NEWS AND NOTES.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXVI, Issue 1193, 8 January 1914, Page 4

NEWS AND NOTES.

There is a great scarcity of radium at the present time. Dr. W. H. Hoskiug, of Mastertou, a few days ago cabled to the wellknown Loudon firm Siemen and Co., ordering worth. He was astonished and disappointed to receive a reply cable stating: “Unable to supply, scarcity.” Radium has risen considerably in value and is now ,£1320 a grain. Gold is worth only twopence a grain. An old Scottish w oman, belonging to the clan Gordon, was exceedingly fond of having the Bible read to her by her niece. One day, when the girl came to the description including the three thousand camels which formed part of Job’s substance, she said irritably : “I ken wed euouchthat the Campbells are an auld clan, and uae doot there were three thousand of them there ; but gang on, lassie, and see it ye dinna find something about the Gordons too !’ Hon. J. Bryce, in an addtess to a conference of the Educational Associatious of the University of London, entered.a warm plea for Bible teaching. He regretted that the knowledge ol the Bible was declining among all classes of the community. He had been struck with the same thing in the United Stales. It would be a great mis fortune for Britain if a generation grew up without knowing the Bible. The loss would be incalculable from an educational standpoint alone. The farmer is undoubtedly proving himself to be the backbone of the country in more ways than one (writes a Pohouui correspondent). Last week when the county employees were totally unable to cope with the roads on account of the recent floods, twelve stalwart farmers shouldered their shovels and did such splendid work that a gig could travel to Pukeroa after ihfir day’s toil. The way these farmers swung banjos was an object lesson to the casual navvy, ten large slips being cleared during the day. Mr Alfred Seifert, flaxmiller, of Palmerston North, who returned from a trip to England by the Moana, which anived from San Francisco this week, stated to a Post reporter that he found that the bonus of ,£12,000 offered* by the Government for the discovery of an improved method of treating New Zealand flax has created a great deal of interest amongst inventors in England. Of course, they are handicapped in experimenting in consequence of being so far away from the raw material. He heard complaints at Home that the colour of the stripper slips (a variety of flax tow) was not what the manufacturers wanted, being much too green. It was stated that if the stripper slips sent Home had been of the colour of ordinary tow, the demand would have continued for them, A complaint is made of the treatment received by two local ladies 'ravelling to Taihape by the midnight express on New Year’s Eve, says the Palmerston Times, They had purchased second-class tickets, but no seals being available they were told by a local porter to take a partially filled firstclass car. The guard on the train, however, when examining tickets peremptorily ordered them to a second-class car, and, being assured there was ho room available, conducted them to the extreme end of the train to a second “smoker” which had been reserved for territorials en route to Auckland. There, with two other young strange ladies from the South, they were left 10 make the journey, the guard locking the dividing door behind them. The territorials did not like the intrusion but, the ladies state, were most courteous and gentlemanly. Help was refused the southern ladies by the guard with their luggage, which bad to be left in the first-class car. They were eu route to Rotorua —a tedious journey. Meanwhile the first class carriage was almost empty. There seems to have been gross officiousness displayed such as is not wanted on our railways.