MISCELLANEOUS NEWS.

Inangahua Times, Volume IV, Issue 41, 13 July 1877, Page 2

MISCELLANEOUS NEWS.

During an illumination, .at, Melz the Cathedral caught fire, and was seriously injured. The Emperos and Von Moltke superintended the efforts to extinguish the flames. " The following letter on Thomas Walker, the trance medim's antecedents appeared in the Otago Guardian :-Sit,-In pro* miscuously looking orer a Volume of the- J Medim and Daybreak, published in Lon- I don, for the year 1875, kindly lent by a friend, I observe therein recorded on Jwl? Al l ril . o . f '!? c ,? arpe year,. that tho WalJ 1^ s Pi"t Medium," now amongst us, did, at 16 years of age, give his first publio lecture "as a medium?* at tho Assembly rooms, Liverpool, presumably under the control of Mungp Park. Tho lecture was entitled "The Church of Rome and the Church of Christ ; a Contrast." It is fully reported* and, to my mind, is a perfect masterpiece of logic Mr E. Foster, of Preston, England, sub-' scribes to the truth of this. Again, I find in another paper of the same name, dated 15th December, 1876> that a Mr Joseph Swift, 45, Scholes street, Wigan, England, writes a long report 1 about seances held at the house of the " Walkerfamily," (who appear to be all mediumistic), and further testifies that Thomas; Walker (the one here) was born 6th February, 1858, so that last Ferbrnary he was 'nineteen yesrs of age-" Persons desirous of ascertaining the truth of theso extracts oan do so privately through you* They, however, present a marked con* trast to the relative statements that appeared in the Auckland Star, and my only object has been to publish them, through your columns in the interests of —Fair Plat. v His Honor Justice Johnston, in his charge to the Grand Jury, at Timaru,. among other remarks, said: "It was a. notorious thing that prosperity brought crime with it as well as comfort. The sorts of crime more particularly rife here were often encouraged by sudden affla> ence. Industrious men, who had been working in the country and earned a considerable amount of money, would comein to town and spend it recklessly, or else fall into the hands of unscrupulous persons, who would clear them of it aIL This not only demoralised the man himself, but tended to create crime in others, j Therefore it was especially desirable that f. statesmen and philanthropists should use \ their utmost cndevours to discover somemeans of checking this kind of evil. Hewas not in a position to know anything about tbe savings banks iii the district; but he thought perhaps that if instead of paving men ail their wages in cash, part of it could be. paid by giving them an in'erest in savings banks or some such institutions, it would go a long way L towards preventing: the money being 9 spent recklessly. If there was any valuein such a suggestion, he hoped public opinion would take it up." Mr Cora Dickson, a young girl of twenty-two, arrived in Paris lately from South America. Her life has thus far been a checkered one. At the age of 15*,. tired of the monotony of home, she ran away from her father's house with a largesum of money. She cut her hair short aud donned a boy's garbi After becom* ing in succession a cabin-boy, a clerk, and a> horsedealer, she turned up in> Buenos; Ayres, whero she entered the army, still' disguised. She distinguished herself in the service, and became a Colonel. Somemonths ago, at a meeting of officers, she quarrelled with one of those present. A duel followed, and she killed her man. On examining the dead man's papersshe found that she- had killed her eldest brother, who had left home when shewas two years of age. Horror»striken, sho threw herself at tho bishop's* feet, who promised' to intercede with her tfitlicr " John Wilkens,. F.R.C.5.," in answer to the question " _s skating injurious toladies P" replies as follows in- the columns of the Otago Guardian :— I have no hesitation in saying, after several years' observation, that the effect of skating is not only upt injurious to ladies, 'but is conducive" improvement in manyways. I. (An well remember several insstances of tidies whose health had been, long indifferent, where after a few months*' skating two or three times a week their general health and> strength became quite satisfactory. Dr Aveling, of London, hasalso watched the effect of skating upon himself as well as on women, and believes .this exercise to be not only compatiblewith the health of women, but such as to be best fitted for their peculiar organisa—tion.. The. motion, is easy and flowing— jap sudden exertion is required, and ex- . .eeptiu caso of accident, the body is not fsiibect to rough jolting or concussion. , _J___-=-==-