LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 276, 30 December 1909, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Parliament finished the work of the session last evening and adjourned. The cities of the Dominion report a record week in postal business for the holiday season. Various reports states that the potato blight is as bad Or even wor.-e than in previous years. A farmer residing within the Gore registration district has (says the Ensign) registered the birth of his fifteenth child, fourteen of whom survive. The proud father boasts that all the births were registered in Gore. A commercial man was in a hurry to reach Lumsden from Invercargill one day last week, so he hired a motor car. The distance is about fifty miles, and the trains take 3'/ 2 hours to do the journey . The car was exactly l>/ 3 hours.

Mr. W. Clarke, of Christcliurch, intends to send to her Majesty Queen Alexandra at the beginning of' March an album of photographs of New Zealand babies and young children. Mr. Clarke forwarded a similar album to Queen Victoria from Africa some years ago.

A return presented to the House shows that the average number of men engaged in quartz mines in New Zeiland during the year 1909 was 4350, Including 12 Chinese. According to registrations, 204 miners and seven goldminers died"of phthisis or miners' phthisis during the period.

The estimated harvest yields for Tarauaki for the year 1009-10 are as follows: Wheat, 1000 acres', 30,000 bushels; oats, 3500 acres, 147,000 bushels; barley, 1200 acres, 54,000 bushels; ryegrass, 150 acres, 4500 bushels; potatoes, <IOO acres, 4200 tons. The figures for turnips and rape are not given in the estimates. The third son of the German Crown Prince and Princess was baptised on November 0 at the Marble Palace, in Potsdam, in the' presence of the Kaiser and Empress, and many notables. Tile most interesting feature of the ceremony was the presence of Count Zeppelin, who Btood as godfather to the infant prtliee. This is an honor never before accorded to any person not of royal blood.

The Tourist Department is now levying a toll of Is per head on visitors to the Government reserve at Whakarewarewa, Botorua, containing the geysers. Children will be charged half-price. Visitors will he able to purchase season tickets admitting for 14 days for 2s 6d, while residents may get a ticket for a year for Is. The moneys thus raised will Be applied to the upkeep and improvement of the reserve, and the completion of the model pa. It is also proposed to license the native guides, which will give the Department some control over them. ■

Preaching at Phillipstown (Canterbury) on Sunday night, the Rev. 11. E. Ensor said in regard to the approaching .New Year that the neurotic idea had heen fostered that men's actions during the year_wero entered up against them on a species of charge sheet, which they sat down to consider very solemnly and very gloomily during the'dying hours of the old year. TV.v had been taught to regard fiod in the licrht of a presiding magistrate, who could be cajoled by a tew sobs and a few hysterical prayers on Ne»- Year's Eve to wipe out their offences and give them a clean sheet lo start the New fear witn. A telegram to the New York Tribune from Fort Collins, Colorado, last month stated that the wife of Sir Cecil Ernest Moon, an English baronet who had resided in Colorado for some years, had been granted a divorce. A curious feature of the case is that Sir Cecil wis awarded £450 a year as alimony. When the case came before the Courts he alleged (hat he was being henpecked by his wife, and he endeavored to compel her lo account fo r £12,500, which lie said ho put injier care in 1900. After surrendering tEs money, Sir Cecil declared that he had the greatest difficulty in getting even small advances. ■l'iiring the last two years he had only received £OO. ITe declared that while his wife attended various race meetings, for which lie had horses entered, he was compelled to remain at home on their ranch, doing the cooking and housework.

A Manaia resident perpetrated a joke at the expense of an innocent visitor on Christmas Eve (says the Witness). A crowd of boisterous young men was' congregated on the footpath, and the resident iu question, assuming an official air, commanded tlieni "to get away home." They all got promptly hut one. ul'o refused to budge. The humorist thereupon "arrested" him for drunkenness and disorderly conduct, and took liini to a loose box at Alouri's stables. The prisoner went quietly, but offered to "sliout" for the constable if he would release him. "]i've only had one or two drinks'," lie said plaintively, "and it C liristmas time." The constable had to do his duty, and was adamant Ihe prisoner, however, complained of the gaol accommodation, but he was told that the lock-up was full, and he settled down to his fate philosophically. After An hour or- so of durance vile he was "discharged."

Ai-f'ni iling to ha bit, since the new ime-tuble came into force, the mail ram was again late in arriving at New Iymouth last night, being about 41 unutcs behind schedule time. The in oiivenirnce to passengers is becomin Iniost intolerable, Many of the unfoi una te passengers, arriving after a lon ourney half tarnished (there is now n lining car 011 the train) have to con' nonce a round of the boarding-house ml hotels, after closing hours, in seal'"' < accommodation, to the great ineo:l enienoe of themselves and all concerr M. Further, the enforced delav i: 'he sailing of the Onehunga boat' an '~e corresponding late arrival <1 nrougli passengers at Auckland, is ; ierious inconvenience that must 11105 ircjudicmlly all'ect the route. It is I, 10 hoped that the Minister will vcr ihortly revise the present retroTcssir' anie-table; if not, the result wTll sooi mike itself felt in decreasing revenu icction of the railway-hitherto amonw he best paying in the Dominion. ° . Interesting details are just to ham Tom Hew York concerning Mr. Join Stewart Kennedy, a retired banker ivhn wont to America a penniless lad ! i a,u ' died in November last 'Caving £.1000,000 in gifts to philan ! irnmo and educational institutions in Ruling £2n.noo to the University' " "Insgow. Mr. Kennedy worked 'in .■ iviireliniise for 30s a week after his ar rival in New York, and later secured - situation as clerk in a bank. Tie wai 'ventually admitted to partnership, am became known as one of the sounder ind most careful financiers ih the coun fry. Ke amassed a fortune of more \ He has left £7,000, t0 nis various relatives, while hi' 'requests include £IOO,OOO to the Presby tman mission and Church extension sc £300.000 to a Presbyterian co, 1 i.., I c °"stantmople, and £450,00( to the Columbia University of New vork, with a like sllm tlle - Metropo,;. ton Museum of Art,

An energetic axeman who competed successfully at the Whangamomona sports on Monday subsequently attended tne dance held there that evening after winch he rode the forty miles " i°is' If ' n me f° r breakfast, and finally as a fitting wind-up competed m popping events on the second day "I the Eltham carnival.—Stratford Post. As t.lip result o| a Christmas Eve "'■awl at Diwedin, three young men appeared at the local Police Court 011 iiesdav, The scene was described by I lie police as most disgraceful. Arthur I'ranklyn, charged with threatening behaviour, using obscene language, and resisting the police, was fined £7 on two charges, and received two months' im prisomnont for obscene language. Albert •lames GrodinrTj for threatening be- | lmviour, obscene language, resisting I ote.. wag fined in the aggregate. £lO. ordered to pay for damage done to a detective's' clothing, and received two months' imprisonment for obscene lanSuage. William Simpson, for assaulting the police, received one month's imprisonment, for obscene language three months, for resisting the police was fined £5, and for damaging a constable'--uniform was fined 40s and ordered to pay damage.

RELIEF WORK. Iho story of Dr. Sheldon's Digestive utbules can be told in a word. Tile; actually do the work that the weak an wasted stomach is unable to do, and allow it to recuperate and regain its strength. They contain all the essential properties that tKe gastric juice anil other digestive fluids do, and tliey digest the food just asl a sound and well stomach would. They relieve the stomach just as one rested and refreshed workman relieves the one on duty that fa tired and worn, and nature does her own woik of restoration. It is a simple | natural process that a child can under- ; stand. You can mt all you want witli-

An alleged assault ease, in which a local clergyman and a newspaper editor lire concerned, is likely to come on at the Petonc Court shortly.

We are In receipt of a copy of th.! | 1910 issue of that •useful publication, "The Star Almanac and West Coast Directory," which lias become to be regarded as indispensable by the man in business or the settler on the coast. We hope this year's issue will meet with the support it deserves.

The five members of the Australian Eleven whoTtiTve Ticeu visiting the East, namely, Messrs A. Noble, F. Laver, A. J. Hopkinß, A. Cotter, and W. W. Armstrong, have returned from their travels. They appear to have had a most enjorable 'time, according to a paragraph in the Argus. They were the guests oT the Sultan of Jahore, Sir Arthur, Young, and others. Some big gamr| shooting was afforded them. They got some boars and deers. The Sultan of Joliore entertained them at a dinner, at which there was over £20,000 worth of plate on the tabic, and presented each with a silk sarong, a kind of pvj.min. A visit to the Sultan's rubber estates waa particularly interesting. Two matches, both won by the Australians, were played against the British residents at Singapore, where the whole town Ilad a holiday for a week. The

cricketers were also the guests of Mr. E. W. B'reli, the British Resident at Ipon. It was a novelty to the visito-s to see a boar drive, in which 250 native heaters took part. "The onlv casualty on our part," said one of the Australians, "wa6 when one of our number got a scare and made for a tree which was covered with thorns. Believing there was a tiger or something like that aftei him he paid little attention to smal' matters such as thorns; still he was nearly scratched to death, and hi: clothes were past mending." At a recent meeting of the Waimafc

County Council the chairman drew at-1 tentio'n to a recent invention—the Edison storage battery —as likely to be suitable in connection with the installation of a tram scheme to provide an improved means of transit between Mauaia and Hawera. Mr. Hastie intimated that he had cabled for further details of the invention, and lie has now received a letter, a pamphlet, and testimonials from the Edison Storage

Battery Company. The letter iSays: "Replying to your cablegram, we would state that up to the present time wo have made batteries only for commercial trucks and pleasure vehicles. A tramcar is being developed for work in New York city which will be finished in a couple of months. Until tests are made we cannot furnish you with any data on same. Previous tests of the battery will do the work in a most satisfactory manner when the car is properly reduced in weight." It is stated further particulars in regard to the car will be supplied as son.i ::s the tests are completed. The information available goes to show thai the storage battery will rapidly supersede ttie horse, as the mechanism can, without much cost or labor, be installed on ordinary passenger vehicles, and an average speed of about 14 miles an hour can be maintained. The question of heavy haulage—which is the main consideration with a service in this district—has yet to he definitely settled, and further news of the tests will be awaited with interest. The vehicles that have been equipped with the storage battery take the form of a motorcar, but there should be no reason why a car on rails cannot be similarly propelled, and with sufficient power to do what haulage is required on a service suitable for this district.—Witness.