LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXV, Issue 78, 6 April 1915, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The Stratford Homo Defence Corps will not parade this week, the nextparade being on Monday, 12th inst.

Burgesses are reminded that the supplementary roll will close at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, the 14th April next.

Weather forecast.—The indications are for "westerly moderate to strong winds prevailing. Weather cloudy to overcast at times. Barometer little movement. Bates Wellington.

Sir Francis Sutfcor died of heart failure, states mi Sydney cablegram." He attended the opening of the .Royal Show on Wednesday, but afterwards collapsed. His condition at the time was not thought critical.

From present appearances, there seems every probability that .Mr J. W. Boon will have a. walk-over for the Mayoralty of Stratford, the nominations for which close on the 22nd inst.

A Napier Press Association telegram to-day states: Constable Donald Shaw, single. 38, of the local police force, has been missing since Thursday, and fears for his safety are entertained.

At Christclmrch Court to-day (states the - Press Association), Leonard Llewellyn Grant pleaded guilty to a charge of heing a bookmaker and betting in a hotel. -The police said this was accused's first offence, and he was one of the "small fry." Accused was fined £2O. %

Notices appear in our advertising columns re nominations and elections for Mayor and Councillors of the Stratford Brough, for two members to represent Stratford Borough on the Hospital and Charitable'Aid Board, and for a member to represent the combined Boroughs of Stratford, Eltham, and Inglewood, on the Xew Plymouth Harbour Board.

A successful parent at the baby show in the Gymkhana yesterday is mightj amused at a record which he holds in these competitions. Out of five entries, made at different times, he has gained three firsts and two second prizes. He is an Englishman, and of small stature, and all the credit be ungrudgingly gives to the mother, who is a native of Taranaki.

Three local troopers who will shortly sail with the New Zealand reinforcements, paid a farewell visit to these parts at the week-end. Troopers C. (i. Booker (Monmouth Road), C. 1?. Barker (Cardiff), and J. C. Foley (Toko Road), had a week off from Wednesday last and returned to Trentham on Tuesday. i

During the month of March the total rainfall registered by Miss N. Trimble, of Riversdale, Inglewood, was 7.44 inches. Rain fell on sixteen days, the heaviest falls recorded being on the 27th (2.18 inches), 4th (.89 inch), and 3rd (.70). ,< Other falls were:—sth (.19), 10th (.17), 11th (.01), 14th (.46), loth (.46), 18th (.58), 19th (.13), 21st (.07), 22nd (.08), 28th (.34), and 29th (.11). No rain fell on Ist, 2nd. 6th, 7th, Bth,'9th, 12th, 13th, 16th, 24th to 27th, 30th and 31st of the month.

Three monster white elephant potatoes, weighing libs 2ozs., were brought into the Stratford Evening Post office to-day. These were grown on one root on -Mr J. \V. Paulger's farm at Gordon Road. Mr Paulger explains that the original seeds were in the ground five years ago, when he took the farm, but the ground was not worked till last year, when he put in a crop of turnips, ami a line crop of potatoes came up with these. Hits specimens produced had a very healthy appearance, there being no sign of blight.

Kor several years Oaniaru has held a garden fete on Easter Monday, the proceeds going towards town improvements, etc. Jt was decided this year that the Belgian Fund should benefit, and a Queen of the Carnival competition was specially set aside for the purpose. There were seven candidates for Queen, and this alone, resulted in £-1271 12s lOd being collected. The winner, Miss Claribel King, representative of the howling and tennis clubs, polled over 131,000 votes. The official figures and the net result are not available, but £OSOO will be available for the Belgian Fund, and this will bring the district's contribution up to over £II,OOO.

The A\S.W. Government has taxed the price of butter at, for first grade. ' 1245; second, 119 s; third, 114 s. Mr Hall ha s issued a warning that unless supplies to meet the public demand are made available at these prices, the Government will seize butter. The Conference of New Zealand Federated Sawmills, Timber Yards, and Coalyards employees union opened at Christchurch to-day, states the Press Association. The report of the executive said: "The timber-milling industry was one of the first to feel the effect of the hysteria which followed the outbreak of hostilities. Parliament and people both displayed hysteria, and one result was the almost immediate cessation of the building trade and the closing-down of many sawmills. The position is now improved, but the industry is not yet recovered from the shock." The report alleged that employers had abnormally increased the cost of living and reduced effective wages of the working classes.