LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 223, 19 March 1912, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Two quarter-acre sections in Manunui township, on the Main Trunk line, were sold the other day at £IOO each. A start is to be made immediately with the erection of the concrete culvert «ver the Mangaotuku stream in Morley street. The banks and Government offices observed yesterday as a holiday in honor of St. Patrick's Day. The flag at the post office was also flown. An Opunake draper (says the Times) imported a stock of tartan ties. These were disposed of to Maoris, who enquired specially for Maclenzie and Maclegor clan tartan ties. An abutment in concrete has boeii built on the lee-side of the breakwater, 70ft from the foot, and the stand erected thereon to carry the lantern for a light, which may now be installed at once if required. The great advantage of wireless telegraphy, even in New Zealand, may be judged from the fact that quite a number of immigrants on board the Turakina were engaged-before the boat arrived in Wellington last week, per that medium. Advantage has been taken of the postponement of the function by the Overdale Garden Party committee to further add to the many attractions already provided, so that visitors attending "Overdale" on Thursday afternotm may look forward to a very enjoyable outing. The drainage of the Piako swamp is now being effected very rapidly. The dismal lands that one might have seen four years ago along the railway line between Te Aroha and the Thames, have given place to rankly-covered grass lands, where dairying is making good progress. Polling takes place to-day in connection with the proposal to merge a portion /of the Hurworth Biding in the New Plymouth borough. The following are the polling booths: St. Aubyn Town Board's offices, Brougham street; Frankleigh Park Sunday School; Gordge's store, Vogeltown, and the Westown Hall. In giving publicity to an agitation in ■ favor of having a bridle track metalled, the Taumarunui Press mentions that the cost of "packing" a bag of flour from Waimiha to Tangitu, a distance of eight miles,, is twelve shillings. The Government is being asked for assistance, so that the settlers may' have their provisions carted in at reasonable rates. Dargaville (says the North Auckland Times) is one of the most' progressive towns in the Auckland district, and the- latest undertaking by one of its most enterprising citizens is the building of a splendid skating rink, lighted by electricity, and having a concrete floor costing £BOO, which will ensure silent skating. The whole undertaking will cost £SOOO. Speaking to a Dunedin Star reporter, a Dunedin produce merchant in a big way contradicts the opinion given in the north that potatoes will be scarce in Canterbury, Otago and Southland. He has just travelled over the South Island, and states that, on the contrary, they will be plentiful, especially in North Otago. He points out also, with regard to another statement, that New Zealand potatoes are practically prohibited from entering Australia. | A largely attended meeting of the New Plymouth Employers' Association and those cited in the dispute of the New Plymouth General Laborers' Union was held in the Town Hall last evening. Mr. C. Baker was in the chair. After a little discussion it was resolved that Messrs. Walker, Brooking, Grayling and Clarke he appointed assessors to appear before the Conciliation Council on Thursday, April 11, the date of the hearing of the dispute. During the four-weekly period ended 'Saturday last, 29 vessels, of an aggregate tonnage of 28,178, worked the port of New Plymouth, inwards and outwards. The total imports for the period amounted to 4301 tons of general merchandise, of which 821 tons comprised coal. Some 194 tons of the coal were consigned to the Railway Department and ■627 tons for private purposes. The exports of produce and sundries during the four weeks totalled 1472 tons.

The shortage of domestic servants on the farm in various parts of the Dominion has been very much, felt for some considerable time past, but it appears that the South Canterbury Farmers' Union has set about relieving the stress to some extent in its own particular district. By the Athenic this week a party of 20 domestics will arrive, having been induced to come out By the arrangements of the union in question. The destination of the party is Timaru. Extraordinary scenes occurred during a fire which broke out in the railway goods shed at Wonthaggi, Victoria, recently A well-ltnown business man was attempting to rescue some of his furniture from the flames, when the captain of the fire brigade resented his interference. As a result, the two engaged in a stand-up fight. After a while the police interfered, but this was resented by the brigade, who then turned tie hoae impartially upon the police, firemen and public. The drenched crowd loudly hooted them for this performance. Alfred Thomas Swift, a dairy farmer, •f Mead, near Kerang, pleaded guilty in the Supreme Court at Bendigo (Australia) to a charge of manslaughter. The Crown's case was that on January 4 Swift, his wife and other members of'the family were milking the dairy herd. Swift noticed that his wife was doing very little work, and, finding fault with her, he picked up a piece of wood and flung it at her. This struck her behind the ear, inflicting a deep wound. Though badly hurt, the woman finished the milking, and did not attend to the injury. A few days later she became very ill, and shortly afterwards died. Mr. Luke Murphy addressed the Chief Justice (Sir John Madden) on prisoner's behalf. He said that for some time deceased had behaved in an eccentric manner. She had neglected her household duties, and sometimes for a week at a time did not speak a dozen words. The Chief Justice said it was a shocking case. The change in his wife's temperament should have caused accused to have given her more attention than usual instead of allowing her to go about and not speak to her. Tf one of the man's cows had its eve injured or its horn broken off he would have attended to it at once, but because it was his wife who was concerned ho allowed her to die in misery. He (the Chief Justice) was not at all sure that accused should not have been presented on a charge of murder instead of manslaughter. Swift was sentenced to eight years' imprisonment with hard labor. The man who depends on luck to push bint uphill won't get very far. I

A Whenuakura farmer has a cow that will take a lot of beating. Not only has it given a plentiful supply of milk of the finest quality, but within the last ten months it has also presented him with na less than four exsellent calves.— Press. On behalf of the Wellington Zoological Society, Mr. John Castle cabled to Captain Amundsen at Hobart:'•Would you present the Dominion with a dog which has been to the South Pole, also an autograph certificate, for our zoo and museum, thus providing a last* ing memorial?" Captain Amundsen immediately replied as follows:—"With pleasure." In the past the Taranaki war veterans have foregathered annually in New Plymouth and entertained themselves and their friends. This year it is proposed to vary the procedure by the younger men of the community taking the initiative and entertaining the veterans. The function will take the form of a light dinner, "smoke-oh," and an hour or so at a patriotic picture performance. A meeting to complete arrangements is called for to-morrow evening at the Council Chambers, when it is hoped all who desire to honor our "scrapping" pioneers in this small way will put in an appearance. The fire at Patea on Saturday morning last came very near burning down the whole town (says the Hawera Star). A strong westerly wind was blowing, and at one time it looked as if the Central Hotel and the butcher's shop on the opposite corner, must go. However, the brigade worked its hardest, and considering the rather primitive appliances it has, did excellent work. This fire very clearly demonstrates that Patea is urgently in need of. a good water supply, and the brigade needs, at hast, some improved pumping apparatus. An ordinary steam pump, until a water supply is put in, is an absolute necessity, and if the Patea people are wise, and wish to avoid a disastrous conflagration, they should lose no time in moving in this direction. ' The following is an extract from a letter from a Timaru "boy" residing at La Fayette, Oregon, U.S.A.:—I was in Portland on Saturday a we«k ago and witnessed the phenomenon of a silver thaw. This is caused by a warm rain overhead descending to a cold strata or' current of air next to the ground, so sold that wherever the rain strikes, it freezes into ice. Imagine the whole city encased in crystal ice. Every telegraph wire load-ed with crystal pendants, every window ledge, cornice, every twig on every tree as large as a person's finger swaying and tinkling in a gentle breeze sparkling in the electric light, and you havo Portland in a silver thaw. I never expect to see anything more beautiful. It caused an immense amount of damage to property. Telegraph, telephone, light and power lines all piled in hopeless confusion, ornamental trees and shrubbery laid low; streets blocked by falling trees and poles is what the beautiful fairyland left in its wake. Luckily I had the entire orchard (400 acres) pruned, so" that it was not damaged a particle. Some orchards in the valley suffered, and some are reported to be ruined. The orchard was a beautiful sight when the sun rose on Sunday morning; it could be seen for miles round glistening like millions of diamonds. A New Zealander who was "iured to West Australia, tells a sad story of his bitter experiences and disappointments. He was formerly "in the Government service at Gisborne, and had been a resident of New Zealand for fifteen years. He was so fascinated by the contents of a bulletin issued by the Agricultural Department of West Australia that he threw up his position, incidentally resigning with it his pension, and left this country about eighteen months ago. It was not long before he discovered how misleading were the statements contained in the bulletins by which he had been led astray. It cost him £25 per acre to clear the land he had taken up, after ring-barking had been done four years previously, although the pamphlet stated that similar work could be done for £8 8s <3d per acre. A 1910 pamphlet held out the bait of "160 acres for £40." The next one he saw in Melbourne read differently. It bore on the front page, "160 acres for £9 10s." Hundreds of settlers are giving up their holdings in despair, says this returned and disheartened emigrant. He declares that he had seen more poverty in West Australia in the fifteen months he was there than he ever saw during his fifteen years' residence in New Zealand. He and his family lived on bread and mutton-fat for six weeks, and in the end the Government threatened to take his land from him because he was 10s behind in his payments. This settler had lost all his capital, and was glad to get back to New Zealand with what he stood up in as his sole worldly possessions.