LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1335, 2 May 1885, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

CUSTOMS. — The Customs revenue collected at the pert of Timaru for the month of April amounted to £ISBO 19s Id; corresponding quarter 1884, £1514 10s sd. Coebbotiok, —Vinoo’s weight in the Bailway Stakes Handicap to be run at the Geraldine meeting next week should be 6st 51b instead of 9st 51b as misprinted in our last.

Annual Mbkixno op Ratkpatebs. —The annual meeting of ratepayers of the Geraldine Road District takes place in the Board office, Geraldine, on Monday next at noon. The Board will meet at half-past nme to transact the ordinaiy business of the month.

Imports and Exports.— The following are the values of the imports und exports for the quarter ended March 31st and the corresponding quarter of 1884 respectively Imports; £2,172,373, corresponding quarter, 1884, £2,103,976. Exports, £2,563,684 ; 1884, £2,660,545. Salk of Leasehold Land.— Mr Walter Kitson, Commissioner of Crown Lands, sold yesterday in the Temuka Courthouse the lease of about 11$ acres of land near the Cemetery, for a term of seven years for £l9 per annum; Mr J. T. M. Hayhurst was the purchaser. The upset price was £5 15a. A Cowardly Act, — A cowardly dead was perpetrated 'by a man at the Otaio last Thursday. Two men had a quarrel over some trifling matter and had a scrimmage, and whilst on the ground one with his teeth seized the upper lip of the other and bib it completely off. The sufferer had the wound dressed by Dr Maointyre, and the police have the matter in hand.

Local Option Poll.— The poll of ratepayers in the Raukapuka Licensing District to ascertain whether or not it is their wish that more publicans’ and accommodation licenses shall be issued in the said district takes place on Tuesday next between the hours of 9 a.m, and 6 p.m. The polling places are the E.M. Courthouse, Geraldine, and the Schoolroom, Woodbury. Blub Ribbon Meeting. — On Monday eyening next the monthly meeting of the Blue Ribbon Gospel Temperance Mission takes place in the Volunteer Hall, Temuka. The chair will be occupied by the Rev, T. A. Hamilton, and the Rev. D. Thomas end E. Macintosh will addresi the meeting. There will be the usual selections from Sankey’e collection, with accompaniments by tbe Band, and a very pleasant evening will doubtless be spent by all attending. Temuka Road Boabd. —Yesterday was the day fixed for the nomination of three members to fill the three vacancies on the Temuka Road Board, but very little interest was taken in tbe matter. Of tbe three retiring members only Mr John Talbot was nominated. Messrs Paterson and Barker having evidently forgotten all about it. Messrs John Talbot, J. T. M. Hayhurst, and Job Brown were the only candidates nominated, with the result that they were declared duly elected. Mr Barker arrived about five minutes afterwards but was too late. We believe that Messrs Hayhurst and Brown had no intention of offering themselves as candidates, and would not have been nominated only that they happened to be present and saw no one else coming forward. >

Shipping Rktubns.— Tha following ii a return of tho number, tonnage and crews, of the vessel* catered inward* and outwards at New Zealand ports for the quarter ended 3lsfc March ; 209 vessels, of 138,551 tons, with crews aggregating 5,429, corresponding quarter 1884 ; 213, 128,144, and 5350. Outwards: 193 vessels, of 125,454 tons, with crswi totalling 4,990 men j corresponding quarter, 1884: 221,135,619, and 4,951. Gbbaldine Montklt Stock Sale.— -This sale will ba held on Monday next by Messrs J. Mundell and Co, In addition to the large number of stock which will be offered for sale, tho auctioneers notify that they have reoeired instructions to sell a quantity of first class furniture. Full particulars of -all the entries received will bo seen in the advertisement, aud further entries will be received to hour of sale.

Football. —We remind the Geraldine players that the opening game of the season will be played this afternoon in the Domain. The following are the players chosen to take part in the Temuka match “Dark versus Fair,” which takes place in the Park this afternoon : —Dark : Messrs Yelvin, MoOaskill, P. Thomson, A. Clinch, Heap, LeOren, R. Smith, Shallard (2), J. Paterson, J. Russell, W. Storey, Franks and Mander. Pair; Messrs Findlay, Ogilvie, G. Smith, Hayhurst, Hart, Stewart, Gurr, Blyth, Gray, Wood, Reid, and E. Smith. The game will commence at 3 o’clock sharp. Mammoth Cheese.— A Liverpool firm lately received a number of chesses of extraordinary size, manufactured by the West Oxford Cheese and Batter Manufaoturing Company (Limited), Oxford, Ontario, Canada. The largest cheese weighed net at the factory 2,090 lbs ; the number of gallons of milk used in its manufacture was 2,097 (897 cows furnished it) supplied by 95 farmers, who were all interested in its manufacture, all alike being shareholders in the concern. This factory turned out for the 1884 season 241,988 lbs of cheese, which was sold at an average of lUc per lb. The present season is expected to rule es high as 150 tons of cheese, and tho farmers have increased to 95. The Bbtcb t. Rusdbn Case. —A Commission has bten issued from the High Court of Chancery in the libel suit Bryce v. Rusden appointing the Hon. Patrick Alphonsus Buckley Commissioner to represent the plaintiff, and the Hon. Joseph R. Toole Commissioner to represent the defendant, ia taking evidence in New Zealand relative to tho action. The sitting of tho Commission will probably be held in Wanganui, about the Bth of May. In the meantime an application has been made to the Hon. the Colonial Secretary to have exhumed the bodies of the Maori women and children who it was alleged in Mr Rusden’s history had been ruthlessly sabred by the cavalry under Mr Bryce. The request has been acceded to on condition of all parties agreeing to it. The Colonial Secretary's stipulation that the examinations shall be conducted in the presence of medical men nominated by him has been agreed to by all the parties concerned.

Liability of Mabeikd Women. —A contemporary says : —Married women must be careful in future bow they contract debts on their own account, as they will be liable to arrest if they do not pay up at the appointed time. They hare in fact, a legal status which was formerly denied them by common law. Hence the Court holds that as the reasons on which their exemption from arrest was based no longer exist, the exemption itself cannot be successfully claimed on their behalfSo completely is the independence of married women secured by legislation in Great Sri tain that a learned judge recently stated that a woman oeuld put her husband in prison if he made off with an umbrella which she could prore was bought with her separate money. Women certainly appear to hare got their " rights ” at last.

The Reason Why.— A Eeuter message by cable the other day announced that the authorities in the Greenwich Observatory had decided to change the system of reckoning time from one to twenty-four hours. Mr Ellery, the Government Astronomer of Yictoris, explains the cause, and says that the change has been brought about by the extension of railways throughout the world. Both passengers and officials find that the system of reckoning arrivals and departures of the trains by the “ a.m.” and " p.m.” method leads to numerous mistakes, especially on such great continental lines as those in America. When he was in Amarica a fellowpassenger got out in Rochester, and, having looked at the time-table, be concluded that he had two and a half hours to go and visit his friends. He was back punctually, as ho thought, to time ; but to his great astonishment he was informed that the train had gone half an hour. Ha indignantly de munded an explanation, and was coolly informed that the trains started at Rochester time and arrivsd at New York time! Oomplimbntaet. —The Ross Advocate, after having copied from this paper the address delivered by the Rev. Mr Hamilton to the Volunteers at the Easter Encampment says;—“As will be seen elsewhere our late much missed and beloved paster (the Rev. Thos.f Hamilton) has been officiating at divine service, at an Easter encampment of East Coast Volunteers, on which occasion he spoke words that none but a true Christian has a right to use. There are many in this portion of the diooeso who only knew Mr Hamilton’s worth when it was lost to them. How gladly therefore would they welcome him back here. So gladly, indeed, that it is proposed to get up a parishoners’ meeting to devise some means (if possible) for getting Mr Hamilton back amongst his former flock. We are sure everyone who knew him as we did will re-echo the sentiment that if ever a Christian lived Mr Hamilton had a right to the title.” There are few who know Mr Hamilton who will not fully endorse the sentiments expressed by our contemporary.

“Faces we Mbet.”— On Thursday and Friday craning* next the Rer. T, W. Dunn, physiognomist, purposes lecturing in the Volunteer Hall, Temulia, on “ Faces we Meet, and How to Read Thom.” Mr Dunn is rery highly spoken of in our northern exchanges, and those who go to hear him will, we are eure, not regret it. Singular Accident. A singular accident occurred yesterday to a horse belonging to Messrs Thomson and Smith. The horse was employed in turning a suasage machine at the back of the shop, and apparently without any cause it* leg broke. It appears that the animal had been kicked by another a few days previously, but showed very little lameness through it, and this is the only cause which can be assigned for the singular occurrence. The horse had to be immediately shot, and, as it was extremely useful, Messrs Thomson and Smith sustain a serious loss through this accident, Flibb and Bugs, beetles, insects, roaches, ants, bed-bugs, rate, mice, gophers, chipmunks, cleared out by 11 Bough on Bate.” Kempthorne, Prosier and 00., Agents, Christchurch. 3