found that lOOOdols of the 4000dols had been abstracted from (he safe. The defence caused 4000dols in gold coin to be brought from the Nevada Bank into Court, and an attempt was made to put’it in the satchel in which the plaintiff testified to having carried a corresponding amount to the vault, but it was found that the satchel would hold but 2800dols, or 1200do!s less than claimed. A verdict was immediately turned for defendants.

Yesterday being Boxing Day no sitting of the R.M. vxtui't was held Mr E. E, Gilbert, .of New Plymouth, pianoforte toner, nnnntmces that he will visit Patea about Thursday the 4th January, The Auckland Cop was won by Mr Pillrow’s Welcome Jack, Tim Whifler second, and the Poet third. Owing to the holidays Mr F. R. Jackson’s sale at Manaia has been postponed from the original date, December 29th, to January sth. Further entries will be received at the Hawcra office. The Patea Rifles will hold a Church Parade on Sunday next. The Corps will assemble at the Barracks at 10.30 a.m., in full dress and accompanied by the Band will march to the English Church, where they will be dismissed. Those who do not wish to go inside need not do so, but they will be expected to assemble at the churcli after the service. The warning given by Cr McCarthy at the last meeting of the Borough Council as to the danger of the bridge taking fire appears to have been given none too soon. At five o’clock on Thursday last as Mr F. Cowern was returning from the sale at Mr Derrctt’s ho noticed that a heap of dry rubbish lying on the side of the bridge was on fire. He dismounted, and after a good deal of trouble succeeded- in putting the flames out. From what we could gather, it appeared that the rubbish had been ignited by a match thrown down by a passer by, and bad it not been for the timely arrival of the gentleman in question the fire would have stood • a very good- chance of obtaining a strong,hold. It is needless to say that in such case during the recent dry weather the bridge would have gone to a certainty and that would have proved nothing short of a public calamity-. It would perhaps be as well if the Council were to tell off one of the daymen to sweep the planking during dry weather and so reduce' the jriak as much as possible. That it wants watching is beyond doubt, for we hear that on the previous Sunday tiie decking was on fire and was extinguished under similar circumstances (o the above.

The united picnic in connection with the Presbyterian, and Wesleyan Sunday Schools was held in the Domain yesterday afternoon, and was very successful. The tea was announced for four o’clock, but long before this hour the children with their parents and friends were pouring into the ground. The weather was all that could be desired, except for the wind which at times blew rather unpleasantly across the ground. The time before and after tea was spent in the games common to such gatherings, besides which there were races for hoys and girls, for which prizes • were freely contributed by the visitors. In one corner a swing was erected, and was constantly employed all through the day. When the gathering ultimately broke up about half past seven, after giving heart}' cheers for the Revs. A. Thomson and J. A. Lux ford, and the teachers, all separated apparently well satisfied with their day’s outing. Much of the success of the meeting can be attributed to the working committee which consisted of Messrs Aitchoson, Guy Hudson, Smail, Jones, and Gunn, with the lady teachers of both schools, and who carried out their work in an indefatigable manner. There was a great jollification at Waitotara on Christmas day.' The Maoris entertained the settlers to. the number of nearly 300 at dinner, and gave them a magnificent spread. Everything was cooked in first-class style and in English fashion, the natives acting the part of waiters with, an attention and celerity which showed that it was a pleasure to them. There were a number of speeches, and it is pleasant to record that the best wishes for prosperity and good fellowship were heartily expressed on both sides. The driver of a milk-cart, belonging to Mr Ings, of Tomahawk, had a narrow escape from death recently. Whilst driving on the Tomahawk road, which fringes a cliff about 200 ft high, overhanging the sea, his horse shied, and he had only just time to jump out of the cart when it—horse and contents —went over. Nothing more was seen of them, and the driver had to congratulate himself on his agility. —Otago Daily Times. New York at present possesses the largest Church organ in the world, containing 115 registers. This is to be exceeded by an organ for the Cathedral at Riga. It is being built by the firm of Walcker and Co., of Lwdwigsburg, near Stuttgart, who are also the builders of the famous Music-hall and First Church organs in Boston, Mass., and several others in various cities of the United States. This organ will be unique of its kind, and will be built with all the latest improvements. By a special arrangement, it will admit of being played, not only from either the lower or the upper gallery, but also by two organists at one and tbe same time, the upper pedals being worked by a gas motor,- while the lower pedals are worked by means of bellows. The instrument will cost 90,000 marks.