Manawatu Herald SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 1928. LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLIX, Issue 3753, 11 February 1928, Page 2

Manawatu Herald SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 1928. LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The Pahiatua Swimming Clrb have altered the date of their Second carnival to March 3rd. Thejr original date, February 25th, claslied with the Foxton fixture.

According to statistics gazette d on Thursday, the total wheat yield •for the Dominion for the 1927-28 i season should approximate 9,200,000 bushels, as compared with an actual yield of 7,952,442 bushels for the 1926-27 season.

At the Wellington Supreme Court on Thursday, Albert Goodman,' of Trentham, horse trainer, was acquitted of a charge of causing bodily injury to Percy John Aldridge and Norman Parata by negligent driving of a motor-car on the road to Upper Hutt. At the Palmerston Supreme Court on Thursday, after a retirement of 21 hours, the jury in the case wherein Frank Laurena Farr, taxi-driver, of Palmerston North, was charged with, negligently driving a. motorcar, thereby causing the death of Jeremiah Brosnan, returned with a verdict of not guilty.

The road report of the Wellington Automobile Club, for this week states that the road Wellington io Shannon and Palmerston North: Good. Wellington fo Foxton arid Palmerston North: Good. Foxton to Bulls: Loose metal and pot holes. Bulls to Taihape: Good. Wanganui to isLw Plymouth: Good all the way. New Plymouth to Te Ivuiti: Very fair condition.

The New Zealand Rugby Union, at the request of the New Zealand Olympic Council, has agreed to play an exhibition match in Wellington just prior to the All Blacks sailing for South Africa. The funds will go towards the expenses of sending the New Zealand team to the Olympic Games. Mr. A. Mercer, of- Wanganui, has been appointed as baggage man for the South African tour.

Owing to the hot weather the, Dunedin butcher shops are finding business very slack just now (states the Star). Naturally, people are loth to eat hot foods under the present conditions, and for housewives to prepare it means a domestic grilling which nobody would willingly face. The fruit diet is extremely popular, and when meat is used at all it is generally of the cold variety, accompanied by liberal helpings of salad and tomatoes.

The Charitable Aid Officer, Mr. F. Aisher, in the course of his report to the Hospital Board on Thursday, stated that Charitable Aid in Palmerston North was still fairly heavy but in other parts of the district was normal. The report viewed with concern the number of men out of employment. During the month, 164 rations had been issued to 69 persons in Palmerston North at a cost of £4l Bs. Twenty-three persems in need of assistance had solicited aid during the month but only nine had warranted this being given.

A few days ago a Taranaki angler caught a two-pound trout that had apparently been savagely attacked by an eel. Deep rips in the flesh just above the trout’s tail showed that the fish had escaped after a hard struggle. Another angler says he recently saw an actual tussle between a trout and an eel. The latter was about 51b. in weight and the trout a three-pounder. Xhe eel had seized its prey from underneath and was shaking it like a terrier shakes a rat. The trout fought gamely for freedom, but the eel eventually pushed the trout out on to the bank, where it soon succumbed. The victor retained its hold and would probably have attempted to devour the trout, although the latter was much too large to be swallowed whole, had not the watching angler been able to creep up close to the contestants. With his gaff lie secured the eel, which he quickly despatched.

Sunday was the hottest day so far this summer in Wairarapa, 91.5 degrees Fahrenheit being the shade temperature. On Monday the reading at 1 o’clock was 85 degrees. Prize-winners at the last Labour Social Ul lib’s euchre tournament were as follows:—Mesdames Griffin, Cotter and Mr. Fenton, and Messrs W. Brown, G. Mounsey and Hirini.

A dog came to an untimely end in Main Street yesterday morning. While fighting with some other canines it ran beneath a lorry wheel and was crushed. The wolf instinct in one of the other dogs was aroused as it returned to the attack on the dying dog.

Every penny of the 1926-27 rates in New Plymouth, amounting to £48,313 14s, has been collected. It is understood that New Plymouth, in having collected all its rates from 1918 to 1927, is in a unique position. Of the rates for the year ending March 31, 1928, only £924 8s 3d remain outstanding at the present time.

There is every prospect that at tin early date a new moth will be liberated in the Dominion to attack the noxious weed ragwort. This insect, which is named tyria jaeobaeae, has been subjected to rigid tests at the Cawthron Institute, but according to a recent decision of the Noxious Weeds Committee of the Scientific and Industrial Research Council, there will be further tests before liberation is agreed to. A measure of the net gain to population through immigration is afforded, states the Government Statistician, by the appended figures showing the duration of resi-, deuce in New Zealand of those born overseas: Duration of residence (years)—o,lß,sl9; 1, 12,060; 2, 11,150; 3, 9,567; 4, 10,967; 5-9, 29,948; 10-19, 85,508; 20-30, 63,358; 40-59, 69,079; 60 and over, 15,799. A trail of binder twine stretebjr.g throughout three streets in Timaru was the puzzle that faeed a policeman on heat at 11 o’clock the other evening (says the Herald). It is surmised that a farmer, after a visit to the pictures, had started on his homeward journey, unconscious of the fact that some wag had tied fast to a post one end of a roll of twine in the rear of his ear, and that the ear, moving off, had automatically unwound the roll. The Wellington Education Board •is being asked to father a novel competition which should be of great educational value to young New Zealanders. Every school child is invited by some well-known New Zealand bird each month to “make a drawing of me and to refrain from throwing stones at me while I am building my nest.” Substantial prizes are offered for the best pictures. Unfortunately the first, of the series happens to be the long extinct huia. Would-be educators should he more careful.

While bathing in the surf at'Napier the other afternoon one of a party if picnickers who had come from Dannevirke to spend the day by the seaside, a girl about. 15 years of age, had the misfortune to be severely stung on the neck by a jellyfish (reports the Telegraph). Her first intimation that anything was wrong was when she fe'lt something soft and clammy clinging to her neck. The jellyfish then began to sting, whereupon the girl seized it with her hand and tore it away, and in doing so her hand suffered from stings. The girl, who was in extreme pain, was conveyed into the baths and Dr. Waterworth was summoned. The effect of the stings was to raise the skin in large lumps all round the throat . After an injection, however, the pain eased and the girl was able to undertake the return journey to Dannevirke.

Much absorbed in plucking at prettily-coloured flowers, a bird of strange appearance was seen in a garden at Belmont, Auckland, shortly before noon on Saturday, states the “Auckland Star.” It was apparently of tame habits, and remained for some time close to the house. From inside, a gardener watched it. The russet-brown, deepening into chestnut, of its plumage, reminded him of the favourite sougbird of England, the nightingale, 'and lie recognised it as a young one. During last year a pair of nightingales was brought out from England by an Aucklandei and released in the Kohimarama district. In England the nest is made in May, and the young are hatched in June, but it is thought that the breeding would be much later in the year in Auckland, for seasonal reasons.

“What a blessing this smoking is! Perhaps the greatest we owe to the discovery of America.” So wrote the late Sir Arthur Helps, and millions of smokers the world over have doubtless endorsed his words. But great as is our indebtedness to America for giving us the priceless boon of tobacco, the fact remains that practically all the American brands in use to-day contain an excess of nicotine. And that is bad, as any doctor will tell you. It is no less true that the purest tobaccos of all, —i.e., those comparatively free from nicotine are our own New Zealand varieties. They are so ‘pure, in fact, that they may be indulged in with the utmost impunity. The leaf is toasted in the process of manufacture. Hence their delicious flavour and delightful fragrance. They come in several strengths, and are thus adapted to all tastes. You can get them at anv tobacconist’s. Ask for “Riverhead Gold” mild, “Navy Cut” (Bulldog) medium, or “Cut Plug No. 10” (Bullshead), full strength.

The House of Commons in committee agreed to a motion request-, ing the King to direct a’public memorial to the late Earl Haig. A Bill is to be promoted by the London County Council to secure powers to deal with traders who defraud the public by damping coke to make it weigh heavier. We -were misinformed in connection with the appointment of Foxton’s new stationmastes. The successor to Mr H. H. Hornblow is Mr C. J. Symonds, acting relieving officer, of Wellington.

Aged 99 years and nine months, Mrs. Elizabeth Helliar has died at Uminster,' Somerset. She had 20 children, of whom however, only seven survive, the youngest being 62.

At the Manawatu Swimming Carnival held in Palmerston North last evening, C. McKenzie broke the Centre record for 100 yards, by covering the distance in the smart time of 65 3-5 sees., beating Harrison’s lately-established record by a clear second.

A suggestion was recently • put forward that until the present spell of hot weather breaks head teachers and committees be permitted to use their discretion in the matter of dismissing their schools after the morning session. The suggestion, which is supported by the senior inspector, has been adopted by the Wanganui Education Board. Preliminary figures for the Census of 1926 show that persons born in New Zealand now form over three-fourths of the population (exclusive of Maoris) pf the Dominion. In more precise terms, the percentage of native-born was 75.37. If Maoris be included, the New Zealand-born were recorded in the Census as 1,055,000, or 76.51 per cent.

“I attribute my success mainly to the fact that I started business without money, and for that I thank my father and mother. It is the boy who starts from the bottom who becomes the successful business man of the future.” —Thus Mr. W. H. Mor.ris, of England, the well--known car manufacturer, who passed through Wanganui this week on his tour of New Zealand.

At the Levin Juvenile Court yesterday morning before Mr. J. 11. Salmon, S.M., a charge of assault was preferred against the youth who attacked a young lady in a house in Kimberly Road on Saturday night. After hearing the evidence, the Magistrate directed that the aecused.be medically examined and as a result an order was made committing'the youth to a mental hospital, the charge being withdrawn.

At the inquest at Auckland yesterday on a man found drowned in Manukau Harbour, evidence of identification was given by the wife that the body was. that of Enoch Edward Morgan, 42 years of age,. They had two young children. Morgan resigned from the postal department at Hamilton in August last, and had since been travelling for different firms. He was worried over financial difficulties and had borrowed money, which he was not able to repay. The Coroner’s verdict was suicide while in a depressed state of mind.