Influenced by the true spirit of Christian forbearance, mercy, and characteristic compassion, I may assist at the usual quiet obsequies over the retiring creature, committing it to the grave of contemptible oblivion ; solemnly under taking the task of subscribing the letters R.I.P. over its unhappy memory, without heaving a sigh, shedding a tear, or ex pressing regrets unfelt either by myself or any other Wanganuite."

How Millar should out-Millar Millar, ■more io Wariganui than in oilier and earlier spheres of his " labor" in literature is probably accounted for by something in the water of Wanganui— a suggestion which might well be utilised as a supple ment to the arguments for his own pro posed improvements in the supply. The introduction into the town of a ten-inch diameter main-pipe might have more in fluence in contributing to mens sauna, in corpore sano and in mending men's man ners than is. ; commonly suspected. Or there may be something in the air. In factj a contributor to a Wanganui con temporary, in making confession of some of the social sins of the locality, says : — "There must be something iri the air of Wanganui which incites to spleen' arid all uncharitableness. A few weeks' residence is quite sufficient to bring but any latent form of the disease that may have been lingering in the system, or to produce some entirely new one. With visors down the combatants tilt at one another d out rance, not with blunted weapons but with, trenchant blades. It matters little what the cause of offence may be ; that bears but a small proportion to the magnitude' of the punishmp.nt. You, have but to differ with your neighbor upon some matter of trivial import, and like an Asiatic he will slang both you arid your ancestors to • his, , heart's content. The latter does not matter so much, as we are not troubled much in that line in Wan ganui. 