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Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 3, Issue 160, 9 January 1914, Page 3

The birth of some thousands of summer flies was summarily ended in au effective manner hy Major O'Sullivan, Director of Stores, Defence Department, during the recent encampment of mounted specials at the Buckle street barracks, Wellington. With so many horses housed by the barracks and the hot, humid weather prevailing over some weeks, it was anticipated that flies would swarm in the vicinity about Christmas time, Such has not be.n the case, however, and tho reason for their scarcity is that Major O'Sullivan made a free u?c of kerosene oil during tho stay of the specials. All refuse and stagnant water was liberally sprinkled with the oil, so that on some days the yards resembled the surroundings of an oil well. Forty cases of kerosene oil were used in this way. There is a marked scarcity of flies now in the vicinity.

Within the past 10 years the dairy cows of Australia have increased from one million to above two millions. The butter produced in a single year reached about 200,000,0001b. The annual export is valued at between £3,000,000 ami £4,000,000. No rural industry in Australia is more progressive and none pays larger returns to the farmers. The mainstay of dairying is export trade, and easily the largest consumers of Australian butter aboad are the people of the United Kingdom. It might be thought that the expense of carrying butter from Australia to London would be a serious handicap upon butter making in the commonwealth. As a matter of fact, however, the Australian dairy farmer in point of cost, is as close to London as tho dairy farmers of Ireland or Scotland. The actual contract price of shipping butter from either Melbourne or Sydney to London is Ad pur lb.

A somewhat remarkable accident probably unique so far as the now expiring Sydney dancing -season is concerned, occurred at Manly recently (says the Sydney "Sun.") Once upon a time dancing programmes included tlio wait/, the schottische, the lancers, the quadrille, the alborts, the mazurka, the cotillion and polka. Nowadays the programme is made up of the twostep, the one-step and the wait/.. The male partner to the compact was a head taller than his lady. Both danced in the latest styleclose together. They had circled a couple of times —and then the man retired with a cuL tlnoat. In the maze of the two-step his throat was torn by an ornament in his partner's hair. Blood streamed from the wound, and soon his shirt front was drenched. If he had sustained the injury in a boxing contest the police would have stopped the light. As it was, ho had to makr hurried apologies and hasten to the nearest doctor.

Is there snobbery in our small towrs'.' 1 The following paragraph, taken from a Home paper, giving a visitor's impressions of New Zealand, may be of interest to our readers: "Life in New Zealand presents many remarkable aspects, but what will, perhaps, Btrike a visitor most is the peculiar snobbishness to he found in its viliages. In some of these little commuiiitiea many of the residents have nevei been distant for more than a few miles from their own doorsteps, and to their environment is no doubt due die caddishness and smallmindedness that is so noticeable. To an onlooker the sell'-suttieiency of these rural inhabitants is truly diverting. They ;:rc as a rule divided into little seta or cliques, and it would be quite derogatory for Mrs Jones ui .'.o. 1 to speak to Mrs Brown of No. 2. A little experience of the world would be invaluable t<> thea<> good pro-plo in showing them how very small tncy really arc."