LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVIII, Issue 81918, 5 March 1907, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

'J here are 21.244 persons in receipt id from Kngland local authorities, ihe average annual pension being ;tls(i. The raintall for the month of .Vebniary in New Plymouth was 5.015 iij. flies, raia falling on 18 days, the maximum being on the fitli. viz.. I.SO inches. I'lie rainfall for February of last year ivas 3.200 iueliesi, rain 'fallina on 1» days.

Ihe Kaupnkomii Dairy Company ha- recently hart a striking illustration ot .lie present relative values of butter and chee-e. It has been their practice to make butter at one of flieir branches, but suute time the water-race fell in all.l the supply was sunt, to the Anion cheese factory. Ihe d.fterenee between making butter Hid cheese during a month amounted to £ll7 ill favour of elicuse.

Tlic ftppointinc.Mil of }lr W. .}. Kvans to tin- poM of headmaster at Jngiewood is very popularly received in the town, where _\lr ami' Mrs TCyans are !>otli well known ainl popular. His fellow-teachers alsn congratulate him 011 his well-deserved promotion, ami the only sorrowing element is (ho regret of t ln; people in losing such an excellent ieaeher anil helper in th<> development of the young minds entrusted to him.

Mr Kolman limit, the aviist, was in an auctioneer's office when he was n hoy. lie was always sketching on oil«| hits of paper and on the blotting "pail, hut fortunately his employer was an amauuv nrlist hinuclf. and on wet days when there was no work to be dune he Used lo ask the boy into his mom, and t hey would paint in company. At sixteen, Mr Hunt entere 1 ai firm Of calico printers, and theiv b • amused liiinsclf in his spare time ny drawing Hies on a ground-glass window ill the factory. Then- were so life-like that his employer was always trying to brush them away, and got <|ii:ti' irritable about the matter. iY.-rin ers interested in profitable fodder -diould call at Messrs Wilson and Norm's marl. They haw a very line display of maize. grown by Mr '^'oicii--(iii. o.n Ihe Smart road. One Malfc Hands alioul 10ft Gin. high, lint (lie nio>l. iii-tnictive part of the exhibit is composed of three excellent >aniph'S ol sorghum sacehavatuni. a mai/.e variety witli veijv sweet anj[ sitccnleiil i and in appearance simjlar to sugarcane pro|'erl ies. The three samples, -how three dili'erent crops from the one planting. On being out. u line, new growth came away, and the seeomt our* was succeeded by another. This sorghum saccharatum should be worth attention on the part of all farmers, 'the seed was supplied by Messrs Wilson and Nolan. Buyers during the last week of the Melbourne (Hothing Company's sale will find many new and starring bargains. (-'ov instance, men's pretty bilk ides 'A for 1/; boys' serge knickers. mzcs n to 4. reduced lo I/fl pair: children's sample bonnets and hoods at half price—Advt.

Mr W. G. Harding, a New Plymouth athlete, won the quarter-mile handicap at the Waihi sports on Monday.

The Taranaki Farmers' Mutual Fire Insurance Association, whose head office is at Eltham, has now issued policies covering oyer £-80,000

Owing to the next regular meeting day ot the Taranaki County Council falling on Easter Monday the April meeting will be held on the second Monday in the month. A man named John Taylor, who has been twice previously detained as a lunatic, was brought in from Inglewood by Constable Dudd) on Monday, and committed to Porirua. An inquest was hchl nt Hurwortli on Monday afternoon, to enquire into the circumstances surrounding the death of the child Douglas McPartland. A verdict was returned that he met his death through swallowing sulphuric acid. Mr Ellis, County Treasurer, established a record at the end of February by reducing the Taranaki County Council's overdraft to £532 lis Id. The amount of money collected at the County ollice during February was £3878 7s Gd.

The Eltham " Argus " states that it is generally understood among bandsmen that the next band contest will take place m New Plymouth early in ISJOB. The matter will bo finally settled at the next mooting of the executive.

Instead of Auditor - General, h e should be called " Hair-splitter-Gen" eral." Thus one of the Taranak 1 County Councillors at yesterday's meeting, when the chairman was explaining the Valuation Department's " exceptions."

Arrangements have been made to test the validity of the demand for the lariki road special rate. The cases wHlbc heard at New Plymouth on the 2otli inst., Mr J. B, lioy appearing for the Tariinaki County Council and Messrs Malone, Johnstone and Anderson appearing for the defendant ratepayers.

In connection with the Tariki road bridge over the Mangauui stream, now posted as dangerous, it lias been reported that despite the "danger" notice, a load of y|l)0 feet of greon white pine timber on a waggon drawn by five horses was taken over the rickety structure the other day. The weir erected some months ago over the Waingongjro river by Messrs I'ikett and YVilkie for the Hawcra Electric Lighting Company, serves the purpose admirably, damming back the water for generating electric power. A line stretch of water has been provided, upon which a couple of boats have been placed.

On the motion of Mr Kerr (Standisli and Kerr), letters of administration in the estate of Robert Hudson Bell, of Kawliia, deceased, intestate, were granted by his Honor Judge Denniston to Mr Arthur Bell. Also on Mr Kerr's motion in the estate of Phtebe Priskc, late ofjTataraimaka, deceased, letters of administration were granted to Mr Philip Priske.

" I can't have you gentlemen arguing across the table," This is the sort of thing that faranaki County Councillors obstinately decline lo «um in tlioir hats, but Mr Brown's constant reiteration of this and similar warnings is having a certain effect. Soon, and very soon, we hope, the Taranaki County Council will be quite a model debating institution, Tho next step will be the chairman's insistence on the rule " llise to address the chair." Keplying to a deputation from the Kauri Timber Company at Auckland, the Minister for Lands said Cabinet would decide on whit course would be followed regarding the remaining kauri oun'ry. It seemed, by what he understood, there was not much more than ten years timber available for all the mills now in existence. He favoured a scheme for reserving the balance of the remaining timber country, and a slackening down in the cutting out of the rest, so as not to unnecessarily (listen the end of the kauri timber industry.

AI l.li" County Council meeting oil Mnulay Cr Hill said tlio impression lia i gone abroad I hat tke Council was dii.salisfied with the work of the •Noxious Weeds Inspectors lie moved a resolution to tke effect that l lie Go illicit express its satisfaction «'ilh tlie inspector's administration of Mie lair. Or llopson moved ail amendment that (lie Council ivas ot opinion ilrit tlie ili'striet; needed more inspectors. Alter discussion botk motioni* uere ivitkdraivn, several expressing themselves satislied with tko work of tke inspectors, but that more men ivcre reijuired lor suck u bii; district. When Dr Lcatkam was in London recently, he paid a visit to the Royal stables, ivlierc 120 horses, including the famous cream poijics, used on State occasions, and the State coaches, arp kept. The trappings, harness, etc., were so beautifully dressed as to excite the doctor's admiration, and kc elicited from tke groom that Blue Bell polisk was used for poliskiug tke facings, and Day and Martin's blacking for tke karness. Tke tip might not come amiss to colonial grooms whose extravagent tastes in the matter of patent dressing preparations is proverbial. . Western Park, the latest addition to iSew 1 lymoulh s buautit'ul reoreutioix grounds, is rapidly taking on a finished appearance. lesterday a mob of about 1000 sheep was depastured on tke sports ground enclosure, and the turf was greatly improved thereby. On Thursday afternoon n working bee, under tke direction of Mr IS. P, Webster, propose sowing down tke recently finished jnrlion, and otherwise making preparatjoifs for tko Caledonian Society's sports iiiccliiig on Easter Monday. Members of (lie Caledonian Society will also attend to tlie laying ok of a track in order that atkletes may use Ike ground for training purposes immediately thereafter

Tito usual fortnightly meeting of tko Loyal Kgmont Lodge. 1.0 0,1'., was held last evening, JJi'o. A. Cnivors, JX.G presiding. There uas » fair atlemnince of member*. I3ro, ,} H ; Marsh, of the Loyal Foxlou Lodge] visited tke Lodge, aud was accorded Lodge honors P.P.G.M. Ainswortk, P.G.'s W. H, Butler, A. Hooker and H. 11. Ford were appointed delegates to attend the' district meeting to be keld at Jiaponga on Thursday next, March 7th, After tke Lodge closed, the "Jubilee Committee" keld a meeting and transacted a large amount of business in connection ivitk tke coming function, it was decided to hold the dinner in tke Drill jf ;l |] A letter was received from : . li shop of Wellington regretting 1, : . .i.ility to otliekite at the service, bii. wishing tile Lodge every success.

It is useless to deny, lite Pre-s, linit the foolish slriia* which lias ;U----uacted so nv.ich attention during tinfast feiv days ha.- done more to ullocttie industrial conditions in Xew Zealand than anything that has occurred ;-r>;trs. for it has shown clearly tha i pi'opuruon of (he workers are only prepared to abide by an Arbitration Court award -o long as il suits them.

On Saturday the llegislrar oi" the District Court 9 ( Si m l ford fixed tin' costs in Iho I'agct; v. ftmkjn, heard ill last siuiiij;, in wi'iich ill,■ jury found fur dele-iiilanl. amount yjhnvod defendant w;ls up as I'lil'nws: Conrl costs ,C2 ]!>/, witnesses ,t.'2 and solicitors fee £i">. On tlic -lay following the case, the foreman of ||„. jury, j|. g. i>„|. I it. wailed mi Hi,. Uc'nisl.far (Mr M. I'olry) a.mi .staled that (.lie jury had desire,l hi iiiliinate lo ||ic Court,' when sriviiifT its verdicl. that un costs should he allowed. .Mr Foley staled that lie tli oi in h i il was Ino late lo do anyliiiiiLr.. but wouid i-tHimitinicitle with His Honour ill' District llaspldon. The District was communicated Arith ami telegraphed hack i.i jMr Foley that il: was too lale lo a Her tin 1 decision. —'"l/osf."

The strides that busy slorc the JCash, Nc.'i I'lyinouth, has made in the last (liriv years is remarkable. Beginning In a very small way they are. now (loins imc of W |e largest trades in Tavanaki. The reason is not hard to find; it is tlie excellent value they give that f10,09 it.— Mvfc

A Manawatu resident gives nntic.' in the I'oxt.on paper that lie backs a certain person, from ;C5 up to C") 0, lo cut, tlax in any swamp against any (lax-cutter in the district. as an open challenge.

The labour market all over the colony at present, says Mr Maekav, chief of the Labour Bureau, is all in' favour of the man able lo do any sort of hard grail;" but (fur men who are looking for "soft jobs," us clerks, shopMen, or the iike the market is net particularly favourable.

The average farmer in his effort to produce as much as possible out of his farm oftentimes overstocks to his great disadvantage. A Midhirst farmer some time ago took over a farm "Willi 25 cows. He milked IS the first year, and thought he would try and make liis farm earn more by putting on more! cows. The second year he milked 27, and his gross earnings were no more 'than when he only carried 18 cows, (Several farmers in the Midhirst district -have Hjeeii taking! samples and weighing the milk from their cows,and the tests which followed revealed tin fact- tlult. one man luul a cow whirl l I gave him 231bs of butter-fat per weel whilst another produced 11.211)3 foi the same period.