LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 199, 20 February 1912, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

That systematic cargo pillaging still continues on a very large scale is proved by the experience of one wholesale soft goods firm in Auckland, which estimates its loss at £6O during six weeks'

Flaxnulls are re-opening everywhere throughout Southland, but labor is very difficult to obtain, even at a wage of ten shillings a day. Flax areas in that part of the Dominion are in great request, and from present indications it would appear that a revival in the flax industry has certainly taken place. The lack of the requisite labor required is, however, disconcerting, and will have a tendency to cripple the development which would otherwise have taken place.

Mr. J. Pierpont Morgan and the group ot thirty men associated with him represent or control £4,000,000,000 in the United States. The estimated wealth of the United States is £25,000,000,000, so that Mr. Morgan controls 16 per cent, of the country's total wealth. The annual income enjoyed by Mr. Morgan and his thirty associates from the control of this sum is said to be over £I,OOO 000 and it is understood that the capital of enterprises entirely owned by Mr. Morgan and his partners is £2,400,000,000. A New South Wales settler had a very unpleasant experience while removing a number of bee hives full of bees, which he had purchased. One of the hives was upset through the cart jolting into a rut, and the liberated bees attacked him and the horse. While he was unharnessing the horse, as a means of escape, the cart tipped up, and the remaining hives were thrown out. They also attacked the man and the horse viciously. The former sought refuge from tho bees in a waterhole, but the" horse was so badly itung that it died soon afterwards.

Edison claims to have invented a storage battery for use in submarine boats which will enable crews to live beneath the water for one thousand days. The largest percentage of deaths in sub marines is attributed to the crew breathing exhaled carbonic acid gas, so Edison u.-es a potash solution in the new submarine battery, which, it is stated, will absorb carbonic acid gas, thereby purifying I lie atmosphere. It will be necessary, of course, for submarines to supplv IhriiKolvi's with fresh oxygen, but tli'n may b- accomplished, it is claimed, hy carrying compressed oxygen in lubes.

It is stated that the mixed bathing craze is much in vogue in Wanganui, and that the fascinating pastime is gaining many adherents, both in town and country.

It is estimated by the InspectorGeneral that within the next five yeaTS between £370,000 and £400,000 will be expended on hospital buildings, in the Dominion.

During January 65 vessels with a net tonnage of 251,108 entered the port of Wellington, constituting a record. The next highest total was in January, 1911, when there were 58 vessels, with a net tonnage of 221,472. The Napier Borough Council raised only a little over £IO,OOO for the purpose of building a new theatre. The building is nearly completed, and the cost is estimated at about £ 17,000, leaving a deficit of nearly £7OOO. The Council is to raise a loan without a poll of the ratepayers to pay off the overdraft.

Between Saturday night and yesterday morning the warehouse of Mr. Newton King was burglariously entered by means of a hole excavated underneath the large sliding door which shuts off the railway siding. The discovery was made when the staff arrived at the warehouse yesterday morning. A sack of potatoes was found outside. The hole had been hastily filled in again. Exactly what goods were purloined is not known. The beach at the East. End is likely to be still further popularised by the decision of the Railway Department, intimation of which has just been received by the Borough Council, to make Autere street a stopping-place fori large excursion trains. Instructions have been given by the Department to have the necessary work in connection with the forming of a platform at "The Pines" carried out forthwith. The railway authorities make it clear, in a letter to the council, that Autere street will not be made a regular stopping place for ordinary trains. A charge of having unlawfully detained a postal packet was preferred against Thomas McMillan at the Magistrate's Court yesterday morning, before Mr. A. Crooke, S.M. Accused, who was arrested on warrant at New Plymouth on Sunday by Detective-Sergeant Boddam, was defended by Mr. Quilliam. Senior-Sergeant Haddrell applied for a remand for three weeks, and this was opposed by counsel, who protested against a warrant having been issued when a summons would have sufficed. McMillan had returned voluntarily to New Plymouth, and was there An adjournment till Friday was agreed to, and bail allowed, £SO on his own. recognisance, and in two, sureties of £25 each.

In travelling about the country districts in South Taranaki one is agreeably surprised to see that there are very few noxious weeds on the farms, and especially so is this in the case of ragwort. In conversation with an officer of the Agricultural Department, a Hawera Star reporter learned that one of the reasons for this was that farmers within the last three years were responding monet readily to the requests of the Department to have their lands kept free of objectionable plants. Another reason assigned for the improvement shown was that, acting on the advice of the Departmental officers, farmers had cultivated infested areas with the result that once this experiment had been tried, ragwort especially had not appeared again.

The Sydney Sun states that Mr. Maurice E. McLaughlin, who was one of the competitors for the Davis Cup at Christchurch, was robbed of nearly £7O worth of jewellery while on his way to New Zealand in November last. The Sydney police have received information of the theft from the New Zealand police, to whom the theft was reported. There is likely to be a development in Sydney in connection with the theft; hence the word from the Dominion. Early in November, Mr, McLoughlin, accompanied by the other members of the American lawn tennis team, left Vancouver by the Zealandia. He carried with him two presentation watches, a chain, medals, presented to him from various lawn tennis clubs in the United States, and several rings. On the journey across to Honolulu and Suva the jewellery was in his possession, but when two days out from Auckland McLoughlin awoke one morning to find the valuables stolen. Before going to bed on the previous night he placed the articles in one of his trunks, but the thief on board,must have known the plant and removed the jewellery while McLoughlin slept. The matter was reported to the captain, and enquiries made on the boat, but the thief could not be traced. On the arrival of the Zealandia a Auckland, McLaughlin gave full particulars of the stolen property to the police.

Shortly before nine o'clock last night half the town turned out to the vigorous ringing of the Central Station fire-bell and treked behind the hose and reel as far as Gill street. Here it was discovered that they were on a wild goose chase, the alleged fire consisting of nothing more than the reflection cast in the sky by the flames from the blast furnace of Messrs. Okey and Rollo's foundry. A heavy piece of machinery wae being cast and the chimney of the foundry belched forth a gigantic column of sinoke and light, and it looked for all the world like a powerful searchlight sweeping the water-front. This is not the first time New Plymouth has been set all agog with excitement and expectation of some huge "flare-up" through the same misleading agency. Once the fact that it was only a false alarm was known, the crowd disappeared again into the highways and byways with the eame amazing rapidity with which it had collected, and paterfamilias resumed his hastily thrown aside newspaper, the student applied himself to his studies with renewed energy, shopkeepers returned to their counters, little groups of two and three took up again the tangled skein of conversation, and fully half of those who were responsive to the bell's peal awoke to the unpleasant reality that they had been nearly drenched to the skin with the heavy downpour of rain.

IT IS THE RESOLVE

to obtain the GENUINE EUCALYPTI EXTRACT which will procure for you a remedy of sterling value and will protect you from having your health injured by one of the many crude oils and so-called "Extracts" which are passed off by unscrupulous dealers as "just as good," and which are, according to authentic testimony, very depressing to the heart. The GENUINE SANDER EXTRACT is absolutely non-injurious, and brings instantaneous relief in headaches, fevers, cold 9, bronchial and gastric affections, and its great antiseptic powers protect from future infection. Wounds, ulcers, burns, sprains, are healed without inflammation. SANDER'S EXTRACT is endorsed by the highest Medical Authorities, and is unique in its effect; purity, reliability and safety are its distingushable qualities. Therefore, >*et the GENUINE SANDER EXTRACT; insist, if you have to, but get it, and derive the benefit.

OUR CHECKED BAGGAGE RETURNS LAST MONTH—A RECORD. Yes, an absolute record! Returns bigger than ever, Shows travellers are appreciating the great boon, which eaves them time, trouble, worry, and averts loss. We handle the baggage at both ends—collect it. place it on train or steamer, deliver it at other end immediately. Don't miss a good thing, but check next time you travel.—The N.Z. Express Coy., Ltd.—Advt.

The Riverdale Co-operative Cheese and Butter Factory (Inaha) paid out £5203 7s 2d to their suppliers for the month of January. This was well ahead of the same month last year, and there is every reason to think that this (February) month will also show really good returns. At present the supply is about 14,00011)3. of milk daily more than last year. The largest individual cheques paid during the month of January were £356 7a 7d, £2BB <ss 9d, and £232 3s.—Star.

A meeting of creditors in the estate of Sydney Ashtoti, bankrupt, was held at Waitara yesterday afternoon. Bankrupt was represented by Mr. Grey. The statement submitted by bankrupt showed liabilities to unsecured creditors, £321 14s, and to secured, £212 10s, the estimated value of their security being £3OO, leaving an estimated surplus of £B7 10s. The stock in trade was put down as worth £lO, book debts £7B 10s, surplus from securities £BO 10s, leaving a deficiency of £135. After bankrupt had been "examined on oath, it was resolved that the assets be left in the Official Assignee's hands to deal with.—Mail.

In America railway carriages are now being constructed of steel and concrete and are giving very good results as compared with wooden carriages, which, in time of collision, too often telescope and afterwards catch fire, causing heavy loss of life. The other day in New Jersey State a train jumped the track while running at the rate of 50 miles an hour, and instead of the usual spectacle of wreckage and loss of life, not a. single passenger was even badly shaken up. These steel-concrete cars stood every test perfectly, the rails, yielding first to the enormous pressure, and being twisted apart, while the coaches stood firm. Steel coaches certainly cost more than wooden ones, but think of the additional safety to those who travel.

The February issue of Progress is a yachting number, and is a decided improvement on the last yachting number, excellent as that was. This time there is an original design of a wonderfully handy and commodious little vessel, a 29-foot auxiliary ketch. No pains or thought have been spared to make thh craft as comfortable and seaworthy as possible. There are also two excellent cngmal designs of cruising launches. In connection with resigns already published, there is a description of boats built duruig the past year from designs in Progress, illustrated with photographs. The whole issue is profusely illustrated with beautiful photographs. In addition there are the usual architecture, building, engineering and motoring and arts and crafts sections.

A romantic incident is told of a former Gisborne resident. Twenty-five years ago he fell in love with the daughter of a wealthy Australian squatter, but being in a comparatively subordinate position his suit was not favored by the girl's father, and his proposal was rejected. The gentleman, who was subsequently promoted to a high position of trust and transferred to another district, held a strong regard for the lady, and kept a photograph of her in a prominent place in his bachelor quarters, but his effects being destroyed by fire this was lost. He then wrote to the lady, informing her of the incident of the Are, and asked her if there was still a negative of the photograph in existence would she kindly obtain for him a copy. A reply came back: "The negative is here; come and fetch her." No time was lost in accepting the invitation; the gentleman proceeded immediately to Australia and brought back a bride.

Sir Henry W. Lucy, in the Sydney Morning Herald, says:—"Very little has appeared in print recording, even hinting at, the profound anxiety with which the yisit_ of his Majesty to India is regarded in high official circles at Home. It may be measured by the satisfaction with which the conclusion of the Durbar ceremonies without disaster has been noted. The succession of burning tents was gallantly explained away. Nevertheless, it added to the anxiety of the hour. That one tent occupied by a member of the Royal suite was not alarming. That at brief intervals three should blaze forth was, to say the least, unfortunate. The sensitiveness of feeling in the matter was evidenced when the other day there ran through the city news that the King had been shot. The story was doubtless circulated for Stock Exchange purpqses. The fact that it should for a while have materially influenced prices testifies to the underlying uneasiness. The assassination of Lord Mayo, an exceptionally popular Viceroy, shows the length to which fanaticism may go in India. A more significant example is found in the less dramatic murder last year of Sir W. H. Ourzon-Wyllie, political secretary at the India Office in Whitehall. He was in especial degree a friend of the natives of India, and was recognised as such through long residence in that country. Yet he was ruthlessly shot, not by a condemned criminal, as case of Lord Mayo, but by one of the most dangerous class of natives—the Baboo who comes to this country to receive education, and, returning home, uses its advantages to spread sedition among the illiterate natives. Equally in India and in Downing street the authorities will be hugely relieved when their Majesties arrive home in safety."