LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 263, 28 March 1911, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Pioneers and veterans will parade in front of the Borough Council Chambers on Thursday for Anniversary celebrations.

It was Mrs. Mowlem, of Palmerston North, and not Mrs. Moodie who rendered the solo "Don't Stop Praying" at the W.C.T.U. mass meeting on Sunday night. The Railway Department has provided a set of buckets for use in case of fire at the New Plymouth railway station. As a means of quelling small outbreaks the buckets will be very useful. Wednesday is the last day on which names can be entered on the electoral rolls. All who are over 21 years ol age are entitled to vote at elections for local bodies, such as borough councils, harbor boards, town boards, etc. In regard to the sinking of the shafts at the Pohokura tunnel leading into Whangamomona, the telegraphic report made it appear that each shaft was 30ft deep. Mr. Jennings, M.P., stated that each shaft was loft deep before reaching the permanent level of the tunnel. At a meeting at Whangamomona it was resolved to obtain the services of a medical practitioner, the settlers being willing to subsidise him. It was mentioned that a salary of £IOOO a year was awaiting any medical man who cared to take up his quarters in the district.

A Maori wedding at Maropin, north of Auckland, last week was delayed owing to a swarm of bees 'having taken possession of the church. Efforts were made to get the bees out, but as the method was slow, and the bride and bridegroom were nervous and desired to get the service over, it was deemed necessary to burn sulphur. The effect was prompt.

Eels continue to prove a nuisance through their interference with the Kumara water supply. Last week (says a local journal) we referred to the number of eels coming through the town mains. No fewer than four connections were blocked with these fish. Last evening two blockages occurred, and in each instance an eel of six pounds was taken out of the water-pipes. The Auckland Harbor Board's pilot boat Kuaka was burned to the water's edge, and sank at her moorings, near the North Head, on .Saturday night. She was about to put off on duty, when flames were noticed emerging from the engine-room. These were evidently caused through the accumulation of benzine vapors. Strenuous efforts were made to save the boat, but without avail.

In their weekly report, dated February ID, Messrs. Weddel and Co state:— The market for Australian and New Zealand butter is depressed owing to the present large arrivals, and future arrivals are being very largely exaggererated among the trade generally. They will be greater than last year in February and March, but last year during these months the arrivals were nothing excessive. Supplies in Victoria are rapidly diminishing, and in New Zealand they are steadfastly falling off. Queensland and New South Wales may continue the present rate of production for another month or so.

A Kaupokonui dairy factory supplier frankly and openly confessed at a meeting held on Saturday that he watered his milk (says the Hawera Star). In giving his reason, he said that he always weighed his milk before sending it to the factory with scales which were absolutely true, but he found that the factory manager credited him with less than his own scales had recorded. To put things straight he always added the following sufficient water to make up the difference between his record and the factory manager's. Asked how he weighed the milk, he said he weighed each bucket as it came from the cow. This method members did not seem to think reliable.

Mr. A. Ha trick writes to the Wanganui Chronicle:— "When my statement was questioned as to the* disabilities under which New Plymouth labors by having her port at the breakwater, I wrote to the largest mercantile firm in New Plymouth (Messrs. Burgess, Fraser and Co.), and enclose you herewith their letter, with permission for publication. It speaks for itself, and contains a warning which the people pf Wanganui should take a special note of at the present juncture." The enclosed letter reads as follows:—"Wc have your letter of 30th inst., and note with interest your remarks on harbor matters. Wu certainly think you should be making a grave mistake in fixing your harbor at the heads. New Plymouth has been heavily liandicapped in this respect, ana it is earnestly to be hoped Wanganuiwill leave the decision of the question in the hands of men who know to their cost the. disadvantage of transhipping and railing from the heads to town. Hoping you will succeed in your efforts." YOU SHOULD BEAR IN MIND That by using the Commercial Eucalyptus Oil, which is now bought up at 6d per lb weight and bottle, and, on account of the large profits, pushed, you are exposing yourself to all the dangers to which the use of turpentine will expose you—irritation of kidneys, intestinal tract and mucous membranes. By insisting on the GENUINE SANDER EUCALYPTI EXTRACT you not only avoid these pitfalls, but you have a stimulating, safe and effective medicament; the result of a special and careful manufacture. Remember: SANDER'S EXTRACT embodies the result of 50' years' experience and of special study, and it does what is promised; it cures and heals without injuring the constitution, as the oils on the market frequently do. Therefore, protect yourself by rejecting other brands.

It is roughly estimated by a Wairarapa sheep farmer of considerable experience that a sheep, when being fattened, will eat about 121b of-turnips daily. A .press message states that the street collections on Saturday in aid of the hospital at Napier and Hastings realised about £540, and a number of boxes have still to come in. The Pukekura Park Board acknowledges receipt of the following donations to the funds of the board:—J. C. Lejrg £2, Miss Evans £l, Mr. Hughes 10s, S. Percy-Smith £l, J. Paton 10s, E. B. Parsons 10s, A. Shuttleworth £l, Miss Shuttleworth £l, Misses Humphries £l, Dr. Leatham £5, Mr. Newman 10$. At the local Magistrate's Court yesterday morning a woman, a first offender, who was arrested on Saturday for drunkenness and bailed out, failed to appear, and was lined ss. John Adams, of Hawera, was similarly charged with a first offence within the past six months. Being a prohibited person, he was fined ss. He will again make his bow before the Magistrate this morning, as within two hours of his discharge yesterday, he was again arrested for drunkenness.

"Wo look upon New Zealand as a young country," remarked an American tourist in Christchurch to a reporter. "Fifty years in the history of a nation is nothing, and you have accomplished so much in so short a time." He remarked on the moderate charges made at the hotels, apd added that everywhere they had been the people had shown a desire to please and had been most hospitable. "Your train service," remarked another of the party, "considering the youth of the country ,is pretty good; the road bed is good, and the trains don't sway so much as they do in some parts of Africa."

The Rev. R. 11. Campbell, a young Methodist minister, told in an entertain- J ing manner to a large gathering in Sydney ] a few days ago some of his experiences in the interior during the first year of his ministry. "My circuit," he said, "was a magnificent one, with a hyphen between it 40 miles long. It is known as Nyma-gee-Canbeligoe. It has been described as a circle with two centres, one at each end —(laughter)—and from these it gets its name. There was no minister nearer than one hundred miles to the east, and none nearer than one hundred miles to the west. I wa3 once asked to marry a couple at one portion of the immense territory outside the zone of my regular work . They had been keeping company for twelve years and had bee.n en-, gaged for eight years, and had waited patiently for some minister of the Gospel to come along and make them man and wife. When I arrived on the morning of the great event the bridegroom-elect met me, and addressed me in these words: 'Say, boss, there arc twenty or thirty kids to be christened before the ceremony, and you will have to do the job, as we have not seen a minister for over two years.' That was a settlement of 300 souls, whieh no minister had visited for two years."

A correspondent of the Melbourne Age, writing hi reply to the statement that Sir Hector Macdonald shot himself rather than face a charge of immoral conduct brought against him in Ceylon, says that the details of this pitiable episode put a totally different face on the matter. Speaking as one with some inner knowledge—gleaned from reliable sources—■'[ can say that Macdonald's rush home to England was to ask to be relieved of his command in Ceylon, and from a position that had become absolutely intolerable by reason of the ostracism and persecution ho was subjected to by members of the select society of the island, who resented the intrusion of this "soldier from the ranks" amongst them. The slanders against Macdonald were merely an afterthought of the "smart set," in their efforts to find a possible excuse for their attitude towards the intruder. It was the sudden shock of seeing the abominable insinuations in print, during his stay in Paris, that, broke up this Bayard, whose life, on the word of those who knew him best, was above reproach. Shortly after his death a considerable sum of money was raised in Scotland in order to get to the bottom of the whole thing. The evidence collected by the commissioners sent out to Ceylon is overwhelmingly in favor of Macdonald's innocence."

A member of the Prussian nobility met with an experience in Taranaki lately that he will probably never forget. Before leaving the Dominion, he was anxious to see the Maori in his natural habitat, and he was accordingly advised to visit Parihaka. He did so, but lie arrived there after the jubilations that marked the Acting-Premier's visit were over, and most of the males were away. He accosted an old wahine, and promptly presented his card (printed in German). "You ti pally humbug. What you want here?" exclaimed the Maori woman, who evidently took him for an insurance agent, book fiend or canvasser. The visitor endeavored to make himself understood, but without much success, and the dogs were let loose. He fled. On the outskirts of the settlement, however, he met a native who took pity on him and invited him to his wliare, where he spent the night. It was a night of nights. Sleep was out of the question. Parihaka is noted for the size and ferocity of its fleas, and they kept up the attack on the pakeha throughout the night, battalion following battalion. As soon as it was daylight a sorry looking individual might have been seen moving surreptitiously through the pah and making for the nearest pakeha farm house enquiring for a quantity of sheep dip and some food.

There was a great gathering of members of the Auckland Tailoressea' Union at Auckland on Friday night last, the occasion being the celebration of the twenty-first anniversary of the union. This took the form of a social, at which about five hundred well-dressed, welleducated, and healthy-looking female workers attended. Amongst those who addressed the gathering were the Hon. Faul, of Duncdin, Mr. T,evs, editor Auckland Star, Mr. Leo. Myers, president Auckland Chamber of Commerce, and Mr. W. T. Jennings, M.P. for Taumarunui. The latter, who formed the union, expressed the great pleasure ho felt when he received an invitation to attend, and told of the difficulties that had to be overcome in those dav.s to grapple with the evils of sweating, which had grown up in the Dominion, and which was revealed by the Sweating Commission set up by the'late Sir Hcnrv Atkinson. Legislation followed the publication of the Commissioners' report and since then there has been the establishment of a permanent national idea in the direction that the proletariat, the great mass of the population —that determining mass that creates the opinion and moral atmosphere of a country—must be protected from the evils of such industrialism that leads to sweating, and' its accompanying degradation. Those who took part Tn the formation of the union twentv-one years ago were struck with the great improvement shown by the hapnv gatherin" that evening, as compared' with those who attended the meetings when the union was formed. Then, starvation i wages, insanitary workrooms, and Ion" hours of labor prevailed. Who will dare say that the alteration has not been in the best interests of the people as a whole? , .; ~ ~ ..'I ■' — ..- -...uii.«.i.a.ii -.lie

To-day is the ififty-first anniversary of the battle of Waireka, fought on March 28, 1800.

Three skulls and a number of bones have been discovered lying in the sand at the North Head, Manukuu. It is supposed they are part of the remains of some of those on board the ill-fated Orpheus, wrecked nearly fifty years ago.

A correspondent writes to the Transvaal Chronicle describing an extraordinary occurrence which took place on a farm in the Waterberg district recently in full daylight. The occupants of a. house on the farm were startled by a hissing, screeching sound, like that of a shell from a gun, made by an object which passed through the roof and into the floor. The missile, which was apparently an aerolite, then exploded with terrific force. Two men were in the room. at the time, one of whom was partly paralysed in the leg. In an adjoining room were two little girls and three kittens. All the kittens were killed, and one of the girls was impressed with a, curious mark on the body. A native in the kitchen was rendered unconscious, > nnd others in the house were dazed. The windows and roof of the room through which the object fell were blown out by the force of the explosion, and the wallg damaged, but no sign of the supposed aerolite could be found, except a little dust.