LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Poverty Bay Standard, Volume I, Issue 314, 25 December 1884, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The Christmas season has returned once more, and with it, wo hope, will come : period of festivity to our readers, to whom ve heartily wish the compliments of th ;eason. Outwardly, perhaps, there is no •hat air of jollity that at other times hav been observable when old Father Christina nut in an appearance. Possibly the subdue vir on the faces of many may be traceable to ..commercial causes. Be that as it may, b lull care be gone, and nothing mar the pear and good will that should now preva. towards all men. Many pleasant gathering ire on the tapis ; picnic and boating partie are in course of organisation at Waimata another parts of the district. Altogether a pleasant time is looked forward to. The wharf store is advertised to let. The Waerenga-a-hika races take place tomorrow. The Pakirikiri ferry service will be discontinued after January Ist. Eru Tokara notifies that he has found s basket of sea-weed on the beach. A narrow escape from fire occurred on Monday night in Gladstone Road. Mr. F. J. Piesse has been appointed Returning Officer under the Gisborne Harbm Act. Episcopalian services will be conducted by the Rev. J. E. Fux on .Sunday at Pututahi andTeAiai. In order to give our employees a holiday to-morrow (Boxing Day) there will be no issue of this journal on Saturday. At the last meeting of the Harbor Board Mr. Kenny referred to the election clauses < i the new Harbor Bill as being drawn in a very silly manner. A cricket match, Matawhero Club v. Matawhero Draught Horses, will be played tolay. To-morrow a match between Gisborne Boys and Te Hapera will be played. At a meeting of the Waimata Road Board on Tuesday evening five tenders were receive. Inr clearing ths scrub off the streets in Not th Gisborne. Talbot’s tender was accepted. In the R. M. Court on Tuesday judgment was given for the plaintiffs in the following cases;—Cooper v. Newton, £1 7s; Tictjen v. J. Mcßride, £ll 16s; Sperry v. John Brown, 17s 9d; Common and Co. v. A. Touhy, £5O The case Ward v. Potnari, claim £l2 on a judgment summons, was adjourned until tin 20th January. Yesterday morning John McCauley and a Chinaman named Louis were charged with furious riding, and fined £1 Pttch and costs. J. Heaphy, for drunkenness, was fined 10s.

The County Council elections at Reefton for the ridings of Reefton, Urushington, and Murray, were ruled recently by the ioea magistiate as invalid. It appeared in evidence that the whole of the returning officers had received printed instructions from the Council not to allow others than those on the roll to vote, and to refuse to put to voters the residential question prescribed by the Counties Act Amendment and Local Elections Act. Full costs were allowed to the petitioners.

The Christmas tree and sale of fancy goods, the proceeds of which are to go toward.buildmg and furnishing a parsonage in connection with the Wesleyan Church, was held in Macfarlane’s Hall on Tuesday, and proved an unqualified success. The Bull was gaily decorated with bunting and evergreens, and the stalls were well arranged, leaving ample room in the centre for promenading. The low price at which the various articles wei’e offered for sale was the subject of general comment, and the usual “ shilling-a-dip ” business was conspicuous by its absence. The enliie arrangements reiiectci the greatest credit on all concerned. The proceedings during the evening were enlivened by the J Battery Band and Macfarlane family. An amusing case is reported in the Wanganui papers. An ex-M.H.R. for the town lias a brother-in-law who sold a pig to a butcher for 20s. The ex-M.H.R. and his orother-in-law waited upon the butcher a week afterwards and accused him of having bought the animal of the latter whilst under the influence of liquor. The butcher indignantly denied the accusation, an altercation ensued, the ex-M.H.R. called the butcher a liar, a swindler, and a scoundrel, and struck him in the face with his fist, whereupon the butcher returned the blow and ejected the other parties from the shop. The ex-legis-lator charged the batcher with assault ai.d battery, but the evidence was overwhelmingly in favor of the latter, and the case was dismissed with costs.