GENERAL NEWS.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXV, Issue 2155, 10 August 1907, Page 1

GENERAL NEWS.

There aro more women in British India (124,000,000) than there are men, women and children in Great Britain, France and Germany put together, with the populations of several minor European States east in as woll.

Sir William Stephenson is to build u third public library in New-cnstle-on-Tyne. The City Council tthanked him, but' a member urged Sir William not to insist on Sunday closing. Sir William said his rules an to Sunday closing must be followed during his life and that of his childTGJSg

The average number of letters tier inhabitant in the United King dom during last year was 78, according to Post Office 'statistics, while in tho United States it was only 67.In New Zealand it°was 66, Switzerland 59, Germany 55, Denmark 41, Austria 38, Argentine Republic 87. Luxemburg 34, Holland 31, Belgium 29, Italy’, Spain and Portugal below 20.

A Christchurch dentist, who has had a great deal of experience, states that thre is no doubt whatever of the deplorable condition of the teeth of native-born Now Zealanders. He says that several theories have been put forward to account for this, none being entirely satisfactory. He do scribes the lime theory as nonsense and says the most feasible explanation may probably bo found in the fact tlia+ parents are not nearly as strict in the colonies as in the Old Country, and do not make their children devote sufficient time to their teeth.

11l the report of the Departmental Committee oil compensation for industrial diseases in Great Britain it is mentioned ffcha.t the mortality from cancer amongst chimney-sweeps is twice what it is among occupied males generally. For the three yelfrs 1900-1-2 the comparative mortality figure for cancer among chimneysweeps at the ages of 26-65 was 133, as compared with 63 among occupied males at the same ages. This excessive prevalence is certainly due to the nature of the trade, the soot setting up an irritation of the skin similar to that produced by pitch or tar and with similar results. “There is a great future before the flax industry,” declared a well-known flaxmiller to a representative of the

LBvening Post.” "There are, however, two problems to be solved before the necessary progress can be made. Wo want first of all, some cheap method of propagating the plant over large aroas. At present the cost per acre is almost prohibitive. Then there is the question of utilising the by-products. It takes ten tons of raw fiax to make one ton of fibre. The rest is refuse. There is a fortune to the man who can invent some means of getting the full value out of the flax plant.”

A mail with a bump ior statistics has dscovered that in England 15.000 milcls of wood matches are used every day. In France there is a tax oil matches, which averages 4d a'n inhabitant, and in that country the consumption is comparatively small. In England ninety tons of wood are iu the form of matches consumed daily, which means 500,000,000 matches, and allows a dozen for every mall, woman and child. At least it would do so, only smokers take far more than their share. Sweden and Norway alone export 25,000 tons of wood matches .yearly, and a good proportion of this goes to Engla; to help make up the annual 30,000 tons.

Tho recently cabled references to “Ouida,” recall an incident which occurred in Wellington about 30 years ago. Two Hansard reporters were discussing tho authenticity of newspaper paragraphs, when one of them wagered £25 that ho would write a paragraph which was quite devoid of truth, but would be copied into 20 per cent, of the New Zealand papers unquestioned. The wager was accepted, and the following was inserted in a Southern paper: —“Mdlle. de la Rainee, who is ‘Ouida,’ the wellknown novelist, is now on her way to New Zealand to marry an equally welK-knhwn Canterbury squatter.” Seventy per cent, of the lnipers copied it without question, and the newspaper man earned £1 a word over it.

Okaliune, on tho Main Trunk, undor winter does not show even the slightest cessation of progress. People still arrive in coach loads every day, passing backwards and forwards on the lookout for land., or openings for businesses. Tho route is also becoming one for tourists, and even now people pass though from the Wellington end on their way to Auckland, or down the Wanganui River. Four coaches meet at. Ranigataua owery day and these are nearly always full; on many occasions the passengers are just crowded in anyhow. There is not room enough in the one carriage put on the Public Works train for the people who travel along this way. It. is always filled to overflowing, and eve then many passengers are obliged to ride in the trucks..—Tiahape Post.

Bulk and ponderosity, though they inay be good qualifications for a show are not usually considered a personal attraction to womankind, hut Mrs. Mary Tumble, of Washington, who is now lamenting the loss of her eighth husband, must have found favour in masculine eyes. This lady, who weighs nearly thirty stone, lately fell on Mr. Tumble (ominious name) with deadly results. She is the stoutest woman in America, and is known is Washington as “Mother Rumble Tumble.” Mr. Tumble, a wealthy merchant was roller skating, and fell. Mrs. Tumble, immediately behind, fell upon him. He was unconscious when rescued, and examination by a physician showed that the pelvic bone was crushed, and that he also had sustained internal injuries. He died before reaching the hospital. In nearly every case Mrs. Tumble’s husbands have died by misadventure. Her Seventh husband was 'killed by the sudden closing of a folding bed caused by the breaking of a spring under her weight,

A challeugo’ to mortal combat was read out at the last mooting of the Solwyir County Council. It originated in this manner: Some time ago tho Council employed a man to grub gorso on a proporty at Hornby, and in duo course presented its little bill for the work to the tenant of the property in question. He, however, refused to pay ill) and look pleasant, but wrote to the council stating that bo bad been overcharged, and would like to interview tile man who bad taken such a long time to do such a little grubbing. This communication was sent on to tho man who had done tlio work, and elicited a very heated reply, tlio last part of the letter being as follows:—“I have iiip timo tsi waste with tlio man who made the complaint, but lie has only to piit-.it in a plainer way and call mo a ‘loafer’ and then I will meet him.” The challenge caused a good deal of laughter.

For many years past the cost of restoring gold coins which by failwear and tear have been reduced 1. low .the prescribed limit of weight hsif; been borne by the minting States—Victoria, Now- South Wales, and West Australia. As ■», consequence the coinage of gold in Australia lias never been a source of profit to the States. Seeing, however, that the Imperial Government, which supplies the token coins circulating in Australia, makes a large profit c them, it has been regarded as only lair that the Imperial Treasury should bear the cost of the restoration of the gold currency. A stronglyworded despatch on this subject was addressed to the British Treasurer by the Commonwealth Government some time ago, and the Treasury has agreed to accede to its request. The cost in future is to bo borne by tho Imperial Exchequer. At the Imperial Conference, however, Mb. Dea'kin was given to understand that, should Australia decide to institute a silver coinage of its own, it would, since it was receiving the profits on the token coins, have to bear the cost of restoring the worn gold currency.

During his visit to Australia a few weeks ago Professor Scott, who is a very enthusiastic yachtsman, endeavoured to ascertain why the Auckland yacht Rawhiti was defeated by the Sayonara at the recent contests ai Melbourne. He saw the former yacht in Sydney and the latter in Melbourne. He says that the Rawhiti is a beautiful model, but she bad to be built somewhat heavily to stand tlie voyage from Auckland to Sydney, which was a record voyago for a vessel of her size. She had the usual Auckland rig, with pole mast, a short bowsprit, mainsail, topsail, jib and foresail. The Sayonara was built to a Fyfth design, and is of the type of fast cruiser common in England in the nineties. She lias a running topmast, and carries the usual accompaniment of kites. From what he heard in Australia, he learnt that the comparative failure of the Rawhiti was due to the races having been sailed in extremes of weather. In one case the race was practically a drifting match, in which large size and light sail told, and the other race was sailed in a reaching course and a strong breeze and a heavy sea. There is a general opinion, Professor Scotty.' si, that the Rawhiti is the faster boa-foil a windward and leeward course, in ordinary weather. An anxious hour was spent by the gentlemen who attended the annual meeting of the Phoenix Bowling Club, says the North Otago Times. All went as merry as a marriage bell till the close of the meeting, and the members trooped downstairs. Instead of debouching on to Tees' street at once they found themselves piled in a heap against the door. Explanations from the front rank revealed the fact that the door was locked. The caretaker had turned the key and gone home to bed. Angrily returning to the upper floor the members held a hurried consultation. Across Thames street, from one of the front windows, could be seen the lights of the Borough Council Chambers, but little . assistance could he expected from that quarter for another three hours. Opening the window a venturesome spin't. rl ain boreal out oil to the. roof of Mr. Fraser’s verandah, and reconnoitered. There appeared to bo no way of escape except by “shinning” it down the verandah posts, but the suggestion was at once scouted by the older gentlemen present, and the younger spirits felt a sudden accession of loyalty to their fellows. It was at this stage that a policeman made his timely appearance, and to him the situation was explained. We are assured that the language used was so strange to his ears that it was some time before the guardian of the law grasped the seriousness of the situation. He eventually set out to walk to the far end of Mersey street to get the key, but ere he returned one or two budding locksmiths had loosened the screws of the lock with such implements as they could command, and the imprisoned ones, after ail hour spent for the most part in calling down devoutest blessing on the bead of the bearer of the key, found themselves released again, and sought their homes wiser and sadder men.