NEWS OF THE DAY.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVI, Issue 257, 3 November 1904, Page 2

NEWS OF THE DAY.

The Tnranaki provincial executive of the Mew Zealand Fanners Union meets at llaweni on the 9th November.

The potato crop in the Forty Mile Bush thus season is likely to be a failure, most of the seed having rotted in the ground.

The meeting of the High School Board of Governors yesterday lapsed for want of a quorum. The next meeting will be the ordinary December one.

The Haw-era branch of the New' Zealand Farmers' Union now numbers 98 uiein-liers. It is expected that the 100 will be exceeded before next meeting.

It is stated that the receipts of ] the Wellington electric tramways, though only about half tho lines are yet in use, arc averaging about £l5O per day«

Taihapc- reports that a large and brilliant -meteor burst over the township at 8.55 on Wednesday morning, with a tremendous report like that of a heavy gun. The work of Installing the electric lighting plant at Inglewood is being pushed on apace. The ironbark poles for the conductors are now in posiition ready for erection.

The tender of Messrs H. Ward and Co., Ironmongers, has been accepted by the New Plymouth Harbour Board for tho supply of ironmongery,- paint, oils, etc. Messrs Bellringer Bros, and D. Berry and Co. were the other tenderers.

The Tapuni Courier says there is a steady growth of Sabbath-breaking in that district both in town and country, and if Some people go on as they are doing Sunday truding will become as general in Otago as it is in 'Frisco.

James Bennett, the mau accused of shooting another named Edgecumbe, ■at Whatatutu, Poverty Bay, has been arrested and remanded. It is allebed provocation was given Bennett by Ryan, the man he aimed at. Edgccunibe's injury is not serious. Caroline Wing Kee, of Midhirst, was committed for trial at Stratford on Wednesday on a charge of perjury alleged to have been committed during tho trial o-f Arthur, McAuliflie, when the latter was recently sentenced for arson and perjury. Bail was allowed.

Since his arrival here last Monday, Mr E. C. Isaac, organising inspector' of technical schools, has visited the West End, Courtenaystreet, Central and High Schools. In all probability, before leaving this district, a visit will be paid to the Stratford technical classes. The Waimate Witness states that the southern slopes of tho mountain ure reported to b» free from wild t-attlc. Several herds rendezvousing in the Kaptiui and Knupokonui ravines have been annihilated by the rangers appointed for the purpose by the National Park Board. One N'inirod, armed with a repeating rifle, grounded five in quick succession, the remainder being subsequently shot.

Over seventy ladles responded to the invitation of Mrs Evans to meet in St. Mary's Hall on Wednesday afternoon in order to confer together as to the best method of reducing the parish debt. It was decided to collect as much as possible towards that object, the money to come in at. the annual festival to be held on December 4th ; a'so to hold a fancy bazaar about August next, a large and influential committee being formed to curry out the arrangements in connection, therewith.

In the appeal case Williams v. the Commissioner o! Stamps, affecting l the duty payable on four groups of transactions between members of tlie Williams fumily, the Appeal Court g'ave judgment that in all the cases the conveyances purporting to bo on sale were in part conveyance for value and in part deeds of gift, and that duty was payable on so much of tiho transaction as \wvc true deeds of gift, the Commissioner to refund the duty paid on that part which was'a true conveyance for value. Costs were awarded to the apifellnnts on the highest scale, as on a single apiwol. Replying to Mr Vile, Hon. C. 11. Mills stated that district valuers had been cautioned not to accept any boojn values, but to do their utmost to obtain the fair, equitable bedrock value of land and improvements, so that they may be used either for levying rates npon or for lending Advances to Settlers Office money upon. Sometimes objections reach the department on the score that improvements are valued too low, and at other time that they of tlie objection depends very largeare valued too high, but the" nature ly upon whether a local body levies its rates on unimproved value only or on improvements as well, and this is where the difficulty aris. es. Valuers will again be instructed to exercis/3 every care In placing on all improvements their fair valuo in according- to tho terms of the act.

"Take core of the pennies and the pounds will tuke cure of themselves' Is an old-time axiom which has apparently boon adopted il.iy the new tramway department of the Wellington Corporation, according to an auUioirtieaUd story going the rounds of the city. A small lioy who wits sent from Newtown into the city on a message was given foiirpence for the jouinoy on the tramways. Thinking he could get back for a penny fare] the boy spent ono of the coppers on "refreshment." Hut Nemesis overtook him on tho car. When the lad had entered upon & second section the conductor asked him for another 1 penny. Hie replied that he had no more money ; so tho inspector came along, ascertained the lad's age {which was ovor the half-fare limit) and took his name and !us employer's address. i„ <] ue time the lad's employer received on account through the post from the electrical tramwav department for one pennV. The account had cost a penny to forward, and probably comalerably more for Stationery, ■bookkeeping, and time occupied m considering the case. The employer called at the office am! paid the account, which ho fed placed in hs nnimmi of curios as ~ exhibit of the "economy" 0 f circumlocution U^\r t Z al v eleCt ' iOU , W ' cf^rZTa^K^ Proportionate replantation of the anous dtstricts a s provide for . v Utlon Lounity, one member ■ Taranaki and Eg Ul( , lrt Counties combined, hree members ; Stratford Counti, two members; Stratford and Ingle-wood Boroughs combined M ,e member. New Plymouth "and C to.; ,'V ff ' S combi >*< two mem"ou.. Jhe election for the Taranaki and Egmont districts is f lxe d for U 0 clock at the Hospital Hoard'." ofhee, the Kbw Plymouth and Waitara Borough, delegates meeting half an hour ater at the same pl a ce. nheStratlotd andlnglewood election will bo held at the Stratford Borough ofiices. At this pl a ce Mr Edwai d Hemingway will n ct as presiding officer, Mr C. M. Upper acting at New Plymouth. Owing to the Stratford district having been totclv declared a separate .Hospital area, Mr I,epix>r wired to the Inspector of Hospitals asking whether the representation cannot bo altered so that all members may bo elected from within the Taranaki rating area. A reply has been reccivod that the Stratford County will elect two members and tho borough one member to tho new body, while Ingl.'wood Borough will send one member to the Taranaki Board The combination of the New Ply. mouth and Waitara Boroughs Is also o]>nn to objection, as it is Contended that the former body can scarcely .- low Waitara equal representation, w.iile the election of a second member acceptable to both districts niay he diircult of adjustment. It is felt . thnt the northern borough could with more Satisfaction have been joined to tile Clifton County,

London telephone girls are, sflow ami indi lie rent, the l-'ronch untraceable and impertinent. Tin l llaliuu telephono girl by the side of hoi' London and Varus sisters shines indeed. She is obliged to repeat tho number wanted, and so seldom makes a wrong connection ; she is prompt, and not exceptionally pert, but she is la/.y.—Secolo, -Rome.

Keadei> are reminded of the swimming spurts to be held tliis afternoon in the saltwater batto. An attractive programme has bean- arranged, and swimmers are tak'ing a great interest in the various events. 'lllife Town Hand has kindly offered to render a programme of music. Ills Worship the Mayor (Mr K. Cock) will declare the season open, this litt.e ceremony being timed for two o'c.ock. The admission will be sixpence.

On Sunday afternoon last, at Wanganui, asi ia result of a horse bolting through being frightened by a motor car, a young lady was thrown out of a trap and badly .shaken, and the vehicle smashed. Tine driver of the motor pleaded guilty, and wasi fined £5, with costs XI Is, on Wednesday morning, for driving at an excessive speed along the street, Witnesses- declared the oar. was going at least 15 miles an hour, and the bye-laws only allow u speed of eight. It is understood a civil action is pending for damages to the trap and injury to the lady. Wellington is tfee only city that has taken to the discount stamp issued'by the State. During the September quarter stamps were issued at seventeen post offices in the colony ; there were no sales at eleven of the offices, and of the £855 5s worth of sales made at the other six offices, Wellington was credited; with £768 10s and Thames with £O9 15e. Stamps to the value of £707 19s and £O4 17s were redeem-' cd in Wellington and Thames respec-' tively. During the same quarter oi last year £725 worth of discount stamps were sold at posit offices and £661 13s redeemed.

There were 1175 telegraph offices open in the colony during the September quarter of the present year, as against 1141 open during the same Quarter last year. Tlie number of ordinary telegrams sent during the three months ended Sept. 30 last was 853,207, for which £28,968 was paid, £2560 was paid for 40,518 urgent ordinary telegrams, and £3969 for 93,000 press telegrams. The Government telegrams numbered 62,943, for which tins Department was credited with the sum of £4814. The number of Government telegVnms sent out during the September quarter of last year was 67,186, valued at £5500. Tintotal number of messages sent out by tlie Telegraph Department during last quarter, including 147,593 bureau communications, was 1,134,318, exclusive of Government messages.

Quite another version :—"Admiral Rohjcsihenaki has fougiht a great naval battle i n the NorLh Sea. Sailing peaceably south, Ibis sari sea dogger found himself suddenly surrounded by a fleet of torpedo boats anchored on a sand bank, manned by fierce and terrible fishermen, and armed with deadly and destructive cods' heads. At once a furious and letlial fusilade poured in upon the unsuspecting Russians. Half a stule cod hit the Imperatur Alexander amidships, and the forward end ol a plaice struck the KniaszsuvarolT full on the port bow. Did Admiral Rohjeshenski's presence of mind fail l-'im'.' Not u bit, A rod live Russian prince, who was in tine battle and escaped without a scratch, tells a thrilling story. lie 'formed in line of battle, and replied to the fire, afterwaids continuing his voyage. It was a great and noble victory, worthy of the glorious traditions of the Russian race. Even tlie damaged Iwttleshiips were extricated, and succeeded in reaching. Vigo for repairs All Russia is thrilled with pride at the gallant deed. "-Manawatu Times.

A very okl-timo place ,of amusement which has probably faded from the memory of many (says the Ota-. go Dally Times) |ias recently been entirely demolished, and where tho old Polytechnic Hall once stood there is now only a vacant section of land. Some will l-ecall to mind the time when this place, situated in High-street, just above the Princess Theatre, w«s mudi used as a place of entertainment by minor companies visiting. Dunedin. it wast hero Thatcher, during some of his visits, used to delight hji) audjdncejs in 'the olden days, and contemporaneous witJi him were Madame Vitelli an d also Mr Joseph Small, whose inimitaMu svjifeins of "Tho. Unfortunate; Man'' never failed to bring the house! down, 'those were the digging days, and it was seldom that the Polytechnic, which was capable of accommodating Some 300 to 400 pelsons, was not filled to overflowing. A company that appeared there more than once was tho Nathan troupe, a comedy company of, at that time,' somo pretentions, and, later, Woodroll's glass-blowers opened within its walls, and tho panor a ma of tho American was was also exhibited there. The pftice of lalte yearp Sins served a variety of purposes, and was last used as si furniture fadtory. The mention of the old Polytechnic will vividly recall, to tho minds of some the days long antecedent to the advent of railways, trams, telephones, drainage and water schemes., and many other tilings that, with tlie rapid growth of the city of Dunedin. have become imperative necessities. The Polytechnic Was probably the oldest of the few romainingi really old buildings about Dunedin.

The programmo for the next contest under auspices of the North Islaml brass Bands' Association, to be held In Auckland between the 18th and 20lh February next, is now available. The committee has decided to offer prize money which is £11)0 more titan has over been given in the colony, Atout £4OO will be divided into—£lso for the two test pieces, £75 for the marching, and the rest for solos. There are one hundred gold and silver medals to be given for tho various o\«iita at a cost exceeding £SO, and there aro a number of trophies offered by English, American and Australasian firms, aggregating In value £2OO. Then the North Island Association gives twenty-five silvor medals with, gold centres to tho best band, and the Besson Shield (won by the Kai-, koral lost year at Palmorsiton,) will be again competed for. It has been arranged that tho test pieces and the solos will be played under cover this year, as the playing in the open ejir was so disastrous nt Palmerston last year on account of the rain. The marching will be held in the Domain. 'The cost of the contest is set down at about £IOOO, towards which £SOO Is to bu guaranteed. The Wellington Garrison, Wanganui Garrison, and Kaikorai, Hue three "tracks'' of the colony are to compete. The music has 'already arrived in tho colony, and is> being kept unocr seal at Palmerston North. Tho judges appointed by the committee are :—Military judges, Sergeaitt-Ma-jors Carpenter, Rogers and Mucdonald ; fudge of instruments, Mr .J as. Imppy ; judge of uniforms, Captain Boaworth : judge of intervals, Lieut.Celtinel White; timekeeper. Mr J as. Hunter. The position of judge of musical contests will be left to the bands themselves to ballot for. HOLLOWAY'S OINTMENT AND

PILLS. Never at fault. In all irritations of the skin, sores, ulcers, burns and enlargements of the glands, llolloway t Ointment presents a ready and easy moans of cure which never disappoints the most favourable expectations. It manifests a peculiar power in restraining inflammation, removing stagflation, cooling tho heated blood and checking all acrimonious or unhealthy discharges. Whilst thus acting locully, the Pllla are no less remarkable for their power in improving the general condition and habit of body, which renders the cures complete and pormamont. Under the genial influence of these potent rem«(ies tho puny infant becomes the robust child ; the pale and emaciated regain colour and rotundity, and dyspeptic eats freeiy without fear.* a

An address will be given at the Freemasons' Hall t'his evening by Mr J. M.. Wilson, who is described as a Socialist and New, Thought speake*. Tho lecture is to be open to the public. In the House on Wednesday morning, in reply to u question by Mr Paruta, Die I'reinier agreed to lay a report on the petition of Mrs Thompson uud Airs Drown, recom , mending an inquiry into the Wesi I Coast reserves, on the table if tin Opposition undertook not to debate it.

A peculiar accident occurred to Mr Izard, solicitor, of Urey town, liewan catching: a young fowl, when an old rooster How at him and spurrtd both sides of ids knee. The knee became stilV and painful, and on examination by a doctor Mr Izard was oidered home lor -treatment of tblood poisoning. According to the local lunacy experis, Chicago is the most crazy city in uivilis-ation. Statistics show that one person in every lot) in Chicago is insane, while one person m eve'y five is predisposed to insanity. The percentage of insanity to one milllion has quadrupled in fifty years. Looking around generally, the Chicago experts conclude that half the civilised world, judging by present conditions, will l>e more or less insane live hundred years hence.

A young artillery cadet, seeing the servant of a welMinoWn Berlin lawyer Hiding a bicycle, mistook Iris livery for uniform, Bind angrily rebuked tlie man for not saluting. Whereupon the man, who was a Bavarian, jokingly' explained the difference between a civilian's livery and a soldier's uniform. The enraged cadet called a passing soldier, j and had the servant arrested. The man was subsequently released, and complained to the colonel of the reigiment, who upheld tlie cadet's ntt- ! tion, maintaining that he had the right to run h'is sword through tlie servant as the lutter had insulted the German uniform. The servant will now havo to appear before a court of l 4 w for insulting the cadet.

A curious and rather embarrassing experience recently befell Dr. Reunion, the Bishop of Bath and Wells, while ho was 1 conducting a confirmation s.'l-vice (says an English Jour-| nal). During ihe delivery oi the episcopal address to the candidates a loud clattering of hob-nw*d bjopts was- hoard in the aisle, and a small boy walked straight up to the Bishop, and asked in a shrill voice, "Please, sr.ur, how long before it be over?" When the congregation recovered from their astonishment the unchin was promptly removed ; but it transpired that he hod been sent, in by somo cabmen waiting outside -to ascertain how long the service would last, and thought It best to obtain the information direct from headquarters.