DOMINION ITEMS.

Hokitika Guardian, 9 April 1923, Page 4

DOMINION ITEMS.

[hy Trcr.WiitAi’ir—ricn toksh association;.] SHOT HIMSELF. FIELDING, April 0. The body <if W. 13. Benson, a motor garage proprietor, was found in a wash-house at liis residence at an early hour this morning with a rifle aloneside, and a bullet wound in his head. 11(■ had been greatly depressed lately and had .suffered a nervous breakdown, lie leaves a widow and two young children. .MOTil KK AXI) CHILI). CHRISTCHURCH April 7. I The mother of a child, alleged to be ! found on a lawn outside a house at I Sockburii i- a single woman now in the i ho a ital. The mother gave birth to the ! child at midnight on W'eduesdav. while : Ho-: . Sim told .Mrs Foster in the i morning that- she had found the child | in a garden outside tlm window. Airs j ! Foster rent for the doctor and pulno. j • and detective.' after questioning the m- ■ i upants of the house obtained a full confession from tiio mother. the child i was prematurely born and weak, and died at 10 p.m. on Friday. BUTTER MAKER FIXED. MT.LLINCTON April fi. The manager of the Ilerotaunga Dairy Co.. F. \Y. Cook, was fined £25 for .sending hut ter containing more than Hi per cent, of a water to a station for the purpose of grading. Counsel said that complaints had been made from Home, regarding this (lass of offence. ‘‘We have a good reputation as dairv producers, and the Agricultural Department means to maintain it. be declared. SCHOOL BADLY BURNT. DAROAVII.I.K. April 5. A lire at about midnight hist night j badly gutted the central portion of the Public School. The building is a verv old one. and „„ly the splendid efforts of the brigade saved it from total destruction. The origin of the hr<- is a mystery, j as the school had not been used since t one o’elcak yesterday. i T: mom-ary arrangements have been j made to carry on the school work. M’ACOONKR KILLED. DFXFDIX. .'.pul A. Ti l- polhc have hern informed Hint Robert Johnson M'Clelhuul, aged D . a waggoner, was ki I led near Miller s hint through his waggon capsizing. STATEMENT BY MINISTER. WELLINGTON’. April -1 The lion \Y. Net,worthy (Minister of Agricull lire), stated to-day that he had been looking into the position regarding the disposal of this .easmi s wheat crop in view id the tact mat South island fanners bad recently approached him to obtain some definite stalej mont from him r.s Minister oi Agriculture, as to the Government’s atti- | Hide concerning the embargo at prei sent existing against the importation of wheat and wheat products It out abroad. Mr Xoxworthy said that i; was in the best interests nl the Dominion to ensure that the tanner received a fair and reasonable price for bis wheat crop so that sufficient on(ouragemeiit would be given to farmers to continue to grow enough wheat to make the Dominion self-supporting. In i icw of the fact that all the evidence pointed clearly to there being | sulilennl wlvoii: in Ibis country for its ! normal i oquiremeut s for tlie current j y -.11, Mr XosWorthy s'aied that ft was j tf.e c.!\ eminent’s intention to leainI tain the cud'ai'g.i until the end of IVb- | rn.-iiv, I! -.?!. j BI.BEGUMS \XD LADY-BIRDS. | THE Sf ALE PEST. \Y EL Li N'GTt )N . April Not only in tier .South l-biod have Blucgnm t re(*s liern attached by the ! -calc pest : on l!:c Wr-I ( oa-t o| t billi.(l. I !'C trees a!-o are suit"ring, and the Dominion entomologist has hi *, combating it by mean- of the introduction of the Ladybird beetle. It appears that the gum trees on tlie Mostline Estate, near Great ford, bad suffered so mueli from the blight that they gave the appearance of being dead, but a close examination now shows that voting shoots are growing. 1 be-e i shoot's are being attack .1 by the scale. I bin the Lady Bird nevertheless. is I proving very successful in keeping the | iiu lll l.- r- dow n. IMueguiii tree, whii-e ; are being attacked by a. tiny wasp en!l----i ed the Hull ( haleid. am verv stlM-r ptI ible to the attentions of the scale, and j they quickly .sincunib to its ravages. ] By next spring, however, when mem Ladybird beetles will be released, ii ianticipated that the scale pest will be well under control. FATAL COLLISION. TI.MARI', April 7 About midnight on Saturday Iwo voting men, lirucc McD.mgn II and Fred Sellar-, aged about 2'L were riding a motor cycle along Stafford St., when tliev lolbded with a lelegrapio j pest. M: Dollgall was kilb-d instanj tuneouslv. and .Sellars was seriously | injured, lie i- now lying in the Tiluaru Hospital in a critical conilil 1011, j being still unconscious. McDoiigall was driving and Sellars was riding on the carrier. '1 lie two men bad attended a dance in the ('veiling, and they were going homo when the mishap ocelli red. DOT'BI.E DROAYNTXO. A Ft'ELAND. April s. W hen four members of a launch party were returning from the shore to their launch, after boiling a billy, their dinghy was swamped in a heavy westerly gale in the harbour, off Blockhouse Bay. Two of the occupants were drowned, Frank Barnes (New Lynn), mid Henry Bowater (Avondale). The hitler was married with two children.