News Of The World

Manawatu Standard, Volume 4, Issue 150, 2 June 1883, Page 3

News Of The World

I A gentleman m Wanganui received a letter the other morning, (says the Herald) which has considerably perturbed the equanimity of his temper, as it has set him wondering whether there is any reason for it. It is short and bweet, and runs thus;— " This will admit the bearer to the Wei*, lington Lunatic Asylum, m the care of Constable Price." The note purports to be signed by the Secretary, m Wellington, but the recipient thinks he must be the victim of some joke. i There seems a general impression that Hawera as a town has seen its best day*, (says the travelling reporter of the Waneanui Herald) atleast for; a very long time to come, and that the completion of the through railway will still further detract from its prosperity. If the business people can succeed m obtaining . a concession, or rather their right, from the Government m the matter of having the railway pushed ahead from the Hawera end,' things may be brisker for a-. time, but there seems little doubt that business will relax into a condition probably worse than the present, as soon as the trainß are running right through and traffic is carried past instead of through the town. A case containing chemicals, addressed to a storekeeper m Greymouth, was, says the Westport Times, washed from the deck of the s.s. Kennedy on her voyage from Wellington to Nelson m August of last year. The case not coming to hand, " insurance was claimed and paid, and pros bably very little more was thought of the -matter. Imagine therefore the storekeeper's surprise when the other day he received a letter from Alexandra, m the Waikate, Btating that a native chief had picked up on the shore, not,far from that place, the identical case. The Auckland Star sayst— There has been a generally expressed opinion during the last few days that the sudden arrival of more than five hundred immigrants would overstock the labor market. This fear doea not to appear to have been borne out by facts. Nearly all the immigrants have already found situations at good wages, while the competition amongst mistresses for general servants was very strong. As is usually the case, there were a few who beldlmckfor a higher renoum* eration than the average, and m moat instances they were successful m getting it. Notwithstanding this large influx of labor, there were more than sixty vacant situations advertised m our' last evening's issue, fully one-third of these being for female labor! It would, thus appear that- the sudden supply has not even equalled the; demand. .;,-■ "..;.. ' Speaking at the Chamber of Commerce^ m 'Dunedin, as reported by. a Press; Association telegram, Mr K. Wilson, the Chairman, referring, to the duloess of trade and. the scarcity of money, . said that it was m a measure owing 'to thei habit people had of relying on the banks when their coffers were full, and also to , the* system pursued by : the* banks' of allowing overdrafts to an unwarrantable extent. ! The credit system of; .the colony requited looking into. An order has bean issued from Dublin , Castle prohibiting the pony and harness which were attached to the car so prominently associated with the Plioeaix Park murders, from leaving Dublin until the trial ©f the prisoners is over. The car, which has been purchased; for exhibition at Madame Tussaud 's, and which has arrived m London, has also been returned; to Dublin. At the end of last year there were 29,000 Edison electric lamps m use m America and 20,000 m Europe. The Edison . Electric Light Company have over 300 ■ houses m their circuits m New York,-con-taining over 6000 larops. Meters are placed m each building and the bills are presented regularly, the sharges being about the same as gas. . In fining a Prahran publican the other day. for Sunday trading, Dr Featherston the chairman of the Bench, remarked that it vi&k a shame that the law regarding' the ; "isale 'Of liquors on Sunday should remain as at present. There were restraints which- should hot exist and whioh did not .exisf m or Ireland, though he 'would not speak for Scotland. In Sydney also the law was less stringent than here. As the law stood people were compelled to. break it. Publichouses,ihe contended, should be allowed to open for two hours m the afternoon and one m the morning. These remarks were almost unanimously concurred mby the rest of the Bench. The Evening Post Bays a good deal of surprise has been expressed at the extreme paucity of New Zealand's share m the! Imperial " birthday honours," the only one falling to a foreigner. It is shrewdly suspected that Sir Arthur Gordon's well-known I influence with his old friend, Mr Gladstone, may be traced here, v The 1 -New' York papers, while denouning the murderous dynamite outrages m: London, consider that the removel of Irish grievances, is the only effectual method of putting an end to them. A big blue-gum tree was cut down the other day m Victoria. It was 60 feet m circumference, and 430 feet high. At the Carnival at Nice, according to a: London correspondent, the Prince of Wales went round tb.e town iv female; attire,. including a big coalscuttle .bonnet. > A southern contemporary says.— An old Waimea Plains settler tells, us he is so thoroughly disgusted with the high railway tariff m that quarter,, that 'the other night' He ' stopped ploughing for; next season's crop, and laid aside his plough with the firm determination never again to put a plough into his land* ■ and clear out for his old yictorian: home aa soon as possible. . .-...,■ ; : . -; The nominal capital of the new com* panics brought out m England m 1862 was ££4,500,000. Attoufr.-- one-third' was of companies dealing with electricity. «U./.;-'.. f jy. .--•-. • -' ■'• .■'.■... '■-'.'-. Two American astronomers have jn it discovered a new. comet. It is travelling eastward from the sun, and may probably soon be visible m Europe. The fact that few people know what electricity really means received an amusing illustration at the Government Printing office last night. When the current was first turned,. on all the lamps of course flashed up, much to the astonish ment of the watchman who; not wishing to appear ignorant of the change which was being iutroduced, took one of the engineers aside and asked him who had gone down and " lit those lamps," It is needle.-s to say that those who overheard the question en* joyed the joke immensely. At the last meeting of the Wellington Education Board a letter was received from Mr Chamier, of ' Wbodville, requesting that the erection of a teacher's reai« dence at Pahiatua should be proceeded with at the same time as" that' of J the "CllXlaous6. it' was r'esdi7cu to atipw the matter to stand' over until a title had been ! obtained for the b"sb u^djir b^ei; ; - ' ] ■ : ' ? female labor is eu.ppos.ed to be In large demand, but it is remarkable that over thirty applications for the position of a stewardess on a small steamer were mqde at the Wellington wharf.