LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXVII, Issue 69, 21 November 1913, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

It is understood (states the Klthan Argus) that despite the ineonveni once caused by the strike Lowgarti Dairy Company have paid out in fail for the October supply ,of buffer fat Mangatoki are also,.paying out in fn! oil tliie’toili' inst, • , I .ch'mJ i. , n mli vl ’

'..;A humorous incident occurred'at tin rifle meeting at Bulls bust week, say: till 1 ! - -Age'.- Somebody had produced.! bottle of “mountain dew,” and the cn at once went 1 up, “Is there anybody here from Masterton . TJicre was; and the requisite corkscrew was produced "amidst roars of laughter.

Writing to tlio Taranaki Herald .Mr Goo. Loveridge, a member of tin

“All Black” team now in California, says“ Americans always refer to as Australians, and we don’t hesitate to correct them. A large majority of the people here seem to think that Xew Zealand adjoins the Commonwealth, and show great surprise when informed that New Zealand is about 1200 miles from' Australia. The Americans seem to be too busy t<; study geography.”

Tlio spoil of warm weather, at present being experienced here is good for, among others, the aequatics-loving individual. In some of the pools in the I’atea the temperature of the water is of quite a luke-warm nature, and swimmers are not slow to take advantage of a dip. Apropos of bathing, the destruction of a patch of greenery on the river hank near the Technical School hv small fry yesterday is to he deplored, an dit is to he hoped the lighting of fires will he put down with a heavy hand.

In tlu> Hawera Magistrate’s Conr on Wednesday, before* Mr Konn’ek S.M., 0. S. Fox, of Otorohanga, am formerly of Hawera, was proceedec against by the D.O.A. for alleget broaojios of the bankruptcy law. 'l’ln defendant was charged with (1) beint a bankrupt ho failed to keep sue!: books of account as are usual and pro per in the business carried on by him : and (2) that being a bankrupt he did on April Ist, 1912, contract a debt of C3OO to A. Hat rick and Co., Wanganui, when be could not have had reasonable! cause of being able to pay tin' same. At the conclusion of the evidence accused pleaded not guilty, and reserved his defence, and was committed for trial. Bail was allowed, defendant in his own recognisance of € 100, or two sureties of £SO each. Hail was forthcoming.

The Secretary of the Clumber of Commerce will be pleased to receive applications from anyone prepared tP act as mounted special constables in case they are required. x William' Shafrock did not appear at llie Court thus morning to answer the judgment summons of T. L. Paget, claiming CI l(js, and he was ordered to pay the amount forthwith, in deI'ault seven days' imprisonment. Judgment by default was given in the following cases at the Court this morning:—New Zealand State Guaranteed Advances Office v. Herbert Chadwick, £l6 10s, costs Iss; Smart Bros. v. Win. Slianock, 7s, costs os; Tom Larkin Paget v. Albert Cameron, Ms, costs ss; Evans and Tichbon v. Harold Prentice, £2, costs £1 ]os.

Sometimes at the Court a very little business is clone in a very long time, and (very infrequently) sometimes agreat deal of business is done in a very short time; but this morning’s sitting was not remarkable either for length or volume of business. Forty minutes’ worth of business was put through in forty minutes, and Mr Kenrick vacated the Bench at 10. ID a.m.

A fine of 40s, with costs 7s, was imposed at the Court this morning on K. J. Miscall, who did not apepar in answer to a charge that on November 6th he rode a motor bicycle on a footpath in Fenton Street. The S.M. notified that for a second offence of this description he would impose the maximum penalty.

A case of a nature not frequently mot with in the local Court was dealt with this morning, when A. C. llell was fined ss, without costs, for failing to register the birth of a male child on February 21st. Mr S. H. James, Registrar of Births, Deaths, and Marriages, who prosecuted, stated that no doubt the registration had been overlooked owing to Mr Bell shifting from the district in which the child was born .

A curious little incident illustrative of a racehorse’s quick appreciation of something unusual occurred at the Hawera racecourse this morning, says yesterday’s Hawera Star. In company with two others the hurdle horse Darby* Paul was engaged in a schooling gallop, hut at the second hurdle struck heavily and dislodged his rider. The riderless horse continued in pursuit of his companions, but as he did so neighed loudly as if to call their attention to something being wrong. His protest was heeded, for the others were pulled up, and Darby Paul, on b«j>ing remounted, completed' the' round satisfactorily with them.

Fred Steele pleaded guilty lat the Coilrt this morning to a charge of' fidling to (attend drill at Toko on October 14th. Defendant-said’he could not ■ Very well get away, as he.was working at‘the hack of, the farm; He was working on wages, iThe iS.M.Ksaid that 11 therefore there was 'toothing' to stop defendant attending drill. Defendant; I didn’t think it was worth while. The S.M. said the defence office report showed that defendant had been living at Douglas and had moved to Toko Road without notifying his change of address. He thought that in all drill halls there should be ia notice stating theVecessiiy 'of Territorials notifying diaiigf-; o,^. addins, p , On the present charge 'defendant would " lie fried 20s, .with costs 7s" in default j fourteen days’ miiitafy'deteritioh.’ ’ -^j

Speaking to a Xew Zealand Times reporter, Mr P. J. o’Regan stated tkaj the death oi' Mr Cotter, K.C., liad necessitated an adjournment of the legal proceedings in connection with the Miners’ Hall, Waihi, until at ter the holidays, that gentleman having been briefed to act for the defendants. The case is of more than usual interest, in that it involves the consideration of some novel questions of trade union law, and, inasmuch as the land is held under a mining title, the warden’s is the only court of first instance in which proceedings can be taken. The case has several times been adjourned, but was definitely fixed for hearing at Waihi yesterday. Mr Cotter’s death, however, compelled a further adjournment.

Thu Polish custom of the “bride’s dance” was revived last night at the Sisarick-Burkett wedding, and netted to the bride the sum of £26 17s 9d—all in coin. The, custom is for the “host man” to lead the bride to each guest and give him or her an opportunity to dance with the bride once i ound the hall. At the conclusion of each dance the partner is led up to the aged grandmother,'who holds her apron outstretched, in which is a plate or saucer, the breaking of which the partner attempts with the coin he desires to present to the bride. Thus is conveyed the wishes for her future good luck. There is no limit to the number of tries a guest may have provided he holds the necessary coin! hast night this interesting ceremony, to the accompaniment of the timehonored accordion music, occupied only twenty minutes—over a pound a minute !