UNSUCCESSFUL SPECULATIONS. Probable Collapse of the Big Canadian Land Syndicate.

Waikato Times, Volume XX, Issue 1658, 20 February 1883, Page 3

UNSUCCESSFUL SPECULATIONS. Probable Collapse of the Big Canadian Land Syndicate.

A special from Toronto says :— Last cvenin" a company was formed here and in KngTancl, having as £3,000,000, for the purpose ot buying laud to the extent of 5,000,000 acres fiom the Canadian Pacific Railway Company. Sixty shillings per share have been called and paid up, and to day the shares s>old for forty-five shillings. They have been giadually falling here and in England. The Duke of Manchester and tlnee other nobleman are in the directorate, the Duke being chairman for a short time only and retiring m favor of Lord Elphinstone. The mystery surrounding the Puke's retirement seem to sow seeds of suspicion, and the shaieholders have been strugglelin" to get out of th e concern for several months. On Saturday last the impecuniosity of some Winnipeg speculators caused their shares to be thrown on the market. To-day a bear speculator, getting tired of this, offered the stock down °to forty five shillings. It now looks as if these shares will go still lower to-morrow, as all confidence seems to be lost m them. Bitter denunciations are hurled at the Duke of Manchester, Lord Klpbiiibtone, Sir Rowland Blennerhasstt, and Sir (Jcoigc Wai render for lending their names to such a scheme as this. The whole §1, 5,000,000 capital is subscribed by investors who went in the thing on the strength of the lordly names. Among the directors and many of the subscribers are persons who can ill afford to lose. To make the situation still more distressing twenty shillings a shaie have been called up ior. February I next. The greater portion of the shareholders are unable to meet this and will have to sell at whatever they can get. It is seldom that a country with a capital of §15,000,000, only six months old, melts away m this manner, leaving ruin in its wake.

Ax old minister, who had a set of discourses tli.it he went through once a year, when some of his hearers ventured to hint that they would like some variety replied, "My friends, my sermons are intended to do you good, not to entertain yon ; when I see that you practice what I have been preaching for so many years, then I will treat you to something fresh." The Boy Hit It.— "Father, you are an awhil brave man," said a Detroit youth, as he smoothed down the old man's gray locks the other evening. " How do you know that, Willie ?" "Oh, I heard some men down at the store say that you killed thousands of soldiers during the war." "Me, why I was beef contractor for the army !" " Yes, that's what they said !" explained young innocence as he slid for the kitchen. What odd names some people are blessed with ! A family in Michigan actually named their first child Finis, supposing that it was their last, but they afterwards happened to have a daughter and two sons, whom they called Addenda, Appendiv, and Supplement. A man in Pennsylvania called his second son James Also, and his third William Likewise. Mr J. A. Fuoudb has in the Press a new volume of " Short Studies on Great •Subjects," which will contain some of the papers he contributed to Frascr'i during his editorship. Tiie demand for Emerson's writings lias been greatly increased by his death. It is believed that the sales for this year will largely exceed those of any previous year. "How ever did you manage to break that vase, John ? You must have been very careless." "Oh, bless you, no, madam. You see (taking up companipn vase) I was dusting the chin>ney v piece and I took up the vase— soi-and by accident' I hit the corner against the 6 bust, — like this— and crack, it weht— just the same as this one has gone !" , , - •• An interesting edict- has 1 just been issued by the Emperor of ' China J It' seems that the fir trees in the vicinity oi the Eastern Tombs have bee'tt -attacked; by< somemisect foe— the>tuBsbok imoth> 'or the Farorgyia parallcla, or tsome of.ltlie seventeen enemies of the fir enumeratedj by Packard— and that ravage* ih>7iha ; t ( sMr*j]j ( place,a,i#, floj jseripu ? .;thak }the tentionloitbe^Soii |PL,Heayen 4ias been,, decree 1 *: "X&^mmci&tttcf -;'dr<!tewr ,T>4 given to effebtfiraHy|/fee6]|ire,' : the that tbe;r.ma^)W^