LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 115, 4 November 1911, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

i'The Taranaki Garrison Band will play' a programme of -music on the Esplanade to-morrow afternoon, commencing at 31 o'clock. J

The electoral rolls just issued may be seen at any of the post offices. As the supplementary rolls are now being compiled electors should examine the rolls and have their names added if missed. Enrolment forms may be obtained at any post office. , From time immemorial it lias been customary on the sth of November for the parents and children to congregate at Mr. W. Skinner's property to celebrate Guy iFawke's night. Mr. Keith, having leased the property, invites all old friends to participate in the fun on Monday night. Last month rail fell on 15 days, and the total rainfall was 3.7 in. In October, 1910, rain fell on 18 days, and the total fall was 5.72 in., It was wither colder this year than last, the mean temperature being 58.8 degrees and «0.45 for the respective Octobers. No frosts were recorded in either months.

The cost of the projected railway line from Kalgoorlie (West Australia) to Port Augusta (South Australia), which has passed the Federal House of Representatives, is estimated at £0,000,000, and the increment of value that will be given to the land through which it passes at £15,000,000. ' Ail amendments to provide for the cost by la.nd grants or otherwise were rejected. "Civis" writes to the Editor:—"lf the, borough inspector catches me riding at night without a light, I'm in for trouble. But suppose I see the inspector cycling like mad at about seven o'clock at night without a glimmer of a light, what then? I had this pleasure the other night, and was rather amused when another man, also on an unJighted cycle, was allowed to pedal past without interference." Two appropriations of £l5O each in the No. 2 group of 'the' Equitalble Building Society were ballotted lor last night. Miss A. E. Curline drew the lucky marble and as she held two shares took both appropriations. Two appropriations in this group were also to be disposed of by tender, but as they were no tenders, they were ballotted "for, the winner this time being Mrs. J. C. McKellar, who also took both appropriations. Two approtions ill No. 2 group realised £55 by tender.

In the course of a lecture at Roslyn on ''Town Plnnning," a visitor to New Zealand had something to say on the custom of fencing gardens. It seemed a relic of past days, he said, that every man had to shut himself up from his neighbors with a tremendous hedge or fence. In America they could do without that. Householders provided in their gardens for everyone who walked along the street, and the effect was very much finer. When a New Zealander had enquired in Chicago if the flowers were not stolen, a policeman replied that ho did not see what people would do' with "an ordinary old plant." Evidently they did not appreciate flowers as much as we do here.

The pathetic story of an American wife's four thousand-mile quest for a lost husband, only to find him insane in a London asylum, was made public in London last month. Early this year the husband, who was the manager of an important watch factory in Atlanta, U.S.A., was advised by his doctor to go on a voyage to England, and he left with the intention of paying a visit to a sister who lives in Yorkshire. Some time passed, and as he did not arrive the sister communicated with the wife, who, becoming alarmed for his safety, shortly afterwards started on her long journey in search of him. In the, meantime the husband, who had landed in Liverpool, found himself in London during the early part of May. He was arrested one night on a charge of drunkenness and was sent to prison. At Pentonville, however, the doctor found that his illness was not due to drink, but to mental paralysis. He was transferred to the Polan-street Workhouse, W., on May 20, and six days later, having been certified as insane, he was removed to Cane Hill Asylum. When his wife arrived in England and could find no trace of him, together with a photograph, in several newspapers, and through this means he was traced to Cane Hill Asylum. After certain legal formalities had been gone through, the wife had tile nad privilege on September 1 of removing him from the asylum to take him home to America.

The natives of northern Rhodesia include the. Mowemba tribe, who present some curious characteristics. They occupy their territory by right of' conquest, having driven out tiie aboriginal inhabitants, and ethnologists have been puzzled to account for the good mental and physical qualities that the Mowembas show. Dr. Funbar-Brvmton, who is wall-known as a hunter of big game, told a representative of the Daily Chronicle that, according to local tradition, the forefathers of the tribe came from the north, across Lake Tanganyika, led by two white men. who afterwards went away in a. eanoe. The doctor's own theory is that the Mowembas came of Egyptian stock, lie has frequently observed the old Egyptian typo among the men. and the tribal treasures include ivory and wooden images, immensely old, and handed down from generation to generation, which bear a close resemblance to the figure of Rameses and to others of the Egyptian gods. The men are often over six feet in height and some of the women are very pretty, with straight noses and small iips and ears. The Mowembas aro highly intelligent, and they are very proud of a history which is preserved by oral records. They are governed by a Royal House, but the succession is through the female line. When a chief dies, bis successor is the son of his most important sister. The tribesmen believe that the purity of the succession is safeguarded by this device. Dr. Punbar-Bruntou mentioned that the tribal rules are very severe and the punishment absolutely fiendish. Women who are suspected of light conduct have their noses, ears and lips cut off, and the late chief used to pin men and women lo the ground with stakes and then light bonfires beside them. It is interesting to learn that in the Mowemba country (ho man of means may buy five wives for lifteen shillings.

It is .staled that the whole of the available motor cars in the Wairarapa have been engaged by the Licensed Victuallers of Wellington for polling day.

The YVoodville Examiner says:—-Mr. D. M. Home, of Dallance, finished docking last week, and discovered he had 120 per cent, of lambs. This is as good, as we have heard this season. The strawberries that have come forward in Auckland so far this season havo been of poor quality, as the weather has but little favored the growth of tine berries, Boxes for the berries have been ordered to the number of about 400,000, and nearly all of ihem are in hand. As an indication of the effect of the oflices' strike on the shipping trade of Wangamii, the Customs returns for the month of October show a decrease of £151)0 as compared with the same, period last ye.ar. The figures were £4521 and £6lll respectively. , "Where is the police" writes:—"Don't J you think it is about time the. loitering I that takes, place in front of the Criterion Hotel should he put a stop to? You can hardly go past there of an afternoon or evening without running the gauntlet of a crowd of loiterers, whose remarks are are! not always in the best of taste. In any other town, the police would soon put ti stop to this practise."

At the Clifton County Council meeting yesterday, it was resolved to draw the attention of the Agricultural Department to the spread of noxious weeds, which is a growing evil, and to urge that vigorous steps should be taken to check the nuisance before seeding season arrives. During the discussion mention was made of the fact that action was usually taken when the weeds were in full seed. A novel wager was decided at Wodonga (Victoria) a few days ago. {Mr. George Pardon, who has a reputation as a pedestrian, backed himself for £2O tfo pull a vehicle containing a man weighing not less than 12 stone from Wodonga I to Wangaratta, a distance of 45 miles, ifr less than 15 hours. He set out on his journey, strapped in the shafts of a spider, at 10 minutes past 5 a.m., Mr. J, C. Carkeek being seated in the vehicle. | Sir. Pardon pulled the spider to Springhurst in !)'/■> hours, so that he had a l /, hours to cover the remainder of the journey, a distance of 14 miles. Mr. Pardon s'ays he regarded the wager as practically won at this stage, but he was met by a ''couple• of hundred boys from Wangaratta, who hung on to" the vehicle and interfered with his progress. He was three minutes and a-half late in reaching the Wangaratta post office, and accordingly lost the wager.

In yesterday's issue of the. Hawera Star, Mr. C. A. Wilkinson controverts; a statement made that goods for South) Taranaki were costing double the amount of freight if sent via New Plymouth as against Patea, and gives figures showing that in one class there is a, decided saving effected by using the port of New Plymouth by even Hawera importers. Mr. Wilkinson goes on to say: "I would briefly refer to the shipping position of Patea. At the present tame there is only one boat (the Aorere) running spasmodically. I have, however, nothing against the port of Patea. It has .besn a, most useful and serviceable .port for South Taranaki for many years past, and 1 hope it will continue to give the same service in the future. The future of Taranaki, however, demands a better and more up-to-date port than Patea. can possibly hope to become, one that will serve the interests of the whole district by affording facilities for j steamers to bring in in one cargo, at ' hast from ten to, fifteen times as much' as any boat could take into Patea. At present practically the \Vhole of the pro-, duce from the South Island imported into Hawera (Class E) is sent through the port of New Plymouth, and the day will come when direct boats will unload at New Plymouth, and thus save sea freight now paid on imports between the larger centres and the Taranaki ports. That, of course, cannot be expected at Patea. Let both ports flourish i is my wish."