INTERESTING ITEMS.

Taihape Daily Times, Volume 7, Issue 260, 20 July 1915, Page 8

INTERESTING ITEMS.

The War-Pensions Bill, which has been reconsidered by the Secret Defence Committee at the direction of th e House of Representatives, may return to the House to-day. It is expected that the pension rates will be found to have been increased at several points. A War Funds Bill is to be introduced shortly. It will provide for the proper Control of patriotic funds and for the audit of the accounts of patriotic organisations.

Tales of restitutio:* “after many years” are always interesting as indicative that common honesty is still A Christchurch resident has aad, recently an Instance of payment King overdue being made. He was astonished to receive a letter from Loncn conveying a cheque of two pounds, ahdV the explanation that it the ' veinpieht.’s•: sliar e ' 1 of .a debt owed ,by the, 'sender to his - father.' The Christchdrdii- mail's father died thirty years

■go. ‘i.hd ’the debt had been forgotten. Other' members' of family had got ihe.'r share of the payment of this 'orig-stailding debt.

eg. * “An extraordinary occurrence happened in a private house in Christchurch one night last week, indicating the va- ; garies of fire. On© of th© children of ■a family, it is supposed, set ablaze a ‘oilet cover over a chest of drawers, i which was against a plastered wall. On fh e top of the chest were a number of miscellaneous toilet articles, more or less inflammable. Th e fire burned completely round the fringe of the toilet cover, including the portion at the back, the plaster wall being slightly scorched. Beyond this no damage was done, despite th© fact that the two windows in the room trere wide open. It was not till the following morning thstt the fact that there had been a lire was discovered.

“The Australians were sent to take a certain ridge,” states a letter from a minister of religion at th e Dardanelles to another in Wellington. “The Canterbury. Otago, and Wellington Infantry were to link up with them as a support to hold th© position. CJreaf. cheering; was beard from the trenches th© Otagos out, and gradually the cheering became fainter and fainter, and those i« the french eg Vn-«w that matter*, were not well with the attacker*. The Ot.Tgos w«r© thouchf to ho holding ground +o ‘be v!"ht. end fh© ordon iras dvo» for 'v *o Tr, fn ance. ,A section had mov©a oof n-hon the order was counfcranded, but it cam© top htt« try call th© met!. 'Motr ' r h r -‘ J » Canterbury boys never returned.”