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Poverty Bay Standard, Volume X, Issue 1023, 14 January 1882, Page 2

The number of patients admitted to the Gisborne Hospital during the last month, were foil’’, three were discharged. Present number of inmates, seven Colonel Whitmore was a passenger by the Te Anau yesterday afternoon from Auckland and proceeded on to Napier by the same boat. He has but recently arrived from the old country. An attempt will, according to a Dunedin paper, be made to oblige the Government to postpone the sale of the three million of acres of Crown lands in Otago, to be offered in March, until after the new meeting of Parliament. The question of providing suitable accommodation tor patients suffering from fever came up for discussion at the last meeting of the Hospital Committee. A committee was appointed to take steps in the matter, and to invite the co-operation of the Board of Health, in the matter. There was not much business in the R.M’s Court yesterday. William Halford alias Gwen, was brought up charged with vagrancy and remanded until Monday next' Peter Sorry, for larceny, of about .£'lBo in money, and a lot of sheets, pillow slips. Ac., the property of Mr George White, was remanded until Wednesday next, bail being allowed the prisoner in £2OO, of two sureties of £lOO each,

A thatching-machine—the first of its kind in Hawke’s Bay—has just been introduced to the province by Messrs Knight, Bros., of Hastings and Clive. The straw is fed down a sloping board, and is rapidly turned out of the machine in the form of long mats, ready for thatching stacks. This is accomplished by double machinery on the same pricipie as a chain-stith sewing machine, the mats being stitched together by two rows of string, in much the same manner as the straw coverings of champagne-bottles are secured.

Owners of racehorses, and others, are reminded that nominations fur the following races, in connection with the Poverty Bay Turf Club annual meeting, are required to be sent in to the Secretary, Mr C. W. Farris, at the Masonic Hotel, this day Saturday, the 14th instant : —County Stakes Handicap ; Tradesmen’s Handicap ; Handicap Jluidle Race ; Publicans Purse Handicap and the Turanga Stakes Handicap. The weights for the above events will be declared on the 28th instant.

Professor Fraser, whose lectures on Phrenology have been well received by his audiences in the different parts of the Colony where he lias visited, and highly commended in the press, is about to visit Gisborne. From an advertisement in another column it will be seen that be will lecture in the Masonic Ha 1 on Tuesday and Thursday the 17th and 19th of January At the conclusion of each lecture the Professor will make a phrenological examination of the heads of any poisons present, who may so desire.

The J Battery Band played a few choice selections in front of the Government Buildings last Thursday evening. On account of the performance in the Academy of Music the time was limited from seven to eight. The members of the band are to be congratulated on a marked improvement., both in time and tune, and if they would only pay a little more attention to their P’s and F’s, the effect would be better, more especialy in the Fantasia “ Confidence,” which, with the above exception, was very well rendered. A gentleman, says the H. B. Herald, who has just returned from Gisborne informs us that the Poverty Bay Cricketers are highly incensed at the non-attendance of the Napier team at the match fixed to come off there. A ground was specially prepared, the '* privileges ” sold, and everything got ready, when, at the last minute, a telegram was sent, saying that a Napier team could not be got together. We certainly think that, failing some explanation, the Poverty Bay men have reasonable ground for complaint. The monthly meeting of the Hospital committee was held on Thursday evening last. There were present —Ven. Archdeacon Williams (in the chair,) Brown, Butt, Chrisp, McKay, and Dr Pollen. A discussion took place with respect to the Hospital Reserves. On the motion of Mr Butt it was resolved that sections 34 and 9(5 suburbs of Gisborne be vested in the Venerable Archdeacon Williams, D. Johnston, and llis Worship the Mayor. It was also resolved to make application to the Auckland Provincial Hospital for the transfer of section 24, Gisborne township. Rules fur the management of the private ward, and the conditions on which patients will be admitted were submitted by Captain Chrisp and passed with slight amendments. Mr Adair was appointed a member of the Hospital committee vice Dr Percy deceased. After some other business, accounts amounting to the sum of £4l 5s 8d were passed.

We have received a circular, kindly forwarded to us by a friend, issued by Messrs J. D. Wilkie and Co., of Dunedin, stating that they intend shortly to bring out a journal devoted to scientific matters of interest to New Zealanders. Its pages, so the circular states, will contain original contributions and notes on every branch of science. Papers on New Zealand subjects in foreign periodicals will, when of sufficient interest, be reprinted, and thus rendered accessible to the Colonial reader. Records of the researches being carried on by scientific workers, will, from tine to time, be published, as well as reports of meetings of the various Societies in the Colony. Mr Geo. IM. Thomson, F.L.S., will edit the new periodical. The first number will be issued this month, and will be a 48 page journal, issued bi-monthly. The subscription is ten shillings per annum, and the journal is intended solely in the interests of science. We notice it is further intended to publish the proceedings of the different branches of the New Zealand Institute throughout the Colony. As there are a few members of the Hawke’s Bay Philosophical Institute in this District, possibly, in the cause of science, they will see fit to snppurt the new prject.

It will be seen on reference to our advertising columns that a dividend of Is in the £ in the estate of Mr R. Kelly, will be pavable al the office of Mr (’. D. Berry, on and after Munday next, the 16th snst.

.Dr. J. B. Lawes, of England, says that, the potato possesses the property of converting a very much larger, portion of the manure ingredients of the soil into human food than any of the cereal grain crops. For instance, to every bushel of wheat-about lOOlbs of stiaw are grown, while the haulm of the potatoes when dry is so lig t that in experimenting we do not think it worth while to weigh it. Those properties when combined with a suitable climate, enable the cultivator to produce upon a given area of ground a larger a-mount of human food from the potato than from any of the cereal grain crops.

The treat to be given by the committee of the Gisborne School is advertised to take place on the Recreation Ground on Wednesday next, the 18th inst. The hon. secretary, Mr F. J. Piesse, and the members of the committee, have spared neither time nor money in doing all that can be done towards making the treat a thorough success. It will be observed that the Committee invite all the children attending’!hi* different public schools in the district to attend. No doubt there will he a good response to the invitation thus kindly issued. The attractions prepared for the young folk are extensive indeed, all sorts of recreation will be provided for them in the shape of the different outdoor games, ami during the afternoon a distribution of school prizes will take place. A delay has unavoidably occurred in distributing the prizes to the school children, owing we understand, to the chairman, Air D. Johnston Jun., in the firstinstance having been engaged as Returning Officer, and latterly, we regret to learn, prostrate with illness. Mr DeLantour has kindly consented to dist riibube the prizes to the success!ul compelitors.

Philip .John Murtagh, owner of the racehorse Angler, sends us, H. B. Herald, a long letter relative to bis disqualification by the Raring Club. The letter, as it stands, is libellous, and so we are unable to insert it, but the effect of it is as follows : —Murtagh states that on the Pakowhai course he was offered £l5 to lose the hurdle race. He refused saying he was going to run his horse to win, but, us a joke, added, '“ You know what the Irishman said, ‘ I never take a bribe before my face, but if you have anything to give away you can stuff it down here.’ at the same time showing his trousers pocket, He said this as he thought the offer was made in jest, or to test him. To his surprise, however, the money was stuffed into his pocket, and the person who did so left. His (Murtagh’s) first impulse was to return it, but on second thoughts he determined to keep it, “ to t each the man a lesson.” II won the race, after a dead heat with A.G., and immediately aft*>r the dead heat, told the stewards of the attempt which had been made to bribe him. He offered to give them the money, though be did not tender the actual cash, as he bad given it to his brother-in-law to hold, be having no pocket in his riding-breeches. Murtagh also refers to the prize-money being withheld from his horse Tim Whiffier, on the ground that it had previously won an advertised race, contrary to the conditions. He states that, to his knowledge, Tim Whiffier never won such a race.

At the presentation of prizes to the pupils of the Auckland High School last week, the Rev. Mr Bruce, who occupied the position of Latin master, gave a. valedictory address to his pupils prior to his leaving for his editorial post in Wellington. In the course of his remarks the “ dorninie” referred to the pleasant, relations subsisting between him and the students of his class, and the mutual kindness and forbearance which they exercised. One of the boys, in a very audible “ aside,” here asked—What about the stick ?” The rev. gentleman admitted that he kept a stick as a assistant teacher, but he never used it oftener than it, was ahtmlutcly neccessary. The boy still tittered, however, the reason being that there was a lively little juke underlying the, question, which the Scottish champion failed to see. Jt appeals that he had been in the habit of using rhe cane rather oftener than the boys thought “absolutely necessary,” and some of the youthful colonials resolved to b.» revenged on the descendant of the conqueror of Bannockburn. They secretly secured all the sticks in the loom, and cut each of them nearly through in several places, carefully concealing the incisions made, and placed the instruments of correction in handy positions. It was not long before the master found it “absolutely necessary” to“ go for ” one of his pupils and it was glorious fun to see the stick fly to pieces as it descended harmlessly upon the offender’s shoulders. The Bruce, nothing daunted, rushed for another cane, and it was better than a circus to watch him as each successive stick broke in similar fashion to the first, without hurting the culprit. The boys openly shrieked with delight at the master’s discomfiture, and they evidently treasure up the memory of the achievement as one of their most triumphant tricks.—Auckland Observer,