The Gisborne Times. PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING. MONDAY, DECEMBER 28, 1908.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXVI, Issue 2384, 28 December 1908, Page 4

The Gisborne Times. PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING. MONDAY, DECEMBER 28, 1908.

The Ngawiri Maori races are to take place at the W'hatatutu course to-day. The Poverty Bay representative cricket team left for Napier last evening.

A man charged with indecent behavior on the Waikanae beach will bo brought before the Police Court this morning.

It is announced that, owing to the Christmas holidays, the next paynight of the Gisborne Permanent Building Society will be on Wednesday next, December 30. Cabinet has decided to limit the railway privileges to wives of members of Parliament to a period dating from a month before until a inonth after each session of Parliament, instead of the all-the-year-round privilege hithorto enjoyed. An elderly gentleman named MacMicliaol, who was on a visit to Mr P. Livingstone of Te Arai, went up to Rakauroa on Thursday last and died suddenly from heart failure on Christmas Day. The deceased, who recently came from Scotland, was about 73 years of ago. The fairy extravaganza “Violetta and Isidore,” written by Mrs T. H. Wood, will be performed in the Wae-renga-a-hika Hall on New Year’s night, under the direction of the authoress. Popular prices are to he charged and children admitted at half price. A dance will follow the performance. The first Englishwoman to tako a practical interest in the aeroplane is Miss Dorothy Levitt, the holder of many ladies’ records in motoring, who has announced her intention of entering for the French prize for the first woman aeroplanist to fly a kilometre. She has written to Mr Wilbur Wright to ask him to accept her as a jJupil. A purse was left on the counter of the Masonic Pharmacy in Gladstone Road on Christmas Eve under rather peculiar circumstances. While Mr Crawford and his assistant were absent from the shop for a moment- dispensing for two customers, a lady came in, placed the purse on the counter, and immediately walked out again. It contains about a pound in coin, but no papers to indicate the name of the owner. 4 Press Association telegram states that an ordination service was held by the Bishop of Waiapu in Napier Cathedral yesterday morning, when the following deacons and priests were ordained: Deacons, M. W. 11. Roberts and G. E. Kear (Waiapu diocese), H. O. Townsend Hanby (Auckland diocese); Priests: Rev. F. C. Long (Waiapu diocese), Rev. G. B. Nanson (Christchurch diocese). “The Chinese give me very little trouble,” said an inspector for the S.P.C.A., in reporting to the Wellington branch of the Society recently, the case of a Chinese who admitted that his horse was overloaded. “They are generally kind enough to their animals.” Different was his story about the horse of another foreigner, who, when remonstrated with for cruelty, desired to know what sort of a country this was where a man could not do what he liked with his own animal. Another exemplification from the Wanganui “Herald” of the length of the Law’s metaphorical arm. Detective Quirk© arrested Robert Parkes, a bookmaker, at Woodville, on Thursday, in connection with a charge of illegal -betting on the New Plymouth racecourse on 26th December, 1906. Parkes was fiued on that occasion m sums totalling £34 ss, which had remained unpaid for nearly two years. Shortly after the arrest Parkes s friends paid the amount of the fines, and h© was .released. Charles Pollock, the newsboy who, on the occasion of tlio recent visit to Belfast of Madame Melba, laid a bundle of papers on the footpath from the hotel to the carriage to pi event the distinguished singer getting her shoes wet, has received, a letter from Madame Melba, in wlucb she says she will always remember his chivalrous action. She adds that she knows ho will grow up a brave and honorable man, and she hopes ins path through life may be made easy and bright by the kindness ol others. She enclosed a cheque tor £5. The death occurred on Christmas Day of Mr James Loomb, an old resident of the district The deceased, who was 83 years of age, had been ailing for sometime, and after eating his Christmas dinner went to sleep 'and passed peacefully away. The funeral took place yesterday, the -remains being interred m the Malcaraka cemetery. Mr Powell, , sti pendiary layreader at Holy 1 unity Churchf read the burial service., amd Mr J- Towiiiley carried out the rune‘•°Urr n °Snow,edged .humorist like Mark Twain in his reminiscences remarks that on reading a well-known book of medicine he imagined he was suffering from every disease mentioned except housemaid’s 'knee, no excuse -will be necessary for housemaid s gloves, for thirteen pence each this week at Parnells’ Popular Saturday Sales, New Year’s Eve, instead ot Saturday.

A mom' the many attractive features of the various displays ui town on Christmas Eve was that of Messrs Parnell and Co. This enterprising firm had in one window lvliat was practically a section of the- Technical School Wood-Working class, with bench (kindly lent by Mr J. Townley), tools, master -and pupil complete. During the evening the pupil under instruction finished a bookcase in a very creditable manner. The other window was occupied by a clever artist who. kept . a largo crowd with his rapid sketches, drawing attention to the goods for sale within.

Mr F. M. B. Fisher, M.P., who arrive'.! at Wellington last week, said there was a deplorable. lack f New Zealand news in the Sydney papers. New Zealanders who wanted to know what was happening in tlieir own country, were to be seen thronging the -Dominion tourist agency, and perusing the files of the New Zealand dailies. Mr Fisher aslo stated that the bookings on the soamers from Sydney to New Zealand ports had lately been heavier than ever before, and it was almost necessary to book three weeks in advance, and even then it was difficult to secure a good berth. He thought move steamers should be put on.

In a review of Captain Blackburno’s new nautical tables, the English shipping journal “The Syren and Shipping” of November 4, says: “We have only praise for the 160 page volume of tables for Azimuth, great circle sailing, and reduction, to the neridian by Captain H. S. Blackburne. The tables are comprehensive, yet concise, and practical navigators will find that the 7s 6d spent on acquiring them is certain to save a dot of mistake-inviting figure manipulation at a critical moment. New Zealand is to be congratulated on a Minister of Marine and a Government who are public-spirited enough to interest themselves in the extension of these navigational tables to ships on every sea, for they enable the navigator to obtain greater accuracy with fewer figures, and .also to make use o>f observations for position which would be unapproachable by ordinary methods. Moreover, one small working chart will serve for any latitude by ■Blacbburno’s method. More convenient in form or more utilitarian in application those tables could not be.”