LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 300, 13 May 1911, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Tfte recent Harbor Board election coal tke Waitara Harbor Boa;.l £75. A\uniform profit of bouie £2900 a year has been earned by the Wanganui gasworks during the past four years. An Aberdeen man has been done out of his old-age pension by a son wh,o has died abroad leaving him £3OOO. And that Abcrdonian will complain more over the loss of those few shillings a week than he will rejoice over the £3000! The harbormaster at yesterday's meeting of the Waitara Harbor Board reported that during the month seventeen vessels had entered the port, of an aggregate tonnage of 4200 tons, and twenty had cleared outwards, aggregating 4482 tons.

For pouring paraffin over her husband and attempting to set tire to him, Charlotte Olsen, wife of a hoarding-house keeper, was sentenced to ten months' imprisonment at Cardiff Assizes. The husband stated that his wife had tried to kill him on several occasions. Moriah Church of Utiea has installed a telephone system for the benefit of members of the church who may be afflicted with deafness. Six telephones have been placed in various parts of the auditorium, the transmitter being located on the pulpit directly in front of the speaker. Unpacking a bale of newspaper yesterday, a News employee came acrosa the following note:—"Dear friend,—lf you wish to have a good butter-man and a finisher, please answer soon.—From a friend, Ernest Secours. 33 Wright street, Hull, Canada." Here's a good chance for our dairy factories. The members of the local borough council paid a visit of inspection to the waterworks, etc., on Thursday. Returning in a brake at dusk, the party was accosted by a couple of youngsters, who cried out, "Did you win the match?" The Mayor and councillors were mistaken for a team of junior footballers! A Napier telegram yesterday stated that the report of the Monowai's narrow escape, which was telegraphed to us on Thursday night, of going ashore on the trip from Uisborne to Napier, is unfounded. The weather was very thick when she entered the bay. and a course was steered for the roadstead anchorage, a practice always followed in heavy weather, instead of making for the breakwater harbor.

A new anaesthetic is being used in America which paralyses all feeling and yet keeps the patient conscious. A girl of sixteen was recently operated upon for the removal of the appendix. She lay smiling while the doctor and his assistants worked, exchanged remarks with the nurses, and suddenly began to sing, liy the time she had finished the song, the doctors had completed their work, and, still smiling, she was wheeled back to her cot.

An exciting and unusual incident occurred during the Hunt Club meet at Urenui on Thursday. One of the hares, being hard pushed, jumped over a cliff on to a ledge about 40 feet below, and was promptly followed by five ol the hounds. The chase continued along the ledge for about 200 yards, when the hare, in attempting a double, fell into the sea and was drowned. In order to bring the hounds safely back to terra flrma a block and tackle had to be procured.

A strange sight was witnessed at the Mount Moriah Hospital, Xew York, when 200 penniless men attended the institution in response to an advertise-' met offering £5 for a quart of human blood. A fine strapping sailor was selected as the one most physically fit for the bleeding process to which" the doctors desired to subject him, and for about half an hour blood llowed from his arteries to the veins of the woman who was dying of internal hemorrhage. The patient revived wonderfully, and is reported to be in a fair way' towards recovery.

Several experimental stations in Canada and the United States of America have experimented with pumpkins, and found them to be very good for dairy cows. Mr. Hills, of the Vermount Experimental Station, found that 2% tons of pumpkins, including seed, were equal to one ton of corn silage for dairy cows. Mr. French, of the Oregon Experimental Station, found that 200 pound pigs, when daily consuming 201b of cooked common yellow pumpkins in a small allowance of wheat shorts, gained l'/ a ll>. The United States Dispensatory states that pumpkin seed is a vermifuge with no reference to any other property; the -oeds contain much nutriment and should not be wasted.

The Rov. J. W. Burton will conduct both services in the Whiteley Memorial Church to-morrow. The morning subject will be, "The Mountain and the Pin in," and in the evening Mr. Burton will deal with the f/iiestion of "The World's Peace Propo-;»K" which is creating such interest in the Empire at the present time—Advt.

A meeting of the Equitable Building Society was held in the Town Hall last night. Mr. S. W. Shaw presided. Two appropriations of £l5O Lath were disposed of by tender, and realised £25 each. Two appropriations of £l5O were also balloted for. Air. P. G. MeEwen drew the winning marble, and us he held two shares, secured both appropriations. The Xapicr census enumerator declares that iu Napier there exist hovels so unfit to accommodate human beings that the persons employed to distribute census jiapers at first'omitted te leave papers there, not regarding them a.s likely to be inhabited. He instanced one place as a sort of two-roomed hovel without a chimney, and built of odds and ends, that is rented to a family of five or six persons, and stands in a back yard. The census man expresses bis willingness to point out where these hovels are. Under the auspices of the Boston Chamber of Commerce, the first party of American business men ever to make a tour of Kin-ope for the purpose of studying business and economic conditions will sail from Boston about June 15 for a Tildays' trip through Kngland, France, Germany, Belgium, Austria-Hungary, and Switzerland. The party of a hundred will include not only many leading business men, but also delegates from the municipal governments of New York,' Philadelphia, Pittsburg, Baltimore.Cleveland, Detroit, and other cities. According to a bulletin recently issued by the Pennsylvania Railway Company trespassing on the company's property has caused the death of 79!)ti peopleapproximately two a day—since January 1, 11)00. In the same time 7838 people have been injured as a result of trespassing. The maximum number killed in any one year was in 1007, when 01 ti trespassers lost their lives in this way. Through the efforts of the railroad's officers and employees the number of trespassers killed in 1008 was reduced to 743. In 1000 the number killed was reduced to 033, and in 1010 there were 585 deaths from trespassing. "1 want to find a beekeeper who suffers from rheumatism," said a Palmerston chemist to a' Standard reporter. "I haven't found him yet. I have asked two or three beekeepers. Xo, they have not. had One had it formerly, but it was before he went into the beekeeping industry. Since he has been among the bees, all symptoms of rheumatism have disappeared, f am beginning to think that there is a latent virtue in bee-keeping as a preventive of rheumatism that few people realise. They nearly all get a few stings now and again, and between the stings and working among the bees, rheumatism disappears. That's my present opinion, at anv rate."

A well attended meeting of the Taranaki Britannia Cycle Road Race Committee was held last night. The canvassing committee reported that they were meeting with very encouraging assistance from local business people, and additional trophies were reported from the cycle trade, making prizes to the Value 7 of £l5O already in hand. It was decided to make arrangements for holding a concert in aid of the fundi* at an early date, and a strong sub-com-mittee was appointed, to carry it through. Messrs. T. Buxton, W. Roberts, J. Bennett, and H. Brookes were added to the general committee. A number of preliminary details was arranged and the programme will be finaly drafted next Friday night, when the canvass has been completed. j There were about sixty present at the Frankley road gymnasium on Thursday night, when the first of a scries of euchre parties was held in aid of the' school funds. Messrs. Bendall, Tippins and Cole were in charge, and had made complete arrangements. Miss Coy and Mrs. P. Langman tied and had to playoff to decide the winner of the ladkif' prize, and Miss Coy won. Mrs. Langman taking second prize. Messrs. J. Hall, M. Norris and Lander had to play off to decided the winners of the men')! prizes, the result giving first prize to Mr. Hall and second to Mr. Norris. After supper, two or three hours we're spent in dancing to music provided by Miss Crozier. Mr. Tippins officiated as M.C. Extras were played by Mrs. Crozier. During intervals between the dances, Mr. Lovell rendered two songs, which were much appreciated.

A Crown lands tenant was called on by the Auckland Land Board to show cause why his lease should not be forfeited because of insufficient improvements. The ranger had reported that the property was a harbor for rabbits. The Board received a reply from the tenant who slated, among other things, that he mid his dos; "had chased rabbits up till two ami sometimes three o'clock in the morning for a fortnight." As a result, there were fewer rabbits on his nlace than on the adjoining properties. He offered to show two unbribeable witnesses, his own untouched vegetable-gar-den and an adjacent field of turnips. Regarding improvements, he stated that the wire was stolen from his fences as fast as hp put it on. He added that the district held a flourishing and influential "er'minal society."

Investigations recently made show that a considerable portion of the inhabitants in the centre of the city of Auckland are living in filthy and insanitary tenements; that surface drainage runs from one point to the other from house to house; that the offensive night pan system still exists in the middle of congested areas; that, as many as fourteen people have been found living in one small and insanitary habitation: and many of the backyards are so small and offensive that the children are driven into the streets; that there are places where several houses take their water from the same tap. and jointly use the same washhouses and broken-down conveniences. But these things are facts. The Health Department is trying to deal with the problem, but they are faced with the poser that many of these places are owned by influential people, including local body representatives, editors of influential newspapers, and pillars of the local churches. The press is dumb, and the politicians are afraid to say a word lest "the reputation of Auckland might be injured." Meantime the place is a menace to the health of the community.— Petone Chronicle.

The lonic, which. leaves Hobart for Wellington this morning, brings 358 passengers, says a Press cable. At Hobart 316 passengers landed. Mr. Harry Gibson, of Hawera, who has been on a tour round the eastern and northern parts of the Island, saw a good deal of the country in the north, and returns convinced that Tarnnaki land i» still comparatively cheap. "L'p there," he says, "you take out a little less than, you put in."—Star. At a meeting of the Waimate West County Council, the following motion was carried:—'-That this Council believes that something must be done to relieve the roads of the present lieavy traffic, and is quite willing to co-operate with any local bodies interested in trying to get a tramway or light railway to Ha. wera." The Park Tennis Club is fortunate in the fact that the caretaker during the recent spell of fine weather completed the top-dressing and rc-gowing of the, tennis and croquet lawns, and these should be in splendid order for next year's play, benefiting greatly from the recent very capable attention. A meeting (if members will he held in the coming week to consider some matters of mi porta nee.

The president of the Auckland Master Butchers' Association told a reporter that he expected to see higher prices realised in both beef and mutton than had been seen in Auckland for many years past. The reason was that a great majority of growers were giving up the raising.of cattle and sheep, and were turning their attention to dairying. hum was especially true of the Auckland province, but the same might be said of other parts of the Dominion. The dry summer had resulted in a great scarcity of winter feed, including turnips, and as a result there was very little fat stock to he had. The population of the province was increasing very rapidly, and the production of beef was not nearly keeping pace with it. A petition has been filed by Thomas .McPhillips and others against the elecr tion of Mr. Hughes as member for the Xew Plymouth Harbor Board, representing the Waimate West division. We understand that the grounds of the petition are thnt the electors' roll used at the election was composed of the electors' roll for the Manaia town district, and of the electors' roll for Waimate West County; that up till ant during the day of the election electors were without due authority added to the rolls, and such electors were wrongfully permitted !jy the returning officer to vote; that mah'y*w-the electors of the Manaia town district-who voted were not county electors of the Waimate West County. The petitioners allege that the only roll that should have been used was the electors' roll for the county of Waimate West, composed only of county electors, and ineluding therein persons whose names appear on the valuation roll of the Manaia town district in respect of rateable property in the town district; thnt only county electors as defined should have voted, whereas many ineligible persons were permitted to vote. It is prayed thnt the election may be declared void. The petition will be heard by Mr. Kenrick, S.M., at Manaia on' Saturday, the 20th inst.—Star.