LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXV, Issue 88, 21 April 1913, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The Oddfellows’ hold their usual euchre party in the Forester’s Hall this evening. There will be good prizes, and the supper will be provided by Mrs Brooking.

A London paper held a competition amongst its readers, offering £IOO for the best term to express the turn of a new American comedian. The first prize of 25 guineas went to “the Funbeam,” the second of 10 guineas to “the Mirthquake,” and the third of 5 guineas to “the Newmourist.”

At New Brighton on Tuesday (says the Press) Mr Allen Boone had rather an exciting experience with his National racing car. Going at the rate of about 80 miles an hour, something happened to the shearing gear, with the result that the car became unmanageable, and ran into the sea. Mr Boone was obliged to get a team of horses to pull the car out. Fortunately, no one was hurt.

Mr W. Warwick, an engineer, who is at present employed at the foundry, Temora, New South Wales, has invented what he terms an expansion train. The invention, it is claimed, will enable trains of the different States to be run on the same lines without making any material alteration to the existing gauges. He has submitted the matter to the State Government for consideration.

W. A. Mixon’s pen of White Loghorns have made a world’s record which will take a lot of beating, for hy taking the records of the leading pens in the Christchurch test to the full lifty-two weeks (the competition actually lasted for only 51 weeks) the winners have been able to shell out 1632 eggs for the year, or 272 per bird. In the fifty-two weeks the winning ducks have 1493 to their credit, or over 248 per duck.

The. announcement that General Bramwell Booth is a candidate for the Nobel Peace Prize is somewhat misleading (says a London paper). General Booth has merely been recommended for that honour by one of the bodies qualified to make the recommendation. As the work of the Salvation Army as one of the main grounds of the recommendation it is possible that the prize, which amounts to rather less than £BOOO, may be awarded to the organisation of which General Booth is the head. By the terms of Dr Nobel's bequest “an institution or an association” may be the recipient of the Peace Prize,

Dr. W. H. D. Rouse, headmaster of the Perse School, Cambridge, addressing a meeting of the Heretics Society on “The Principles of Education,” declared that school had left on him a single impression, olfl ccptiug one—when his headmaster them, as a great surprise, that he had just been in France and had whilst there that the French language was useful as a medium for ordering dinner. That one flash of reality had left its mark on him; the rest had gone. An extraordinary incident nessed during one of the sorfls of concerts that Paderewski is now giving in Poland. The famous pianist is now in his native land, and his countrymen have been manifesting the most intense enthusiasm over his performances. In Warsaw one evening recently, Paderewski met with a tremendous reception. Several of the audience brought bouquets and wreaths of red and white flowers, decorated with amaranth streamers, hut as these are the Polish colours, the Russian police seized the floral tributes and cut off the streamers before allowing the flowers to bo( handed up to tlie platform.

Ihe Nelson Colonist says a bullock one morning recently being landed from the steamer Kennedy caused a great stir at the Port. The animal, after being slung ashore, dash od back from the race on board the steamer, and after causing a great commotion on the deck jumped over the seaward bulwarks into the harbor. A boat’s crew put off in pursuit, and the maddened animal got under the wharf as its pursuers came up to it. It then made for the boat, and, beirg in shallow water, was able to get on board, the crew beating a hasty retreat on to the wharf piles. The bullock plunged across the boat, capsizing it, and finally was drowned, the carcase being towed ashore.

T!io Levin Chronicle tells a pretty little story of the unsophisticated Native. A Maori residing in the district had a very line horse, and although tempting offers had been made for the horse, he refused to part with him. On going, out one moiling he found that the animal was dead, and aftei * shedding a few tears over his bohio. ne decided to leave him where he was and walk to town. At the hotel he met several friends to whom'he said: “ton know that horse mine (“Stick Ldlie”); well I going to make to raffle.” So a raffle was started, and about forty tickets were sold at £1 each. When'the winning ticket was drawn out of the’ box it was found that another Native was the holder. r I he two ■Natives went to get the horde, ahd on arriving'’at the paddock they saw ’ the old owner’s little hoy crying; and iVlieri 'they asked him what was the matter lid said, “Stick Lollid dead.” l The' 1 uhiMier of the raffle then said to the one that owned the horse, “You te rogue, you know te horse he dead.” “Oh, yes,” he said, “I know he dead-;’ never mind 1 give you £2 and you say nothing to the other fellare!”

In Middlesex Hospital there is a little sweet-faced’lad,, aged five, who has been there for three*months, and tias won the affection ,of everybody who has entered the ward. A few days ago he was found sobbing his little heart out. Pressed to tell what was the matter, he said: “I’m so lonely. It’s my birthday. Muvver hasn’t come, and nobody’s thinking of me.” At once presents came to him from all over the ward. Children gave him their dolls and games, the nurses brought him new toys and sweets, flowers were placed beside his cot, and in the afternoon he had a tea party “all Jus very own.” He fell asleep with a sigh of content after the day of his life. Next day his mother appeared, and the nurses upbraided her for her forgetfulness. “But,” she said, with genuine surprise, “this is visiting day.” “Of course; but we could have stretched a point on Frankie’s birthday.” “Who told you yesterday was Frankie’s birthday?” “Frankie.” “The little liar!” And the mother was right—by months.

Speaking of the solitary return to Ids Antarctic base of Dr. Mawson, after losing his two comrades, Lieutenant Ninnis and Dr. Hertz, Sir Ernest Shackleton is reported by the Daily Mail as saying: “A portion'of the press in speaking of the Manson expedition calls it the Mawson Antarctic tragedy. Undoubtedly, the deaths of Lieutenant Ninnis and Dr. .Hertz are sad, hut they were the outcome of accidents which come in the ordinary course in all Polar exploration. Apart from these two accidents the expedition seems to me to have boon a particularly brilliant one. When the story conies to be written of Mawson’s journey it will, to my mind, be a fascinating one, for 1 can imagine the lonely struggle lie made, bis two companions dead, moving northwards through blizzard, snow and fog over crevasses for three weeks, on his lonely way. Knowing Mawson as 1 do, I am not surprised at his achievement. To a man of loss equable temperament, or less determination, the result would have been fatal. One of the most striking- things in the wireless message received is that Dr. Mawson fa one of his journeys discovered a new coastline 300 miles south of where the Antarctic coastline is supposed to lie. This is one of the greatest discoveries made of recent years. While regretting the death of these two young explorers we feel that their work will not he lost.” Ladies! Warner’s Corsets are com-fortable-guaranteed so—they shape fashionably. The bones cannci rusr or can the Fabric tear. Order i»b;va! drapers,

Thursday fixtures are : —Golf Club, opening day; Stratford Rifle Club, hual for Masters’ Cup; Stratford Football Club, probably a game with Tariki.

The surveying of the Tc Roti route of the Opunake Railway commences to-day. Mr H. A. Hill, chief chainman, was in Stratford recently securing his assistants, and Mr F. S. Dyson, assistant-engineer, who will be in charge of the survey, will arrive in Stratford shortly.

The tender of Mr A. Burrell, of Hawera, has been accepted for the Public Works Building at Stratford. Mr Burrell was the successful tenderer in the first instance, but, owing to some misunderstanding, fresh tenders were called.

According to the “Star” there is a movement afoot to urge on the Government the advisableness of arranging for Hawera to be made a circuit town for the Supreme Court, and the committee of the Chamber of Commerce will probably be asked shortly to express an opinion on the subject.

“The finest dressed men seen in Melbourne 1” said Australians of the officers and men of the battleship New Zealand. There is no gainsay-

ing the personal attractiveness of these British sailors (says the Sydney Sim), j You would think the New Zealand had been specially provided with a beauty crew. From the winsome looking middies to the veteran C.P.O’s they have the clear eyes, and clean-cut features and self-reliant poise of Britishers at their best.

The germs of consumption, diphtheria, or influenza may lurk in the mouthpieces of telephones, and healthy individuals touching the mouthpieces with their lipe or hands may unconsciously contract any one of these diseases. One cannot, medical authorities assert, over-estimate the danger which the public runs in this way. Few better culture beds for tubercle bacilli can be imagined than some telephone boxes. The atnjcspllere in them is humid, and darkness encourages the breeding of germs. Many people when using a public telephone actually press their lips into the mouthpiece. Others touch the mouthpiece with their hands. Either of these practices is very dangerous. For the safety of the public, it is held*that some method of disinfection should be employed, not only as far as public telephones are concerned but also in regard to those privately owned. i I- •

• ' ' ■ » ' Sergeant Dougan, of Port Chalmers, is to. be, complimented (States the Qtago Daily Times), on the manner , in, which,, ho has solved the mystery , touching, flie identity of the body i. j[. which was found in, the, bush; near the „, |, Pqr,t Cbuliuers Cemetery. The only j ~ pujcofi ;(j)fevidence, which tHe police had to work on were a book—“ War and the Women,” by Max Pemberton which was found near the body and , the fragments of a photograph. An w .,, , examination of the book showed the almost undescipherable stamp mark of a bookseller, and, under the microscope, the name of Misses Grave and Gray, of the Arcade Circulating Libt:+ rary; was made out. ■ Meanwhile the tiio . fragments of the photograph had been iv i pasted oh), a' sheet of paper, and an . excellent presentment of an elderly, ; i - dmll-dreased man was brought to light. The book was taken to Misses Grave and Gray, who looked up their lists; and found that it had been, lent to a Mr Robert Cole, who was boarding at the Glasgow Restaurant. The photograph was then shown to the manager at the restaurant, who at once recognised it as that of Cole. The deceased, who was 77 years of age, had worked for Mr Nisbet, painter, of St. Andrew street, whose .employment he left on the 30th November last without saying where he was going. He went away from the restaurant a few days before Christmas, saying he would return in a week. A letter addressed to him at the restaurant was opened by the supei intendent of police. It was from his sister,'who lives at Portsmouth, England. and contained a Christmas card.