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Inangahua Times, Volume II, Issue II, 26 April 1880, Page 2

' b Mr T. O-allagher is the successful tenderer t P4^ c su PP'y of telegraph poles for the lino ■Wmp^K Koefton and Lyell, the price being IP^PpjP P 0 * 6 - ®' me P au 'S of sawyers are elseI irbere advertised for. The Just-insTitne crushing will be com* ' pleted in about a fortnight's time, and there is every probability of the yield equalling the last return obtained?. A concert in aid of the Church of England Fund will be held id about a fortnight's time. There is nothing in the artflcial diamond scare after all, and the Glasgow chemist hag thrown up the sponge. A long and patient investigation has just taken place, and the conclusion arrived at is, that the apothecary's diamonds were paste. A London newspaper observes that the discovery may prove very valuable fo stonemasons as " a material which is hard enough to scratch the ruby, the sapphire, and in some cases the diamond itself, and which, as it can be cheaply produced, cannot but be a boon." It runs on, however:—" The time 19 probably etill fa«

distant wheo our mansions will be built of vast blocks of precious stones, produced artificially like concrete or common bricks. We must wait for this until tbe advent of that twentyntntb. century, the annaW of which were written and published a year or two ogo. An epoch which, among other wonders, will, it is said, see the formation of calorie depots, to regulate tbe atmosphere all over tbe globe ; the development of aquatio or submarine farming, thus bringing many millions of additional aores under cultivation at the bottom of the sea 5 the rearrangement of mountains, and the colonisation ofthe moon.| By the Waikato Times, of tbe Ist Apri we observe that Messrs Fredk. Whitaker (son of the present Attorney General and a member of the House) and John Sheehan (late Minister of Justice and Native Minister in tbe Grey Ministry) lmve entered into partnership, at Cambridge, as solicitors. Mr Lewis O'Neil, late partner with Mr Whitaker, will act as manager of the business of Messrs Wbitaker and Sheehan' of which he will have the full oontrol. This partnership appears the more strange when it is considered that in politics Mr Sheehan has always been violently opposed to both Mr Whitaker Jan., and hjs father who is a member of the present Ministry. • Asmodeus,' (a writer in the New Zealand Mail) professes, unsophisticated innocent but he seems, to have met with a new experience. This is how be tells it :—« Are you a member ?' Such was the querry put to me under novel circumstances on a recent evening. The querist, a plump, pretty, dark-eyed damsel ; the place, to me a house of mystery. It looked like a pubj and feeling athirst, I entered and espying a bar with goodly show of liquors, I called for a cool tankard of my favorite nipple.' ' Are you a member, sir ?' said the maiden. ' What,' thought I, ' does she take me for an M.H.E.? What is there in my appearance that so muoh belies me?' Sternly I asked, ' What do you mean young lady ?' ' Well sir, you know, of course. Are you a member ? And the fair damsel aotu* ally winked I A slight, coy-like, half bashful, half-encouraging, tremulous motion of the left eyelid, a fleeting flashing, quiver, but decidedly a wink. It was interesting but puzzling and I could only say, ' What, a member of tbe police force ? emphatically no 5 Druids ? no ; Queer Fellows ? no ; Ancient Order of Foodie ? no ; Good Tern» plars ? no ; Fraternal Democrats ? no ; City Council ? uo, no, no ! Imps ? Fourth Estate ? —well '—but here my fair interrogator grew impatient and exclaimed • Well, you must be a m— — .' I really think from the firm compression of her lips that she intended to say • muff' that time, and not ' mem» ber'butat that moment my friend Squills entered. ' Well that's what I certainly have net,' said I, ' and to tell the truth, I'm puzzled. Tdis inteiesting young person wants to know if I'm a ra— — ,' ' Oh, ia that it V said Squills, ' come on,' and bo laughed and we adjourned to the bar. ' Give us two tidal waves, Aramiuta,' said- Squills, and lo ! two shining pewter pints fio'hed on the board and we dipped our beaks and smiled again* Squills, bloated capitalist that he is, deposited sixpence worth of coppers on the counter and tbe young lady once again beaming on all round smiled, betook herself away and then , mj faithful friend and pitcher elucidated. \ ' It's a club you see,' said he, • half-crown entrance fee j number unlimited ; beers halfprice : members can introduce friends — join and be happy.' Need I say, in the language of the poet, ' I nave been there, and still will go* — especially while the damsel with the tremulous eyelid remains a permanent mem. fcer of the establishment.