LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 329, 16 June 1911, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Messrs. A. Hatrick and Co. started their steam waggon between Waitara and Opunake yesterday. The first load consisted of live tons.

Territorial soldiers are now required ! to desist from shaving the upper lip. The order was passed on by the Staff sergeant-major at Wednesday's battalion parade. This is in conformity with the usage of the British Army, and is merely by way of an insistence on uniformity. The array fashion of wearing a moustache had its genesis in sound medical opinion, nature's clothing of the upper lip being the only real protection for the mouth and the bronchial passages. The smart person immediately asks why women don't grow whiskers —the answer being that nature did not intend women to undertake journeys '"by field and flood" in pursuit of the family breakfast. On the occasion of the recent visit of the Hon. R. McKenzie, Minister for Public Works, to the Stratford electorate, saj's the Dominion, Mr. J. B. Hine. M.P., brought under his notice the great necessity of having a suitable passenger service running on the length of railway from Pohukura to Te Wera at present under the supervision of the Public Works Department. Mr. Hine has now been notified that a passenger c;i :■ has been obtained and a bi-weekly service will be shortly commenced, and probably the first train will run on Saturday next. This will bring railway facilities within a few miles of Whangamomona, where there are at present about 450 workmen, with their wives and families located, and no doubt Mr. Hine's efforts will be greatly appreciated.

At Monday night's meeting' of tlie Borough Council (Jr. Ilartnell made reference to the cost of concrete kerbing, quoting £4 12s fid a chain as the average price in the borough. Mr. C. Skitrop, overseer of the streets staff, has since written to the Press commenting on and contradicting this statement. The matter was brought up at the Borough Council table last night, and the following resolution was passed, on the motion ofiCrs. Clarke and Ilartnell: "That the borough engineer be instructed to draw the attention of .his assistant to the fact that borough officials are not permitted to write to the Press on borough matters, and further that the borough engineer be informed that should any statement be made in the Council' relating to matters in his department which in his opinion are not correct, he is at liberty to put his side of the question to the Council through His Worship the Mayor or any councillor acting as chairman of the Council or committee.

It is just 09 years to-day since the declaration of the Anglo-American war. Thirty-five new dairy factories were opened in New Zealand last season—. nineteen in the North, and sixteen in t the South Island. I

A commencement with the layin<v of the Invercargill tramways will be made about three weeks hence. The service will probably be started in March.

The New Zealand Government is advertising in England for two qualified veterinary surgeons to take up work in New Zealand. The salary offered is £3OO a year. Hawke's Bay is having a very mild winter so far. In consequence, the supply of feed is keeping up well, and have been able to make capital progress with ploughing. Auckland magistrates are discouraging the use of bad language in the streets by the infliction of a uniform line of £5, with alternatives of from one to three months' imprisonment with hard labor.

A little girl named Ashwood was playing near a fire at her parents' residence at Wonthaggi (Victoria) last week,when her flannelette clothing became ignited. She was severely burnt before the flames were extinguished, and died shortly afterwards.

Gis borne must possess quite a number of unregenerates. Three clergy advertised on Saturday last that on the following day they would speak uponi "The Dynamite of the Gospel," "The Vision of a Lost Soul/' and "Is it worth while?" A number of burglaries have occurred in Hawera lately, some half-*-dozen places being entered. On Wednesday night the police arrested a youth named Coleman, who is charged with I committing various burglaries. Coleman | is also charged with the robbery of £ll from Messrs. Dixon and Bates' premises on the occasion of the last Hawera races. The man who sold land (said Mr. Justice Denniston at the Supreme Court in Christchurch, last week) was not aland agent. The land agent was simply a person who endeavoured to persuade men to buy and sell land. Later on His Honor said that most land agents appeared to him to be going about like roaring lions, seeking whose . property they might secure. An Englishwoman who spent three years in Japan as governess in a wealthy family tells of a new cure for naughtiness. Whenever the children grew sulky and unamenable to discipline for any length of time, they were taken away, j reappearing the next day, quite serene i and ready to learn. At first she was puzzled by the quick improvement, but on inquiry found that it had been | brought ftbout by massage. It appears that in Japan all naughtiness is supposed to arise from a disordered stomach, and the cure is, not a whipping or a scolding, but massage of the diia ordered part. One of the competitors at Inst, night's boxing touniamnet is nothing if not an enthusiast. After putting in a day's work on the farm he cycled thirty miles so as to fulfil his engagement, won his bout, but got beaten in the final, and at the conclusion of the contest cycled back so as to lie ready for the milking in the morning. His appearance on the stage, with its slight suggestion of tne "way-backs,coupled with the game fights he put up, joined him much popularity with the audience, and this would have been increased had it been known that his attendance involved a cycle trip of sixty miles. The second of a series of social evenings organised by the young folk of Whiteley Church was held last evening at the social hall. The function was well attended, and a merry and entertaining evening was spent in music, song, games, recitations, etc. A number of competitions created no end of fun, prizes being awarded to tile lucky winners. Mr. J. Gibson presided, and kept tilings going merrily. During the evening supper, which was greatly appreciated, was handed round. The following programme was submitted:—Pianoforte solo, Miss Smith; duet, Misses Cannel and Keys; duet, Misses Gilbert; recitation, Mr. Rainford; song, Miss Collis; recitation, Miss Oliver, recitation, Mr. Rainford; pianoforte solo, Miss Perry. The Berlin police have begun a vigorous purity crusade, and owners of house property in the city and suburbs are in ] despair at the approaching fate of the' plaster figures of ancient gods and goddesses with whioh they plentifully adorn their .buildings. The district court of) Potsdam has just decided that the police may order any undraped figure on a house to be removed immediately. Of-, fence had been taken, it seems, at a reproduction of the Venus dc Milo which adorned a n«w house not far from the Kaiser's. Palace. The police ordered its removal, and on the appeal of the opners to the courts won their case, "Many persons in the street," alleged the poliee, "ihave complained ( that the Venus was undraped. If the owner will drape it forthwith it may remain," As nearly every new house in Berlin has more than one undraped statue on its facade, this judgment may have far-reaching consequences.

The 70-year-oid claims of the American whaler Webster in respect of land said to have been purchased from the Maoris while they were an independent people, have now been definitely raised to the plane of an international question (says a London correspondent, writing on April 28). While in New York the Attorney-General (Dr. Findlav) met representatives of the Britisli Embassy, and went fully into the matter. The questions of provision fsr taking evidence and the place and time of trial were fully discussed. The tribunal will consist of three persons—one chosen by each of the two nations concerned (Great Britain and America) and an umpire, who shall be chosen from a special list by the two persons so appointed bv the respective nations. The tribunal will hear not only the Webster case, but several others of a similar nature which have arisen in Canada and Newfoundland, and in which, of course, Xew Zealand is not at all interested. A number of important aspects of the Webster case have been referred to the Colonial Office, and arc now being considered. Dr. Findlay will make arrangements to have the Te Akau appeal case pushed on before the Privy Council as soon as possible.

MILITARY OVERCOATS. AT!RIVAL OP A SECOND SHIPMENT. The Melbourne Clothing Company, Ltd., has much pleasure in announcing the arrival of a second consignment of clean, specially selected, British Army riding coats, with good long capes, a's issued to the Royal Field Artillery. These famous coats are the kind known as "first grade" and are the very best of their kind supplied by the Bri-' tisli Government to its forces both at home and abroad. These coats are doubtedly the ideal coats for farmtrtS' and others exposed to cold and rain. We have only 100 coats in this shipment, and they are sure to be "birds of passage" in our three Tnmnak'i stores. We ! have, too, on the best authority that the sale of these coats bv the army stores is likely soon to be stopped, so wo would advise intending buyers to make early application to either of the Melbourne's three stores—New Plymouth, Stratford, and Eltham. Prices as usual—the lowest in Taranaki.

During bankruptcy proceedings in the estate of Edwin J. King, musician and music-seller, in Wellington on Thursday, the bankrupt said that when the new Governor arrived he had expected to get some work from him, hut Lord Islington : had seen lit to engage Government officials to supply string bands. Such competition was unfair, and something should be done to prevent a continuance of the practice, Mr. S. Cimino, who was present as a creditor, agreed with the bankrupt. Government employees should not be permitted to compote with outside people who made a living by their music, it was a great shame that such a state of things existed. Ho hail played with bankrupt on many occasions, and knew of the competition referred to. An amazing economy in the weight am! bulk of fuel is promised by the uso of fuel tablets. The great coal bunkers of the ocean liners of to-day, it is promised, will be replaced by a few packing boxes of the new fuel. Experiments are now being carried on by the French Ministry of war to determine its efficiency. The tabloid is an essence of gasolene distilled on a ratio of .096 of its original volume. It is reduced to a pasty consistency, which may be cut into tablets. The new fuel is called "competroline," and is the discovery of a French officer, who is an expert chemist. Tt is non-combustile and non-explosive, For practical use it is diluted with a liquid, the formula of which is carefully guarded. Scientists have been at work on the problem of concentrating gasolene, alcohol and petroleum for many years, and the tablet form of fuel is said to solve the problem. The defence of the Bluff was referred to by Major-General Godley in a speech in the South. He said he quite realised the importance of the harbor, and would make representations to the Government to have the port properly defended 1 should it be necessary. He ".wild like to say at once, however, that to his mind the best form of defence was mobile defence, which he considered much better than fixed sites. They might select sites for guns and spend thousands of pounds in the purchase of guns. There would be a lengthy delay before the guns came to hand, and by the time they were finally installed they would probably be rather obsolescent His idea was that the proper form of defence for any place was a good mobile defence —a strong body of infantry, who could shoot well, move quickly, and so be able to meet the enemy at whatever place they might be endeavoring to land. The fact that the Encounter and other warships come up Bluff Harlior did not necessarily mean that an enemy's fleet would risk entering unknown and perhaps dangerous channels,