NEWS AND NOTES.

Hokitika Guardian, 15 March 1924, Page 1

NEWS AND NOTES.

“What we want,” said His Honour Mr Justice Frazer, in the Arbitration Court. Wellington, “is a disputes committee of practical men who can go into a quesion and settle it without troubling about too many formalities. We do not want- anybody who will bother too much about the interpretation of clauses. Tf we got a lawyer on a job like this, he might wander off into all sorts of side lines.”

To sec- one woman administer a sound thrashing to another woman is not a usual sight, not in Wellington at all events, but such a happening occurred within the precincts of the city recenlly. And thereby hang-, a tale, for the parties interested are a husband and wile, and a young lady shop assistant. As the young lady will pos-sii-ly not h- content to allow the matter to remain where it i-u further interesting iUi ■etopmouls are to In* cxpeetd.— "N./. Times.” The “Shoe Trades Journal” has some interesting particulars relative to the imports of hoots and shoes into Atisralia and New Zealand for November of last year. Australia imported •lit,“fill pairs valued at £7.800. while New Zealand dealt with 91.837 pairs valued at £50.1i!>7. Roughly speaking New Zealand merchants paid Cl-I.ool* in duty on lids little lot. Fro in point of view of population. Australia ha? live to New Zealand’s one, yet this country imports £7 worth ol boots to .Australia’s one. About that time the average price of Tildes was .<! per lb., while to-day it is lod. The method of selling gas by the British trade unit, one thousand equalling a therm, i- likely to he introduced into the lour main centres of the fhi.nii uion Vwthiit the next twelve mouths. It.is stated that, the method will mean that the consumers will he provided with a boiler guarantee as to lhe quality of the gas. as a standard of -<> many B T.F.'s per thousand 1.-el oi gas will he lixed. The meter will Hill i>o required to measure the gas. hut the charge will he based on so many therms, and it. is staled that in practice there will he no alteration in the cost to ihe consumer. It was reported in the Miration: “Dost.” the other day that a baby girl born in Onnskirk could boast o: lour of her great grandparents and ad four of her grandparents. Ibis is a pretty good performance on the part of the ••oiiug lady’s ancestors i.’eumrUs the ■‘Auckland Star”!, but there is a baby at Point Chevalier v.iih a living pedigree v.'chii just about reaches the possible. This fortunate heir to long life is now four months old and can lode' a claim that not only nr, its great grandparents all alive and well, hut that the whole eight of its great grandparents are also alive. All it’ great-uncles and great-aunts are nourishing in health, and it is only two years ago that its groat-great grand mother died at the ago ul b. vents. This bebv with all these grandfolk Still alive can moreover consult them any time it wants advice, lor they are till living in Auckland. Some years ago (relates an exchange) the Rev Mason, water diviner, paid a visit to a farm in the Kai Iw’i district and indicated to the owner •'here ho could find water on a hill. \ -veil wa: duly -unk -pd •: " mdnnll , „d to HIT the water. The farmer then declared that lie could get a more plentiful supply in the prolonged Us of dry weather bv tunnelling direct into the bill. Operations were c. aameiif oil and a drive of MO ft made. Then trouble started owing to sand 'constantly falling in and the work was abandoned. Recently the larmer I ,-i a valuable bull, and extensive incomes were instituted, but the a.lima! cold not he found. After the bull had been missing for 17 days it was located at the end of the tunnel, into which it had evidently wandered m search of water. The difficulty arose how to gel tin' bull out. as there was no room to turn him. The farmer then devised a scheme of pushing up a cabbage near the bull's head ami gel l ing him to hack in order to leach b. Tin- hungry bull responded at once, but trampled on the apparatus to which llie cabbage was attached. Tt look a great deal 01. coaxing with cabbage, water, etc., to get the bull bark to a spot, where il was possible to mni him, and now ho is wandering about none the worse for his lengthy