LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1007, 21 September 1882, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Winchester Fair —The above Fair takes place to-day. The Comet. —A comet is the sensation now. It has been visible for a few days. Dr Hector, of Wellington, says it passed round the sun on Tuesday, when the sun was passing the equator, The Crops. —The farmers are this year putting extensive areas of land under crop, more, it is supposed than in any previous years. The rain which fell some days ago did a great deal of good to the crops, and they are now looking splendidly. If the weather continues favorable there will bo an immense quantity of grain produced in Ibis County this year. -* ■

Rabbit Exterminator. —Forsyth’s rabbit exterminator, which has been referred to in Parliament, was tried the other day. Ten rabbits were placed in artificial burrows, poisonous gas pumped in, and all the holes closed. In half an hour all the rabbits were taken out dead. Professor Black, who speaks well of the invention, yet asserts that poisoned grain is undoubtedly the best plan for getting rid of the peat on a large scale. East and West Coast Railway.—A monster public meeting was held at Reefton last Tuesday re the East and West Coast railway, and resolutions wore adopted unanimously endorsing the action taken in the matter by the inhabitants of Canterbury, and affirming tl e desirrbility of co-operating with the Christchurch people. = A railway league was formed, and the names of all influential residents enrolled. The agitation will be actively followed up. O’Connor v. Burk.— O’Connor is to be presented by his admirers with a gold stop watch, on account of his victory on Saturday. The strongest hints have been thrown out that Burk’s supporters understood O’Connor was to lose, but that by his winning his friends were able to make largo sums from Burk’s deluded backers. No satisfactory reply has been made to these allegations, although both runners deny their truth. It is understood the Caledonian Society, if either man enters for their games, will call for an explanation, with a view of disqualifying him if such is not satisfactory. O’Connor now offers to give Burk fifteen yards.

New Auctioneering Firm.— Messrs B. Turnbull and Son have, as will be seen by their advertisement, commenced business in Timaru as auctioneers, etc. They are no new hands, being on’y two or three years out of business, and consequently their clients have a good recollection of their business capabi lilies One thing is sure—implicit confidence will be placed in them by everyone who knows them, and this will doubtless have the effect of getting for them a largo number of clients. Mr Turnbull, senior, being so popular with the people as their Parliamentary representative, this will weigh considerably in their favour, and on the whole wc think they hare many advantages which ought to insure their success.

A Perilous Position— On the 18 h ult., the Gertie May, when about 175 miles from Morlinicus, was struck by lightning. ' The electric fluid fir.-t caught the fore-topmast, breaking some three feet off it It then ran to the bow, smashing a portion of the stem ; thence to the forecastle, where there were some Icn of the crew in different attitudes, some sitting and some standing, but all of the poor fellows were rendered instantly insensible. They all, however, recovered a short time afterwards, being little the worse for the adventure. The lightning coursed through the vessel, evcntua’ly returning to the forc*part, where it took its departure after knocking two more of the vessel’s planks in the stem. For'unatcly this damage was above the water-lino.

Something Like a Gift. —The late Dean Backhaus, of Sandhurofc, left property worth about £150,000 to the Church. No pro vision is made for his relatives, some of whom are in comparatively ‘ humble circumstances at Sandhurst. '

Frozen Meat.—At a largely attended meeting held in Napier last Monday, it was resolved to inaugurate a Frozen Meat Company, A strong provisional directory was formed. It is proposed to make the capita] £45,000. The Waimate Bailiff.—The body of a man was found near Waimate] last Saturday. At the inquest held last : Monday it turned out to be the body of Edward Wilsoia. the' eccentric bailiff, who has been missing for over four months. A.verdict of . “ found dead” was returned.

Irish Emigration.—A telegram has been received by the Governor of Victoria from Lord Kimberly relative to extensive Irish emigration. In the Victorian Assembly the question has been brought up, and a motion tabled against Irish immigration, as undesirable. The War in Egypt.—The victory of the English army in Egypt was celebrated in Timaru last Monday evening. An impromptu meeting of the volunteers was held, and 19 guns were fired. The band paraded the streets playing music, fire works were displayed, and to crown all Mr Charles Green treated all and sundry to refreshment*. Concert at Waitohi.—The anniversary tea and entertainment in connection with the Wesleyan Church, Waitohi, will be held next Friday evening in the schoolroom there. Great preparations are being made to ensure success, and several ladies and gentlemen from this town have promised to be present, including Mrs Rout and Miss Brown. The Revs. Gordon, Welsh, and McLennan will deliver addresses and nothing will be left undone to make it a success.

Natives in England.—The Maori chiefs now in London have not met with any success. Starting their tour they have succeeded in getting Mr Grost to present their petition to the House of Commons, but no discussion has as yet taken place on native affairs in New Zealand, the promised Blue Books not having been laid on the table. The chiefs visited Lichfield and were the guests of Mrs Selwyn. They .were shown the grave of the late Bishop, and were visibly affected on beholding the tomb of their late pastor. They are now in London, and will shortly return to New Zealand.

Carried Otee The Falls.—News has beer, received of a frightful accident which occurred on June 10th at Montmorency Falls. A farmer named Larbergc was driving : home with his daughter, a marrried woman, when the horse became unmanageable near a bridge on the road which crosses the river about three hundred feet above the fa 1 Is. The vehicle struck the bridge with such force as to break away the guard, throwing Larberge out upon the briclgeand pitching the woman, horse, and cart into, the boiling torrent, which immediately swept them over the horrible abyss, a fall of nearly three hundred feet. The body of the woman was subsequently found at the foot of the falls. She leaves seven children. —New York Herald; Fire iff Tiiiaru.—At 3.30 on Tuesday morning the premises of Messrs Park and Anderson, drapers, Timaru, were discovered to be on fire. The alarm was at once given, but it took some time before the fire brigade were got together. By this time the fire had got a good hold of the shop mentioned, and also that of Mr James Strachan, which is under the same roof, and as there was no possibility of saving it the brigade directed their attention to preventing it from spreading to Messrs Taylor and Bowie’s shop. A strong stone wall lent its assistance in this but it did not do. |The roof of the store was burntoff before the the fire was extinguished, and a great deal of damage was done, nearly all the stock being destroyed. The Old Bank Hotel had also a narrow escape. The walls were heated and the proprietor, Mr Mcßeth, was nearly suffocated in bed by smoko. Some £-40 or £SO worth of damage was done to the • hotel. The offices next door to Park and Anderson’s, at the other side, were considerably damaged. Some of those who were early at the scene of the fire say it originated in the back part of Mr Strachan’s shop, which is under the same roof as Park and Anderson’s, and only separated from the latter by a wooden partition, but the bulk of the evidence is to the effect that the fire was first observed in Park and Anderson’s shop. We believe the latter to be correct. The Brigade worked well, and we e willingly assisted by several townspeople in their endeavors to stop the spread of the fire. The total value of the property destroyed is estimated at £l-4 500. The following are the insurances:—Messrs Park and Anderson uul Mr Strachan’s stores (owned by Captain Sutter), £2OOO, distributed as follows : —ln the South British, £500; Imperial, £SOO ; Victoria, £500; Colonial, £SOO. Taylor and Bowie’s store, also owned by Cap’ain Sutter, £llOO, distributed as follows: —Royal, £250; Vic toria, £250 ; Standard, £250 ; Co’onal, £350. Messrs Park and Anderson’s stock, £-4000, distributed as follows:—Liverpool, London and Globe, £SOO ; Standard, £SOO ; Sun, £SOO ; New Zealand, £IOOO ; Nationa', £500; Union, £SOO ; South British, £SOO. Messrs Park and Anderson estima'e their loss at £2OOO over and above the amount of •'■he insurance, the stock on the premises at the time of the lire being worth £6OOO. On the stock of Messrs Taylor and Bovrie, £2500, distributed as follows : —National, £SOO ; Liverpool, London and Globe, £SOO ; Royal, £750 ; Victoria, £750. Messrs, Taylor and Sowic estimate their loss at £3soo,being'£looo in excess of the insurance. On the stock of Mr James Strachan, £ISOO, vif, £750 in the National and £750 in the London and Lancashire. Mr Strachan valued his stock at £2OOO, and he therefore loses £SOO ov«r the amount of the insurance. j

The Sydney Catholic Cathedral.— The Bishop of Maitland, who has had much experience in Europe, states that, with the exception of St Paul’s and the Sistine at Rome, he never heard a more imposing ceremony, or heard grander music, than at the opening of the Cathedral in Sydney.

Entertainment at Geraldine. —Attention is directed to the programme of an entertainment which will be held this evening in the Oddfellows’ Hall, Geraldine, It aid of the Roman Catholic Organ F und which we publish elsewhere. It wi Ibe sect that t,he ( programme is a long and varied one and that it includes the names of the prince pal singers of. both Temuka and Geraldine Such a programm 3 ought to draw a large house. Larbikinism.—A band of Melbourm larrikins, numbering about twenty, wen aboard the staamer Hungarian, from Foochoi lying at the Sandridge pier, on a recent Sul day afternoon, during the absence of tl officers, and after assaulting the crew, wh are composed of Mongolians, stuck up tb cook and steward, and broke the Custon sealed lockers with the object of gettiri grog, in which they were disappointed. Tk young ruffians then left the vessel before tb police, who had been sent for, arrived^ A Terrible Accident. —A despatch froi Indianapolis in the New York Herat •ays that a frightful calamity occurred - tlfai recently, by which eight lives are known 1 have been lost. A rainfall that has nevt before been equalled in that part of tl country occurred during the preceding nig and caused all the streams to overflow. 1 party of sixteen or more persons were stan ing on a platform; over Pogue’s Run, watc ing the boiling torrent, when the struetd gave way, precipitating the entire party iij the water. Eight were saved, but all tl others were carried down the stream oi under the Union Railroad Depot, beneal which the stream passes, and drowned. Betting in Church. — Apropos the love of Yorkshiremen for betting, Sheffield minister (noted for his long se mons) was gratified to find two notorio betting men in Church three Sundays succession. Like the policeman in the chon he * could not understand it at all’; but ’ thought it his ‘ duty ’ to inquire into t change which had overcome one of them, w was a parishioner. So he called upon h and found him in high spirits. The preacl expressed his pleasure at seeing him church, whereat the parishioner laugh heartily, and said ‘he was glad, too, for ‘ did a good stroke of business that timel’ 1 good stroke of business!’ repeated t puzzled preacher, 1 what do you mean ‘ Mean ! why I bet Jim five quids twenty that you . would go on for foi minutes every time, and you did,’ K. F. Gray will offer at auction to-morn two ] acre sections (freehold) in the Ma Road, Temuka. Messrs Maclean and Stewart will attei Winchester Fair to day, and offer a numb of cattle and. sheep. To-morrow, on t premises of Mr T. Sullivan, painter, Timor they will dispose of the stocki-n-trade of painter. , Mr W. G. Aspinall, late with Mes Daggett Bros, and Brent, of Dunedin, a nounces in our advertising columns that has commenced practice in Temuka, and m be consulted at his offices, Commercial stn Temuka. We wish him every success. Attention is directed to the new adv tisement of the Little? Dust Pan which a pears in another- column. The premi have been recently extended and the greatly increased. The advertisement sta that it is the cheapest house in Timaru almost any kinds of goods. It is 1 curiosity shop of the town, and persons quhing fancy, goods may feel sure they c find anything of that kind they want there