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Westport Times, Volume II, Issue 173, 19 February 1868, Page 2

In Vino Veritas.—The following startling statements, taken from sundry articles in the Saturday Review on the wines of the continent, as exhibited at the recent National Exhibition of Paris, will, no doubt, be of an interesting nature to the lovers of the real burgundy, sparkling hock, stein wein, claret, and the other abominations which find their way into the colonial market. A prize of a bronze medal in the one case, and of " honorable mention" in the other, was accorded by the French jury to the u.akers of Vins d'lmitation, and we are told in the review, evidently by a person who speaks as one having authority, that " half-a-crowu's worth of one liquid (which is nameless) will impart the taste and bouquet of old burgundy to as much as 70 gallons of common wine." "At Marseilles," we are told, " a case of a dozen bottles is sold for exportation for six francs and a-half. The box, bottles, labels, corks, straw, packing, and so forth, cost three francs and seventy centimes, so that you have the actual cost of the wine two francs eighty sentimes, or about two pence halfpenny per bottle." So that we may conclude that much as we buy bottles, with fine gilt labels, and pink paper, for the sake of the precious liquid we think they contain, in reality the more gilding, the less likely are we to get any genuiue wine. " People who drink port, are quite as likely to be drinking an artificial wine as their less heroic neighbors who stick to light French wines. Mr Lytton, the se retavy of legation in Portugal, informs the Foreign S cretary, that quite as '. many elderberries are used in the manufactory of port, as grapes. We also learn that an alcoholic infusion of green walnut-shells is an infallible remedy for ageing and " bonifying" wines and brandies, that otherwise would not pass muster. " Where ignorance is bliss 'tis folly to be wise," but surely, unless : ' our stomachs could be reduced to the level of that of the ostrich" it would be better to eschew t lese " Vins d'lmitation" and sing in the words of our old English song " I , likes a drop o' good beer." Cheap Meat.—The pries of meat are not likely to advance for sometime, unless the present rate of import falls off. The sheep brought by t'le Escort from Melbourne, were sold at 15s a head, and the 130 brought by the Murray, have arrived to a very inanimate market. The Nathan Troupe.—This evening the members of this clever troupe will perform at Stephenson's Assembly Rooms, Little Marion appearing in three of her favorite characters. From the excellence of the bill of fare provided, and the well-known popularity of the troupe, we have no doubt they will have a crowded house. Jetties foe. Westport.—On Tuesday morning, tenders were opened at the Court-House, for the purpose of erecting two jetties on the Wharf, at the foot of Grlaclstone-street. The tender of Mr MLeod was accepted, and the ! works will be proceeded with forthwith.

The Queensland Rush—lt will be seen on reference to our advertising columns, that the schooner Jane Lockhart, is laid on from Hokitika for Maryborough, on Saturday, and the brigantine S rah and Mary, for the same place on Tuesday next. The news received from the new diggings is very satisfactory—the first escort having brought down 3,600 ounces from them, besides leaving a quantity in the hands of the diggers.

A Yankee Plan of Trapping Rats.—Mr L. L. Langstroth, the famous apiarian, sends the following to the American Agriculturist: —Get a common wire round trap. Bait it with the most inviting food, and wait patiently until a rat is caught. Instead of killing this rat, and waiting perhaps for weeks before you are fortunate enough to trap another, keep him alive and feed him much as you would a pet squirrel. In a few days he will become quite reconciled to his cage, and you are now ready for business. At night bait the traps well, and set it where tin rats resort most. Some one or more of them, seeing a rat quite at home in the midst of plenty, will enter the trap without any suspicion of harm. Next morning pump or pour water thoroughly over the trap to clean it, and to make the killing of your prey more easy. Have an empty barrel into which drop the contents of your cage ; the prisoners being well soaked, will be so heavy and slow that you can

easily knock them on the head. Treat vour partially-tamed rat, however, " as if you loved him;" and return him to 'ris cage; this is easily done by lowering the cage into the barrel. Repeal the operation from night to night, ind you will be surprised to see how ;asy a matter it is to outwit so cunnin<j ■in animal as an " old rat." Be carafu! not to keep a large one for your tame rat He will frighten off all the younger fry, as none of them will ,'are to enter. The only difficult thing In the matter is to get your first rat. [ have had a wire trap well baited for weeks before I could entice one to to enter it, To get the first is sotne:hing like Aster's receipt for getting rich—" Gret a thousand dollars clear >f the world, and it is all very easy." Since I caught my first rat, I have tailed but once for many nights in jetting from one to four to keep him company. If your readers will try my plan I think something may be done to abate one of the most intolerable nuisances of this country. To say that millons of dollars worth of pro■lerty are annually destroyed by rats would not be an extravageut assertion.