LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 280, 20 November 1908, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Before Mr. 11. S. Pitzkcrbert, S.M, yesterday morning, in the .Juvenile Court, a lad was severely reprimanded for the theft of a saddle from the Fitzroy railway station, and was then discharged.

Great interest is being manifested by billiards enthusiasts in the meeting between llr. Gus Tefller, professional billiardist, of Australia, and Mr. \V. Birch, the local champion, tt t the Imperial Billiard Saloon to-night. Play commences at 7.30 p.m., and alter a game of 500 up Mr. Tefller will giv r e an. exhibition of trick and fancy shots.

A controversy is raging in a Ixindon paper over the problem, "Arc wives a help or a hindrance?" A Japanese, Mazu-liu-lto, recently contributed the following letter to the discussion:—

"Why should the woman, you love be of necessity the woman who cooks your dinner and .mends your socks? Wlien a man falls ill love with a girl if is done without the help of furniture and cook-ing-range. Why. then, are men'such ttig children as to think that putting a girl in. furniture and cooking implements, including a poker, will stop her from failing ill love with oilier men? Women are being treated a* caged birds. The cage may be .il gold, but it is still a eaire. forgiv,. my ipieer Kuglisli, as I

am a son of .Japan." The t'nion Company advise that on

and after the 28th inst. the steaincis Kotoiti and Takapiina. engaged in the Wellington-New I'lymoulh-Oncliunga service, will enter upon a new time-table, viz.: From New Plymouth lo Uueliunga - Takapuna, every Tuesday and Thursday, at 8.30 p.m.; Eoloiti. every Saturday. .11 «.:»! p.m. From New Plymouth to Wellington -Kotoiti, every Tuesday at noon: Takapuna. every Saturday at

jumit. t'lidcr this running steamers will leave Wellington tor New Plymouth om Mondays and Thursdays, instead >f Sundays and \\ rdnesdays, as at present. The lluloiti leaving Wellington on Thursdays wrl! call at Picton and Nelson, leaving the latter port on Fridays for New Vlvmouth. In future there will be no steamer from New Plymouth to Wellington on Thursdays, ; hut the Takapuna will leave 011 SaturI days instead. Thei'c is no alteration in the of departure from New Ply- | mouth to Onehunga, or vice versa. With the beginning oi the new you* wireless communication between New York and Paris will, it is hoped, be an -established fact. Dr. Lee de Forest tells me (says an exchange) that the contract lie lias signed with the French (iovernmeut provides for the immediate commencement of experimental .work between the French military station on the Kiflel Tower and a .station to be ererlpfl on the tower of the Metropolitan Life building in New York, the highi est inhabited building in the world. "Owing to the immense altitude of both stations," he observed, "we have «a great advantage over Mr. Marconi. Moreover, we are independent of the land telegraph companies, who have opposed all possible hindrances to the wireless system. From tin; roof of the Metropolitan Life .building, where the powerstation will be fixed, to the top of t'ic tower, a distance of 700 feet, anlcmne in the. shape of six or seven copper wirewill be fastened." Mr. de Forest is al.<o convinced that it will soon be possible to telephone from New York to Paris, and assures me that he is confident that within two years he will so .perfect his apparatus as to enable wireless telephony to be 'definitely established between this city, Boston, Montreal, Chicago, Havana, and Paris.

Xcws was received at Devonport (England) on 25th September that the family of a working shoemaker named Moule. living in that town, lias become entitled to a fortune of about £100,00(1 left by the lion. W. 11. Savile Ormond. a member of the Victorian legislature, who died in 1901, leaving large estates. Mr. Ormond, whose father was a naval surgeon who fought in the Battle if Waterloo, was born at Plympton, near Plyjiiouth. lie emigrated" about fifty years ago, and after a,i experience a.--a gold-digger, wont into sheep-farmins. and amassed a fortune. He married, but left no children, and his wife di-d before him. By his will the whole o his fortune was left to his next of kin. who, however, were not specified. Mrs Moule claimed as the daughter of At-". Ormond's elder brother. James. There were other claimant*. including some from America, and Mrs. Monies claim was contested on (lie ground that hsr father was illegitimate. Tire Australian ( ottrts sent over to England two commissions of inquiry, which pronounced in Mrs. .Moule's fnvor. There were various appeals, but the matter has be-n filially disposed of and Mrs. Moule's claim established. .Mrs. Moule died in the course ol' ihe litigation, but her husband s children, wlio were in poor cireumstaiices, will benefit by (he decision now given.

Aii extraordinary occurrence i.s reported lrom thi l Konmnniaj town ol .Mihailbravul. An infantry captain named ksclmnu, who had posted a registt'i'fd letter, sent a servant several hours later to tin* post ofliee to fr<»t back tlii? document. lnit the clerics refused to give it u |> without a written request .signed by Hie captain. The latter went himself to the post office, whore he peremptorily (.lainied hack his letter. The clerks, however, refused again, as the captain declined to sign the application. Mad with rage, the captain hastened to the -barracks, called his company to . arms, occupied the post office, had the . clerks maltreated, gagged, and fettered, . and then searched the letter-bags till 1 ; he found his letter. Meanwhile, the sol-' , diers looted the safe. Finally the captain cut all the telegraph wires and threatened to kill the post clerks should they tell any tales. Then, like a triumphant commander, he marchod through the streets with drums heating, stopping here and there to promulgate. the fact that he would pitilessly shoot anybody who dared to criticise or circulate reports about his action. AMiea Captain Ksehaiiu learnt in tho evening that the telegraph wires had been repaired he marched again with his company to the post ofliee, where the clerks had barricaded themselves. On his approach Captain Eschanu or dered his miai to storm the ofilce, wh.m fortunately, several of the superior officers, telegraphed for by the burgomaster, arrived from Bucharest, aiTcsied the captain, and escorted him to the 1 military prison in Ihe capital. A bank in Edinburgh ha> been Jefiuuded of I'3OUO by a daiiiti; trick, A uiiin opened an account wiili CISOO. and made himself known to the: officials by drawing several small cheques payable In -elf. Then he presented a cheque tui- elnihi (o |he cheque clerk, who examined the l.ialaiice'and initialled (lie cheque, the mnii, taking advantage <>i the practice of customers carrying Ihe cheque over to the teller for payment, altered the CIOIIO to 11000 at the top. ivad in (he liody the ''one" Lff "Jour.' 'ihe fraud was not detected until three days afterwards, when the! cheque clerk s and teller's accounts were I being checked with the general account. A personage who was initiated into some of the secrets of the Turkish Sultan's palace during the old regime, accounts lor tlje Sultan's implicit faith in the astrologer Kb-nl-Uuda. The game played by Kb-ul-lludu was indeed a dangerous one, but (he astrologer succeeded in keeping lin his reputation, thanks to (he assistance of a friend and accomplice—a pa.-.lia who was quite the biggest intriguer in (he I'ahice Camarilla. Thip v,.->rtliy. who is said lie in London. ininu-i!::iie!y communicated to the as(robber all the telegrams received at l he Palace li'mu t-h-' provincial (iovortmi's and military commanders. TCIh4I- - would then pay a visit to the Sultan and inform him of what occurred on the previous day in the most remote province* ui the Empire, adding many details of hi> own invention, and. intelligent Momidrel that he is. o'fbn making true forecasts. Several hours later closed telegrams relating to the sanie evenls were presented to the Sul tan.

parcels ron 'run old oopxtry.

Wo villi wish iu send a Christmas nv New N s ill- memento Or parcel to any reialive or friend citlicr ill tlu> Jfoiuo coiiiitry or sonic other comitrv abroad? I_r so. you Will lin.l ihe \,.,v Zealand Hxprcss Company's system (lie cheapest, liesl, quickest. and sin est method Hie company will call for vonr package and will deliver it to any'address. Hediieed tarill'. (Hliee, l!rnu;;bam-.stiTet. — Advt.

• Chamberlain's Colli-, Cholera and Dia*i'hooa Kemody is (ho most successful medicine in tin* world for bowcll complaint?. 1jo(1i for adults and children. Pleasant and safe io take, prompt in it? action, and effectual in results. For 1 gale by all chemists and storekeepers. '

Tiro annual election of the Taranaki llospital and Charitable Aid Board w'll t»e held on Wednesday next,

A welcome ruin set in Jale un UY<l ■mwday night and continued steadily througaout -tile greater part of v , day, doing incalculable good to" "|,a sl . urea, field crops and gardens.

li ', 1(1 strike out tin,. top Ine; a local business 111:111 ivas jwiilarly asked yckrday. "No," he ansHcicd 1 wasn't quite tall enough. J couldii t reach jl.''

"Daily Wash" writes, to tile editor:- ' ■ f H', i notice '-Swimmer' was deprived of Ins Annual wash 011 Tuesday, and 1 ' must sympathise with him. But doubtless "Swimmer-' is an employee of somebody's, and lie had a half-holiday 011 iuesday because it was election day Would he wish to have Jlr Morris, the custodian of the baths, placed on a dillereat footing to all the other borough employees and the employees of f e town generally? The fault, if fault there be, is that the closing of the baths mighty have been advertised by the Council just as it notified the closJ ng of the library. I-he Australasian Insurance and Banki»g Kecord, in an article on the banking situation in New Zealand, say.s:—"What is really the matter in New Zealand is that production, at least in total value, lias declined, that the expenditure of the people has increased, and that a high range of values for properly has been reached. To lM ,inply with every demand ior increased accommodation would mean, under existing circumstances, a fostering of inllation, which would invariably be followed liy losses. XOW /.calami lias to increase its production and to spend less, and within a com- : paralively short time the monetary stringency which now manifests itseif will have passed away."

Bishop Williams, of Napier, who recently returned from England by the Corinlhic, speaking to a reporter," said: "It was forced 011 my attention that there are many unemployed in Kngland, and it seems to me a. terrible state of things. The (lovernment is trying to deal with the difficulty, and 1 sincerely hope it will succeed, i was told by one of Illy fellow-passengers that he had been whown a large building at Newcastle, now untenanted and empty, which once was ail extensive bottle factory, employing many hands, and yet the people will stick to what they call Free-trade, a Freetradc that appears to be quite one-sided. England admits all sorts of things to her shores free of duty, but her exports are taxed in other ports."

The General Manager of Railways (Mr T. Ronayne) has addressed the fol'lowing letter to bis Worship the Mayor: ''With reference to your letter of tile 17th ultimo forwarding copies of resolutions passed at a meeting of citizens of New Plymouth to consider the 'timetable to l)e adopted 011 the establishment of through express services co Auckland, I have the honour to inform you that before tile final details of the time table are definitely settled your representations will be borne in mind. 1 would point out, however, that tire train services require to be fixed in the interests of tile Dominion as a jjvhole and not in tho interests of anv particular district or districts. So far the existing train services to and lrom New Plymouth in the morning and evening are concerned I find that the existing times are the most suitable for the requirements of the Taranaki district generally, and a train could not be provi.ied to reach X'ew Plymouth before !) a.m. without the establishment of an additional service which neither Ihe existing llor (be prospective traffic warrants. So far as tire butter Irallic is concerned the present 'trains are UKmost suitable, and 1 regret that f not see mv way to s iiiake any alteration therein."