NEWS OF THE DAY.

South Canterbury Times, Volume XV, Issue 2070, 10 November 1879, Page 2

NEWS OF THE DAY.

The Banks were closed during to’day. They will bo closed from noon to*morrow. Mr K. B. Walcot has been elected District Deputy of the looi-il Good Templar fraternity. ihe annual picnic of the St Mary’s Church choir took place to-day at the Mount Horrible bush. a scratch ma'ch between the members of the Timarn Cricket Club took place to-day on the T. A. A.O.’s grounds. The foundation stone of the new Homan Catholic Church Tomuka will ho la'd on Sunday next by His Lordship Bishop Redwood.

The match between the Chime and B inchester Cricket Clubs took place this afternoon at the Saltwater Creek,

Bro J. R. Johns has been elected as j Grand Lodge Representative pf the district ! by the local Templar body- : A-supper in eoiinectmn with the Athletic Club’s sports, will take place at 7.3o.o'clock;' in the Queen’s Hall, thD evening. The South Orari School Committee will hold an ordinary monthly meeting on Saturday next. ; Messrs Foster’s „ tender v for the work requisite in’ the Qemetery has been accepted. There were seventeen other tenders. .

The ordinary monthly meeting of the Levels Road Board will be held to-morrow at 11 am., in the Board’s offices, Main North road. . ...

The members of tha Timaru Harb r Board will hold a special meeting at noon on Wednesday next at which tenders for the additions to the present mole will be opened and considered. The contractors entrusted with the erection of the Timaru High School are progressing very satisfactorily and it is expected the plasterers and finishers will be at work within three weeks. .

Ihe man Doyle, arrested on Thursday, charged with the forgery of a cheque and with uttering the same, will be brought be" fore the Resident Magistrate to-morrow. The accused admitted the offence when arrested by Const>ble Sullivan. The Chistchurch Metropolitan 'face Meeting will bo opened to morrow in the racecourse, Kiccarton, and will be continned on ■ hursday and Friday. The intervening day, Wednesday, will be devoted to the Canterbury. Agricultural and Pastoral Association’s Show.

Had a new Ministry been formed under the Macandrevv’s auspices, it appears that the office of Treasurer was reserved for Mr Ballauce. Sir George Grey may therefore be thankful to the present Premier aud the Auckland quartette for having escaped an additional indignity.

The Wesleyan Sunday School scholars hold their annual picnic in Mr H. Cain’s paddock (kindly lent for the occasion) to day The felt was numerously attended and -.fun in no single instance permitted to Hag. ’

Wc would aga : n remind our readers of the entertainment to be given this evening , under the management of Mr Juncker at the Theatre Royal. The theatrical performances inaugurated by this gentlemen in .Timaru, have always hitherto been signal successes, and, as the performance contains the names of several old local favorites, we have no doubt this will be similar to its predecessors. W e would add that Mr Juncker has provided an additional attraction in the form of a gift distdbution, the list of prizes in the including several va uable presents. Mr Blackwell, who for upwards of two years has held the position of foreman in the composing room of the “Mail” office, being about to take his departure to assume charge of the “Sooth Cantbkbuky Times at Timaru, was last evening presented with a testimonial by his fedow comps, and associates. The presentation took the form of a complimentry address in which the utmost appreciation of Mr Blackwell’s good - fellowship, uniform courtesy, and estimable qualities were suitabely expressed, together with a valu able dictionary, to be preserved as a memento of the esteem in which he is held by those with whom he has been associated. —“Ashburton Mail,” Nov, 8A kia, a bird with which people are nob generally famhiar, has been shown to us (says the “ Southland News”). It is re' markable for it remarkable instinct, which prompts it to settle on the back of a sheep —generally a healthy one—and remain there till the animal becomes exhausted, when it picks a hole in the back of its prey and eats the fab on the kidneys. It is common in most hilly country, and in some places a good number of sheep have been destroyed by it. It bears a strong re' semblance in size and shape to a kaka, but its beak is much larger and its colour dif' ferut, the wings being of the same hue as a blue mountain .duck. A reward is offered for them by some sheep farmer j. The following is the manner in which the ‘- Free Lance ” groans at the smartness of the 'telegraph Department;—Of late several very smar, feats of telegraphy have been chronicled by the colonial press, which never misses an opportunity to puff this pet institution. We have another in' stance to record of the zealous activity displayed by. the Auckland branch of the de. partment. a message left Wellington at G pm. on Friday last and arrived ac Auckland at. 7 p.m. the same night, and reached our office shortly after nine o cloek, just in time to get into our second editi n. Jhe distance between the To egraph Office a d ours is just 100 yards. There ins t a lele graph man daring enough to come aud coffect the money . . Pecuniary inducements have been held out io the woman Kllen Tremaye, alias De Lacy Fvans, from two different sources, to permit herself to be publicly exhibited. A day or two ago (saysthe - ‘Bendigo Advertiser’) a letter, addresed privately to Tremaye, was forwarded through the post office to the Bendigo Hospital, from a per* son at riaudhurss which contained an offer of a salary of £3 10s per week for a public I exhibition of fivehout-s daily; t'hepatient received the communication without ovine* ing much concern, a letter has been for warded io the board of management •> from Sydney, in which an offer of a similar nature is made to t vans at £3 a week. The communication cannot be dealt with until th i monthly meeting of the Committee which takes place on November I*2. The woman continues to improve in health, but has not yet recovered her reason. With the hospital author! ies she converses rationally enough at times, but has a do cidcd aversion to being interviewed by any strangers before whom she is gone-rally mute. It seems hardly probable that she will allow herself to bo publicly exhi .ited. The following singular case came before the l hames resident magistrate, and is thus reported in the “ Advertiser”:—“ alcxan* dor Wilson was charged by Klizaboth Birdwood that he did neglect to e.ntribute toward the support of his illegitimate child in accordance with an order of the Court. Defendant admitted iho liability, but said lie had no money. Ho had boon working for Keur, wco shot himself, aud had not been paid his wages. Ho had a wife and 5 children. Co . plainant deposed that Wilson was 5 weeks in arrears ilis Worship said it would be no use scuffing the ffefoii* dant to prison as Ids wife and family would suffer, and Mrs Birdwood would receive no benefit. For three years he had complied wi h the order aud would no doubt hive con i ued to do so had he boon in receipt of his wages regularly. The case would ho adjourned for a mou h, to give the defendant time lo pay up the arrears ; but if ho was unable lo do so by that time, ho could come before the court aud ask it to cancel the order or amend it, so that the woman would have to contribute towards the support of the child.”