LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 299, 14 December 1908, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

A i-oiiti-nipiirarv Miggcsls tluiL .Mi. Jennings i> to bo U„. new .Minister for hinds iiikl will also have char"o of roads, while Ah-. J>. McKenzie will 1,.. Minister for Works.

Fowl, of all kind-, from the ami lender cockerel lo die boa'nliii"house alarm's '-'chicken'' Jillcl the pons of the various -.Miction marts on Saturday, in anticipation of Hie Christina-

The .Maoris working on the Central School pond in I'ukekura I'ark banbeen engaged forming the banks and

tootpaihs and given it ,pii|,. a ,|iir,. ,■,.„! n|>l'earaiice. ll is expected t„ ~; „„ I lie dam and let the water in I hi, week. A ''<•«■ I I- are slid reipiiroil. <,,„| anyone fooling charilal.lv inclined can -end a donation t v „f the c - mittce.

j 'Having received word dial, a In! of poaching is being carried on. (he slraiford Acclimatisation Sovietv has decided to ~ll' c- a, suh.-laulial reward for iuInrmnlion that, will lead' to a eonvictio'.i. Several rangers have been appointed, and in the event of a. poacher being caught, the societv intends to press for the full penalty, which is a £■>» line, or in default throe iiiond,,' imprisonincut.

The .slock slnughlcied at the lnunicilial aballoirs for \'m,-inbor was , iS follows: - 1,-1.1 cow,. :ii| hnlloeks. 1.1 calves. -HiS sheep, 1.V.! p.,i|l,<. ini ,| | is pigs. There were 1.'!.. ci,,,.. :; -,d 7 v sponiiim:- ill. of h,.-: ~,,,• |i„. : ,. v ,,.,',, j incr-a-..- ~'' " ca.ltie. S -,|v . ■'._> jae.V:. a ,1,-,-r....--. of 111 !,.-,,,. 'Mil....' e'a'l'l!.', There v.-a.- an old perl, f, II:-,-, Who ho.I 1.-;-i ivaiv i.i'ls in hU dav. Mill Id, Iroid'i: wis ehionio. LAXO-TU-MC I'JLLS.' l!)'/: ; d ami l s G.l, '

The revenue, lor the Wellington-Xapier-New Plymouth section of the (.iovernment railways for tin- '.fourweekly period ended 71.1 i November was £50,502 7s 7d, as against £57,27!) 3s (id for the corresponding period of last year.

The Garrison Band pluyid a capital programme of music at' the eastern i:\id of the Esplanade, near "The Pines," yesterday afternoon. A large crowd of people gathered' and enjoyed the sea breezes and the music. A collection was tafcen up in aid of the contest funds, and was fairly well supported. The Wanganui holelkeepers evidently I intend "setting their house in order.' Sonic time ago a decision was arrival at by the publicans that they would serve no one addicted to excessive drinking. A list has been prepared, and the persons concerned have, so to speak, been warned oil' the course. At a recent meeting (he names of some additional people, who two not prohibited but who waste their money, were added to the list. Absence of whitebait from the Cu'oy 'liver during the past few weeks :s attributed by a Jocal paper to 111! operations which have been going o".l at the stranded steamer Haw. a.' Tile Uttie lish are higuly sensitive, and the timber being jettisoned anuov* them so that they have been seeking oilier fresh' water streams and leaving the distirbed Urey Jiiver to itself. 'I he supply at the mouth of the Taremakaii. states the same paper, has not diminished in the I slightest this season.

Diirin«' Ihi' course of ii ,liilemcnt m the Arbilrniion Court at ( iiristchurch on Friday last ill'. A. I). Dohson, city surveyor. I'liit'. considerable light upon (lie cuinincud.ililc thrift ui' a section ■[ the working ela.-scs. He si id tint from t2 lis to i.2 .'is per week was regarded as a bare !;i'. in;: wage. The City Council uulikuir einj'l.iyei's received 12 Bs. i'roin this remuneration one contrived to save snllicient to purchase a trutting-horse and -sulky, a second had gone for a trip to r'.iiglaiid. ami <|iiitc a number of them

A return to lie presented by the town clerk at to-night's Council meeting shows that, there was n serious diminution last \ear in I lie dog-lax revenue, in eonse-i'iueiii-e ui' Hie Cuumit's decision to lower the registration fee. In -I<M»7 there were 278 dogs r.igiMcrcd. the fee being Ills, oi- ,">* for dogs becoming six nionths old after July Ist. Kees amounted to £l3O 7s iiil. Last year the Council charged .Is per dog up to .March :*lsl, and 10s after that date. There were 1103 collars issued, or 25 more than in the previous year, but the revenue dropped to £Bl os. a decrease of £55 2s lid.

At a meeting of the District Executive of the Independent Order of Oddfellows, held in the Council Chambers, Stratford, on Thursday, afternoon last, it was decided, we are informed, to admit females to membership in the lodges after the."list March next. The scale o.f contributions will be registered, and

"iris and women will then be able to I obtain medical aid and sick pay on the same lines as the men. It lias long been advocated by the Taranaki lodges that women should lie able to obtain these benefits, and great pleasure is expressed that this ureal reform has at last been passed.—Post. In connection with the death of Mr. Buckingham on Friday, Sergeant lladdrcll communicated: with the Commissioner of Police of Brisbane on Saturday morning, despatching bis message about eleven o'clock. The authorities there sought out tno relatives, whose address Scigeiv.lt Haddrell had forwarded, and replied to the message, which was handed to the sergeant at the courthouse :\! :1.."i p.m. In accordance with llie insinictions contained in this cablegram, the hotly of deceased will be forwarded lo Brisbane for interment.

The. shag which has been gorging upon the .pereli and t arp in the ponds in the liecrcation Grounds for a few days met his fate on Saturday night. Mr. IS. Tippins espied hint, and promptly obtained permission of the chairman of the Tinard to ,pnt a shot into him (moaning the shag). By the time the hunter arrived in the grounds there was another gun on the scene,- the chairman having come down himself to have n "pot." But a well-aimed shot hy Mr. Tippin* disposed of the marauder. The disscct-ing-knift.' disclosed the havoc the hird hail been playing amongst the lisli. The report of the gun terrilied some of Ihe other foul in the grounds. _„nil they screeched as only frightened birds can.

The stvle of voting for Maori members is somewhat'different („ that of European. When an elector 'enters th" hoot], he slates the name of the person for whom he ilesires to vo'c. and his l/ipcr is 'marked by itlie li'eturir.'iig, Ollicer. On Wednesday, at Waikuvn (says the Pre**), one easy-going individual entered the booth, and. when asked whom he was going In vole for. -aid. "(lb. I diiumi -, who do von tint the best man V The ollieer replied thai all candidates were u'ood men. After calmly considering the ma Iter fir a lime, the voter mused : " Well, Tame's getting too old; Charlie, he's no good; J link I must put in te big fat fcrrow--he te strong lighter :" V'rn. who is the well-known wrestler, got the vole !

The benefit of the baths is mentioned in her annual rc.port on the Wauganni Girls' College by the Principal, Miis Eraser, M.A., who says; "A most practical example ol the benefits our baths have conferred was given the other day, when W. Neilson jumped fully dressed into the river and saved the life of her little brother, who hail already sunk twice. Had our baths been built for no oilier purpose, they would justify their building and upkeep. But the benefits are very general, better carriage, lietter physique, lietter general health, all follow from the wise use of the baths. A few parents are timid, a few girls are lazy about the swimming lessons, a very few seem reallv physically unlitled for the exercise. My own experience is that we have not quarter sn many colds to deal with now a< we used to have when we had not half the hoarders and no baths."

There seems to be a little doubt in Hie minds of some shop assistants as to how they will bo affected by the law during the coining holiday season (says (he Xew ZcalandTimcs). 'During Christmas week, a Labour Department official stated, they can be worked late on two nights without u permit from the inspector, but they may be kept back for special work on other nights during the week if written consent is obtained. I hough such permit cannot be given fo'.' more than two nights consecutively. The two niwhis upon which they may be worked without n permit are the ordinary late night and the night immediately preceding Christmas Day. The position is the same in respect to Xew Year's week. On the Saturday nights immediately preceding ChrMiuas l)av and ! Xew Year's Day the as,i,tanls may b" kept back till eleven o'clock, but on that at the end of Xew Year's week they can only be \u.rked until nine o'clock, except, ill the few cases whore an Arbitration Court award is operative. Masters can compel their as,Mants to work all .throusih lioxiug Day. while if they are allowed the holiday they must be paid for it. The holidays on Christmas and Xew Year's Days, of course, lake the place of the u-ua! hall'-liolidav ia those weeks.

| Sonic, littl,. Tim» „g 0 folks were wor.I di-i-injr whether Tnranaki generally and Xew I'lvniomli parlicularlv would be afI footed liv I lie completion' »f Hi,. Main I Trunk railway route. Xow a similar wonder turns Maslerinn and Mairarupn way. hi connection with tin* aoipiisition I "f the Mnnawatu railway li.v the (!ovi eminent. I| is reported from Wollinglon thai n.oi only will milch of the "nods Ira Hie fmn, flic north for Wol- ! linglou dial hitherto was (liveried I round into 111,. Wairarap.i and over the hi'iivy grailo of Hi,, mountain range, ho soul, straight llrn.ugh ll„. vlnnawntll. hut thai there is a -driing likelihood o f ill,. Vapor ex-pre.-.l.ein,.- soul across Iho ] Maml via lh- Maniwalu lino. . Tlii> mean- tied Iho Unit and tin- Wnirarnna Valley, will 1.,. hil. mil of lluil runniii..>"idl -•■..-,:.|.1.. dines l.vinir « dcvintioa thai, will avoid Hi,, Rimutiikii Incline. If 111.' N'airaraua is thus out out. llioro sl.-uld ho a 10-arrangement of Iho tiniolalilo. for (ho iournov from Xanier to \\"o|lin-l".i via I'nlinerslnii van ho dono in isoiuidhin-/ like two hours' quicker I hue than is taken up l.v I lie P.iinulaka route-. There seems to he iwi end to the possibilities of |l„. changes In ho caused hv the acquisition of the Mana"•:l 11l lino and the completion of the Main Trunk runic: "bill, there will not 1.0 drastic ehnm.es vol," savs (ho Wcibn»lon ll'osl. which adds rcgardim.' the Kimulaka nil irs: -If the |,ublie shows a disfbe-t dodrr |„ |>-,y,.| lYoin llankc's 11-iv vi. !-;.l:n--i--.r ..ii Xorth, Iho Donarl-n-.-i.l \.:"i ea< .'-.11,- hiv |„ provide lie." i-.oov--.rv r -„;iiii.-. |!,il eve, in Unit.

Hon bel-een \\'cllii:,-i„ii and Wairarapa. and u:i!i| a l,':r ,-haie-e lakes place :u Hi,- doiii-.u"] for accoiiiiiiodaliou if is -nd V'.-.-lv 11.-.1. any extrenie clianges will 1... made." YOU OAW nurr IT <3IEAPEE AT T-UB liaC POST. . ,J_.i. :''■!;

There are not many men who can point to a more remarkable record of exciting experiences and hairbreadth escapes than Dr. Svcn lledin. One of tills famous explorer's most terrible experiences was sull'ered in Thibet, which he has visited several limes, lie and his parly were travelling at a very high altitude and they sullcivd ugoii'es. "The experience," 'says Dr. lledin, " was weird and awful." Kv 'n | to unbutton one's coal meant aculc I pain and attention to an overwrought heart, which literally was on lire] point of breaking. Mv own safetv lav j in the fact that 1 never left the s'addl'' for a single moment, from morning until we pitched camp in the evening. Had 1 done so my heart would have givea way." Dr. lledin once went nine days w tiiout witter, and when a little pool was reached at last he drank live pints without stopping. An American pressman writes to a friend in Wellington as follows:

"Here on the Eriday before the election no one known how it is going In go. liryan lias in-.ule a great light, hut the Republicans have such great majorities in the States, and also such a great lead in the electoral college, that it seems that only a landslide can defeat Taft. (some 'lliink thai, the landslide is in sight. The country is much opposed to the Republican party's afliliiilion with Wall Street interests, and no one can tell how a fourth of tin protesting Republicans aire gjoing U* vote. If' Taft is elected and the Republican party don't mend its way hi the, next four years the man who makes the race on the Republican lick el .in, 11)12 will he the worst defeated man' that ever ran for President, or W" will have a country full of half-baked Socialists. Xo—l am not a Democrat; only a Bryan Republican." The four daughters of the daughter of Ijueen Victoria, Princess Alice, who .sacrificed her own life to save that of one of her chjhh'en thirty years ago, married respectively tin? present Emperor of liussia, Prince Louis of Jiattenburg, Prince Henry of Prussia (the Kaiser's brother), and the Grand Duke Sergius of liussia (uncle of the Emperor Nicholas II.). The widowed Grand Duchess Sergius (Princess Elizabeth of Hesse-Darmstadt, and neiee of King Edward) is now reported to have entered the Convent of the " Blue "Nuns " at .Moscow. The. Grand Duchess Elizabeth

h'eodorovna (such is her Russian title) is 44, and married the ill-fated Grand Duke JSergius in 18S4, when she was 20. She had been trained by her devoted mother in the most rigid Protestantism ; young as she was at the date of her marriage she possessed an inflexible will ; and dismay reigned at the. Imperial Court and in lluasian when she emphatically refused to abjure her I'roteslaut principles and enter the folds of the Russo-Grock, or "Orthodox''' Church. The.persistent and continuous efforts to convert her to Orthodoxy were as frequently resisted by the courageous young Grand Duchess, who [ held out for seven years, ami only reluctantly consented in 18'Jl to be con- | firmed and baptised in accordance wiih j the Rosso-Greek rite, which is pracU cally analogous to the Greek.