LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVIII, Issue 81917, 6 February 1907, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The total rainfall in Xeu- Plymouth !«»<■ "Hi was V.-200 inches, rain falling on Hi days, the maximum being on tin- Kith, when it was 2.2S i nches. Practically the whole rainfall was registered during i|, : . |i,. s (. ~.. u .j, of t |„. month. The rainfall for Januai'v, IUOII, was 3.J3, inches on 17 dajys.

A Tiinaruviau who has recently returned from a visit to Australia states that neither the Now South Wales inutile Victorian railways haw yet at tabled to dining cars on express trams, and the dining rooms at tin; stations are far from up-todate. As a slit off, Victoria has put on tin- inter Stale line in -'observation ear.'' lilted up most luxuriously. It cost .C4OOO. and an extra fare of is is charged for its use.

A South Canterbury resident, who is at present paying a'visit to England, has the usual complaint to make about the San Francisco mails. Writing from London recently, he said the service could not be worse if there wtere no subsidy paid by New Zealand. ''The Americans,'' lie added, "would lima try to improve it to gel one; now they get the advertisement and kudos of its bring a mail route and run it abominably."

"ISefore 1 get converted,'' said a Solvation Army man the ofb,er nigh!. "I laid three great trials—a. scaling ~;i',., j, smoking chiinncy, h grew cxcilcij his (Jonnaiß acce,ul ruturned, "dey vas ,il gone. LVr barse he vas tlla.l, ,Ic,- cliiniuey he vas burn down, and lhe vile, praise

"The time is coming «lien you eave got lo hold Now Zealand against the oiieoming of Hi,. Asiatic." said ilr Jlornsby to the railway ine,, at New riymou.li the other ,lay. "Vou must keep yourselves lit for that lighl. If may not come in ffl i iim,.. |'; ul some of you will see it. And this countryis worlh holding, and worth lighting for. Vou have a glorious birihrignt, one of (he best in (he whole world, and I waul yon to be worthy of 11. A.-k yourself this (jiicslion, 'Am I. Juing anything to make the world better for Mie t'ellon-M I work along with, and the fellow., [|,at come after mo*"'

A meeting at Ureyiuouih of contributors to lilie Kcddon; Memorial do ciiled ■ilmt tiie amount which at present totals .C2();| 12s (id. he minded 1" tlie l'ublii: Trustee lor invesfm-mt and (hat the interest be devoted i,o procuring two medals, amiiiailv, to '"■ awarded to I lie most prolicicn'l boy and girl scholars iu th<j Grey e,|u cation district; proliciency to la deb :- niincd- by comjietitivr ' examination. Proposals that the fund devoted to ■■< pest 0p;,,. ~„„■!,- or :•,,- ...,,.:.;-■'...:-

"f .-.wimuiing baths were- negatived and the. offer ol a bust of i.i> h.* .Mr -H-ddou by Xe!»on lllingswort. did not meet tvitn general 'aceepl

An old Maori who was explaining his age on Tuesdiiy said he was SO. "f here in '■!]," no said, ■■when the big slop come down there," pointing to the mouth of the Unntoki. •• I'licy have the lent, J go down there, thev give me the biscuit, big like that." and I'" held an imaginary biscuit in his hand. -I get hun and roll him down Hi", beach like that," he said, 'suiting the nouoii t„ the word. "I not know it the kai, you eat him." The old chap was unit,, painfully .-hocked when «-ked how many pak.dias he had cat- ''"■ "' no make Hie kai to pakeha, and I uol kai le Maori, too. X„, | „ol like that.' And; then the old chap strolled oil' ll,rough the t „„n Uial |,o had watched from its infaiiev.

liishop Ncligan, of Auckland, is to j pay a visit to the Taranaki portion of' his diocese shortly. His tour wiltjtf/ St- -Mary', c; L-'eb. •>. Stratford, 'ii p.m., C.K.M.S.: Feb. 111, .Stratford.'] 1 a.in.. C'i'iiliriiiatioii; Ji'eb. It), Si'ratfor.l :i p.m., missionary meeting; I'cb. 11, Tariki. 7 p.m., preach: l-'eb. 11 New Plymouth. 4 p.m., Coulinnatinn. J'cb. 11, .New Plymouth, S p.m missionary meeting; l-Vh. 12, (>■;.,','„_ v , noon, Coiiliriuation; Fob. 12, llnholn, •1 p.m., Maori Coiiliriuation: \,\.\, \S Okalo. S p.m., missionary incetiin-.",' Feb. Pi, Waitara. :s p.,,,.. Conlirmation: l-'eb. 1,1. Wnitara. s p.m. mi s wormry meeting; l-'eb. I i \ew Plv """ lll ', :i I'-'"., «■ .Mary's HomesJ'cb. 17. New Plymouth. 1] a in preach; Feb. 17, Jngk-wnod, :j „ ,„" Coniirmation; Feb. 17, Jngjlewood 7 p.in., preach. ' Upon the fourteen stations control led by Sir Samuel M'Caugliev the clip this season is expected to'total about 12.01W bales of wool from SIK) 0(10 •-"eep. It is likely that next sliearinI In- number of shei-p will again reach Hi" round million of the pre-droii-hl i period. It is inleresiing to nol'Tcc(remarks an exchange) that the whole 1 1,1 Uli* extr -dinaiy success has been i"' l ""* l '' Ir-nghl areas. Sir Sam | uel M'Cauglic, came out some | >'-al's ago t„ his uncle, (he late Mr , Carle-; Wit-on, of Kewell. on Hie Wimiiiei'a Plains of- Victoria, and. after | gainMig a lew years experience lr- par dl - IM '' l Hie C -ong Station, in Iho i I!m ' r ■ His friends said he would ' 'l'li-I-I.v h-se his savings al Cooroilg. , kepi on making progress! until lo.da.v ' he is running sheep upon about J llU'i'.- '"i < i"' l '''- in New South Wales and liueeiisland. In addiliou io li\b free- \ le-ld estales in ||„. |;ive,i„a li\ has '' two leasehold runs west of the I^iyWiDarliug, namely. Dun lop and Toornlrt, S

nuil about 1.n0n.000 acres. inc-hi.liW^i 110.000 acres of freehold in Queen?, laml. near llugheiiili-n. The ifnrlingand (Jueeirsland runs are watered by iiunieroiis artesian bores. Sir Samuel U'Cniighey T ,.(,,1|s tin- fact that his uue'.e constructed a weir across the Wimmcra River at (HemvrcKv Uiii!.' before the day,: of water trust?,, with improving the watcrjgj. - yy of comnttTatiyely dry J^H^HbL.

The) Wellington-Napies despatch of 20th December arrived in London on the morning of the -Ith inst. It- is rather signiiicent fact that of Hie recent batch of appointments to the Legislative Council only one is a suppirtcr of the freehold. ( hie of the sweetest solos sung at the gathering in St. Mary's Hall last night was "Marjorie," composed by Mr Alex. Hill, of'.New Plymouth, and sing by Mrs Wilkes. The success of last year's Easter golf tournament on the Mew Plymouth links has influenced the Ngamolu Golf Club to hold a similar tournament at the coming Easter. Messrs Dixon and Johns will act as joint tournament secretaries.

The Napiei tins Company, at its annual meeting, passed! a ivsolulhei giving power to amend the a:tides of association to enable the company, if necessary, to supply electric energy for lighting and motive power. The other day, at Waitara, as the scow Reliance put to sea, one of the crew made for the shine in a dimrliev. IScforu the vessel had been towed'clear of tiiv river, another made known his intention of landing, and to elicit bis purpose east oil' the towlino, a somewhat reckless proceeding, yesterday morning a young man was heard enquiring the whereabouts of three in u who had been brought from Auckland by the llarawa to work the scow, 'the man questioned confessed that he had seen a man with a bit of a seafaior's roll about him up the street, and that the man appeared to be about '-halfseas over" at tiie time. The agent then set oil' on a tour of the holds in the ell'ort lo locate his new crew.

King Kdward is to pay a visit to Ireland in. the spring, landing at Cork, instead ol at Dublin, and will tour in tlie southern counties, making brief stays at various country houses before going to Dublin, where lie will make ids headquarters at the Vice. regal Lodge in phoenix Park. 'The lodge is already being subjected to extensive alterations, re- decoration and furnishing, in preparation for the King's stay there, wnich is expected to extend oyer a period of a fortnight or Ihiee weeks. It is doubtful whethci the Queen will accompany him, as her plans are influenced to a considerable degree by the condition of the health of her only married daughter. The King, while at Dublin, will not be in any sense of the world the guest of the A'iceroy, but will be under his own roof at the Viceregal Lodge, which is being turned over by Lord Aberdeen to the royal household. Consequent 1 )' the strict rules instituted by the Aber dewns against bridge are not likely to interfere in any way with their sovereign's enjoyment of his regular e\,. ing rubber.

France has just pardoned a criminal who enjoyed a moment of notoriety thirty-nine years ago, but who has since been practically forgotten. Ibis Jicrczowsky, who in 1807 fired a pis fol at the Czar, Alexander 11., as no was reviewing (he French troops in the ISoi's do Boulogne. The shot missed file Kmperor. it struck a woman amongst the spectators, but sin- was only slightly wounded. The wouldbe- assassin was a Polish working man. Ili> was sentenced lo deportation and life, imprisonment at N'ew Caledonia in short order. lie was really insane. 'The fact was recognised by ihe gaolers, lie has grown worse as the years passed. His delusions took the form of inventions, one of which was a perpetual motion living machine, and he used lo try to'bargain with the governor nf tiie penal colony for

freedom ;iu exchange for his secret., h'or some finn- he has enjoyed relative freedom on the island. On reaching his seventieth year he was allowed to live in a. little cottage outside the prison, and to dispose of his own time. The (ioverninenl still provided for his support, and he amua'e'd himself en l vating his garden and dreaming of his wonderful mechanical projects. Lale ly his ease was taken up by (he Humanitarian League, and his complete pardon was the result. The Parisian papers speak of it as a doubtful mercv. Jt is hard, to see what shelter lie can find in France just now, except in an insane asylum.