LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 741, 14 February 1910, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

' \':' - ' : —*. ',' , ■■.''■' ■' ■■ : :'■ : The Post Office advises that the Maheno, with British and Australian mails, '. arrived in Anckland at noon yesterday. The Kntanga, with American. mails from San Francisco, also arrived at Anckland yesterday. Both;mails are. due .in Wellington by the Main Trunk.express this after-! noon. ■ ... . ■ . . ': . On.. Saturday Detectives. Andrews: and Lewis arrested a niotorman and a conductor in the employ of tho City Council on a charge of theft of a purre, oontainin| money' and jewellery to the .value of '£a 10s!,', the property of a- lady passenger, Mrs. Burke, of Kilbirnie. It is alleged 1 that. the purse was found by- another: passenger and handed .to. one of the officials, who (so it is stated) failed to for:' ward it on.to the authorities.. Both-ac-cused , were admitted to : bail;, and. will appear before the Court this morning! . .Further news of wreckage at the Chathams, has been brought by. the steamer. Ripple^. in the shape .of a letter'to the Collector-,of Customs.at- Wellington , from the Customs/representative, at the group. The letter says:—"l, have to' report that recently; two or: three pieces of a vessel's wooden decking ' have come . aehore here, and may be a portion of thb's.s. Duco's deck. The timber is Oregon !pine, size sin. -by' BJm:, in a pieceabbut sft! long, . showing a clear, space of 3ft. s\n. between the stanchions.. ■ It. is -available, and I will send it up. per; 5.6. Ripple by the next' trip' if possible.".; The timber; ie practically free o£ barnacles,.and hae not, been long in'the-water. ; .'lt appears to have been burst out 'of the deck . from below,."■■.■'■ On the matter being mentioned to Mr: E. G. F.. Zohrab,' of the Harbour Ferries' Company, he states that.it'will be impossible to say!' definitely whether the- wreckage .belongs to, the Diico until it is brought to. V/ellington. The ;Duco had' no ■ Oregon, pino, fittinge,! but some of her -fittings were of timber that very much resembles Oregon.■• :'• ;.''',..■'!■!/ ■ ■■-.->'■■ ..-.'•- - Bitter J indeed was : the portion' oV the'batch of inebriates, who came'before Mr. T;.;Lachman,;J.P., at the'Mpunt Cook Police Courtcon Saturday.:; W. J. .Smith, charged with being drunk and'disorderly, was- fined S3, in • default fourteen days'imprisonment.. Maria'Meary,' drunk and disorderly, was fined .£3, ■ in; default fourteen days' imprisonment. :■• W... Egan, charged, with drunkenness, was sentenced to twenty-one ' days' imprisonment. '•-..'1 , ;- Roberts was. also sentenced, to twenty-ono days' - imprisonment. '■:: One. first! offender was fined ss.,>and ' another first offender .was,'convicted'and .discharged; : ;; - -.. ■.- : At B.ss'p.m.'yest.erday the.i Fixe Brigade received a - oall to a house occupied ,by Mrs. Mary Jones, in Henry Street, KU-. birnie. , On : arrival they, found a' trifling outbreak in' some rubbish at the rear: of tho building, , and the' flames w.ere extinguished without any damage' being done. ; '■■•■'The , .''Sisters', of Compassion , ' desire,;to thank Mrs. Gavin,'of the Queen's Private Hotel, Plimmer's.Steps,-.for: the. £6 2s. she ..collected, from her'boarders as;, a Christmas.'gift to. the! Home ;pf Compas-. -.sion'i . Island Bay. .. . '; ■■. ",''. ! ■.' \;' "At'a special meeting .of the Johnson.ville Town /Board, held, to , 'consider 'A proposal for-the 'inception of'-avsanitary system .for' the. town, it!:was finally' decided .-" to take. :steps to carry; • out an . efficient 'system' at an- early, date'/'. ,; ' The Official. Assignee and his staff have transferred their, quarters from' the Custom 'House , to'.'the .Public Trust;! Build,ingS.,;;;;.; ;,'-.-':.■■■'■■ ] ~': ■■'■'■ ;:'";-■/., ■' ' ■'■:'..- '/'r'-' ■ ; The : yacht- Waitangi '• left 1 for . a f ort,night's :cruise in the Sounds at. 4-p.m.. on Saturday. She had: a party'; of-, six:, on board, including the owner, , Mr; ,J. : M.'Lean.":. V,-' '•;■.."' ■-, -.> ".■'.•••-";-. l; .'U'; ; v'-"' . '". The' iimates of' Otaki Sanatorium ' held , a !picnid' at■■.- Otaki.. beach ." on Friday. ilvery-j,'patient : in:'-.the. /institution—and there are. 26—was sufficiently, well, to enjoy ' the; outing, .drags ! being.,used • to. convey the picnickers to : and ' from the beach.;;- ■",:.•. ■,'-;■'■:■;.,■■■■■.■' '.'..;'': ;: ;.'.• .■'-■,.: i ,; • The ballot -taken.;-,by,■•,'tne'/ : '.'WeHington'-! Typographical ■ Unions'-. on.'. the. . question •wnetSer be voted..to the wives andchildren !'of. the New-. South Wales' coalminers,: resulted in.:the. proposal .being, carried by:-'a ■majority of "129.;iv0te6, 'antt ,:the.above sum :ie.-to, , forwarded to : the beneficiaires. with a. letter expressing; the members', sympathy .with .those miners: who have.been.imprisonedifoivtaking part' in"the strike.-' •■ ■■■'. '■:■'[-''ic ■!■V^"'':!•-! : -.:'■'•■■',-; - Mfi'Dan. Mooie, 1 Mayor of Wintonj; has recently I recbived from:-.the- pld':Country a' post-card' which has- a' tragic '.history.,at-■ tached:,to I ; : :it.!..The words 'picked up'.'at sea" appear": on its face,. written thereon by. the English postal officials.-i The:.explanation .is,, that' the post-card 'in- question ;was on'.board the : ill-fated' Isle■ of Man mail-stepme'r, wbich went down ,witn allon board in December last, whilst running, between- the! Isle;of Man'and 'Liveri 'pool;':'';i.mail bag-.was, -however, found' floating' in '.the wateri'nnd. bo; the com-' municatioh to iMr." Moore dnly reached its. destination,':although:'.discoloured by con-, tact ..with" the, seav";- ; ! ( : ■;';.'/ v , '';.;:.- -;;'v- . , ; 'A -recent , visitor.' to. the:Piako: Swamp .country,; where tho !Government; is carry;. ing on' an', extensive ■ drainage vv. echemei speaks" enthusiastically 'of - the.-.value Oof the land, that is being "reclaimed for, oiil-. . tivation. :On;land,that had.been drained and partly;drained -he -saw:-red 'clover growing: three feet high; turnips, (grown 1 .without manure) seven.and! eignt inohea thiok, and grass as high. as a man's head. Where a motor-launch-took shooting !par r ties' only :'a few,'years.agOjs.one can.now drive a horse and dray. ; -"A , oanal, Tthioh . wills be! 161; miles -long, :40ft. -wide, 'fand 20ft. , deep, is part of the drainage pro--iect.*:Stores'are taken, r to .the' contraetors across,the swamp lands'.in canoes.drawn by horses; ' One of the canbe^drivers; is an old ..Maori, who "told pur inforlnant "some quaint stories of hie unebphisticated fellow; Natives : in the early days. When, the firft:'flour was taken, to the district, 'the.MaOris ate large ; quantities of "it dry, indulging afterwards in, copious draughts of water., iThe-results were, evenimore disastrous '• when the same experiment was tried with lime.'. Oh another occasion, the Maoris , made themselves -.yery ill by smoking rathline rope, :which: they. .had. stolen from a ship, mistaking it! for twist tobacco. ,A ; Native who'secured=a .tin of kerosene, when; that also: was. a novelty, .was,.very .'anxious.fto; eclipse a;European lamp, nihich: lie had seen. After a consultation with! his it : was decided to'.pour the. unfamiliar liquid into a tin dish and set'light to", it. 'The result, was; •unexpected aha; calamitousj , "the'-flames could not be.'confined-to 'the tin': dish, and' soon" the .whole pa' was .ablaze, and several of-the,-Natives, were burned to death.-. Our .informant'states that, there are hundreds, of wild horses'at; the head of theswamp district. The horses, which; are accustomed .to' the swamp:coun-try,' develop an exceptional'width of hoof, and ..pro. almost , useless on hard ground. , . ■'■.'-':■' In "his ' address in the; Town' Hall on Friday- night,. Mr. F. G.:Bqlton,i candidate for the iSirbbur Board, said that he had , tried, on all' , the local bodies of which'he had been' a ,, .hiomber, to'-. get' as-,' much business as possible done in' open board.' Inadvertently an opposite -meaning was givon to this statement!of Mr. Boltons m .our report," -though the. context clearly, showed what! the,speaker.-meant vo' con-; vey; ■;' v; , /! ;" )v,-'','.;?'! T : :, : '-' : '}>i :■'' ■ "':.' ' ■ Abig game hunter, ijust-arrived from. India "and , Tibet,. Mr.: P.; F. Hadqw,-told : a Christchurch reporter on Friday, that' the Himalayan thar, which have been introduced into .'Canterbury, ; in,. their i native country live in some of t the wildest and most, inaccessible ..places'! he had seen.; In some inetances he found that it was quite impossible; to get at them. ■Hβ is not 1 very sanguine that they .will be. a success in* New Zealand, chiefly on account of tbe small extent b£ country. He does'not' think that the wild Asian sheep, on the whole',- would' thrive ;in Now Zealand, but he; thinks that uiral, of Westom Tibet, , might, be introduced with advantage. It-is a pretty animal, does' not get; into'!-inaccessible'/ places, and will not' become a, nuisance. to anyone, i : -As to ' the introduction of other big game, he says that he does not. think it was advisable to introduce moose.. He holds'the samo opinionin regard to wapiti, ns he is afraid that there might be interbreeding' with the deer herds,' arid that deterioration would result. ; Mi-. Hadow has. come ; to-New Zealand for the purposo-of obtaining ono good head ofthe red'.-deer here, .to, be. added to his collection in England.! He wishes to ehoot with that. objeot alone, and if hq oannot get a really good head ho will not take any. ".>•■ .' .•..-'.; ■'• '.' " Shampooing,'. Clipping ' Hairdressing, Manicuring, : Faoe Mossaee, Treatment of Falling Hair and Dandruff, Combings mado up. Natural, Hair-pads. Mrs. EoUeston (over • Carroll's), U Willis Street, Advt,

■King's Wharf presented: a .very busy: appearance on Saturday morning, as no fewer than five large liners were loading t the Karamca, Star -of: New Zealand,' 1 Morayshire,; Eiiapohn, -. and .Clan - Fr'aser. To ... add : . to . the aspect of activity, tho. Orari,, and the Marere was loading at theadja6ent Glasgow Wharf, and not far off the Star of Canada was coaling in the bay. Thie morning there is not so much congestion. The Star of Canada sailed for London on, Saturday, and yesterday the Orari followed for Hie same destination, and the Marere-left for Wangauui Roadstead. The Euapehu also left the port yesterday for. Lyttelton. ,77 : 77 ;;77 ; The Sydney."Daily Telegraph" recounts an exciting episode which occurred at Clontarf, where, the Maori village , (th<i inhabitants of which loft: on. Prida; on their return to New Zealand) was located. A picnic wae in progress, during the course of which ihreo constables attempted to arrest.a man for drunkenness i.and were assailed by'the crowd../.What w.o»ld havo happened to the police hadassistance not arrived from tm unexpected tiuarter, is hard to say,■' but , just as the mob was. about to "deal it out" to themi a blood-curdlvng war cry rang clear above the din—the .Maoris had' come., to the rescue.' - Nearly' a dozen' stalwart riors,.who were preparing 7t0.-give,-:a "haka" foT the amusement of ,th« public; rushed.in full array.from 'their .village, and were soon in.- the; thick' of the. fight; At first it was' uncertain which cause they intended. to : embrace', but,, much to the'relief of' the police l and'law-abiding citizens, all, doubt? were soon settled, "and ; with many fearful, cries and:'bellicose gesticulations, they fought their way to the side of the guardians of the law, and formed a cordon to protect them.- Their' werrd cries and ferocious ■ appearance blunted the zest' for battle previously shown- by ithe .ringleaders .of ;;:tho mob,; who did not. care, to match, their -btfttlea' and other .impromptu, -weapone against the murderous-looking ' granite' . merea which, the warriors :deftly . wielded;-. At this stage the police again arrested then prisoner, and .'while- the' Maoris covered their retirement; and held the crowd, at bay, managed'to haul him to the wharf. The' wharf 'gates were; then, barricaded, and the prisoner .was safely; shipped.to Sydney!. . 7 : ' .■■-'■'■"■■■■ ,'■, -:)t 7. J,-,;;' ■: The addition of 25 per ;cent..;:to,-. the. graduated 'land tax ; 'on ;• properties; of; an unimproved value of .£so,ooo'and overshas been charged this year under .-.the Land and Income Assessment'.Aot of .1908, ■ The addition came into' force in respect of the tax for the'year ending March 31,1910, which is now in course of collection. . j"