NEWS OF THE DAY.

Patea Mail, Volume VIII, Issue 995, 9 February 1883, Page 2

NEWS OF THE DAY.

The regular meeting of the County Council having lapsed through want of a quorum, the Council will meet on Friday next. The Government bonus to the Patea Institute will amount to about £3O. The police require an owner for a family bible in good preservation, found in the river on Wednesday. At the request of counsel, judgment in the action brought by the Waverley Road Board against Mitchisou, hotelkeeper, has been deferred until Friday next. This is to give the County Council an opportunity of settling the matter out of Court. A Blenheim publican who was summoned for employing a girl in his bar after prohibited hours pleaded that she was his adopted daughter and was not paid any wages. The case was dismissed. While the-Hon. Mr Diet was in Napier he was driven round the town to the Spit by the Mayor, who pointed out the urgent wants of the town. Mr Dick made copious notes, and s?id he would lay the various matters before the Cabinet at its next meeting. As nothing was done the Mayor wrote to Mr Dick reminding him of the notes be had made. The Herald now learns “ in a roundabout way” that Mr Dick has “ lost his notes !” Mr Stewart, of Canterbury, a passenger by the steamer Tarawera, brings with him five Southdown rams and two ewes, together with a valuable shorthorn bull. The whole of the animals are from the Sandringham herd of his Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, A “ young women’s home ” has been opened in Christchurch, It is designed to provide young women engaged in earning their own livelihood, and who are compelled to live apart from their parents, with the comforts and quietude of home life. Applicants for admission must obtain a recommendation from one of the, Ladies’ Committee. The charge made for board and lodging is from 12s 6d to £L per week. The Committee are Mesdames Justice Johnston (president), Inglis, Newton, and Lewis.

The Oamaru Harbour Board has resolved to borrow £50,000 upon the security of the general revenue of the Board for the completion of breakwater and mole.

The Dowager Duchess of Galliera not long since bestowed two splendid estates on the Pope. The way tin's old lady became so rich is curious. The late Duke possessed a fortune of 300,000,000, which would in ordinary course of devolution, go to his only son. The heir, however, in his lifetime, declared that he intended to renounce the world. Ho Avent, in his twentieth year, into the territory of Nice and applied for a situation as a village schoolmaster. His father regarded the thing as a mere freak, and sent his son every year 300,000 francs. The young man, however, sent this sum every year to Paris, requesting it should be expended on the poor. After three years the Minister of Instruction, finding out who the schoolmaster at Nice Avas, appointed him to a high official post, and his father dying about that lime, he became the Duke of Galliera and OAvner of immense Avealth. He declined the post, and allowed his mother to use the fortune Avithout interference, content Avith his position as .a teacher at Nice.

The R.M. Court proceedings to-day, bad most concern for Waverley residents, Patrick McGrath brought an action on three separate grounds against Samuel Lever—first, £5 for trespass by pigs and £4 10s for potatoes destroyed by them ; second, £2 for trespass of cattle and £1 2s 6d for damage done by the cattle to a boundary fence ; three, £lO for seizure by defendant of a bull and cow, and £8 for injuries to the cow by making her leap a fence when in calf. The bearing was adjourned until Tuesday, owing to a defect in copy of particulars. In the other case Ellen Dempsey sued for and obtained a protection order against her husband, Cornelius Dempsey, of Waverley, on the ground of cruelty.

Mr Milner Stephen, the miraculous curer, in giving an exhibition of Ids healing powers in Wellington on Saturday afternoon, repudiated the charge that he bad been making large sums of money out of the public. In point of fact ho had been obliged to borrow money to come to Ibis colony, and very often ho bad not made £lO per week. In very many instances when be bad found out tbo poor circumstances of some of bis patients, he bad returned the fees they bad paid, and even out of bis own purse had contributed to the relief of their necessities. He road some letters testifying to recent cures be bad effected, but said the writers did not wish their names made public. In one letter the lady writer said the possession of a portrait of Mr Milner Stephen bad a most beneficial effect, tbo mere gazing on it giving relief to her pains. A melancholy case, showing how a land, lord lias been reduced to a state of destitution owing to his tenants not paying tlioir vent, recently came before Judge Ormsby in the Land Court in Dublin. The circumstances transpired on an application by Mr Croskerry for the assignees in bank, ruptcy to carry out the sale of the estate of Mr William Goggin, in the County Limerick. Mr Goggin said he was the owner, and was in the greatest destitution, consequent on the tenants not having paid their rents. Unless he got an allowance pending the sale he must enter the workhouse, where the Knight of Glen, who was joint owner, was chairman of the Board. The vice-chairman had been formerly the applicant’s laud agent, and the deputy vice-chairman was one of his tenants. Judge Ormsby asked was there a chance of anything coining to the owner after the sale. Mr Hogan, who had charge of the sale, thought there might be a residue, and they would, under the circumstances, be willing to advance a small sum, but already various sums had been advanced to enable this owner’s family to live without-getting security Mr Goggin said there was a siim of £ll3 in the receiver’s hand. He had tried to get employment without success, and a grant of £lO would keep him a long time. Mr Croskerry and Mr Hogan would consult at once to see whether an advance could be made. The Auckland Star of a recent date says:—“An Auckland young man, who went on board the barque Famenoth on her arrival to look for her sister, made a sad mistake, which however, fortunately, ended with no very disastrous results. The story, as told by an elderly lady, was somewhat as follows : “You know we had just arrived, and a young man came over the ship’s side and asked for Miss —, and somebody evidently mistaking the name, pointed to me. Then the young man came up, and after saying something about being awful glad to see his dear sister, whom he had not seen for seventeen years, threw his arms round my neck, and gave me two hearty kisses. Of course I did not respond , for although I expected my brother, ! knew that was not he ; and so I explained that he must have made some mistake, and that I was Mrs .’ Then he blushed and hoped there was no offence. I said, ‘ Oh, none whatever,’ and he went away, found his sister, and greeted her cordially.”

We learn from the Manawatu Herald that Tawhiao made the following, speech at Foxton, at the banquet given in his honour “lam a stranger in this land. With reference to what has been said about me, I can say it is owing to the goodness of Europeans that I am now here. The Queen is first, and then I follow. We are now one. From Rauparaha, Eangihaeta, and the other great chiefs down to Potatau all now gone, I am the representative, and now stand here. As the representative of all those great chiefs gone I wish unity between the people. (Immense cheering.) No matter where I am, whether in any of the four quarters of the globe, I still have the same opinion of the white people, and desire to live at peace with them. (Great cheering.) The principal reason for my visit here is to see the natives of the island, and also to see the Europeans. I have now seen the chiefs of the distiict, and also the Europeans, and am much pleased with my visit to Manawatu, . Had I not not been well received, I should have gone away sooner, but I am not now in a hurry to leave. I am very pleased with the Europeans, and also with myself for having come amongst you. I wish my relations all here to understand that I do not go further south, but go back north from Motuiti. I return from here, and will make no trouble throughout the country. I have been to the principal parts of New Zealand, and now come to the tail-end of it. I want you to all know I am chief of the Maoris. You may not all like to hear that, but that is my boast. My heart is very much pleased.” (Great cheers.)

A special mission is to be sent to Japan by order of the French Minister of ' Agriculture to study the cultivation of the vine. In Japan the vine grows almost up to the region of snow, and it is hoped that the Japanese [plant would flourish in France.

Our usual week’ys upplemcnt is issued to-day, and will be, found to contain many objects of interest. The recent metallurgical discovery noticed in the London Telegraph , threatens to revolutionise the economy of the world. The Hording Post thus deals with the possibilities involved in the discovery : “ It is said that aluminium bronze can be used for cannon. If an aluminium piece of equal, or anything like equal, size be as strong as one of steel, it would be possible to'reduce by more than o.ne-half the weight'of all our artilloiy, and possible, consequently, to bring into the field pieces of twice the calibre now employed, and capable of throwing shot many times as heavy. It would obviously be possible to construct armoured ships of something like (hj rice their present strength without increasing their weight. Aluminium indeed might very speedily supersede iron for shipbuilding purposes, even although its price should bo considerably greater. It would, we believe, require no sheathing, and would not affect the compasses as iron inevitably does. Aluminium wires of one-third the weight would bear the same strain as wires of iron. Aluminium carriages might be made cheaper than wood ; aluminium bicycles would certainly be the delight of athletes ; aluminium boats and

oars may, before many years are past, be common sights on our lakes and rivers. The present canoe is a graceful and beautiful object; a canoe made of aluminium would be a thing of beaufy indeed, as well as of use. We may live to see locomotives shining brightly as silver, and dragging a train of silvery carriages after them at about half of the present cost pen train-mile run, seeing how greatly (he dead weight might he reduced, Aluraii£iujin tables, chairs, picture frames, furniture, of all kinds, would bo not merely light and convenient, but, if devised with anything like aesthetic taste, exceedingly beautiful.”

The vino harvest of Tuscany is extremely large this year. Growers, from its abundance, are selling all the old wine they can at any price, fearing they will not have barrels enough to hold the new. The Wellington Times of Wednesday '■says : —Some three or four hundred men, women and children assembled opposite the main entrance to the Law Courts at 7 o’clock yesterday evening. It had been publicly notified that Lieutenant Meredith, of the Salvation Arm}', had arrived, and that it was his intention to enrol recruits. Among those present were several prominent members of the Yqung Men’s Christian Association and other religious bodies, who were apparently prepared to take an active interest in the proceedings. They, however, quietly withdrew after vainly waiting for fully half an hour. By this time the larrikin element was becoming predominant. To carry on the fun which the waggish convener of the meeting had no doubt contemplated, an illiterate person, who probably considered himself a fluent speaker, procured a chair, and, having mounted it, informed those present that he was prepared to enrol any number of recruits, and that he represented a certain wholesale vendor of beer. This latter announcement was received with cries of “ Why didn’t you bring a cask ?” About half an hour was taken up with sally and repartee. The possessor of the chair then attempted to retire, carrying that article over hia head. He was, however, seized by fully a dozen hands, and, finding (hat discretion was the better part of valor, he once more mounted his platform, and attempted to bandy jokes with the crowd. In this, however, he almost invariably got the worst. The agent of Heywood’s Comedy Company improved the occasion by distributing a number of handbills, and an erroneous impression thus got abroad that the meeting had been called at his instigation. When the crowd tired of the fun, the self-appointed chairman succeeded in making his way to the nearest hotel, his former audience following him to the door of the establishment, indulging in frequent hoots and yells on the way. Those who came to assist in the formation of a salvation army were probably little prepared for the exhibition to which they were treated.