LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Horowhenua Chronicle, 23 April 1910, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Miss Jessie Sexton lias been confirmed in her appointment as a sister at the Otaki Sanatorium.

High prices for bran and pollard .are reported from Wellington, and an upward movement in oatmeal also is recorded,

The Wellington Dramatic Club will pay a visit at 4111 early date to Levin, and produce the three-act I comedy, " Dr. liill." Particulars will be advertised latov or ■

A most enjoyable social gntillering of the 'Levin Kiro .Brigade took place in the Druids' Hall, last ivight, when the workers at rtlie late bazaar were entertained.

".Mark Twain," whoso death is announced to-day, visited New Zealand .some years' ago. When he stepped off the express train just arrived at Wellington from New Plymouth a polite enquiry was-made as to his experiences. "Yes; T enjoyed that trip." he observed. "Tt was so good that 1 hardly liked to leave, the train nnd the people—for 1 felt I'd grown up with them; '

As an indication of brisk business in cordial manufactures, it is of interest to note that the Wellington firm of Thomson and Lewis, which has branches at Otaki and Levin, is about to install a new plant at Otaki. Tt is 0110 of the Latest design, turned out by the London firin of Hay ward and Tyler. Though naturally summer i|; the period of greatest output, the firm reports a verv satisfactory trade as being done ■at the present time.

Otaki Sanatorium, according to a report submitted to the Wellington Hospital Trustees yesterday, needs to have its walls re-papered, and the hot watur supply increased. This information was conveyed in a report submitted by the matron of 'the institution. Messrs Gardener and Tompsitt. the local members of the hoard of trustees, have been asked to report upon these matters, and a* <0 the mlvisablencss of pnrchflring a new buggy-house for the institution.

Leave to appeal to the Privy Council against the decision of the Xew Zealand Court of Appeal has been ret used , by the, bench of judges, in the Bowron Brothers case. This concerns an alleged attempt to defraud the revenue of the State. The position now is that the .Magistrate, Mr Bishop, will deliver judgment in the case heard before him at Christchurch. In the meantime, if eoun-

sol tor Bowro-n Bros, sees fit. he can approach the Privy Council direct with an application for special leave to appeal.

Shooting in tho districts controlled by the Wellington Acclimatisation Society will eonimeiieo on the lltli M.ay iind close on 11 u> 1-ltli June. Only hares and California)! quail may he shot, there being a special protection for native game. An advertisement in "Thy Chronicle" gives particulars of these provisions and also notifies the public that no licenses to sell either native or imported game will he issued this year. Horowhenua County is a part of trie Wellington Acclimatisation Society's districi.

"As widely travelled as a. lemon ade bottle \* likely to hc'vime one oi ;he latest and most expressive similes Tlio manager of Thomson am: Lewis' Levin branch showed, a

"Chronielo" reporter yesterday, a lemonade bottle bearing tho brand of "11. Parker. King's Lynn, London, Kngland," which had dropped into the Levin factory among a crate of "returned empties." Bottles from South Africa and from other far off countries have, conic to Levin in the same unexplainable way, and the manager of tire linn is divided between two {minions: me being that runaway sailors may have brought bottles inland from their ships full of something stronger than its original charge-; the other tli-nt they were brought to Levin or some neighbouring part- amongst some emigrant's luggage.

There is fi decidedly better tone in tlie hemp market, this week (sitys the I'osO. ;in:l prices 'are from os to "10s a ton heiler than tliis time last week. The cause (if the rise is hard io .seek, and its permanence is a moot point. In soii.u 1 quarters il. is attributable to an endeavour 0,11 the part- of certain merchants to cover a shortage. It was known, however. and, indeed, the fact lias been pointed out .already in this column, that certain merchants, in order to cover their shortage, wero operating at above local values. London, itis held, came in. and prices there hardened in sympathy. The cabled prices by the High Commissioner were this week and last, as follows: Good fair £21 Ifo rind £21- 10s, Tor spot, and €21 10s and C2-I, respectively.

Quietness seems to ciia:acterise Ira do in all its branches tlw "Trade Heview.") Caution is being practised by both sellers and buyers and transactions are on a hand-to-mouth scale. Soft-goods houses report an improvement on the same time last year, but the volume of trade does not yet come up to the normal level of previous seasons. A spell of cold and wintrv weather seems needed to give the trade a fillip. On the whole the measure of recovery is not so good as might reasonably bo ■ expect-'! in view of existinig fmanci.al conditions.

An explosion occurred at the Family Ifotel. Otaki, last livening, which fortunately had mi serious results, though a lata lay wis narrowly averted (remarks !'ie "Olaki Mail"). There i:: .a pcfrol gas lamp, with large circular globe, set up over th" outside entraee to the. bar. Oi> Tuesday night, it appears, the licensee of the hotel (Mr •]. Johnson) cut off the gas supply from the pipe connection with the lami) and extinguished the light, but did not turn off the gas .at the lamp itself. Last evening, when Mr Johnson applied a light to the gas jet a terrific explosion occurred, the large glass globe being smashed to thousands of fragments, which were, strewn far and wide, pieces being picked up ; right on the opposite .side of the street. Tt was very fortunate that Mr Johnson reached up to n.pplv tlio li'/lit, and was not on a level with the lamp, otherwise ho would have received the full force of the explosion, and in all probability it would have sorionslv injured, if not killed him. As it was he with a. f'.w nasty cuts on the forehead and face.

Details have been recently published of an extraordinary discovery which, it is claimed, will render war impossible. The "News of the World," in which an interview with the inventor appears, however, does not guarantee all that is stated regarding this discovery. "Without moving from this room," said the discoverer to the interviewer, " I could destroy every living thing you see in the street below, and nobody would know who had thus hurried all these people into cteniity." This mysterious, deadly agency has been offered to the British Government, says the. newspaper. Doctors who give the high frequency electrical treatment have found it a source of obscure and deadly disease in themselves. The inventor, therefore, experimented till lie was able " to isolate a ray which might paralyse armies." Small animals subjected to it died, ami by a mechanical devise the ray was directed on a horse four miles away. The beast immediately dropped down dead,

It is understood that the new Levin railway station will he opened for passenger traffic 011 Monday week, but 110 definite instructions have yet been' received from headquarters.

A telegram from W estporb this morning says that, replying to a presentation from the Welshmen oi Westport, the lit. Hon. LloydGeorge (Clmncellor of the Exchequer) says he looks forward «omo day to visiting iSiew Zealand.-

At to-day's meeting of the. Horowheima County Council, tho matter of forming a new road from the County road to the Te Waku road, through Mr Hall's property, was left in the hands of tho councillors for the 'riding, who will consult with the ratepayers on tho subject.

A few days ago it was reported in a contemporary that a. destructive blight had attacked the Scotch thistle ill the Hawke's Bay district. We lie,ar of what appears to be a similar blight in the Horowihenua district. A paddock which had been sown in grass had what promised to be a. smothering amount of Scotch thistles coming up, but they are now lading away, the loaves going brown and the plant dying right out.

A mystic who ought to know better than do so writes that "in 1835, wlu'ii llalley's comet last appeared, ■the representation of the two main parties of tho House of Commons was practically the same as it is in 1!)10, when the comet is to appear again. There was a dissolution in 1835 and a dissolution in 1910. The Opposition in 1835 was 273, exactly the same as to-dav, and the Liberals numbered 385, 'while in 1010 there are 35)7." A coincidence overlooked by the "mvstic" lies in the fact that exactly 823,190 persons caught cold on each occasion, through tarrying too long in the early morning air while «ky gazing for the nebulous visitant. There are a few of the number in Levin to-day.

The adjourned annual meeting of the Presbyterian Ladies' Guild, held yesterday, was marked by a- capital attendance of the ladies of the congregation. The report showed that supplementary to the £71 net proceeds of the previous sale, of work, the sum of £10 had been paid over to the managing committee for delib reduction, leaving a cash balance" of £2 17s. It was resolved to hold a cake and apron fair, particulars of which will be advertised later on, during the afternoon of Wednesday, May 18th, and a social .and concert in the evening. It was also resolved to set vigorously to work after the social, to prepare for a sale of work and of produce, the date to lie fixed at a subsequent meeting. Mrs White was appointed president of the Guild, ami Mrs Cork secretary and treasurer.

A scale of charges for all descriptions of carting, agreed upon between the various carriers of Levin, 's advertised in "Tho Chronicle" today. It is claimed for it, by tho Association, that while it shows an advance on the charges previously made, it still is much below tho rates levied by carters in other towns. Tho association hopes to I'acilitato tho requests or enquiries of townsfolk, and to remove any hindrances th.il have been experienced in the past. To this end a central office has been rented, next to " The Chronicle," and a. telopbony is being fitted up in tTie building to enable anyono who requires a. cairier to get prompt attention. Tho rule will bo that any carrier specially asked for will bo promptly informed, and that the carrier teniporarilv filling first place in tho row will take the job whenever tho request is .simply one for a carrier.

Fourteen members- to the conntry's six is the proportion of the Wellington District Charitable Aid Board, which held, it-s second and most important sitting at Wellington yesterday. This, 'perhaps, accounts for the fact that some very necessary reforms in regard to the estimates for the current year ; moved lor by Messrs Gardener and Tompsitt, tho Horowhenuii representatives, were .scouted Ivy the city members. One of the city representatives went so far as to say that the motion was a reflection cast upon tho committee which brought down-the estimates by some young members, who were less experienced. The estimates submitted for tho twelve months totalled nearly fifty thousand pounds (£49,080), and they were passed after only ten minutes' discussion, which time was mostly occupied by Messrs Gardener antf Tompsitt in criticising the lavish nature of the prospective expenditures, and the evident intention, as dsclosed in the estimates of receipts, of allowing the present laxness io* continue in regard to the collection of patients' fees.

" Menzona Cream " will euro chapped hands and rough skin in a single night. It leaves the hands .soft and white, and is invaluable to ladies doing household work. Price, Is (id jar, from C. S. Keed.well, Dispensing Chemist. -~Advt. 5