LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXX, Issue 31, 11 May 1916, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

A sensation was caused at the Bluff wharf -on Friday night, when the s.s. "Warrimoo, which had loaded a full cargo at Bluff for Auckland, was leaving the wharf (states the Southland Daily News). As she slipped her lines, she suddenly heeled over to starboard at an alarming angle and gave the impression that it would have taken very little assistance to have capsized her. The firemen .declined to stay below and rushed upon deck. The port tanks were immediately filled, but failed to alter the ‘ list to starboard. Captain McLean immediately rc-moorcd the Warrimoo to the wharf ? and a start was made to unload her cargo. Ihe cause of the .trouble was the heavy upper cargo and her bunkers being short of 400 tons of coal.

A special train bearing an unusual freight arrived at Oaraaru on Saturday last, its cargo consisting of 2000 cases of rabbits from Central Otago. Owing to want of ships to hear away frozen meat, all the refrigerating works are’ - becoming so full'of carcases awaiting shipment that it has been found impossible to receive rabbits. Under the circumstances (says the Mail) the only course available lias been to utilise the freezing chambers of the dairy factories. The Tgieri and Peninsula Company’s freezing chamber at Dunedin, has already been tilled, and the largo cargo that reached Oamarn on Saturday has gone into the faeezing chamber of the company’s local factory. The shortage of shipping space, it will be seen, has a very wide and somewhat serious influence.

A fortunate discovery was made by two officials of the Napier Motor-cycle Club, who recently went over the local racecourse. In the in front of the , main grandstand, a piece of wood measuring sJin. long by ljin.> ' with no less than nine long brass tacks exposed, was found. Later a similar, piece was found in one of the bends, 1 which had 19 tacks in it. Had thes* not been discovered by the officials a serious accident would probably have] resulted to one or mole of the riders. In both cases the grass was ben; over these dangerous articles, thus render ing them hard to detect. The matter was promptly put into the hands of the . police for investigation, and de velopments are expected shortly ns a result. < ft is thought that the pieces of wood wore placed on the track by some lads who did not realise the sori ! vusness of their action. S'

The next Conference of ilie Masonic j Grand Lodge will be held in Invercargill.—P.A. A young couple—the luistmnd had just returned from the Rangiotu lerritorial camp—had a restless night earlv last week. On returning I from the pictures they discovered that someone had boon t hrough their house, hut they failed to discover who it was. Later in the night the wife was aroused by hot breath on her face, and hands stroking her, and called vigorously to her husband, who got out in time to see the marauder escape by the front door. When the couple retired they loft a light burning and their bedroom window unlocked. When they were aroused the light was out; the window indicated that the man had gained entrance by it, while he had unlocked and escaped by the front door, with his boots in hand. Inquiries subsequently made by the police proved that the intruder had become mixed as to the house he was looking for.

That a doctor’s prescription written in a dog version of a dead language may be misread with deadly eflect was l shown at Melbourne the other day (comments the Bulletin). A Kew medico wrote on a prescription:— “One tablespoonful to be taken bora sninui,” which is the un-English way they have in the Doctors' Tin ion of writing “bedtime.” The chemist who made up the mixture—a sleeping draught—read the w-ords “bora oinni” (every hour), and wrote the label for the bottle accordingly. When the patient had been given three doses of the draught, which contained morphia, the family did not like (lie look of him, and he died soon after the arrival of the hastily-summoned doctor. As the patient had been in a very low state and ivas about due to leave the world, and as several members of the Doctors’.. Union gave evidence that the morphia was not enough to kill n man, the Coroner merely remarked that the chemist had been careless, and returned a verdict of misadventure. He nngat Pave made a few observation anent the absurdity of writing medical directions in n dead language, but be did not -perhaps because lie is a member of the Doctors’ Union himself.

It may come as a surprise to many (says the “Farmers’ Union Advocate”) to learn that dandelion is grown on the most valuable land in some countries for market gardening purposes. The leaves of the dandelion arc edible, and are used as greens in tire same way as spinach or beet tops. IVhen well grown on a fertile soil the dandelion is a much different plant from the road-sicle weed! .The leaves are larger and more succulent, and the bitter taste is absent. The crop is managed much the same as spinach. Growth is forced as rapidly as possible to improve the quality of the vegetable, and it is harvested a short time after planting. For this reason it is valuable as a fill-in crop for the market gardener. In some places it precedes the main qrop of celery. The dandelion Jto-Wy islm’pinch the same state of improvement that lettuce was one jtumlyed years, ago or spinach fifty years ago. It is doubtful if it will ever compare in value with these crops yet there is no .question that it will be ’-improved in time. Already the dandelion is listed in many seed catalogues. We may expect several different varieties soon. As a wild plant the dandelion possesses many valuable characteristics that make it desirable in cultivation. It is extremely hardy, easily grown, ond its fleshy taproot enables it to live over winter easily.