LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXVIV, Issue 90, 22 March 1916, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

There are twenty “war babies” in one nursing home of. the Salvation Army iu ; jAuekland at the present time.

A declaration of insolvency Ims been filed by Williaiii Herbert Alchui, sharemilker, ofxlliverlda.

lit the' Supreme Court "it) M asterton Iven Olsen, of Greytown, was-hdquitted on a charge of alleged perjury. A case is now being heard in which three soldiers from FeatherSton Camp are charged with breaking and entering and stealing liquor from a hotel u Greytown.

The Harvest Festival at the Salvation .Army Hall was concluded last evening with ,an auction sale of produce, etc. A short . -.musical programme preceded the sale and a very enjoyable evening was spent by all present. Mr T, Lamason conducted the sale in Ins well-known style. The sale should be a big financial success.

The members of the Stratford County Council met yesterday as a recruiting committee, when Mr W. Hathaway presided. Messrs J. Masters and P. Skoglund (members of the Borough Recruiting Committee) were also present, and explained matters in connection with the scheme. A motion to amalgamate with the Borough Recruiting Committee was carried, and Mr Masters was then voted to the chair. It was resolved to ;sk certain other gentlemen in the County to join the Board. It was decided to appoint a canvasser, the members of the committee to give him all possible help. The appointment of a canvasser was left to a sub-committee, consisting of Messrs Masters, Hathaway, Christoff el, Smith and Skoglund.

And still they go! In spite of the, unfavorable weather quite a number i of settlers collected in the Ackland Schoolroom last Friday -evening to farewell Private A. Constable, who leaves New Zealand’s shores with the 12th Reinforcements. Mr M, Knox presented Private Constable with a. soldier’s wallet and wished him Gods speed and a safe return. Mr Mackuy, also spoke congratulating Te Popoj (being a small district), on the number of young men who have answered their j Country’s Call. The evening took the; form of a euchre party (continues our ( correspondent), prizes being won *>y Miss Belle Knox and Mr Scott. After the games were completed, a hearty supper (provided by the ladies) was partaken of, and . all returned to “Home Sweet Home.”

At the Matiere Court on Friday, 10th hist., before Mr J. G. L. Hewitt, S.M., Goler Phillips, was charged with assaulting Bertram Smith, baker, at Matiere on 23rd of February, and a countercharge of abusive language likely to cause a breach of the peace, was brought by Phillips against Smith. The. Advocate reports that a considerable amount of evidence was taken for both sides and in giving judgment, His Worship said, that according to the evidence there was an argument between the plaintiff and defendant in which the term “sly grog seller’’ was made use of, and which appeared to be a very sore point in the district. This led to further altercation. But this did not justify a strong man to strike another, as the plaintiff Smith was a much lighter man than the defendant Phillips, although it was unwise for the plaintiff to call the defendant a liar. Smith would he convicted and discharged for the abusive language. Phillips, for the assault on Smith, would he lined 10s; each to pay their own costs.

A private cablegram has been received in Wellington from London, to f lie effect that the price of corrugated galvanised iron nas risen by £lO per ton. t

An instance of State enterprise is afforded by a cablegram to-day from Bisbaue, wherein it is stated that the Government is erecting State hotels in the mining and sugar areas at a cost of £BO,OOO.

A Hastings Press Association telegram to-day states that two cases of infantile paralysis were taken to the iiospital yesterday, one being an infant from Sherenden and the other a 4-year-old child within the borough.

A conference of Friendly Society delegates lias been convened to meet in Wellington on April 13th to discuss die administration of the National Provident Fund, the operations of which arc regarded by Friendly Societies as unfair. The Whangamomona Presbyterian Mission are holding a harvest thanks-.* giving service in the Whanga Hall on Sunday evening. 23th nst. On the Monday ■vc '. ng a sot? 1 will be held, at which the gi'ts w!;l be auctioned and the proceeds remitted to the Serbian Relief Fund. Gifts of farm and .’airy produce are solicited. The W P.T ■' A Wanganui, yester* day re >d’v : >‘e:! Mr; Perryman, editor and business manager of the “White Ribbon,” and Mrs Evans, assoc! - editor. The circulation was report ; o be and the credit balance ■ . • ’v was resilved to circulate a petition for the six o’clock closing of hotel bars. Tlie public meeting yesterday to consider ways and means of making a success of “Soldiers’ Day” (Easter Monday) in Stratford, was attended by about thirty citizens, who, judging by the amount of solid discussion indulged in, and the eventual accom* plisliment in the shape of preliminaries arranged, are already on the high road to the attainment of their worthy object, viz., the raising of funds for the relief of wounded soldiers. ( Tiie personnel of the committees appointed appears in a full report on page 2 of this issue.'' Members of the executive committee are ;being called together this evening-. when they meet in. • the Patriotic Committee’s rooms, Broadway, at eight o’clock.

In Dunedin (states the Qtago Daily Times) with a view to. relieving the demand on the .city water supply, the shortage of which is becoming serious, .and also to enabling the. public to secure pure water, for drinking purposes, Messrs Thomson and Co. have generously offered to fill into tanks their pure artesian water, the tanka to be placed on.'the firm’s waggons, which will afterwards take up their stands at convenient points in the city, and also at various schools. The only .condition that the company makes is thqt the council supplies the tanks, the firm on its part’undertab mg to supply the water and wagons, and to do any carting in reason, without charge. The suggestion has much to commend, it, .and doubtless the authorities will accept the offer.

An unusual case was heard at the Napier Magistrate’s Court on Monday morning, when Charles <T.' Nathan, licensee of the Waikare' Hotel, was charged with failing to supply meals to travellers (says the Telegraph). The evidence for the prosecution was that the travellers came from Wairoa to Napier on February 29 and stopped at Waikare at 8 p.m.. The defendant refused to supply them with meals on the ground that it was after hours. The defence was that the sister-in-law of the proprietor had offered to provide a meal for the travellers, hut that the male members pf the party were unaware of this fact. A conviction and a fine of £2 were inflicted, and the case was adjourned for one week to show cause why his license should not be endorsed. In the course of the proceedings the Magistrate said; “Right throughout this district there is a disinclination on the part of publicans to supply travellers with meals, unless they come in at the scheduled time. These licensees have to be taught a lesson. It is the duty of every licensee of a? 4 hotel to provide a traveller at any hour of the day or night with bed and hoard.

Different people may have different ways of showing their patriotism and detestation of the enemy. But in the code of British fair play, there is no room for acts of vandalism, and if misguided persons do err in their excitement, folly, or (on the best interpretation) over-zeal for Britain’s cause, in the direction which some person or persons in the Douglas district are doing, they will be made to pay dearly for it. For some time past, rather despicable acts against the property of a naturalised British, subject of German origin and his family, have been taking place. The first of any consequence was the cutting to pieces of a young son’s saddle and bridle, and the turning loose of his horse on .the road. A fow weeks later the large main gate leading to the homestead was mysteriously blown up with, it is believed, a heavy charge of gelignite. The latest attempt to destroy this settler’s property was made the other night, when the sheep dip was partially by an explosion. The incidents were reported to the police, and Detective Siddels, of Wanganui, arrived in Stratford on Monday evening to investigate the matter, leaving again by the mail train this morning. The settler who has suffered all this, has rather generously made light of the matter as the outcome of mere irres- ’ ponsible larrikinism. The limit has, I however, just about been reached*

The amount of the bail was not forthcoming in the case of David Maxwell, of Toko, who appeared at the Stratford Magistrate’s Court yesterday morning.

Weather forecast The indications are for moderate to strong south-east-erly winds. Expect changeable and showery leather and a cool night. The barometer will have a rising tendency soon.—Bates, Wellington.

The annual sports of the Tqjco Settlers’ Association will be held in the Toko Domain to-morrow. A very interesting programme has been arranged and an enjoyable day is >n store for,, all who attend. A social will-be held in the evening. The proceeds of the day’s festival, will be donated to the Sick and Wounded Soldiers’ Fund.

After paiSde on Friday night the senior cadets will be admitted to His Majesty’s Theatre at half rates. Arrangements have been made that at the conclusion of the parade the Company will march to the Theatre, where, after the half time adjournment, Lieutenant Gray will address the boys on “The Life and Training of a Senior Cadet.”

“Before long,” said Dr Gibb, of Wellington, at the opening of Scots’ College on Friday evening, “very likely we shall be trying to extend this platform of ours. I would like to see schools at which fees were very much lower. I would like to see schools which would compete with the State schools and at which there would be no charge at all to the children.' ’ For they were sick of the secular school. They had told the politicians that if they would not give them the Bible back into the schools, they would provide schools of their own in which they would teach that the greatest of all things was the fear of the Lord. The day might come when the Presbyterian Church of New Zealand would go far beyond its present secondary schools and introduce private primary schools which would give the children a religious grounding.

The Last Sad Look! A lieutenant

of A Company* 17th Battalion, sth Brigade, and formerly of the Sydney . Water Policy, who saw service in the South African War, writing from Tel > el Kibir, Egypt, to a Sydney friend, ■ c under date ot January .14, says re* • - ference to thei evacuation of Gallipoli: “I was selected to lead one of J the last parties from our position. I r left it 2 a.m. * What a lonely walk it ’ Was 3 ! We had the unlucky! 13 all told. The last party wak .seven stronger, and‘left three-quarters of ' an hour later. On‘the march down ' 1 We 'had tb pass the 1 burial-ground. It was sad to look at the last restingplaces of our dear comrades. Not a word was spoken all the tiiqe, but X assure you'there were wet eyes that , , morning when I halted the party and asked them all to look for the last time on that sad but peaceful ground. There*'were some beautiful crosses erected bn the graves, which were laid but in proper formation.” ,

1 There is in Bristol, England, a “New Zealand War Contingent As- ' sociation ” of which all the members of the general committee are New ealanders. The members of the committee have done, and are still doing, much good work in connection with our men, every one of whom is looked up as soon as he gets to Bristol. Little comforts are provided, and every soldier is made to see he is among friends, and cannot get stranded. The Association is not much heard of m New Zealand, and it may interest our readers to know that the personnel of the committee is:—Mr and Mrs Ackland (Havelock), Mr G. Butler (Dunediq), Mr Buchanan (Auckland), Mr and Mrs C. L. Dearsley (Christchurch), Mr L. Dale -(Christchurch), Sister Gill (Canterbury), Mrs W. Gaw (Auckland), Mrs Shore-Nye (Wellington), Miss Ray (Feilding), Mrs Russell Smith (Auckland), Mrs R. Willcox (Opaki), Miss Garsia (Christchurch). The Hon. Sec. is Miss A. B> Weir, of Christchurch. Miss Weir is well-known . throughout New Zealand and has personal friends in Stratford

Fresh indications that the planet Mars is inhabitable and has an atmosphere not differing very greatly from that of the earth, have recently been obtained in Professor Lowell’s famous observatory at Flagstaff, Arizona, A full account of these newest discoveries appears in the January number of gcientia- They are photographs of the Mars spectrum taken last winter. They show that water vapoy exists on Mars, and that oxygen, a gas necessary to life, is also found there. Both, however,-are very scarce, and it seems juore than probable that a great part part of Mars is desert, and that the lines which cross its surface are actual canals, or belts of vegetation along canals. The existence of water on Mars has been shortly denied by critics of Professor Lowell, so that its undoubted discovery by scientific instruments at this enormous distance is a triumph for him as well as a wonderful feat of research.