AUSTRALIAN ITEMS.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 4, 29 January 1909, Page 4

AUSTRALIAN ITEMS.

LiGiiTXIXG -EXTRAORDINARY, An atmospheric disturbance left its mark in severely practical fashion at Cronulla, near Sydney, one day last week. The locality was visited during the afUTiioou by a "dry" storm. Ai about three o'clock a deafening crash of thunder, with a 'jlhiding hasn of lightning, split the heavens, greatly to the alarm 01 the rc«iucnts, and especially of a group standing 011 the verandah of a collage of a Eisii Hatcheries road, near the "Shell Museum." When they recovered from the effects of the glare, a tree 011 the opposite side of the road seemed to be wreathed in blue smoke, and the chauJfeur 01 Dr. Purser's motor —which u;h near the collage—was oil the ground. Before the crash the man had oeen standing alongside the vehicle., anil so strong were the eilects of the shock that he was thrown 011 to llis knees and severely shaken, although lie was perhaps l»Uft away from the tree. On tue party crossing to inspect the tree—an old gum, with the base hollowed out—it was tound that tile electric lluid had torn down it ironi top to bottom. lis course thereafter was a curious one. From the gum it ploughed a furrowin the ground for several leet, and ascended a bloodwood tree, running out to the extremities of "the branches, aiwi! bringing down splinters. The signboard of the "museum'' was also wrecked.

TWO LA OIL'S, AND A FIiSHLKMAX. Two young ladies, oi Clifton (N.S.W.J, who fur some days hud been indulging in an afternoon dip iu the breakers, were one afternoon annoyed to iind a Jisher man in possession of their bathing ground, and when they approached a little nearer were horrified to lind thai he had just landed a large shark, whicli he had hooked just dose in snore, at me exact ?pot when, uad been iu Mie nami of taking their uail) dip. 1/ie young ladies were iniontied oy the man that this spot was usually iavesU'd with sharks. -Naturally their ieelings of annoyance quickly changed to one 01 thankfulness for a good lortuue which placed the lisherinan iu possession of the ground first.

A WIFE'S SL'ICIDK. A woman named Mary Holland, years of age was found dead with her throat cut in her kitchen at NeeriwJ street, t'aultield (Victoria;. She Jett ithe following note addressed to her husband : —Dear Fred.—Forgive your poor Mary for this rash act. May Uod forgive me. lie good to the children, and dear little JSilv. lt'a hard to part from yon. You know \ve always lived so happily together. 1 love you, the best husband iu the world. Good-bye. ! brought the trouble on myself. Dear Fred, don't fret.' 1 The l-l year-old daughter of Mrs Holland said that as she left the house at 10.15U u.m. her mother said, " 1 will be dead wlicu you come back." .She had often made that remark.

SCHOOLBOY'S STKAXUE DEATH Kdward Bridges, a school boy, was decapitated on the railway line at KJsternwicic (Victoria) some days ago, and at the imjuest the evidence showed that tile lad had left his home bareheaded af:er a (juarrel with his sister, saying. "\i>u won't see me any more." The Coroner said that Constable (.'ill had formed the opinion that the boy had deliberately taken his own life by placing lii< head in froiit -<>t an approaching train. Th? only feature about the occurrence that was not boy-like v-as that deteased rushed down to the when ihe train was close upon liiin. It reined to him that the boy wished to nee tin* I rain rush by. and running down a steep embankment had not been able to control liinwlf, and thus had met his death. A > enlict- of accidental death was returned.

ATTACKED BY A SXAKK. Mrs S. Matheson, of Noiuingha, liutl an exciting experience with a brown snake at Tamworth (X.S.W.) \\ hen slu* came aeross the reptile, which wa» 4ft. it showed fiylit and chased her. A neighbour, Mrs Selioliejd. however, eame along and killed the snake betoie it had done any harm.