NEWS OF THE DAY.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVI, Issue 209, 7 September 1904, Page 2

NEWS OF THE DAY.

The Chamber of Commerce -meets at 7.45 this evening in the borough chambers. It is stated in Pahiatua that a new daily paper is likely to be started there immediately. "Yet there has been no liner singer heard in Melbourne for the last 20 years."—Melbourne Argus on Watkin Mills.

A young man named J. Gray, a clerk in the Bank of New Zealand at Temuka, dropped dead while at his work 0 n Monday afternoon.

On Saturday, 24 th inat., Mr Newton King will offer for sale part section 770, Grey, the property of Mr Martin Petrie.

Great interest was taken yesterday at Dunedin in a shipment of new Methodist hymn books which arrived by mail, and there was quite a demand for copies. A telegraph office will be open at the Timaru racecourse to-day and tomorrow from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Money order telegrams addressed to tho course will be payable at Timaru.

Dr. MacGregor, Inspector-General of Hospitals, has been instructed to inquire into the management of the Auckland Hospital, and report to Ministers whether a Royal Commission is necessary.

If the State has enough coal to makp it worth while to sell to the public, surely the only fair way to retail it is from the State's own depots, where tho people who bought it could 'get it at a reasonable cost. If the State is going to help the people, it has no right to help only the coal-dealer section of the people. —Wellington Free Lance. Mr Field, M.H.R., is a lawyer. He has just placed a -bill before Parliament entitled "The Marriage Restrictions Removal Bill." The only operativo clause reads : "A man may marry his mother's brother's wife, and a woman, may marry her mother's sister's husband. l ' From the omission of the word "deceased" hefore "brother's" and "sister's" Mr Field evidently wants to marry a man to his aunt -before that aunt's husband is dead ; also that a girl . may marry her uncle -before his wife has departed this life.

If t.ho birth-rate is not .tirge Mough to pleaso Mr Soddou, it is probably quite us burdensome on poor people as they can stand, for the majority are slaves to their families. Who knows what might happen if Mr Seddon only stepped in with a premium on large families ? Greymouth Argus.

By advertisement which appears in \ another column it will l>e noticed i that the annual meeting of the j Equitable' Building Society is to be held on Friday, 23id inst. In addition to the formal business announced there will be four appropriations of £l5O each to be disposed of by ballot and sale.

The local Stock Inspector, Mr Rowan, is keeping the town milk suppliers up to the standard. Yesterday three of these gentlemen had t/heir licenses cancelled as they had not complied with the inspector's instructions', issued under the Dairy Industry Act, 1898. This s loul'd have a salutory effect on other vendors of the lacteal fluid.

The bachelois' ball at W'urca, which was to be hold on September Ist, had to 'be postponed till the following night on account of the weather. Although the weather was anything but good ia large nunJber of people attended ; in fact, it was a record for Wai-ea. People came from as far as Oaonui and Oakura. The committee in charge of affairs had everything in first-class order, ,and are to be congratulated on their efforts. Ab)>ut 140 persons sat down, to a splendid supper supplied by Mr J. S. Fox, of Okato. Messrs A. Corbctt and P. Julian carried out the duties of M's.C—Own correspondent.

A departure from the orthodox in funerals was witnessed in Dunediiii on Saturday. In place of the stately and sombre hearse, the remains, enclosed in a white coflin, were conveyed upon, an open vehicle known to the undertaker as a station waggon, the sable horses and trappings being replaced by a pair of Jfcpautiful greys, with silver-mounted harness. The mourners were conveyed in three carriages, also drawn by grey horses, whilst the drivers discarded the .■rape-trimmed siilk hats and gloves, and the services of him who usually walks lief ore the cortege was dispensed with. The. deceased, it is mderstood, held the opinion that death was not n circumstance which should bo the occasion for gloom, but rather the reverse. We have received a further communication on the subject o: the volume of the poultry export trade. Our informant still maintains that the .figures supplied by the Clovernment Poultry Expert (Mr. Hyde) lire' stated that last year 100,000 head of poultry were exported to South Africa, and that he expected the export for 1904-5 would be about double that number. Our informant states that the returns of the Department of Industries and Commerce show that for the year ending 81st March only 35,250 birds were shipped to the South Africun markets, and that the export from the whole colony since the beginning of tin present financial year has been but J3.500 head.—Wellington Post. China has a way of getting hold of some of the first principles of things, even though she may not have developed them into elaborate and scientific systems. The method of calculation used in the Chinese !>onks may seem primitive to the foreigner ; nevertheless it is carried on with rapidity and accuracy. An oilicer wanted a large piece of money changed into small coin,. Instead of going through the weariness involved in counting; out the 300 pieces included in this transaction, a simple ingenious device was employ-, ed. A flat wooden tray was produced containing 100 recesses, each just Uji'g enough to lodge one coin, and just shallow enough to prevent the possibility of two lurking together. The pile of small coins was [loured out on this tray, and with one jerk of the clerk's wrist the hun- I died recesses were filled'.and the surplus swept off. During the performance tho clerk kept his enormous sleeves tucked up well, in order to disarm any possible suspicion of dexterous pilfering. The officer's change was correct to the last penny, and wias obtained in un incredibU short time.

Says the Ironmonger :—" 1 men tionied a little while ago that the Russian army had been supplied with provisions packed in tins having a Jacket filled with some preparations of calicum earlride, s 0 designed that upon dipping the tin in water acetylene was generated and the load made steaming hot by the heat resulting from the liberation of the gas. A Frenchman is now reported to have turned the peculiar properties of calicum carbide to a>:count by devising n sash or belt which will preserve anyone who wears it from drowning. The artile is made of india-rubber,- and incloses a small box containing carbide or a compound of that suh-wl-ancc. When the sash comes into contact with the water, the carbide preparation somehow comes into contact with moisture arid thus gives off gas sufficient to buoy up tho wearer. Unfortunately I cannot get u ny detailed information' as to tho address of the inventor jbfit doubtless if the idea proves practicable, lie will be putting in an appearance ere long either in person or 'lib' proxy at the Patent Office."

The revolution in Japan has brought about no change in tho practice of ancestor worship. Religion is no bar to it, and it is probable that all the Christian converts in Japan are also ancestor worshippers. It •is interesting in this connection to recall the fact that in China the early Jesuit missionaries made the most -headway when they had declared that ancestor worship was not to be considered as a religion, and that therefore thero was no necessity for converts to relinquish this, the most prized of their beliefs. Tho coining of Western civilisation only 'brought conveniences for the gathering together of the members or a family ; it did not reduce tho occasion »f such gatherings. To quote Mr Hozuiui :—"To Western eyes the sight would appear strange of a Japanese family inviting; their relatives through the medium of the telephone, to take part in a. ceremony of this nature; while equally incongruous would seem the (spectacle of the members' of the family, some of them attired in Etiropctui and others in native costume, assembled in a room lighted by electricity, making offerings and obeisances before the memorial tablet .of their ancestor. The curious 'blending of past and present is one of tlie most striking plscnomenn of Japan."—Alfred Stead in the Monthly Review.

The King has honoured one of the survivors of the great charge of the Light Brigade at Balaclava toy conferring on him the medal for meritorious conduct and the annuity attached to it. Having, in the recant Birthday honours, conferred marks of favour upon officers in commemoration of the jubilee of the Crimean war,his Majesty proves that he has not forgotten the gallant rank and file. Sergeant Nunnerley, formerly of the 17th Lancers, the recipient ol the medal, is over six feet in Itei.ght, amd in spite of his years he retains d line soldierly appearance. In simple words he tells the Story of the famous charge. '-'W'c had not gone far," he said, "l>efore the men'in the left division of my flqluadron were nearly all mowed down, including a sergeant whose lw>ad was blown off, his body remaining upright whilo his horse gnllo|>ed thirty yards before it fell from tlie saddle. Every shot from the enemy's gunS camo with deadly effect. Within „ few yards pf the Russian guns any horse was shot under me. On foot I succeeded in cutting my way through the Russian cavalry, and when I got clear of my foes I nssistod several fallen comrades, -after which I mounted a stray horse and returned up the valley, passing scores of dead mem. I found that out of 145 of the 17th Lancers who joined in the charge only 35 lived to toll tho tale. On the morning of tho battle there wore thirteen of us in ono tent ; in the evening I was alone."

Hotel-keeping ,is a legitimate and ] res|>ectable business, where respecuably conducted, ami hotel-keepers have equal rights with all other citizens, though tltere is a tendency to Ignore the fact in Hie heat of excited controversy.—Hokitika Leader. The Ashburton branch of the Farmers' Union decided to call on Mr ,1\ E. Taylor, M.H.K., to producu 'proof of his statement in the House recently, that owing to the uggregai lion of large estates tiie population of Ashburton county was increasing.

Experiments by means of floats carried on by the drainage engineer at Dunedin are said to have thrown some doubt on -the •possibility of utilising the suggested drainage outfall at Tomahawk Head without risk of polluting the beach. The Otago Harbour Board yesterday considered forty applications received for the position of engineer and secretary. A committee of six was appointed to reduce the number to not more than ten and report. The applications came from all parts of New Zealand and Australia.

NEW ADVERTISEMENTS. Newton King.—Sale of property byorder of tho Registrar. Chamber of Commerce—Meeting this evening at 7.d0. Equitablo Building Society—Annual meeting, 23rd. A good ploughman is wanted.