LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Horowhenua Chronicle, 5 September 1910, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Pride of Levin, A.0.E., celebrates its twontiotli anniversary on Friday, 7th October. The even! is to ho specially signalised, and an energetic committee under .\li G Davisrm, seci'etary of the lodge, is bestirring itself early tin's month to make next month's festivity a rod letter day amongst dancing folk. Some novel features are being worked up in connection with the event, and full details of those will ho driven from time to time in tho local and general oolunins of The Chronicle. Professor Kenrsley has lieen engaged as niusic.inn for the evening. Details are advertised in another column of 10-dav's issue.

The fact that Xo\r Zealand is hecoming one of the groat poultryfanning countries of (ho world is being commented, on by English papers. One North Tsland breeder has, it is reported, contracted to provide 20.000 ducklings and 2000 fowls for shipment to England. Next ye-.ir his contract i<. for a bigger parcel of poultry.

Canada, notes an immigration inlliix of 11)00 per day. and the north-west provinces are growin" 'Mo beak the band." Tn lDO'n Edmonton was little more than a I'ur-tradiing post. To-day it has a population of L'o.OOO. an assessment of 2<i,000,000 dolla.rs, (iftoon public schools. 12 miles ol' sewers, more than HO miles of water mains, and ■1., miles of paved streets. Canadian banks have now 232' i branches, all but 50 of which are in the Dominion itself, and 717 west ol Ontario, where loans to grain-rais-ers are a profitable source of income.

Before Messrs 1?. M. Gardener Jiiifl IF. J. Richards J.P's, nt tho liOvin Court: on Saturday, W. A Blair was charged with hoin.c: a disorderly person and with consorting with undesirable persons. Accused pleaded no I; guilty. Dotoctive Ward slated that lie had known accused for about throe years, and during that time, said so fai , as lie know, he had done n<, work. He followed racing about all over the country. His associates wore, undesirable persons. Cross-examined by .Mir Harper: This was the first time he had been arrested so far as he was aware. He knew personally nothing against Blair. Detective Cassels ' gave evidence to the effect that" lie know accused personally, and had warned him on a previous occasion. He kept company with thieves. Cross-examined 'by Mi TTarper: "Wa.s unable to arrest him yesterday on the race course. Arrested him on Friday night. To his knowledge had iiot boon 'previouslv convicted in this country. Mr Harper told the bencih that if they would, give accused, another chance he would return to Australia. 7110 Bench sentenced accused to one month imprisonment on each charge, to run eoncurrontcused to one month's imprisonment lv.

At the meeting of the Hay of Plenty Freezing Company last week (says the Opotiki "Guardlian") Mr T. McGrevy said it seemed as though the works ■would be erected at Ohiwa, and he asked if tillo site had been decided on, as the Kcv. Mason, the well-known water diviner, would be visiting Opotiki in October, and it would be as well tr> take advantage of the opportunity to locate water on the site of the proposed freezing works. The chairman (Mr J. T. Tabb) said 1 it was a good idea. The provisional directors had not purchased a site, but they thadtho. option of two or three sites. They had written to Mr Mitchell, the 'engineer who superintended the erection of the Nelson works. and who is now busy with the

Tokowain works, asking hhn to coino and fix on a .site, and he lias agreed to come for £30 and liis ex])ensos. They discovered, however, that ii' the company was not floated in 90 days all the expenses would have to be paid by tihe promoters—that was the provisional directors. They did not take lons to Ret the company started. (Laughter.) They had, however, been obliged to postpone Mr Mitchell's visit'. He snggestod that an effort bo made to pet Mr Mason to. postpone his visit so as to coincide with the visit of Mr Mitchell. Mr McGrevy agreed to iii(|iiire whether the matter could bo arranged.

A fine afternoon yesterday nttracted large numbers of people to Horowhenua Lake, and the first sight of white wings upon the water since last summer was to , be scon during the afternoon.

At Wanganui on Thursday, G. Cnpley, a local man. started at the Opera House at three o'clock in the morning and played on the piano continuously for 08 -hours and 30 minutes, when he was stopped by his committee, who considered that having broken the record by four hours, he had done sufficient.

Lieutenant-Colonel Gallaway, Governor of St. Helena, speaking at the Constitutional Club, said that the inhabitants hoped to make a living out of the fibre industry, i 1)0 spinning of the New Zealand flax, the lace industry, and a third industry, macekerel curing, which had lieeii introduced by Mr Alfred Moselv.

Sir Robert .Baden-Powell, replying to a correspondent who asked Iris views on smoking among boys, wrote: —"No boy ever smoked because be liked it; it is horrid at first. A boy lon ins to smoke, boenusp he thinks it a very ' swagger ' tliinj>; to do: it makes him —

so lie thinks—look like a man, when in reality bo only looks like a little ass. f think most follows soe thai now, and you very seldom see any but a regular ' slopper' smoking nowadays. Boys who want to run well and do well in Sanies, as well as at their work, are not <|iiiio snob fools as to suck clieap cigarettes which they know aio poison, and can do a lot of harm to their heart and wind."

A warning note in regard to the languishing of Now Zealand industries was sounded by Mj" G. A. Coles, at the Employers' Association meeting recently. • " Australia!." ho said, "is making rapid strides in connection wilib her indi.stries, and has now almost entirely shut out importations, suob as tanned goods. They can buy our hides against the local bidders, take them to Australia. convert them into leather, and then bring Ilr-Mii back for sale at a profit." Our industries require too iniioh working capital. As an instance the liuildinig trade was deplorably overdone in regard to values, and ulon trade went down securities w< uld not bo worth half of theii present, values.

Ono of the stnplo industries of Brazil is ma to. or Brazilian ton. This is made from the loaves of a .slirnl) that grows wild in llio fores-:*,: and fliousands of labourers are employed in gathering tlio leaves, which, aro Ihoii driod over firos mjido of wood whicli. w.hon burning, give off aromatic fumes. .Mate ten is the universal beverage of South America, though it is little knoAvn in Europe. It is noted i'oi the increased physical endurance it gives to troops in time of war. The AVar Ministries of Germany and the United States are now experimenting with this invigorating beverage. The exportation of mate from Brazil to the other cou n trios of South America amounts to C 1 ,000,000 a vear.

Among recent visitors to the Levin State farm was Mr Doli.son, a." As'ibiirton settler. In an interview in the. South Mr Dobson said he was greatly impressed with the good work that is being done by the Government in grading cow's according to their butter-fat producing capabilities. Although without credentials of any kind, lie had no difficulty in o-htaining ad-mission io the farm, and Ik speaks in terms of the warinosl commendation of the readiness with whrVh the manager (Mr Dry.sdalo) supplied every information and assistance possible. Mr Dobson considers : hat- the work that is be in , : dore in connection with cow testing is invaluable. Ui.s investigations at Levin led .him to beliovt that the Slate Farm was being carried on on eminently practical lines, and that it was conferring gi'P;\t benefits on the Dominion.

A hobby of the rich is brought into notice by the remarkable fine exhibition of orchids whicli is boing held just now in Holland Park (writes the London corresjwiident of a contemporary). Mr God.seff. the head of one of the largest horticultural firms at St. Albans, h;is paid as much as flf>so for a single plan!,_ and die has been telling mm interviewer of the rather griie'sonn ■history of a certain specimen ui rare species: "The natives of Now Guinea :];> not inter their dead ; they place them on shelving rocks. Our collector, who was exploring the country, found the orchids had rooted in the skeletons of these depairted natives. One specimen 'iad taken complete possession of a skull, and its beautiful pink petals projected through the sockets of t'-e_ eyes. He sent this oxtra-ordi.-iary plant to us, and we sold it. skull included, to a great financier and member of the Irons* of Lords."