A Couragious Act.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume IX, Issue 3019, 3 October 1888, Page 2

A Couragious Act.

When the famous mine in front of Petersburg bad been completed, and the National troops drawn up ready to charge the enemy's works as soon as the mine had done its work in creating a breach, the signal was given just before- daylight, the fuse was lighted; and the command stood waujinj; w\th intense anxiety for'tho explosion which was to follow. But seconds, then minutes, then tens of minutes passed, and still no sound from tlm mmp. The suspense beoaino nainful, and tho gloom of disappointment overspread the anxioup faces of officers and men,, The fuse had been spliced about midway. It waa np.v thought that their was -a defect in the splice, and that 1{ was at this point that tho ing.fi>, -Tl,edayyaslrealdngTtho enemy was becp&ing alert at fte sigljt of op urajasked oolumns, thero was not a moment to bo lost. LietitenW Doughty midSergeautßees,of we volunteered, to: examine'tho to, the long davh gallery ™»h led.to- the inino, and without stepping to calculate the chances of ■ lf ?< M\yk themselves to one M.%. most death. /With up exblteme'nt to leijd'them'its intoxioatiorii'with riothin ; g;'to'diveifc Weirminds Mmvtherfate-.wbjeTi mM to await them', tfioy: Mowed

lohg-subterraneau.passl^ defeot >t; which the arrested, audimadeauewapUee^n^w their return the' matoh ; , was again.'.'.;; L .v' : applied,. and -the .'irain. ; was ~now: £% prompt' to 'do'iisdeadly work 'These:. * :: .;/; men displayed even a &igheri.order- of i^:"' courage;than those : charged into the breach. ..-■ •' •- A Feat itiEngineering." ■ >? ; /■;

An engineering ; wqrk of,singular' magnitude!; just; been inaugurated at Arques, near St,.; ■ OmerVin. Frarice,, : ; Theundertaking. so successfully inaugurated is, says; the! CoUiefy. Guardian,' the.work of; Mr iEd\yin : CJlarkeV 0.E., of Great . Marlpw.; .Tlie';|prk.: comprises a canal lift, superseding the series of ordinary looks,; which-at v present so seriously impede'tho traffic on the -'. largo communicating ! with ;Beigium.P The. .canals; are -on a'muoh.,iarger:|cale;,7: than bur own„the canaiboatsusuaily'; ? clrrpngfroni 210fc28|toM@he;|.ground at -this partiou%spot rises] '■ very rapidly,- there arepvejorj loohs in close co'ntiguity',j.myolvingl '■'■* great loss of I their management,' of Mr Clark's the .canal bqatslre|bw;ti lifted;the whole iieighijbl^feet,M? ; one operation, ocoupymg;^y?a;few!v ; ' minutes of time, with'no : eter'of water.- Thisi siugultir machine 5 consists practically of a gigantio ; hydraulic prese,; whose piston is'"Bft 'Shi hi diameter, and BOft in length, ; by means' of which, theboatßthemselyes actually, float in'; an enormous ~: tank or reservoir,' are bo'dily raised or lowered,-'water ahftall to the required height.. This-reservoir is in reality an;actual.length'of tho canal itself, made \of brought iron .'" plates, separated from the rest of the canal by- iron gates, -whioh are opened when it is raised into its proper position at the : required height. ; There are [two suppresses, the one descend- . ing while the other is ascending, and they thus balance each other,'and no steaui engine' or other mechanical power is required, although the weight lifted ateaoh operation, includ* ing, the water and the loaded barges, is very, nearly a thousand tonß." Sixteeu'hundred barges have already been lifted prior to this public inauguration, the task being performed by. a single man, whose only work is the opening, and shutting of a small valve,. and the operation only ocoupiesa few minutes. A smaller lift on this'' principle was erected by Mr Clark some years since at v Chesire, and was then patented; but he has just -completed a Btill larger lift in Belgium. - The system isnow being adopted in Canada for. transporting sea-going vessels across the isthmus whioh intervenes between the Bay of Fundy and the Gulf of St. Lawrence. The' Colonial Bank.

• In the course of his'speech at the half-yearly meeting of the Colonial Bank, the Chairman, tho Hon.G. McLean, as reported in the Otago Daily/Times, said: - "Although some people may say that the shareholders are only getting their dividends at the present time, and that wo are not putting anything to the reserve fund, I may mention as satisfactory that the profits of the bank were never higher'than they have been for the last half-year, and the Directors have,takeu tho opportunity of doing what may bo called' a wash-' ing up to a certain extent.. The business we have is a going business. Nojnstitiitiou oan avoid making bad debts, and we have made some; but we have, taken the opportunity of. wiping them off, I may say that in dealing with, bad debts the Directors have gone in a direction different from I 'what.is : usually,taken. When an' account is in difficulties- it is riot usual to take a seoond rnortgago as security, ! but very often this means having to pay off the first mortgage and iivsomo instances the Directors, rather be burdened with "properties, have determinedly faced tho losses aud wiped them off. No doubt it may bo thought by somo (Jiatit would have been justifiable, seeing the turn of the tide in respect to affairs in the colony, to have taken a different course; but that is tho course which has beeu taken, and I think tho shareholders will do well to leave the Directors to deal with these matters. .That is the reason why m have not put anything to the reserves ■ fund.

Sorao Strange Beliefs. The back tooth of a horse, found by chanco, will, say the Irish, keep you supplied with money. H you wish toavoid the toothache, say tho sons ef Erin, never shave on Sunday. Teeth have often been worn as amulets. .Sharks' teeth serve the purpose, in Samoa. It was formerly'thought that a wolf's tooth, worn in a bag about the nock, would chase fear away from the possessor. In Nova Scotia, and in somo parts of tho Unitod States, childron aro told that the new tooth will bo a gold oneif the tongue is kept outof Uio old cavity. _ If a child teeth early, it is thought in England, toprediot moro children. 'Soon teeth, soon toes,' is the adage both in that country and in Sweden. An old work, published in IGBB, tolls us that to lose a tooth or an eye is also to loso eoiuo. friend or kinsman, or is, at least, attended by"' some ill-luck. ,'":<' -.-■ If.a tooth comes first in the jnppev'jaw it is, peoplo used to Ray; an.omen of early death, as the child can hot' surviveso potent a disaster;; ■; /•'= y It was said that first teeth'must not be thrown away when they fall out, for if any animal - got bucli a trophy, tho next tooth would be like that of • the animal finding the old one. A splinter of wood irom a gibbot was thought 'effioaoiouis in the north of England,' whilo in Dovonshiro it was thought best to bito a tooth from | a skull in'a" grave-yard, and carry it in '.the pocket as a clmrm against toothache, ■ . One of the Irishman's recipes for toothache bids you go to-a grave, kneel upon it, say three patera '• and tlumaves for tho soul of the dead, -' then chow a handful of grass taken ' from the grave, spitting : irra£&W?# Tliero was a tradition that from tliii-"' ;%if ershraparnecl -i off. a piece of 'the |™soK>ss>s|ft;; Constantinoplethe'mur|b^ ; ofeiieetlv) in the mouths of' men > from thirty-two to | \ : \ , ; Sfr Henry Loch,speakinga^afijpins> ; pJP ; tho Victorian sheepbfeod^ers^A^oci^-^ tlori, inreferringtothe^proposed[changes** in the American tariff, said he looked forward,'in the not distant future, to an" , iticrease of 4d onßd a pound in the prico':;. of wool consequent on the increased con--. '"• sumption.; *:':'■■ '■■'■':' ■..,.' i'M .V; H ;> Why suffer Piles? Immediate cure and ■:, Mni^ote.^qreTguanihteed.' Ask for : ''Bough m Pilos." \ Sure raro for itch- : :: injf, protruding, blegdinß; or any form of ■ Piles,K;v;;;"■;:;'■. /:'-' '.;V^//

• Marriage "Within the Lines." ' * 'The Paris correspondent of tho ! Sydney .Morning Herald: recently '-, ¥ B|tne|^fling'particulars' regarding the sofcewhat strango mnrringo of ,' the Duke of Aosta and Princess Loti- \ tk;—«««Thfl ladies of Paris have >\~ formed a committto, headed by ■ the Duchess do' Monchy (Princess Anna Murat) for getting up ut wedding gift to Princess Letitia on her marriage with her uncle, tho Duke d'Aoata', /" whose threo sons by his former wife A hava just been to Moncalieri, tho I resideuco of her mother, Princess | Clotlldo, and presented to their con- ' to become their stepmother ■ aTreperb necklace ot sovon rows of pearls worth £\ 2,000. Some > curiosity having been excited as to the - price which tho dnko has had to pay I for the Pope's permission to contract this incestuous union, the public is informed that royal personages do not pay a sum ofmoney for this pormis sion, but make a present to his Holi- . less in a'oJwDwledgemeot thereof, and i / this present,'its acceptance bylhe Pope constitutes a .- considerable economy for tho parties, as the price paid lor the permission by ,'i; oil wealthy non.royal uncle's is fixed t at 20 per cent of their entire fortune, - ■ and at 6 per cent ior uncles of modest means, The friends of the Papacy, justify tho enormous price thus ' " charged by the Popo on the ground - that the church desires to discourge [l* cansanguine marriages as injurious to r the health of the children born of them. That it would be better to prohibit such Marriages is proved by iho price demanded ' K ' B \W^ oro c -ft-un._ than might be , BuppKd. Dui.'.'g the second quarter of the present year tho Pope has i granted no fewer than 42 permissions I of marruge between uncles and nieces 376 between brothers-in-law and Bis--1 - 1 be borne ij mind i that wbatevor may be the social objections urged against them, the absence of consanguinity places them inn totalty diflerent category from the unions between uncles and uieces,"

Truth Stranger than Fiction. 4 gentleman of fortuno named AnJ gerstein, lost a large quantity of valuable plate. Hia butler was scon on the track of the thieves (who had brought b coach to carry' the plate), and inquired whether an; vehicle had lately passed. The gate-keeper said that a hackney coach had shortly befoVftgone through; and though he waafcrprised At its passing at so • early m the morning ho did not notice the" nnmbor" on the coach, A servant girl hearing the conversation, volunteered her statement that she . 6417 a coach pass by and its number was" 45," As the girl could nol read they were surprised at her knowing the stated that she knew itwfll as being the same numbershe had lonp seen about the walls . everywhere, which sho knew was " 45," as overyone was speaking of; i it. ■ j This allusion of the girl's was in reference to the "Wilkies" disturbance, < when the forty-fifth number of the True Briton was prosecuted, and caused a great deal of public excite- .. ment. Mr Angerstein's burlervj^ , to London, snd found the the hackney-coach No 45, once drovo him to the place plate was deposited, recovered,. : J^^^K Some years motto ness,"B PP r 'jj« the the bencher? were HHpcd toifr a motto, They iesired build|P|nan to call atthelibrary at a certain hour on a certain day, , when ho should receive instiuctions, But they forgot tho whole nutter. On the appointed day and hour the builder's man called at ths/library, ftnd found only a lawyer in ilosestudy ovor a law book, The.iran staled ! the cause of his intrusion, which '•, suited so badly tho lawyer's time and leisure that ho bid the I man sharply, " Begone about your business." Tho lawyer's testy reply was duly painted in big letters ' upon the dial, and was considered so apposite that it was allowed not only to remain, but was considered as appropriate a. motto as could be chosen, iV Two men in Frauce took shelter in M barn for the night, In the mornot thorn was found dead, with to the head, The comarrcstod, and told bull" Btory about the tho night in question, his companion's death of a thunder-bolt, He not credited, and was in a fair way to be executed for the supposed W crime. A scientific gentleman, hearI ', ingoftheciccumstance, examined the I i place, and found a hole in the roof of ki the barn, and tin aerolite closo to the where deceased had -slept on the ■night in question. The innocence tlie accused was it once considered established, and he was released,

\ The Frozen Meat Trade. ' njy London correspondent of the Otago Daily Times, writing to that paper undof date August 10, says that-the frozen meat market has shown a tendency to increased firmness, and art improvement -in prices has been manifested, which, however is partly owing to the shortness-of suppliosjie Bayley, from Napier, with 80,l5Psheep, 500 iambs, and 78 pieces of beef has cleared at 4Jd to" 5Jd for tttiPsheop, 6}d to CJd tor tho lambs, and BJd to 4Jd for the beef. The Tainui from Wellington, with ajn irregular cargo of 28,941 Bh°.epsl47 lambs, and 1018 pieces of beef has cleared at 4d to 4|d .for the sheep, sdto for.the lambs, andßjato 5d for" tho beef. TheßnapeJiu from Lytteltonwith a fair cargo of 15,710 sheep, 7925 lambs, and 480 v pieces of beef, lias cleared at 4d to 5d for tho sheep, s£d to Ojd for the lamb 3, and 4d to 5d for the beef., The Canterbury from Oamarn, with 8939 Bheep, 2186 lambs,-and 100 pieces of beef, has cleared at i\& to; fid for the sheep, 6jd to Gjd for the. lambs, and BdJ to4jd for the beef. The Doric from Wellington, with 28,870 sheep, 6808 lambs, and 1485 . pieces of beef, has sold 22,0 00 shoep at 4d to 43d, all the lambs at sjd to fcjd, and 1400 piece's of boef at 5d to fik' The Kaikoura, from Lyttoltou, with 18,610 sheep, 2670 lambs, and 084 pieces of beef has-cleared with of a few quarters 4id to sfd for the Old for the lambsf ■ and ', 4dto4£dfortho beef. The Dun. edin, from Oamarn, with 10,985 sheep, has sold 8000 at 5d to 6jd; The Arawa, from Lyttellon, and-the ToAp/o, from Fort Ohalmers.'aro o'nljjusktee&lflnji bulk. • ■