THE WASTE LANDS BOARD AND MR. WALTER MILLER'S APPLICATION.

Tuapeka Times, Volume VII, Issue 366, 20 June 1874, Page 3

THE WASTE LANDS BOARD AND MR. WALTER MILLER'S APPLICATION.

At Wednesday's meeting of the Board, Mr. Walter Miller applied to purchase 348 acres of block VI., Waitahuna East. The Application was opposed by Mr. Robert Do.lds, who had applied for an agricultural lease of part of it. Mr. Connell (of Messrs, Connell and Moodie) for Mr. Miller, mentioned that three persons had lately applied for agricultural leases of the laud lying between Mr. Miller's land and his pre-emptive right, and the applications were thrown out, as it was proved they were dummies, applicants wanting the land for Dodds. . By granting this application a great hardship would accrue' to Mr. Miller, as he would be put to great expense in fencing. It had been suggested to Mr. Dodds that he could make his application in another direction, where he could get" as much land, and could fence better.

The Chairman said the Board was bound to grant the application of Mr. Dodds.

Mr. Connell contended that by law the Board had prower to sell even when an application for an agricultural lease had been previously put in. After some remarks from Mr. Connell,

Members of the Board said it did not affect this case whether Mr. Dodds had or had not previously endeavored to obtain this land in an unlawful manner.

Mr. Strode asked why had not Mr. Miller applied for the land before Mr. Dodds ? , Mr. Muler had had opportunity for doing so. Mr. Connell could not tell Mr. Miller's reasons.

The District Land Officer's report "waß then read. It set forth that Mr. Dodd's application to purchase had been objected to by Mr. Miller on the ground, principally, that if the lease were to be granted it would cut off. his (Mr. Miller's) pre-emptive right from his other freehold land. He did not see that sufficient reasons had been given to cause him to refuse Mr. Dodd's application, but he had adjourned its consideration until the Board had decided tho application to purchase. He knew of no other objection than that of Mr. Dodds to the land being sold. The principle involved was whether an application to purchase should take precedence of an application previously put in for a lease. A. possible way for settling that dispute was for Mr. Dodds to withdraw from part of the land, but Mr. Dodds had declined to do so, and tho Warden had seen no sufficient reason to press the suggestion. ' A letter was read from Mr. Dodds to the District Laud Officer against the sale to Mr. Miller.

Mr. Bastings said the Board could not overlook Mr. Dodds' application. The 'only way for Mr. Miller was to make some arrangement with Mr. Dodds.

It was resolved .that Mr. Miller's application be received, excepting for the part applied for by Mr. Dodds in his (Mr. Dodd's) own name.

The Smallest Children Alive. — A correspondent of an American paper sends the following :—": — " Mrs. J. B. M' Crunn, residing at No. 58 Parsons-street, Kalamazoo, Michagan,is the mother of twins so small that they are a marvel of humanity putting in shade all stories of Liliputi&ns ever heard of. One is a boy and the other a girl, and weigh together three pounds and four ounces.They are perfect, and seem to be in good health. ( Their bed is a little paper box filled with cotton, and they -are dressed in doll's clothes. These children are the smallest living beings ever heard of. They take food naturally, and make a noise very like yonng kittens. Quite a number of citizens nave called to see the little wonders. A teacup will cover the head of either. Their hands are about the size of a bowl' of a teaspoon, and their bodies less than six inches long — the boy is a trifle larger."

The Alakm Clock. — An afflicted son sends us the following account of how his father played ifc in a family of tor-, mentors : — It appears (hat the old gentleman who lives m New Fairfield, is troubled by a family in the neighbourhood, who are the proud possessors of some ten or twelve children. His health i 3 very poor, and for years he has been an invalid. These children persistedi n visiting the house and tormenting him to death with questions and noises As all threats and coaxings had no effect, the old gentleman hit upon a singular device for relief from the trouble. He has a vigorous old alarm clock in the house, that when it goes off makes a noise somewhat like a boiler explosion. This clock he set to go off in about fifteen minutes and then he called the children in from the yard, where they were successfully imitating a cat fight, and commenced to tell them about explosions of gunpowder and glycerine, r.nd of how, after the explosions, valuable parts of members of the community were picked up here and there, sometimes, a leg, and then a head and again an arm, and so on. The children warmed up wonderfully in the subject, and permitted their lower jaws to drop in wrapt amazement. Then he went on to say that if a pound of glycerine was exploded in a clock the entire hon&e would be blown down, and the people who happened to be promenading in that direction could fill a flour barrel with livers and legs and shin-bones and arms, and just then the clock sounded the first warning of thir-r-r-r-r-r, and stopped. The children shofran apprensive glance up at it-. And the old gentleman looked up too apparently very much scared. Then he cried out <c Oh .^Oh?" and commenced to lean for the door. And the childrenstarted, too, and then the clock went off like a thunder-storm, and the old fellow shreiked at the lop of his voice, — " Oh! Heaven protect us ! Run ! run for your lives, the d d thing will burst " And under the inspiration -of this awfully solemn 'injunction, the youngsters drove for the open door, utterring a chorus of shrieks, and bucking up against everything in their way in their blind terror. That was a month ago and they haven't been over since to hear any anecdotes.—" Dunbury News." A- distressing accident that has lately occurred here has indirectly had a very, good effect in giving 'occasion for a useful lesson in sympathy and kindness to many thousands of our young generation. The accident was this : Two youngschoolboys — brothers, named Burns — while on their way to school at Portlaud, turned into a bark mill, and began feeding the 'machine, when the elder one unhappily got his arms, drawn into the machine, and his younger brother, .running to help him, shared the same dreadful fate ; the poor boys, after undergoing horrible tortures, were extricated, when it was found, necessary to amputate both of their arms — and they are thus left disabled and quite helpless while still children. Subscriptions haTe been started for them, and one teacher of a State school had the happy thought of reading the account of the case to his pupils, and asking them for contributions. The children subscribed willinely and largely, and scores of others have followed their lead. The result has been an exercise of the virtue of self-sacrifice and sympathy which our ordinary system of education too little appeals to. Many wordy sermons on the Good Samaritan would be required to afford so sound and effective a lesson of humanity to the youth of the Colony M has been~ imparted to them as a consequence of this sad catastrophe. — " Daily Time*' " Melbourne letter, . j