LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 41, 28 May 1910, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Saturday last was the anniversary of the proclamation of New Zealand as a colony (1840). An Invercargill firm has on hand present orders for the erection of *4iioii worth of milking .plants. The secretary of the local Poultry Association is receiving numerous enquiries concerning the forthcoming baby show, betokening a very healthy interest and promising well for its success.

In the ballot for Hauraki Plains sections at Thames, three of the niost-sought-after sections, all adjoining, were drawn by three members of one family —father, son and daughter. And every one of them held Xo. 13! The work of removing mourning draping from the t,ovcrnnient KuildiiiL's, other public buildings and private establishments in Wellington was commenced last Monday. It is understood that the material for the various public buildings, together with the la nor. ran into close on £2OO.

In our report of the discussion on the borough estimates on Tuesday evening, Councillor Dockrill was reported to say "the borough engineer had spent on the streets last year £750 over the amount voted, and in the previous year £IOO over the amount voted."' The'dropping of a cypher in the last sum incorrectly stated the position, which, therefore; should have been £IOOO and not £IOO. Autumn tints are not a feature of the New Zealand landscape, and for this reason it is worth while to visit the Recreation Grounds just now. On the hill behind the bathing-shed is one of the large-leaved oaks, 'with its foliage ranging from green to a lovely golden yellow. On the banks on the other side of the .pond are the i newly planted Japanese cherries, whose large regular leaves have changed to brilliant red. A serious loss was experience by .las. J. Niven and Co., Ltd., during the transhipment of a Straker steam road waggon from the Nerehana to the lighter Moa in the Xa.pier roadstead on Monday (says the Herald). A case containing about three-quarters of the waggon parts, the total value of which was about £BOO, by some means slipped from the slings and sank to the bottom. Efforts are being made to recover the case.

At a meeting of the committee of the Good Templars' Fair it was reported that the receipts from all sources would closely approximate £IOO. The doorkeeper reported that a local gentleman had made an anonymous gift to the funds. Votes of thanks were passed to all who had assisted. The committee has about £2O worth of goods in hand, and these will form the nucleus of a future fair or sale of work, probably on the occasion of the laying of the foundation stone.

"This is the first time that many Maoris have seen anything in the way of a comet in the sky," said an educated Southern Maori, when speaking to a Press reporter on Monday. He went on to say that they did not regard Haiiey s comet with any dread, but one of their traditions was that any unusual display in the sky portended some remarkable occurrence. The southern Maoris had, when the comet first made its appearance, believed that it portended the death of some prominent personage, and they were quite satisfied that the death of Kina Edward was a fulfilment of their apprehensions. Mr. W. T. Jennings, M.P., had a satisfactory interview at Auckland yesterday with the Minister for Roads, the Hon. R. McKenzie, regarding the non-expendi-ture of votes in North Taranaki. The Minister has authorised the Kiwi road vote to be put in hand by the District Road Engineer at once, and has also wired the Ohura County in reference to the Waitaanga road, asking if it will undertake the expenditure of the vote; if not, the Minister will have the work done by the Taranaki District Road Engineer. The Minister will probably visit ,the Taumarunui and Kawhia districts . with Mr. Jennings within the next fortI night.

There are two trade secrets, at least, that the world at large may never learn, hut which it is well worth the while of inventors to study. One is the Chinese method of making the bright and beautiful color known as vermilian, or Chinese red; and the other is a Turkish secret—the inlaying of the hardest steel with gold and silver. Among the Chinese and the Turks these two secrets are guarded well. Apprentices, before they are taken for either trade, must swear an iron-clad oath to reveal nothing of what passes in the workshop. These apprentices, furthermore, must belong to families of standing.

As the outcome of correspondence between the Anglican Bishop of Auckland and the recently-installed Mayor of Auckland (Mr. L. J. Bagnall) and in accordance with a custom which'prevails in England and other countries, the Mayor officially attended church on Sunday last. Attired in his. insignia ot office, and accompanied by eleven members of the City Council, the town clerk and the city engineer, Mr. Bagnall went to St. Andrew's Church, of which he is an eider. The service was conducted by the Moderator of the 'Presbyterian Assembly, the Rev. I. Jollv,' M.A., who preached a sermon on the .parable of the Talents.

A story is being told of a New Vork maiden, a typist, who appeared at the office with an encylcopaedic-looking volume labelled "The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire." One evening her employer caught sight of it, and exclaimed: "Well, for pity's sake, don't ten me you are reading this?" The girl broke into a friendly smile. ''Why, this is my cha.perone, which I take with me when I am going home alone on the cars." she said. ''Ever since I've been carrying it I haven't seen a man who would look at me a second time." The young lady added that only the cover outside belonged to Gibbon; the covers were filled with the latest fiction .papers. An extravagantly invented story, of course: but is there not at least one grain of truth in it? The services in Queen-street Church to-morrow will be conducted by the Rev. John Xixon. Horning, at 11—subject, "Grieving the Holy Spirit"; evening, at 7—subject, "A Moral in a Miracle." All seats free—Advt. The Rev, Fathers Hunt and Lynch, of the Redemptorist Order, open a mission in St. Joseph's Church to-morrow. The mission will last for a fortnight. As both missioners are men of wide experience, the congregation can look forward to a course of sermons that will assuredly be helpful and stimulating.—Advt. Let us whisper a hint in your ear. If you have all the clothing and hats and half-hose that you can possibly use, you've a good excuse for not being interested in The Kash. If you haven't—you haven't. And our hint to you is to go there as quickly as you can and get that winter overcoat at* 355. You could also possibly do with some of our men's woollen sox. three pairs for 2s fid. Anyhow, we'll be .pleased to see you even if you don't buy. But you'll find you can't help yourself when you see our values and prices.— THE KASH.—Advt.