Meteorological.

We have been supplied with the fol • lowing meteorological report for the week, notes being taken about noon each

The Ashburton Herald AND Borough and County Advertiser (With which is incorporated the “Evening Echo”). SATURDAY, JANUARY 17, 1880.

One of the most interesting items re ceived during the week per cable is the announcement of the arrival of the steamer Strathleven at Suez, with a cargo of meat preserved by the Bell-Coleman patent. Many attempts have been made, and. up to the present, as many failures experienced, in attempting to bring the underfed population of Europe and the surplus stock of the colonial pastures into contact with each other. The Americans being only seven or eight days’ steaming distant from the mother country, solved the problem, and American beef and mut ton now compete with the British grazier, to the latter’s loss and disgust. Now, however, after repeated experiments, Australasian meat bids fair to be a competitor for the home consumer. More than once in the history of the Australian Colonies the sheep and cattle farmers have found their stock increasing at such a rate that their runs could no longer carry the number depasturing upon them, and were compelled by “ boiling down ” to annually decimate their flocks for want of a market whereby the animals would be consumed in a legitimate way. It seemed a sin for thousands of cattle to be disposed of wholesale in this way, for rhe sake of their tallow, when millions of our fellow-beings on the other side of the Equator would have been grateful for the refuse of the boiling down vats. That, we hope, is now a thing of the past, and if the Strathleven arrives in London, as may now be fairly anticipated, with her cargo fresh and sound, then we say that Messrs. Bell and Coleman are worthy of the highest honors ever conferred upon soldier, statesman, or philanthrophist, for their labors will then have done more real good for man kind than all the victories ever won by battle.

Meetings. —The Ashburton Racing Club and the Caledonian Society both hold meetings at Quill’s Hotel to-night, when balance sheets of both societies will be submitted to the members. Reaper and Binder Trial. —Messrs. E. Saunders, Joseph Hunt, and Hay T. Smith, the committee appointed by the Ashburton Agricultural and Pastoral Association, visited several paddocks this morning with a view to selecting a suit able crop on which to hold the reaper and binder contest. After an inspection of fields offered to the association on both sides of the river, the committee decided on selecting the paddoclc of wheat near Mr. Hay Smith’s as being the most suitable. It is really a good crop, stands very evenly, and has the advantage of allowing both light and heavy crops to be selected, to show the nature of the work done by the competing machines on grain in various growths. The exact date of the trial is not fixed, as the Association are naturally anxious to give the string binders a chance of exhibiting their wonderful ingenuity, and of allowing our local farmers a sight of the working of the harvester of the future. The day will be either Friday or Saturday next, or the following Monday, according to arrange ments yet to be made with the agents of the string binders. The Fire Brigade.— The Fire Brigade held a practice on Wednesday evening, and again tried their bete noir near the County Council buildings, which still re fused to work to their satisfaction, al though it had been driven two feet lower. The new open well opposite the “Guar dian,” office was also tested, and proved a complete success, no appreciable diminu tion of the water being discoverable after a severe trial. The annual meeting of the Brigade, which will be celebrated by a dinner at the Somerset Hotel, will take place at the Somerset sample rooms on Tuesday, February 3rd., and a pro cession of the Brigade will march during the same afternoon.

Ashburton High School. —The North Canterbury Education Board have ap pointed Messrs. E. G. Wright and John Grigg their representatives on the Ash burton High School Board of Governors. Sergeant Felton. —Our readers will no doubt, like ourselves, be glad to hear that Mr. Feltor’s trip to the hot springs, at Rotorua, in the North Island, has so far recuperated his health that he is now able to indulge in pedestrian exercise to a considerable extent, without the assist ance of a walking stick. He expects to visit Ashburton in a few weeks again as a convalescent.

Ashburton Racing Club. —A general meeting of the Ashburton Racing Club will be held at Quill’s Hotel, this evening at 8 p.m. The business is to receive the annual statement of accounts, and to con sider what is to be done with the race course for the future. A full attendance of members is solicited by the committee.

The Police; —The members of the police force have lately been so much en gaged with outside duties that the Court yesterday was compelled to do without the usual officer to cry, in the customary stentorian tones, “ Order in the Coort,” and his Worship directed the clerk to inquire “ the reason why” of the absence of the representatives of law and order. A Late Train. —The 8 p.m. train from the North was some hour and a half late last night. The cause is stated to be the heating on the journey up of some of the. engine bearings, necessitating a halt to allow of their cooling. An engine was started from Ashburton for relief of the unfortunate, but only went a short dis tance before meeting her crippled com panion struggling home. Unclaimed Letters. —Country people sometimes allow their letters to lie a con siderable length of time at the post offices without calling for them. We would remind them that letters are now kept at the post offices for one month only, instead of two months as formerly, before being sent back to the Dead Letter Office. This information is worth noting by residents at a distance from post offices. A Thunderstorm. —About 2 p.m. yes terday a heavy thunderstorm from the S.W. passed over the Wakanui, the tail end of it fetching Ashburton, where a few heavy drops of rain fell. Towards the beach a perfect torrent came down, ac companied, near the sea, with hail, but we are glad to hear that, beyond a more liberal deluge than is welcome at this season, no damage has been done to the crops. The same news reached us at a late hour from Longbeach district. Inquest at Wateuton. —An inquest was held on Wednesday last at the resi dence of Mr. John Milne, foreman for John Grigg, Esq., on the body of his son, William Milne, aged 14 months. J. E. Trevor Esq., coroner, presided, and Mr. John Wells was elected foreman of the jury. The evidence went to show that during the absence of the mother for a few minutes an elder brother, about 8 years of age, went to the fireplace, where a billy of boiling water was standing, and lifted it off the fire. The deceased caught hold of it to get a drink out of it, and the billy tilted the scalding water over the child’s arms and body. A mes senger was dispatched for Dr. Stewart, who applied the usual restoratives, and the child appeared to do well until the following afternoon, when it died. The jury returned a verdict of “accidental death.” A Child Poisoned by Chlorodvne.— An inquest was held yesterday at Harris’ Winslow Hotel on the body of Mary Jane Wills, aged six months, before J. E. Trevor, Esq., coroner. A jury was em panelled, of whom Mr. J. Harris was appointed foreman. The evidence of the parents was taken, and it appeared that the father was working some distance away from the house, and his wife went to him with a drink of tea. A bottle of chlorodyne was kept in the house, which was carefully hidden on a shelf. One of the children, about five years old, who had seen his mother giving a dose occasion ally to the others, found the bottle during the absence of his mother, and adminis tered a dose to the baby. On the mother’s return she found it gasping, and ran with it to her husband, who took it to Mr. Chapman’s farm close by. They then brought the little patient to Ashburton, to Dr. Trevor, where it lingered till 2 p.m. on Thursday,-and then expired. A verdict of accidental death was re turned. A Government Whisky Bill. —The Court was occupied for about three hours yesterday afternoon with hearing a rather peculiar case, which was very properly alluded to by one of the bar as a scandal to the Public Works department. The cause of action was the supply of stimu lants by Mr. Shearman to men working on the railway as far back as July, 1877, and amounted to the tidy sum of L 46 15s. Mr. J. Henry Lowe had shortly previous to this date assumed charge of the Canter bury railways, and when the account was presented to him to certify, he very property refused to do so on account of the magnitude of the claim, which was for three drinks per day for men who had been working in water. For the defence evidence was given that these allowances had always been made under similar cir cumstances by Mr. Lowe’s predecessor, and the order for the “goods,” in ques tion had been given to Mr. Shearman in the usual course. A considerable amount of hard swearing took place as to the authority given by the District Engineer to supply refreshments to men at work, and the evidence was of so opposite a character that his Worship postponed giving liis decision till Tuesday next.

The Rangitata Railway Bridge.— Considerable improvements are now. being made by the railway authorities on the island between the bridges over the north and south branches of the Rangitata river. The embankment on this length of the line, about a mile in extent, was originally formed only 10ft. in width on top, and by the action of wind and water it has become so diminished in its propor tions as to require some repairs. A ballast engine and a gang of men have accord ingly been at work for some weeks past, widening the formation to 12ft., and it is expected that it will take till the end of April to make a thoroughly good job of the embankment. Suitable material is close at hand in the big cutting in the ter race on the north bank of the river, and under the able supervision .of Mr. Inn.es, the local inspector of permanent way, the work is beginning to present a more stib stantial-looking road for the iron horse.

Fowler’s Buildings. —Mr. ’ George Compton’s tender for the erection of Mr. J. Fowler’s new shops in Tailored street has been accepted.

A Race. —At 6 p.m. this evening a half-mile match will be run on the race course between Mr. E. Saunders’ Gaffer and Mr. John Carter’s bay cob, owners up. Our sporting reporter, “ Robin Hood,” gives his tip for the Tinwald horse.

Buggy Accident. —Mr. C. E. Fooks, while driving along the north-east town belt this morning met with a slight ac cident. The mare he was driving took exception to ’something connected with the vehicle, and commenced an on slaught on it with her heels. The at tack resulted in her demolition of the shafts, and some minor fractures.

Postponement. —The teameetingtowel come the Rev. A. J. Smith to his new charge as pastor ofthePrimitiveMethodistctiapel, has been postponed from the 20fch inst. till February 3rd. Tickets purchased for the former will be available for the latter.

Local Industry. —Messrs. Baker and Brown have just turned out a new four horse coach, to-the order of Mr. George Wilcocks, proprietor of the Wheatsheaf Hotel, Wheatston, and contractor for the Longbeach mail service. To-day the coach made its. experimental trip, with four real good goers in harness, and George himself handling the ribbons. The coach appears to be just the thing for the road, being liglit, strong, and well set up. Mr. Wil cocks’ horses are not likely to stick him up, no matter what the state of the roads may be, and the jehu, being one of Cobb and Co.’s best whips, is “ undeniable” on the box.

TELEGRAPHIC.

TO-DAY’S CABLEGRAMS.

LATEST FROM EUROPE.

{Age Special.) London, dan. 16. The Afghan War.

Latest Afghanistan states that a strong force is marching on Peshawur to dis perse the Afghans. The Cabuls assert their utter inability to pay the fine im posed for tneir complicity in the rebellion.

AUSTRALIAN.

(Reuter's.) Brisbane, Jan. 17. Another Bank Stuck Up by the Bush rangers in Queensland. The National Bank at Coonamulla in the Bango district, was bailed up yester day by bushrangers, whose names at pre sent are unknown. Murphy, a storekeeper, went to the assistance of the bank manager, and, in the scrimmage with the bushrangers, received a severe wound in the head. Some residents of Coonamulla assisted the police in the pursuit of the bushrangers, who were eventually caught and are now in custody.

TO-DAYS TELEGRAMS.

INTERPROVINOIAL.

Grahamstown, Jan. 17.

Father Chiniquy.

Pastor Chiniauy lectured on, “ Why he and 25,000 others left the Catholic Church,” in the Theatre Royal last night, to a good audience. The meeting was orderly, but there was a feeling of disap pointment with the lecturer. The desire to sell his books and receive money ap parently supersedes his advocacy of what in his opinion is true Christianity. Mining Shares. A great advance has taken place in Waiau shares, which sold a week ago at 305., and now bring 100 s. Wellington, Jan. 17. Wellington Races. The general emries for the Wellington races close on Monday night. Breach of Trust. At the District Court, in the case of Meares v. Best, for L2OO, alleged to have been fraudulently appropriated, bis Honor said no doubt defendant was guilty of fraud, and the whole transaction, so far as defendant was concerned, was anything but straightforward, and would not re dound to his credit. Judgment was given for LlO5. A Pantomimist in Trouble. Frank Hook, lately of the pantomime, and formerly of Christchurch, was arrested to-day on a charge of obtaining LSO from Thos. John Glow, by means of false pre tenses. Dunedin, Jan. 17. A Queer Case. A rather peculiar case happened at Ravensbourne last night. Alexander Shand was brought up at the North Dunedin Police Station by a resident of Ravensbourne, on a charge of breaking into his dwelling, and it was then found the man had taken poison, and was tired of life. He does not appear to have vouchsafed any explanation regarding the alleged housebreaking. The man was taken to the hospital, where he was treated, and is now believed to be out of danger. The Distress in Ireland. Over LIOO was subscribed at the meet ing this morning of the Irish Famine Committee.

LAST NIGHT’S TELEGRAMS

INTERPROVI NCIIAL.

Auckland, Jan. IG,

A double attempt was made to upset the Waikato trains to-day by placing large blocks of scoria on the rails, near the mouth of the Domain tunnel. The vigilance 'of the drivers prevented the success of the dastardly attempt. The police are investigating the mystery. About two chains of the railway em bankment are washed away on the Kaipara lin,e by the recent rain. At the Thames .a deputation waited upon Mr- Whitaker to urge the continua tion of the work on the Grahamstownr

Waikato Railway. Mr. Whitaker ad vised the deputation to lay their case before the Minister of Works, who was expected to visit Auckland shortly. The first step to be taken would be to settle claims for compensation. It would be necessary to overcome the obstacles raised by Tukino, and- come to some definite arrangement with tjiat chief be fore the line could be proceeded with. W ELLINGTON, Jan. 16.

Owing to the dullness of the coastal trade the U. S. S Co. have decided on lay ing up three of their steamers. At the Supreme Court to-day, the case of Platt v. Smith and Moody was heard. The action was brought to recover from defendant LIOOO damages for breach of contract. The jury entered a verdict for L 920. Before the defendants carried out their agreement they became insolvent, and therefore plaintiff will only rank as a creditor in the estate. A deputation from the Chamber of Com merce will wait on Government to-rnor row urging the necessity of erecting new post and telegraph offices. The fund in aid of the Irish distress is steadj'- increasing. At the District Court to-day Henry Best, commission agent, was summoned by Mrs. Meares, for L2OO, moneys alleged to have been received by tlie de fendant as agent for the plaintiff, and fraudulently appropriated to his own use. His Honor reserved judgment until to morrow. Christchurch, Jan. 16. The rainfall on Tuesday and Wednes day last as registered by Mr. J. B. Stansell, was 1.71 inches. There was a heavy thunderstorm between 3 and 4 o’clock this afternoon accompanied by vivid flashes of lightning and hail. It lasted about an hour and a half. The rain was very heavy this evening. The sky is again overcast and it is raining slightly. Timaru, Jan. 16. Two men, named W. Reilly and Robt. Robertson, were arrested to-day on a charge of robbery with violence. They were identified by a man named M'Nulty as the two men who had robbed him on the road, near the town, the previous night. Subsequently one of them was identified by another man, who was robbed a week ago about the same place. A young man employed as barman at the Club Hotel was brought up at the R. M. Court to-day, charged, with the larceny of moneys from his employer, and remanded till to-morrow. Dunedin, Jan. 16. There are 7,050 scholars on the roll of the Presbyterian Sabbath schools in Otago, comprising 3,362 boys and 3,688 girls. Yesterday afternoon Dave Bell, a sail maker of the ship Auckland, fell down the main hold, a distance of 15ft, striking an iron tank in his fall and breaking his right leg. He was brought ashore and con veyed to the Dunedin Hospital. The Fish testimonial is to be presented on Monday evening. The meeting will be open to ratepayers only, as Mr. Fish has expressed a desire to fully state the whole circumstances connected with the late Mayoralty contest and his subcontract with the contractors for the Town Hall. The total subscriptions amount to L 230. The hearing of the divorce case, David son v. Davidson, was continued at the Supreme Court to-day, before his Honor Mr. Justice Williams, but not concluded. At Port Chalmers to-day, while Wil liam Rummall was engaged unloading a truck with casks from the ship Taranaki, the sling broke, and one of the casks struck him, inflicting severe injuries on the head and face. Fears are entertained for his recovery. Invercargill, Jan. 16.

The scaffolding at the new law court, now in course of erection in Tay street, gave way this afternoon, precipitating five men to the ground, a distance of thirty feet. One of the men, George Smith, is believed to be fatally injured while two others have sustained serious injuries. The other two escaped with a shaking and a few bruises. The three severely in jured are now in the hospital, but the ex tent of their injuries is not yet known.

CHISPA’S LETTER.

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

I had occasion last week to refer to the pleasantries so frequently occurring: among the legal profession in Court. The at mosphere is still clouded there and the importation of a legal luminary from the metropolis this week didn’t make the “ courtesies of the profession ” a bit more courteous. The venerable Bench was bounced the other clay into giving two de cisions in one case, and a member of the bar politely informed a “ learned brother ” that he was ‘ 1 telling a deliberate false hood,” and characterised another state ment as being “absolutely false.” The Christchurch lawyer informed our local cock of the walk that he “ objected to be interrupted by this bullying gentleman,” while all through a long sitting they were constantly giving lessons to each other. If I might be allowed to suggest a motto for the Ashburton Courthouse, I would say, -judging from the week’s experience that “ You’re another” would not be an inappropriate one. There seems to be a doubt now as to how a man should be de scribed when he appears to answer a charge. It seems he can be referred to as “ prisoner,” which is objectionable un less he has been found guilty ; and there seems to be a sort of descending scale of epithets such as “ accused,” “ defend ant,” and “ gentleman before the bar.” It all depends on what you go up for, my friend, what you will be called when you get before the Court.

I see the Fire Brigade intend shortly to go in for a sumptuous blow out, and to do due honor to the occasion they have made up their minds, pending the arrival of the uniforms now so long overdue from the Borough Council, to go to the extrava gance of an eleventeen-sliilling French peaked cap each, to distinguish them from ordinary mortals. If they send old Cliispa a cheap ticket, he will honor these gallant firemen with his presence and patronage.

Auction sales'are, generally speaking, dull items to dilate upon ; but I went to one in a country district a few days ago, where tire census taker would have had a good chance of filling in the whofe popu lation within a radius of ten miles—man, woman, and child, horse, dog, and coun try where born, all at one “fell swo.op.” That last expression is a poetical one, I believe, but not being a poet, I take it for

granted it is at least classical. I suppose Shakespeare, or Voltaire, Homer, or Joe Ivess, or some of these ancient cusses wo hear lecturers rampaging and lecturing about, invented it, but I don’t know what it means. If they would convert it by the change of a couple of letters, and call it a “ full sweep,” then I could under stand it to mean parting with half-a crown, with the probability of getting two-and-sixpence back. But Chispa is not much up to classics nor poetry, but he understands human nature ; at least, he thinks he does. These country dis tricts show how the climate affects tlie individual. For instance, at a sale in the metropolis, that is, Ash burton, you will find, gentle reader, that people keep one eye on an item to be sold, another on the auctioneer, and both wandering around the audience to find out who was going for the same bargain. This kind of thing gets intensified when the combatants for the “ bargain” happen to be of the softer sex, and one of them has wlmt is called by courtesy an obliquity of vision, which expression, when boiled down is in plain English a “squint.” These kind of contests ai-e always a good line for Chispa, as the combatants, when they bid against one another, generally seem to have a good idea of the depth of each other’s pockets, and look for an auc tion as a test of the financial resources of each other. I may be wrong, you know, but I judge by Mi’s. C. and her next door neighbor ; and if they meet at an auction room, and a leaky pannikin is put up for public competition, both these females will go for that tin structure down to their last threepenny bit, and Chispa’s weekly income has precious little left for beef steak and onions on Saturday night. They conduct auctions differently in the country though. There they go in for a good skinful of whisky before they start,' andthen they hid. The extent of their bids could be judged by the happy smile on the physiognomy of the auctioneer, and the self-satisfied look of the owner of the goods being disposed of. The items “sacri ficed ” at the country sale I started with in this paragraph, were of a varied des cription. One swagger went for a mat tress, and was so zealous of its safe keep ing that he hung it round his neck, but the mattress and the whisky combined' were too much for his legs, and in tlie struggle which ensued the mattress got the best of it, and Mr. Swagger came to the ground, whereupon another festive purchaser ripped up the bed and put the swagman inside of his purchase. But why dilate 1 They spent their money, and the auctioneer attained his object. But the vision of that old “tight” shepherd who bought a box of cigars and was in a fog as to whether they were for eating or not, still causes me a little grin.

The companionship of adversity passed in the days of our ancestors into a proverb, and the same feelings of the old Adam are still existarit in our midst. Whilst the borough was rolling in wealth, or what was just as good, had good credit at the bank, everything went “ merry as a mar riage bell,” and theCounciliors gave vent to their ideas in forcible language, and the differences of opinion were duly ventilated, leading occasionally to some tolerably “high falutin.” How, however, a change has come o’er the spirit of the dream, and cash and credit having both vanished into thin air, the harmony prevailing at the meetings is quite delightful to see. Nothing occurred last meeting night to disturb the exquisite politeness of the councillors to each other, except a small “ tiff ”on the subject of a Fire Brigade well opposite the “Guardian” office, which the sage of the Councillors, Mr. St. Hill, desciibed as an “octopus.” That, we believe, is a kind of fish with good sticking propensities, and a large number of feelers. Probably the former reminded the Councillor of the glue-pot, and the latter of his tendency for fishing out grievances. Another matter was brought up—tlie annoyance caused by the circus being pitched in close contiguity to the residence of one of our Reverends. It was too bad altogether of Chiarini to peg his section out on a Sunday alongside a parsonage, but as the acrobats and clowns were not so well acquainted with the residence of the clergymen as Ash burton residents are, it would perhaps be advisable in tlie future to warn Chiarini and his dogs not to bark, at least on a Sun day. Council discussions are sometimes amusing, and occasionally bring out a little joke. Fancy one dryly humorous Borough Father wanting to know when that bye-law was to come into operation that prevented “ dogs from barking. ”

The City of Cabul.

The Bala Hissar of Cabul comprises two portions; one is the Bala Hissar Bala, or upper citadel; and the Bala Hissar Pahin, or the lower fortress—Pahin meaning “lower,” and is a common word as well as Bala, combined with Afghan names of villages. The Bala Hissar Pahin contains about a thousand houses. It is also divided into its Mallas, or quarters. One is called the Malla Araba, from an Arabic population ; another is the Malla Habashi, from its inhabitants being descendants of negroes ; and another is the Malla Armani, from its Armenian residents. These tell something of the very great variety among the dwellers in Cabul. Timoor Shall, who began his reign in 1773, built a palace in the lower citadel, where it forms a part of the walls. There were also without the walls a num ber of structures belonging to this palace, which the Barackzias have simply allowed to go to ruin, for they were monuments of their hereditary enimies, Suddozias. Among these is the Badshah Musjid, and near it is an old tree, now withered, and the Cabulese point to it as having become so from the number of perjuries which have taken place under its branches, and they have a kind of superstitious horror in regard to it from the various crimes and villianies it has been the witness of.

There used to be seven gates to Cabul. These were the Lahore gate, the Sirdar gate, the Jabur gate, the Muzzunggate the Deh, Afghan Gate, the Guzzar Gah Gate, and the Pet Gate. The most of these are now closed up. The Lahore Gate still remains. The ICohistan Gate, on the north, from Which the road passes out leading to the mountains, as the name implies,, is seem ingly a newer name, as it is not among these older ones. It was about three miles away from the city on this road that the British cantonments and Sir William Macnaghten’s Residency stood, of which' there now remains scarce a vestige to mark

tne spot. The houses were built of mud and wood, and such materials soon dis appeared when a place is left uninhabited. The Cabul River passes a gorge formed by tlie two hill ranges on the west, already mentioned, and flows through the centre of the town. At this gorge the walls and towers of defence, come down on each side and join to a fortified bridge, with which is attached the name of Sirdar Jehan, by whom the lines of walls over the hills were constructed. The principal bridge is about the centre of the town. Opoosite the Residency there was another bridge, and it was at a spot, on the left bank°of the river, between these two last-named bridges that. Sir William Macnaghten met Akbar Khan by appointment when the former, was so treacherously murdered. Immediately after the river • passes - out from the eastern wall of the city the canal of Morad Khani begins. This runs paral lel to the river, and passes along on the old English cantonments. Close to this, but slightly westward, are the Berriaru heights, and on the eastern side of the river are the Siah Sungh heights. Cabul is proud of its bazaars. The principal one is called - Bazaar Durwaza Lahori, from the street connecting it with the Lahore Gate. The western end of this is called the Char Chonk, from its four covered arcades. The construction of the, bazaar is attributed to Ali Mirdan Khan, of .the time of Shah Jehan, and to whom are attributed nearly all the arclii: tectural buildings of Afghanistan. This market is described with such words as magnificent and handsome, and is em bellished with pictures, while there are wells and fountains in it where those who are thirsty may drink. The Shore Bazaar is situated nearer to the Bala Hissar, and is of considerable size and importance. In these bazaars may be got all the kinds of fruits for which Af ghanistan is noted—melons, grapes, cherries, apples, mulberries, &c. Dried fruits are also plentiful. Wine is still made as it was in the days of Baber, and it is also imbibed, in spite of the pro hibition of the Koran. Cabul and < its bazaars are also noted for their cookery. The quality and flavor of its various kinds of kabobs are spoken of by the Afghans with a gusto which makes one desire to taste and try. A “ kabob,” it may be mentioned, is any piece of meat jwhich- is cooked by being roasted before the fire. Most people who have travelled in the East limit their notions of kabobs to what they see in Turkey ; but a fowl or a leg of mutton when roasted is a kabob. Af ghanistan is again noted for another splendid dish—that is, a pillow. This' triumph of cookery should be a lamb, its inside cleaned out and filled up with rice, plums, and various spices, then sowed up again and roasted whole, without remov ing tlie wool. A Cabuless utters a sonorous “Bismillah” when he extends his hand, and inserts his fingers to get the first mouthful of such a dish. The winter in Cabul is very cold. The snow covers the ground for a considerable time Aid the people shovel the snow from tJw .op of the flat houses into the narrow ' .eets, where it (remains protected from the sun, and the,se thoroughfares become impassable masses of mud and filth. The pe spie at this season of the year do but little. It is a period of easy idleness. They live upon the dried fruits of the previous summer, and sit round a sanduli, where they eat, sleep, and exist in a hibernal state, something like the dor mouse. Tne sanduli is a vessel to hold fire, with the poorer people it is simply a hole in the ground, and charcoal is generally used as fuel. Over this is a table, on which food or other refreshment can be laid at meal times. Quilts, loonghis, or anything approaching the size of a sheet, is placed on the table, and extend over the knees. of those sitting round, and thus the heat of the sanduli is preserved. When they wish to sleep they do not “ retire for the night,” as we put it, but simply recline where they are, and draw the sheets over them, and thus where they have sat all day, an d eaten and drunk, they use the same spot tor their beds. It may he remembered that the Mir Akhor died last winter from being burned one night at a fire of this sort. . ; :

The population of Cabul is composed of Afghans, Kuzzlebashes, Tajiks, Hindoos, Armenians, and a very few Jews. The Hindoos are not large in numbers ; they are mostly money-lenders. The Armenians and Mohammedans seem to agree very well, and it is curious to find that they even intermarry, and they attend each other’s weddings and funerals. The Armenians had at one time a Bishop, for in their burial ground there is a tomb stone with a mitre on it. There is another burial ground, on the side of the Koh Assa Mahi, a tombstone of a Georgian Bishop, which is three or four centuries old. These are curious mementoes as evidence of Christian teaching at a past date.

Merv.

Some interesting details relative to Merv and its chief are published by the Vienna “ Fremdenblatt :” consists of an immense wall or fortifica tion, inside which are about 2000 houses, 9000 tents, and several mosques. The Sirdar (Prince) has five palaces there, three of which are used as Government offices. There is also in Merv a small quarter for the Jews, separated by a Wall from the rest of the city. The present Sirdar, Isdigar Khan, is a man of fifty, more frequently seated on the back of a horse than ,on his throne, for he is con stantly occupied in pillaging excursions on the side of Persia and the Russian pos sessions on the banks of the Caspian Sea. This does not prevent him from being fond of poetry, for in his suite are always a Persian poet and several bards, who amuse liim of an evening by singing and playing the harp. Besides, Isdigar Khan is him self the author ,of several Turkish and Persian poems, in which he celebrates brigandage as a chivalrous pursuit. The Prince’s revenue is estimated at 500,000 roubles, arising principally from the sale of prisoners and booty. There is even a special bazaar in Merv, where only Per sian, Russian, <fcc., prisoners are sold as slaves. All the male inhabitants in the country, from their fourteenth year till they are seventy, are liable to military service. Consequently, the Prince can easily bring 80,000 men into the fielc. For centuries the people of M!erv have carried on against the Russians and Per sians, without interruption, the ‘ Dschi hacV (holy war), and they believe them selves authorised iq commit all sorts of cruelties or outrages against these two infidel qations. ”

Saturday, January 17, iBSo.~]

THE ASHBURTON HERALD,



day , Wind. Ther. Bar. Saturday Jan. 10 If. E. 78-0 28-87 Sunday ,, 11 s.w. 66-0 29-40 Monday ,, 12 E. 67-0 29‘52 Tuesday ,, 13 S. E. 61 - 5 29-57 Wednesday ,, 14 S. 61-0 29-26 Thursday ,, 15 1 "n.w. f N.W. I 73‘5 28'93 Friday „ 16 l later > l S.W..J 66-0 29-22



New Advertisements. LABOR MARKET. REGISTRY OFFICE FOR MASTERS AND SERVANTS, AT THE “ EVENING HERALD ” OFFICE. TMRMERS REQUIRING HANDS Jj can engage men through the * ‘ Evening Herald ” Registry for 1/- each, prepaid. LABORERS REQUIRING SITUA TIONS can engage through the “ Herald ” Registry Office by paying 1/-. SERVANTS REQUIRING SITUA TIONS can get them by applying at the “Herald” Registry Office, and paying V-- ' ENGAGEMENTS will be POSTED UP every day at 12 noon and 4 p.m., by numbers given to the applicants, who will learn the address on enquiring. SPECIAL or URGENT WANTS will be inserted in the “ Evening Herald ” in the registry column on payment of Six pence additional in advance, for each issue. Further Particulars on application at the “ EVENING HERALD ” REGISTRY OFFICE. SAUNDERS’ BUILDINGS, EAST.ST., ASHBURTON. TITANTED, those in search of employ ‘ W ment, to call and either enter their names at Herald Registry Office, on pay ment of Is. , LABOURERS requiring work can secure first opening by applying early at Herald Registry Office, on pay ment of Is. SERVANTS requiring situations, call and get your names entered in the Herald Registry, Is. EMPLOYERS requiring any kind of laborers can engage through Herald Registry Office, on payment of Is. in ad vance.



H. M. J ONES ' GRAND DISTRIBUTION of PRIZES Will be Continued THIS EVENING. in tlie Building adjoining Messrs. J. E. Buchanan and Co.’s Auction Mart, Have lock street. TICKETS ONE SHILLING EACH, to be obtained at the Shop, Baring Square, and other agents. EACH TICKET OBTAINS A PRIZE. Prizes vary in value from £3 3s. to 6d, and include a Great Variety of articles, Useful, Ornamental, and Comical.



TINWALD BOOT AND SHOE SHOP. C. HAWKINS. CH. begs to inform the inhabitants of . Tinwald and surrounding districts that he his taken the Boot and Shoe Shop adjoining Mr. S. Stephens’, saddler, and. hopes by strict attention to business to obtain a share of public patronage. 742 g 937 a Tenders wanted for harvest ing 75 acres of WHEAT and OATS at Ealing. Four horses found. Tenders to be in not later than the 21st iust. For full particulars apply to — 945 a ' J. LLOYD CRAWLEY. ~~ TO BUILDERS. TENDERS are invited for the EREC TION of a BILLIARD ROOM. Plans and specifications can be seen at Mrs. Butler’s Family Hotel. Tenders will be received up to 7 p.m. on MONDAY, thel9th Jan. 940 a MR. DAVIDSON’S BOYS’ PRIVATE v SCHOOL. THE SCHOOL will REOPEN on TUESDAY, the 20th January, at 9 o’clock. 927 a -YTTESLEYAN CHURCH, Cameron \\ street.—-Divine Service will be onducted in the above Church To-morrow Morning and Evening by the Rev. W. Keall. PRIMITIVE METHODIST CHURCH Wills Street. —Divine Service will be conducted' in the above Church to morrow Morning and Evening by Mr. W. H. Puddicombe. 948 a MONEY TO LEND. "YTTANTED to Lend Five or Six VV Hundred Pounds on Good Free hold Security. Apply Box 31, P. 0., Ashburton. 923 a



New Advertisements. IITANI ED, a RESPECTABLE Yy YOUNG MAY who has a know ledge of Bookkeeping. Salary, LSO for first year, advance according to merit. Apply ‘ ‘ Books, ” Box 42, Ashburton. 944 a WANTED —A First-class Cook. Apply at once, to Butler’s Family Hotel, Ashburton. 905 a WANTED, a good strong BOY, to Milk, and make himself useful at Westerfiekl. Apply Herald office. 898 a WANTED —A good strong general SERVANT, accustomed to milk. Apply, Mrs. Macbean Stewart. 928 a TENDERS. mENDERS WANTED for CARTING JL about 40 loads Sand and 40 loads Shingle. For particulars apply to WM. MONTGOMERY & CO., 948 a (Limited.) ACCEPTED. THE TENDER of Mr. GEORGE COMPTON, for Building SHOPS in Tancred Street, has been accepted. JOHN FOWLER. January 17, 1880. 947 a THE Public are respectfully informed that the TEA MEETING, intended to 'welcome the Rev. A. J. Smith to the Primitive Methodist Church, Ashburton, on Tuesday,, Jan. 20, 1880, will be POST PONED until Feb. 3. Those who have purchased tickets will kindly retain them till that date. 946 a NOTICE TO ADVERTISERS. All orders for insertion of advertise ments must be written legibly on the face of the advertisement. When no order is given the advertisement will be inserted until countermanded, and charged accord ingly. Orders to withdraw or replace advertisements must be sent in in writing not later than 9 a. m. each day. All notices of Births, Marriages, or Deaths must be accompanied by the sig nature of the sender, as a guarantee of good faith. All advertisements and business letters to be addressed The Manager ; literary communications should be addressed to The Editor.