LOCAL & GENERAL.

Temuka Leader, Issue 2654, 3 May 1894, Page 2

LOCAL & GENERAL.

Customs.—During last month the sum of £1266 2s 4d was collected at the port of Timaru. Coolgardie.—The Union Company are advised that the passenger traffic to Coolgardie is stopped owing to dearth of water. Ratepayers' Meeting.—The annual meeting of ratepayers in the Mount Peel district takes place at the Road Board office, Peel Forest, at 2 p.m. to-morrow. Stabbing Case. —A man named Richard Lawßon Williams has been arrested for unlawfully wounding Charles Deering at Takapuna, Auckland, with a fork. County Electoral Rolls.—The Geraldine County electoral rolls for the various ridings are now open for inspection are now open for inspection at the council's office, Timaru. Temuka F. & H. Society.—The annual meeting of members and supporters will be held in the social hall next Monday evening at 8 o'clock. Ladies are especially, would to be present. Temuka Fire Brigade.—Members of the Temuka Fire Brigade and those who have given in their names as ready to assist in pumping out the brigade's wells in the township are requested to meet at the brigade station at a quarter to seven o'clock this evening, Police Cases. —Three men, Manning, Murray and Galloway, charged with burglary and larceny from the Paikakariki Hotel, Wellington, were sentenced to six months' imprisonment. Frederick Prince, charged with stealing six sets of billiard balls, was admitted to six months'probation. Public Meeting of Ratepayers.—The ratepayers of Mount Peel and Geraldine road districts are invited, by advertisement, to attend a public meeting at the Volunteer Hall, Geraldine, on Wednesday, May 9th, inst., at 7 p.m., to consider the question of merging the two road boards into a separate county. Fatalities.—William Taylor, J.P., of Tenui, died in the Masterton hospital on Sunday after amputation of a leg.—James Stewart, sheep farmer of Waitawhiti, was out pig hunting on Sunday near Tenui, and was subsequently found dead with a bullet wound in the thigh. It is supposed that he accidentally shot himself and bled to death. The Otago Central. —The section of the Otago Central railway between Middlemarch and Rock and Pillar was opened on Tuesday by the Hon. J. McKenzie, who with the Colonial Treasurer and a number of members of both Houses, and prominent citizens, left Dunedin by a special train on Tuesday morning. The section declared open is eight miles in length. A banquet was held at Hyde. Football. —The following will represent the Juveniles in their match again?t the Geraldine Public School, at Geraldine on Saturday next : Full-back, A. Story ; threequarters, J. McLeod, J. Lavery, W. Grant, W. Palmer; half-backs, D. Leach, D. McCaskill; forwards, C. Brown, E. Cooper, J. Anderson, R. Burke, J. Dunn, D. Gibson, M. Connely, B. Spillane: emergencies, J. Spillane, J. Flaherty, D. Henry. Concert at Waitohi. —A concert in aid of the Waitohi Flat Library will be held in the Lower Waitohi schoolroom on Thursday evening next, the 10th inst. This is a week earlier than was at first proposed, and tbe date has been changed to suit the convenience of a number of ladies and gentlemen who have kindly promised to assist in the entertainment. Singers from Melbourne, Temuka, Kakahu, Pleasant Point, have promised their aid, and the concert should prove one of she best held in the district. Burglary.—The Caledonian Hotel at Sb. Albans, Christohurch. was entered by burglars between midnight on Monday and daylight on Tuesday morning. Mr H. W. Felton, the licensee, locked up the bar at 11.30., and was awoke about 3 a.m., and at half-past six, when he was about to dress, he found his clothes were gone. Upon making an examination he found his clothes lying in the hall, and the bar door open. The keys of the bar and the safe had been taken from his trousers pocket. £2O in notes, gold, and silver were taken from the safe, and a purse containing about £3 from his trousers' pocket. The drawers of the safe, and some papers were also taken, but they were found during the day, having evidently been £hrown away. Mr Felton's watch and yyaro left. WeddinoJ. —? The Presbyterian Church, Geraldine, was on the 2Gfch April the scene of a wedding which had been looked forward to with a great amount of interest. The contracting parties were Miss McLean, eldest daughter of Mr A. McLean, of Pinehill, Geraldine. and Francis George Martin, third son of Andrew Martin, of Teams Farm, Qfeaio. The bride, who looked very handsome, was attired in a magnificent dress of grey silk trimmed with white fur, and was attended by ]yiss Melfengie, _ and Misses Lijr.jsie and Jessie McLean as brides'uaide, who were dressed in cream crepon, and we" e * Qe recipients of handsome gold brooches, > <#<* " f <*f j^"™ o ?' The bridegroom was su^ orted hy Mv . \ Gilinour as best man. The marriage ceremony was conducted in a very impressive manner by the Rev. A. B. Todd, 8.A., the church being comfortably fill d. At the conclusion of tho ce;einouy about 150 guests proceeded to the residence of the bride'd pareuts to partake of a breakfast, vv!ii'j!i w.is p'oviilcd iii a mnst unsparing ■ •s:t;i»;r. ALV.c the breakfast the usual toasts were duly honoured. The bride was the recipient of over 100 presents, many of them being very handsome. About •L.'iO p.m. the happy couple, followed by about 20 vehicles, left for the Orari station to proceed on their honeymoon trip, the journey on the way being much enlivened by the strains of Mr Skinner's bagpipes. Amid storms of rice and heart}' congratulations the happy couple departed for Chri.-tchurcb. In the evening the guests s, in used themselves with music and dancing, the party breaking up at an early hour the next morning, having thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

Suicide.—On Sunday morning about 6 o'clock Hilda Lewis, daughter of Mr George Lewis, of Lyttelton, was found dead with her throat cut. Deceased had been suffering for the past year from an aneurism of the aorto, and latterly her mind had become affected through physical exhaustion. Previous to her illness she had been studying at Canterbury College. An inquest was held and a verdict of " suicide while of unsound mind " was returned.

Dynamite Accidents —George Moye3 and Richard Leggot were severely injured by an explosion of dynamite, and were brought into Reefton on Sunday night from the Alpine mine, Lyell. Moyes comes from Kumoroma (Auckland). He is in the hospital, and is most severely injured. They are both married men with families.—A girl named Sarah Tasker, 15 years of age, found a dynamite cap at Port Hills, near Christcburch, on Sunday, and pricking it with a pin had three fingers blown off her left hand.

Proposed Pukaki Bridge.—The poll taken of ratepayers of Mackenzie County on Friday last resulted in favor of the proposal of the County Council to borrow £BSO for the half cost of constructing the Pukaki bridge. The number of ratepayers required to vote in favor of the proposal to ensure it being carried was 130 with 231 votes, and the number who voted was 137 with 264 votes. There are still two small returns to come in from outlying polling places, which will probably increase the majority. No votes were recorded against the proposal. A considerable amount of interest was manifested by the ratepayers in the matter. Timabu Hospital.—The following is the return of patients in the Timaru Hospital for the month of April, 1894:—Patients under treatment at date of last return: males 16, females 11; admitted during the month: males 13, females 11); total treated: males 21), females 30. Discharged during the month : cured, males 2, females 11; relieved, males 5, females 0; incurable, males 1, females 1; dead, males 6 (John Campbell, G. F. Lovegrove, William Storey, John Poole, John Shields, John Fitzgerold); total discharged: males 14, females 12. Remaining under treatment: males 15, females 18. Outpatients treated during the month: males 2, females 15. Govebnment Insubance.—The triennial valuation of the Government Insurance Department has been made, this time locally upon principles laid down by the Euglish actuaries. It has only taken four months to complete. The insurance fund at the end of 1893, after adding £IB,OOO to the fluctuation fund, amounted to £2,l2B,s9o,andthenet liability to £1,938,000, leaving a surplus of £190,000. Of this £140,000 will be divided in bonuses, and £50,000 be placed to the reserve. The expenses rate has fallen during the last three years, and the new business was greater during 1893 than for some years, the , amount being a little over £740,000. The I net increase of new business over discontinuance shows a marked advance upon 1892. The ratio of the expenses of management shows a decrease of one-half per cent. A Hazardous Trip.—An In vercargill telegram says :—No news has been received of the missing prospectors on the West Coast. Gordon Harvey arrived at Invercargill on Monday. He states that when he left his mates they had no tucker, and only two charges of ammunition left. On Sunday Harvey stripped, rolled his clothes in a bundle, and started to swim the river. When half-way across the flax holding them broke and they drifted out to sea, Harvey after a great struggle escaping a like fate and landing on the other side with only a handkerchief. For four days he travelled through dense bush and over rocks that girt the shore, covering himself at night with ferns. The weather was fearfully boisterous and cold most of the time, severe hailstorms falling for two days. Had he not struck Tresseder's survey camp he would almost certainly have perished. Considering his rough experiences he is not in bad condition, and though his feet are much swollen and body torn by the bush he has determined to leave by the steamer in search of his mates.

Open Lodge.—An open lodge meeting under the auspices of the Geraldine Welcome Retreat Good Templar Lodge was held oa Monday evening lasr, Mr W. S. Maslin, M.H.R., presiding during the first part of the programme and Bro. T. H. Dalton, D.D., during the second part. The programme was as under, and special mention might be made of the dialogues by the juveniles:—Opening ode; selection, choir ; reading, Bro. McCaskey; song, " Nancy," Bro. Robson; song, " Only a letter," Sister Morrison; violin duet, Bros. W. G. Maslin and Robson; song, Bro. Heatley ; dialogue, Misses K. McCaskey, Heatley, and T. Howard; address, Bro. Dalton, D.D.; selection, choir; duet, Bros. Willoughby and Robson; quartette, Sisters Fyfe and Morrison and Bros. Robson and Willoughby; song, Bro.Heatley; address, Bro. Willoughby; duet, Sisters Sherratt and Morrison ; song, " Take me back to home and mother," Bro. Robson ; closing ode. Fatal Accident.— On Tuesday an inquest was held at Totara Valley on the body of Robert Erskine Stewart, aged 2 years and 9 months, who was found in a creek on his father's farm on Monday morning. Mr E. Acton, J.P. acting-coroner presided, and the following were the jury: —Messrs M. Cochrane (foreman), J.Miller, P. O'Connell, P. Fraser, W. Douglas, and H. Rodgers. Evidence was led by Mounted Constable Crawford to the following effect: —The deceased was playing outside the house while Mrs Stewart and a girl, Annie Hyndman, were washing. He was missed inside five minutes, and they went in search of him, the girl finding him face downwards in a running creek a short distance from the house, the water at the spot being about four feet deep. The girl brought the body to the house at once, and Mrs Stewart tried various remedies to restore animation without success ; also sending for a doctor and invoking the aid of a neighbour, Mr J. Miller. Dr Kronecker arrived from Pleasant Point about two and a-half hours after the body was taken from the water, and on arrival found the body warm, but alj. his efforts to bring the boy round proved unavailing. The jury returned a verdictof " Accidental death." Widespread sympathy is'felt for Mr and Mrs fetewart in their deep distress. The child was the youngest of a family of three. Mr Stewart was at Fairlie at the time of the accident. . The Suicide of a Schoolmaster.—At the inquest on Herbert Edmonds a verdict of temporary insanity was returned. The evidence qf Mr and Mrs Wood, with whoai the deceased and his wife Jived at Pirinoa, showed that Edmonds blew out his brains on Friday morning before seven o'clock. He seemed very jealous, and had been heard apparently upbraiding his wife." Mrs Edmonds said her husband was of a peculiar temperament, and on one occasion before their marriage he had taken out a revolver and threatened to shoot her if she didn't many him. In fear she promised to marry him, but did not mean it seriously. He arranged thti of their marriage without consulting- her, postponed it for two successive days, and ti>i dly, fooygh. shp felt she djdn-'t care for him, he perguaded her to go to unit* li. There Fhe refused to marry him vt u l J<Ja se<^ll o h' ni * a<ier no wenfc on so that she agreed to see the minister, and, without knowing how it happened, was married next day, none of her people being present. ILid lived with her husband since, except for ft fortnight, when she went to Wellington on account of her fiber's illness.° Had lived happily, butseemed very jealous, and at the same time fond of her. On Thursday evening hi acted strangely and restlessly, and took down a gun which he said he had oiled for more purposes than one. He had frightened her with this gun beforo. About .-> a in. she woke up and fouud him standing by the bedside, with the gun loaded find Looking strange. He said •' Lfct us both die ; prepare yourself for death." She got the gun away from him and took the cartridges out. In the morning ho seemed quite rational, but after getting up kissed her aud the on her linger, then loft the room and shortly .aftur she heard the fatal shot.

The Minister op Education at Auckland—The Hon. W. P. Beeves, Minister for Education, addressed a public meeting at Auckland on Tuesday night. He stated that he came before them as a party man and would speak on party lines and in favour of party Government. He referred to the labour Bills blocked last session, including the Conciliation Bill, Shop Hours Bill, Conspiracy Bill, Shipping and Seamen's Bill. He would also introduce an amending Act or repeal the existing Factories Act owing to the recent legal decisions. A new Eight Hours Bill for New Zealand had been drafted, embodying the principle of local option or trade option. He was in communication with the labour party on the subject, and would also consult the Liberal party, on whose action would depend what progress would be made with the measure during next session. He referred to the encouraging prospects of the Liberal party in the colony, and in view of the defeat of the party at Auckland at the General Election counselled greater unity, greater organisation and discipline. Mr Thomas Thompson moved and Mr Francis seconded, and it was carried unanimously—" That this meeting of Auckland citizens accords the Hon. W, P. Reeves a hearty vote of thanks for his able address, and expresses its confidence in the general policy of the present democratic Government." Just how this will affect you we can't say, but a really good violin and bow for 30s should certainly attract the attention and investigation of those needing a fine instrument, especially as Begg & Co., Timaru, are noted for keeping the largest and best stock of violins in New Zealand. —[Advt.] SYNOPSIS OF ADVERTISEMENTS. Wm. Earl—Lost a grey dog. Alex. Thomson—Lost a black pony mare. W. Angland—Reward for return of lost mare. In Bankruptcy—Re Adam Baillie, of Winchester. Temuka Floral Society—Annual meeting on May 7th. Hilton Schoolroom Tea, concert, and dance on May 17th. Geraldine County Electoial Rolls—Now open for inspection. Geraldine Road Board—Notice to ratepayers re public meeting. Lower Waitohi—Concert and dance in aid of library funds on May 10th. Temuka Fire Brigade— Meeting of members and persons to pump out wells this evening. J. W. Pye—Special and extra sale of general drapery, clothing, millinery, etc., bought at McArthur & Co.'a sale. C. A. Williams—Great sale of groceries, drapery, etc., in assigned estate for one month; accounts to be paid at once. Salvation Army, Temuka—All nignt of prayer on Bth; special officers at harvest festival. C.F.C. Association Clearing sale of furniture, etc., on account of Mr Borrell at Arowhenua township on Tuesday next.