LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLII, Issue 2076, 10 January 1920, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The s.s. Kennedy, hemp laden, sailed for Wellington at midday yesterday. She is due haek on Tuesday with a. cargo of general, * The decking on the Shannon j .Ridge is in a very had stale, and requires immediate attention. It is to ■he hoped the controlling body, the Mauawatu County Council, will put this work in hand without delay.

It is'reported from Tanranga that million lards are very plentiful this season on Plate Island, near Afotiti. Last week a party of Maoris visited the former island and captured about 2,000 birds, which were in excellent condition.

As a result of the Magisterial recount/ of votes at Stratford, Air Masters has been .declared elected by 01 votes over Air Hine. A, demand for an Election Court inquiry will probably be made.

At Thursday’s meeting of the Palmerston Hospital and Charitable Aid Board, the tender of Air W. D. Bauckham was accepted for charitable aid supplies in (his district for the current year. The Tuakau Press has ceased publication. Under the stress of the high cost and scarcity of paper, many country journals find it difficult to keep going. The Press is the (irst to .succumb to the present adverse conditions.

Mr 11. Cave, formerly of Xewman, and now of Hamilton, has patented a., process for.making manure from lignite coal. This manure is said to give extraordinary results, and a company formed intends to .erect a large plant at bluntly. A bouse on the Woraroa Training Barm, occupied by Mr Spencer, overseer at the institution, was completely destroyed by lire on Wednesday night. A sixteen-year-<dd boy named William Walker, an inmate of the Training 'Farm, admitted that he set lire to the building. Walker had only recently arrived on the farm from another institution in the north. He is a boy of poor physique and'weak mentality, and has been sent to Palmerston to be dealt with by the Alagistrate.

Melbourne tins a purlicularlv line suburban railway service, a yood deal of which has been tileelrilled, observes a visitor who has recently returned from the Commomveallh. The Flinders Street station is said to be one of the busiest, if not the busiest, stations in the world. There are It! platforms. - The electric (rains travel very fast, and only Iff) seconds’ stop is allowed at stations. While motor Iraflh; predominated in Sydney, the visitor noted a la rye proportion of the Avork beiny done by horse-draAvn* (raflic; a htryer proportion, he thouyht, than in some of (he New Zealand cities.

The shortage of bronze is eausiny natch trouble to .Melbourne banks, and was keenly felt recently. One institution which -required between CIOO and .o*2oo worth of pennies and half-pennies .souyhl in vain lor supplies. It is thouyhl that almost the only source from which stocks can be immediately replenished is to Ik> found in children's sitvinys hoses, and several of the banks are offeriny to pay soiuelhiny over and above the value of bronze delivered to (hem. The demand for (•upper coins was keen on account of Christmas trade, and supplies for shopkeeper.- had been depleted by the extension of electric tramways and the 2d telephone charyes. pen-ny-in-lhe-slol machines, and fractional prices at hotels and. restaurants.

Thames fishermen are having a hard lime ,jusf now owing' to immense quantities ul' jeliy-iish in ihe on If. The fishing Heel weni out on Sunday and Monday, hul the fishermen were unable to do anythin”’ on aeeounl of “-real numb'ers of jelly-fish clogging their nets. The oldest lishe:n slate that they l\ave never seen ain’tking like Ihe present quantities of these things. The beaelies along Ihe Coromandel Coasi Hoad are Mitered wilh stranded jelly-fish. Bathers find il very dillienlt lo dodge them, and quite a number of people have been slung, an unpleasant, though nol a dangerous, experience.

Settlement is proceeding apace on Ihe line 1 of tin' St ratford-Okahukura railway, the effect being plain to (ho visitor after a lapse of a year or two (stales the Stratford Host). The iron way is completed practically lo Tahora, where the. terminus is likely to remain for some years. It is evident from the extent of the works in progress at the station yards that. Tahora will be an important link in the railway system even after the connect ion-with the Main Trunk, a, consummation which those’who note the rale of progress al present can only slate is in the-lap of the future. Still, while we wait, ihe pioneer pushes into virgin bash and precedes the iron horse, hewing out homes for future pa>senger.> and t rattle on the line. There is a wealth of feed in the Mangapapa, and stock are in splendid condition.

At a meeting of I lit 1 Hospital Board mi Thursday, Inspector O'Brien reported that during' the month of December 30 cases of infectious diseases were notified throughout the district and received attention. The distribution of cases was as follows: Palmerston, ■ diphtheria. 5, tuberculosis 1, pneumonia 1, ccrebro-spinal meningitis .1 (proving fatal), erysipelas 2, influenza. 3, measles. I; Feilding, diphtheria 2, pneumonia 1; Kiwitea, diphmia naonatorum 1. measles 2; Kongotea, diphtheria I, pneumonia 1; Kaij.anga, diphtheria 2; Oroua, diphtheria. 2, pneumonia 3; Kiwitea, diphtheria 1, (child died from complications) ; Manawatu, diphthe.ria, 2, pneumonia 1; liorowhenua, scarlet lever 1. The other ])arl.s of the district not mentioned arc entirely free. The inspector added that the number of eases was not very high considering the extent and popula-" lion of the district, and also that many of the diseases, equally prevalent in the past, have now been brought before the Board by being rna.de notifiable. Sanitary improvements had been effected where needed throughout the hospital district.

Since the 'electrification of the Manchester in’ 1901. £L--020,89] has been devoted from (lie net profits (o the relief of the local rates. The largest amount contrihufed in any one year was £111,891 in the year ended March last.

That profiteers are being drastically dealt with in Britain is evidenced by the fact that a publican at Clapton was recently (bred £IOO and costs for selling four half-pints oi ale at sd, instead *■ f fid. Fine-, lotalling £9!) were imposed on a halter, ol Bethnal (freen, for bread at an excessive price and short of weight.

'flic Lotion Jack Club, London, which is already the largest club in the world, is to he extended. There, is at present, sleeping accommodation Lor 900 in bedrooms and dormitories. During the war the did) has provided' sleeping accommodation tor 1,110,;>(i2 soldiers and sailors, and no fewer than 3,000,000 meals have been served.

The \ietoha Falls, on the Zambesi. in South Africa, are. twice as wide a-- Niagara, and nearly three times as high. -These famous falls are over a mile in width, and have a depth of about 4,000 feet. While the Victoria Falls on British territory, are the hugest, those of Iguazu, in South America, easily take second place, being two miles in width..

All (he American cities and towns, even down to the smallest, pro provided witii electricity—in i'act, according io Mr Id. H. Howdcn, of Hamilton, win.) has just returned from a visit to the Stales, the whole country is eleelrilied. Contrary to his expectations, however, fully 75 per cent, of the country is produced hy steam power, although whatever Avater power is available is I a lam advantage of.

Reports from various parts of i he Dominion state that there has h am a. Avave of petty thieving during the Christmas holidays. Crowded railway stations, trams, trains and ferry steamers have given the “pickpocket" an opportunity to relieve citizens of their purses, and in the aggregate a fairly large sum has been stolen. At Tnumarunni (he clothing of a party of bat hors was ransacked.

As an Hint ration of the fact that there is money in poultry, the.experienee of (wo brothers in the Levin disfriet may he mentioned. One poultry-farms one and a quarter acres,- on Avhieh he accommodates helAvcen (iOO and 700 head, and the olh(‘r works a 50-aere dairy farm with 20 oild, cows. After the last year's operations the poultryman came out Avilh a very miudi heller credit: balance than the dairy man, who Avas so much impressed that ho intends disposing of his herd and taking up I‘oavls. —Levin" Chronicle.

Writing to a friend in Olaki, Mr W. If. Reynolds, late of Ot'aki. and now residing at Reading, Bright ud. says that living is very dear in the Old Country. Bacon is 2s (id per pound, hut ter 2s (id, eggs 5s per dozen, currants ,1s (id per pound, sugar Sjd, cheese Is (id, beef and mutton 1 (id lo Is Sd pound. Mr and Mrs Reynolds Avishcd to re!urn to Xcav Zealand, but are afraid (hoy will have to wait for nearly a year, possibly longer, before they will lie able to secure berths. The.v s ay some people have been Availing lor two years to secure passage.

A bedroom thief Ims been busy at I lie well-known Auckland private hotel, Cargen, Avhere sums from £2O down lo a low shilling liavo disappcarod. Several room:- were visited and the pockets of occupants eni))li-' ed. The total amoiml laketi was £:•]()'. Auckland has been victimised at different limes by some very eleven: hotel thieves. among whom was one of outstanding ability with an English reputation. This man had a simple device by means of. which be entered rooms even when llt ay were locked from the inside.. Incidentally he tabled to the mystification of his victims by carefully relocking I heir doors, wit It the key on the inside of the door, after he had relumed to the corridor. This man came by Ids undoing in. the end owing’ to tt physical deled —a slight limp —by wliieh be was identified by victim who nwakoned just as the (hief was leaving the room and noticed his peculiar gait. His simple little device is now among the. relics of the police anlhorit ir -. The big railway strike in England was wonderful for several reason-., according to the Uev. W. E. drove, who has returned to Levitt after an absence of nine months spent in visiting the Old Country. First: of till, for the true sporting spirit Hint was observed both by the strikers and the people. The strikers conditel.ed themselves eominendably. and, save for one or two inslam-cs of stoning of Indus by irresponsible people, did not; permit, of any objectionable practices entering the argument. The people acted likewise, and trudged uncomplainingly to and from llteir daily toil. The feature that would stand out for years to come, however, was the wonderful system of transport that was brought into instant being. The strike was declared on a Saturday,’ and that, same night the Scheme of motor transportation A\a- set in motion, and next morning the people g"t their papers, milk, and other necessities by motor, trains of .100 or more lorries moving down (he different streets. The country was supplied in the same Avay, and in London and the other large centres cars were stationed at various spots with notices up slating that they were running to the. different towns and cities. This was how the bush ness of the country was carried on, and, Avonderful to relate, no one suffered hardship.