LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 220, 10 September 1908, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

There have been two fresh admissions to the Old People's Home during tnc month—one from Stratford and one from Eltliam.

We. are in receipt from .Mr. C. W. Govett, chief agent of the Royal Insurance Company, of a neat little publication entitled "Record ol Sport.-" The present is the tifth edition of the publication issued by the company, mil the information in the little volume makes it an invaluable book for all manner .1! sporting references.

Most of the dairy factories in the Ha-wera district have now held their annual meetings. The balance-sheets recurd a very prosperous season, despite the falling-oil of the milk -supply consequent on tlie drought. The shortage was compensated by the high prices, Nearly nil the factories are making extensions and improvements to deal with the expected bigger supplies, l'rices on offer for the current year's output exceed last year's, and, if' accepted, assure good profits, but it is probable that a big majority of the facturies w ill consign.

The .New Plymouth Cricket Club recently had new nib's drafted and printed. The annual meeting of the club last night was unable to interpret them. The difficulty arose in connection with the election of a general committer. Ten nominations had been received, the secretary had coiiiiuiindeered a hard hat as a "ballot-box, and the voting-papers were being collected on tlie understanding that eight of (lie nominees were required, when a question was raised as to tlie correctness ol' I In' proceeding. The rule was read. providing that the;e shall be a i-omiiiitlec of eight. consisting of the club captain, tlie captain of each team, and the secretary and treasurer. The chairman, however, ruled that the 'election should proceed a- begun, and the club entered into the possession «f •a commit tee of thirteen members, I hough tlie rule was fairly explicit, in saving there should be eight only, it was evident to -evcral tint the meeting had to elect but ihiee.

The New Plymouth Harbor Board Empowering Bill was read a becoiul time in the Legislative Council yesterday, as also was the Opmiake Harbor Bill, We are informed thai the girw of the Central School inland holding a little .social next week to entertain the mothers of the children who took part in the recent school eo-neert. At the end of -March last there were Chinamen, who received in wages, in laundries in the Dominion I during the year, iiy way of contrast it is interesting to record that 1205 Euro- i peans employed in his industry receivea in Winn's during the same

.lojjjuo in wages aunng inc same period. There are 17.) Chinese laundries in New Zealand and 1!)U European. At tiie last meeting oi ihe Stratford Hospital Board it was resolved to conlinn the agreement made at the recent conference at Hawera between delegates from the New Plymouth, Stratford, and Hawera Hospital Boards, and , to make the charge for maintenance of children under twelve years of age in tile hospital four shillings and sixpence pei- diem. Yesterday morning a galiopr.ig horse startled the horses in Mr. M, Jones' breakwater 'bus, which was standing in front of the White Hart Hotel. The

driver at the moment was attending to the 'bus windows, and could not regain control of the. horses before they reached a galloping pace. Crossing the road, they crashed into a milk-earl belonging to 'Mr. I{. C. L'lemow, smashed the cart, and spilt the milk. No one was hurt. A somewhat touching incident is related by a passenger to Okura in the . Jane Douglas recently (says the Urey- ► month Star). After battling all night » against a. howling southerly gale, the

steamer ra'n for shelter into Jackson s I 'Bay. A small boat was lowered, and a number of the crew went ashore, and while strolling round found in'a swamp the grave of a man who died on board 'tho schooner Ada at Jackson's Bay on '27 th August, 18G2. The grave was in a very dilapidated state, and an iron railing surrounding it was a mass of rust. Tlie sailors, at the instigation of Cap'tain Irvine, went aboard the steamer, got paiut-pols and brushes, and spent the afternoon cleaning the grave, removing overgrown grass, and painting the railing, leaving the last restingplace well aired for. Last evening at the Kin Ora tearooms llie committee and leathern of 'the Central School lentei'laiined Urn members of the school rille team -which won the schools' competition at the recent Taranaki Rille Association's meeting, and the members of the football fifteen which aunex-ed the shield in the North Taranaki primary schools competition. The chairman of tho committee, Mr. F, P. Corkill, occupied tho chair, and Rev. S. S. Osborne the vicechair. Toasts were honored as follows; —"The King," proposed by the chairman; "Our Rifle Shots and Footballers," proposed by the chairman, response by Masters Millington, Peperell, and S. Richards; "The Committee," proposed by Mr. Dcmpsey, and respo'nd- ■ ed to by Rev. Osborne, Messrs. Grant, Frelhey, and Catran; "The* Teachers,'' ■ "Our Entertainers," and "Our Hostess."

Tlie American fleet carries a number of newspaper correspondents who were entertained at a special banquet in Sydney. This was attended by the Federal and State Premiers, who enjoyed a story told of one of the guests about the late Sir John Mac Donald, Prime Minister of Canada, who, having shaken oil' the curb at a public dinner one night, and promised many things which he had no intention of performing, was amazed to find that his speech had been faithfully reported by a conscientious young journalist, w'lio hail no idea of the bombshell lie was preparing. Sir John Mac Donald sent for him, and when he realised the explosive nature of his notes, ridiculed that he had said anything of the kind. •Me then handed him a copy of the speech lie had failed to deliver. In parting with the youth the eminent Canadian said, 'Let me give you a word of advice, as a father to a son. Never again attempt to report the utterances of a public man while you are under the influence of drink.'"

Wu Ting-Fang, the Chinese ambassador, said modestly at a dinner in Newport : "1 am aware that'the Honours heaped upon ine are due to my exalted office, not to my humble self. Ik is my office, it is not 1, that gains anu merits your consideration. Vet this is a mortifying truth of a kind that all of us —(ambassadors or no—are apt to forget. May -such a truth ucver be recalled tu our memory with the harsh shock tliat came to a Rhode Island fanner nho won a blue ribbon at a Woonsocket stock show with a fat hog—a 12-)0-poiind hog. 'Get my name right,' lie said, • excitedly to the reporters, with their pencils and yellow paper, who crowded round hi|in at awarding time. 'Cut my name right, bovs. It's Hiram Y. Doolittle, son of the late General Augustus Anderson

Doolittle of St, Joseph, who settled in Rhode Island in the year—' 'Oh, never mind all that,' the oldest reporter interrupted. 'Give us the pedigree of the hog.'"

Several further cases of cargo-broacn-ing liavt been reported recently, the thieves having cleverly cxtractd from the cases tobacco, boots, drapery, ami apparently all sorts of merchandise. A railway official, in conversation with a reporter, was inclined to ridicule the idea that the steamship, wharf, and railway employees were entirely responsible for the pilfering, and he advanced the theory that employees in the packinghouses could explain .something in regard to the practice. His opinion was that this goods were very 01'tcn "short shipped," and the dclicicncy remained undiscovered until the goods arrived at their destination. The work of broacning scums to lie the work ot artists at the game, and the work of hours, for even careful examination of the exterior of cases of goods lias failed to indicate the state of semi-emptiness afterwards found within. In one New Plymouth case recently, cases of tinned tobacco were opened and the tills relieved of their contents, and the case refastcned so as to defy the detection of the broach ing until it had been opened up.