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Taihape Daily Times, Issue 219, 15 November 1916, Page 4

In connection with the conscription referendum, the “No” majority is 59, 373. As there are less than fifty thousand votes still to count, it is now admittedly impossible for “Yes” to win. The Wellington Trades and labour Council has Initiated a movement for the purpose of raising a fund as a national memorial to the late Sergt, E. . Carey. An appeal is being made to the unions throughout the Dominion, and the circular refers to the good work done for the cause of labour during the past ten years by the late Sergt. Carey.

Question on the possibility of the Australian coal strike extending to New Zealand, Mr. P. C. Webb, M.P., who is in touch with the mining districts, said he did not anticipate anything of the kind. The only chance of such contingency, he said, would follow an attempt to export New Zealand coal to Australia, and as this country could not supply its own requirements, there was little probability of trouble.

An explosion took place on a railway dining-car at Mercer early on Friday morning. The car is one of those used in connection with the Rotorua express, and which is left at Mer cer over-night. When the attendant lit the gas-stove in the morning a loud explosion occurred. The window of the can was smashed and the door of the oven of the stove was broken. The attendanf, who was uninjured, had a remarkable escape. ' The cause of the explosion is unknown.

A serious fire, involving the destruction of eight shops, a hotel, and two offices, occurred at Taunanga on Sunday morning. The damage is estimated at £30,000.

According to the Government Statistician, there are 4084 men in the first division of the Expeditionary Force reserve in the Manawatu recruiting district.

The American gum-chewing habit has taken such a hold of the British people that the output of the leading manufacturers has increased within six months from 3,000,000 bars to 20, 000,000 bars. Soldiers and munition workers are the principal customers.

During the passage of the Manuka from Sydney to Wellington on Friday, while one of the officers was testing a log astern of the vessel, a shark or some large fish bit the log propeller clean off. A tooth of the fish was found embedded in the line. The “float,” as the missing portion of the log is known, is made of brass anc weighs about 21bs.

A mob of a thousand recently took Jess Hammct, a negro, from the gaol in Vivian, Louisiana,, and hanged him to a telegraph pole. He was identified by a white woman as the man who, armed with a butcher knife, attempted an assault upon her. The woman’s parents were among those who pleaded with the mob to desist. Hammet, as a servant years ago, cared fon the woman he attempted to outrage.

At the Carterton Magistrate’s Court the other day, a Maori, at the end of the -hearing of a case against Him, stated to the Magistrate; “I say, what about my expe’nses; I borrow te money to come here. ” “I can’t help that,” replied the Magistrate, “you’ll have to pay that back yourself.” “Oh, well,” came the resigned reply frotn the wily native, “there’s no harm to ask; just thought I might catch something.”

Recruiting in Auckland during the last , fortnight has been astonishingly brisk. Between October 28 and November 11 no fewer than 295 men offered themselves, of whom 242 were accepted or deferred. The Mayor says it is now certain there will be no necessity for the operation of the 09mpulsory clauses of the Act, and the drafts will be made up of voluntary enlistments until well into> the new year. However, the Recruiting Committee has decided to recommend the Minister, to at once enforce the law with regard to family shirkers.

Mr. Arthur Brisbane, editor of tne New York Journal, has discovered a way of adding two hours to his working day, In his motor car lie has installed an Edison phonograph, resting in a cushioned box. While' he is riding to and from his Long Island home, he dictates into the phonograph letters, articles, and editorials, which are later transcribed at the office. Mr. B’risbane recently took his car and Its equipment out to visit Thomas Edison and the great inventor was delighted with the ingenious use made of his phonograph.

A splendid record in voluntary en listment was referred to by Mr. Ivor Hazell, secretary of the Amalgamated Society of the Carpenters and Join ers, at a meeting in Christchurch. Mr. Hazell said that most members of his organisation were -opposed to conscription, and many of them expressed their feelings by coming forward and volunteering. There were 5000 members in New Zealand, and 1000 — one in five —were fighting in France. While the bulk of the members did not favour conscription, they were loyal to their King and to their Empire, and to the voluntary principle.

“The medical work at Rotorua,” states the Hon. Mr. Russell, “is of the most advanced order, and many of the cures that are being effected are phenomenal. One case was brought before me of a man who was sent there, blind, speechless, and paralysed. Kis blindness has now disappeared; also he is able to talk perfectly, and is now calling out for his clothes, as the progress he is making warrant's the conclusion that he will soon be up and about again. The man’s clothes, it appears, were lost on his return ?o New Zealand, somewhere between tne troopship at Dunedin and Wellington.”

Startling revelations of Hunnism in connection with gifts for Australian soldiers* arc disclosed in a letter, just received by a Gisborne resident from Dapto, New South Wales. The Rod Cross Committee in that centre had its curosity ano used by a number of parcels being sent in for transmission to the boys at the front, all expressly marked, “Not to be opened; to be sent direct to the front.’ The parcels were opened, and a lady member of the committee, on thrusting her hand inside one of the socks which one of the parcels contained, and had it severely cut by a piece of fine glass. As the wound became much inflamed an investigation w r as made, and the glass was found to have been dipped in Strychnine. All the “expressly marked” parcels contained similar outrageous surprises for the soldiers.

An experienced seamstress is want ed by the day at the Taihape Hosj.it

The group rifle meeting is to bo hold at Wanganui on Saturday. December 9. This affects all Territorials, Cadets and ride clubs.

The Wanganui River Trust has decided to curtail all expenditure until such time as the Trust is placed in a proper financial position.

In emphasising the superiority o? the scientific war attainments of the Allies over those of the Central Powers, Mr. Wilford, in his lecture at Lower Hutt, stated that there were now in France batteries of three mortars which were capable of such rapid fire that they could have 24 projectiles in the air at one time.

The two outstanding points in tho Financial Statement for the first seven months of the year are the possibility of a surplus of two millions at )he end of the financial year, and the statement that the wan expenditure has reached a million a month, Between the two is the very satisfactory statement that the ordinary expenditure "is largely reduced from the years of recent muddle.

In the course of his lecture at Lower Hutt, Mr. Wilford, in stating that he had in his pocket a letter from General Jcffre, said that he could get an answer to a communication from him quicker than he could from one of New Zealand’s Government Depart ments. He said he supposed it was because Joffre had nothing to do. and the point was much appreciated by the audience.

In the course of his address to the Friendly Societies at Auckland, Mr. R. E. Hayes, Registrar of Friendly Societies, stated that the assistance provided under the Finance Act by the State to Friendly Societies was estimated to cost about £22,000 per annum, and that this was in addition to the subsidy for the reinsuring of the lodges’ war reinsurances, which had cost the Government about £IO.OOO.

The Women’s Anti-German League in Wellington has proved itself an exceedingly useful body in ferreting out those of German nationality who are still at large. They have “spotted” one after another in the military camps —men who by adding or taking away a letter from their names got into uniform. The Defence Minister has been brought to book several times by the secretary (Mrs Moore), who has succeeded in getting several Germans withdrawn from camp.

A deputation from the Wellington Hotel 'Workers’ Union interviewed the Hon. A. L. Herdman yesterday relative to the anti-shouting regulation. They represented that the convicting of a person twice for the same offence was against the canons of the British law and justice, and suggested that the bar attendant should be informed of the offence at the time it was alleged to have been committed, so as to give the worker an opportunity of obtaining evidence that might be available. The deputation also asked that the regulations be considerably modified, so that injustices suffered by workers would be removed.

While the freehold of the land on which a portion of Mr Kelly’s stables stand was being offered for sale yesterday, Mr Saville, the local poundkeeper, had a narrow escape with his life. He was looking on at the sale when the horse rubbed his nose on Mr Savillc’s foot. Mr Saville’s spur became interlocked somehow in the horse’s bit. The horse became norv’ous and endeavoured to free himself, while Mr Saville put his weight on his entangled foot in an endeavour, to break away. This however forced the horse’s head under him, and in his struggles, caused him to turn a complete somersault. Fortunately Mr Saville fell clear of being crushed under # the animal, but he sustained some injury in conjunction with a severe shaking.