LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 100, 25 May 1909, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

We acknowledge receipt of a copy of a pamphlet containing the nulitaiy' lecture and speeches 011 national defence delivered by Lieut.-Colonel Allen Bell, commanding the 2nd Regiment Auckland Mounted Rifles.

in the Police Court yesterday, before Mr. H. & Fitzlierben/ 5.M.,, a' first offending drunkard was convicted and discharged. Another, who, being on nail, failed to appear, was lined os and costs 3s, in 'default forty-eight hours' imprisonment. i

The heat in Palnierston on .Sunday was intense for .May. Jt was accompanied by a heavy downpour of rain in the afternoon, lasting for fully ail hour. So far an exceptionally mild winter has been experienced and' stock is looking well, the grass being abundant. Tuc Hope uf ligmont Juvenile Temple was opened hist night by C.T. J!ro. Crone. There was a large attendance of members present. The programme for the evening was a recitation competition, but it was postponed for a fortnight. Two members were proposed for initiation.

Thus the Christehurch Evening Xews on the Connelly murder case:—lt reveals such an extraordinary amount of bungling'and incompetence 011 the part of the ollicials entrusted with the maintenance of law and order, The Coast has always enjoyed a reputation of being a fairly " hot shop." We are inclined to think that if has earned it largely through the slackness of the police. The usual fortnightly meeting of the Loyal Kgmont Lodge was held last evening, Hro. 1!. Xewton, XXI., presiding. There was a fair attendance of members and visiting members. One candidate was proposed for membership, , The 'honors of the order were accorded a visiting member from the Loyal Waitari Ivodge, who thanked the lodge for the reception accorded him. IMi.ll. Hooker and 1 iro. T. Inch were appointed sick visitors for the lodge.

There were no halt-measures in 31 r. Dcmpsry's lirst announcement at yesterday's school function. " These ehai.s have tieen placed here for the pioneers." lie said, " and if there are any pioneer* who have not secured a seat, please come forward; the chairs arc for von." A brief pause. "And those who hav> chairs, and are not pioneers, will please leave them." There was a hasty exit of those who had made themselves comfortable. as they thonifht, for the afternoon. "lie th:;' \ l-'th himself shall be abased," saitli the Scripture.

There was unconscious harshness in the photographer's remarks at the; Central School yesterday, and a grim hum vr as well. He was endeavouring to "pose" the pioneers, and. as usual, the populace crowded round, until it was diU'icult to say whether the pioneers were in -. few of the camera or not. Upon the approach of .Mr. Ilanna the crowd fell back respectfully, but insufficiently—there was ill a fringe of forward folks who threatened to blur the»pieture, "Mo.--hack, please, you people.*' he said, and he waved his hands, "we don't, want tile picture spoiled." No one laughed.

It is interesting to hear from llomfi papers that the trend of imitation towards New Zealand still continues, and that Canada is le?H sought alter now as a country to settle in. Last year Uie , departures were only 81,211, as against 151,210 in 1!)07, while the inllux to New Zealand was 1 a record. Enquiries about Canada at the Emigrants' Information Office in London fell off about 5-4 per cent, for the year, while those about New Zealand increased 05 per cent. During the height of a gale lightning struck a large pinus insignis tree at Buckkind, near Auckland. For u distance of thirty feet from the ground upwards the trunk has been split open several inches in width through the whole diameter, while the bark lias been torn off ill large squares and scattered I "11 directions. The effect of the light. ning was so severe that the tree took ! fire, and although left standing, it has ' canted over considerably. A native tree not far away was ala'o struck and co.n- . inenced to bum. I With the exception of the engineering j building trades, i,, which great slackness is being experienced, tilings industrial are reported to be fairly satisfactory locally just at present (says the : Wellington Times). Unemployment does i not prevail to tiny marked extent in r trades other than those and ' the prospects are considerably better than they were a couple of months ago. = Even in the building trade there are indications of improvement before very - long, a number of big jobs being alrcadv , in sight. It is not likely that the Govc eminent will put any more men on to road and railway works for some weeks

now, all those already in hand being fully manned.

During the past mouth the New Zealand farmers' Dairy Union paid suppliers C4IIOI IDs 10(1 for butter-making and £403 (is lOd lor cheese. During the month 0 tons more cheese and 8% tons more butte r were made than during the corresponding month last year with exactly the same number of suppliers, thus indicating a 'bvttor season, and consequently, better milking. During May the union will pay lod per lb for butter-fat. Regarding the recent low prices' 011 the London market, the secretary (Mr. liendall) explains that ill the early part 01 the season the union was fortunate enough to sell 200 tons of ■butter at a very good price, a:id this ha 6 seen them well through the season. A painful sensation has been caused at Hiiakatane liy the arrest of Mr. A. C. Norris, postmaster, on a charge' of the theft of ±'3(H' public money*, the property of the New Zealand iiovernlHcnt. Accused has been remanded till liiursday, It will be remembered (savs the local paper) that some time ago it yas reported that accused was miss-1 nig, and after a. search he was found' 111 a state of prostration. It was stated 1 at the time that he had intended to commit suicide, and color was lent to the rumour b.v the discovery of a loaded revolver. Upon his return he was placed under suspension, and an examination of his books resulted in the discovery that there was a considerable deficiency, and lie was arrested and charged as above.

Writes the Hnwera Star on the Opu- j nake railway question:—'".So far as the! question of route is concerned Mr. Pearce's proposal has much to recommend it. Originally the idea was co connect with Normanby, or thereabouts. J hat route would serve suc'n territory that the line rould be guaranteed by a much larger number of local bodies than would be the case if the junction were at Kltham or To Koti. We would prefer, however, to see thv question of route suspended, and think it would be a good thing it a guarantee could ho arranged by all the local bodies cnn<-ern-ed, leaving the route to be absolutely .fixed by some authority whose duty it would be to base a determination upon all the engineering and commercial evidence available. Better still, a Commission might be appointed at once to definitely decide, apart from the claims of rival towns, wlnclf route would most profitably serve the district."

It is 110 idle dream to picture tlie day when there will be several wharves jutting out from the foreshore oi New Plymouth into deep water berths where large steamers may lie in perfect safety in all weathers (says the Eltham Argus). Those who think this too optimistic a picture must have a leaning to pessimism themselves—and have insufficient faith in the magniiieent province they reside in. Lot such people look back forty years in tlie history of Taranaki The brave pioneers of those days would have found it bard to conceive 'the gloat changes that have taken place. Having looked back forty years, ami compared tlie with tlie present, t'Ue pessimists should endeavour to look forward twenty years and ask themselves is there any reason to doubt that tlie coming twenty years will excel the past forty in general progress? We have unbounded faith in the future of Taranaki. a portion of the Dominion w'airh was for many veal's the Cinderella of New Zealand, but which is now coming in to its own. The progress of the past is small compared with what the future is to be. "With the access of population, the opening up of the lands, energy and enterprise 011 the part of business men, and a confident, liopeful spirit 011 the part of the people, ihe future lias bright days in store, and large contributors to those days will be the plucky people who have, in spite of crokers and pessimists, maintained the possibility of and struggled for a deep-water harbor at New Plymouth.

"Xew Plymouth is asleep in regard to the exploitation of its attractions/' remarked a visitor to a representative of the Daily News yesterday. "Take the ease or Napier," lie said, "and see whit the people there have done and are doing in connection with the bench. They have made a line parade, which has a splendid wall separating it from the bench. On the latter you will find a regular gymnasium swings, rings, etc. for the benefit of the younger generation. There I are capital bathing facilities—dressingtents for both sexes, and ropes to whudi corks are attached lead into the deen. thiiri reducing the risk of accident to a mliiHiium. The people are making the town a real watering-place, and as a] result, Napier is already reaping the benefit of their enterprise, people coming from as far south as Wellington >.o spend a few 'weeks' holiday in the summer. The hotels lay themselves out *0 cater for the visitors, and in my opinion the town must become a very important, as won as a fashionable, holiday place in the near mtnrc. What has been done in Napier is possible in Xew Plymouth, provided the people don't go to sleep again. They certainly have improved tho"seafront during the last year or two. but a lot remains' to be done before people hum outside will be attracted to the town for (he holiday period. The railway fronting the beach—with the smone from the engines and the noise from I lie traflic—is certainly a drawback, but

there is nothing to stop the town from providing surf bathing facilities, beach attractions, anil improving Ihe sea-front still further. If they go the right wav to work, X T ew Plymouth will in th'i; iuture be the watering-place of the west coast, just as Napier is the water-ing-place of the east coast."