LOCAL AND GENERAL

Gisborne Standard and Cook County Gazette, Volume III, Issue 310, 11 June 1889, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL

The Choral Society concert comes off in the City Rink to-morrow evening. The Hospital Trustees meet at the Hospital to-morrow night.

The Prince of Wales is the patron of Victorian Masons.

Mrs and Miss Tysnar left by the Mararoa on Saturday night en route for England. Masters Graham (2) were passengers by the boat yesterday for Glasgow, via Sydney. The Maori footballers played the Essendon Club at Melbourne on Saturday, and were beaten by eleven goals and fourteen behinds to five goals and five behinds. The Harbor Master received the following telegram last night “ North to West and South West, very heavy gale. Indications glass fall, and wind backing with rain, but glass rise after 12 hours from now, with exceptionally cold weather,” " Batepayer ” Bated.—To the Editor! Sir,—Your rhyming scribe had better left his pen upon the shelf, than, in hie haste to crack his joke, forget he's eraolted himself. For bls shocking want of metre and very halting rhyme, would ensure him an asylum in a somewhat torrid olime, where the great blood-chilling virtue i verse like his, is rare, and would be intensely relished to cool the heated air. He, the system he's lamenting encourages in fact, for at the reading of his screed our very brows contract. E’en the farthing be despises, might serve an useful end, if, to enlarge his common sense, such trifle ho would spend ; and ’tis a lesson be might learn, for teaching which, he’ll thank, that none will e'er mistake for rhyme, the creakings of a wank I—l am, did,, tar. An esoiting acene took place at Middlawloh station, Cheshire, on a' Saturday evening recently. After a football match between Norwich and Crewe for the Cheshire final, both parties assembled on the opposite platforms waiting for their trains. They commenoad operations by alternately hooting and cheering, and then one mr ihallen-- ' —essiw

jan challenged an aggressive antagonist to fight, Both leaped on to the metals end fonght desperately until separated by the officials, Then a groat number of the Norwich men ran across the line, storming the platform occupied by the Crewe men. Uninterested passengers bolted right and left, while a fight proceeded which the station officials were powerless to prevent. The police were sent for, and Sergeant Wynne and nine policemen soon arrived, but by that time Norwich had practically gained possession of the platform, the Crewe men being outnumbered, The Crewe special than came in, and the police guarded the men to the train, many carrying away marks of the contest,

Our local contemporary is at its old games again—attacking people without having a shadow of reason on its side. Last night the Harbormaster was singled out and abused, because (it was alleged) he did not make the weather telegrams sufficiently public, To show the absurdity of the thing we may point out that our contemporary published the very telegram of which it complains; possibly that was very poor "publicity,” but the telegram was also posted in a glass case (erected at the Harbormaster’s own expense) at the wharf, and the Union Company’s agent might easily have conveyed its purport to the captains of the steamers, if he deemed the information of suffieient importance”-at any rate the Harbor Board does not pay officials to make trips out to every steamer. The Harbormaster always affords us every information, but our experience is that Captain Edwin’s telegrams are nearly always misleading so far as Gisborne is concerned. Another instance of the assinine tendency of our contemporary is the reference to the road scraper, the comments upon which comprise a nice little parcel of lies.

The "bad times” in Auckland don’t appear to be lifting much. According to an exchange, misery and destitution wore revealed at a recent meeting of the City Schools Committee. No less than 74 applications were received for the position of cleaner of the Wellesley street school. The salary offered was £6O a year. Many of the letters were of a pitiful nature, calculated to excite compassion. In some instances there were wives deserted by their husbands and left to support large families by their own labors. There was one widow whoso husband had been drowned, another’s had been burnt; widows with ns many as nine children to support; wives with invalid husbands to maintain as well as their children. The members of the committee recognised that they had a hard job before them to make a suitable selection, and over an hour was spent in reading applications and testimonials in order to discover which was the most deserving case. At the Police Court on Saturday B. M, Stegall was fined Is and costs £1 16s, for unlawfully allowing two dead horses to remiin on the banks of the river. Owen Dwyer was charged with assaulting John Chute, by striking him on the head with the butt end of a budook whip, Dwyer was fined £3 and costs £3 2s. ■A piece of shameful vandalism has occurred in connection with the limestone caves recently discovered near Otorohanga. Some of those who have visited the oaves have written their names on some of the most lovely stalactites in the caves. The letters are largo and indelible pencils have been used, the aniline color soaking into the damp alabaster so that it cannot be removed except by being chippei out and thus damaging the stalactites. "Our Boys.”—To the Editor: Sir—l like boys, but I like boys who do not ape men. It is only a few days back I noticed a smart lad in kniokerbookers, He has now appar. ently blossomed into a full blown journalist, and ventures to criticise the actions of men. Peimit me as one of the old ones to give him a bit of advice. Nover sling ink unless you know perfectly where you are dabbing it. Bread cast upon the waters is said to return after many days, but ns assuredly will the recoil of ink besmatter the careless, thoughtless and unkind, scribbler.—l am, etc., On® OV THIS CBAI'T.

A Wellington correspondent telegraphs •— The work of Professor Kirk, F.L.8., on forest trees and the flora of Hew Zealand generally, has just issued from the Government Printing Press, It is a work of great and general utility. Professor Kirk was for many years in Auckland, where his scientific attainments as a botanist were well-known and appreciated. The work is copiously illustrated. I had an opportunity of seeing omc of the illustrations while the work was yet in hand. They are excellent. The book is a descriptive account of economic trees and shrubs. The Maori and common name of each, ns well as the scientific designation of each species ate given, so that the plants, trees, or shrubs can be recognised by every person capable of reading. Professor Kirk acknowledges with thanks the assistance he received from Mr Justice Gillies, from Messrs T.F, Cheeseman, F.L.S., J. Buchanan, F.L S, l Ven. Archdeacon Williams, and a number I of other gentlemen. I At the Mutual Improvement Society last ' night Mr W. Birch gave an interesting paper on “ The Birth of the Ocean,” in which he combatted the theory that the ocean wusdue to the uprising of steam from the earth, then a I ball of fire, the steam eub>-.rquantly falling and cooling the earth, He F, Oatridgs I occupied the chair. ’