Local and General.

Horowhenua Chronicle, 25 September 1912, Page 2

Local and General.

The Inspectors who recently made their annual visit to the Levin District Hiy;h School report that the work is very satisfactory. Mumps is very prevalent in Levin. A number of children are unahle t<attend the District High School through the epidemic, which has now attacked two of the teachers. At a meeting of the Levin School Committee last erening, Mr Henderson expressed his pleasure and that of his eollongues at seeing Mr Malcolm back after his serious ill ness. Mr Henderson's remarks were cordially applauded. Dr. (!ibb, of Wellington, is to lecture in Levin, next .Monday, on "Grit/' After the lecture supper will be provided. A musical programme is being arranged as part of the evening's proceedings, and an enjoyable t'unet : on may lie looked for with confidence. The committee of the Levin and District Beautifying Society met last evening in the Council Chamber; The President, Mr Matier, sent an apology for unavoidable absence, and Mr Blenkhorn presided. It was decided to urge upon the Se< nic Preservation Hoard the necessity of declaring the reserve at the far end of Queen street oast a scenic rosor.e as soon as possible, 'and also to fence the same. The individual members of the committee undertook to endeavour to grow suitable trees or plants with a view to their being used by the Society at a late* period. It was also decided th"t the members of the committee should bring suggestions as to their ow I opinions of the best way of beaut"fving the waste places of the town I and borough.

A meeting of the Levin School Committee was held last evening in the .District High School, Mr J. Malcolm presiding, Mild the iollowing members present: Messrs Kelleher, Glaekin, 'Henderson. Procter, T. F3roomo. The chairman explained that the business before the meeting was the election of a secretary in the place of Mr Rout, who was now in Napier. It was a recommendation that Mr Procter be appointed, but Mr Procter had intimated 'that owing to many rails upon his time lie was unable^ to accept office. Mr Glaekin was then -pressed !>y members to accept the office., and after some informal discussion, he consented to do so. Various accounts were passed for payment Otaki Maori Racing Club's spring meeting was concluded yesterday, when beyond a couple of showers no rain fell, though the course continued heavy. Good fields contested the various events. iStrathmoira won the Second Hack Hurdles notwithstanding a rise of 131b in the weight lie won under on the opening day. Another double winner at the meeting was Coolbeggan, an upstanding five-year-old gelding who yesterday landed the last race of the day decisively from Kina. who began with a flying start. Ilie principal race of Tuesday (the President's Ha.nd.icap) was won % Odessa, who finished fourth in the chief race run on the opening day. The places in tlie President's Handicap' were filled hy Mescal anl Muleteer | respectively. The Otaki Hack Race i was won by Bonnie Roy, tho Trial j Handicap by Lady Mildred, and the Railway Handicap liy Mount Victoria.

Mr A. Thorne, travelling representative in Xew Zealand for Davidson's, Limited, Glasgow, lias secured for his linn the butter outputs of St. John's Factory (Wanganui) and Waikeikei Factory (Aucklard). The Levin liifle Club holds its annual meeting this evening in the Century Hall at 8 o'clock. As the question of a new rifle range is to be dealt with, at is hoped that there will bo a large attendance of members. "Ye Okie English Fair," to be held in the Century Hull on October 23 and 2-1, promises to be a most artistic and successful function. The \ T icar and members of the congregation hope to make it the event of the year in Levin. Among other things the Christmas Tree should prove a great attraction, while the 1 competitions will no doiibt arouse much popular interest. A dairy factory managers' union has been formed in Southland, and demands have lieen prepared with the object of increased wages and improved conditions. Since then the directors of the. various companies have received copies of the j proposals, with a. suggestion that a conference may he held so as to endeavour to arrive at an amicable agreement. Much interest was shown in the proceedings at the sale of opossum skins at Dunedin last week. About 1 (JO were offered in various grades. One. a. dark blue of exceptional duality, fetched the fancy price of 15s. Tt> is doubtful whether another skin like it could be got in New Zealand, and an expert present said that in Australia, the home of the opossum, the millions of skins marketed eacli year would not include 25 such skins in any single season. The average price for the whole sale was about -Is. The annual general meeting of the Levin Coronation .Swimming Club will be held on Friday evening next week. At a meeting of the clu'b hold last evening at Mr >S. Brewster's, Oxford street, Councillor Fosella. in the chair, it was decided to appoint a deputation to wait on the Baths Committee and offer a few suggestions. Several trophies have been promised for the coining season

both in the boys' section and the senior section. Among those who have promised a trophy is Mr .1. ' Robertson, M.P. In the New Plymouth Magistrate's Court on Thursday a prisoner of the gaol named .Frederick James Francis Symes, who is serving an inderterininate sentence, was <-harged with having attempted to break out of gaol. Prisonei said that he would like to state that he had been committed through having 'been persecuted. He had complained to the Minister of Justice, hut had not mentioned the matter when brought, before the Prisons Board recently. His Worship commented on this, and told him that, he could bring the matter before the visiting Justices if lie chose. I'risonor was sentenced to five days on bread iand water.— Herald. The executive of the Flaxinill Workers' Union has carried the following resolution: -"This meeting | emphatically protests against the j gaoling of strikers at Waihi because of their refusal to enter into sureties to keep the peace, a breach of which, in our opinion, has never been committed. We further protost against the concentration of police in the strike affected a rem, for the. purpose of intimidating peaceful unionists, and we demand the release of fellow workers in gaol, and freedom from molestation bv the police." The secretary was instructed to forward copies of the r<>«olutiou to the Minister for Labour member for Otaki (Mr J. Rob-ert-son), and the secretary of the Federation of Labour.

A News reporter nwule en(|iiiries on Saturday with a view to ascertaining what the position was going to be if all the unregistered girls were forced to withdraw, from the bars. The girls who may have to go are taking the matter very philosophically. They have no union or and only one, it is said, is in member of the Hotel Employees' Union. So far they have made no attempt to call a. meeting to discuss matters, nor have they prepared any petition for presentation to I'arliament. The registered girls do not view the change with any selfishness. They admit frankly that their position will he better financially, hut. on the oilier hand, they say that their hours are certain to be nvueh longer and their holidays fewer, as tho impossibility of obtaining assistance in adequate quantity is felt. A leading hotelkeeper said that he belived all would be pleased to have' the matter settled at once and for all. He did not think it at all likely that the hotelkeeper.s as a body would take steps to lay any particular set of views before Parliament, or would take any action in the matter. Tf the unregistered girls had to go tin other girls would he likely to tr\ •and force up the price of their labour, and each would naturally go to the man who wonkl pay hest. Tt would develop into a sort of auction sale, and to avoid this he would suggest that the Licensed Victuallers' Association should set a maximum wage, and pee that it was observed faithfully.—Christchurch News.

A telegram from Gisborne states i that the llev. Xikora Tautau, on• his • way to Tioga Bay, after holding a i service at Tokbmaru, yesterday, fell ..t from his horse and wias picked up I unconscious, tie died subsequently. ( j.. Fresh eggs are finding a ready ; sale at l()id per dozen on the Well- j ingt'on markets. Bollard has good | inquiry at £6 10s to £6 15s per to." ! Bran has a heavy supply and' is dull of sale at £5 us to £5 10s per < ton. 1 Complaint was made by a guest at a Marienbad hotel that the waiters placed secret signs on the visi- ; tor's luggage to indicate the value | of the tips to be expected. Legal i proceedings were taken, and the ; marking was traced to the head j waiter, who was sentenced to two days' imprisonment for wilful damage, \Aliile the porter was fined 7s. The proposal to eroct a school at : the Arcpaepae road was dealt with at yesterday's meeting of the Well- i s ington Education Board. Tt was rc-,, ported that a petition for the es- ' tablishment of such a school had been received, and that the Board's Inspector had reported adversely on . the matter/ The Board'decided to 1 reply to the petitioners in terms of the Inspector's report. j There is a stock phrase, "As as an owlthe morepork is quiy m as canny as his relative. One ever ir>g, in New Plymouth, lately, . EH morepork was seen watching on bough of a tree situated near at' I electric light lamp for moths to bef attracted by the light. His quarry; sighted, the bird would wait a favourable opportunity, then swoop . down and devour his prey.

A farmer at Waituna, in South- ! land, employs an odd method for sscv.. citriii.tr ft flood hag of hares. All that is required is a motor car with two good lieadliglits and an assist- j/ ant with a gnn. Ho sets out for a# spin on a wet night. when the hares are known to frequent the roads in preference to the fields. Hares invariably keep in the light in front of the ear, and are easily knocked over. Tt is considered a bad night if half a dozen cannot be bagged. A Marlborough man, writing to a. local paper, states that he has found that spreading kelp about his fruit trees has kept them free from "blight. As a test he planted an apple tree infested with aphis blight and applied kelp, and the blight gradually' disappeared. The contributor says: 1 cannot toll whether*. it is the saline or iouii.o ,»ropei tie*in the seaweed that are responsible for the immunity from disease. Some assort that the nearness totho sea i.s the chief reason; but other, orchards the same distance (about five chains) form the beach suffer, while the trees lie,re escape." He says he has never sprayed his trees, and the Government orchardist has never found any trace of blight on them. The syllabus is to hand of the, New Zealand Competitions Society's second annual festival, which is to ho held at the Town Hall, Wellington, commencing on 13th November. Once again the Society has seen red the services of good judges, namely, Mr .Sidney Wolf, music (instrumental and drama); Mr .T. F. Montague, slocntlon and dramatic; Mr W. F. Ward, lite nature : Rev. Father Hickson and Mr J. M. Clark, oratory and debating. 'Hie prize list, thanks to the generosity of the citizens and business firms in Wellington, exceeds L'GoO, the chief prize being a tl'i-i grand' Clwippell piano, presented by Messrs F. J. Penny, Ltd. Text books, containing full particulars, are obtainable from music shops, or from the secretary, Mr Jiaines Dykes, Featherston street Wellington. Entries close on Sepl- - 30th, and it is hoped that this district will he well represented at the New Zealand Festival, which promises to be the largest yet held.