LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXVIV, Issue 36, 18 January 1916, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The opinion was expressed by the chairman of the Board of Education (Mr Fred Pirani) on Friday night that fifteen hours per week was sufficient tuition for any child. The remark- was addressed in a deputation of settlers from Ngamat'apqim, who evidently held another opinion, as their grievance was in connection with a (proposal to establish two half-time schools in their district.

it is usual for complaints to be made about milk not being up to the proper standard, but at the meeting of the Patea Hospital Board hist week a. complaint was made that the milk used at that institution was too strong. A cow is kept for supplying milk to the hospital, but had to be ■disposed of on account of the complaint referred to.

The 50 h.p. Bleriot monoplane, which was used by the late Claude Coutourier at Roileston, Canterbury, is to be offered for sale on February llth at the Roileston Hotel. M. Coutourier left for France shortly after the outbreak of war, joining a French flying squadron, which was stationed at Verdun. He did good work, but met his death while gallantly repelling the attacks of two German warplanes.

Under the heading "Better Ofl Outside," the January '"Bailway'R&view" has tjie following:—"A good number of railwaymen have been leaving the service of late, some with a good number of years'-service to their credit. The reason given by the majority of them is the low wages at present paid by the department, and the more attractive conditions prevailing outside. Should this state of things continue, the department will find itself short of men, and will be impelled to take some action in the way of making the service more attractive."

The Akaroa Mail sates that' the prospects for this year's cocksfoot' harvest on Banks Peninsula are perhaps the poorest on record, owing to the continued dry weather. Taken as a whole, however, an optimistic estimate of this .year's crop would be 10 - 000 sacks, compared to the usual 80,000 of an average good year. The seed this year is very free from extraneous grasses and weeds, and a very clean sample should be harvested. A line of 500 sacks of last year's crop was sold sj few days ago tor 9£d, the weight being in the region of 121 b.

The unusual circumstance of a lawyer becoming surety for his client under a bail-bond was mentioned m the Auckland Police Court on Thursday last. A young man having been committed for trial on a charge of perjury, Mr E. A. Singer stated that he had become bondsman for the accused in regard to his appearance before the magistrate, and asked that ins bond be also accepted for the period between the committal to the Supreme Court and the trail. Mr Singer explained that he had taken this unusual course because the young man had no friends in the Auckland district, and it had seem desirable to help him out of Ins difficulty. The magistrate, Mr E. Page, considered it preferable that a bondsman; other than counsel for the defence should be. found, and as it was believed that such a person would be available that morning, he agreed to accept Mr Singer as surety until the following day only.

A bottle containing a message from a Manly boy on one of the transports off the Australian coast ivas picked up recently on a lonely stretch of beach about a mile from Tyrendarra East, near Port Fairy, Victoria. The writer (Ted Blakey) says:—"l tun sending this note by bottle from the Victorian coast. I- hope you will get it O.K. We have just finished our Christmas dinner—turkey and pork., Everyone on board is OK. A girl was found on board dressed as a soldier. She was going to light with her brother at Gallipoli. Oh, well, good-bye for the present. 1 am, your loving son, Ted." In forwarding the letter to Mrs A. Blakey, of Whistler Koad, Manly, Miss Maggie H. Leddin states the circumstances in which it was found were most remarkable, as the bottle was picked up alongside two others, each containing letters from New South Wales soldiers, and the writer adds:—"l am delighted to be able to send this to the mother of one of our gallant soldiers, and sincerely pray that God may guard that, unknown boy whose letter was providentially found by my brother."

Few people travelling by road between Waitara and -New Plymouth urn aware (slates the correspondent of thei Herald) that, a hundred yards or so from the road, at the back of Mr

Johnstone's residence, is an evidence of the terrific geological changes through which lias passed. While digging clay fur brhkmaking a lot of timber was encountered. Fortunately it was not destroyed, but the clay was simply taken away from the. timber ami thp bitter left standing. A number of. the stumps of the trees are in their original position, while others are Lying down. One large trunk has the appearance of being sound, but. 1 others are black and brittle and will crumblf ...t the touch, and in u very short time will undoubtedly disappear. When it is remembered thai it probably took many thorn nod:; of years to form the deposit of clay, it almost staggers one's' imagination to think of the" age of those evidences of prehistoric times. Possibly the mountain wa » q smoking volcano when those trees were alive; man had not come jmto existence, ami creeping thing- now eTtin , t the only inhabitants of the «Hrtb

Weather Forecast.—The indications are for northerly moderate to strong winds prevailing. There is ay prospect of fair weather with increasing haze and cloudiness. The barometer has a falling tendency.—Bates, Wellington.