LOCAL & GENERAL.

Temuka Leader, Issue 2340, 7 April 1892, Page 2

LOCAL & GENERAL.

The Bruce Skat. The writ for the Bruce seat was issued on Tuesday. It is returnable on the 11th Slay. Sale of Fukniture.—Messrs J. Munilell & Co. hold a sale of household furniiure and effects at Temuka to-morrow on account of Mr John Morton. u The Elginshibe.—lt is expected that the attempt to float the Elginshire off the rocks will be made next Sunday or Monday, and, in the event of success, the tug Mana will at once tow her to Lyttelton. Found Dead.—The body of Ernest P. Brown, of the National Bank, Itiverton, who went missing- last week, was found on the back beach, about six miles from town. He had been suffering' from nervous debility for some 10 days before his disappearance. Public Meeting at Pleasant Point. —A public meeting- of ratepayers will be held at Pleasant Point next Tuesday evening- for the purpose of discussing- the proposed expenditure by the Timaru Harbor Board on shingle-shifting. The subject is of great importance to the district, and the J meeting should be attended by all who have i own interests at heart. I Land Assessment. —The total number of o'N ect * ous ' io the assessments of land received np *° a^e ai tao £#f ee fff the Commissioner C? Taxos »? "W. Of .these 3307 have been allowed *<>■' have been disallowed or allowed partly, have been referred io the assessors for i£?U' reports, and jiaye not yet been returned to the office, and 1895, received in the last few days, are being dealt with in the Land Tax Office. A considerable number of objections are to ownership or matters other than value. All objections to value are referred to the assessors for their report.

Alleeged Libel.—Mr Ballance left Wellington for Wanganui on Monday, to defend his libel action. Territorial Revenue.—The territorial revenue for the past year has exceeded the expenditure and leaves a surplus of £IOOO on the estimate. The Land Fund Department, as distinguished from the territorial, shows a surplus of &ii 7,780. Undesirable Immigrants.—lt appears from the enquiry of the relief inspector that persons unable to obtain work in Sydney are coming over to Auckland and straightway making for the Charitable Aid Board with the simple demand for work or rations. Temperance Lectures.—We would remind our readers that the Rev. Dr Lucas, from Canada, will lecture on ''Thumbs up, and thumbs down," in the New Schoolroom, Temuka, this evening. To-morrow evening the rev. gentleman will lecture in the Geraldine Oddfellows' Hall. Dr Lucas comes with a first-class reputation as a lecturer, and his addresses should be well worth hearing. Attempted Suicide.—A young woman named Bella Craig, 22 years of age, attempted to commit suicide on Sunday last at Fairfax, near Milton. She cut off the heads of some two doxen wax matches, and dissolving them in water drank the mixture. Dr Newell was quickly called in and applied the appropriate remedies with a satisfactory result. The youngwoman, who is the daughter of a settler in the district, had been, it appears, greatly put out about some domestic quarrel. Samoan News. The Wainui, from Samoa and Tonga, reports things very unsettled at Samoa at present, and fears are entertained of active hostilities between opposing factions of Malietoa and Mataafa. It is said that no respect is entertained by the natives for the present form of government, and that a firmer and wiser ruler will be required before Samoa can be at peace. A great native meeting is to be held near Apia this month to discuss political matters. The Female Franchise.—A Dunedin says: The success which has attended the canvassers who are obtaining signatures to petitions in opposition to extending the franchise to women has alarmed the advocates of the movement, and at a meeting on Monday night a committee was formed to make arrangements for a public meeting to arouse the sympathy of the public in favour of female franchise. One of the petitions circulated is signed by females over 21 and the others be electors. Discharging a Riele in Wellington. —James Flaherty, the cabman who was recently acquitted on a charge of attempting to kill his wife by shooting at her with a rifle, was mulcted in the maximum penalty allowed by law, namely, a fine of £5, and in default of payment one month's imprisonment, on a charge of discharging a rifle in the city without the permission of the City Council. The Resident Magistrate .said that the case was a very bad one, and defendant ought to consider himself lucky that he was not before the Court on a charge of murder of the young woman who so narrowly escaped being injured by the

bullet fired from the rifle. Accident.—On Monday evening a horse and trap belonging to Mr Meredith Kaye was being driven round a corner of one of the streets in Tiinaru when one of the wheels of the vehicle literally fell to pieces, the spokes being rotten near the nave. The occupants of the trap, three in number, were thrown out, but not seriously hurt, and the horse bolted down the street with the trap. Near the Ship Hotel it got on to the footpath, and finally the trap struck the hotel, with the result that the other wheel, the shafts, and the harness were broken. The horse then got away, but was not much hurt when caught. The damage to trap and harness is estimated at ;C 10. A lady was knocked down by the runaway, but beyond the fright and a few bruises sustained no harm. Presentation. —An interesting ceremony took place at Faiiiie Creek on Wednesday, March 30th, when a purse containing 4G sovs. was presented to the Rev. James Preston, who is relinquishing the care of the Fairlie Creek and Burke's Pass District, which has been attached as a parochial district to his Geraldine cure for the past twenty years. Mr Gillingharn made the presentation on behalf of the other inhabitants, and referred in the most flattering terms to the rev. gentleman's never-failing endeavors to fulfil suitably the duties of his office. Mr Preston, in reply, said that he had been much aided in his work by their own exertions, and that he felt deeply indebted to them for the

kindness and consideration they had uniformly shown him. He also specially referred to the assistance he had received from Mr Frank Gillingham, as lay-reader, etc. Rangitata Island.—A meeting of the Blue Ribbon Band of Hope took place in the Rangitata Island school on the 28th ult., and was very fairly attended. The president (Mr H. Grainger) was in the chair. The programme was not very long, but, nevertheless, it was thoroughly enjoyed by all present. Mr Robt. Irwin sang with his usual taste and execution, and a duet by Misses S. and E. Granger received a hearty round of applause. Recitations were given by Mr John Morrison and a few of the school children, and all were well received. At the conclusion of the programme, Mr Joseph Buck, in a few wellchosen remarks!, presented Miss Grainger, j)n behalf of the young men, with a very handsome gpjd brooch as a token of goodwill on the eve of her marriage, in recognition of the many acts of goqd she had done for the society as secretary and organiste. Mr Grainger very feelingly replied on behalf of his daughter, and thanked the young men, with all his heurt, for the very handsome gift and the kindly expressions towards his daughter made by Mr Buck.

The Wellington Hospital. A deputation waited on the Premier at Wellington on Monday, relative to the addition of a new wing to the hospital at a cost of £6OOO. They asked for assistance similar to Dunedin, or that the Government should advance the sum by way of loan, the local bodies interested to provide interest and sinking fund. The Premier said that the case was different from Dunedin. The "Wellington Hospital had already been helped, but at Dunedin there was an old building falling- to pieces. Letters were read from the house surgeon and medical staff, stating that the over-

crowded condition of the hospital was a I scandal and positively dangerous. Mr Fraser, the chairman of the board, said that if after the present warnings something were not done the board would be liable to prosecution ; £ISOO would shortly be due as insurance on the old Government printing office, and he asked for this now. The Premier said that they might have that sum. Jt was pointed out that half the £<iOQQ would have to be paid by the Government if it were raised by rates, and a aug-g-esfcion was made thau the Government" should advance this, which with the £ISOO wol'M only ieavc #ISOO to be provided. The Premier as . ked th o deputation to put the request 111 writing and the matter would be laid before the Cabinet. The Premier said in all \ probability a new Hospital and Charitable I Aid Bill would be introduced, '

Open Verdict. —The inquest on the lire at bilverstream, Wellington, on April 1 st, for which a laborer named James Craig is m custody, resulted in an open verdict. Big Cabbage.—There was on exhibition yesterday in Mr Brown's shop, Teinuka, a head of cabbage weighing 1511), It was grown by Mr Nicholson, Waitohi, from Yates's seed. Labor.—There is a hitch in the "Wellington tramway arbitration. The Trades Council requires Mr Hall to pledge himself to reinstate the men who struck and pay the oldrato of wages if the decision is against him. Air Hall objests to outside interference in the conduct of the business, and declines to give any such pledge. A meeting of the strike committee Was to take place yesterday to further consider the matter, but it is believed that arbitration will fall through. Kaiapoi on Easter Saturday the following players of the T.F.C., are requested to go into training :—Storey, Russell, McCallum, McLeod, Brosnahan, Low, Mendelson, Strong, Fenton, Haywood, Armitage, Gillespie, Goldstone, Henry, Findlay, Burn, Hawkes, Lavery, R. Austin, Robinson, Greaves, Harding, Kroon and Rodgers. Taibbi Statistics.—The agricultural statistics for the Taieri show that the holdings have increased by 200. The returns show that there are 7123 acres in wheat, yield 211,304 bushels; G 642 acres in oats, yield 303,008 bushels; barley 297 acres, yield !)328 bushels; potatoes7Bßacres,yield 3Sti!) tons. The losses by flood are estimated at 228 acres wheat, 1143 acres oats, 62 acres hay, 78 acres potatoes. 315 acres of turnips, and small areas of peas and mangolds. The damage by the Hessian fly is put down at !)87 bushels of grain. Another Canard.—With reference' to the report which arose out of that portion of Air Seddon's speech at Palmerston North that the Government were raising a loan of half a million from the banks, the Wellington Times of Tuesday morning states that Mr Seddon was alluding to the loan of four years ago. The Treasury is not pressed for money, and was never in a more comfortable position. The Financial Statement will show that the Premier is able to make good, and has made good, his promise to reduce the floating debt. Akt Exhibition.—The twelfth annual color exhibition of the Canterbury Society of Arts was opened at Christchurch on Tuesday night. There are 324 pictures and five pieces of carving. Only one picture is lent for exhibition. Last year the exhibits numbered 290, of which flO were lent. An

improvement in quality as well as in quantity is manifest. Amongst the exhibits is an oil painting of the late Hon. W. Reeves, by C. A. Cambridge, presented to the society by the Lyttalton Times employes, to be placed as a memorial in the gallery. The Psychology op Criminals. —Mr Oswald E. Hugo, a phrenologist and physiognomist who visited this district a year or two ago, writes to the Otago Daily Times: —" A note in your last Saturday's issue, referring to Williams, the murderer, suggested the question: ' Are criminals insane'." If under the definition of insanity idiocy is included, I think this question must be answered in the affirmative. There is moral as well as an intellectual idiocy, and the defective ideas of right and wrong in the criminal proclaims him a moral idiot. To the evolutionist the brutal murderer is a case of atavism—the appearance of the mental organisation belonging to the reindeer and the cave-deer period. The shape of the murderer's skull is very similar to that of primitive man." Salvation Army, Geraldine.— Harvest services in connection with the Salvation Army. Geraldine, were held on Saturday and Sunday last, Staff Captain Grimlcy and his wife conducting. The Volunteer Hall was taken to hold the harvest festival, in and was tastefully decorated with flags, mottoes, fruits, vegetables, and other articles. The attendance at each of the meetings was fair, but had the meetings been advertised, more country people would have been present and the attendance would then have been very large. On Monday evening a tea meeting was held, but as the usual Press invitation was not extended to this office we were not able to report proceedings. The after meeting was free to the public, after which Mr W. S. Maslin held a dutch auction of every article imaginable from a pumpkin to a rooster. We understand that with ordinary collections, extraordinary collections, dutch auction, and all, something like eighty or ninety pounds was netted. This is an example of the good qualities of Salvation Army officers.

Athletic Spoets, Concert, Etc., at Geraldine.— We would remind our readers that the athletic sports gathering, concert, dance, etc., under the auspices of the St'. St. Patrick's Day Sports Association takes place to-day. Being a holiday there should be a good attendance, and if the weather proves as propitious as it has been during the past week pleasure-seekers should thoroughly enjoy themselves. Nothing has been spared to make tne gathering a success. The Timaru Garrison Band has been engaged, and pipers will be present from Dunedin Oamaru, and other parts of New Zealand. The ground is now in good I condition, and should be all that is desirable for running. A good of local interest will sure to be taken in the local races—the Oddfellows, Football, and Fire Brigade races. The handicappers being well acquainted with the men, and oognisant of their attainments, have handicapped them as near a dead heat as they possibly can, and it is a hard thing to pick the winner in any of these races. In the evening, after the sports, a concert and dance will be held. The programme of the concert is first-class and should merit a large audience. We are informed that the number of persons who intend to " tread the beeswax " after the concert is so great that several young men have made ardent attempts to secure partners for the occasion, but up to the ■ time of our going to press were i'ul. Accident to Father Le Peti.—-An accident, which resulted in an almost complete wreckage of the Rev. Father Fauvel's buggy and serious injury to his little black mare, occurred to the Eev. Father Le Peti

on Monday. It appears that Father Le Peti had been at the Kerrytown school, and that he was in the habit of getting some of the boys to harness the mare rn the buggy, who sometimes omitted to put the bit in her mouth, as the rev. gentleman's attention had been drawn to this fact on a previous occasion. On the day in question the bit had again been left out of the mare's mouth, which fact allowed her to see behind at. fames. Aftier Father Le Peti had proceeded for some distance along the road to Pleasant Point the mare caught sight of something and commenced to bolt. The rev. gentleman was thrown out, receiving a severe shaking, and the mare continued her mad career on to Pleasant Point. Upon her arrival there an attempt was made to stop her, which resulted in her turning round sharply and capsizing the buggy, wrecking it badjy. The mare, which is a peiand as intelligent as a circus f horse, had one of her logs so badly injured that she could not be brought to Tetnuka. I If the mare had been allowed to proceed unmolested she would probably have stopped I at St. Mary's Church gate, and the more 1 serious results would have been avoided.

Divorce—ln the Divorce Court, Dunedin, a decree nisi was granted in Anderson v. Anderson and Conway, the latter of Reefton, on the husband's petition. Costs were given against the co-respondent.—At Christchurch on Monday a cecree nisi was granted in the case of Burgess v. Burgess, on the husband's petition. He alleged that his wife left him in 1891, and was now leading an immoral life. The Bot Fly.—A correspondent writes to the Press .- —Yesterday morning, whilst examining a horse at Rangiora, which had died from accident, an inspection of the stomach showed that organ to be much lacerated and apparently seriously affected by the larvas of the bot fly. This being the third ease of this kind within a month in which horses have after death been found with sufficient of the grubs in the stomach to promote acute inflammation, it is time the Stock Department if it has any officers left competent to investigate the matter should do so in the interests of horse owners. One gentleman considerably interested in owning horses who was present on the occasion ventured to assert that after what he had observed the ravages of bot fly were sufficiently serious to create a fear that all , the horse stock of the neighborhood was affected. It is intended to court the opinions of veterinary experts and represent to the Government that a disease quite as serious as pleuro -pneumonia in cattle may have commenced on the horse 3 of this district. Alleged Poisoning Case,—The police at Blenheim (says the Express) have rer ceived information of a case of alleged poisoning at Mr Fraser's residence, Waikawa road. Dr. Scott was called in on Friday, the 18th ult., to attend Mr Fraser, employed in the local branch of the New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Company, and his children, six, four, and two years of age respectively. On examination, he concluded that they were suffering from the effects of poisoning, and asked what they had been eating. They said they had been eating buttermilk scones, the flour having been taken from a bag in the scullery at the back of the house and which had been in use for some time Hannah Barriscell said she made the scones from the flour, and could not form any idea of anything being wrong with it. Dr Scott then ordered that no more of the flour should be used, and he took a portion of it away, which he forwarded to Dr Skey, the Government analyst, at Wellington, receiving the following- reply.-—" The flour you sent me contains arsenic in quantity. W. Skey, analyst, Wellington," The police have made inquiries in Blenheim and elsewhere as to the sale of poison for other purposes than that of destroying dogs, rats, etc., but suspect no single person or persons of an attempt of such a nature as that indicated.

The National Heritage.—A correspondent of the Otago Daily Times, signing himself '• Amicus" writes as follows to that paper : The question as to the desirability or otherwise of the further alienation of Crown lands is at the present time the most urgent and important of all the pionts of our colonial policy. A writer in your columns recently asserted that "the absence of anything like a , patriotic spirit is characteristic of New Zealand." Whether this be or be not true of the present time, I feel assured that the growth of the patriotic spirit in the future will depend entirely upon how the great mass of our colonists stand in relation to their native soil. If they are to become tenanfcs-at-wiH of avaricious landlords ; if the bulk of the mineral wealth of these islands is to fall to the share of a few private owners in the shape of exorbitant rents and royalties ; if the sheep and cattle on our thousand hills are to be the sole possession of a few score of over-fed squatters, while our holloweyed proleterians strive madly with each other for the crumbs that fall from the squatter's table—then verily patriotism is a flower that willnever blossom in these lands ! It seems strange that the frightful experiences of European countries in the matter of land monopoly should have had so little effect in deterring these austral communities from committing the same tremendous blunder. It is true that our democracies are at length beginning to see the dangers that threaten them in the near future, and doubtless will see to it that the disastrous effects produced in Europe and America by the criminal trading away of the public estate are not repeated here to the same extent; but still it must be manifest that every acre that is parte:! with from henceforth increases the difficulty of bringing about the ultimata resumption. It should therefore be our first duty to urge upon our administrators tho" imperative necessity of refraining from parting with the fee simple of any more Crown lands. That this courso has already recommended itself to our present Govern- -i ment I am pleased to think; and should they _ succeed in bringing about the abolition of the freehold tenure in future land sales, we shall enter upon a policy that alone can lead to the true prosperitV and happiness of the New Zealanlers of the future.

Temperance Social.—On Tuesday evening a social gathering was hill i u tue New • Hall, Temuka, under tb.3 HuapL-es o£ tiie local lodge of Good Templars. There was only a moderate attendance, 1 but tho.-,-,: resent seemed to enjoy themselves to Vho utmost. A capital tea, caterad for hv Mr D. McCaskill was done ample justkv to the sisters of the order proriuo- (mvlWit hostesses. After tea a public meotiir- w?ia held, at which the Rev. Mr Woollas presided. On the platform with him won: tne Jl-'v' Mr Dcllow, Captain Harlow (.Silvatiou Army) and the speaker, Mr T. W. Glover of Temperance fame. The cb.aii-m.ia <v Jlv J a brief introductory address, after which a short programme of music, etc., was gone through. Mr Whitehead sang " Tom 1 Bowling," very forcibly ; an 1 the Rev. Mr f Dellow gave due empiiisis to " C leer Boys . Cheer," Miss Crnkksbank, and Miss Goo Joy | recitations; andtae Rev. Mr Woollns "ave a reading entitled "The hotalkeeper's trouble,"; Miss M. Goodev sang "A little bow of blue," very pleasingly; in fact, all the items were well received. Thy chairman their-v introduced Mr Glover, who spoke at o-reat 7~ length upon the question of temperance generally, but principally upon tV action I of members of the present Government who, he claimed, had grossly deceived their constituents upon the temperance question.

Ihe Hon. J. M'Kenzie, who practically owed his return to the House to the vote of the temperance party, had carefully managed to absent himself from the House when the question of local option was under discussion. Mr Jackson Palmer voted dead against the prohibitionist cause, and the Premier, the Hon. J. Ballance, also trimmed decidedly upon the question. The graphic account tfiven by the lecturer of the attitude of these gentlemen when brought, to book elicited much applause, mingled with indignation, but an earnest declamation of faio determination of the several temperance societies in the colony to unite in procuring prohibition was rapturouslyV. received. At the close of his address Mr *" Glover was accorded a hearty vote of thanks on the motion of the Rev. Mr Dcllow, seconded by Captain Harlow In returning thanks Mr G lover advised all present to hoar Dr Lucas on Thursday evening. The meeting terminated, with the benedictjiou,

Appeal Dismissed.—At the Supreme Court, Dunedin, yesterday, in the case Brace's Milling- Company v. Guild,the appeal was dismissed. Fishing Season.-—During the present season, Mr W. Mendelson has caught 413 fish, weighing 44011). His heaviest fish caught with the fly was 61(5., with the minnow 941 b. His best average take with the flyfcwas 15 fish weighing 'Mb. The Manawatu Railway Company.— The annual meeting of the WellingtonManawatu Railway Comppny was held yesterday. The report, which recommended the payment of a dividend of 5 per cent., and the balance-sheet were adopted. In his address the chairman of directors said the receipts showed an increase in five years of upwards of 73 per cent. Under the new system of taxation the company would pay &4(iS 7s Id less than in previous years. K.utpos.—The reporter of the Welling-' ton Evening Post has been shown a large number of katipo spiders which _ were recently caught at Petone. Some timber was being shifted, and the ground underneath was observed to be swarming with katipos. Some adventurous youngsters calmly proceeded to capture the insects and put them in bottles. It is very fortunate the young entomologists escaped without injury. They informed the reporter that there were hundreds more left, and picnic parties visiting Petone will probably be very circumspect in their movements for a time, at any rate. Alleged Forgery at Ash burton.— Gilbert, alias Fisher, alias Stewart, was charged with forgery and uttering, and committed for trial at Christchurch on May l!0. Prisoner's conduct in court was characterised by great bravado, and he cross-examined some witnesses at great length. His frequent impudent remarks brought a sharp reprimand from the bench. The cross-examination was in the direction of throwing doubt on his identification, but the evidence was quite conclusive. Accused was also charged with forging and uttering a cheque for £6 13s at Christchurch in the name of Robert Mitchell, and remanded to Christchurch.

Serious Train Accident.—An alarmingaccident happened on the Rakaia bridge last Tuesday night about 12 o'clock. Two men were driving across the bridge in a buggy with a led horse behind, when the stock train came on the bridge. There was no time to retreat, and the signals to the driver of the train were disregarded, f and the men were only able to pull to the ► side when the train dashed into the vehicle, smashing it to matchwood. The train cutoff the leg of the buggy horse, and severely injured the other, a valuable trotter returning from the BUesmere Races. Both men escaped unhurt. There was a dense fog at the time, and it is allege! the regulation that the guard shall precede the train to see that all was clear was disregarded. Consignment of Safety Bicyles, ex s.s. Pakeha — Special oiler, immediate delivery. Girder Star £ls, Marriott No. 7 £ls, Marriott No. 13, diamond frame, ball bearings all over, £l7 10s. Adams, Curties and Co., 70 Manchester street, Christchurch. Cycles supplied on the hire purchase system from 5s per week.— [Advt.] "SYNOPSIS OF ADVERTISEMENTS. Wheelband's Hotel Reward for lost I gold pin. »' Ci, Woodhead & Son—Notice re slaughtering license. Adams, Curties & Co.—Quotations for cycles on sale. D. Henry—Trial of P. & D. Duncan's Potato Digger in Mr A. Gibson's paddock, township, next "Wednesday. In Bankruptcy—Re John William Brett, of Geraldine, journeyman saddler; first meeting of creditors on April 9 at Timaru. Public Meeting at Pleasant Point—Next Tuesday evening, to discuss shingleshifting proposals of Timaru Harbor Board.