MISCELLANEOUS.

Inangahua Times, Volume VIII, Issue 1241, 5 March 1883, Page 2

MISCELLANEOUS.

Landlady, utterly innocent of grammatical knowledge, advertises Chat she has a" fine, any, well-furnished bedroom for a gentleman 12ft. square ;" another has "a' cheap and desirable suite" of rooms for a family in good repair ;" still another lias " a hall bedroom for a single woman 6ft. by 12ft." At a benefit to Mr Howard Vernon at Christchurchj that gentleman in responding said : Christchurch was the most .critical town in New Zealand, and if a company passed successfully the ordeal of a season there, they might feel safe for the rest of the colony. An ingenious scoundrel in Paris has been playing the singular role bt an "hounest robber," and has madeacomfortable living until a meddling policeman -spoiled the business. It "was his game to open the carriage dSors for ladies,, aud as th«y stepped out '&>" possess -himself of their parses and accessible jewellery which he at once deposited at, the; nearest police, station, subse- * quentiy acce^iftgVwittf n^odesi^'wliat^ ever reward,, theift gratitude : suggested Finally he was. caught, .in t]\e act of taking a watcli into his temporary possession, and put where his honesty will go unrewarded. It is understood that Mr Anthony Trollope has died a comparatively poor man — poor, that is, in porportion to the number of his novels. Mr William Black is understood to be making more than Anthony Trollope realised during the best 'years of his career.- Wilkie Rollins probably realised as mucU as Trollope. It is said that Ouida's ,g%jnß would brealc the hearts of the lovers of literature. Again, George Eliot's profits were large. " Daniel Deronda" alone realised for £10,00.0,- aud Miss Braddon is understood-to be hearing, if she has not already topped the Parnassus of tlie novelist who. writes with an dye to profitable salestmd a big fortune in the end. The dull times continue in Ofcago. At an auction sale held by Mr George Facbe, at Butcher's Gully, . neatAlexandra Sound, - a .short time ago, the local hotel realised .£IOO. The sum of £11 was the highest bid fora securely-fenced 14-aere paddock, 11 acres of which were sown down in a really good crop of oats, and the remaining three acres in potatoes. ■ Altogether the sale is said "to have been a most unsuccessful one. At a recent meeting of the Christchurch Chamber of Commerce, the President in referring to the promised abundant harvest, pointed out that, on a moderate estimate, the Canterbury grain crop for this year would on 1 that account show an increase on last year of 2,500,000 bushels; and taking into consideration the increased area of land brought under cultivation he calculated that the grain products exported from Canterbury this season would reach a total value of £ 1,300,000. The stock joke in Australia just now is the " revered ashes of English cricket," which Ivo Bligh is popularly supposed to have collected to carry home, In connection with this a rather amusing misprint occurred in the 'Argus' the other day. A correspondent suggested that a small gold urn should be presented to each of the English team to unable them to transform the remains the more readily, but tho ' Argus' printed it, "a small gold coin, as a peudant to the watch chain itc." giving an unexpectedly ludicrous turn to the letter. Fancy asking the Hon Ivo and his comrades to ac* cept a coin for thrashing^ tho Australians J

In an article referring to Major Atkinson's scheme of National Insurance, the Wanganai Chronicle of the 9th inst says ; — " We understand that the Colonial Treasurer is to have a rival in this new field, for Mr Levestam, the member for Nelson, has also a scheme of national insurance which he purposes submitting to the consideration of the House. Of this scheme we know very little, but we understand that Mr Levestam proposes that the insurance shall be voluntary, and that those who do not choose to insure shall be deprived of the iranchise. The member for Nelson appears to think that the certainty of losing so great a privilege would operate is ttte most powerful of inducements towards insurance. It -would be unfair to attempt criticism of a scheme o! widen at present we know so little, and Nre must therefore wait patiently ttntit Mr Levestam has fully declared timselP Anglo-Austealian in M Ifeopean Mail writes :— " Ido not k&wfwhether tqiy Colonial astronomers have been jfcying much attention to the remarkable spots now appearing on the Bun. "They have attracted much scientific notice here. ifc.mjtf not be generally Tmown that ts&ftpkiai scientific observation of pftiropots was first made by Galileo^ timsi^t * It was, however, reserved f$ Wilson, of Glasgow, # discover, in 1769, that all the so-ca^d 'ipots' on the son are really openings (in; the body of that luminary, anji fli l*ter investigator, fichwabe, has shown that enormous take places from these appalling piteOT gnlfe. In one case it Jhas been estimated that a body of fire —hotter than fray of the instruments could register at 1000 miles distance — is ejected from *n opening having an area of JOOQ sqtiare miles-rfotf the height or spade from the surface of the sun of 200,000 miles I " A young Scottish clergyman, having occasion to preach in a church a few miles distant from'his native place, an -old woman who had known him in hit infancy went to hear him. The text was, ".In my Father's house are many mansions;" which phrase he repeated very often in the course of his sermon. The old woman, ignorant of the allegorical meaning of the expression, was quite indignant at what she considered the vainglory of the young man; and at length, un-| able to s^t thy longer, rose up, and exclaimed, *• My troth, lad, ye're no blate (modest) ' to come here and tell the lit* o' that * D'ye think I dinna ien ihe Bradhead House ?— a butt and 4 torn, a; storey- and a half high, wi f a garret aboon. That's mony mansions for ye ! I think ye've a quid stock o' impudence 1" The Chairman of the Invercargill Chamber of Commerce and a number ! of other gentleman interviewed the Premier on February 15, on the subject of the amendment of the Bankruptcy Laws. Thedeputation having explained jAt&r views, the Premier replied at considerable length, explaining what had teen done by the Government since 1879, and showing how the, question] seas surrounded with difficulties, arising out of the divergence of opinion . that existed on the subject If it were possible to make H ft. Government question •Qmefimig might t* done, but unfortunately 4Mb a way of proceeding was imjoanWe, owin(j to the'^fficulty ; of arrivuxgat acommon understanding. l When the Chamber had deliberated upon the Bill circulated by the Government, he (the Premier) could promise that any suggestions that were made should receive the fullest consideration. Mr McDonald then referred to the chatbafai Sogpfties Bill introduced last sessioa,'sn6 not passed, whereupon the Premier promised that any sajjjgostion on thk subject -<wonld be considereHias cowtp^fohffKh bankruptcy reform. Philadelphia is just now excited over the capture of a band of grove robbers, whd were caught with six bodies, intended for^ Medical College, in th«if?J>oss«#!fStf An investigation showed that ttese ghouls had almost cleared one of the cemeteries of its occupant*. The recovered corpses have been identified. This capture was planned by some newspaper reporters attached to the Philadelphia press, who carried it out successfully, as amateur detectives. The men captured are now in gaol awaiting their * In San Francisco acertain economical refreshment-house keeper writes his own bill of fare, thus saving the cost of printing. One of his latest menus announced: Coffey t supe, roste befe, frifebamm, boyledand baked pertaters, muttmgehops, veeks culverts, hasch, and orojuified chickens. • A young gentleman in Scotland has declined to support his Toother oa the ground o£ his having 32 brothers ao^ sisters who have the responsibility. If they would each contribute but a penny a week, there would be 2s 3d. His mamma admitted that on three trips she Uad given Urth to twins., twice to

■ triplets, and on one occasion to four children at a birth, but that the defendant was born all by himself, and so far, was under an individual oblU gation. .