LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 367, 19 April 1910, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

. The Hawera County Council has been served with a writ for £2OO damages for injuries caused to Mr. Drake. ,who was thrown out of a waggon whilst travelling over the Waingongoro bridge. The West End Bowling Club is fortunate in having been given sufficient turf to cover the whole of the eight rinks. A committee meeting of the club is to be held this evening. Commenting upon last year's local agricultural show at last night's meeting, the president of the Agricultir.al Society expressed his pleasure at seeing the Mayor of the town working for its success, and a prominent bank manager carrying gates and rails, and "working like a horse."

At the annual meeting of the Taranaki branch of the N.Z. Master Printers Association at New Plymouth Inst evening. Mr. T. Avery, of New Plymouth. was -re-elected chairman for the ensuing year; Mr. A. E. Copping, of Stratford, vice-president; and Mr. A. Humphrey, of New Plymouth, secretary. . A well-known Taranaki resident who has just returned from a visit to the South. Island, during the course of which he inspected the route of the Midland Railway, describes that undertaking as a huge waste of public money. He is confident that it cannot par the cost of construction.

Witnesses in police court proceeding are often given a surprise. Yesterday morning a young man <\vho was doing his country a service by assisting to sheet home a charge of burglary and theft started out to give the "Court his evidence in his own "way. A look of Wank astonishment came over his face /.vhen Sergeant Haddrell cut in upon his statement with the abrupt instruction: "Xcver mind that. Just you answer the questions that I put to you. You can tell your own story afterwards if I want it."

The gratitude of a doctor's patient has not often been shown in such a substantial manner as in the case of Mr. Joseph lumber, a resident of the village of Holgate, near York (England). Mr. Kimber died iu January, leaving a fortune of £49,834. After one bequest of £250, he left all the rest of his property to Mrs. Mary Rose, widow of Dr. Robert Duncan Rose, his medical attendant. He stated in his will that he made the gift to Mrs. Rose "in consideration of ■her husband's constant kindness and attention to me both personally and nrofessionally."

A sensational runaway occurred in town yesterday morning." The horse attached to a milk-cart near the railway station took fright and bolted, and a cab drawn by a pair of horses followed suit. They collided with another cab. which capsized. The milk-cart jhoise cleared out with the cart upturned, and badly damaged the vehicle. The runaway cab 'was stopped' in Upper Brougham-street, scarcely damaged. The drivers of all three vehicles were on the railway platform, awaiting the arrival of the train, at the time. We have received many expressions of appreciation in regard to the "new'' rXews'' of late, and not the least gratifying was one that came to hand yesterday. We hope we will be pardoned for reproducing part of the letter. The writer says: "1 have meant to write before and congratulate you upon the marked improvement shown of late in your paper, which I consider is now one of the foremost papers of the Dominion. . . . . L hope your enterprise will be •rewarded as it deserves to be, and also that you will continue to serve the Province and look after its interests in the faithful ami capable way in which you have done and are doing." Tlie theatre isn't any place for a baby, particularly if baby cries. There was a howling infant lit the Theatre Royal last night, and it cried lustily during the greater part of the performance. Within a few minutes of the call of time baby was ordered oft' the field. The manager would have earned the gratitude of the audience had he taken this step earlier. The s'pectacle of a mother standing in the stalls, "hushing" and patting a crying baOy right through love scenes, and murder scenes, and even disturbing the dignity and serenity of the stage court of justice. is not on" that pleases. The Xew Plymouth •'pit." however, is a good-tem-pered one. and no attempt was made by the "gods" to drown the baby's crying? Was it fair to the babv? ' ' j

There were three prosecutions in the case against the youth from Eahotu ! (yesterday. Sergeant Kaddrell was the actual prosecutor, examining the witnesses; Constable HickmaiC who had made the capture and who up till this time had been the only official known to the public in the matter, bustled about, prompted the sergeant occasionally, and kept the witness-box supplied. About one o'clock Mr. Terry, Clerk of the Court, replaced Mr. Addison at the desk, and proceeded to take the depositions, submitting the one remaining witness to a cross-examination upon each answer before recording it. The presiding Justices, 'who had stated a few minutes earlier that they would sooner remain and finish the case than adjourn, began to look repentant of their rashness. Then the accused surprised the Court and delayed the dinner hour by making a statement, and the supposed one o'clock luncheon was about threequarters nf an hour late, when ihe cause of all this trouble v\as duly committed for sentence.

In its March isstt". ju-t out. "Night and Day," the quarterly organ of Dr. Bnrnardo's Homes., frankly states that it is designed to tell something of the doings of the Homes, but only in order to win sympathy and support. The Homes .have assuredly proved their claim that they wisely distribute public charity. The rescue cases specially dealt with and illustrated in this issue 'are chiefly drawn from Dri'tol. where an ever-open door has been maintained by the institutions for many years. Xo one can look at thee histories without realising that here is an agency dolus 1 work which sadly needs to be done anion,;' our destitute bovs and cirls. There is , vast mas- ~f child-ni'L'hvt still wnitin? the haul- of rescue, and the Homes prove conclusively that very little indeed is needed to turn the stenof their protegees into the straight paths of honor and righteousnes-. Some of the cases are "saturated with alcohol"; drink plavs n sod pari in the decrradation of thosp living below the poverty line. Over four thousand emigrants are leaving the Homes for Canada, where already 21.fi"7 of their .predecessors have been placed out with a success-rate of OS'/o per cent. If von want visiting W(!«. niemorinm cards, billheads dance r>* < grammes, inritation cards, or anylru'.s in the war of printing, ring up the 'Daily News," *r*one 17- ~ <.-. w _

Andrew Carnegie has given away £ou,uuo,ooo, which, represents ove* £HUH» for every day Jie has lived« This is surely the record of "giving." .Men muy go up to Jerusalem by rail nowadays and ride in trolley cars io Damascus. The day may not be distant (says an exchange) when the same .modern conveyances will carry tourists to the temples of Tadnior in the desert to the places where Noah Lui.i the ark and Abraham dwelt, to the hanging gardens of the Ba'bylon of Serniranris through the streets of the Arabian Nights, and even to the spot where grew the fruit of that forbidden tree whose mortal taste brought death into the world and all our woe.

A sensational experience is related by Mr. T. E. ToneyclilVe, of Poverty Bay) who has just returned from an overland journey. Shortly before he reached tlfe Waioeka Valley, a large landslip took place on the Opotiki side of Mr. D. Graham's station. It totally wrecked a woolshed, which contained a quantity of wool, severed the bathroom from the house, and twisted the latter right round. The settler heard the rumbling noise, and his wife and he rushed to get the two children, who were in the bathroom. They had hardly got outside when the sliding earth, with large tree stumps, struck the bathroom, and turned the house round. A quantity of wool wag recovered, 'but had to be spread out and dried.

vSome idea of the enormous wealth of the United Kingdom may be obtained 1 from the official return just issued. It shows that during the twelve fiscal years 1897-1)8 to 1008-00 death duties to the amount of £211,041,090 were paid on 703,824 estates of the aggregate net capital value of £3,267,672,000. with an average income of £872,306,000 a year. The average value of these estates was £433. The valuation for the first year of the period named, with 54,991 estates, was £24,734,000, and the average value of the estates was £4500.' The valuation of last year was £270,903,000 for 76.324 estates, with an average of £4OOO each. The largest total of net capital value in the twelve vears period waa reached in 1906-7, £298,060,000 for flfl,« OS2 estates, an average capital value of £4513 each.

' Here's a lesson for Xew Zealand:—The 'world's record for town-building is held by the new corporation of Kingsley, Sas., Canada. On October 5, 1909, there was nothing to mark the site of Kingstey. On November 10, Kingley had 400 people and 135 buildings. Kiugslcy was built and came to the status of 400 people all housed and fairly comfortable, with five lumber yards, a huge three-storey hotel and other modern conveniences, in jusls thirty-five days after the first citizen set foot on the site. Such is the story of progress in the Canadian West, whero they draw a few lines on a paper, seratoh out a document or two, and before the ink is <lry begin to build a town that draws a wa arson over the trails as a magnet draws iron filings. Such is the development which built up a Winnipeg from a population of 48,411 in 1902 to 135.000 to-day. Or a Vancouver, where instead of fclie 40,000 of 1904 there are 100,000 to-dav.

Ten years ago the immigration to the Argentine Republic was almost exclusively Italian and Spanish. To-day there are colonies of Russians near TJahia Blanca; 10,000 I'oles are settled in Misiones, and 700 Finns are arranging to be their neighbors. Bulgarians, Croats, Greeks, and Turks from Asia Minor are distributed in increasing streams by the immigration offices. The writer'has personally handled hundreds of these folks on railroad work, 'and found them in the great majority young, healthy and hard-working folk, •both men and women. From this semiSlav immigration to that of the Far East is but a step, Japanese commercial jrnd immigration agents are already in .Titieiios Ayres and Rio. If the first shipments of Asiatics to the Plate are carefully handled, wisely established, and well treated during their first residence there the thousands who await their letter* will come of their own accord.

Aii exciting chase of an Atlantic liner by a rowing boat took place last month at Ou-.-enstown (England). A married couple who had engaged berths on the Cunard liner Ivernia reached the quaj long after the passenger tender had left. The liner was just moving out on her voyage to Boston, but it was suggested that a fast rowing boat might catch her. Considerable ris'k was involved in the venture, for a stiff wind was blowing, and there was a heavy sea. Nothing daunted, the couple offered a handsome sum to five stalwart boatmen, and in a few minutes they were racing from the shore. Crowds of people anxiously watched the dangerous attempt. Sea after sea broke over the boat, drenching the passengers and boatmen, but still they held on their way. At length the officers of the Ivernia. saw them, and slackened speed until the boat came alongside. As the couple climbed on board ITie liner they were loudly cheered by the. passengers assembled on the decks.

Under the regime of Te Whiti and Tohu at Parihaka, the Maoris did not recognise the .right of the Government to take their lands and lease them to the Europeans, even though the rent was to be .paid to the native owners every half-year. Numerous natives, acting up to this teaching, would not collect their rents, and as a result a considerable sum is said to have accumulated. Since the death of the two oM prophets, however, a change is com'ng over the scene, and these old ideas are dying out, slowly, however, among ticolder natives. Yesterday a native came to the office of the native agent here in a diffident manner, as if afraid of heini: seen by other natives, and so losing his "mana," and asked for his cheque. Being unknown to the agent, he had in obtain some one to identify him. which was readily done by a local intermeter. He then sot his share of rent 'in two blocks of land, which amounted to £l4O. and he still has rent to draw from two other areas.

! The Croat Western Railway Company | (savs the Daily Mail) bar* decided vo install at Snow Hill station, Birmingi ham. a railway ticket printing machine which, it is contend.•<!. will render almost superfluous the booking-clerk, and will also do away with the somewhat cumbrous system of storina the thousands of different tickets which maybe called for bv the travelling public The machine is lift fiin lone, barely 2ft broad, and -Ift in height. When a ticket to a certain station is required, an indicator. which carries the name of every station upon the svstem arranged in alphabetical order, is touched, the clerk slips a blank into a slot in the printing carnage, a small handle is turned, and a complete printed ticket drops out ready tor u»e. That is all the work required. At the same time the ticket is printed a record of the sale is placed in duplicate upon a continuous strip of paner. together with the fare, and all information required for book-keeping. As a result, when the clerk goes oil duty, nil that he has to do is to total the continuous atrio and count the cash. The 'machine is capable of printing 3000 different tickets. .: ,