LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taihape Daily Times, 31 August 1918, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Dannevirke possesses an enterprising milkman, Wno now dispenses the lacteal fluid per medium of a motor ear, "manned" by two young women, who are rapidly mastering the mechanism of the new means of transport.

The gangs of Jugo Slavs employed upon public works have lately been augmented by the sending of small supplementary drafts to the Ongaruo--Stratford railway works to Mangapai, and to Karepehi. Latest reports from the various centres of operations show that the Slavs are now carrying on their work contentedly and industriously

, The Austrians in the Holdsworthy concentration camp (Sydney) celebrated a few days ago the birthday of their Emperor Karl. The camp was gaily decorated—with Australian wattle.

A White Ribbon Social is to bo held in the Gymnasium Hall, on Monday next, September 2. at 3 p.m. During the meeting Mrs. Don, New Zealand's greatest lady orator, will give an address.

A plain and fancy dress ball is being given in the Utiku Hall by the gentlemen of Utiku, on Thursday, September sth, in aid of some good public work.' Utmost preparations are being made to render this ball a record event. In addition to a beautifully decorated hall, good floor, good music and a bounteous table, there are prizes to be allotted to those appearing in best £aney dress.

"Smile when you pay your income tax; it means a tear for the Kaiser," is one of the slogans in the nation wide campaign undertaken by the United States Internal Revenue Commissioners. The object is to promote a cheerful spirit among the 7,000,000 American ratepayers, who, for the first time will be subjected to a direct Federal income tax. It was intended to collect more than £600,000,000 by the") first of last month.

"I've been in every scrap in Gallipoli and in France since "The Landing," and I've never had one day's illness —never been off duty once up to last February, when I got trench fever," said one of thirty long-service men who returned to Australia by the last transport. It was one of the original Anzacs speaking, one of a halfdozen heroes granted six months' furlough from the firing-line on account of their four years' spell of duty. Of that six months these veterans hoped to have at least two months in Australia.

Thousands of specially devised rifles for sending propaganda over the enemy lines are now in use in the Allied armies, according to James Kenery, director of the Franco-American committee on public, information. From these rifles grenades are discharged by means of which tracts and pamphlets may be scattered along enemy trenches with cosiderable accuracy at a range of more than £OO yards. For greater distances small balloons made of cloth are used Each of these lifts twenty pounds of propaganda literature, and by means of a mechanical device drops a quarter-pound of these documents at fifteen-minute intervals.

Great public interest was taken today in an action at the Napier Supremo Court on Thursday when J. V. Brown, M.P., (Sir John Findlay, K.C.) proceeded against G-. W. Venables and E. Mulvanah (Mr. 0. P. -Skerrett, KC), for alleged libel. The statement of claim was to the effect that the defendants published in a newsjpapcr called the "Hawke's Bay Observer" a statement .tihat plaintiff (had been guilty of " a mean and despicable piece of dirty work," and • also that he was discredited both in the people's Parliament and out of it. As damages plaintiff claimed £5Ol. The defence pleaded fair comment.

"When I reached France," says a "Bulletin" correspondent "I fancied I would at last be able to find out the correct way of prounouncing Ypres. I made a mistake. The soldiers call it, indifferently, Yeeps, Yeepers, Yeeper, Yeepree, Ycepri, Iper, Ipers, Iprey, and a score of other somewhat similar things, down to one Tommy's 'Hipo.' 'ls it Eper?' I asked one woman of the shattered district. 'Eper, m'sieur,' she assented. "Or is it Eprey?" I pursued. 'Eprey, m'sieur,' she assented some more. 'lt doesn't happen to be Woolloomooloo, does it?" I asked. "It is •anything that m'sieur pleases,' she said politely. It doesn't matter — Heaps would be the best word to use, all things considered."

Mr. Bayley, who speaks here on Monday, has had the unique experience of spending some six weeks at the front, having been in all the important centres of activity from Ypre& to Albert on the Somme. He was appointed by the Government of British Columbia on nomination of the Prohibition Association as one of the scrutineers in connection with the soldiers' vote on woman suffrage and prohibition. By fraudulent practices, including personation, resurecting dead soldiers, repeating ,ete. r some 5000 fraudulent votes were secured against prohibition and thus apparently defeating it. But by the time Bayley got through with the job the whole contemptible scheme was fully exposed before a Government Commission sent to London to investigate and prohibition went into force with the almost unanimous support of Parliament. It was this achievement which made him known throughout Canada and Great Britain and led to the invitation given hiin to campaign in New Zealand. Bayley's lecture at Taihupe bids fair to see the Town Hall crowded. Be early to get a good seat.