LOCAL AND GENERAL

Gisborne Standard and Cook County Gazette, Volume V, Issue 671, 13 October 1891, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL

An ordinary meeting of ths Borough Council takes place this evening. An enquiry into the recent fire on the Whataupoko has been fixed for Thursday next. The agricultural show in Hawke's Bay last week was a great success. Gisborne's turn next. The question of the Taruhertl footbridge will come up at the Borough Council meeting this evening. The orSinary monthly meeting of the Hospital Trustees will be held to-morrow night, at 7.30, at the Hospital. Mr Hill, Inspector of Schools, has arrived in this district. He first deals with some of the country schools, and holds the Gisborne School examination in about a fortnight, Writing of the first clay’s racing at Napier last week the Hawke’s Bay Herald remarks that the most successful jockey was A. Banks, who rode two winners. Mr Booth left at noon yesterday for the Coast, He holds a sitting ot the Resident Magistrate’s Court at Tologa Bay this morning, and returns here to-morrow afternoon. The eonaert So have been held St the Church of England Sunday-school room this evening has had to be postponed on account oi some ot ths singers feeing affected by the colds that are now so prevalent, The election to the vacancy at Christchurch caused by the appointment of Mr Percival as Agant-General, resulted ia the return ot Mr Sandford—a Government candidate—hy a large majority. The figures were—Sandford 1851, Smith 1109, Eden George 637, Mr Sandford, tha successful Liberal nominee for the Christchurch seat, is a printer &nd a teetotaller. He used to run a little paper at Arrowtown, in Otago. Strange to say, one of the other candidates, Mr J. T. Smith, is also a printer and a teetotaller.

The Hon. W. P. Reeves, Minister of Justice and Education, unexpectedly arrived in Gisborne on Sunday, and yesterday morning left for the Coast. It is understood that his visit has many reasons, the Minister’s intention being to inquire into matters concerning both Departments, and also to gain farther information as to tha sickness among tha natives

Th? farmers of Southland contemplate forming a union of their own. Dynamite is being successfully used for stumping purposes in the Palmerston district. The Danevirke sawmillers have raised the price of limber Is per 100 feet all round. A sheeplaimer of Martinborough has discovered on mustering for docking purposes that from 2000 ewes he has 2,500 lambs. The Otago Times says it is understood that the proprietors of the Milton pottery works have succeeded in producing perfectly white ware which all preceding managers for 1G years have tried and failed to do. Forty-five hands are employed there now. A special train, a steam launch, and three special steamers were utilised on General Booth’s journey from Tasmania to Melbourne. How does this extravagance with special trains and special steamers fit in with the self denial week which everyone has been asked to join in for the support of the Army',?

The excellent which Professor Channing has bean doing in Gisborne has induced him to remain s'ill another week. Those who have visited the Professor speak in high terms of the astonishing accuracy shown in all his work. He can only receive a limited number of viei ors this week.

A contemporary describes as a farce the candidature of a man who received 637 votes But he was a defeated Opposition candidate and any explanation is sought for to prove that the opposition did not father a candidature on which they were so badly beaten,

An old Maori died in Pouawa locality a few weeks ago under unusual circumstances. He was in his dotage and doddered off somewhere beyond the ken of the other natives. As ha did not reappear it was thought he was drowned, and the fishing ground was promptly tabooed. Subsequently it was found that tha old fallow had gone into some bush and had lain down and breathed his last.

"What is to be deplored is the opportunity missed by the Opposition of not raining the moral effect which would have oeen secured by winning tha Christchurch seat.” That is what an Opposition paper eaye. Giving it the meaning it is meant to have, it reminds us of the story of the man who said be did not intend to marry a young lady—for the reason that she would not have him.

The owners of the trotting horses Tommy and Hurricane have made a match for £5O a-side —to come off on Thursday at Stortford Lodge, Napier. Both horses are to start from scratch and carry the same weight. Tommy ran second in the big handicap at the Htwke'e Bay Trotting meeting, and Mr Adeane’s Hurricane won the Selling Trot. Tommy won the Maiden, and started favorite for the handicap, with 75 secs, from scratch. Hurricane had a soft thing from scratch in the Selling and was voted the bsst trotter on the ground. At the Mutual Improvement Society last night, Mr O. J. Veale read an interesting essay on “ Madame Blavatsky and Theosophy." Two of the members, Messrs Veale and Oatridge, being about to depart, for Western Australia, a motion appreciative of tbeir services to the Society, and expressive of a hope fortheir future welfare, was passed. Several members and others spoke highly of the departing members. It was arranged to hold a farewell social in eonjunotion with the choir and school teachers (with which the young men are connected), on Thursday evening next. According to the Advocate there is a disease among sheep at Campbelltown which has been responsible for a large number of deaths, and which is beyond the knowledge of the settlers to diagnose. The victims to it are usually among the best conditioned sheep in the flock, and are always found dead as though they had died suddenly and in their sleep. One settler has lost twenty well bred valuable sheep in this way, and several others are losing them from the same cause. One gentleman informs us that the skin becomes discolored, and he thinks that, even previous to death, the wool might be easily swept off the skin by the hand, but he knows that just after it can be so cleaned away without the slightest difficulty. On opening one of them he found all the organs with the exception of the liver looking healthy; part of the latter organ was, however, of a whitish color, and was eo rotten that it crumbled away under the hand-

The Tikorangi correspondent of the Taranaki Herald says William Knuokey, with a native youth named Dick Tait, had been harrowing a field—the paddock used as a racecourse—when seeing heavy clouds and thinking it was going to rain, they prepared to take their teams home. Dick Tait was leading two horses, going in front, Knuckley followed with the other four. Suddenly there was a vivid flash of lightning, making it appear as if the whole paddock was on fire, and immediately afterwards a deafening clap of thunder. Four of the horses were knocked down, and one of them died with fright, as there was no mark of it being struck by electric fluid. William Knuokey was also knocked down, and was carried to a Maori whare close by, where his legs and arms were rubbed, for they were quite benumbed. The natives in the whare said it seemed as if everything was on Sre at the time and the ground shook like an earthquake. The other horses which were knocked down got np alter a short time. There was quite a deluge of rain after the olap of thunder, and ths place was flooded for a short time. It was a near shave for the young men, and it is a wonder that they and the team of horses were not all killed. Lecture on Fiji, Magic Lantern Views, Waerenga a-hika Schoolroom, Friday next, 730 p.m. Admission Is ; children 63, — Advt.