General News.

Levin Daily Chronicle, 29 June 1918, Page 1

General News.

To hold the rank of lieutenant-colonel at twenty-three years of age, and to have the Distinguished Service Order and the Military Cross, as evidence that his promotion was well won, should be sufficient to gratify the ambition of any man of our country (says the Sydney "Sun"). This is the record of Lieutenant-Colonel Douglas G. Marks, one of the born soldiers of Australia, who did their bit in the direction of making history in the red days of the landing at Gallipoli, and in the evacuaation, and are doing it now in Franee and in Flanders. He left New South Wales as a second-lieutenant with the original 13th Battalion, and was wounded twice, onco dangerously. One of the fighting officers of the A.1.F., he has been mentioned in despatches by Sir Douglas Haig and General Birdwood more than once. In addition to his British decorations, he has the Order of the White Eagle of Serbia. The Hon. ]>. H. Guthrie, who is acting head of the Imperial Supplies Department in the absence of Mr Massey, has had no more news about the meat purchase scheme for next season. There is now no doubt that some scheme will be adopted, and that the prices 'will be the samo as for last year, but there is a strong probability that there will be some new conditions attaching to the contract whieh will be inconvenient to New Zealand. The space in the stores will be strictly limited next season in the north. The season for the slaughtering of cattle for export should not yet be over, but the works at Whakatane are closed down, the stores being full of beef. Very few works will be able to run the full season at the maximum output next year, because of lack i of storage space, for it will be impossible to clear the very large accumulations before the opening of the season. For these reasons it is almost certain that some conditions will be imposed by the Imperial authorities as to the classes of meat to bo slaughtered. This is one of the '' difficulties'' to which Mr Massey referred in his message on the subject some days ago. A message from Ashburton yesterday stated that Edward Henry Shirley, aged 46, a farmer residing at Barrhill, who has been missing from his home since Wednesday morning, was found yesterday. morning in a plantation a quarter of a mile from his home with the top of his skull blown off. A double-bar-relled gun was found clasped in both hands, with a string tied round the boot and attached to the trigger. It is understood he has been melancholy of late. Mr J. W. Harding, of Mount Vicnon station Waipukurau, who has volunteered for active service, and has just gone into camp, has presented his valuable imported Clydesdale horse, Dunrod Sensation, to the New Zealand Government. The Department of Agriculture have gratefully accepted Mr Harding's offer and propose placing the horse at the State Farm at Ruakura. J Some months ago a gentleman visiting Auckland went into a Queen Street establishment and, putting down a cheque for £25, said ho wanted parcels , sent for that amount to boys at the front who had no friends in Auckland to look after them. Recently the recipients sent a flag out for their unknown benefactor, bearing their names. This was handed to the gentleman 1 when he again visited Auckland, where- ] upon he wrote out a cheque for £25 and said, " It's up to me to do it again.'' During tho hearing of a case at Dune- » din, in which thre# firemen of a Swedish steamer were charged with being absent from their vessels without leave, counsel for the defence (Mr Irwin) had 1 something to say regarding the Ship- I ping and Seamen's Act as it affected i foreigners. He submitted that under j Section 342 of the Act only ships of a < nation which applied to be gazetted un- ; der the section could be dealt with by ' the section. The Gazette notice was t sufficient evidence. The Gazette notice I produced referred to the Kingdom of j Norway and Sweden when they were a | combined nation. Since that Gazette i was published the two nations had separated, and had at present two Con- ' suls representing them at Dunedin. The i separate Kingdoms of Norway and i Sweden had not applied to be gazetted, | therefore the provisions of this Act could not be invoked. Mr Ramsay (for the prosecution) maintained that the provisions of the Act clearly applied to ! both Norway and Sweden. It did not i matter whether they were combined or not. Mr Irwin said Sweden had not signified her intention of having the Act applied to her. The Court was asked to assume that she wished her sailors to be treated in this way. The fact that the two nations were combined at the date of the Gazette notice in 1863 had nothing to do with tho attitude of Sweden at the present time. Mr Irwin then pointed out that Poland was not now part of the Russian Empire, and he supposed, according to his legal friend's argument, that a ship registered in Poland would now be bound by a Gazette referring to Russin. Mr Ramsay remarked that he would like Mr Irwin to name one ship on the seas registered in Poland. He would be very surprised if he could do so. Two most important things , when you get spectacles are: i First, to be suretliat your sight has been properly tested and that you get the right lenses; and, second, that the spectacle frame is correctly fitted. Another important. thing is to know that you can rely on repairs being properly done if anything goes wrong. If you come to me you may be sure that everything will be right. F. C. Remington, Levin.