LOCAL AND GENERAL

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLVII, Issue 2833, 13 January 1925, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Mr E. Healey returned to Foxton last week after an extensive business trip through Australia.

A farmer informs us that there is a demand for good farm labourers in the county at the present time.

During the month of December four head of stock were impounded and driving fees to the amount of 5/- collected. The safe stolen from the Lower Hull railway station was discovered in the city last Thursday. The back bad been chiselled out and £4O removed, but the books were left. Wednesday's Otaki Mail says: — There is at present a coating of snow on Mount Hector, a most- annual thing for this time of the year. There is only one borough, Eketaliuna, in the North Island, with a population of less than 1,000, while in the South Island (here are seventeen each with populations of less than 1,000.

Motherly lady to small boy who had just dropped in: “Would you like a piece of shortbread, dear?” Small (Plunket reared): “No thank you: I would like a piece of long bread; they don’t give m,e much at home!” —A Carterton fact, says the News.

A district farinjer informs us that up till recently at a certain freezing works the butchers were putting through an average of 20 lambs per hour. After a visit by a certain Labour leader, the killing dropped to 13 per hour. As the men are paid at per 100 he could not account for the alleged go-slow policy on their pari.

As an illustration of the “terrific’ speed at which some of our trains jiiq nut, an incident which occurred last week is of interest. A Maori who was a passenger on the last (rain from Napier to Waipawa alighted at To Hanke, and as the train moved out from the station realised he had left a parcel behind him. He rushed across to his home, eauglil a horse, overtook (he train ai Opapa and secured his parcel.— Waipawa “Mail.”

The medicinal properties of manuka are well-known, and it is said to alleviate cases of dropsy. A prescription recommended by a herb doctor of New Zealand was to make an-infusion by placing a handful of manuka, twigs and flowers in a pint of boiling water, and drink half a cupful six times a day. It is said that the plant contains oil of cinnamon, but this has been disputed by botanists. It really does have an aroma similar to cinnamon.

An ideal way of spending the holidays was adopted by a Hamilton family. They set out in a large caravan drawn by two horses for Te Aruba and Waihi beach, where they spent some weeks. The main vehicle was a large wagon, with adjustable hoods, of the motor car type, and many patent devices for the disposal < f gear, which permit the interior being turned into a cosy room for use in the day time and evenings. All meals are cooked by the wayside, and a “trailer” (a small wagon) carries water and stores.

Something in the nature of a plague of caterpillars has visited certain parts of the Fordell district (says the Wanganui Herald). When the pest is noticed the farmers lose no time in getting the Jjinders to work. The caterpillars clinib up the stalk of the oat and nip it through, the seed portion falling to the ground. It is also noticed that once (hey have been through a crop, stock do not eat the straw too freely. It is some five years since an invasion of caterpillars took place in that district.

The unprecedented tourist traffic has provided some amusing incidents at Taupo, states a correspondent. Numbers of visitors have had to seek sleeping accommodation in the police cells, and in the historic courthouse dating to Maori war days. Others have slept in sheds and in motor ears under the pine trees. At Ataimuri, after all the accommodation was taken up, 19 visitors bivouacked in cowsheds. Seven hundred visitors stayed at Wnirakei in six days. The motor service companies all report record Ira (Tie.

A correspondent of the Christchurch Press states that the recent demolition of an oat stack in Ruaputm dispossessed no fewer than 25 and 30 young stoats. It is believed all were killed, the parents escaping by taking refuge in an adjoining stone heap. How the animals live is a matter for conjecture, as no rabbits are to be found in any number within two miles of the slack. A farmer in the neighbourhood who lost in one night 47 choice pullets volunteers a few strong opinions which be thinks might help to solve the problem.

For long the belief of superstition that the rata vine grows out of a grub has prevailed among country people and a visitor to Waikaka returned to Invercargill with a curious trophy which seems to prove that the belief is well-founded, says the Southland Times. The theory is that the grub bores its way into the ground and presumably dies there, and from its dead body the vine shoots forth. The find shows a mummified grub about two inches in length. It lias a serrated body end the bead is quite (dear and a portion of the bind part had been broken off, and from it there shoots out an unnfistakabfc tendril of the rata vine. Botanists or scientific observers can more accurately determine, but certainly the average man would say that both tlie grub and the rata vine are unmistakable.

You have tried toasted bread, toasted bacon, toasted cheese and, possibly, toasted kidneys, and know how good they all are. But have you ever smoked toasted tobaccos? The toasting process, as you know, develops flavour in the ease of all the above mentioned edibles —and it has precisely the same effect in the ease of tobacco. You can easily satisfy yourself as to the truth of this assertion because our New Zealand grown tobaccos are all toasted. That i.s one reason why they appeal so strongly to smokers. Another reason is that they contain (comparalively) but little nicotine, and may consequently be smoked all day long without producing those unpleasant effects that frequently follow the prolonged smoking of imported tobaccos, all of them (more or less) loaded with nicotine. For a cool, sweet and fragrant smoke try Riverhead Gold, mild; Navy Cut (Bulldog label) medium, or Cut Plug No. 10 (Bull’s Head) full strength. There i.s no mischief in any of these brands and the rapidly increasing demand for them is the most convincing proof of their popularity. 21

At last night’s Borough Council meeting accounts amounting to £955 1(5/5 were passed tor payment.

A team race between four warblinded men of St. Dunstan’s and four English champion swimmers who were blindfolded, was one of the features at the Broomsfield Swimming Club Gala. The brigade turned out to a rubbish fire in the Avenue last night. We may point out that, residents are liable to prosecution for lighting fires on or about their premises without a permit.

At last night’s Borough Council meeting the Inspector of Nuisances wrote asking for leave to prosecute a Main St. resident for ignoring a requisition to clean up filth and rubbish on his property. The request was granted.

Japan has purchased ten big German Rohrbach all-metal seaplanes equipped with twin RollsRoyce engines, totalling 700 horsepower. They are to fly from Denmark to Japan across Russian waterways in April.

Some casual methods appear to exist at the port of New Plymouth in regard to catering for shipping, says an exchange. The schooner Holimvood, which recently arrived (here from Australia, had to wait for a week before she could be unloaded.

An interesting find was made on Tuumotu Island, near Gisborne, where an ancient cannon, closely resembling the one found on the Great Barrier Reef, and believed to have belonged to Captain Cook’s vessel Endeavour, has been discovered.

Information has been received at Nelson that the Government has derided to increase the bonus per ton on Onakaka iron from 12/(5 to 30/-. This will enable the company to compete successfully with iron produced by coloured labour in other countries.

Robert Wishart, 30, a boilermaker employed by the Public Works Department, was working on the roof of a tank at Calliope Dock, Auckland, on Saturday, when ho slipped and fell 35 feet, striking a plank, to the steel floor. He broke Ids left leg and left arm.

Those present a! last night’s Borough Council meeting were Ilis Worship the Mayor (John Chrystall Esq.) and Crs. Bryant, Smith, Ross, Thompson, Parkin, Adams and Walker.

There was another large influx of v isitors to the local seaside on Sunday. On the ocean beach a party with a drag fishing net sought unsuccessfully to capture fish at low tide and attracted quite a crowd of interested spectators. A slight shower fell in the afternoon and it was surprising how quickly the beach became deserted.

‘‘Their approach on a gentle breeze was heralded by a sound like the distant humming of :i (tax mill stripper,” said a seaside visitor to our reporter in reference to the plague of mosquitoes which visited the locality on Sunday night. “In the house one would have thought a swarm of bees was on the move. I have never previously met. with such ferocious and voracious little insects. Sleep for some hours was impossible. The only relief obtained was by subsequently smoking them out by burning insect powder."

“In some small churches the minister’s wife is looked upon as a sort of unofficial deaconess, ’ said the Rev. F. McDonald, of Foxton, at the induction of a deaconess at St Andrew’s Church, Palmerston N. In such cases, he went on to say, the wife of the minister had to attend to works of charity, the sick and multitudinous other matters, as well as her own household and bring up a faultily. “It is amazing how they do it, but. they succeed, and are always perfectly cool and collected, he added. He hoped that the congregation of St. Andrew’s would not leave everything to their new deaconess but that they would continue to assist wherever possible in her work amongst the people.

Japanese agents have been buying an assortment of live stock in Canada, including sheep, pigs, chickens, Airedale and wire-haired terriers. The most important purchase, however, was in pedigree cattle. The six-year-old Holstein Friesian eow, Uoycroft, Sergio Walker, was recently bought with six other head, for shipment to Osaka. This cow weighs 3,0001 b. and is claimed to be tin world champion for her production of milk and Imtterfat. A champion bull, three heifers, and two cows were also bought in Eastern Canada for shipment to Japan. Holsteins are stated to be best suited for Japan.

The attention of a Maori Hill resident when proceeding towards Dunedin was arrested by a commotion among a flock of starlings, the number of which lie estimated at five or six hundred, states a correspondent of the “Lyttelton Times," Ho was not kept long in suspense as to the cause of the noisy gathering as a weasel ran from the long grass into the middle of the road. The starlings set up a vigorous and combined attack upon the animal, and no matter in what direction the weasel sought to make its escape, it was swooped down upon by a number of birds. After a few minutes’ fighting the attackers retired to positions on neighbouring fences and other coigns of vantage to view the result ol: their work, and an examination showed the weasel to be dead. It would be interesting to know if it is customary for starlings to attack weasels. Tf so keepers of poultry will be distinctly gratified .

The funeral of the 'late Mr L. E. Pigott, of Moutoa, took place on Sunday afternoon and was attended by a large-number of relatives and friends of the deceased. The Rev. W. H. Walton officiated at the graveside. *

“I can say what probably no other local business ffian can say in reference to his turnover on Saturday,” said a local business man to our representative. “The whole of my customers paid cash for goods and there was no drop in the turnover.”

The love of gardening is sometimes patronymic. One of the hobbies of our old townsman, and inspected octogenarian. Mr C. Spring, is a life-long hobby in gardening. Probably such exercise accounts for his physical fitness. Anyhow, he has a grandson at Kawakawa who follows in his footsteps. A recent issue of the Northern Luminary states that Ernest Spring topped the list of competitors in a home garden competition with 81 points. This lad is a son of Mr F. Spring, who is on the staff of our Northern contemporary.