NEWS AND NOTES.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXIV, Issue 1043, 24 December 1912, Page 4

NEWS AND NOTES.

“ I shall go to towu to-morrow, Alexander, to see the new autumn hats.” “You forget, my love, to-morrow is Sunday, the shops will be closed,” Shops . “ Who wants shops —I’m going to church !”

A very promising young journalist remarks that: “When an enthusastic editor describes the bride as bonny, aud an envious compositor sets her as bony, as was done the other day, hope for a season bids the world farewell, aud freedom shrieks as the compositor falls at his formes, brained by the brother of the blooming bride.”

“ He lives like an eel—by suction,” was the manner in which Sub-Inspector Hendry summed up the existence of a vagrant at the Auckland Police Court. The sub-inspector, describing one of the man’s methods of obtaining free drinks, said that he was in the habit of smearing his boots with clay, likewise his hands, after which he ' mingled with the workers returning from quarry work aud persuaded some of them to “ shout ” for him.

A well known Christchurch lawyer is telling this one; A woman came up to my office the other day aud wanted to know if she could get a divorce because her husband did not believe in the Bible. I told her that unless she had something else against him there would be no use in bringing a suit. “ But he’s an absolute infidel,” she insisted. “That makes no difference,” said I. “Doesn’t it, indeed ?” she cried triumphantly. “ Well, you are a fine lawyer, I must say. The law says infidelity, if proved, is a ground for divorce!”

The protracted row about the word “impertinence” in our House of Representatives will not be soon forgotten by the public, especially as the monetary cost of it was impressed on the taxpayers. The adjective “impertinent” also caused some uproar in the House of Commons recently. A Minister, Mr M’Kenna, described a certain Member's question as “ impertinent.” The Opposition strongly objected, but Mr M’Kenna claimed that he had used the word in its older sense, as given in the New English Dictionary, uot pertaining to the subject matter in hand, irrelevant.” Mr Speaker accepted the explanation. Punch comments :—“ In skilful hands, more blessed than Mesopotamia is the word ‘ impertinent.’ ”

A visitor to the Upper Waitaki informs us (says the Otago Daily Times) that oue of the effects of the disappearance of the rabbit in the far back is the increased spread of the blue tussock. This splendid sheep leed had almost disappeared before the march of bunny, but pollard poison, laid at the proper seasons, has almost wiped the rabbit out, aud the grass is getting a better chance. At all events, the blue grass, that at one time made the runs so valuable as feeding grounds, is spreading rapidly. The visitor says that over a distance of about 30 miles he did not see more thau a dozeu rabbits, and this was over country \\ here some years ago they were like flocks of sheep.