LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXII, Issue 35, 24 January 1912, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Steamship officers are (remarks the “Otago Hiuly Times”) somewhat divided in opinion as to which is the most persistent offender at sailing time. The inevitable late passenger usually tumbles on board with his last gasp and in a state of mental flurry, which renders him supremely unconscious of the rude remarks occasioned by his delay, but at times the fair sex is equally provoking in another direction. When bidding friends adieu clown in, the staterooms,! their ■ prolonged leave-taking frequently ends in a wild-scurry to avoid pn.pnforqpd <soa yoyage. Tfie .departure of the Wifiimera on Tuesday: afternoon: last from Port Chalmers .brought to .light no fewer fban ~three fair offenders},. who had remained below .until the gangway had been hauled in, and three times the gangway had to be lowered in order to let the belated visitors ashore. ■

Paraguay, an .inland state, pi, South America, is an exciting country to Jive in, revolutions being engineered there quite frequently, and, so far as the casual observer can discern, for little 01: no reason. Its area, including the ‘‘Chaco” (a part of the country that is little 'known,, and almost entirely undeveloped), is computed at 173,000 square miles and contains a population of about 800,000. The capital, Asuncion, lias a population of about 61,000. The President of the Republic is elected for four years. In November, 1906, General Ferreira was chosen for the high, if risky, position, but in July, 1903, there was a revolution, his Government being overthrown, and Senor Emiliano Gonzalez Nave.ro was oppointed Acting-President. Matters moved more or less, (generally less) smoothly until early in the present year, when there was another revolution which fizzled out after there had been much noise and little killing. Colonel Jara was for'a time Dictator. On the sth July last year Senor Liberate M! Rojas assumed office as President,

A terrible accident happened in Melbourne recently to a young married man, an immigrant, from Palestine, Abraham Schepporon, employed by tho Barnet Glass Rubber Company at Footscray. He was attending to a vat of sulphuric acid, which is used in the process of re-covering rubber, an lie fell in. In Hie vat'was acid to a depth of about 18 inches, and the man’s work necessitated his mounting, a platform around it and leaning over the sides. He either leant too far, or became giddy from the fumes. His shriek as lie fell brought his fellow workers to his aid but the i. was horribly burned. The acid was diluted, otherwise his injuries would liave been immediately-fatal. He was burned from the face to the feet, and tho skin at once began to peel from Ins head and body before relief could be rendered. He was conveyed to Melbourne Hospital, where he was at once put into a special bath and kept there all night, in an endeavour to counteract the effect of the acid.

Shortly after the arrival of the express train at Hawora this morning (says yesterday’s “Star”), a member of the deviation gang working just to the north of the station, reported to Mr. T. Trask, assistant inspector of permanent way, that a man was lying on the line at a curve near where the gang was at work, and had apparently fallen from the train. Mr. Trask at once informed Dr. Campbell, wild happened to be the platform, of the occurrence, and the doctor, accompanied by Mr. W. Shaw, with the station lirst-aid appliances, proceeded to the spot indicated. There a man. whoso occupation is selling papers on the train, was found in a semi-conscious condition, with his left thigh broken, and a nasty contusion on the head. Dr. Campbell rendered first aid, and the injured man was then removed in the amhulanee to the hospital, '.rite man, who has only lately taken up Ids present occupation on this section of the railway, ,was unknown here, hut from the railway pass found in his pocket, his name appears to 1)0 Alfred E. Mills. So far as can bo ascertained no one actually saw the man fall from the train, hut judging from the locality where the accident occurred, and the fact that his bundle of papers was found beside him, it would seem that while crossing between two carriages with his arms full of papers, he had been swung off his balance as the train rounded the curve. Mills was in the employ rf Kooks and Papers, Ltd., and is a married man with a family.

A special meeting of the W.C.T.U. was hold in the Primitive Methodist Schoolroom on Tuesday afternoon. Miss Hughes, who is so as a good lecturer, w.ll he passing timing!! Taranaki shortly to take the Tasmanian "bout from Wellington. Sho is about to visit Australia, Japan, America, and England, expecting to be away some years. She has been asked to give her famous lecture on Egypt and Palestine in New Plymouth and Eltham, and has promised, also, to give it in Stratford if a suitable night can be arranged. A local gentleman who lias heard it praises it very highly .The date will be advertised as soon as arranged.

A cablegram published recently stated that a strike of the ballet girls in tiie middle of the performance at the Opera House, Pans, necessitated a dispersal of the audience. Although the immediate cause of the strike was a demand that the wages should be increased from £l2O to £l5O, the strikers have other grievances. M. destine, the new maitre de ballet at the Paris opera, recently issued another rigorous edict which lias caused an outcry among the ballerinas (states a late London paper). After promulgating an edict some months ago in 7 troducing the long ballet skirt, he has now decreed that jewels must not be worn in ballets in which they are not in keeping with the costume. In future peasants on the stage will not be allowed to wear diamond necklaces and jewelled earrings. Marvellous powers of endurance are ascribed to a cat which, with visions of free immigration, stowed away in a packing-case in Sj'dney about two weeks ago, and came to light at Wellington on Tuesday last, borne heavy cases of machinery, which had been lying on the wharf since their arrival by the Moeraki on the previous. Wednesday, were being transhiped to the Monowai for southern ports, when a plaintive “meow” caused search to be made. The. cat was discovered ensconced in a creamery vat, and soon formed the central figure of a crowd of Harbour Board officials and others. At E shed a saucer of milk was forthcoming, for the cat had still enough energy left to take a few laps. The case, which was secifrely fastened, left Sydney last Saturday week, and, presuming it was packed several days beforehand, the venturesome animal hud subsisted for two weeks—possibly longer—without food or water. The quarantine regulations have been waived in the case of the adventurous cat, which has ben adopted by the storemen at E shed, and will, doubtless, yet do good service in the interests of the Harbour Board. , Referring to the recent cable from Ottawa which appeared a few days ago, stating that. numerous nuggets of gold were found in fowls bred on a farm near Minitonas, an old Wellington resident informs the “Post” that where the Congregational Church now stands on Wellington Terrace, there was a two-acre paddock, with a small creek running tfirougl) it, in the early ’seventies. The occupier of the house on which Mr. A. Lindsay’s residence now stands kept some ducks and poultry, and on one of them being killed trapes of gold, were found in Heaping it. An old Californian and Australian digger,, who ,was a friend of the tfien oqqupier of the property, immediately, propeeded to sink a hole in digger,, fashion,, hnt,,fonfid -no, further traces of the precious,, metal. Old. Wellingtonians will.remerober that at Baker’s,,Hill,, near the.timpel .on the Karori Road, traces of" gold were found, and for a short period a couple of hundred men and boys tried their luck on “the diggings,” but they were little more successful than the man ■who slink a hole on Wellington Terrace'. ‘ " ’ ’

Here is a hint from the “Leader” for a summer evening frolic. When dancing is out of the question there is plenty of fun to be got out of the peanut hunt.- The game-may not savour, of novelty, but it almost always takes well if the peanuts are judiciously scattered about. ‘ Even in a sinall garden they take a good deal, of finding, but the game is really at its best if the hunt can be carried'on within a small paddock. The players are divided off into pairs; and each pair is provided with a small lantern, which one of the pair carries at the end of a small .stick. The prize, of course, goes to the pair who find the most peanuts, and you could hardly ask for a more picturesque party, than one consisting of a few dozen young people all searching for something by the light of a Chinese lantern. Another good lantern game is proverbs. Each pair of players is provided with half a proferb. The o+her half is put in some prominent place in the garden or on the verandah, and by. the time the players are in full cry there is little room for any kind of shyness amongst guests.

Government horses, according to the Crown Law Officer, are exempt from seizure under the Impounding Act, because the Crown is not bound by the Act. Recently the Onslow Borough Council (Wellington) received a communication from headquarters, Palmerston North, stating that a horse belonging to the Defence Department, which had been liberated by some person unknown, had been impounded at Kaiwarra, and the sum of £1 3s had to oe paid for its release. Tho Crown Law Department had been consulted, and the above opinion was expressed, with the following elaboration by the Crown Law Officer:—“Section 91 qf the Defence Act, 1909, Il9Wever, makes the matter additionally cleasr. I am of opinion that the amount paid in this case is recoverable either from tho local holy ccncerned or from the poun Ikeopor, Put 'would suggest that if the matter, is put before the local authority by letter it will no doubt at once make a refund.” Councillors were of the opinion that Government horses should bear an official brand if they were not to lie impounded. It was decided, after discussion, to reply to headquarters to the effect that the poundkeeper was not aware when he seized the horse that it belonged to the Crown. The loss of brooches, gold and otherwise, in New Plymouth, appears to bo absolutely appalling, says tho “News.” Recently a gentleman 1 found a brooch in the town, and at once brought it to this office. An advertisement, without description, was inserted, and people ivho had lost tiie brooch began to claim it at once. One person assured a worker in the office that her brooch certain was as ho described, having a brown stone in the centre, blue sapphires at each corner, and two missing. Other enquiries—there were eight altogether—gave descriptions varying from that of a small silver nondescript article of jewellery, worth eighteenpeiice, to a gorgeous affair with many diamonds. Letters from afar have been received, claiming the brooch, and the poor little thing is still hidden in the safe, undoscribed and unclaimed. As it cannot lie doubted that at least twelve persons have lost this brooch, ultimately it may have to be boiled down and distributed pro rata, the priceless diamonds, rubies, sapphires, amethysts anil other gems being also carefully distributed to the whole of I iie people who are partners in the article.

,'i ji r . J. H. Thompson, land agent, ■reports the sale of Mr. Peter Hancock’s 32 acres on Mountain Hoad. An old offender was this morning arrested by Sergeant McNcely and Constable Mclntosh, on a charge or drunkenness. i, From Mr. .W. G. Malone, the local agent, we have received one of the well-got-np desk memorandxun blocks v ■ issued by the South British Insurance Company. . ’This morning the Borough watercart was not in evidence, notwithstanding the clouds of dust that nen sweeping down Broadway. Somehow S“& to h«ve seen much more . Of our dust-layer during the recoid l month of December, than we have of late, when the dust, and not the lam, i has been in the ascendant. i i A meeting of young, men of the Wesley Church was held on Mondaj evening to discuss arrangements tm SfSvcst festival to be held on Sunday, 25th, and Tuesday, 27th of February. The meeting was a very enthusiastic one, and present indications are that the festival will be one of the most successful ever held by tne Wesley Church. , The Court list for Friday’s sitting of the Magistrate’s Court- includes twenty-two civil summonses, live judgment summonses, two informations xoi ) failing to register deaths, and one affiliation case. It should be explained that none of the actual members of the carnival are in any way concerned with these breaches of the law. Considerable interest is being shown in the forthcoming gift sale and competition to be held on Tuesday, February 27th, in aid of Wesley Church ‘funds. The young men, who are preparing a jumble stall, are rashly challenging the Ladies Guild (general stall) to raise the largest amount. Promises on botli sides arc coming in rapidly. • Summonses were served to-day on nine Stratford youths, arising out of the visit to Eltham of the Fire Brigade’s carnival. There are several charges of obscene language in a railway carriage, one for stealing a bottle of sweets from an Eltham confectioner’s shop, and tho remainder for creating a disturbance fit the Eltham Town Hall. ' Mr. H. B. Irving played at Eltham last night, the new hall being crowded to the very doors. From first to last Hamlet held his audience spellx bound. At times far back in the hall, one could hear the very breathing of the player. It is difficult to imagine anything so fin© and noble as Irving’s interpretation of’ tho part. Stratford people, at least, who went to considerable inconvenience to view the;performance, have no reason for regret.