NEWS AND NOTES.

Hokitika Guardian, 28 August 1923, Page 1

NEWS AND NOTES.

••The hull,” said counsel in a case heard at the Fealherston Magistrate’s Court, "is like a drover’s dog—it is worth more dead than alive.”

A witness stated at 11 to Featlierslon Magistrate’s Court that his experience of farming was limited to three years. "Hut,” lie said, "my wife knows more than I do, site has been farming for 20 vears.”

Tito Government officer is to handle opossum skins in Waganui, stamped lu7f> in July and 2300 this month ■states an exchange). The season for killing is closed, but a large number of skins have still to come to hand. Oil oath skin Is is <«>l looted.

"Deeping Tom” has again made Ins appearance in Tiniaru (states the "Herald”), and is carrying on his nefarious practice of peeping through the windows of private houses, in an unusually hold way, taking such risks as presage an early capture by the police.

"(laming and gambling,” said Mr I. W. Boynton, S.M., at Auckland (reports an exchange), "are due to a perversion of the hunting instinct still strong in most of us. Unfortunately, this instinct is often degraded to base uses, the worst of which is gambling—ilea is, chasing after the other fellow’s goods.”

The joke about mothers-in-law is popularly known to lie of a fairly ancient order, but probably very few people imagine how really old it is. Mr Drummond, headmaster of the Auckland Grammar School, stated in a lecture that he had actually found mention of it in an old Latin fragment in which a lady, writing to a mutual friend, quoted her husband’s "malicious references to her mother.”

"Ilmv much do you lose by coming here to-day?” asked counsel in the Palmerston North Magistrate's Court of two witnesses from Rongotea. They replied 1.7 s ami los respectively, whereupon (reports the "Standard”) His "Worship called them tip from the rear of the Court, saying, "Come up here and let u- find out what you actually do lose. Don’t make it ioo much or you will got nothing.”

"The country that has had the longest. experience of income tax is the United Kingdom. Income tax as now understood dates in England from its introduction by Pitt, in 1798, in order to assist in the prosecution of the Napoleonic AY a is. It was at the time considered essentially a war tax. It was repealed at the close of the Napoleonic Wars in 1815. ft was not introduced as an ordinary peace time revenue tax until 1812. and from that time it has taken its place as a permanent source of national income in Great Britain.”—Mr AY. I). Hunt in his address on taxation.

The New I’lymouth Hospital seems to 1>(. ;1 popular choice tor girls wishing to cuter the nursing profession fsavs an exchange;. At a meeting of the Taranaki Hospital Hoard, when a hatch of applications wore received from girls asking to he placed upon Hie waiting list of probationers, the chairman remarked that there were about forty names on the list now. Ihe applications received came troin places a- jar apart as Onehiinga and (!isl>orne, with the usual sprinkling of Taranaki names, a fact which prompted several members to remark that it was very gratifying to see that the hospital was well-known further afield than Taranaki. The chairman raised the fpiosticn as to whether applications should not he restricted in view of the number now on the waiting list.

That this grand jury is of the opinion tlnil where ;t person has 1 toon eonvicted of a charge of driving a motor to the danger of the public, power should he given to the .Judge or Magist rale, should the circumstances warrant it. to proliihit such a person holdinn- it license or driviutt a motor In any district in lho 'Dominion, and that alter sin'!i prohibition it should he a penal offence for any sneli person so proiiihited io drive a ear or motor in i h • Dominion," was ;t recommendation toadc a: the lao-tti tic; of the Chrisl-

'■littreh Snnrentc Court—:t rocommenda--1 ion (st ales an ™ liango) that was endorsed l.v -Mr .Inst ice Peed, who hoped the effecl of it would he to eattse legislation to l:c earrieil out in this eoiineet ii.n. • j ltd I house, imiiirn., eouvs., ehihltlseiu.nl in the A nek land "Star." liy reason of its .nnii|iu>noss ( says the 1 hi* advert isemeiti hits attraeicd pariicithtr attention, for it is net since the loug-dist nut days before the housing shortage that children were ever tolerated hy landlords. . . . Hut perhaps this “Children welcome" advertisement is preliminary (o a chance of heart on the part of tit. propetty owner, and that in the near future we shall see houses advertised to he let (inly to tho-e couples whom nature has blessed— with prei'erenee to large fa in dies! I’ileairn fshmd. which firmed the lintle '.»> that thrilling drama of 1 1 n■ea. lice mutiny of the liouutv, is now no longer isolated from the world. The Shaw. .Savill and Ah.ion Company's steamer CV-rinihie, v. hi' Jt at rived at Wellington from Sottt ham]u ou, was the first vessel to communicate with the island hy wireless, Pa-, ing ve sejs Pave assisted with the -emliling of the witelcss i.utiit on the island, and since then they have Leen endeavouring to communicate with steamers, tint without success. Speaking to a X.z. "Time-" representative tetenily. one of the wireless «•> err.lois si..ted that when about 7do miles from Pitciiirn they sent a message which the operator mi the island "as unaide to translate owing to the speed. 'I he message was then slowed down to .allow fur t’finsdation. and the operator repotted its successful receipt. i'pou their arrival at Pitcairn Island, two days later, the delighted islanders told of their success and were overjoyed at receiving their first message. T hey are as yet amateurs in the use el Morse, hut the reception of the iirst message has urged them to become -note efficient, and they feel that the island i.s now in touch with the civilised world. A man employed on the Peel Street Bridge works at- Gisborne had a remarkable escape from an unpleasant death a few days ago (relates tr.e "Poverty Bay Herald"). He and sev-

oral others were engaged removing the easing front one of the piers when he lost his balance and fell down on to the mud. Fortunately ho fell on his feet, and sank into the mud tip to his thigh, the task of extricating him being a lengthy one. Had he fallen any other way than on his feci, ho would probably have been suffocated before ho could have boon removed from t tie mud.

Fifty plugs oi gelignite ami 100 detonators were discovered beneath the AAliakatane fire brigade station by the borough inspector, Afr A. L. Donaldson. while hunting for rats (states the Auckland "Herald”). II e is congratulating himself that his interference with the gelignite did not cause it to explode. Recently the AYhakat in' Borough Council Chambers were brok-

en into ami tlie safe wrecked by gelignite. All escaped pri-oticr from .Mount Eden Gaol, Frank Bailor, has since been arrested in connection with the

The following letter was sent by a Uliine.se shopkeeper, who enclosed a statement of his affairs for bankruptcy examination:—“l have enclose statement. of my debts I have owing all completed to this list. 1 am under this statement!. But its is has just roughly done by of me. I hopping you kindly do you be.-l you can. But 1 have not. forgetting all my owing dotes after 1 have anything doing. -Money with me. I will repayment 1 can for my Cretes that I have. Thanks very much you kindly favvursoly. Ablegs wit your kind regard. I am. remain yours sincerely.”—"Westport News.”