LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1137, 9 February 1884, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Thanks. — Mr John Talbot returns thanks to the electors in the Temuka Licensing District for bis re-election as a member of the Licensing Committee. Railway Rbtuens. —The railway returns for the last four weekly period show a grand total for the North and South Islands of £82,432 8s 3d. The expenditure was 70.90 per cent. Bumble Beks bob N.Z. —Mr J. C. Frith, of Auckland, has received a consignment of bumble bees in a torpid state from England by tho s.s. Doric. They wore covered in a chilled room. The object is to fertilise red clover. Mr Frith’s reasons are that if successful they will save him one thousand pounds a year on the importation of clover seed.

Recognition Seevice, —On Thursday evening last a recognition service was held m the Primitive Methodist Church, Geraldine, for the purpose of welcoming the Rev. H. Clark, who has been newly appointed to labor amongst the Methodists in the district. A large party of members of the connection came up from Temuka and a very enjoyable evening was spent.

To Cobbespondbnts. The letter of “Stranger” refers to matter published in another paper and is consequently rejected. If “ Stranger ” expunges the part that has reference to what has appeared in another paper and re writes his letter early in tho morning before his ideas get mixed up by drinking “ six glasses of beer,” —between the second and third glasses would be a very good time we will publish anything reasonable he may forward to us.

Good Suggestions. —At the Educational Institute, Christchurch, on Thursday after, neon the following resolutions were carried : —“That this Institute suggests that any teacher shall be allowed to withhold from examination any child who has not attended 300 half-days, and also ten per cent of those who have made the required number of attendances.” “That it is desirable that regulations with respect to presentation in standards should be identical in the different Provincial Districts.” “That it is desirable that examiners connected with our public school system should be gentlemen who have no direct interest in the passing of candidates.” The last was carried by a majority of only one.

Suicide. —The Wellington Post’s correspondent telegraphs from Poxton as follows —A horrible case of suicide occurred last Wednesday night, when Henry Buckendale, about teatime, blew his head off. He took a gun, went to his room, locked the doo ', and calling out “ Good-bye ” to his wife discharged the weapon by pulling a string attached to the trigger fastened to his toe. The man had not been drinking, but was despondent on account of ill-health. He had no belief whatever in regard to a future state and was not in poor circumstances. Buokendale arrived in the colony with a number of German immigrants some eight years ago, and leaves a wife and a boy aged 14. He has threatened on previous occasions to destroy himself. Geeaddinb Bbass Band. —This evening the members of the Bind proceed to Woodbury to perform some selections of music to entertain the good folk in that neighborhood. We understand that it is the intentioif of the Band to give a series of promenade concerts in the Park of a Saturday evening, commencing on Saturday next. Collections will on each occasion be made, one-third of which will be handed over to the Domain Board for the purpose of improving the Park. Such a laudable object being aimed at, we should indeed be deceived if the residents in the township did not most heartily support the movement, for the present condition of this favorite place of resort is disgraceful. It certainly is not the fault of the Domain Board, as they have no money in hand to keep the Park in order. If, however, this is forthcoming by the means stated above, we hope shortly to see a decided improvement ia the appearance of the Park* t

Mount Peel Road Boabd. Messrs Arthur Hawdon and James Pithie were on Thursday last elected to fill the vacancy on the above Board. A poll will be taken on Wednesday the 13th February. Thb Takapuna. —The Takapuna will not be run as an express boat, after the end of February. During the three months she has been running, her returns shows a loss of £IOOO a month. Am Unprofitable Business.—At the annual meeting of the shareholders in the Christchurch Temperance Hotel the balancesheet showed a debit of £774 for tbs year, and a total debit balance of £2341 since the commencement of the Company.

Tawhiao’s Visit to England.— Tawhiao has returned to Auckland fro m Xawbia. On his journey back he lost a belt containing £3OO collected for his expenses to England. It is stated that To Wheoro will accompany him on the Home trip, also representatives of the Arawa, Ngatihau, and Ngatimaniopoto tribes. He bolds a meeting in March, at which arrangements for his tiip are to be discussed. Costly Printing Office.— The United States Government Printing Office, which is said to be tbe largest establishment of its kind in the world, is valued at £1,062,500. The disbursements last year (ended June 30), were £559,971. The daily pay of employees is £ll9O. It is estimated that from 1789 to 1881, the total outlay for Government printing has been in the neighborhood £21,250,000. Scaecelt Cbbdiblb. —At Brunswick, near Melbourne, two J.P’s are members of the local School Board of Advice, and occupied seats on the platform at the Christmas demonstration. Each of them, it would appear, was desirous of distributing the prizes, and, as neither would give way, they resolved to settle it in the good old primeval fashion. Without going through the usual formality of adjourning to the back yard, at it they went oh the platform of the Town Hall in the presence of the assembled children and parents, and after a brisk round of five minutes, the successful J.P, proceeded to distribute the prizes, and the defeated one went out to wash his bleeding nose at the pump.

New System of Irrigation.— Some of our leading agriculturists (says a Home paper) have from time to time advocated the sub irrigation system, which, as its name implies, means the application of water to the soil from below, instead of from above. Although at first sight this plan seems contrary to Nature, it has been found most success *ul in practice. Two agriculturists in California have lately adopted the system with marked success, and a description of the means employed will be of interest to many. First of all, trenches are dug in the soil to be treated ; these are seven feet apart and eighteen inches deep. In these trenches are laid pipes made of cement, and at intervals there are holes in the pipe, each fitted with a perforated plug. The ends of these pipes are in communication with the water supply. When the pipes ere once laid, the trenches are filled in, and the field exhibits no sign that it differs from ordinary ground. In one case, an orchard of one hundred and fifty acres gave such an increased product that it paid the cost of the extra work in one year.

Oub Ahoestobs. —The idea of pedigree has prompted an enterprising inquirer (writes a Paris correspondent) to undertake the solution of the following query: How many ancestors, male and female,has each individual, counting backwards through 30 generations ? In beginning such a count-up, we commence with the father and mother, who make two, and who have each a father and mother, making four. Wo then double this result 30 times, which brings us to the sum of 1,073,741,824- —that is to say, each person has had in the course of 30 generations 1,073,741,824 grandfathers and grandmothers. As everyone among the 800,000,000 of the earth’s inhabitants has the same number, the sum total of “ forbears” possessed by the race since the thirtieth generation ago only almost defies calculation. In general we count four generations per century, which, counting from the end of this century back to the commencement of the Christian era, gives us 76 generations. Wc arrive, therefore, at a total number of forbears, for each of the human beings now living on this planet, ol such an ocean of triliiards as it would take many human lives to count up one by one. Model Daiht. —At the York dairy ex hibition a model dairy from Germany took the first prize of £SO. It is described as follows by the Dublin Parmer’s Gazette : “ Mr Ahlborn’s dairy was a plain-covered shed without any attempt at building, but the interior was arranged in a very practical manner. The milk was treated by the Swartz or deep setting system, which in the opinion of the best Continental authorities is the best of all for producing the finest quality of butter. Ahlborn’s well-known Holstein churn and butterworker were employed for churning and making up the butter, which was worked on the dry or ho water system, Mr Ahlborn exhibited a shallow pan arrange ment with a skimmer on wheels for faking the cream off 30 gallons of milk at one sweep, and made several sorts of cheese, hard and soft, skim milk and whole milk. Under the intelligent direction of Praulein Kreipe and Herr Niesman a very good product was made out of even the skim milk. In Germany a block of such cheese about fire inches square sells for a little over twopence j and is largely eaten by the working classes. Perhaps we shall some day rise to the same taste in Ireland, Praulein Kreipa is the young lady who lately figured at the shows in Belfast, Limerick, and Cork, and created such a favorable impression by her neat and deft mode of buttermaking. Eeally, if she is a fair specimen of the Continental system, one can cease to wonder that it is so popular, and that travellers think so much of it, Mr Ahlborn also showed an apparatus for aerating and bottling skim milk and whey, which when so treated will keep for two laeathe »r more." .

Masonic. —The brethren of the Lodge Southern Star, 619, S.C., Geraldine, are notified that the next regular meeting will bo held in tbe Masonic hall, on Thursday next, at the usual hour. Method in Madness. —Two brothers were once staying in a New England town, when oae of them became seriously insane. A physician’s statement of the case was reduced to writing, and the sane brother started for the asylum in charge of tbe maniac. He fell asleep on the journey, and the demented one, with marvellous slyness, robbed him of his papers, assumed the altitude of his keeper, assured every one that his brother was insane, and succeeded in having him placed in the asylum.

Concket at Geealdxnb. —On Wednesday next the members of the Geraldine Philharmonic Society will give a grand concert in the Oddfellows’ hall. Since their last concert in November last they have been rehearsing most assiduously the pieces that will bo rendered on the present occasion, and many more active members have joined the Society, so that the success of the ensuing concert may be thoroughly relied on. The members on the other hand, confidently look to the public to support their endeavors in presenting it with first-class music, and one and all concerned again desire fine weather for the occasion.

The Temuka Road Board invites fenders for thistle cuttting on the roads. The Mount Peel Road Board invites tenders for fencing at Rangitata bridge. Messrs J. Mundell and Co., auctioneers, etc., Geraldine, publish a list of sheep and cattle they have for private sale. “ German Syrup.” —No other medicine in the world was ever given such a test of its curative qualities as Boscbee’s German Syrup. In three years two million four hundred thousand small bottles of this medicine were distributed free, of charge by Druggists in the United States of America to those afflicted with Consumption, Asthma, Croup, severe Coughs, Pneumonia, and other diseases of the throat and lungs, giving the afflicted undeniable proof that German Syrup will cure them. The result has been that Druggists in every town and village in civilised countries are recommending it to their customers. Go to your Druggists and ask what they know about it. Sample Bottles 6d. Regular size 3s 6d. Three doses will relieve any case. 1