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Temuka Leader, Volume I, Issue 100, 30 November 1878, Page 3

The Paris correspondent of a Southern journal, in writing of the great Exhibition, says ;—lt is said that the first morning visitors to the Exhibition grounds are the sparrows, to pick the crumbs that have fallen from picnic people ; then the scavengers, to sweep, rakr, and water the alleys, to wash the statues disfigured by pencilings by the way, or discolored by morsels of fruit. The head of the statue of Liberte has to be scoured inside every day; pcop'e on visiting this fragmentary emblem of emancipation vent then- anti-political spite by soiling the interior as much as possible. At daylight the Champ de Mars is invaded by a brigade of dusters, followed by battalions of water-pot men ; then succeed the tuners of pianos, and the rehearsals of exhibitors and their assistants, as to showing goods to advantage to the visitors.

A dangerous rival for Dan O’Leary, as a pedestrian, has at last been found in the person of a fellow-countryman, John Hughes, “The Greenhorn Walker.” The latter began on the 12th, in New York, the task of beating O’Leary’s Boston time by walking 500 miles in six days, less one hour. On Friday night, the 23rd instant, John Hughes finished the 330th mile of his 500 mile walk, his time in that mile being lOmin. 10 secs. Next morning lie was again on the track, and kept on until two minutes before one o’clock, when he retired again, and remained off until sixteen minutes past two. He completed his 490th mile in 9min. 45sec., and continued on then till the end. His attendants represent him as being a perfect marvel in the way of endurance. They say he did not sleep more than three hours the whole week, and that his diet was confined to milk, gruel, beefsteak, mutton, and a little brandy occasionally. He is a very small eater they say. It was Hughes’s intention to make a display of his powers by making a run—not a walk—of 25 miles on the last quarter-hun-dredth stretch. During Saturday, the 24th, however, his attendant, while cutting a hurtful shoe, cut into the walker’s foot. This spoiled the proposed running exhibition, but the pedestrian pluckily kept on the track, though the wounded foot was in a bandage. Dennis Murray, the gentleman who is backing Hughes, states that the chief object of this walk is to give Hughes a record. He is satisfied now, but says that Hughes can beat the field, and is ready to back him against any walker for a purse of 1000 dols. or more. At 10.25, 35mins. ahead of time, Hughes completed his task of walking 500 miles in aii days.