LOCAL & GENERAL.

Temuka Leader, Issue 2281, 17 November 1891, Page 2

LOCAL & GENERAL.

Sale or a run.—The Greta Peaks estate, consisting of 12,218 acres, was sold at Christchurch on Saturday, at an average of £2 11s an acre.

A Good Idea. —The friendly societies of Auckland intend to establisha fufid for the maintenance of the sick members' of those societies in the district hospital. Late Frost.— A sharp frost was exexperienced throughout the district on Saturday night, and did considerable damage in the vegetable gardens.

Salvation Army.—The band of the Christchurch branch of the Salvation Army paraded the streets of Temuka, last evening, and played a number of selections very pleasingly.

Public Meeting at Winchester.— ln our advertising columns Mr Wm, Page convenes a public meeting in the Winchester Public Hall, , for Saturday evening, to discuss school matters..

The Native Disturbance.—The natives sentenced to imprisonment for complicity in the recent trespass case have been removed from Waipiro to Napier. Tuta talks of bringing an action against the Government for wrongful imprisonment. Hospital Sunday.—Last Sunday was observed at Auckland as “ Hospital Sunday.” The societies inregalia marched in procession through the principal streets to the City Hall, where addresses were given by the mayor, Sir George Grey, Mr J. W. Connolly (American Consul), and others, in support of the movement, and a collection was made on behalf of the fund. The demonstration was witnessed by large crowds of people. Buggy Accident.—On Sunday a horse attached to Miss Paterson's buggy managed to get rid of its blinkers, and bolted from the Presbyterian Church, Temuka, making in thb direction of the railway. Here it made a sudden turn, which caused the buggy to capsize. The horse then proceeded in the direction of Mr Findlay’s premises, where it was stopped. The seat of the buggy was knocked off, and one shaft broken. This, fortunately, represented all the damage.

Valuable Sheep.—At the Christchurch sale of sheep last Saturday, Mr Thomas Palmer, of Cade-by farm, Temuka, bought, two splendid Lincoln rams, one of which cost £lO 10s, and the other £2l Is, making in all £37 17s for the two rams They were brought to Temuka by train yesterday, and taken to the farm. They are splendid sheep, and Mr Palmer may be congratulated on having secured them. They are show sheep, and one of them is a prize taker. Dramatic Entertainment.—We would remind our readers that the dramatic entertainment in aid of the Geraldine Drill Shed fund will be held to-night at Geraldine. Several new attractions have been. added to the interior of the hall, and it is now a sight worth seeing. A large number of people are expected to be present from Timaru and Temuka and other districts, so that those who want a good seat will require to be there when the doors are opened. Volunteers will attend in uniform.

Met His Match. The advertising agent is a smart man, but occasionally meets his match. It is related of an officer of the Salvation Army in this colony that being at a very “ hard shop,” where it seemed impossible to get people into the barracks, he beguiled his spare moments painting texts on the blank walls and hoardings of the town. On one occasion he toiled laboriously, but affectionately, over the words, “ What must I do to be saved ” intending on the morrow to return and add the answer to the question. It so happened that an advertising agent passed the hoarding later in the evening, and seizing the opportunity,, as-he thought, for scoring a good point,'anticipated the Army man by painting underneath , his text the words, “ Use - J k’:Ffuit Salt.” The captain returned -on . the morrow, pondered awhile, and then painted underneath the further injunction, “ And set thine house in order, for thou shalt surely die.” —Sydney Telegraph. Sacred Concert .and Cantata. —A sacred concert, consisting of solos and I choruses, will be given in the Temuka Wesleyan Church on Thursday evening by the Timaru Wesleyan Choir, assisted by other friends, under the leadership of Mr R. Wood. The cantata “Jonah,” by Dr J. V. Roberts, will constitute the second part of the concert. This work opens with a capital overture. A soprano recit. and solo follow, setting - forth God’s declarations against Nineveh in the words of the prophet. A really, stirring double chorus of Ninevites follows, and then the message to Jonah to go to Nineveh. The disappointed prophet is then heard in plaintive reeit. and air requesting that he might die. Chorus, recit., and air set forth the cry against the city, the opposition of the people, the penitence of the Ninevites, God’s compassion towards them, Jonah’s confession, and a double chorus closes the work by declaring tac joy in heaven over sinners reuniting. Tac cantata is full of good music, the various parts are well distributed, and the whole work keeps one wide awake. The solos and choruses of the first part of the concert have been well chosen, so that a really firstclass evening’s music is provided,

Temuka Stock Sale— The fortnightly sale of stock at Temuka takes place to-day.

The Oldest Inhabitant. The death is announced 1 at Otago Greytown of Mrs Fanny Clancey, aged 101 years. ijh’ | Arowhenua Town Board.— The adjourned monthly meeting'' of the Ard# whenua TowA Board takes place to-mp|Vow evening. c ■ ■ ...r-

The Bishop op Nelson. At the Diocesan Synod resolutions expressing regret at the resignation of Bishop Suter and the causes leading thereto, and of sympathy with Mrs Suter, were carried.

BurgLary." — A' man named Thomas Bateman was brought before the Court at Waimate last Friday, on a charge of having broken into the house of Peter Rooney, of • Normanby, and stolen therefrom £3 9s lid, besides some other articles, The case was remanded to Timaru. Masonic. —The installation of Mr Peter Cunningham as District Grand Master of the Canterbury Masonic Grand Lodge, English constitution, was performed last Friday night by Grand Master Bevau, of Westland, in the presence of a large concourse of the fraternity.

Labour Settlement. —At an interview between the Premier and the president and secretary of the Trades Council, Mr Ballance stated that the Government were willing to set apart a block of land to be taken up by the labouring classes on the lines of General Booth’s settlement scheme. A Delayed Mail. —Considerable dissatisfaction exists in the Rangitata Island neighborhood at present, owing to the nondelivery of the mails on Tuesday, the 10th instant, from Rangitata South. Certainly it was a very wet day, but nothing that should occasion such an omission. A good many of the residents were put to considerable inconvenience over the matter, and it is to be hoped that the proper authorities will see that such an occurrence may not take place in future. The Oldest New Zealander.— Probably the oldest native-born New Zealander with European parents is Mr Ebenezer Baker, of Wellington, who attained his 61st year on the 29th of October, and who has never been out of the colony. Mr Baker, who is the son of one of the noble band of missionaries who long years ago prepared the way for the early colonists, was when a young man present at the signing of the treaty of Waitaugi: He was for many years Native Interpreter and Assistant Clerk of the Court at Wellington, and was afterwards, if we are not mistaken, appointed Resident Magistrate for one of the" districts on the East Coast of the North Island. Rangitata Island School. —The Rev. Mr Hamilton, of Temuka, gave us a great treat in the school on the 6th instant by way of a lecture on “ Sea Life.” Mr H. Grainger, chairman of the School Committee, occupied the chair, and briefly introduced the. lecturer, who was no stranger to the audience, as he had given them lectures of a highly interesting nature on previous occasions., The rev. gentleman gave a very graphic description of the various vessels at sea, from the cutter to the full-rigged ships, and warships also received full justice at his hands.’ Altogether, the lecture was an instructive treat, and during its delivery he kept his audience in rapt attention, broken only by some amusing anecdotes, which caused considerable laughter and applause. The proceeds were on behalf of the day school funds.

Post-Sessional Address. —Mr H. S. Fish, M.H.R., addressed a large meeting of his constituents at Dunedin the mayor presiding. The meeting was, on th.e_wh.ole, very rowdy, the speaker being continually interrupted. He defended his claim to belong to the Progressive Liberal Party, and said that his quarrel with the Government was because of their inconsistency in the matter of retrenchment. He defended the taxation proposal, and thought it was not driving capital from the colony. He defended the Council, and considered that their rejection of female franchise would have redeemed them if it were necessary. He warned the Government that they must not make appointments from one class. A vote of thanks and confidence was carried, large numbers refraining from voting. Proposed Rain-porcino Experiments. —For some time the question of rainforcing has been discussed in the Oamaru papers in consequence of the long spell of comparatively dry weather. On Saturday a meeting was held to devise means of experimenting in the same . manner as in Texas. The meeting was largely attended by farmers and others, and after the matter had been pretty fully discussed a committee was appointed to carry out arrangements for the experiments, and another was appointed to canvass for subscriptions. Already a large amount of money has been collected. A good deal of interest was taken in the matter, and it is certain that the experiment will be carried out. A fine shower of rain fell on Saturday morning, but this only added to the wish to test whether rain can be produced ,by artificial means.

This Hinemoa’s Trip. On Friday afternoon the Government steamer Hinemoa returned from a five weeks’ cruise of the southern lighthouses and island services. Captain Fairchild visited all the food depots on the outlying islands and found them intact. While at the Aucklands the body found lately at the northern harbor was exhumed in order to ascertain whether it was at all likely to prove to be that of one of the crew of the Kakanui as had been supposed. Enough was learned to" show that there could be nothing in this theory, as the bones were so much bleached that they must have lain on the beach for 20 years. While at the Sounds it was ascertained that one of the prisoners had died a few days previously. In consequence of the statements made by some of his fellow-prisoners imputing blame to certain officials, the 'Hon. Mr Buckley, Colonial Secretary, who was with the Hinemoa, held an official enquiry, which, it is understood, resulted in the charges being disproved.

Protection. Here is the curious history of the two dresses, as told by the Pall Mall Gazette For months they remained stored in a packing case at the Custom House in New York. They had come all the way from Paris, and were marvels of what tailor craft could do. The consignee was Mrs Astor, whose husband is worth millions, and who dresses as the wife of a millionaire may be supposed to dress. The Parisian milliner, acting in his own interest, declared the value at 500 f, and the New York Custom House officer—probably a married man—declared that that was not anything like the value. The lady refused to supplement the deficiencies of her dressmaker. She had paid him for the dresses, aud it was a matter between him and the Custom House authorities. So the case stood — with the dresses in it. The New York Custom House seems to have very little red tape in its administration, for it decided that, as the dresses would rapidly go out of fashion, the best plan was to sell them by auction. It was a great event. All New York was interested to see them, and to see what they would fetch. The auction room was crowded, and competition keen. One dress was knocked down for :Cl2B, the other for £152. The names of the purchasers are not given, but if they , ajc a secret they will not long remain so.

Waiiohi Water Supply. The poll taken yesterday as to the proposal of the, Geraldine County Council the sum of £3OOO for purposes at Waitohi Flat resulted in the majority of the ratepayers recording their totes in favor of the proposal. Out of >J6‘ ratepayers 59 voted for the proposal,. 1 voted against, and 1C did not vote. The total number of votes recorded was 101. It cannot be said that any excitement marked the polling day, for those, opposed to. the proposal stayed away, and consequently tnere was no contrary expressions of opinion among thpse f who gathered’ around the polling booth. Under the peculiar circumstances of the case, however, the general public can have hut one opinion; and that' is' that the Waitohi Flat settlers have done the correct thing in supporting the council upon this measure.

Monopoly.—“ Caesar’s Column ” writes to the Lyttelton Times as follows When Egypt went down, 2 per cent of her population owned 97 per cent of her wealth. The people were starved to death. When Babylon went down, 2 per cent of her population ownedall the wealth. The people were starved to death. When Persia went down, 1 per cent of her population owned all the land. When Rome went down 1800 people owned all the known world. There are 40,000,000 people in England, Ireland and Wales ; 100,000 people own all the|land. Result —submerged tenth. In the United States, in 1850, capitalists owned 37i per cent of the nation’s wealth; in 1870 they owned 63 per cent. In New Zealand., in 1890, 1500 people monopolised 18,000,000 acres of land, the greater part ,of which remained unimproved. In 1891 there Were 600 holdings less in Canterbury and ptago. Result—the Colony was not able to. retain its natural increase. ' History repeats itself. If the people of this land wish to avoid the catastrophes that* : have : befallen other nations, let them study -history and learn a lesson from it.

Primitive Methodist Church, Geraldine.—This church was crammed to the doors on Sunday last,, both morning and evening, when the anniversary services were conducted by 1 the Rev. W. C. Woodward, of Timaru. Nearly everyone who entered the chapel on Sunday, as surprised at the altered appearance of the inside, the old -pulpit having been removed, and a, new one erected with fancy decorations,' and a square enclosure made for the choif and organ in front of the pulpit. The alterations were made by Mr L. Newport, of Geraldine, and the painting was executed by -Mr Bates, of Temuka, and is a specimen of fine workmanship. The ceilng and rafters, are of a light blue colour, the rafters being lined off with red. The dado,’ windowpanes, pulpit, and choir enclosure are done in a dark colour. The pulpit is nicely set off with gold leaf designs, and the choir enclosure is beautifully stencilled over. The walls, being of a kind of pink colour, contrast pleasantly with the dark plum. The lamps on the pulpit are now uphel 1 by two elaborate brass rods. The seats have been revarnished, and the chapel within looks quite new. Last night, the anniversary tea meeting was held in Mr Maslin’s auction , zooms.,) anfi ian after meeting at the chapel, our report of which will appear in our next issue.

Pneumatic ■ and ; CLiNdippf Tjres when fitted to cycles, gives complete isolation from vibration. “ Star ” Safeties are made with pneumatic , and clincher tyres.—Adams, Curties Co., 70; Manchester street, Christchurch, Cycles from 45. __ —l2 ; SYNOPSIS OF ADVERTISEMENTS. Volunteer Hall Geraldine —Dramatic Entertainment to-nignt. Smithson, Raymond, & Smith, Geraldine — Sums of money to lend. ... - - _ ... - N. Dunlop, & Co—Wants 500; boys iand 200 girls to purchase goods.

W. S. Maslin —Sale of timber at Orari traffic bridge on Monday, 23rd. A, E. Cox —Advertises special entries for to-day’s stock sale at Temuka. Wm. Page—Public meeting at Winchester, to discuss school maters. s Thomas Sommerville-MTO acres bush. land and dwelling house, &c., for : sale. F. W. Stubbs—Result of poll re Enlarged Waitohi Flat Water Supply District.) Sacred Concert and Cantata —In Temuka Wesleyan Church on Thursday evening. -