LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXV, Issue 96, 30 April 1913, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

On April 21 the New Zealand Dairy ‘Association, Ltd., distributed amongst its suppliers the sum of £36,856 Os sd. This payment covered butter-fat supplied during the month of March. The corresponding payment last year was £-33,952 18s 4d. Thus the increase for the month as compared with last year, is £2403 2s Id.

The spot of Flinders (Victoria), where Bass and Flinders landed 100 years ago has been marked by a mineral cairn, which was unveiled by the State Governor on Saturday, 19th inst. Captain Chambers, who represented the navy, declared that Flinders chose for his landing a place that stood unrivalled throughout the world as a naval base.

Mrs Harrison Lee-Cowie, the wellknown temperance lecturer, of Invercargill, speaking at a public welcome tendered to her by the New South Wales alliance, said that the argument that sly-grog selling was prevalent in “no license” districts was a fallacy. The evil was tremendously exaggerated, but in the beginning there had been a little. Heavy fines, and the later punishment of offenders by imprisonment without the option, had since stamped out the evil. Sly-grog selling was now practically extinct in every “no license’ ’area in New Zealand.

The Christchurch gentleman whom the following experience befel, must be closely related to the man who fell in the river and found a gold watch and chain hanging round his neck when he came up. He is a well-known traveller for a big Christchurch firm, and a few days ago he found himself, in company with two other gentlemen, in the commercial room of a Napier hotel. A game of bridge was proposed and, as a fourth player could not be found, they played dummy. Our Christchurch friend had this remarkable experience. The first three times he left the declaration to hk dummy, the latter’s hand contained four aces.

The following letter signed “Relieved in Mind,”’ was received by tin Sydney Town Clerk:—“Please find enclosed £5. This money I owe to tho S.M.C. through a dishonest act which I was a party to, and which I have sincerely regretted since 1 accepted the money. It is not because 1 am afraid of being discovered, but when I accepted the money my conscience told me not—and yet, be cause I was tempted—l fell this time, but with Cod’s help not again. Trusting you will publish this in our daily papers, so as to enable me to cut it out and guard me in my future life—which God may allow me.Yours sincerely, A footnote added:—“More will follow.”

Probably the heaviest contributor 1 in .Germany under the proposed new military levy will be Frau Bertha Ki'upp von Bolen mid Halbach. She is stated—in a recent work by Herr Rudolf Martin—to be the richest person in Prussia, her property being officially valued four years ago at £9,360,000. Next in point of wealth comes Prince Henckel von Donners.mark, with £8,840,000, tlie Duke of

Ujost, with £7,560,000, and Baron von Goldschmidt-Rothschild, with £5,360,000. A curious instance of the way German prosperity is diffused appears from the fact that the largest fortunes are not found in Berlin. The wealthiest citizen of the capital, Herr Ernest von Menddelssohn-Barthokly, ranks as seventeenth on the list of millionaires, even a comparatively small town like Cassel possessing an inhabitant who ranks above him.

Miss Proctor, who is visiting New Zealand in the interests of the Solar Physics Society, in a recent interview mentioned that if football were played on the sun, the lecturer explained, a player who weighed 10 stone on earth would there weigh two tons. As regards the distance of the tarth from the sun, Miss Proctor stated that this was so great that a cannon ball travelling at its usual rate of speed when fired would take nine years to reach the sun, while the sound would arrive there live years later. An American astronomer had complained that if a child in a cradle had a arm long enough for it to play with the surface of the sun, it would never live long enough to know that it had burned its fingers; it would take 150 years for the sensation of burning to be recorded in the child’s brain. Light took four years and four months to come to the earth from the nearest star.

The Sydney Daily Telegraph reports that there is a cow at Clifton, the property of Mr Sam Bishop, which has been milked continuously since 1907, during which time she had not had a calf. Her last calving was when four years old, that being her second calf. She is now ten years old, and still gives a small supply of milk for the family use. She is the offspring of an Alderney cow by a Shorthorn bull, and .shows a good deal of the latter breed in quality and size, while the color is decidedly Channel Island. It may also be stated that this cow is unspeyed, and at no time has she ever been stall-fed, excepting (and rarely) an occasional feed of bran. She is exceptionally docile and contented, as her condition testifies. Mr Bishop says he got her from Moss Vale, and he considers she has returned him over £IOO worth of milk during the six years. This may or may not be a record, but it shows the extraordinary milking qualities posscsssed by this animal. Had Mr Bishop kept, a record of her milk values, the result would no doubt be more surprising; still, as it is, the record is a good one,

The Terra Nova has arrived at Bio de Janeiro. Mr W. Say well has disposed of his Oakdale Stud Farm of 100 acres on the Beaconsfield Road at a satisfactory figure. The Forestry Commission hold a sitting this morning at New Plymouth, the principal matter brought forward being the preservation of the busts-, on the banks of the Mokau river. By’ means of an ingenious instrument, the hydroscope, the human eyesight can penetrate the ocean depths and clearly distinguish objects more than a mile below the surface. The inventor is Signor Pino, who was a schoolmate of Marconi.

The Stratford Association football team will visit Elthara to-morrow, leaving here by 3 o’clock train. The team will be chosen from Way, Smith, T. Gorton, Chadwick, Malcolm, Butchart, A. Gorton, McGlade, Patrick, East, Liddington, Bush, and Townlev.

The Stratford branch of the Church of England Men’s Society /held their annual meeting last night, when a record report was brought down, showing increased membership, and a sound finance. There was a very fair attendance of members.

The Druids held a very largely attended meeting last night, when business of importance to the Lodge was transacted. The office of secretary was keenly contested, and produced four applicants, Bro. J. W. B. Jones being finally elected, after very close voting.

There does not appear to be much enthusiasm shown over the Municipal elections. At two o’clock to-day some one hundred and fifty elec to re bad recorded their votes, or about one-tenth of those people residing in the Borough. Mr P. Skoglund is Returning Officer, and he is being assisted by Messrs G. W. Mills and A. Black.

It has been decided that the Commonwealth Government’s contribution to the Peace Memorial Building, which is to be erected at The Hague, shall be an escritoire, made entirely of Australian wood, and manufactured by Australian artisans. The designs are being prepared, and when finished they will be submitted to the Federal Art Advisory Committee for. adjudication.

The New Zealand 7 bred, Clydesdale , . stallibn Ladisome, belmiging id Mr ' ! Percy Davidson, died recently (reports the Windsor correspondent of the i Sydney Daily Telegraph)., It seems that the horse was turned out in a paddock, and during the night broke into a feed house and gained access to a quantity of whegt. He showed no signs of sickness till the afternoon of next day, when he appeared to be in great pain. While his owner and some neighbours were doing what they could to relieve'him, Lad- n ,, some suddenly, plunged right through. , the wall of his -loose box and drop- ..y|j ped dead. He was a valuable, horeej ,-,t only 5 years old, by Lincoln Lad from ■"] Diamond, by Prince of Windsor.

In its report of the Prime Minister’s visit to Ohura and his reply to questions about the Stratford-Main I runk railway, the Te Kuiti paper gives a different version from 1 that of the New Zealand Herald’s reporter. It says:—“Mr Massey thanked those present for the reception accorded him. Referring to the railway, he said £90,000 was appropriated last session, and £97,000 was spent. As far as the construction was concerned it was intended to complete it as soon as possible. As the southern end approached completion to the gorge the work at that end won bid he slackened, and the men would he placed on the Ohura end. They could look for a vigorous programme as it was recognised that the line was of the foremost importance.” This, of course, is quite a different thing from slackening work now, as lias been stated. ,

The Mayor of Litligow (N.S.W.)' hailed Mr Lorimer, one of the Dominions Trade Commissioners, as a “brither Scot” from the country of Lanarkshire, when be met him and at the luncheon later gleefully alluded to the fact that he had beard again that morning the accent that he had begun to forget, long exiled as he had been from his old land. “Yes,” Mr Foster (the Canadian representative) assented when responding to the toast, “it is true that some barbarisms die hard”—a playful jibe that provoked a roar of laughter.—‘And amongst these are the Scottish accent and the music of the bagpipes,” ho went on, amidst continued morrinient. It is announced that the visit of Princess Henry of Battenberg to the Court of Spain has been again postponed, and thereby hangs a tale. The fact is that King Alfonso does not at all welcome the visits of his mother-in-law, who has succeeded in making herself anything but popular in country. The great ladies of bis Court are deeply offended at the attitude she has taken up on several occasions, and resent her very definite English ideas. So things are distinctly difficult just now. The Queen would naturally like to have her mother with her, but the King cannot afford to offend his best supporters, who are none too numerous.