NEWS OF THE DAY.

South Canterbury Times, Issue 2565, 10 June 1881, Page 2

NEWS OF THE DAY .

A Wellington correspondent of a contemporary states that, the Opposition members are very jubilant at Mr Richmond's defeat, and count positively on .securing Mr Levc.stam’s vote, as also that of Mr Weston, who it is believed js eeriqin to beat Mr Fitzgerald for Grey Valley. It is rumoured ILat. if the Opposili n find they can safely ton at on these two v„tes they will unite on some more definite aggressive steps than are otherwise contemplated.

The unemployed met at Mr Moss Jonas’ salerooms this morning. A procession, numbering abbiit 150, was formed, and marched up the'main street, passed the .Supreme. ■ iCqurjt buildings, and down Barnard :; street to the Borough Council they-met .the Mayor and Messrs Turnbull and Archer. Mr March, the government Immigration Agent, was also, present. On the presentation of a list of the names of over 200 men out of work, His Worship said that immediately on Mr Calcott’s arrival work would be found forf all. .Three cheers were, then given- for the and Mr Turnbull, Thep recession then returned to the saleroom, when three cheers were given for Mr -Jonas, for kindly placing the room at their disposal in such inclement weather. It is understood that work will be afforded on the Albury line. About 100 single men signed their names as willing to proceed to the Waikato. The rate of wages was not mentioned, The unemployed will meet again tO-morrow morning, at .10 o’clock,.

After tha transaction of some formal yesterday, Parliament adjourned itill to-day half-past two p.m, Mr Collins will move the address in reply to his excellency’s speech; : Our readers are reminded of the service of‘song ” ,Eva,” which'takes place to-night atihe? Oddfellows’ Hall, Barnard street, at eight o’clock. Miss Lydia Howarde and her clever company will fe-appear at the Theatre Royal this evening. Since their last visit they have been playing Pinafore,” and with this favorite burlesque opera they open to-night.. As we have not seen " Pinafore ” •played here, at least by an adult .troupe, for a very long time, the performance will doubtless be well patronised. On Saturday and Monday nights there will .be a change of programme. At a Committee meeting, of the Timaru Mechanics’ Institute held last evening fifteen'applications were opened and read for the post of Secretary and' Librarian, rendered vacant by the resignation of Mr Henry S.. Winter. The balloting resulted in the election of Mr H, T. Readc, who was acting as Secretary and Librarian of the Institute, prior to the appointment of Mr Winter. - r • One of the latest dramatic successes in London is the new comedy called “ Where is the Cat. “ Where is the ,Cat ?” has consequently passed, into a slang saying. : Here in Timaru pe'oplo arc beginning to enquire not where is the cat, but “ Where is'the Clock ?” our four-dial time piece destined to adorn the tower of the new Government Buildings though long promised, is not yet to hand, and there is no word of it.

The quarterly sitting of the Licensing Court for the Waimatc and Waitaki districts, was held yesterday. Ihe police reported favorably on the various houses. J. J. Daily applied for a renewal of the license of the Masonic Hotel, St. Andrews, and W. F. Brown applied for a licence for the same house. Ihe evidence went to show that negotiations for the house changing hands had been going on for some time, and that Mr Daily, the present licensee, had agreed to hand over the business to Mr Brown on July 1, having received £lO from him on account. Subsequently Mr Daily changed his mind, and applied for a renewal of his license with the intention of keeping on the house himself. The Bench reserved decision until June 2:5.

Wo have received from Messrs Shepherd and Co., of the Darling Nursery, Sydney, their “ Illustrated Descriptive Novelty List for 1881.” It is a publication well worthy the attention of nurserymen and amateur gardeners. At the meeting of the Waitnea Plains Railway Company held at. Dunedin on Monday last, the Chairman pointed out that the Waimea Plains railway had been constructed in the interests of the city of Dunedin, more so than even of the country districts, and the citizens ought to remember that fact.

. A well-known Dunedin sportsman (the “ Times ” says) paid the Tuapeka district a visit last week. He was successful in bagging no less than twenty-five cock pheasants. He visited Mr M’Comb’s land adjoining Bellamy’s run, where game is reported plentiful. ■ Relative to meat-freezing the “Melbourne Argus ” advises that the object felcadiiyiJjcpt in view-should be ter make Australian carcasses worth as much, or nearly as much, to English butchers as produced at Home. On this depends a progressive increase in the value of Australian grazing-grounds, and therefore it maybe- said that • untold millions are involved in placing Australian Jcgs and loins, chops and steaks,- rounds, i;ibs, t and sirloins, in an appetising condition before the searching gaze of The average British . ; ;'.Ycbterdayjs;'.“ Southland Times” says:— For some time the Customs have suspected that smuggling; was carried on in connection with the Melbourne steamers, and on the arrival of the- Rotomahana a search was made in the store room, of the fore--cabin, steward, in which were found some 311 b of tobacco and three boxes of cigars, for the possession of which the owner (Those Davis) could give no reasonable excuse. As the goods mentioned did not appear on the ship’s papers, the Collector at Invercargill ordered them to be seized. . An experimental shipment of Australian grapes was made to Ceylon. Thefru.t was packpd in “..nice clean sawdust,”, and the voy age from Adelaide to Colombo occupied 25 days, but not a.-single berry showed the slightest sign of injury or decay. Superlatives are resorted to,in order to describe the perfect condition in which the fruit had arrived and its deliciousness.

Some one stowed away a bottle of brandy behind the grate in the dining-room of the Palace Hotel, Christchurch, and yesterday, when the occupants were at their dinner, the liquor blew up with a loud report. Burning coals were scattered over the room, and the blazing spirit was forced through the crevices of the mantelpiece and in all directions. Luckily most of its force went up the chimney, and though two or three people were sitting within a foot or two of the fireplace they escaped uninjured.

It is said that Mr Parnell's marriage to an Am lady will take place shortly.

The “ Berlin Post,” criticising the projected new British army reforms, says that they will cause a degeneration of the once famous British infantry. " - At the R.M. Court, this morning, Wm; Blake, charged with stealing capers, knife polish, &c., from the scene of the fire last last night, was remanded till Wednesday, next. Wm. Brown, on a charge of larceny, was remanded to the 17th inst. at Temuka. Messrs Wildie, Allan, and Stumble’s sale of sheep at the Washdyke, has been postponed until Wednesday nex.