LOCAL & GENERAL.

Temuka Leader, Issue 2248, 1 September 1891, Page 2

LOCAL & GENERAL.

Gold. The Big Beach Company, Otago, obtained 100 ounces of retorted gold for the week. Fatal Accident. —Donald Robinson, a painter, aged 23, has died from injuries received through falling 30ft off a scaffolding near Dunedin. School Buildings.— lt is reported that the total vote for school buildings this year will be £32,5000, £7200 of which will come out of loan. The Totalisator. —The Government intends to reduce the totalisator tax from 2J per cent, to IJ, estimating the revenue

from the lower sum at £IO,OOO. Sheep Worrying. —There has been a > good deal of sheep worrying lately in paddocks adjoining Temuka and Arowhenua, presumably by stray dogs from the townships. Owners would do well to keep their dogs chained up at nights, as the suffering stockowners are on the watch. Rifle Range. —The selection committee have" chosen a site for a permanent range for the New Zealand Rifle Association. and it will be submitted for Captain Somerville’s approval this week. It is situated at the Upper Hutt, Wellington, close to a railway station, and will make a good range capable of giving 800 yards for 30 targets, with firing due south.

Dissatisfied Volunteers. —Tbe shooting members of the Wellington City Rifles have decided to stop all rifle practice unless, a reduction is nade in the price of ammunition. Other corps will probably follow suit. They also propose to hold a meeting of all shooting men in the district with a view to take united action in the matter, which is regarded as very serious by volunteers. Suicide. —An old man named Charles Frances, a bachelor, from Selwyn, stayed at the house of W. Stubbs, Bankside near Christchurch, on Wednesday evening, and

on Thursday morning he was found ill in a whare. He died at 1 p.m. He purchased “ Rough on Rats ” at Rakaia on Wednesday. The box, which had been opened, was found in his pocket. He is supposed to have committed suicide. The cause is not known. Selfish. —At a meeting of the Typographical Society at Wellington, the action of the Legislative Council in reducing the age at which females may be allowed to become type setters from 16 to 14, was adversely criticised, and a motion was carried unanimously : “ That our thanks be conveyed to Sir George Grey

for the manner in which he has advocated the principle of an elective Upper House, and requesting him to continue his efforts in that direction.” Peculiar Death. A death under peculiar circumstances took place in Waitohi yesterday. One of Mr Alexander Allen’s children, aged seventeen months, while playing on a low chair fell off and began to cry. The child went about afterwards for some time, and nothing

serious was apprehended until it laid down, and died in a few minutes. Dr Hayes was sent for, but before he reached there the deceased was beyond human aid. An inquest will be held. i The Find of Moa Bones. —The important find of bones at Enfield near ■ Oamaru, comprises over 120 thigh bones of moas, bones of the extinct New Zealand goose, eaglehawk, etc. Professor Forbes, of Christchurch, and Dr De Latour proceed to the site of the discovery to further open it out, and it is anticipated they will recover many more relics. This is one of the largest if not the largest, find of the sort ever made in the colony. Railways —An interesting return was laid on the table in tbe Legislative Council on Friday to tbe order of Sir G. g Whitmore: —lt shows tbe total cost of the railways of New Zealand to the present date. The figures are ns follows: —Auckland, £2.288,987 ; Taranaki. Wellington, £2.170,578: Hawke’s Bay, £792.047; Nelson, £405,301; Marlborough. £242,998 j Canterbury, £3.337.429 ; Westland, £310,801; Otago, £4,905,194; general expenses, £307,939 ; total, £15,344,223. The sums expended in the purchase of lands for railway

purposes areasfollowsAuckland £84,103; Hawke’s Bay, £22.81.9; Wellington, £95,826; Taranaki, £25.582; Nelson, £30,418 ; Westland, £21,040; Marlborough, £31.910 ; Canterbury, £167.244 ; Gtago, £173,089 ; total, £052,102. These figures include legal costs and other expenses, and the value of land acquired for public buildings in Otago and Canterbury, but not the moneys expended by the Go- ; vernment in the purchase of private railways.

Board Meetings. —The monthly meeting of the Temuka Road Board will bo held to-day, that of the Geraldine Town Board to-night, and that of the Temuka Town Board to-morrow night.

Geraldine Stock Sale. —The fortnightly sale of stock at Geraldine takes place to-morrow. Messrs J. Mundell and Co., H. B. Webster and 0,)., and Mr ‘A. E. Cox advertise a number of entries.

Benefit Society. —At the half-yearly meeting of the Hibernian Australasian Catholic Benefit Society the report showed that l the society was sound financially. The' funeral fund was £2590, and sick fund £9235.

Found Dead. —A girl named Emma Jensen, an inmate of St. Catherine’s Home, at Christchurch, was found dead in bed on Sunday morning. A post mortem examination showed that death had been caused by heart disease.

New Catholic Church. —The foundation stone of the Church of the Sacred Heart in North-East Valley, Dunedin, was laid on Sunday in the presence of some thousands of spectators by Bishop Moran. The collection was large. Coal and Limestone. tenderers are reminded that tenders for the lease of the Mount Somers Coal Pit, and twenty-five acres of limestone land at Mount Somers, close with Mr C, G. Tripp, at Woodbury, to-day. Full particulars will be found in our advertising columns.

Railway Society. — The executive of the Society of Railway Servants are in receipt of communications from the following branches with regard to the proposed Insurance Bill!': —Canterbury against, Auckland against, Picton against, and Wanganui against. Advicesfrom the other branches are expected shortly. Native Lands. —At the Auckland Liberal Association the following resolution was passed;—“ This Association is of opinion that the present Ministry should this session devise some simple and easy method of dealing with native lands, so as to ensure at the earliest possible opportunity the occupation and settlement thereof.” ' Bankruptcy Case— Judgment was given in Wellngton in the application for a rule absolute in the case of G. A. Tapper, a bankrupct of Palmerston North, who was sentenced to six months’ imprisonment for not keeping books. The Chief Justice said the conviction was bad, inasmuch as the bankrupt had not been charged in the District Court prior to the hearing of the evidence, and the rule, therefore, would be made The effect of this is to release Tapper. Compulsory Insurance Bill.—At a meeting of railway employes, which was held at the Christchurch railway station on Sunday morning the Insurance Bill was considered. It was ultimately decided that in its present form the Bill is not acceptable. Numerous amendments were submitted to the meeting, and many who were in favor of the Bill decided to ask for extended time to send in their suggested alterations.

The Globe Fire. —A notification appears in the Gazzette setting forth that the Governor will grant a free pardon to any person implicated in setting on fire the Globe newspaper office in Dunedin on the 4th inst, he not being the principal offender, who will give such information as will lead to the apprehension and conviction of any one or more of the offenders, and .that a reward of £2OO is offered to any person, not being the principal offender, who shall first give such information. Picturesque Atlas. —Some time ago Mr Bowerman, of the Picturesque Atlas Company, put up at a hotel in a place called Balfour, in Southland. He had a horse and buggy, but the harness was stolen, and for this he sued the publican in whose custody he placed them. The publican swore that he told Bowerman he would not be responsible, but the Magistrate held that he could not divest himself of responsibility, and gave judgment for Bowerman for £4, and £6 11s costs. The Good Samaritan. —Dr Ginders, Medical Superintendent of the Rotorua Hot Springs, has supplied to the Government a report on the Thermal Springs District. In giving instances of the cures effected. Dr Ginders quotes the following from Dr McGregor, Inspector of Hospitals; —“ A.B.—A young man became afflicted with rheumatism while serving as a common sailor along the coast, and was reduced to helplessness. He had spent his all without gaining any relief. When he had gone half way to Rotorua he found himself at a roadside inn unable to go further, but a good Samaritan came along and conveyed him in his own carriage to Rotorua, and confided him to the care of Dr Ginders. I think it is only due to the good Samaritan to state that his name was Sir Robert Stout, then Premier of the colony,” The man was perfectly cured.

The Caledonian Ball. —Some complaints have reached us with regard to the Caledonian ball. Some complain of their names appearing in the paper, and others complain of their names being omitted. Our report was compiled under the following circumstances :■ —Plain cards were taken round, and delivered to every person in the room together with a request

tnat tnose present; snouia write on tneir cards their names as well as the characters they represented. These cards were afterwards collected, and from them the list of names was made out by officers of the society and handed to our reporter. In justice to ourselves, therefore, we cannot take responsibility for what appeared or did not appear. The officers of the society took the whole thing into their own hands, and we had nothing to do with it, except to publish the matter they supplied to us. This, offlcourse, refers only to the names. For the balance of the report we take full responsibility. We desire to say, too, that the officers showed the greatest anxiety to please everybody, and did their best to give general satisfaction. No one ought to blame them, for, indeed, few could cany out the whole affair in a more creditable manner. In one instance, however, it would appear that they were imposed upon. One lady’s name appeared against her wishes, but on inquiry it was found that a card bearing her name was handed in amongst the others. Now how

did this card get in. amongst the others, if the lady herself did not write it ? The only way this could have happened is that someone out of spite or mischief handed in a card with her nauie on, and of course the officers of the society . did not know but that it was genuine, like the other cards. It is a great pity the writer cannot be found out, and punished by never again being allowed into any gatherings of the Caledonian Society. We have done our best, and so did the officers of the society do their best, and if any omissions were made we can assure our readers that they were due to the fact that the people themselves neglected to give in their cards. *

Fire.— A fire broke out on Friday morning in the premises of Rominson, confectioner, in George Street, Dunedin. Shortly after it was discovered a loud explosion took place, which did great damage to the buildings. Part of the premises were occupied by families named Metcalf ami Morgan, who escaped in their night clothes. Rominson’s stock and machinery were insured for £l3O in the New Zealand Office, none of the others were insured. The explosion is believed to have been due to the heat melting the gaspipes. Some idea of its force may be gathered from the fact that it almost, levelled the back wall with the ground, smashed all the windows in the premises, and cracked those of the buildings on the other side of the right of way. Mr Metcalf loses £2OO, and Mrs Morgan nearly £2OO.

Honest Bankrupt.— Twenty shillings in the pound with interest added. This (says the Southland Times) wasjthe cheerful proposal laid before the creditors of Messrs G. Evans and G. Lee (of Round Hill) yesterday afternoon. It is true the money due is not to be paid forthwith, but ample security is to be given, and the action of the creditors ! is none the less praiseworthy on that account. As one of the creditors remarked, it would be a good thing if there were more like them. The Bankruptcy Act apparently does not provide for such a coutingency as payment in full, but eventually a resolution embodying the essential conditions was drafted and passed, and awaits confirmation at the hands of another meeting. Since his bankruptcy Mr Evans has floated a large company in England, of which he is now secretary at a fair salary. He now offers to pay off the amount at the rate of £l4 per month, with 5 per cent interest on the respective sums from the date of bankruptcy.

The Telephone. Telephone communication seems to be' the order of the day with people in country districts. We are informed that the people at Peel Forest are not content to remain in the back ground in this respect, and have now fully made up their minds that they, too, will have a telephone. As we anticipated the Woodbury telephone was completed on Thursday and is now in full working order. Of course, people cannot, ?_ as they do in large towns, by the payment of a fee, speak themselves to their Mends at the other end. The telephone in this case is simply a substitute for the telegraph, and the message will be handed to the postmaster, who will ring up the other end, and give the message which will be sent off in the ordinary way like a telegram. Only one more guarantee is required to completethe number which will secure for the public telephone communication between Geraldine and Timaru; when that one is forthcoming a start will be made at once.

, Compulsory Insurance.— The Canterbury branch of the Kailway Servants Society at a large meeting strongly protested against the introduction of any directly or indirectly compulsory insurance scheme, and decided to ask all the railway employes to send their approval or disapproval of the Commissioners’ Bill through the executive of the society for transmission to the Minister of Public Works. The branch also urged on the Government the necessity of passing the Conciliation Bill. The Otago branch of the railway Servants Society carried unanimously resolutions affirming that the Railway Insurance Bill has so many very objectionable features that the branch resolves not to recognise it; and that the branch fully endorse the resolutions of the Canterbury branch. The secretary was instructed to wire the local members of Parliament requeuing them to use their influence with the Government to get the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Bill possed this session.

Football. —The following is the Waihi first fifteen to piay against the Union team in Timaru, on Thursday, September 3rd :—W. Moore, McLeod, Morrison, Opie (2), Hart (2), Stewart (2), Shallard (2), Brinkman, Lewis, Wakely, and Turnbull.—The following will represent Temuka first in their cup match with Timaru on Saturday, the game to take place in the Victoria Park, Temuka, at 3.30 :—Storey, Velvin. McLeod, Gillespie) Armitage, McCallum, Gaffaney, Fitzgerald, Brosnahan, Anderson (captain), Duncan, Carr, Lavery, Goldstone, and Turner.—The following have been picked to represent Temuka second in their junior flag match with the Colonials at Timaru on Thursday, September 3rd. A drag will leave at 1.15 sharp ;—Full-back, W. Russell; three-quarters, J. McAuliffe, W. M. Storey, and J. Polaschek; halves, Findlay and Rodgers; forwards, R. Robinson (captain), J. Henry, Marshall (2), R. McKinley, W. McKay, J. Austin, E. Smitli; and J. Lee; emergencies, Holden, and Morton.—The first and only practice match of the representative footballers took place at Auckland on Saturday, when to everyone’s surprise the representatives were badly beaten at eveiy point of the game by a second fifteen, who scored an easy by win by 14 to 3. The play of the whole of the representatives was quite a reversal of the form they had displayed in cup matches. The forwards proved too heavy for their opponents, who overbore them by their fast play. The selection committee have made great changes in the team, replacing four of the heavier forwards by 1 lighter and faster men. The team play Thames next Saturday, and leave for Wanganui bn Monday morning. The following now compose the team r—Full back, Kissling; three quarters, Jervis, Gaudin, and Macefield; halves, Elliott, Brand, and Tanfield; forwards, H. Poland, Smith, McKenzie, Bruce, Miles, Penalligan; Stone, and Caulton. Emergiencies— Back, Roberta; forwards, F, Murray. True Economy. —To purchase Countess Tea for two shillings. Free from any excess of astringency.—[Advt.] Teas free from any excess of Astringency—South British Tea Company’s Pure Blends. All Storekeepers.—[Advt.]