The Chronicle LEVIN. TUESDAY, JULY 4, 1916. LOCAL. & GENERAL

Horowhenua Chronicle, 4 July 1916, Page 2

The Chronicle LEVIN. TUESDAY, JULY 4, 1916. LOCAL. & GENERAL

« Tr~ • I'lom Tel el Kebir (..Egypt) Thp Chronicle is in receipt, oi ail interesting letter from erstwhile Uugler H. A. Muan, lately promoted; to be quarternias tor-sergeant. He writes:—"Just a lew lines t(o let you know how tiiingf? are going aiwng ,over here. I uas ull lucky at ih-ait in having to go into hospital last .February, to be operated on, but 1 am back at duty agsiir and have been made quarter-master-sergeant on the training staff ol tlie -Now Zealand Rifle Brigiade. Several Levin boys came in with the Eleventh 'Reinforcements, and among thos;> who are in this camp are George inter, Cyril Bartholomew, A. Ambler, and several others whose names 1 cannot think of just now. Most of tliMr are leaving here to-nighit' for :l'ranee, where they are to 3o more : mining before going into the firing line. They are aibout the last of the -New ZeaJranders who will come to kgypt, and we are expecting to dail for England in aibout ten days' time, to where our new base is to be. Our duties on the tnaining staff are to, finish off the training of the new drafts" as they arrive from New Zealand, and «Jeo to equip them, before they leave for the front. We are getting terribly hot weather here just now, and the thermometer registered 115 degrees in the sh&de yesterday. You can guess how we all felt. The boys are _a.ll pleneed that tho.v are going away to-night, as tlTey oannot stand the heat at all. I also sha.il fee very pleased when I get out of it too. Well, I must r 'ring off" now, as it is time for "mess orderlies" ; so with kind regards t remain yours sinc-wely, R. A. Sloan.

Four tenders were received last even, inii by the borough council for it« canting. That of H. Driscoll7 at 13s fi'l per day for one horse and dray was a<'copied. J ho borough council iast evening passed for payment £179 19.s &d in satisfaction of all claims against it for last month. A Tiinaru lady has received a' letter from an English soldier, which mentions a. remarkably family record. The writer. Rifleman S. 0. Taylor, of the 21st London Regiment, states that he lias ten brothers, and all are serving with the King's forces, and are "doing well." The Daily Sketch recently published a picture of these eleven brothers who had given their services to the Empire, and) the King has taken a personal interest in this remarkable familv.

The Inspector of Health (Mr M. O'Brien) reports that the present winter is the best that has been experienced in the Palmerston district for eight or ten years as regards its freedom from infectious diseases. There is now an entire absence of scarlet fever, and only an occasional case of diphtheria.

Tho question of tree planting in tin Levin Domain is proving a puzzling ono to the members of tho board, and they have had several discussions in which tho hardihood of different trees in withstanding the changes of climate have come under roview. Mr T. W. Kirk, of tho Agricultural Department, visited Levin on Saturday, btiifc it was too wet to allow Him to visit the'diomain and m!a'ke «n inspection. Tlie matter occupied the hoard for some time again last evening, when the members of tho board who were appointed to report on the matter, reported in favour of making a. commencement by .planting shelter hedges of muricatas. Tha bdard agreed with the committee" and the work will be started forthwith.

The gasworks committee recommended to tho colmcil last night that the sra.s stoker be granted an increase of Gd per day. Tho recommendation was agreed to.

Owing to heavy increase in steamer freights, railway charges, etc., the State Coal Department has notified the Levin Borough Council that the price of .Staito coal ;n the future will be 20s (id. A similar increase lias taken place in the price of Wefctport coal. The Manawiatu Standard reports that a meeting of farmers was held at Linton last week to discuss tho proposal to form a cheese manufactory in the vicinity of Linton. M. K. Mcdonald, manager of the Manawatu Cooperative Dairy C 0.,, gave the meeting information in regard to the purchase of a plant and formation, of a company. Tho meeting resolved to form a company. and secure a plant for the manufacture of cheese; also to ©recjt a factory in readiness for operation during tlie coming season, conditional upon satisfactory financial operations being made. In tho course of a.n address given at I'fll.nierston last week, Mr. Herbert Grinstead, minister of tae Church of Christ, spoko on tho present military position. He said that though lie was vice-president of a peace society, and though ho strongly opposed the spirit of militarism, it seemed to him that it was impossible for any man to hold that all war was immoral and unrighteous. He believed that for once at any rate the British nation was in the present conflict for the upholding of righteous principles, and therefore —while not praying for tlie lives of their enemies, they could pray, and that right earnestly, for riefory a.nd peace.

An unexpected rise in insurance rates was announced yesterday. Mr O. R. Bendall, President of tlie Underwriters' Association, Wellington, received a oable from London stating that marine insurance via. Panama and the Mediterranean had/ been increased from 30s to (jOis per cent. Replying to enquiries, local insurance managers were unalble to throw any light on "tflie rise though one hazarded the opinion that possibly | a German submarine had appeared in a frefili zone, remarking that when the Go rim all raider Moewe was operating in the Atlantic insurance rates rose similarly and lowered when the danger wis removed. Victoria has spent between £70,000 and £80,000 on agricultural colleges, and at the present time- there are only twenty-eight students. Dairy farms between Hawera and Man'aia ore being sold at an average price exceeding £60 per acre. In the United States nearly 10,000 square miles of territory were released fron cattle tick quarantine in the south oil March 10 last. This, added to the previous territory Cleared up, made a total of 475,472 square miles to be deducted from the 741,575 square miles originally quarantined in 1906. Some of the States have made great progress during the past few- years, .and Tennessee, for instance, has been entirely cleared of ticks. j