AUSTRALIAN NEWS.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 76, 26 April 1909, Page 4

AUSTRALIAN NEWS.

XliW PHASE 01' IMMIGRATION*

Among the passengers for .Melbourne bv the (i.M.S. Zieten were a number ot immigrants who intend settling in Victoria. Tim party numbered twelve, including four children. Two of the men brought tlieir wives. They are under the leadership of Mr. W. S. Bromhead, of the Empire-builders' Association, Ltd., of London. This association was formed with the object of helping people to new homes in the British dominion's overseas. The aim of the association is to form working parties* members of whieli parties, instead of taking up land 1 individually, will work together on the share systpm. This party represents a new phase of immigration to Australia.

SOLITARY X'ONFIXKMEXT. The. Victorian Premier (Mr. Murray) has come to the conclusio-i that there should be some alteration in the present svsteni of punishment by means of 'solitary confinement. lie thinks that a riotous prisoner may well be shut up by himself for a few hours of solitary confinement until he becomes orderly; but he thinks the hjntences of solitary confinement now undergone by prisoners have generally a bad rather than -l good effect. As Chief Secretary, he is head of the department governing prisons, and he says he will not hesitate to put an end to solitary confinement in all cases but those in which he believes a little of it would be good.

TOMMY BURXB WILLING TO FIGHT. Tommy Burns, the ex-champion ilieavy-weifrht boxer of the world, la«t week received a cable from Mr. Jlugh Mcliitosh, awking if he would meet cither Ketchcll or Kaull'mau. Bums replied: "You show me 20,000 dollars for my vnd. and I will light either of them." > Burns -stated that if the light came off it would probably take place in America.

STATE COAL-MINE. The Victorian Minister for Mines, Mr, l\ McUride, in. conversation with a representative >of the Daily'; Telegraph, stated thsit the prospects of successful coal-mining by the 'State Government were most promising. Hitherto most of t'he Victorian collieries had been worked in mountainous districts, and it was found that there were flaws Li the formation, "The experiments that have been made at I'owlett river, Mu Meliride remarked, "lead to the con-eln.-ion that 011 the llat country tsueli as we purpose to work the formation is more regular, and consequently there will be "ess dillicuHy in obtaining the coal. The seam varies ill thickness from '2ft liin lo Oft Gin, anil the tests that have been made indicate that the <lenosit is verv extensive indeed. Recently a bore w».s lieing put down, for waterKtipplv purposes, and at a depth of 40ft it went through a seam of coal_Btt thick." A visit was paid by the. Minister to Cessnock, and ail inspection liiatle of (he Alierdare colliery. Mr. Mcßridc was shown over the top workings, and afterwards "went underground, where the coal-cutters in particular engaged his attention. These machines have not vet lteen introduced into \ictoria. He mentioned that at the present time Victoria uses 800,000 tons of coal annually, and of this quantity 500,000 tons are, consumed by the railways and other State departments.

'KATAUTIES. A girl named Langdale (17) com* mfttcd suicide at Hohart by taking poison. She had been absent from ihomo all night, and when found was takeu home, when rdie took sonut strychnine, and then called out, "Good-bye; I'v< done it now; I've taken poison." In an hour she was dead, A passenger. Alfred Otter («1S). was in. the engine-room of the steamer larauaa, on her way front llobart to New Xorfolk, when lie" became dizzy, or took a Jit. and iell in among the engines. When removed he \va* quite dead; his body being badly smashed. TKIVttIBLK HCRXIXU ACCIDKXT. A young woman, Klsio ilson, was the victim of a horrible burning accident at Molong tX.S.W.), She :\vas preparing a beeswax and turpentine solution in the kitchen of the Post Office Hotel, when some of the solution got. into the lire, which blazed up ami ignited her She rushed, through tin* hotel, her clothes ablaze from slier wai>t upward'-. A man named Dengate succeeded in tearing oil' portion of the burning garments, when she agari got away, and was caught by the landlord, Mr. Press, who divested her of the remainder of her clothes, when sh,. rushed jnto the street, where a blanket was thrown about slier, 1 The unfortunate girl was found to have (sustained frightful injuries, being literally roasted from her hips upwards. She was Admitted to the hospital, but no hopes are entertained of her recovery. Messrs. Press and Dengate also received severe injuries to their hand-} in the endeavor to tear oil' the burning garments, TO COX VERT IKON OKK. Mr. W. LI Wall, a resident o'f Mudgce, has applied for a patent for an automatic hot blast furnace which he proposes to employ in converting iron ore into pig iron. The invention consists of an air sollar. which is constructed to a suitable, point of elevation. Atmospheric air i-s conveyed from the sollar through heated cylinders, which pas* through the. lii'e chamber, heated air being forced by atmospheric pressure and expansion into conduct pipes, and from these pipes discharged through nozzles into the blast furnace. Mr. Wall estimate* that a volume of heated air equal to 800.000 cubic feet per minute, will be forced through the fire chamber into Ihe blast furnaces. This air will be heated tin irom 1000 to I*2oo degree* Kahr. The lire chamber for heatinji the air is constructed somewhat on llie same principle as a re'verbalory furnace, the only dill'crcnco being that there is no line discharging outwards. The* heat generated in tlie lire chamber is conveyed through the sollar and discharged into the hla«t fur■nace. The main features of the invention are its simplicity and chcapnej;; the estimated cost of a furnace equal to an output of 100 tons of pig iron : per day being under .UlOIK). The erection of the furnace will be proceeded with as soon as a suitable site is selected.