LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXV, Issue 2, 4 January 1915, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

A meeting of local Scots will be held to-morrow night in A. and P. rooms to make arrangements for a "Nicht wi Burns" on the 25th inst.

A notification with regard to the registration of dogs within the Borough appears in another column, and owners are reminded that the registration in respect of the year 1914 expired on the 31st December last. i

From reports received, sheep this season are doing remarkably well. A first-class clip is promised, especially in the Romney-Lincoln cross, lambs being particularly good. As to labor, there is, perhaps, a shortage of blade shearers; otherwise the season is in every respect a promising one.

An important railway deviation is' being made between Kakarika and Halcombe, north of Marton Junction, and when completed it will not only shorten the distance, but will take off several of the severe grades and bends The work is expected to take about hvo year's, but it will, when finished, make an appreciable difference to the work on the Main Trunk.

News from Fiji states that Rata Joni Madiiawiwi, who is Roko Tui, or high chief, of the Tailevu district in the Fiji Islands, lias two sons fighting for the Empire. The elder son, Sukuna, proceeded to the front from Oxford University. The other son, Charley, who was at Wesley College, Melbourne, has joined an Australian contingent.

The Canterbury Central Dairy Company established a record "pay-out" for last month, the suppliers getting the sum of £19,650. This is approximately £IOOO better than the pay-out for any other month. The company recently received a very gratifying report from its London agents on the keeping quality of its butter, a consignment having been stored at Home last March, and being in absolutely first-rate condition in November, eight months later.

The happy reply of a British officer to a French sympathiser who, in the trenches, noticed and commented upon a blood-stained gasli on the left sideof his khaki tunic, is reproduced with great approval by a French paper:— "You have been badly wounded, comrade?" said the Frenchman. . "It is nothing," was the quick response. "The Germans sought my heart, but they have not found it. I have given it to France!"

The accusing,, voice,, .qf, conscience was too much for Patrick James Murphy. After sixteen years he appeared at the Sydney Water Police Court on December 22, and was committed for trial on a charge of having stolen £2GS, the property of Frederick James Frazer, in December, 1898. The police stated that Murphy had arrivd from England a few hours previously, and had given himself up, stating that he was wanted on a charge of stealing. It was as. certained that he was. committed for trial in 1898 on a stealing charge, and had not been seen in Australia since. He was therefore re-commit-ted.

A meeting of the Central King Country Railway committee was held at Pio Pio on December 16th. There was a. good attendance and Mr G. E. Jackson occupied the chair. Messrs Davis and Porteous submitted a proposed railway route from Hangatiki to Kawhia via Waitomo, with a junction at Hauturu and another line from Hauturu to Qhura via. Mairoa, Pio Pio and Aria, a total distance of 75 miles. It was resolved to get a. party of representative settlers from the districts served by the proposed lines to inspect these and other suggested routes early in the new Year.— The Local Railways Act was discussed and it was decided to get the railway constructed under the provisions of the Act.

At the last meeting of the general purposes committee of the council of the Clydesdale Horse Society, in Dunedin, the following were elected members of the Society:—D. J. Willis, Rawer.'); John Boag -Tun., Pitcairns, Brookside, Canterbury; Johnstone Wyllie, .Edendale; Alex Copland, South Tiniaru; David Sheddan, Toiro; H. H. Clarke, Balelutha; George Tosh, Balclutha North] John Moslcy, Tnchclutha; Alex. M. Maedonald, Carterhope, W<arepa; Peter Dow, Bruntsfield, Allanton, Applications for the prefixes were considered and granted as follows:—"St, Leo. nards" to Mr Donald McCallum, St. Leonards. Blenheim; "Dunkeld Station" to Mr Piobt. Wood, Dunkeld Station, Beaumont; "Panehakua" to Mr W. G. Park, Panehakua. Hairini P. 0., Waikato. Accounts totaling £164 15s 8d were passed for payment.

A cablegram, states that the stea* mer Kaiapoi takes the first shipment of wheat amounting to 50,000 bushels to New Zealand this week.

The net gate takings at the Stratford Racing Club's recent meeting totalled £712 9s 6d, a substantial increase on hist year's figures. This, notwithstanding the fact that the complimentary list this year was unusually large.

The Secretary of the Home Defence Corps has received intimation that ammunition will be available at the end of January. This is good news for the corps, and should revive thusiasm in many of the members.^

Items from the Ohura Advocate: It seems curious to read of scarcity of feed, starving stock, raging bush and grass fires taking place in other parts of the country, while here we have an abundance of green grass and the stock and country looking splendid.—The arrival of Tom Moore's fine motor car iiv the township on Boxing Day, caused quite a sensation.

In connection with the Gisborne riot James Blance, for wilfully damaging a pane of glass, was fined £3 and costs. He was also charged with inciting other persons to break and enter and was fined £5 and costs. The Magistrate said tire attack"tin inoffensive citizens was most cowardly and certainly was not the conduct of a Britisher. Proceedings against others are likely to follow.

The vital statistics for the Stratford district during the month of December were:—Births 20, deaths 4, marriages 5. The figures for December 1913 were respectively: 22, 10, 5, The decrease in births is explained by the fact that though Whangamomona was made a separate district in 1913, many births in that district were registered at Stratford, while last year they would be registered at Whangamomona, The total figures for the year 1914 are:— Births 247 (268); deaths 46 (51), marriages 62 (64).

The Belgian Relief dance and concert promoted by Madame Bernard in the Town Hall on New Year's Eve, \ .resulted in a net profit to the Fund of £4 6s. The music rendered by Van Heck's Eclipse Orchestra was the" best. The vsoloists were Master Barry (songs), who received a double encore, Mr Will Diamond ("Tipperary") and Miss Eileen Bernard (recitation) "At the Bar of Justice." The floor was in good condition, and dancing was kept up till after 2 a.m.)

The inquest at Wanganui on Gwen Christina Whitford, aged thirteen, who was drowned in the river on New Year's Day, disclosed a gallant attempt by Mr E. W. Merry weather to save deceased's life. He dived halfdressed but collided with a log. At the second attempt he obtained a hold on the two girls, but the weight of his clothes and the two girls prevented his coming to the surface. He pushed them off andi came to the surface and dived again. He caught one girl and managed to bring her to the surface but sank with her. Finally he got her safe and made repeated efforts to find deceased. The coroner commended Mr Merry weather's action and said that he would recommend it to the Royal Humane Society for recognition. The verdict was that the deceased was accidentally drowned.

In connection with Madame Bernard's decision to discontinue after January 14th, the every evening programmes which have been so successful at His Majesty's Theatre, and substitute a three nights each week service, it is interesting to note the fact that the French moving picture industry has been very seriously affected by the war. Many studios and film works around Paris have been requisitioned by the military authorities. At Pathe Freres' huge place at Viucennes there are 1600 soldiers—many of them Pathe's own workmen. Messrs Path* Freres, in common with other firms, have temporarily lost practically all their best cameramen as well as hundreds of artistes, including Henri Kraus„ who played Jean Valjean in "Lea Miserable*." The company's ten branches in Germany are all closed. The principals of the subsidiary corporation, Der Firma Pathe Freres, fled from Berlin, but arrived in the French capital without great difficulty. Charles Pathe stated that he had sufficient negatives in stock to guarantee regular weekly releases for the next six months. "Wo shall continue to supply our customers throughout the world,'' he said, "and the takiug of photoplays and topical pictures will not be stopped."