LOCAL AND GENERAL

Taihape Daily Times, Volume 7, Issue 263, 28 July 1915, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Last Saturday, Mrs. S. Forster, of Ruanni, received a cable from her son, Gunner A. F. Ward, of the Field Artillery, who was wounded about five weeks ago at the Dardanelles, stating that he has now, recovered and is rejoining his regiment.

The will of the late Hon. E. C. J. Stevens has been filed with the Registrar of the Supremo Court, Christchurch. It is understood that the value of the estate is in the region of £300,OCA. Bequests, it is understood, are made /solelv to relatives.

The drawing of tlio art union for the Ford motor-car-held in connection w.'vr.h tlio candidature of Miss McKegg in the recent Wellington Queen Carnival took place at Levin. The holder of tli winning ticket is Mr. John Cummerfield, of Foxton.

During a thunderstorm in the vicinity of Gibraltar on May 25th, a cloud belched forth millions of tiny frogs, which had evidently been sucked up from a lake 20 milfes away. The ground was swarming with them.

There were 556 artisans and 5,656 labourers employed by the Public Works Department on co-operative works during May. Of these, 2,972 were engaged on railway works, 2,75/ on roads, and 467 on public buildings.

The Federal Government has approved of the transference of the small arms factory to Canbrra. The estimated cost is £92,100, and the work will be conpleted in 18 months. The price of flonr has been reduced 10/- per ton, says a Wellington message.

Captain Turner, late commander of the Lusitania, has left the navy for the army. “h T o more sea for me,” said he. “I have finished with it. My place in future is in the trenches, and tind and punish the race of hell-hounds who are responsible for the most cruel, cowardly, and dastardly outrage on record. ’ ’

'‘By the way, shrapnel! beats everything for making conversions,” writes a wounded Wanganui soldier from Egypt. “Talk about, eloquent preaching. I don't know if I ever worried much about a God or what came after this lot here, up till then, but when one knows that at any second, one is going to cross over, somehow the thought of a ‘someone,’ a/something on the other side” has its comforts, and you take it from me I did pray, and pray with some attention, too — missed out nothing; made a job of it. When you want fervour and a religious I feeling, try shrapnel.” :

A thoroughly domesticated lady is advertising .for a light position as housekeeper. A meeting of carpenters and joiners is called for to-morrow evening, in the Oddfellows’ Hall, Taihapc. The business is of the utmost importance to the trade, and it is hoped there will be a large attendance.

Tenders are invited by Mr, H. ,T. Doherty, Clerk to the Upper Wangaeliu Road Board, for cutting 125 cord’s of firewood. Particulars may be obtained from Mr. Doherty’s office, and the foreman will meet contractors at Collier’s Junction at 11 a.m. next Saturday.

I During the last week 35 married and 4S single men applied to the Wellington branch of the Labour Department for employment. Of these 33 married and 30 single men were placed, 52 in Government and 17 in private employment. Together with 30 men who had previously applied, there are 44 men on the books unplaced. The Department has authority to send 50 men to public works in the Gisborne district, and these are no-w being selected.

The ladies of Hamilton, who undertook the packing of the articles prepared for the hospitals at which wounded warriors are accomodated in Egypt and Mallta, conceived the idea of preparing a surprise packet for the men. A canvass of the Hamilton tradespeople resulted in generous donations of tobacco, cigarettes, and other suitable articles, which were placed in the pockets of the dressing-gowns, and doubtless wiM be greatly appreciated by the recipients.

The following significant paragraph appears in the Denmark Home and Abroad: “The Germans are digging trenches right across Schleswig in preparation to resist any attack that might bo made through Denmark. They are evidently preparing for a British attack from the north through Denmark. Of course, there has never been any talk of that description, but the Germans are people who will not risk anything, and very heavy fortifications are being constructed right across Schleswig.”

Hearing that the “Trents’ ’ (tha Earl of Liverpool’s OwiD were without a mascot, the members of the Central Club subscribed and purchased a, prize bulldog, which is' being presented to the regiment (states the Dominion). The dog has been named Poneke (Wellington). It is king provided with a silver coAar, which will have the -following inscription: “Presented to the Ist Trentham Regiment (E.L O.) by the Central Club, Wellington.”

According to the “New Zealand Trade Review” the value of the exports from New Zealand during the, year ended .Tnn e 30 last, totalled £26,244 307. anart from specie, as compared with £24,563,699 for the previous vear. The valu'd of the wool exported totals £9,907,670, as against £8,262.- !""• £ ".si A" ?.i,. against £-. 117.415; butter. £2.336,36?. asa’nst

£2,147 66?: cheese. £2.277.709 against

£2.317.936. These four mam lines of m-por+ ft<V'm , r*t for £20.336, 772 out of

£26.244.307 for the ygar.

'“'.-Nmr.-irntmv nr»nn + -' >r ' C! ' | nt'-> of the mo-rr.-- market, the “T”ad“ ReH°w” the e-uTiT) 1 *’ of funds continues jfri fn" oi] ordinary nurtv'ces. in.

re-**!'? nroj beginning to come to hand o more freely, and there has boen ".owtain amount of paving Customs duties in anticipation of tarig changes " Men mean calls on the bank coffers, but not, to any extent to the supply of funds they have. “There is no doubt.” adds the “Review.”,that funds mo plentiful at present, but it is verv difficult to foresee what the future will he owing to the unprecedentedly unsettled conditions that prevail.”

A gentieman engaged in the trade has stated that the price of tea was bound to go up shortly in view of the unprecedented demands made by the Allied armies, especially by the Russians, who were the greatest teadrinkers in the world. They have created such an enormous demand for tea that the rest of the world wall have to go short. Tea is a favourite beverage of the Britisher, especially “Tommy Atkins,” who uses no less than 2,000,OOOlbs a month. The tea merchants of the Dominion are reported to be viewing the position with -alarm, and predict an early rise in prices.

Tales of restitution after many years are always interesting as indicative that common honesty is still extant. A Christchurch, resident has had, recently, an instance of payment long overdue being made. He was astonished to receive a letter from London conveying a cheque for £2, and the explanation that it was the recipient’s share of ‘a debt owed by the sender to his father. The Christchurch man’s father died 30 years ago, and the debt had ' been forgotten. Other members of the family got their share of the payment of this long-standing debt. '‘Now, Gladys, get in off that gas-box, It’s time all young girls wer e in bed; tho nights are too cold for love-non-sense, And you have a bad cold in your iead.” “O, mamma, it’s so warm in this corner Tnere”s no need to worry, I’m sure. For Bertie’s just brought m e a bottle Of Weeds’ Greet Peppermint Cure.”

Further contributions have beer received to the Mataroa Wounded Soldiers-’ Fund: 11. Brickland, otla sheep; P. Wakeman, refreshments: 0. Kovel, cash, £1 I/-; G. Terry, cash, £.l .!/-• We are informed that Mr. Richmond Davies’ property, adjourning the Freezing Company 's Works at Winiata, of SI acres, lias been soM to Mr. G. D, Gordon. The 1 price is said to be satisfactory to both parties, if it does not actually constitute a record. Mr Davies, it is reported, is entering into a Native Land Agency and interpreting business at Tc Ku*bi.

If the German population is larger than ours in th e United Kingdom,we

must not forget (writes the military 1 correspondent of the “Timers”) that th e German casualties have probably been j ten times more numerous than ours i have been, and that the strain of fighting on two fronts has been immense. - ■We know what it means to hold a 4G-milp front in France, and should ■ endeavour to visualise what it will cost the enemy to fight on three fronts from the North Sea to Switzerland, I from the Tyrol to Montenegro and Serbia, and from the Bukowina to the Baltic. This strain, this tremendous strain, must tell in the long run. No nation can go on losing seven men a minute, day and night, as the Germans do, without in the end becoming exhausted. Every month of war causes Germany 300,000 casualties. Long ago 1 the original German Army as mobilised disappeared, and its physical excellence is not maintained by all the new recruits. With callow youths, Avith fathers of families, and’ with the) Kaiser’s “dogs and cats” irr reserve, the Germans fight on, applying to the destruction of their enemy’s men, womejn, and children every devilish contrivance that science can suggest. The supply of men is not exhausted', but to a large extent the flower of th e German youth has Avithered at a moment AA'hen ours is about to blossom, and no one can regard this curious development without speculating and building hopefully upon the result.