LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Putaruru Press, Volume IV, Issue 140, 8 July 1926, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The Waiuku News fired a shot at random the other day, and made a bull’s eye. Just one week before the extensive fire took place in Waiuku the News, speaking of the inquiry of the Te Awamutu Borough Council of the local town board as to its opinions regarding fire boards, said that what a town like Waiuku required was not a fire board but fire bricks.

How the lowly cow, like motor cars, pianos, radios and gramophones, can be purchased on the instalment plan was told to the Ontario Legislature recently by Hon. J. S. Martin, Minister of Agriculture. To aid the dairying industry in Northern Ontario, he stated, plans had been put into effect by the Government whereby a farmer could buy a cow for 35 dollars cash, and the balance at three dollars per month.

Ringworm is prevalent amongst Christchurch school children at the present time (says the Lyttelton Times), and youngsters who have suffered from the complaint and have not been able to secure a negative blood test are being compelled to remain away from school. Dr. T. E. Telford, Medical Officer of Health for Canterbury and Westland, states that those suffering from ringworm should not be allowed to come into contact with others, as it is a highly-infectious condition.

A correspondent writes in a city paper : “ While visiting Auckland recently I met a young man who, with his wife, used to work for me on the farm. Their pay -was £lO a month and a free house and their job was looked on locally as a good one. Now, with just their hands as capital, they are earning £9 per week between them in the city, 'which amount is quite as much as i make for the work of myself, my wife and three young ones, and the" £SOOO I have sunk in the farm and stock. Am I going to ask my son to stop on the farm? I am not.”

Dr. Elizabeth Gunn, Medical Inspector of Schools, stated at New Plymouth that she had never seen in New Zealand cases of malnutrition due to want of food. The cases in New Zealand were caused by wrong feeding. Children nowadays in many cases must have what their parents have, and no regard is paid to the suitability of such diet for the children’s growing organs. “ You would be surprised,” said the doctor, “ if you spent a day at a school during medical inspection and heard parents of these poorly-nourished, badlypostured, anaemic - looking children saying, ‘ They won’t drink milk and don’t like vegetables—l find it very hard to feed them.’ An application of a little ‘ hunger sauce,’ or a little more discipline from parents, and these children would eat and like the foods they now refuse.”

According to a contributor to an Australian paper the most unpopular man in the Waikato dairying district to-day is the cocky who blew the gaff on his mates. Up till recently the dairy companies always returned to the consignor a can of cream which contained a rat, mouse, or any other foreign body, and charged him full freight both ways. It often happened that the cream was not really bad, wherefore Strawberry’s thrifty'owner would merely remove the superfluous object and return the can to the factory with the next cream consignment. But some loose-tongued person let the rat out of the can, as it were, and now the companies are taking no chances. The grader still sends back the can as before, but he has first been instructed to chuck in a good handful of red or blue raddle and give the mixture a stir up. There’s no chance of giving that cream another fly.

The principle of using profits from trading- departments for the easing of rates was Questioned very sharply by Cr. R. McKeen, while speaking at Miramar. The Mayor, he said, had been faced with financial problems and had borrowed last year £2O 000 from the electric lighting department, rowed, but was taken, confiscated, and This year the £20,000 was not borthe nroblem was solved. Notwithstanding the greater capital burden uDon the department., as a result of the change-over, and the great expenditure upon plant, the lighting, heating -and other rates paid by consumers were sufficient to bring about yearly nrofits of £20.000. and. this year, £19,000. The principle of using such profits to keen down rates, started bv the present Mayor, would, he did "ot doubt, be carried on in the future. But the principle was wrong: if a reduction w°s to be made, it should be to the r-'-'-n ->nd most Moselv connected with the department, the consumers.

A matter which will engage the attention of Sir Joseph Ward this session is the need for a direct and regular steamer service between Bluff and Melbourne. “ I think every effort should be made to get such a service,” he told a representative of the Dominion, “ and T will certainly bring the matter up in the House as soon as a suitable opportunity arises.” He added that bo thought there should he a weeklv direct service from Melbonrno to all ports between Lvttelton and Bluff. He thought the lack of such a service was having an undesirable effect on the development of the whole of the South Island, particularly as vogarded trade and immigration. “Of course.” he said. “ one cannot exnoct the steamer companies to mn their services at a loss. but. I think that in a vital matter like this | the Government should be prepared 1 to grant a. suKsidv if it. proves neceseary. At off events, it is mv intention to urge such a course upon them.”

“ The Midnight Express ” is a gripping tale of the shining rails, with a full-steam-ahead action. The film will be screened next Saturday and is stated to be the most exciting railway story ever filmed.*