Te Aroha AND Ohinemuri News THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 1898. “A STUDY ” BY SARAH GRAND.

Te Aroha News, Volume XIV, Issue 2077, 10 February 1898, Page 2

Te Aroha AND Ohinemuri News THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 1898. “A STUDY ” BY SARAH GRAND.

In another part of : this issue we give a few partieulars about Madame Sarah,Grand, the publication of whose “ Beth Book ” created such a sensation .iu literary circles at Home recently. 'The- J consensus of opinion among critics is that no more charming creation occurs in modern fiction than" her .heroine Beth. Stead calls her a “darling girl,” and declares that if we .do not have a sequel with some promise of a resurrection of the real Beth that he will nit easily forgive Sarah Graud. The st ry is a singularly powerful and extraordinary clever one of the sacrifice of a daughter to- the whims and prejudices, the weakness and selfishness, of her mother.. When an inex-perienced-boy or,girl persists in defying a parents’ -warnings, punishment follows very often as a matter of course. There is no need for a novelist to'point the moral. On the other hand, as the writer in the Review ’of [Reviews ’ indicates mothers anxious to marry their daughters off are often able to ignore the disastrous* consequences of thenselfish folly. As Mr-Stead observes, ' “ The girl is settled and done-for; the mother has no further responsibility ; her. daughter is off her hand's A Sarah Grand has set up her pillory .for the punishment of the sacrificial .parent and the avenging of the sacrificed daughter. Tfie method of “The Beth Book ”, iswsubtle in its simplicity. We are presented with a charming picture of the growth of a girl’s soul. Then a time comes and the girl goes at her mother’s bidding, almost unresisting to the altar. Thence forth the bright, beautiful, wayward creature lives a horrible living sacrifice of torture aud degradation prolonged day and night, year .after year. Beth, who is in the languageof an enthusiast, such a ‘ darling, with whom every ope -fallfi-ln love’ is married to ‘ a cad and a debauchee.’ TheTeaThorror~of-srrctr

a marriage for a high strung, nervous imaginative girl can only be hinted at. To Colonial girls with their habits of independence and early acquired self reliance, such a story of a ruine 1 lift - as the history of Elizabeth Cadvrell presents probably wears the appearance of a grim, if not repulsive, joke. Her mother may be a photograph from life —although it is to be hoped the original was not quite so ready with her fists as Beth’s mother. Two things our observation, during a somewhat varied colonial experience, however, leads us to believe, namely* not onecolonial girl in a thousand would allow herself to be ‘ put upon ’ by her mother as poor Beth was, and again, even if the husband of herehoite turned out such a brute as Dr Maelure, the chances are exceedingly in favour of that resolute type of y ung woman hood doing something to vindicate her position in the household ; and failing that taking an even more decisive step and opening a Berlin Wool Shop ‘on her own.’or something that would pan put equally dreadful in the eyes of a convctly brought up young English maiden And few, very few, ai'e the Colonial girls ‘ afflic'ed’ like poor Beth ‘ with an inability to speak at critical times,’ although there are some, and what ruin they make of their ownlivos and others !

Tomorrow the Warden’s Court will sit at the usual hour.

Sir Win. McGregor will probably succeed Viscount Gonnanstoii as Governor of Tasmania.

The Roman Catholic Bishop, DiLenihrn, will be in Te Arolia next Sunday week, February 27tli

■ Nominations for the Hurdles, etc. for the Te Aroha Jocley Club races close on Tuesday next, the 15th.

Contractors are reminded that the tender for deepening the drain at St.ange’s Belle Vue Farm are returnable not later than 5 o’clock at the News office. The tenders; called for erecting a six room house at Gordon Settlement (labour only) by Mr Pavitt, close at 5 o’clock on Saturday evening. t None of the ten levs for repairs of tho Canadian bridge were accepted ; nor were the tenders for repairs of breaks in the County tramway move successful, all being in excess of the Engineer’s estimate. - The foundation stone of a new Presbytertian Church was, laid at the Thames, last Saturday afternoon. There were present many representative Presbyterians, and the Rev. J. Mackenzie, M.A., presided. • / On Saturday Messrs Mackay and Pratt will hold a sale of the furniture andeffects in Mr Wilkinsoh’s house, at Terminus Street, on River Bank. The furniture is of a solid substantial, homely class, and should doubtless command a ready sale. The sale will commense at 11 o’clock.

The Dorothy Quadrille Club give their opening dance on Thursday week at the Public Hall, as will be seen from an advert tisement in another column. This promises to be a very successful affair. Mr P. F. Timmins, the well-known juuior footballer, is the secretary, we observe.

The following tenders were received on Saturdiy by Mr Pavitt for the erection of Mrs Cornea’ house:—J. West,. £lB2 6s; JJackson, £163 16s 6d : Sutton and Sons, £169. ; J. McCord’, £l4B 16s ; Potterton and Bygrace, £154 i W. Maclde, £178; Kemp and McLeod, £165 ; Searle and Co., £164 55., M'Cord’s tender Was accepted.

It is stated that the rare native birds now protected on the Little Barrier reserve, are doing well. The present season is said to have been very favourable for nesting. The wild cats, which were formerly so destructive to the birds, have begn exterminated. The latest newspapers from Victoria contain most sensational accounts of the bush fires which wei-e at the beginning of the month devastating tho country. Hundreds of settlers have been rendered homeless, a tremendous amount of property has been destroyed, thousands of animals have been roa3te 1, and for days the shipping was practically at a standstill. A funny story is told in the Tennyson Memoir of Sir Joseph Banks and his omnivorousness. Sir ..Joseph bad dined with Tennyson’s father, and they were at table when the former , said : ‘ I>r Tennyson, I have tasted almost everything in my life, animal and vegetable, but there was only one thing that turned my stomach, and that was a boiled bug.’ The extraordinary high proportion that casualties among officers bear to those among the rank and file during this year’s campaigns, and more especially in the Tirah expedition, has attracted apparently as much attention in the ranks as it lias in India. ‘ You take ray ad-vice, Bill,’ re« marked one Thomas to another, according to the latest story from Maidan, 1 don’t you never stand near no white stone nor yet near no horcifer.’

A Rotorua correspondent writes: — Judging by the paragraphs which have appeared in the 1 Herald * of late in regard to the single and double pan system in sanitary work, it does not seem to be known that the latter has been in operation in Rotorua for the past twelve months or over. The sanitary contractors (Messrs E. Robertson and Co.) imported the air-tight covers from Melbourne, and tne pans were manufactured in the colony. That firm would, no doubt, give all information in their power. The cost t® small householders is 9d per fortnight, but this charge could be materially reduced in a city or populous suburbs; The system works admirably, but the Rotorua people have not sufficiently emerged from old prejudices to carry the work on during the day. An up-to-date romance reaches us (says the Post) from Petone. A short time',back an elderly gentleman purchased a piece of land in the borough, subsequently building and taking up his residence there. Later ou he employed two men to put down an artesian well. While they were at work the wife of one of them, a middle-aged woman, went one day noon with her husband’s dinner. Something in her appearance arrested the employer’s attention and he asked who she was and what her maiden name had been. Further enquiry proved her to be his daughter, whom he had not seen since she was a child. His joy at the discovery was manifested by bi 3 building another house on the same section, where His daughter and her family now reside, close to her long-lost father. Writing on nor’-wasters and cereals, the Lyttelton Times says :—A striking example of the effect of the recent nor’-westers upon standing grain has been sent to this office. It consists~o£~bwo small, sheave 3 of. .wheat grown within half-a-dozen yards of each' other on the farm of Mr J. H. Judd, of Waddington. One sheaf, which had the shelter of a gorse fence, is a nice sample, with large, well-filled ears. The other, which was exposed to fie blast, has the ears beaten empty, and the stalks broken almost as if they had been cut across with a sharp instrument. One represents an excellent crop, the other is not worth reap* inu\ The specimens show the destruction which can be wrought in a good crop by a nor’-wester.

A justice of the peace in Indiana (Justice Brewer is quoted as saying in the Criterion) had a very exalted opinion of the responsibility which rested upon him to command respect for the law at all times. There was a neighbor of this justice named Jim Waller, whose farm ran right up to the line of Ohio, a fence marking the exact division. One day, when the justice was passing down the road, he observed Waller and his Ohio neighbor engaged in an argument., The justice approached them, arriving on the scene just as they clinched. Springing upon the fence so as to be out of harm's way, he waved his cane in the air aucl snouted : 1 Gentlemen ! in.the name of the great State of Indinia, I command peace !’ Ju3t at that moment the fence gave way, and the justice was preeipated to the ground. He fell on the Ohio side, and, as lie was struggling to get up, he shouted to Waller: ‘Give him blazes, Jim I’m out of my jurisdiction *’

In the match against N.S. Wales Englaud made 387 in their first innings N.S. Wales Ist innings 415 ; 2nd iunings 140 for two wickets.

Dr do Villiers, in the University Magazine, in an art icle on •• The Progress and Arrest of Cancer,” maintains that the best mode of checking the disease, aud of prolonging life, will be found in the introduction of the opium or morphia habit, as speedily as possible. Madame Sarah Grand, one of the most fascinating figures in contemporary literature, though of English parentage, was born in the North of Ireland, at Donaghadee. She was a daughter of Mr Bellenden Clarke, of Ballycastle, County Mayo, a cornmander in the navy. On Mr Clarke’s death Madam Grand’s mother removed -to a small seaport on the Yorkshire coast. She was married at sixteen. Her retort to a London Daily Telegraph reviewer though unworthy of her °is monumental in its bitterness.

At Te Aroha West (says a correspondent)farmers are coming in for their full share of disaster, fire is ragiug over many of their holdings. .Not only is. their-grass totally destroyed, but in addition the.cows sink through the crust on the surface of the reclaimed swamp, under which the tire is smouldering, with the result their legs and teats are burned. These men call for much sympathy, as they were just getting a s art, and many of them are now practically ruined. As will be seen from our advertising columns, the business people have decided to close cm Saturday afternoon (the day of Show), but will opeu again iii the evening. Thby will keep-open h s (Thursday) af ernoon.

A pretty w e lding took place yesterday afternoon at Wuiliou, wheffMrJas. Agnew and 'Miss ’Emma Bellainy were unitediiii 't 1 1 e-.b<>ndsjof holy matrimony at tlie, residence of the bride’s parents, the Rev. S: Griffith officiating.

One of Mr N. Dickey’s, Paeroa, contractor, most valuable horses was killed on the Karangahake tram-line leading to Grown mine, by falling over the cliff through the brake on the truck not answering when required. Some excellent, stone has lately been discovered at the Waihi Foreshore claim, assaying some £BO to the ton. The management have sent in two tons ready for treatment at Messrs Seaver and Co’s plant, Paeroa. Our readers will be pleased to hear that Mr Edwin Edwards, whose health has of late been causing great anxiety, Ts rapidly improving. Dr Forbes, his medical attendant, yesterday pronounced him out of danger.

We hear from our Paeroa ooi’respondent that in all probability Hie Meat Chilling Company which was started some months ago will be placed om the market again under more advantageous conditions. The Warden’s and Magistrate’s Courts sit at 10 a.na. to-morrow. There is very little business in the Magistrate’s' Court but a fair amount in the Warden’s Court, among the cases in the latter being many plaints for arrears of rent. We learn from the Mining Registrar that a vigorous policy for the enforcement of payment of rents is beinginaugurated and in-view of so many of the other conditions being unfilled we would advise our readers to at least comply with the conditions re rental,and so save themselves from the unpleasantness of court proceedings and the expense of costs, with the . probable loss of the ground involved. ■ Quite a new era has arisen in connection Aiith our far-famed baths, and now in addition to the charming building lately constructed we find a lady on the staff of attendants. Recently. the Board found that the growing re quirements of the place needed the assistance of a lady, and of the many excellent applicants for the post Miss Walnutt has been chosen, and yesterday commenced her duties. The Board has done wisely in the mattei’, and from'what we learn of the successful applicant we are sure that her engagement will be attended with success. We,have much pleasure in extending her a’ hearty welcome.— Correspondent. Mr C. H. Watson, secretary of the Young Men’s Literary and Recreation Society, informs us that a general meeting of the society; will be held behind the stage of the Town Hall at .8 o’clock to-night. Intending members are particularly requested to be present punctually if possible. T ) Tho following is the eleven chosen to represent Te Aroha in the return cricket match to be played st Lipsey’s paddock on Saturday next against -Morrinsville -Pavit , sr., Pavitt, jr., Smales, Burlaee, Oliver, Bell, Hirst, Bygrave, Dr. Smith, W. Maingay, Pilling. Emergencies—Pearson and Heartneady.

What might have proved a serious fire had it not been been noticed in an early stage, occurred at the Montezuma assay office ou Tuesday evening at about half-past five. The fire was caused by the wood-work adjoining the furnace chimney becoming heated to the point of ignition. As it happened some employees who were in the battery premises later than usual, noticed the smoke rising from the office and at once proceeded to extinguish the flames. A five-pound note will cover the extent of the damage. , Alterations are being made to avoid a repetition of the occurrence.

To the De&f and those troubled with Noises in the Head or other Aural Troubles Dr Nicholson of London, the world famed Aural Specialist and Inventor of Artificial Ear Drums, has just issued the 100th edition of his illustrated and descriptive book on Deafness and Aural Troubles, This book may be had from Mr Colin Campbell, 160, Adelaide Road, Wellington, N.Z, Mr Campbell was cured of his deafness by Dr-Nieholson’s system, and takes pleasure in spreading the news of the great specialist in Zealand. A little book on the cure of Rheumatism, Corpulence, Lumbago, and Indigestion by the same author, may be had from Mr Campbell, also free. —Advt.