LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLIII, Issue 2244, 26 February 1921, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The Lenten services at all Saints’ Church are being well attended.

Among the recent captures by the local police for cycling at night without lights was a gentleman of the cloth!

A launch has been obtained by Mr Carter for fishing operations over the bar. It will also be used for conveying passengers from Foxton to the seaside.

We understand that a number of residents will appear before the Magistrate at next court sitting for breaches of the borough by-laws, i.e., riding bicycles at night without lights.

A Taranaki farmer paid 28s for wethers, and after he had shorn them all lie could get for them recently was 18s, and very little for the wool. Another settler sent wool to Wellington that had given him a return of only 3d per II).

A Mastertonian who is stranded in Sydney, writing under date February 14th, says: “Hundreds are waiting'their turn for passages back to New Zealand. The heat is awful, and there is unemployment everywhere." Mammitis in dairy herds has caused serious loss to some dairy farmers in the Feilding district, says the Star. Jn one case a herd, of 40 became infected through one diseased cow being milked with the same machines as the rest of the hc-rd.

In connection with the late Mr J. T. M. Hornsby, it is interesting to recall that when he was editor of the Christchurch Star lie succeeded in running to earth the adventurer Worthington, who practised for many months upon the .susceptibilities of the people of the Cathedral City.

One of Wellington’s oldest and most respected citizens, Mr Maurice O’Connor, passed away at his residence at an early hour on Thursday. The deceased was born in Tipperary. Ireland, nearly 81 years ago, went to Melbourne in 1859, and in 1.861 came to New Zealand at the time of the Gabriel's Gully gold rush. lie became a builder in Wellington, and retired years ago.

The famous Opuriao Valley visited by the Otago touring Parliamentary party, was once a sheep station owned by three families, and producing £B,OOO worth of wool, The land was cut up in 1890 by the State, the purchase price -being £24,000, and is now supporting 60 families and producing £IOO,OOO worth of butter and cheese, in addition to slock. Settlers refuse £l2O per acre, and the country can carry a cow to the acre.

“After a considerable period of quiescence," stales Mr G. A . Hudson* of Ktirori, "there is now visible oh the sun a. group of spots fully 90,000 miles in length. On the 171 h inst. this group consisted of two minute spots, barely visible in a 4in. telescope. It is unusual for a sun-spot group to develop as rapid- |\ as this one, and magnetic disturbances and auroras may possibly eventuate."

The Magistrate at Wanganui Ims given judgment foy £IOO damages against Walter Hebberley, as the fa j her of a boy who tired an airgun in such a manner that Roy Lash’s eyesight was impaired. The, Magistrate held that defendant, was liable both because be was negligent in allowing his son to use such it gun, and because lie failed in a statutory duty imposed on him by (lie Police Offences Act, which made it unlawful to supply a person under 10 years of age with a gun. At a meeting of the Dunedin Presbytery the following motion) was unanimously agreed to: "J hat the Presbyterians regret that, in connection with the visit oi a prominent official of the Government service, and of a Minister for the Grown to Central Otago, violations of the sanctity of the Sabbath occurred. It commends the action of certain Alexandra residents in endeavouring to prevent such violation, and directs that a copy of: this resolution he forwarded to the gentlemen concerned. It is understood that this reiers to the Hon. J. G. Coates, who, along with the officials of his Department, paid it visit to the Manoibu ni Dam on Sunday.

The policy of handing over the main roads of the country to the control of a State Road Board has it warm advocate in the person of Sir Raymond Dennis, managing director of Messrs Dennis Bros., who is at present visiting Dunedin. “You hove many fine stretches of roads for motoring purposes in the South Island." he stated, “but they are marred by faulty patches in too many places, I understand there is it movement on foot in the Dominion to haive the roads taken over by a central control, and from my knowledge of the operation of that system in England, l can say that it works admirably, relieving the local bodies of an inequitable responsibility and giving general satisfaction.’’

At the Auckland police court yesterday Walker Bros., bakers, of Ellerslie, were fined £2O for selling underweight bread. A bull in a china shop is as tame as a poodle compared with Larry Seinoh in “The Grocery Clerk,’’ tonight, at the Royal.—Advt. • •William David James (storeman) and Walter Strong (carter), for sugar .thefts at Auckland, were sentenced to three months and two months’ imprisonment, respectively.

In order that as many children as possible may be enabled to see the fine story, “Huckleberry Finn,’’ all children will be admitted to the Town Hall to-night for 3d. —Advt. The friends of Mr Hillier, local manager of the Co-op. store, will be pleased to learn that he is making satisfactory recovery from his recent severe illness.

The Gre'ytown Standard states that the visit of the Chautauqua to Greytown and Carterton resulted in a financial' loss to the guarantors of £B2 and £lO5 respectively. At the Masterton sheep sale this week well-conditioned three- and foui*-year ewes (October shorn) brought 13s to 17s, and medium Jive-year breeding ewes 10s to 10s Gd. ‘

Mr W. E. Barber presided over the monthly meeting of the loetil Patriotic Society on Thursday night. Application for a loan of £SO was considered, and agreed to subject to certain conditions. The secretary’s action in making certain payments was endorsed. Mr Byron Brown has donated four and a-half acres of land in .Otaki borough for the purpose of erecting a church school. A committee, with the Rev. G. F. Petrie as chairman, has been set up to consider ways and means of raising the necessary money for building purposes.

In the early days of settlement domestic help in Palmerston was unprocurable. A business man whose home was over the shop in the Square had a restless little daughter of three, who so frequently lost herself that she wore a permanent label bearing the legend, “Please return me to Mrs M.D. Times.

Mr 0. Marsh Roberts, the newlyappointed tutor under the Workers’ Educational Association, was in Fox ton yesterday in reference to the re-opening -of the local class. A public meeting will be held early next month to arouse local enthusiasm and interest in the class.

A committee of Otaki residents have decided to erect a rest resort. The committee has decided to proceed with the erection of a froni ornamental fence, back and sidefences, and band rotunda. It was also decided to erect the ilag-staff at a suitable spot, and effect other improvements.

The King of England has awarded the King of the Belgians the Distinguished Flying Cross for gallantly flying over the lines iji a British aircraft to personally reconnoitre the enemy’s position.. This fact could not he disclosed during the war. The Duke of York will go to Brussels to confer the medal.

Mr William Fox, the great picture producer, recently executed a new contract, under which he pays William Farnum an annual salary of 780,000 dollars, making him by far the highest-salaried star in the film world. William Farnum appears at the Royal on Monday in “Wolves of the Night."—Advt.

A cruel act was perpetrated recently at the bridge across Cox's Creek, from Herne Bay (says the Auckland Star). Some individual who wanted to get rid of a fox terrier tied the animal to a pile of the bridge and left it there to drown when the tide came in. Unfortunately the person’s name is not known, otherwise there would be more heard about such a wanton act of cruelty.

The various carnival queen conn mittees are working enthusiastically to raise funds for their several candidates. Art union tickets, voting tickets, rosettes, and various forms of entertainment are being provided to gather in the shekels for 'the town beautifying scheme. The Sports Queen Committee are doing good business at their stall in Maiff Street to-day. It is impossible to dodge these enterprising money gatherers. The Maoris are arranging a big entertainment on behalf of their queen. A teacher at one of the district high schools of Taranaki, wishing to give tin object lesson to a class of infants, secured a number of tadpoles, and proceeded to explain the metamorphosis from the tadpole to a frog. To indicate its growth, she held her hands closely together, gradually dra wing them apart, slating that the tadpole grew and grew, etc. The frog grew far too'large for one five-year-old youngster, who startled the class bv saying: “Aw, go on; don’t make it too hot, miss!"

Rear-Admiral lluz, the new commandant of the New York Navy Yard, declared tit Cincinnati that if the United States slops building battleships it will be because some other nation lias not money to build and wants the United States to quit. “I know some of you will catch your breath if I say we must have a navy large enough to fight England,’’ he said. “In England there is open discussion of what kind of navy is needed in case of trouble with the United States. We must know in the navy against whom we are to build ships so that we can construct different ships against Japan than against England."

At Wellington yesterday, Henry Pnus, fishmonger, was fined £2O and costs for selling fish unfit for consumption.

“A certain freezing works are saving £14,000 a year by electric installation,” was an assertion made at a meeting of the Te Awamutu Power Board.

A marine excursion will be held to-morrow to the seaside. Launch leaves wharf at 10 a.in. and 1.30 p.m., returning in evening. Return fare 2/6, children under 12 halfprice.

There is no further development in the waterfront trouble. It is probable that a conference between the employer* and wharf labourers’ executive will be held next week. At Lyttelton the men are working overtime.

At the Auckland Police Court yesterday, two girls named Marga.st Metcalf and Freda Hutchinson, inmates of the Door of Hope, ‘were charged with having unlawfully set fire to the building on February ] 3th. They were remanded for a; week in custody. Ragwort is stated to be growing luxuriantly in the Forty Mile Bush district. The weed is in full bloom, and presents a pretty sight, but farmers, being fully aware of its liability to spread, are working hard to eradicate it.

The Otaki Band commenced operations in May, 1020, with eleven playing members, a number which has been more than doubled within a few months. The sum of £239 has been paid out for instruments, etc., £4O to members for lost time, and other payments made which brought the expenditure to £331 in seven months. Despite this, thq 'Band has a credit balance An the bank of £3B.

The late Mr J. T. M. Hornsby, who died at Carterton on Tuesday last, was born at Hobart, in Tasmania, in 1857. and came to New Zealand in 1874, and was Otago Central as a journalist for some years. He was editor of tho Evening News, Napier, for some time, and was also at one period editor of the New Zealand Times, being connected besides with newspaper enterprises in Christchurch and Wairarapa. It was in 1809, when he defeated Sir Walter Buchanan in the Wairarapa electorate, that he first entered Parliament. Defeated at'the general election of 1902, Mr Hornsby was again returned in 1005. At the 1008 election he once more suffered defeat, but was reelected in 1914. only to be defeated in turn by Mr A. D. McLeod at the last general election. A member of the Liberal Party, with independent tendencies, Mr Hornsby was a speaker and debater of considerable power.