LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXX, Issue 47, 30 May 1916, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The postponed meeting of the Ladies' Patriotic Committee will be

held in the Rooms, Broadway, tomorrow afternoon at 3.30.

The annual meeting of the Stratford Chamber of Commerce will be held in the Municipal Chambers (Fire Brigade Station) at 8 o'clock this evening.

While travelling from Hawera to Stratford by the mail train last evening, Master Fred Barry, of Stratford, collected £1 lis 9d for the Returned Nurses' Fund. The Mayoress of New Plymouth, to whom the amount was forwarded, duly acknowledges same.

A fund lias been started in Dunedin to purchase a biplane as an Empire Day gift to the Imperial Government. It is proposed to purchase a 100-horse-powei Gnome-Vickers' gun-mounted biplane, which costs about £2250. Up till Wednesday night the sum of £IO2O had been subscribed.

Mr Harold Trimble, who for many years has be'en a valuable member of the Taranaki Education Board announces that he will be a candidate for the Central Ward, at the forthcoming election of- the Board, which will ,bej the .first to take place under 'the altered: conditions" and extension of boundaries.

. Mr H, Gollop, while driving;a party towards New Plymouth, last evening, had ,the misfortune to run into a horst ridden by Mr H. Jones, of Ngaere, and breaking the rider's leg. Mr Gbllop was driving on to the approach, of the bridge near the Waipuku , toll .gate... when he ran into a mob of cattle, and before he could bring the car to- a Standstill lie collided with the drove;-. The car was badly damaged and had to be left on the roadside. None of the occupants of the car were hurt.

Commissioner and Mrs Hodder arrived in Stratford by the 3 p.m. train from Inglewood to-day. The Commissioner is accompanied by Major Toomer (Divisional Commander), and Ensign Suter (private secretary). A tea meeting takes place at 6.30 in the Army ''Barracks, and at 8 o'clock a meeting is to be held in the Presbyterian Church, wheif both the Commissioner and Mrs Hodder will give addreses on the social work of the Salvation Arnry,- The Mayor (Mr Jos. W., Boon) will preside.

A young soldier who ,weut from New Zealand to Egypt lelied for his correspondence on two anxious ant! loving ladies—his mother and his sweetheart. ■ The mother's letters reached him regularly at the rate of one a week, but by the end of the year hehad received only two fiom his financee. Many a thought this cost him. Was she growing cold? At last the doubt was solved. On returning to camp after a spell at a distance the mailman brought in a bag of letters) and parcels. The fellows crowded round expectantly, and, midst much laughter that concealed the general disappointment, it was discoveied the whole mail was for the lover from his loved one—--117 letters in a batch.

Amongst the names of allegedly German individuals whose presence ai the Ne\v Zealand forces has been complained of by Mr Payne is Lieutenant L. W. Meuii. The Defence Minister has handed to the press the following information:—Lieutenant L. W. Meuli was born at Manaia, Taranaki, on June 20, 1891. He was granted a commission as second-lieutenant, unattached list (b), on March 25, 1912, and was appointed to the Manaia Cadets. Previous to being commissioned he had served five years in the College Cadets and one year in the Mounted Ritles. His parents are Swiss. One of the family, who was particularly well known throughout the Dominion as a footballer, - was killed at Gallipoli. Lieutenant Meuli sailed with the 11th Reinforce nents.

One of the funniest stories of the Kaiser appears in a Glasgow contemporary. It gives a conversation which is said to have taken place- a lew weeks ago between his Imperial Majestv and the Crown Prince. Crown Prince to Kaiser: "Father, who started the war? Was it the Emperor Joseph, or "King Peter of Serbia. « f King George, or had the King of Bulgaria or the Sultan of Turkeya hand in it?" "No, no, my son." said the Kaiser, "none of they had anything to do with it. There was a man called Roosevelt, .came from America to see me. I lot him see my great army.

my great navy, my great guns, and my huge store of munitions. He gav» me a pat on the shoulder, and said, "Bill, you can connuer the world, and 1 like blooking fool believed him." For Phrenic Cheat CompPn>t«s. Woods' Great Peppermint Cure.

After five days of cold, showery weather with exceptional downpours on.# Sunday night and yesterday, the bitter spell broke at about 10 o'clock this morning. The climatic, conditions do not, however, bear any very settled aspect.

Messrs Shepherd and Black, the Engineers to value the plant of the Electric Light Company in connection with the purchasing of the by the Borough Council, arrived ™i Stratford last night, and commenced their duties to-dav.

A water snake, measuring 29in. long and lin in girth, was recently booked by a Maori at Maimgamii Bluff, The back of the reptile (savs the Dargaville correspondent of the >'ew Zealand Herald) was of a dirk moss-green colour, Jdie underpavt being a light gold. Four inches from the tail the body was spotted brown and gold.

Tlie largest Methodist Church in rMontreal has turned the basement into ; a bowling alley and billiard-room "for anything in khaki." This movement

has shocked some of the straight-laced members; but the majority are staunchly behind the pastor in his efforts to counteract the attractions of the saloon and other places where men in uniform will not find either good company or good influences. This may be a glimpse of the social aspects of the Church for the future.

Twenty-three civil cases have been set down lor hearing at the weekly sitting c. the Stratiord Magistrate's Court on i iday. The other cases comprise one judgment summons, one case for fraudulently affixing a used stamp to a letter, one information for procuring liquor while prohibited, three informations for trespassing in pursuit of game without a license, and one. information for selling pea rifle ammunition to a youth under 1G years.

"I am corry to say that the outlook for the speedy conclusion of the war 4 is not good," said the Prime Minister in the House of Representatives on Friday evening. "1 don't think the' war is going to end for a very long time to come. 1 cannot speak as a military expert ? but 1 do say that we have to be careful. The outlook as far as the ending of the war is concerned is not as good as it seemed to be a year,./ ago. We thought then the war was, . going to end within a year. T uoubt.. if the wax will end within a year from ; , the present time." ,

Speaking in the House on the third leading of the ! War Pensions Act Amendment Bill/ Mr T. M. Wilford said that a wealthy man had told him the previous day that he had already given £3OOO in subscriptions to the war funds. "I asked him," added Mr Wilford, "How much are your war profits?' He answered; "Eight thousand.' Then ? I said, 'You have hot given one shilling. You cannot give one shilling till you have first given the whole of your war profits.' (Applause). The man replied, 'I hadn't looked at it in that way before.' But 1 hope he will look at it that way now," said Mr Wilford, "and that many more in his position will do the same." (Applause).

There is a prince among humorists "somewhere in Fiance." The following is a copy of a notice posted in a dug out he formerly occupied:—"la one of the choicest localities in northern France, to let. Three minutes from German trenches; an attractive and well built dug out, containing one reception kitchen, bedroom and up-to-date retiring room 4 feet by 3 feet. All modern inconveniences including "gas" and water. This desirable residence stands one foot above the water level, commanding an excellent view of the enemy's trenches. Excellent shooting ("snipe" and "duck"). Particulars of the late tenant, Base Hospital. • ,

Evidently the question of the marriage of the Prince of Wales is being considered. The Gentlewoman says : —"Feeling for England is running so high now that you hear the wish expressed on all sides—it was first mooted in the press—that when the Prince of Wales makes up his Royal mind to marry his wife should be 'quite English you know.' Almost every Princess one could name has a strain of German blood, or at any rate a tinge of it. flowing in her veins. Rut the blood of most of the daughters of our English noblemen is undiluted." Queen Victoria was greatly averse to one of her daughters marrying out of Royal circles but the world has changed considerably since that time, and the King and Queen appear to be among those who have "progressed" considerably, specially since war was declared.

At the land sale, held in the Whangamomona Hall yesterday, section P, consisting of 5 acres 3r. 14p., situated in the suburbs of Whangamomona, was sold to Mr Albert Fulcher for £35. MiBradley secured the lease of section 6*, area 9ac. lr. 23p., at an annual rental of £1 10s. and Mr Anderson, section 11. urea 18ae. 2r. 34p., at an annual rental of £2. Both these reserves are situated adjacent to Whangamomona town, and the terms are from year to year, as they are a future hospital site and grounds. The following J-acre sections in the town of Tahora were also sold: No. '24. price £47, buyer, Mr Howard; No. 29 and 30, Mrs Mary Davis at £2O and £26 respectively. The reserves in the same town, terms seven years, were leased as follows: Section S, area 37p. (annual rental £1), and section 9, area lr. 4 poles (annual rental £1). to Mary Davis; section 23, area lr. (annual rental £1 los), to Messrs Rooney and Co. For Cough and Colds, never fails Woods' Gr«>at Peppermint Cure.