FROM OUR EXCHANGES.

Temuka Leader, Volume 2, Issue 133, 2 April 1879, Page 2

FROM OUR EXCHANGES.

The fight for the championship of the colonies and fifteen .hundjed pounds between Foley of JNe\f*Soutli Wales and Hicks of Victoria came off near Moama early in the morning. The greatest difficulty was experienced in evading the police. The mounted troopers were sent* miles in the wrong direction ; also of sporting people who travelled miles endured the greatest hardships. To prevent the encounter Sergeant O’Meara, of the Victorian police, was persent, but was unable to interfere, as the fight took place on the New South Wales side of the border. Hicken suffered terribly at the sixteenth and last round. He was knocked all about the ring, until be fell on his knees. Foley showed himself throughout a very bard hitter. Cook, the billiard player, was a passenger on board the mail steamer, bound for Australia. The contract for the University Buildings at Adelaide for twenty-four thousand seven hundred pounds was accepted. Five thousand immigrants have arrived at Sydney from England during the year. Connor and party, with the black trackers, returned to Benalla after a long and fruitless search in the ranges. One of the trackers died from inflammation of the lungs. A large party of police, with black trackers, left Mansfield. Their destination is said to be the Wombat ranges. There is a suspicion that the Kelly’s are in the vicinity of Kerang. A very disorderly meeting of the medical profession was held in reference to the position assumed by Dr Beaney in England. A resolution was passed repudiating Dr Beaney. During the evening Dr Blair, who strongly defended Beaney, was turned out. At New Guinea fifteen out of twenty men, with their wives and children, landed there by the John Williams, have already died through poison and fever. The new Papal Encyclical against Socialism, Communism, and Nihilism is a very sensible sort of document (says the ‘ Pall Mall Gazette.’) The Pope has, indeed, in relation to these three subjects, got a theme which enables him to contrast to good effect the teaching of the Church with the wilder tendencies of our own time. On the subject of rebellion the Pope is, of course, rather Conservative. He lays it down that a Government, however bad, is never to be resisted, except it require from its subjects that which is rebellion against God, but that in that case God is to be obeyed rather than men. That would hardly cover, we imagine, the ground of most Catholic rebellions, unless a very free interpretation were admitted of that wl ich implies sin or rebellion against God. The Irish rebellion of 1848 was countenanced by some admirable Catholics ; bijt they would have found it difficult, we imagine, to show that submission to the British Government in 1848 involved mortal sin. However, it is seldom we can agree so sincerely with any Paw| Encyclical as we can with this. XIII. appears to be adopting a more thoughtful style for his addresses, rone less strongly stamped by the old offibaM traditions. r The 1 Liverpool Post’ says that General Tom Thumb, the celebrated dwarf, died on the 19th January last, at his native place, Bergen, in the provi; ce of West Friesland, Holland, where he hud only recently retired after realising ahandsome fortune from exhibiting himself in the chief countries of Europe and America. The cause of his death was dropsy. The real name of the genera,! was Haneman. The following advertisement appears in a late issue of a Wanganui contemporary : “ Wanted a first-class man to slaughter and for boiling down, etc.” Now it is hardly credible that our Wanganui friends are in the habit of slaughtering and boiling down butcher’s assistants, but the wording of the above advertisement would lead to such a supposition. , After a considerable lapse of time Dunedin has again been visited by an extern sive and disastrous flood. During Thursday the weather was squally, rather heavy showers of rain falling and towards evening the barometer indicated heavy weather, and the rain fell more steadily. At about 11 o’clock the rain fell heavily, and shortly after midnight it came down it torrents. It is somewhat difficult to give an adequate idea of the damage done by the flood. Probably a sum between L 20,000 and L 30,000 would represent the total actual damage, but even the largest sum named may not be sufficient, without taking into consideration contingent losses. In all cases the estimates made were only approximate, and in many instances no estimate at all was formed of the damage done, its extent being- beyond the knowledge of the parties concerned. The largest amount of damage has no doubt been caused to the stock stored in the cellars of Messrs Sargood, Son, and Ewen’s warehouse in the lower part of High street. It is probable the damage here would not be more than covered by a sum of LIO,OOO. No estimate was made of this loss, however, the representatives of the Press being informed that until the goods were unpacked and examined it would be impossible to say whether the loss by the flood would amount to LSOOO or L 50,000. What is supposed to have been a diabolical act to throw the express train from Melbourne off the line was discovered on the night of tbe 12th, near the Caledonian bridge, about two miles from Ballarat. A coil or two of fencing wire bad been laid across one of the rails, and when it was cut it became entangled with the wheels, and the train had to be stopped for a quarter of an hour to get the wheels cleared.

A correspondent of The ‘ Times’ at j Pieter-Mum tzburg looks forward with j pleasure to 'the confederation of the tiouth African Colonies, as leading to complete he says, to be wished and promoted by > England. Taking this view of the •whole question, to begin with (says a •'Contemporary), his evidence is open to grave suspicion of prejudice ; hut there certainly exist too much inclination on the part of the Cape colonists to regard this Zulu war as entirely a matter for the Imperial Government, and that the people of Natal themselves are not altogether sorry that the negotiations with Cetewayo have been broken off is tolerably clear. Tins, perhaps, is natural ; but the Imperial Government must considsr the matter as it affects ourselves, and there can be no doubt whatever that the whole of South Africa is deeply concerned in the operations we have undertaken against the Zulus. Unquestionably we have entered upon this unpleasant and costly little war in order to settle the native question finally, and those to whom _ the country belongs must hear a considerable portion of the burden. Since the arrival of the Imperial troops it is to be noted, also, that the ‘ Press’ of Natal has taken a very high tone, and there is •an evident desire that the Zulus should be very hardly dealt with, though the

carrying out of the terms of the High Commissioner’s dispatch would practically make Cetewayo complete our feudatory. In considering the danger in which Natal was placed before the arrival of reinforcements, we should not overlook the disposition of the colonists to press matters to extremity now that this can be done so largely at our expense. Although the troops were withdrawn from New Zealand at the wrong time and in wrong way, yet had wo maintained them there we might have looked for Maori wars to this hour. Imperial expenses for local war.ike purposes is by no means unpopular in our Colonies. Lord Harris, captain of the English cricketers lias come out in a new character: —“ A somewhat interesting letter,” the Sydney ‘ Evening News’ states, “ has been forwarded to one of the promoters of a recent flower festival, under the auspices of the Order of Good Templars. Lord Harris had been invited to attend the festival, and the letter of invitation was headed with a motto bearing the words, ‘Total abstinence, the only preventative to intemperance.’ The following is a copy of the letter sent in reply;— ‘ Exchange Hotel, Feb 7. Sir, —From what I have, seen in England, I have come to the ;/Conclusion that total abstinence in not the only preventative to intemperance ; and, furthermore, far from being the most effectual. I have taken considerable interest in the question, and am doing my best at home to fight against this vice in this way—by oiejting club houses in important villages and country towns for laboring classes. These club houses are conducted on much the same principles as any club for the higher classes would be, except that no spirits are sold, a 7 id the amount of beer to be drink by any one member in one day is limited generally to two or three pints. Each member pays a small entrance fee and a small weekly subscription (about 2d). Papers and games are supplied out of this, and we find that they are not only in great favor among the working classes, but once built they are self-supporting. I have so often spoken on the subject at Home, and expressed my opinion that total abstinence is not the right way to go to work, that I must ask yon to excuse my patronising the festival ; but I should esteem it a favor if you would expend the small sum I enclose in flowers for the patients, as a sign that I thoroughly appreciate the object of the festival. — Faithfully yours, Harris.” A peculiar accident happened to Mr W. Moffit, of the Bank of New South Wales, Albury, on Friday week last. In accoulance with orders necessitated by the fact of the Kellys being at largo, this gentleman says the ‘ Border Post’) bad a loaded revolver lying ready for use in a drawer of his desk at the bank. On opening the drawer the 'revolver acciclendtally fell, and the contact with the ground caused the hammer to fall and the pistol to go off. The bullet went clean through the calt of one leg, about half-way between heel and knee, and the other leg being in the direct line of fire, it struck it with sufficient force to make its way through the cloth of Mr Moffit’s trousers. After impact with 1 he other limb, the bullet travelled upwards all along the leg, and again tearing through the cloth, finally stopped its course without further injury. The wound caused a great loss of blood, but no bones were broken, and the accident ■wiil merely entail rest for about a month. An extraordinary and somewhat sensational love match, brought to a commencement through the agency of a journal devoted to matrimony, and to a conclusion through utter want of means, is at present engaging the attention of the public in one of tire Parisian law courts. The heroine is a Polish countess —ail proper heroines are —but “ middle-aged,” and the hero a young, consequently tender-hearted, schoolboy not 17. It appears that the heroine —a charming widow named Seraphinc Morzouka, nee Czavnowska, unable to bear any longer the ennui of a single life, sought, some three or four years ago, to acquire a husband by the simple method of advertising. She stated, in the columns devoted to such purposes, that a countess, possessing all the charms that a man could wish, wanted a husband who should be, noble,

• talented, sympathetic, and last, but not least, well off. But mankind was not to be taken in so easily. Nothing daunted, she tried again. This time the paragraph was shorter and more mysterious, and she hinted that an artist or an author, or some meditative spirit, would suit her best. This bait allured no end of candidates, and in this open competition the wihner proved to be a student aged 16 years. Til is youth poured forth all his schoolboy eloquence in extravagant loveletters to the newly-found lady of his affections, and it is presumed that the countess was just as affectionate, for they were married in Aldgate Church in London, without any other authority than the mutual consent of the lovers. It was only after the ceremony that they found out by experience the difficulty of living without money. Emile Delente, the real name of the student, returned alone to Paris, and offered his services to the editor of “ The Rights of Man.” The mother of this infatuated lover demands that this marriage a V Anglaise should be annulled. His father died some time ago. The countess does not oppose the desire of her mother-in-law, but she offers to produce proofs of the fictitious marriage having been contracted in good faith. The case is still proceeding.