LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 333, 8 March 1910, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Mr. Newton King has received the following cable from Sydney re hides:— "Prices weaker." Tahutimai is the name selected for the telephone office at the Dawson's Falls mountain house. Rabbits are increasing in the Waikato and giving farmers, on whom they arc a sore tax, considerable concern. Dr. J. S. MacLaurin, Dominion Analyst, has recently made an analysis of water taken from the Waiwakaiho 6tream, and reports that it is of good quality for household use. This is the water that is used in the borough reticulation. The lot of a tollgate-keeper is not a very happy one. "If there was an angel there," remarked the county chairman yesterday in reference to the Puniho tollgate, "we'd still have complaints. I wouldn't have the. job at £lO a week, let alone £2 a week." The Taranaki County Council's overdraft stood yesterday at £3707 Gs 4d. Of this the Hurworth riding bore £1270 17s sd, Omata £1786 7s Waitara 1E295 13s 6d, and Moa £734 2s 2d. After passing accounts the overdraft stood at £4574 17s 4d. This is a record year for heavy traffic on the main south road between New Plymouth and Puniho. reported Foreman Brosnan to the County Council yesterday. There are eight five-horse waggons, three freight motor-waggons, two motor coaches, and two five-horse coaches daily, with three five-horse coaches on Saturdays. A special wire to a Christchnrch paper says:—Difficulties come to all churches, and to many preachers, from modern thought. Methodist ministers consider that they possess a wide liberty, and there is considerable range of views among them. The Rev.| W. E. Tuck, M.A., a very able young minister, made a candid statement of his views to the conference. They 'were not orthodox, and i-however willing the conference might be to wink, or not to see, it could not sanction them as Mr. Tuck seemed to desire. He therefore decided to retire, and his resignation was received with regret. The official opening of the East End Bathing House at Te Henui is fixed for Thursday afternoon at 3.30 o'clock, when his Worship the Mayor will perform the opening ceremony. The committee in charge intends making a big day of it. and the public are invited to attend. No charge will be made, but a collection will be taken up. Sports on the sand will be provided for the children, for which a liberal supply of toys will be given as prizes. The fun will start at 2 p.m. and continue right up to j 10 p.m. The Garrison Band will give a i grand concert in the evening, and other i musical items will be given. Mr. Thompson -will provide afternoon tea. What constitutes delivery? A local grocer the other day sent out a pound of butter to a customer in the suburbs. The butter was in the ordinary thin paper bag known as a biscuit bag. The people were not at home, so the messenger adopted his usual procedure, and left the package on fiie doorstep. Now, the day wa.s very warm, and that doorstep was on the sunnv side of the house, so that when the folks arrived, home later in the afternoon they found a creasy paper bag. a piece of greasy string, and a greasv invoice form, but t>o butter. That had nil soakc' into the i doorstep! Doubtless the parties easily j arrived a*: a solution of the difficulty, j but our informant asks the Question. "Was that butter delivered?"' " J There's consternation amongst the | owners of motor-cars and motor-waggons just now, in view of the County Council's intention of metalling a considerable length of the main south road. Motor vehicles evince a very decided objection to "take" freshly-metalled roads, and freight waggons, of course, are less likely to accommodate themselves to the conditions than the "run-about" motor-ears. It -has been suggested to some comity councillors that the new , metal be rolled as the metalling progresses, and the matter was discussed at yesterday's meeting. It was pointed out, however, that to do this was quite impracticable. To follow such a course would mean dislocating the whole working of the contract, by interfering with both crushing and carting. Cr. Andrews said it would pay the Council over and over again to have a second engine especially for rolling the roads. " The Postmaster-General has decided, on the advice of Mr. D. Robertson, Secretary of Post and Telegraphs, to order a number of Dickie stamp-vending machines, now in use by the British Post Office. During his recent tour abroad Mr. Robertson found considerable interest displayed in stamp-vending machines of various patterns which had been submitted to postal administrations. Tn Germany and Belgium he found the Abel machine, a German invention, outside the principal offices. The machine adopted by the British Post Office was that invented by Mr. Dickie. In the latest model the mechanism has been reduced to a minimum, and it was difficult to find any fault with the machine. There is-no doubt, says Mr. Robertson, that the adoption of a reliable stampvending machine would materially reduce the work of clerks at the counter, and relieve congestion in the public lobbies of large post offices. "I wish to remark fo the Council that on three or four different occasions T have removed large-sized boulders placed on the road at the Katikara bend, a ) most dangerous part of the road." These arc-pinned on the road "with snni" obieet or 'other." Thus the report of the riding foreman to the Countv Connoil. Members asked if this were an attempt to dislocate the motor-waggon traffic, but Cr. Andrews said that more likelv the stones had been used to blnek the wheels of vehicles which had been stopped on the hill. He mentioned that a few weks ago. when he was returning to Okato from New Plymouth by night, he almost collided with a crusher engine and waggon that had been left standing there unlighted. It was a most danger- j ous thing to do. "Have von got plenty j of evident of that.?" the chair- I man. Cr. Andrews said he had. and \ without further ado the Council decided | to instruct its solicitor to take proceed- : ings against the owners of the plant. | "It's the onlv way to deal with these : fellows." said the chairman, "they take! no notice of letters." |

Now's the time to purchase cheap plothvnw for the hoys and men. It's sale time at "The Kasli," and you shrewd Taranaki people know that this mean lots of bargains. This firm buy for cash and sell for cash; that means' they buy absolutely in the best markets, securing special discounts which they pass on to you. Look them up at once and secure some of their bargains, "l'le Kash." just below Nolan's auction mart., ITew Plymouth.—Advt.

As an outcome of trouble between the teacher and committee of the Ruapuha school, near Toko, the committee has resigned in a body. The mutters in dispute were recently referred to the Board, and the resignation of the committee is doubtless intended as a protest against the Board's method <>f dealing with the question. A party of Samoans —eight men, 15 •women and three children passed through Suva the other week en route to Germany, to give entertainments such as the Maoris are now giving abroad (states the Suva correspondent of the New Zealand Herald). They have material for making their houses, etc., also canoes, and will give the national songs and dances. In the winter they will show in flic. Continental theatres, and should be a good draw. Tamasese, grandson of the late old warrior chief, is of the namber, and Mr. Marquardt is in charge of the troupe. Speaking to an Auckland Herald reporter last 'week, the Prime Minister (Sir Joseph Ward) stated that money had become much more plentiful, and all branches of industry and commerce • were feeling the benefit. With regard to the State Guaranteed Advances Act, applications had, he said, already been made for loans totalling £750,000 by various local bodies. T\he necessary money was available, and provided that the securities offered were satisfactory, the applications would be granted. Three aplieations under the Land Finance Settlement Bill had been made to •date. On the subject of native land settlement, Sir Joseph remarked that negotiations for the purchase of blocks in various parts of the North Island were now well in hand.

A syndicate is reported to have been formed at Warrnambool for the purpose of endeavoring to recover some of the cargo on the barque Falls of Halladale, which was wrecked on the Peterborough coast, Victoria. An oil launch 85ft in length is to be fitted with a crane, by which it is proposed to raise the sunken merchandise. The vessel lies in about 30ft of water, but a divoy who went down reported that the deck of the ship was not more than Bft below the surface. The deck was virtually uninjured, and the principal damage to the hull appears to be the smashing of some of the timbers near the bow. There is a large quantity of oil aboard. It will be only when the ocean is comparatively calm that any appreciative progress will be made in salvage operations. The Minister of Defence, Sir Joseph Ward, seated in Auckland that the question of the permanent regulations under the new Defence Act would be discussed at the meeting of district commanders to be held at Wellington this week. Although the Act was to formally take effect from the Ist day of March, there would be no dislocation in procedure, and the transition from one system to another would be a very gradual one. The report of Lord Kitchener, on his tour of inspection, would probably have an important bearing on the form-that the new regulations would take . It might also be necessary to amend the Act in certain respects as the result of Lord Kitchener's criticism, ■but this, of course, could not be determined until the report was received. Concerning the Waikare wreck, the Bluff correspondent of the Otago Daily Times 'writes:—"The Fanny (fish freezer) has returned 'after an eight weeks' cruise on the Sounds to refit. She reports no alteration whatever in the Waikare wreck. The skipper of the Fanny is of opinion that if the recovery party goes about things properly, it will do more than recoup it*elf for its trouble. Tn short, he says, it cannot possibly make a loss, and the probabilities are that it will make a, sreat gain. , Substantial interests in the wreck have ' been acquired by Bluff residents. The services of an expert diver have )>ee , i secured. Tie will arrive dur'm? *!">•+ few days from Sydney, and the syndicate will be guided by the report he makes after be has had an opportunity of carefully surveying the actual state of the case."

The chairman of thp Napier HarV>r Board (Mr. J. Vigor Brown, M.P.) recently received a telegram from Messrs BortWick and Sons stating that the New- Zealand Shipping Company's steamer Wakanui. which is to arrive shortly, will he berthed alongside the breakwater to load. This vessel is expected to take from seven to eight thousand carcases of frozen meat, in addition to other produce The Wakamii will in. the first regular Home liner to load from the breakwater, a* well as the largest steamer vet berthed there, and her advent marks a new stage in the history of the harbor and tn-vn. It is pleasing to note that the Wakanui is commanded by Captain Bower, son of the town clerk, and that a Na-uer boy will therefore be the first to bring a recognised Home trader into the breakwater harbor.

A rather good story is at present «o-

in<r the rounds concerning a farmer near Timaru. writes the Timaru correspondent of the Lyttelton Times. The farmer employs several men to work teams, and suspecting that they did not always do'a full day's work he set a'trnp for them. After they had started workone morning he went out to the field Mid informed them that he was going to town for the dtiv. He started oIT, but returned an hour later to find the tennis standing idle in the field, and the men nowhere to be seen. Seeing smoke is-uing from a gorse bush, he crept up behind this and found that they had the kettle boiling for morning tea, and were deeply interested in a four-handed game of euchre which they were playing and so interested that they did not hear him

approach. One apparently had a good hand, for he his intention in loud tones to "go alone." This was more than the employer could stand, and stepping forward he said: "Xo you won't go alone, you can all go together!" At a meeting of the Wanganui Licensed Victuallers' Association on Thursday last, the licensing poll proposals of Mr. J. S. Palmer were approved, and it was decide*! to recommend them to the X.Z.L.V.A. for adoption. These proposals refer to a proposed alteration in the licensing laws, having reference to the issues and methods of voting at the licensing polls in the following directions:—(l) The first issue to provide for the continuation of licenses, the earrvintr of which would mean the restoration of licenses equivalent in number to those that have been closed since the election of 1896 by reasons of the carrying of no-licenso and reduction; (2) the second issue provides for the abolition of all licenses, and means that no alcohol lie manufactured, imported or introduced into the Dominion, except for medical, scientific, or sacramental purposes, and then only under very restricteiT conditions; (3) the third issue, is State control. One elector to have only one vote, a bare majority of the total number of votes cast to be sufficient to carry either issue.

Two gentlemen from Hawera who for a considerable "time past have made a practice of visiting the State Farm at Moumahaki once or twice a year went down last week, and found that recent economies have done a great deal to lessen public interest in the place.

The secretary of the Okato Athletic Club writes that he has received from an axeman in the Stratford district unsigned nominations for the two chopping events at the club's sports. He asks that this competitor will immediately forward his name and list of performances to him at Okato.

Customs revenue at Patea during February totalled £7(12 7s sd. Exports from the port were: Butter 3515cwt., valued at £17.221; cheese. 20,178ewt., £5(1,440; beef, froben, 1008 cwt., £1438; lamb, frozen, 1287 carcases, 361cwt., £633; tallow. 10 tons, £240; wool, greasv, 42781b, "£1425.

The following story is going therounds:—A Maori went into a publichouse and demanded a pint of beer. This was served, and the Maori placed fourpence on the bar, seized the mug of liquor, and with a cheery "Here'* luck, boss." started to pour it down. "Here, you're twopence short; a pint is sixpence." "How the -way?" enquired the Mnori, in surprise. "Me twopence short! No fear! I ask for a long beer, you gave it to me, I give you fourpence; I have the beer, you have the i'ourpence. You twopence short; not jne!"

"Will you swear off liquor for twelve months?" asked Mr. Kettle of a "drunk" at Auckland. "Yes," replied the man, somewhat dubiously. "Very well, take the Bible in you riglil hand, and repeat tEese worcls after mc: 'I solemnly swear to abstain from taking any alcoholic or intoxicating liquor tor the period of twelve months.'" The prisoner repeated these words, but at the end added the further words, "except medicinally!" "Oh, very well," thundered the Magistrate, "I am not going to allow a man of your stamp to waste my time. You are prohibited for twelve months."

Invercargill about a couple of years 1 ago erected a town hall and theatre at a cost of about .€20,000. Up to this year the patronage of the theatre by visiting theatrical companies has been sufficient to cover the interest on the cost, but this year the revenue from this source threatens to fall short. In view of this the town clerk has submitted a proposal to the Council to run a permanent municipal picture entertainment in the theatre when the latter is not otherwise engaged. He estimates the net rturn to the town will be about £lO per week. The proposal has been referred to the Town Hall Committee for a report. Is Lord Kitchener an Irishman because he happened to be born in Ireland, or an Englishman because his parents were English? This is n matter than has given rise to some disputation in the Australian press. Here we claim to be Xew Zealandcrs if born in the Dominion, but there Is a sort of reservation. We would, fo r example, hardly relish accepting a full-blooded Chinese a 9 a. New Zealander, merely because this was his birthplace. Would we say that a child of English parents, born in j Paris, was a Frenchman? Yet there | must be a, point at which English blood I become Irish or French, if the family i coes on living there, and the question Ns: When is that point reached? A scheme, the ingenuity of which is almost startling, was put forward at a recent meeting of the Paris Municipal Council. As is well-known, the depopulation of France is n constant pre-ocen-pation of French statesmen. But on the other hand. Paris landlords often refuse their flats to families with children because the other tenant, object ito them upon The. score of noise. ThP 1 proposition laid before the Council is j that paterfamilias shall pay smaller i rates in the ratio of the number of his ' children. The more children a man has the lower would be his rates. Am* the scheme micht be expanded. If the town of Paris offered a bonus to InndloHs for everv child in their houses, landlords would soon welcome large families as tenants.

An Ingenious but not exactly commendable method of avoiding the carrying of heavy luggage in motor cars while on tour, was accidentally discovered by the authorities of the Railway Department the other day. It appears that a motorist who wished to make a trip from Christchnrcn to Dunedin went to the Clvristcmirch railway station and checked bis luggage through to the southern city, and then made the journey In- motor ear, and on arrival at Diinedin went to the station and claimed hi> luggage. One sharp-eyed porter, however, had noted that no passenger had arrived by the train, and as a result enquiries ~ were made, and the scheme burst like a pricked bubble. The Department now requires the production of the passenger's ticket when luggage is being checked, and thus has a guarantee of bona fides.

Mr. A. Hope Blake, of Canterbury, author of ■''Sixty Years in New Zealand." and a veteran of early settlement. takes the Una outbreak very seriously. He writes to the Christclmrch Press: "It must he remembered that Run is associated with a tribe which produced the notorious Te Rangihiron. the Uriweras. which tribe has nlwavs borne the character of being the least tractable and most warlike of the East Coast natives. Civilisation—or, as far as they are concerned, the King's writ—has had the least visible effect upon this hardy race of mountain savages. Now. if temporising, or palliative methods are adopted in connection with these people it is move than likely that history may repeat itself bv these fanatics breaking out nt anv time. Should they conceive the idea that the whites should be destroyed, one word from their leader, delivered by the god Tu, might mem the massacre 01 all pakehas within reach." Mr. Blake therefore urges Dr. Findlay to be firm, suppress the recalcitrant Maori, and destroy Rua's mami. There is no class of ailment that a'tfects the system quicker than bowel complaints, and any delay in tr <* tm K Diarrhoea or colic is dangerous. Chamberlain's Colic. Cholera, and Diarrhoea Remedy'is the only remedy that is absolutely reliable in cases of this kmd, and as some member «# the family to always liable to an attack at any time it should always be kept in the house. This remedv never fails to give prompt relief. Sold by all chemists and storekeepers.

Do not go to the. expense of calling in n doctor when you sprain your ankle. Bathe your foot and ankle in water ns hot as can be borne and rub in Chamberlain's Pain Balm freely. Repeat the rubbing several times, and in two rr three days you will be able to pet about y and will be quite cured in lew than a week. Sold by all chemists and store*JteejeWi k . j •