q mrters or a milt* north of Wintl ov, and runß in a well defined course to the sea. 1 I aasing almost entirely through swamp , land, it receives a large amount of drain-j age water from either aide, and its volume is greatly augmented hy the large quanti ties of water led into it from Ford’s road, along which the flood water is conveyed for many miles. This damage is more noticeable from the outfalls near Clark’s road .to the sea, and if the outfalls from that road remain as at present, that portion of the creek should certainly be regulated and enlarged. Creek No. 5 (or Spicer's Creek) has its source about three miles below Winslow, running in a direction pretty nearly parallel to Old Ford’s Creek, and at a dis tance from it generally of about three quarters of a mile. This is the creek which, in particular, inundates the Waterton district in times of flood. An auxiliary channel has also been cut at a short dis tance from it, leading nearly in a straight line from Osborne’s road to Waterton, but this pew cut, and the creek together, are insufficient to take more than the ordinary drainage of the district, and afford no provision for the contingency 'f storm water.

Between Spicer’s Creek and Longbeach Road there is a large area of swamp land in process of reclamation, for which no outfall has been provided at all, except that afforded by the side ditches over part of Bell s road, and the area which is detrimentally affected by the cause, may be set down at about 5,000 acres. The damage at Waterton is due also in a con siderable measure to the overflow from this district. I should propose to deal with the drainage here by opening up the creek between the sea and Mr. Dawson s house, and extending it in the line indi cated on the plan, through the bridge on Bell’s road (about 110 chains up from junction with Dawson’s road) and onwards to catch the auxiliary channel near Spicer’s Greek, and also that creek itself. All the surface water which overflows the district at the junction of Bell’s road with Dawson’s road, could be easily led along the upper side of the latter, and discharged at the proposed ford for Dawson’s creek. If necessary, part of Spicer’s creefe could be taken along same route. The approximate estimate of works pro posed, would be as follows : New cut for Creek No. i at several points about 2 miles from Tinwald ° ° Enlarging Creek No. 2 near Tinwald 5° ° ° Ford for do. at Graham’s road 70 o o Regulating do. below Graham’s road 50 o o 170 o o ■ Enlarging creek (branch of New * Ford’s creek) north of ' ’Graham’s road, near Wheat stone 60 o o New cut from Bishop’s to Wheatstone road 70 O o 350 o o Main Drain along upper side of Wheatstone road, A to D .Earthwork 35° 0 0 Concrete at point of discharge 50 o o Field crossings So o o Ford at Graham’s 70 o o 650 o o Clearing Old Fork Creek, E to F 100 0 0 Re-opening and enlarging creek GHIJ 800 o o .Ford at I Dawson’s road 60 o' O Minor works along line of Daw son’s road for intercepting flood water from juncture of Bell’s road 40 o o £2OOO o o

'The district which would be more especially benefited by these works is com knsed within the following limits. Southom Boundary—Longbeach road, from junction of Osborne road to junction Of road to Waterton, thence near R.S. 21,150 to sea. Northern Boundary—The South Ter race of Ashburton River from R. S. 6793 to sea.

'■Vb-ii Boundary—Osborne road to junction of Ford’s road, thence to junc tion of road near upper side of R.S. f 6803, thence along latter road and exten ■ sion of same line, to the Ashburton River. Eastern Boundary—The sea line. The extent of this district is about 16,000 acres, and the cost would therefore be 2s 6d per acre. There can be no doubt that within the limits referred to, the question of drainage is an important one, when it is considered that provision has not only to be made for the creeks containing the surface and drainage water accumulating from the • upper districts, but for the drainage of a ' krge extent of easily reclaimable swamp •ar:cl within this area, and also for the

outfalls of road drainage, which must of discharge into these creeks. 1- ir, obvious that the principle of on which is much to be com •ii id.-d fur some other portion of the p’aiiis, would not suit in this district, as it floes not coi.fain any large deposits of pure

sh'ngle. 1 may akn here state that after the creeks have been put in order, the ques tion of maintenance is one notio be over looked, as very little derangement might be the means of altering the course of some of them, and so overcharge the others as to render them inefficient; while a small sum expended yearly would suffice to keep them in such order, as the varying condi ’ tion of the district might require. Hence the importance of placing them under . charge of a Conservancy Board, as recom mended for the water courses in the other sections of the county. i 12. —Drainage Longbeach and Isleworth districts The main question here resolves itself into what is almost equivalent to forming a new channel for Hinds river, - from near the Surveyor’s road to the sea, * » distance of about 7 miles. Also improy -; iug the present channel from half a mile i ■ below to two miles above Surveyor s road; ; and from thence, forming an embankment • at some distance from the nver to 20 chains above the Boundary road. The present channel from near Surveyors road toMßoundary creek is only about 18 feet - wide, bounded for the most part on the Longbeach side by a turf and earth dyke ■ the material for which has been excavate iti, in form of a large ditch, of not ■Loch less width than the existing channel. Hhul. ‘hese two should be joined TrWW|Ltfuiov>d of the division dyke, so as far 4, -ars?sWe channel, which should be to 50 feet in width, to contain water in tb#

The material arising from this should be formed into a mound to be about 4 feet high on both sid-s of the river, each mound to be about 2 l > chains removed from present channel, so as to contain all the flood water. The Boundary creek, which forms the outlet of Hinds river towards the sea, is only about 14 feet wide, and I should pro pose to form flood banks there in a similar manner.

The Isleworth district would share equally with Longbeach the benefit of this impr< ivement. It is clear that no really permanent im provement can be effected in the reclaim ing of these districts until the overflow of the Hinds is checked. If this were done, the creek passing through R.S. 20437, near the Boundary road, and extending past the shepherd’s house, near R. S. 8411 to the sea, might at amoderate cost be made available as an outlet for the drainage of a greater part of the swamp land through which it runs. My estimate of these works is as follows Enlarging Boundaiy Creek, and forming flood works on each side, two and a half chains from chan nel _ . Enlarging Boundary drain in a similar manner I^°° Removing bends in several places, and increasing waterway from half mile to two miles below Surveyor’s road 7°° Embankment from thence to twenty chains above Boundary road 75°

Total cost of improving Hinds river, assuming that the land will cost nothing

Enlarging Creek f. om K to L at various places from Boundary road to sea Assuming there would be a mile on either side of Hinds River, below Boun dary road benefitted by the improvement of river, the extent would be approxi mately 10,000 acres, and the coat 9s per The enlarging of creek K. L. would represent provision for a drainage outlet, extending over an area of 4,000 acres at a cost of 2s 6d per acre. It would appear, therefore, that the im provement of Hind’s River cannot be put on the same footing as the drainage ques tions.

At the present stage, it seems unneces- S ary to go into more minute detail until the Council have had an opportunity of considering the whole question of flood water, as affecting not only the districts referred to in this report but also those previously reported on. I have the honor to be, sir Your moat obedient servant, Wiixiam Baxter, County Engineer. The Engineer’s report was adopted, and it was resolved —“ That the Engineer certify for the expenses incurred by the contractor for conveying timber along Sur veyor’s road to the Hinds bridge.

DRAINAGE IN LONGBEACH AND HINDS DISTRICTS. A discussion took pace as to the neces sity of having a drainage map of the County, which it was necessary to have according to the Act. Mr Grigg moved, and Mr C. Reed seconded—“ That the portion of the Engineer’s report dealing with the Long beach and Hinds districts be postponed, and the Engineer be instructed to con r with Mr Wilkie on the subject.” Carried. UN WALD DRAINAGE. A letter from the Upper Ashburton Road Board was read to the effect that they considered the cost of the drainage at Tinwald should be borne by the railway authorities. Mr Reed considered that the work was impracticable. Mr Grigg considered that the work should be carried out by the railway authorities. Resolved—“ That the correspondence from the two Boards be forwarded to the Government, and the Council endorse the resolutions of the Boards.” BOARD OF CONSERVATORS. Mr Sargent attended, and presented a petition asking that a special rate of 1s in the pound be levied on all the rateable property in the Ashburton Forks district, in accordance with the provisions of the Act.—Signed by 35 ratepayers. Mr Reed stated that a public meeting had been held, and that they had de termined to ask to be taxed as heavily as possible for the purpose of protecting the land and roads.

Mr Sargent said that only one out of forty ratepayers had refused to sign. The Chairman said he attended the meeting, and the district was well repre sented. All seemed unanimous as to the necessity of the work, and a very small expenditure would save the destruction of a great amount of property. Mr Reed said that some of the roads had been blocked up for seven months. Mr Grigg thought the only question was whether als rate was sufficient with as sistance from the Council. The Chairman said he did not think the Board had acted as liberally as he ex pected them to do, as they had a large quantity of public property at risk. The ratepayers would only contribute £BO. Mr Sargeant said the ratepayers would contribute £l2O and the Board £2OO. The Chairman said that if they paid £ for £ the cost was estimated at £450.

Mr Grigg moved —“ That the work be undertaken and that a special rate be collected.” Carried. Mr Sargeant said the Engineer’s report only dealt with one third of the work necessary. The Chairman explained that the em bankments, &c., to be undertaken were works of emergency, and undertook to instruct the Engineer to examine all places likely to be subject to overflow, and the work would probably extend over some years. DEPOSIT ACCOUNT. From Mr Shury, Manager of the Union •Rftnlr of Australia, asking if the £IO,OOO should be renewed. The balance sheet for six months was laid before the Council duly audited. Mr Grigg was opinion that the Council ought to be in the position of having the whole of its funds at its command at some definite period, and he moved that the de posit expiring that day, be renewed for six months. The motion was agreed to. HOSPITAL FURNITURE. It was resolved to sanction votes of £Bl 12s 6d ; and £56 4s for ironmongery, and hot water apparatus for the Hospital.

OFFICE FURNITURE. | Sums of £9O 10s, £23 ss, and £ls, were j sanctioned for office furniture and fittings. committee's retorts. The Rakaia- Gorge Committee asked for in extension of time to next meeting to allow their report to be brought up. The time was granted. ACCOUNTS. Several accounts were passed for pay ment, amongst the rest one for over £2O for the conveyance of certain lands in con nection with the bridge and approaches at Digby’s. Some discussion took place on this account, several Councillors thinking that the bill was high, and the “ interviews ” numerous. GAS FOR THE HOSPITAt. A letter was read from the ('as Com pany, stating that to lay pipes of the large calibre necessary for the hospital would be inimical to the interests of the shareholders, and the Company was not prepared to extend the mains. RRIDOE TENDERS. The following tenders for the erection of a bridge over the Soutli Ashburton was accepted : James Butt, £4,94014s Id, the structure to be of wood. WATERTON POUND. The tender of Mr Jenkins at £223, was accepted for the erection of Waterton Pound. MOUNT SOMERS POUND. It was resolved to consult the Mount Somers Road Board, regarding the ap pointment of a pound-keeper, and to bring the bye-laws into force as soon as the officer was appointed. NEXT MEETING. It was decided to hold the next meeting of the Council on the 26th instant, the date also of the annual meeting. NOTICE OF MOTION. That the subject of an approporation of a special grant in aid of the drainage of the districts of Longbeach, Rakaia and Ashburton plains, be considered at the next meeting of the Council. That the sum of be granted to the district of Longbeach, and also that the sum of be granted to the district of Rakaia and Ashburton for drainage pur poses, the same to be expended in such work as may be considered by the Council to be most urgently req aired.

UPPER ASHBURTON ROAD BOARD.

The usual monthly meeting of th above Board was held at Westerfield on Tuesday at noon. Present—Messrs Heed (Chair man), M. Stitt, McLean, McCall and Sargent. On the minutes being read, there was some discussion as to the correctness of a a resolution to the effect that a contrac tor should be prohibited from doing any more work for the Council in consequence of insulting the Chairman whilst calling his attention to work not done to his satis faction in connection with the mainten ance of roads.

The minutes were ultimately passed. Thd Surveyor’s report was read. CONTRACTS.

Boyle’s contract for shingling Green’s road had been completed in a most satis factory manner Black’s contract on the Lagmohr road will be completed next weeb. O’Neil is busy with his contract on the Timaru track. ROAD AT MARONAN. Mr McLean accompanied the Surveyor to inspect a road asked to be formed by Mr Carter, and found that it was one which had only been laid out some 12 months ago and it would be a costly work, as it would necessitate the construction of a bridge, which would cost £2OO, to span Shepherd’s creek ; independent of this, the main Maronan road, already bridged, was only 28 chains distant. —Ajiplication re fused. ROADS, ETC., SOUTH OF HINDS.

The formation applied for by Mr Chis nall was unnecessary, the present track having had the boulders picked off, and it did not require any improvement at present. The well on Mr Carter’s pre-emptive was out of order, and would not cost more than £5 to fence in and make secure. It was a great benefit to the district, as there was no water within five miles, and when the Hinds was dry within ten miles in any direction. It was resolved to apply Mr Carter to forfeit his right to the land on which the well was excavated. Nearly all the roads in this portion of the district are in good condition for traffic. The survey of the gravel pits in this part would be completed in a few days by Mr Fooks. encroachment by the railway. The station master’s cottage at Tiu wald was built on the Main South road, and it will be necessary to apply to the traffic manager or railway engineer to authorise its removal. PROTECTIVE WORKS. A petition signed by 35 ratepayers and residents in the Forks ward, agreeing to be taxed at the rate of one shilling in the pound was submitied to the Board, and approved of, and a declaration ordered to be attached to it in terms of the Act, to the effect that the signatures were those of ratepayers, and it was further re solved — “ That this Board is willing that the roads in the Forks ward of the district be taxed at the rate of one shilling in the £ on their value, with the object of pro tecting them against the overflow of the Ashburton river, and that the County Council be requested, in compliance with the petition of the ratepayers and this resolution, to undertake the whole of such works in the district, a considerable portion of the works required not having yet been reported on by the County En gineer.” BRIDGE BY DIGBY'S.

The consideration of the cost of the bridge by Digby’s was then discussed, and it appeared from Messrs M‘Lean ami Sargent’s statements that when the Board received the grant from the Land Fund of £12500 it was a stipulation that the cost of the bridges in the district should be borne equally between the Board and the Council, and when the bridge was first spoken about it was understood that it was to be erected on the old crossing place, at a cost of from £7OOO to£9ooo, and upon that understanding the Board bad voted £3OOO towards the cost. Sub sequently the Council had altered the site to a most inconvenient place, where no one would ever take advantage of it.

and the total cost, would be about £2900, ftr 1 r’.dge and approaches, so that if t ie Council compelled the Boerd to adhere to its resolution they would hive the work done for nothing, and a £IOO clear, and the bridge would probably at some tune rot or wash away, but never be worn out The Chairman defended the action of the Council, as skilled engineers had re ported on the site and approved » f it DRAINAGE AT TINWALD. A letter was read from the County Council enclosing report from their engi neer re the drainage at Tiuwa’d. The members could not see the liability of the upper Ashburton Road Board, as it was evident from the engineer’s report that ti e damage was caused by the embankments on the Mount Somers Rail way, and the Chairman was requested to reply to that effect, and state their opinion that the cost of diversion should devolve on the railway authorities. PURCHASE OF GRAVEL PITS. Correspondence from Jle-ars Fooks and g on — re gravel pits pu "chased from church property trustees. Tlie arbitrators could not agree, and the matter was referred to the decision of Mr Robert Wilkin ; they were disappointed in not having obtained better terms, as the award* had been made at £2O per acre for 0 acres, and the Board be required to fence the land when called upon to do so, each party paying their own costs of arbi tration. The members considered that the amount was exhorhitant, as better land had been sold in the locality at £4 per aerr, and it was resolved to pass a cheque for the amount, when the land had been surveyed. COUNTY DRAINAGE SCHEME. A letter was read from C. N. Mackie, Esq. , requesting the attendance of a mem ber of the Board to a Conference to dis cuss the plans of the Engineers on the drainage of the Rakaia and Ashburton rivers. Mr Stitt stated he had attended, and reported what had been done at the Con ference, and pointed out by utilising a large gully a deal of drainage to the roads would be obviated, and which had not been inspected by the Engineers. It was resolved that the Chairman be re quested to take action in the matter in the County Council. GREAT SOUTH ROAD. Mr E. Mossman wrote complaining that through flax, gorse, Ac., growing on the road, and the quantity of storm water which cut off their frontages, he would request that Graham's road West should be formed, as being in a more direct line than the Lagmohr Road. The total length required to be formed will be about 13 chains. The Chairman to reply that the Board would ask Government for information respecting the Great South Road, and so far as Graham’s road was concerned the Board wmuld undertake that work, pro viding funds were available. NORTH EAST TOWN BELT. A letter was received from the Ashburton Borough Council, forwarding account for £135 2s, cost of forming the N. E. Town Belt up to date, and asking the Board to send a cheque for one half of the amount. Agreed to. TIMARU TRACK. Mr Taylor applied for certain works in the Ashburton river bed on the above road. To be reported on. PLANTATION RESERVES. The ChairmaL reported that as the County Council had granted £l5O for plantation purposes, and MrMarmsan had promised to do his best to give a grant of 100 acres, wliich would be given as soon as the land was planted. Mr Maclean thought the money should be divided between the Wards, and that the cemetries had a claim on the money. Mr McColl said it was too late to do anything now or until next autumn, and the land would require three ploughings before planting could be done. The Surveyor was instructed to report on the quality of a block of land at the Rangitata. The Chairman was instructed to apply for gravel reserves along the railway reserves. BRIDGE BY DlGßy’s It was resolved that the Board consent to pay half the cost of the bridge near Digby’s, and to request Mr Wright to assist Mr Reed in the matter. THE BOARD’S FUNDS. The balance in the hands of the Trea surer was as follows :—No. 1 Ward, £4OO ; 2, £358 ; 3, £232 ; 4, £lßl ; 5, £345 ; general fund, £362 4s ; total, £1,878 4s. MAIN MARONAN ROAD. It was resolved to call for tenders for repairs of the road from Hinds railway station to Maronan, and several other small works were authorised to be done. LEVYING A RATE. It was resolved to levy a rate of 6d in the £ on all rateable property in the dis trict, and to advertise the same forth with. Mr John Frazer applied for permission to take gravel from certain pits on the Mount Somers railway line, for the pur pose of ballasting the same. —-Granted.

MOUNT SOMERS ROAD BOARD.

The usual monthly meeting of this Board was held at the office on Monday, the 3rd inst. All the members present. The Overseer’s report was read and con sidered. The Overseer reported on work required on roads to Mesopotamia and to Polhill’s. The work was ordered to be done. The Clerk was instructed to invite tenders for keeping all the shingled roads in repair for 12 months from Boyer's stream to the North Ashburton River ; also the ford on that river ; also to adver tise for tenders for shingling the road from Anama crossing to M Clymont’s fence. The Clerk was instructed to cancel Car leton’s contract on Spread Eagle to Alford Forest Road The overseer was instructed to take the necessary steps to have Carleton’s con tracts —Tramway road and Gorse Fence road—completed according to specification. The Clerk was instructed to advertise that all contracts not completed in the time specified in the specifications will have to be finished one month from the date of advertisement, otherwise penalties will be enforced ; also that all rates not paid by the advertised time will be sued for. roiißEßroNnrNf'E. From the Asburton County Council in answer to the Board’s letter re bridges over the Ashburton river and Taylor’s stream, and informing the Board that the Council had adopted the Board’s

r**coinimvi fl at;on in regard to bridge at Hood's crossing. From the same, informing the Board that the money granted for planting trees had been paid to the credit of the Boaid. From W. Fergus, asking the Board to met d a portion of the road near his place, as the same was not passable. The Overseer was instructed to report on the same at next meeting of the B a d. Petition from W. T. Smith and others, asking that a portion of Graham’s road be formed and shingled. The Overseer was instr ucted to report on same at next meet ing. Tenders were opened for Nos. 27, 28, and 29, one in eacli case accepted. Accounts were then passed, and the Board adjourned till Dec. 1.

CHISPA’S LETTER.

{From the Aekbufhm lleiald , November I.)

“lam not yet so bald that you can see my brains. ” —Longfellow.

Under the heading of ‘ Missing Friends,’ the following advertisement appears in a Sydney paper of recent date : “I give notice to my husband, James Hobson Jackson, late of Blayney, that if he does not return in two months, I in tend to get married awain.— Mary Jane Jackson.” Mary Jane don’t mean to be trifled with, there are no half and half measures in the above manifesto ; and the utter contempt sho seems to have for the law of bigamy is an evidence that she is a lady with a mind of her own ; the two months notice would lead one to the conclusion that she has a successor to her late erring partner, but it will be rather ticklish for No. 2if James Hobson Jacks.m happened to turn up say nine weeks after the notice, which by the way, the lady has forgotten to put a date to.

The Ashburton volunteers are pro gressing in their drill. The goose step was tolerably well got through, and I am proud to notice that the defenders of our hearths and homes have so far progressed in the “mark time” period of their training as to obviate the necessity of the drill instructor using the formula so familiar to us in the days when a hay band was entwined on the right, and a straw band on the left leg of the recruit. When the individual intended as 1 ‘food for powder ” had so far progressed in the art of war as to be able to march, the order was given—“ Left foot forward, now, byuright, quamo,” intended to mean “ quick march,” and then to see the sergeant, with his eyes on each and every one, his feet marking the time the recruit ought to, but did not keep, and at the same time with a blatant roar re peating the following rhythmical poem, his aforesaid feet being the time keeper : Right, left, right, left, Hay, straw, hay, straw, Hay, straw, hay, straw, Now you’ve gotit, try to keep it, Hay, straw, hay, straw, Ac., Ac. And so on, till the drill instructor’s throat, and the recruit’s legs were all worn out. This is the first process; in the soldier manufacturing industry. “May its shadow never grow less. ”

The Ashburton Rifle Corps want a captain, and I hope they may soon get one _ o ne that will be a credit to himself and to them, while at the same time likely to become at no distant date efficient in his drill. I learned to shoulder arms in a company up North. The company on its formation agreed that no commissioned officers should be elected until after six months drill, and we did drill there ; no candle light business— but three times at 6 a.m., winter and summer, frost or snow, and then the men who knew their drill beat were picked out for officers, and a most efficient company was got together. Or on the other hand, if you wish for a captain whoso only qualification is potentiality of parting, 1 can give an illustration of that style of officer. At the time of the Maori war in, I think, 1801, the militia were called out all through the colony. That body was looked upon as a cut below the volunteers, principally from the fact that their officers were nominated and had old fashioned uniforms supplied to them, whilst volunteers could elect their own commanders and go in to he howl ing swells as far as clothes were concerned. Volunteering thus became very popular, and a number of com panies were sworn in, muskets bearing a date contemporaneous with the reign of the lamented Queen Anne were served out and, as the local journal of the period recorded, they presented a very military appearance (which was a lie). Well, they elected a Captain who was well off in worldly matters, if he didn't know his drill, but to give him credit he attended parades regularly, and after two months regular training he considered himself capable of marcliing his company from the drill ground through the town, and he got along well enough as long as it was only marching, with a good band in front— except for the sword getting occasionally mixed up with his legs, which, by the way, were, and are to this day, the handiest in the colony. However, he safely reached a corner pub. at which he occasionally called, and here he halted his men and tried an evolution. The way that sergeants and Queen Ann muskets, and admiring larrikins, and all the company got mixed up with drays and horses was so inextricable that the valiant captain at once saw that he had blundered, and wisely gave the order “ Bread and beer”—and they beered devotedly for the next two hours at the officer’s ex pense, who never marched the men down that road again. Chispa.

ASHBURTON FIRE BRIGADE.

A meeting was held at the Somerset Hotel on Tuesday night, about twenty five members present. Mr George Comp ton, captain of the brigade in the chair. The Treasurer reported the balance in hand £.S'i If’s. The Standing Committee reported having ordered a 3 cwt bell from Messrs A. and T. Burr, of Dunedin, at Is 3d per ib, and ii was proposed by Ivir G. Parkin ana seemmed by jUr «l. Brad ley, tnat the action of too landing Com mittee be endorsed. —C r ied.

The disposal of the old bell was then considered, and some of the members were of opinion that the old bell should remain as an extra bell, and the others that two bells would lead to confusion.

Mr M. Friedlan ler proposed, and Mr iargemu seconded —‘ ‘ That the old bell be sept and the Standing Committee arrange mv a new site for it if necessary. ” Carried. Mr J imes Bradley proposed, and Mr J. Dolman seconded—“ That the Borough Council be requested to allow the brigade to hold their meetings in the Council Chambers temporarily.’’—Carried. It was mentioned that providing the Borough refused the request, that Mr Tucker would give the use of a room in Montgomery's buildings. The following members were appointed on the .Standing Committee to net with the ofibr-rs: —Messrs J. Bradley, J. Wilkie, M. Friedlander, and 0. Miller Tenders were opened for shifting enguie house and erecting new bell tower. Mr Parkin, 1:23 10s ; Mr Compton, £27. Mr G. Compton’s tender was acoepte !. It \v;i. —solved that the secretary apply to ~h<' secretary of tin; Insurance Acv 0.-ia tiou U‘f • subscription towards tlii cost of the erection of the bull tower. The inutility of the wcl. Saunders’buildings was refer.\i * the secretary was instructed to ap, Lo the Council to have a hole sunk so as lower the engine within reach of the water.

Mr J. Dolman said lie had taken some trouble over the matter, and was aware that Mr Foots had ordered the foreman of works to do the work, "but it had not yet been done. Messrs Compton and Parkin to wait on the Mayor. Two new members were balloted for and elected.

Italian Ironclads.

Some further details have lately been published (says the Pall Mall Gazette) of the cost of the enormous ironclads which are being constructed for the Italian navy. The Duilio, of 10,570 tons displacement, and designed to carry four 100-ton guns in two turrets, —was launched at Cass tel la mare in 1877, and is now so far advanced that she wiilbe ready to receive her arma ment before the end of the present year. It ws origin illy estimated that she would cc.nl 17,000 000 (£680.000); but d is r ow found the- (he expense of her con strucl ion w.ll e more than 18,000,0' JO lire (£720,000': The Danoolo, a siaror ship of the Duibn, was launched last y. :r at Spezzia, is now having her machine.y placed in her, and will he ready to v ■ ceive her guns towards the end of 1380 -r the beginning of 1881, and will cost very nearly as much as the Duilio, or a trifle under £720,000. The other two ships, the Italia and the Lepanto, which are even larger than the Duilio, being each of 13,700 tons displacement, or 2000 tons larger than the Inflexible, are at present still on the stocks, but will, it is hoped, be ready for lauching next year. The cost of each of these vessels was originally esti mated at 17,000,000 lire (£080,000); but will, it is now calculated, amount to 10,720.000 lire (£783,800). The four iron clads will, therefore, together coat lire (£372,240) more than was at first anticidated ; but it must be added tint, there is some slight though by no means well founded hope entertained that it may be found possible to armour the Italia, and Lepanto with plates of cheaper manufacture than those placed on the Daudolo and Duilio whereby a saving of about 2,000,000 lire (£89,000) would be effected in the total cost of each ship.

Extraordinary Trance.

The sight to which all is anxious to oh tain advmttatvc the girl now lying in a trance at tor, ~ ore lon Hospital. This case, which innixies the doctors, and sets medicine altogether at defiance, lias occupied the whole of the medical authorities for the last few weeks. The patient lies still and motionless upon the bed. She eats nothing, neither does she drink, her lips being hermetically closed. Her eyes are closely shut, but when the lids are raised the brightness of them is almost dazzling. The intelligence, too, with which the eye seems to look at you, as if inquiring the reason of this strange visitation—perplexed and terri fied, but neither dim nor vague—is mys terious in the extreme. The pulse mean while beats with formidable power, although no symptoms of breathing is visible. As the doctors acknowledge their own incompetency to decide upon a case of this kind, they are compelled to leave it in the hands of Nature —their own great Master, to whose will they are com pel led to bow a solution of the terribe enigmas which now and then sets their science at nought. The symptoms described by the nurse to the visitors who. by the permis sion of the auth;.cities, are allowed to see the poor girl, urc weird and terrible as a nightmare. The patient had already reen in the bospi'al about a week, wht” l the ward in which she slept was arouse-i by her frantic cries for help. The agony with which she had been suddenly s. wcl in every limb was so intense that she felt sure she must be dying. Before the doctor could be summoned she rose in the bed, uttered one long piercing scream, and fell s' Vienly backwards with extended arms, stiff Vd motionless, as she has ever since remain'd. Every means known to science has been employed to restore her to consciousness, but without .avail. Gal vanism, electricity, burning—have all proved useless, and the doctors are fain to own themselves beaten.

Queen Victoria to Abdicate.

The London correspondent of the “ Dundee Advertiser ” in a recent letter, alluding to the abdication of Queen Victoria, says:—“l have not hithei'to alluded to these reports, but they have become so persistent that it would bo useless longer to ignore their existence. It is said that for some time pist Her Majesty’s health has not been in a very satisfactory srate, Tim (hath of the Duchess of llos‘e g.ivn Ivr a shock, from which she hr; )or »<v wwd, ami the celebration of the mania-go of the Duke of Connaught exercised a depressing in fluence on her In a’th. The journey to Italy is not a mere lid ty trip. Sir W. Jeauer considered th it a change of scene, and an almost entire absence from official duty of any kind, wore necessary for the Queen, and that is the reason she has buried herself on the secluded shores of an Italian lake. It is no doubt in con sequence of the somewhat gloomy state ments regarding Her Majesty’s health which are passing in society, that the other reports connected with the succession to the throne are also current. It is said that, unless a considerable change in Her Majesty’s health takes place, she will no longer be able to discharge the functions belonging to the Sovereign of the old country, and rumour points to the possi bility of an abdietkm. It is an undoubted fact, that since the departure of the Queen for Italy the Prime Minister has several limes seen the Prince of Wales. On Tuesday he bad an interview with His Royal Highness of more than an hour’s duration, and the Prince would seem to be since io some extent discharging the duties of the Queen with regard to public affairs during her absence in Italy. In a matter where there is necessarily a good deal of speculation, it would be idle to make definite statements, but there are those who think that a somewhat startling surprise is in store for Parliament before the present session closes.”

The Genesis of Mormonism.

Some novel particulars concerning the origin of Mormonism have been made pub lic in an influential Massachusetts news paper. The grist of the story is that the religion established by Joseph femith was actually the continuation of a movement begun before his birth. At the opening of the present century several persons in the State of Vermont, the native State of Joseph Smith, the first Mormon Prophet, and Brigham Young, his successor, fancied that they were able to do miracles through the medium of “ St. John’s rods.” With one of these rods in their hands they alleged that they could find herbs and roots which would cure ah diseases, could walk in thin garments through deep snow without h df'eri', cold. could discover hid fen t.v sure • 1 sc ! and silver. These perfcv-r c ’.;o vinol that the time was

ao liana .-.ip- r l j L;.tt -v-Day Saints should • od in and ihe now Jerusalem s’ o il'i fc» !;•;.;]• Th-> topics on which J ’' ,e: or.tlnrnar.ls evpniiaied in 1801 are

h f h ise which formed 1,'.: -,' basis fn- Ohuroh of the Latter- P Saints at its foundation in 1830. J oseph Smith is said to have experimented with a St. John's rod in searching fortho precious metals, one of his earliest em ployments being “ prospecting for a silver mine which the Spaniards were supposed to have worked in Pennsylvania. But he did not profess to have discovered the re pository of the mysterious, if not mythical, gold plates on which the Mormon Oospel was engraved through any other agency than a dream. Indeed the popular belief in the efficacy of these rods had faded away before he grew to man’s estate. The chief expounder of their virtues had been charged with being a coiner, and with belonging to a gang who carried on the trade of making false money in concert with persons who imagined that they were helping forward a religions work. Win gate, the chief of the evildoers, played his part in a way similar to Dousterswivel when he employed his divining rod to im pose on and impoverish Sir Arthur Wardour. The story itself is a strange, but not an improbable one. Though some of the names are misspelt and though there are a few errors of fact, yet the narator does not fail to give a character of versimilitude to the whole. He is wrong in saying that the mother of Joseph Smith lived in Rutland county when her son was born ; she really lived in Windsor county. It is possible that the strange doings which took place shortly before his birth and during his infancy may have been related to him, and that he merely supplied another form and another sanction to the movement of which Wingate, the convicted coiner, was the originator.— “ Times.”

Japanese Trade with Australia.

The Japanese appear to be seriously turning their attention to the prospect of deriving wealth from trade with Australia. It is stated that the proposal to establish woollen mills in Japan was suggested by the idea of utilising Australian wool. It lias also been pointed out that the cheap tweeds mauu.V;t;!red in Australia might meet with an on tended ’-uniat. A writer in a Jr .-mesa . u.- “ Choya Shim* bui>,” '•'■"c? t! ..i d- profit can be ez poet* ‘y.. . uv; ;■ '• < j chants from trod -vidi Co'vn, v.'t’i which commercial ns i- oli-ii'ly boon opened, as -h;il o ivintry ft‘uual' -v.id poor ; while as c t'h. ft-i •... , t.’r.-).,]y largely in the hands id ■: .uu-,- : ~’>.l ,4moricans, the •j!ip»ncs« w.li in'-.-* s id further difficulty in making bead-.. ■■:y in that direction. These ob ject b us, ho contends, will not apply in the '..iso of Australia, which is separated from Japan by only a com paratively narrow tract of water. The Government is encouraging the idea by pending samples of Japanese productions to’ the Sydney exhibition, and providing a free return passage for intending exhibi tors. The writer‘to the “ Choya Shimbun” considers the efforts to establish a trade in rice and other food stuffs in competition with Annan and other rice exporting countries, and in articles for daily use rather than in costly and luxurious objects, will be most likely to be suc cessful. Shipbuilding in its most ad vanced form, the construction of steamers is now being prosecuted by native enter* prise at Nagasaki.

THE ASHBURTON GUARDIAN

[Thursday, November 6, 1879.

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A Terrible Ordeal. —lt takes a great deal to squelch a newspaper reporter, but the way how has been found out in Wel lington. Miss Fiddler is giving lessons in cookery there, and the “Post” thus yarnsover the “ intensity of the situation” in which the pencilists found themselves : A table had been placed for the “ gentle men of the Press” in front ofthe platform, and in full range of 200 female eyes of every degree of penetration. It-was too much. Fearless as the unhappy reporters usually are in the discharge of their functions, their well-known modesty in this instance got the better of their rigid attention to duty, and they shrinkingly retired to the rear of the imposing array of female loveliness and took their notes in a furtive and fear-stricken manner, which ought to have melted the heart of every female beholder.



Divorce. —Mr Turnbull, M.H.R., wants Government to simplif3' and render less costly the proceedings in the divorce courts of the colony, so that it shall not he necessary in all cases for suitors to appear before the Appeal Court. In America, we have heard it said, a divorce can be pro cured by a couple during the time a rail way engine takes to water.