LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Te Aroha News, Volume XIV, Issue 2079, 19 February 1898, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

A Mr and Mrs Warnock hiked from Auckland to Wellington,, via Te Aroha, Okoroire, Rotorua, T&.upo. and Napier. Thursday’s papers contained particulars of a terrible fatality at Waitekauri, in which Edwin Ford lost his life by falling down the Waitekauri G.M. Company’s shaft. He leaves a wife and nine children at Arrowtown, Otago. / , We regret to learn that the Vicar (the Rev E'. J!. McFarland); is far from well. He is suffering from a severecold and sore throatf As will be seen from the Church notices he will be quite unable to take the service at St. Mark's on Sunday night. In connection with Mr- Wesley Spragg’s approaching departure to England, the employers of the ' N.Z, Dairy Association have just presented him with a testimonial and memento of their-esteem.. >

The name of George H. Cornes, an Auckland, college pupil, and son of Mr J. Cornes, of Ie Aroha West, appears in the pass list pf the Civil Service jiust published. , .-i* r : To-day a return match will be played between the Te Aroha and Pueroa Tennis-Clubs. Messrs Oliver and Smalos, and Messrs K'inahan and Skipvnth will represent ,Te Aroha..

Messrs McNicol and Co. have received a large number of additions to the entries, for their second Sheep Fair, to be held at Ohaupj on Wednesday, March 9th, and have now over 20,000 sheep, entered. In addition to. the lines from. Waikato, breeders, there is. one of 3000 ewes from Mr G. P. Donnelly, of Hawke’s Bay, and these sheep are of such a class as to be sure to meet with a good demand under the hammer.

The business of liquidating the Colonial Bank is nearly done (says the Waikato Argus),. The chief delay now being the awaiting of the decision, of the Supreme Court in. Brooks and Connell’s cases, and the- winding up of one or two companies now in liqudation in which the bank is interested. To. reduce the cost to a minimum, an application will be made to the Court by the liquidators to reduce the number of liquidators, after which the cost will be small. If the verdict in the cases referred to is in favour of the bank a dividend of Is 6d or 2s per share is anticipated. In any case a call (^improbable. ■' There 1 are few more- popular young fellows in Te Aroha than Tom Pickett, se long, identified with, the Waih,ou Football Club, and his new- venture in the butchering line will be followed by the heartiest good wishesof scores of our readers. Mr Pickett has arrived at that time of life when a man begins seriously to think of starting in business for himself; Many never get beyond that stage, through lack of enterprise and the spirit % of adventure, and are Content through life with easygoing subordinate positions, and the heartcorroding routine of a clerking billet. Mr Pickett is made of different material, and well may it be so, seeing that he is a lineal descendant of General Pickett, of the immortal brigade of that name—Pickett’s Brigade—which butchered more Frenchmen, during the Peninsula war than any of its contemporaries. Our Mr Pickett’s case would doubtless furnish an admirable object lesson for Mr Galt, the author of a famous work on •‘Heredity.’* His great grandfather slaughtered men by the score in his day, and doubtless laid: the founds* tion of the family predilection for the butchering business. Anyhow the genial Thornes makes, his bow next week from the shop door of his, extensive premises in Bridge Btreet, whence he craves the indulgence of a well-disposed publi • in the popular role of “ the people’s butcher.”

The Great Fire. —Tonson Garlick & Co are selling their Btock at Hoffman’s; Buildings, Elliott-street, behind the Opera House. Ten Thousand Pounds worth of Carpets:, Linoleum, Bedsteads,. Fenders, Rattan Furniture. Overmantles, Bedding, Drawing Room Suites, and Furnishing Drapery. Such a sale as this will he has held beenneverin Auckland.'—AT>vx,

We are glad to hear that Mr Duncan McNicol is making satisfactory progress towards recovery. He is now taking a little walking exercise. We hear that they are about to start a golf club at Paeroa, under the most favourable auspices.

We are requested to announce that Mr Hobbs, surgeon dentist, will attend, as usual* at Mr Robson’s Pharmacy on Wednesday next, the 23rd inst.

Mr W. S. Allen obtained first prize for the best pen of fat sheep, and also first prize for the best fat cow, at the latß Christmas Show of fat stock, at Cheadle, Stafford. The sheep were afterwards sold to the butcher at £3 14s each* and the cow at £22..

The death and burial of Mrs Steel were the occasion of the observance of the native custom of the tangi at Taumutu, says the * Lyttleton Times,’ when a considerable number of natives from Little River and other places were present. The deceased was of high birth, beingthe daughter of John New Zealand, who in turn was the tenth direct descendant from the famous Moki. Moki about 400 years ago, built aud defended the very pah where this tangi was held, and which stills bears the name of its founder.

A supply of the new £d, 2d, sd. and 2s stamps is expected to arrive in colonies by the lonic early in March. A supply of Id, 2id, 3d, 4d, 6d, and lis should be* received a fortnight later, by the Rimutaka.. It is the intention of the Postmaster General to issue thenew stamps simultaneously at thedifferent centres.

The bot % is beginning- to* attack not only the pig- but the sheepas well Mr Lucas of Rongofcea, informed the Rangitikei Advocate a few days ago that he noticed thal some of ' his sheep, were running about the paddock in a strange manner.. They- would every new and then put their heads, into small drains or anything which would give them shelter from something which was evidently annoying them and on going over to where they were clustered together he found that thehot flies were attacking them on the: head where the wool was short.

Some dissatisfaction seems to- exist among the prize winners at the recent show, on account of the fact that although awarded a first prize, they will (in cases, where they were the-sole-exhibitor) only get the value of a second prize. In making this rule the society wore only folio wing the example* set by the Waikato Society, at theirHamilton Show. This rule was plainly printed on the sohodnle of the local society;, and presumably- exhibitors were a ware-of this when they entered.. It is hardly reasonable, therefore, to raise the point*, oow that the awards are made,.

The- popularity of King’s College,. ‘ The TWer/ Remuera, as an educa tional establishment has. been, further proved! at the commencement of the present term, on Tuesday last, when 4-4 new scholars were enrolled, exactly half the number-being boarders. The total roll now mimbers 132, and' to meet the requirements, of this large increase it has been, found unnessary to fiirther enlarge and alter- the school buildings. Mr Bruce, the- principal, and h»s staff of teachers, which this year hos been increased by two resident musters, are- to be congratulated on, the success of the College and thehigh standing it has now obtained as a training ground, for young men and lads. . It is not often, that a man is convicted 1 of forgery when he has passed the age of three score years and ten j; and there surely must be few cases of forgers possessing no hands (remarks the New Zealand Times). Amos. Burr, the Foxton settler who was found guilty of the crime at the Supreme Court recently* fids both of these descriptions. He is 76 years of age, and: he lost his hands and a good deal of one of his arms over half a ,century ago. A gentleman in Court stated that Burr met with the accident which maimed him while employed on one of the New Zealand Company’s vessels. He was injured by a gun explosion, and as the result of the injuries then received he lost the part of one arm below the elbow* and the part of the other from the wrist. Artificial attachments to the stumps, however, enable him to use a pen,, an axe and a bullock whip with wonderful facility He can write as neat a hand as the average man.. To dress, he requires very little assistance. Burr’s age and infirmities (he is also somewhat deaf) impressed the jury so much that they strongly recommended him to mercy. The Dunedin Acclimatisation Society has received intimation from theColonial Secretary’s office that the Agent/General shipped 91,000 salmon ova per Rimutaka, which sailed on the 4th inst. This shipment it is intended to hand over to. the Otago Society to be hatched out and liberated in su table waters. The Society has just sbipped 78 starlings, per Talune, to bef liberated in Gippsland In consequence of excessive outside competition in the printing trade, the Proprietors of the News have made arrangements for more economical working by the introduction of improveuiejtv iu the Print! g Department. The Foreman of that department has received instructions to execute all oyders. at Auckland prices, less, carriage