GENERAL NEWS.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXV, Issue 80, 8 April 1915, Page 8

GENERAL NEWS.

A cheque for £30,000 has been received at the offices of the -Daily Telegraph ti'oni Messrs Hodder and Stoughton, "the first instalment oi payment for copies of 'iv iiiu; Albert s Book.' " This cheque is the largest which has ever been given in conn.vtion with a single publishing transaction of the kind by the firm named. It does not, of course, represent i.et profits. A unique experience marked the appearance of "The (dad Kye" Company at the new theatre in Hamilton last. week. Whilst the comedy was in progress the electric light all over die building suddenly went out, leaving the theatre in Stygian darkness. Candles were commandeered, and in the dim mysterious light the si age hands were struggling to died a modicum of light on the comply, when a voice from the auditorium -ugge-.te,! that all those with motor-cars drndd bring in their lamps. This happy suggestion was at once acted" upon, and proved effective enough to lints!) the play with. Pa Angers by the steamer Orontes, which reached Sydney last week, report having had a very interesting trip "We left Tilbury Docks," said Mr 11. M. Smeeton, who was on board, ■'just before the German blockade commenced. When coming down the Channel all our portholes were 'painted black on both sides, no deck, lights were lit, boatfs were hung out in readiness for instant launching, and the crew and stewards bad to stand by all night lolig. Many of the passengers did not know this at the time, but it impressed those who did. When wc,reached Australia we learned that a. ship was 'down up the day we wore off thrt mouth of the Thames, within five miles of where We passed:"

Matters of honour apparently count for but little whou the desire to benefit patriotic fluids is taken into consideration; and an incident which occurred at a gift auction sale held in the Marlborough province furnished a case in point ''says the "Express"). The story runs that whilst the auctioneers were busily engaged in selling articles of produce in aid of the distressed Belgians, a raid was made on the neighbouring hot'elkeeper's" fowl ,run and shortly afterwards the auctioneers' catalogue was augmented' by live poultry. The birds were bought and re-sold until they realised 2os. The last buyer wrung their necks, and meeting the hotelkeeper afterwards he offered them for sale. The offer was accepted, and the publican proudly but unwittingly purchased his own fowls at "2s each.

In the course of an interesting letter to Miss Kirk, of Limvood, a marine on board a warship says -(reports the Lytteltou Times) that his vessel was down at Coeos islands for sis days, and that the writer was aboard the wreck of the Einden every day. The divers we're looking for a torpedo. "I am pleased to say they got one all complete. We had a hard job getting it out of the submerged torpedo flat. There was a lot of dead German sailors down there, and when the divers stirred things up it was very disagreeable. We also got two of her guns. One is going to England with the torpedo, and the other is going to Australia as a curio. Another thing we got was a searchlight.and 6000 Chinese dollars, and some good sets of doctors' instruments. The torpedo is worth £BOO to £soo. We had a cablegram from the Admiralty praising us for the work we had done. Our captain was so. pleased he gave us 36 hours' leave.' We are now at Singapore. A Chinese gentleman has sent us 5000 pine apples and hundreds of English papers and novels. The last mail we got a box of .7)0 cigarettes each from a big gun factory in England, and a card from the King and Queen."

An unusual discovery waj made la*i week by a lady resident of Auckland rsays the Star). She-rel-ves that she was passing a dra'in at *!;c back of her house when she heard a rustling-muse. •She had a look at (lie spot horn which the noise appeared to have come, but could see nothing, and came tn (he conclusion that a rat had aftriuted her attention. Later in 'bo day -he agai:i examined the outlet to the drain, and saw what a!);>.■!."red to be a fish-head. She poured some water ■ down the pipe to force out the obsti notion'; but with no effect. When she next approached the pipe, a pair el short legs and part of i scaly bocy wore connected with the l.eid, but it was obvious that the creature was not of the fish family. What particularly struck her, she says, was (be fact that the reptile -remained peifeetly motionless for nearly an hour. Not liking the appearance of her lr-ys. terious visitor, she covered the drain over with a sack and waited until liei brothei' arrived home from woi k. With the aid of a long stick he was successful in drawing the captive fiom its place of refuge. The curator of the museum was notified of the discovery, and immediately declar.nl if to be a particularly line specimen of the New Zealand tuatara lizard, but he was quite unable to explain ifs presence in the city. The reptile, which was fully 22 inches in length,-is now in the company of three other members of his family.

j The Germans have selected a successor to King -Albert—Prince Otto von Windiseligratz, who is related through his wife to the tloyal Family of Belgium. The Prohibitionists won fourteen additional countries in the local option elections in Michigan, and also thirteen towns in Winconsin. The women's vote was the deciding factor. I I At a meeting of retail shopkeepers in Wellington last night, it was decid- ■ ed to form a Shopkeepers' Defence League, for the purpose of maintaining ' the existing option in the matter of the I weekly half-holiday, giving the right to I close either on Wednesday or Saturday afternoon. I I The estates of 350 persons were certilled last month for death duties. j The largest was that of Annie Quayle i Townenti, of Canterbury, at £796',.448. The following are the principal figures for the New Plymouth district : Margaret Coleman, £3970; Charles '■ Stepney Gatton, ;C'_'27l; Nora Rothery, £1557.

The Government of Western Australia runs hotels on its own account, and is extending its enterprise in this direction. It now owns and conducts six hotels, three of which have been opened during the past nine months. A

report by the manager of the Slate hotels discloses that one of the older houses last year earned a profit oi £2/590, exclusive of interest and depreciation, which leaves a substantial margin. Another finished the year with a profit of .€9905. The third of the older State hotels has not 'shown a direct, profit, but this is i\ui' to the fact that if is a show place for visitors from which the State derives considerable indirect revenue. The commercial success of tiie three newer hotels of the West Australian Government cannot yet be accurately gauged 'states the Sydney correspondent of the Otago Daily Times), but the indications from a money-making point of view are said to be very encouraging. It must lie reckoned one of the interesting features of Australia that besides a wide variety of climate it exhibits very marked variations of what governmental things are possible in a democracy.