NEWS OF THE DAY.

South Canterbury Times, Issue 2593, 13 July 1881, Page 2

NEWS OF THE DAY.

It is rumoured that a reply to a recently published brochure, dealing with the land question will shortly make its appearance. This will be entitled “ How are we to get away from Here ?” Yesterday being the Twelfth of "July, a large number of the brethren of the Orange Institution, Lodge No. 13, met in the Barnard Street Hall. It was proposed and carried lhat the whole of the business in connection with the Lodge be proceeded with. The auditors’ report was brought up and received, and showed that the Lodge was in a flourishing condition. The report and decision of the Standing Committee were confirmed. The nomination of officers for the ensuing term was taken, and the Lodge adjourned, by invitation, to partake of the hospitality of the W .M.

The “ Illustrated New Zealand Herald ” of July 14, fully maintains its reputation. Three of the illustrations have reference to the wreck of the Tararua. The one on the front page is particularly noteworthy. It represents Captain Garrard, with the sailor’s child in his arms, clinging to the wreck. Underneath the picture are the following words, “ They were washed away one by one, till at last only one man, with a child in his arms, remained.” The other engravings include portraits of the two sons of the Prince of Wales. They are a long way better than the blotches which appeared in the “ Sketcher.” A man named Baker and Ah Ley, a Chinaman, have been arrested at Auckland for smuggling cigars ashore from the steamer Bowen.

A telegram from Blenheim states that the body found on the bank of the Waihapai river, on Sunday, has been discovered to be that of Charles Fleming, Mr Nicholson’s head shepherd. Mr William Montgomery, M.H.R., was unanimously re-elected Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Canterbury College. A return of imports, exports, and shipping has been laid on the table of the House. The total imports for 1880 were £6,062,011, duty on the same £1,258,361 ; and the total value of exports £6,532,692.

Even at “cradling,” according to an Otago paper, good wages are made by some miners, and the case of a man is instanced who was working on the western bank of the Molyneux about midway between Cromwell and Clyde, having lately struck a patch of lOOoz.

The Hokitika Borough Council, having received £ll7O for license fees (£VOoO of width was for 33 publicans’ licenses) has now money lying to its credit, after discharging all liabilities a position of affairs which has not been paralleled for 7 years past. From the higher parts of Oamaru one day recently, from sunrise till 10 o’clock, a very noticeable mirage is said to have been visible. An ocean-going steamer—probably the Botomahana —was seen at first very distinctly. On coming nearer to the actual horizon, only the intermittent volumes of smoke consequent upon coaling up were seen, rising like the jets from some newly-arisen volcano. As it was nearly 12 o’clock before the steamer could really be seen, there is no aouht that the phenomenon was the result of a mirage.

We have received a copy of the report for the year 1880 of the Education Board of South Canterbury. The bulk of the information it contains has already been published.

We desire to draw attention to an exceedingly dangerous practice which has become only to common of late and which will, if not speedily checked, certainly result in a serious accident. We allude to the practice of children going and returning from school by train, playing and sitting on the platforms and even on the steps of carriages while the train is in motion. The guards and other officials are constantly warning these foolhardy youngsters of the danger they are exposing themselves to, but they cannot be expected to be always watching the children, having their ordinary duties to attend to. The parents of the children should themselves caution them, before an accident occurs.

The best contribution yet made to the forthcoming work on the “ Curiosities of the Census ” is by Riverton, where (says the “ Western Star ”) a return has come to hand that shows unAr the heading of “ names and surnames ” the extraordinary cognomen of “ new house, brick chimble under that of “ relation to the head ot the household,” appears “ South Riverton ” ; whilst the age it. put down at the rather uncerlain standard of “ Three quarter acres.'’ The Christchurch City Council has resolved upon securing a chemical fireengine from America, that is if the public will subscribe a third of the cost. These engines have been found very effective in extinguishing fires in the United States. The following extract will give our readers some idea of the principle of the apparatus from the following extract:—“ Carbonic acid gas is heavier than air. Fire is supported by oxygen, and cannot burn a second without it. The contents of the Extinguisher—a liquid gas many times more dense than air—must shut off the supply of oxygen, and so at once smother the fire. Fire goes out instantly in an atmosphere containing five per cent of carbonic acid gas.” The cost of the machine is stated to be £IOSO.

Mr Horsley, a prison surgeon, writing in the “ Fortnightly Review,” “On Suicide,” gives some remarkable statistics as to the percentage traceable to drunkenness, Of 300 cases which came under his notice, 170 were traceable to drink, and 41 of the remaining 130 were unknown or doubtful. Of 28 cases of attempted suicide brought in one month to the prison he was connected with, only three cases were not apparently due directly or indirectly to intemperance.

The “ Otago Daily Times ” was enlarged on Monday. It now claims to be the largest penny paper in the Australian colonies. The Daneclin “Herald” announces that it also will be enlarged.

In Victoria the department of public instruction will cost £535,130 during the present financial year : and Mr Smith estimates that during 1881-82 the disbursements will reach £642,830, or between a fourth and a fifth of the total amount of the expenditure of the country.

In the last “Gazette” to hand it is notified that the Governor has been pleased to accept the resignation by Charles Hunter Brown, Esq,, of his appointment as a Justice of the Peace for the colony. A ball was given last night at Waimate under the auspices of the Orange Institution. A telegram states that it was a grand success. There were about fifty couples present, and dancing was kept up to between four and five o’clock this morning.

Forty-one applications have been received by the agents at Home for the mastership of the Canterbury School of Art, The Board of Governors expect to see the name of the appointed by the next mail, and it is hoped that the school will open at an early date.

Two bodies AA T ere picked up on the beach near the Avreck of the Tararua last week. These were mere portions of skeletons, Avithout clothing. There Ayas nothing to identify either, with the exception of a boot found on the foot of one of them.

The prospectus has been issued of the Money Wigram Steamship Company (Limited), with £1,000,000 capital, in £lO shares.

A correspondent in one of the Sydney papers writes —“ To show the value of revaccination is not the folloAving convincing? At the London Small-pox Hospital all the servants and nurses in actual contact with the patients have, for the last 30 years, been re-vaccinated. None have contracted the fell disease. A few years ago a number of workmen were engaged about the hospital. All were re-vaccinated but two, These two fell victims to smallpox, and one died.”