MISCELLANEOUS,

Tuapeka Times, Volume VII, Issue 402, 24 October 1874, Page 3

MISCELLANEOUS,

Nows tcom Pulmersville to September 10th ! has been received. A public meeting, compripi;i£ representatives of the storekeepers and miners at the principal camps, was held fit Stouy Crock, Palmer diggings, 0:1 tlxc Oth. Bishop Qumn presided. The following resolution was unanimously a.loptcd : " 'That, in consideration of the present condition of the gold Geld 8, of the arrival of a large number of men from the south, and of the inevitable danger of a famine during the rainy season, which is fast approaching, this meeting deemß it its duty io ensure publicity for the following facts :"f hat there is no allurial mining at present except what has boon already worked; that a majority oi' the diggers are not earning wages ; that many are not making rations — a considerable number are in a worse position; that tho quartz reefs cannot, as worked, afford lucrative employment uutil machinery is on the ground ; that the present rate of charges for provisions is exorbitant, seeing that they cannot be procured for less than an ounce of gold per man per week ; th«,fc tlib present prices "for rations at the principal camps arc : Flour, 3s per lb ; sugar, 3s 6d per 1b : tea, 7s per lb ; salt, 2s 6d per lb ; jam, 3s 61 per lb ; potatoes, 4s per lb ; rice, 3s 6d per lb ; bhicher boots, which can be bought for 5s in "Brisbane or Sydney, 30s to 3os per pair ; that supplies being forwarded from Oookstown and Towns,villo are unequal to the present wants of the population on the goldfields ; and that large numbers of thi» miners are leaving tho diggings for fear of a famine during tho lainy st-ason." Wo take tho following statement from Seigwarta's "Alter des Menchengeschlc-'ba" : —The earth is inhabited by 1,381,000,000 j human beings. These fire divided, according | to race as follows : — Caucasian race, j 380,000,000; Mongolian race. 5*0,000,000; | Ethiopia.!* race, 200,000,000 ; ilalay race, 220,000,000 j liedskius, 1,000,000 : total, 1,351,000,Q00. Tiio rafo of mortality is 33,333,333 every year, 91,954 every "day. 3,730 every hour, 60 every minute, 1 every second. The average duration of life is 33 years. One-fourth of the population cHou before the 7th year, one-half before the 17th. Only one in 10,000 reaches tho 100 t h; only 1 in 500 the 65th year. Married people live longer than unmarried ones, tall persons longer than short ones. Only 65 in every 1,000 contract marriage. Only the eighth part of the male population is fit to bear arms. One hundred years ago France was fclie most populous empire in JSurope, AA, that time Russia, had 17 millions of mlmoitants 5 Austria, 18 millions ; Gerin.anj', 15 millions ; France, 2-J- millions. JS"ow fchc population of Russia is 74 miilons ; of Germany, 41 millions ; of Austria and llungary. 38 millions ; of France, 36 millions ; aud of Great .Britain and Ireland, 32 millions A calculation of a simple kind has been made to show the Value to the United States of tho immigration that country has received in the mere matter of money brought in by the new arrivals. It is estimated that from 1783 to 1873 there were 8,779,174 aliens landed in tho United States. They brought about GSdols. per head. Placing it at only 50d015.. we have L 4.41,000,000 a3 tho result.. We "Printers' I'egisior" are given to understand that the latest, fad connected with the adoption of jule as a material for paper-making is, that a large vessel is now on her way from India entirely laden with jute cuttings for the paper makers in the neighborhood of Edinburgh. It is stated on good authority that jute is coming more and more into u&e to bo mixed with other paper making materials, which it is found greatly to strengthen, and that it has had considerable effect in relieving the paper market. We mentioned some months since that experiments were being made with reeds which had been collected on the banks of the river Tay, and that the. "Dnndco Advertiser" and the "Dundee Courier" had been printed on paper made from Tay reeds. It has been proved that the reeds contain fibre suitable for making paper, "but it is considered doubtful whether the quantity of reeds is sufficient to justify the establishment of works intended for their solo manufacture. It may be added that the quality of the paper made from reeds very much resembles that made from jute. . Steam tramway cars are now in use in Chicago, steam sufficient for a three-miles' journey being supplied from a stationary boiler. ' i Several amusing difficulties have arisen out of an Art Union lately held at Ballarat, in consequence of a number of persons who had clubbed together for the purchase of a book of twenty tickets

i having pDvhap.'j bnt a oinrrfe prints to divide auwmyKi tho L«i. The " Courier " ivp"i'U thah " in one inline*, fcho i u'jority agivi*d to radio oif a £15 pichiro, and it fell to one shareholder who was not. prcsiiiit. Tho others thought this person would l>e de'i-htod with his y>od fortune, so resolved in have ' drinks round ' .at his expense. Tho drinks were had and disposed of, and tho landlord chalked up liia .score. Whon the winner called for his picture lie \v;i3 told that there was 7s Gd to p'iy before be obtained possession of tho prizo. This he demurred against, and pail he would recover the picture by other means, so ho wont to law — took out a summons, which ho afterwards tried to withdraw, but not succeeding, the case went before tho court. The prize winner, who had taken delivery in the meantime, was not prepared to go on, and tho case was yesterday dismissed, with a guinea costs to defendant. We know of another instance in which a pound prize fell to twenty shareholders, and as one gentleman insists upon having bis twentieth of the picture itself, and a twonlier.il share of the frame, of course tho other shareholders are in a quandary." _ A writer in the (( Scientific American," taking tvp the question of .possible substitutes for paper, mentions the feasibility of tho use of sheets of met-d rolled to almost infinite attenuations, and states that iron has been rolled so thin that a sheet of it 10 in. by 5£ in., or 55 inches in surface, weighed only 20 grains, 4,800 such sheets being required to make up a mass one inch in thickness. ; The death of a Trafalgar man is thus noticed by the " Border Post " Yietori.'in paper :—": — " On Friday afternoon an old man named Samuel Philips, wli > had iisen an inmate of the Benevolent Asylum at intervals during tho ] mi Kf heon y^ars, dropped dead at the intersection of the Kungambraw.ithii Creek and Dean- street. Tho deceased v/os 8G year 3 of age, and was present at the battle of Copenhagen in the capacity of cabin boy, under Lord Kelson in 3801. and continued in the navy for yeara afterwards. He was wiHi the British S'ftiadmn in the early part of 1805, in pursuit of the French and (Spanish fleets. He abo witnessed that memorable action in Trafalgar Bay, on the 21st October, 1805, at which Lord Nelson lost his lire. IIOW TO DRIVB A"VTAY GRASSHOPPERS. — How the farmers of Wri^hh county, lovsa, drove &vr,yy the grasshoppers is ro- | veated by the local paper. Thn crops in that county were abundant, and airt.on» husbandmen were in hopes that thodo destructive pests would not appear until after the harvest. Ar onca they came, however, in cloud 3 that darkened the sun. By a preoonortcd plan, th's farmers set fira to piles of di-y str.iv/ on the borders of the wheat-fields, and smothered the blaze with greeu hay. Thar, caused volumes of smoke to roll over the fields. The grasshoppers didn't r-.-lish the pmesclure nt n\i. ' They rose with sucn n innHitiulinoiv< hum of whv3 as to deepen into a roar hko dipf-vit thunder, and find the country. In that way the Wright county farmers have a fair prospect o£ saving the crops. " T herb's Many a Slip," &c — During Father Ityau'a recent visit to Wilcannia, rather a peculiar cirenmstance occurred, and a3 the publication of the occurrence may save others from inconvenience, we give the particulars. A couple hid engaged the rev. gentleman to "tie the knot." Everything was prepared, and at the appointed time the clergyman arrived, and the cereraonj 1 - w*.s gone into, and all appeared as smooth, as gl;iss till tlio""hridagroom (who v not a Catholic) was aikad whether he would bring the children up in the Catholic faith. The answer was, " docidedly not !" The rev. gentleman could not act contrary to the rules laid down by his church, and at once closed the book ?.nd left the place. ~" Wilcannia Times." Hippophagt. — The consumption of the flesh of horses, mules, and asses is decidedly on ths increase in Paris. Returns show that the flysh of 2111 horses, asses, and mules was s>ld to the Parisian public during the first quarter of the current year, against 3275 in 1872, and 930 in 1870. A similar iucrea°e of consumption is also reported from the provinces. The Society for the Propp.ga + if>n of the Practice of JBafcin;; Horse fip=sh :it- thoir last nio -tl-oc-, c >jif jrrod in '■Jal.'i on M. Decre>so, a xiniiteiry vercri'j uy snr^oon, its founder ; and on M. Coudcra, who was the first to preserve hoiv-e-llcsh. It was stated at the meeting thy, ho"<e-fl'."!h preserved in February, 137 1 , by M. Cond'ero'a pruces-*, and opened in April, lof4, could not be distinguished from beef preserved according to the best mothod3 now in use. — " London Medical Record." A GiiKMAx I'kinos Thrashbd. — The " German News " of Berlin describes a lively scene which it sta'.e3 occurred at tho Lri.isie railway station in. Dresden lately. UtitM'vonin? scvun.l yomi? L'cntlcmen'onk'ivd. ths waiting- roc in of tho station preparatory to taking their places in the tr.iin starting for Lcijraic. One of the company, still very youthful, seated hunsclf very unconcernedly on the bar and paid his raost devoted addresses to the barmaid, who, however, did not seem to relish hi* compliments particularly. One of tho waiters stepped up to the young gentleman and requested him civilly enough to take a chair, which, however, ho refuse to do, telling the waiter to mind his. own business. The landlord was called in, and told tho young man to descend from hia porch, or ho would bo pulled down by main forco. To this the youth in reply threatened to box the landlord's ears, and on tho proprietor of j the restaurant attempting to lay hold of the young man -he received a blow which almost stunned him. This was the signal for the waiters, who rilahod with one accord at the atrancrer, raid having thrown him down^jboat him most unmercifully. The public, who had baen iudignant spectators of the young man's conduct, assisted at hi 5 ! castigating, conspicuous among them being a cattle-dealer, who made Hbor.J nso o£ a Thick stick. Tlio police at lon^t'i came io the rescue of the prostrate youth, who then informed the officers of the police that he was no less a person than the heir apparent to the Grand Duchy of Oldenburg. He is studying at the University of Leipsic, and had como to Dresden on an excursion. A Philadelphia reporter, in describing the turning of a dog out of Court by order of the Bcuch, says :— " The ejected canine, as he was ignotuously dragged from the room, cast a glance at tho Judge-, for tho purpose ot being able to identify" him at some future time."" Orthographical. — A sign on Broadway reada : " Potatoes for sail hole sale and retail." One on the city market reads : ; <; Hickre nuts for sail." An intelligent old bore, who invades our sanctum occasionally to, get the news in advance, read the above in manuscript, aud said thak he did net see any joke in it, except that the fellow had spelt " nuts " with one t. — " Albany Press.' 1

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