LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 256, 29 April 1912, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

It is reported that SO acres of orchard, m full bearing, at Stoke, in the Nelson district, has been sold for £BOOO. Masterton claims to have cheaper gas than any other town in the Dominion in a similar position. The works are the property of the borough. investigation of the accounts of the Lketuhuna County Council shows a deficiency over a period of five years amounting to £917 7s 2d. The freezing works at Whangarei have commenced operations. The first Home boat is duo next month, when :i c:ir"o of 000 carcases of beef will be shipped." It is hoped to keep the works running throughout the year. A horse attached to a gig, in which was Mrs. Collins, of Featherstone, took fright at a motor car on the Waioliine bridge, near Grevtown, and after upsetting the vehicle and breaking the shafts, bolted into 'Carterton and dropped dead in the street. The lady was severely shaken and briused. A Hindoo settler at Booval, Queensland, irrigated an acre of onions from a small creek, and gathered a eaop of nine tons, worth at the rate of £lO per ton. Later on he took £l2O worth of tomatoes off an aere. A white neighbor who did not bother to water his tomatoes only gathered £3 off an acre.

The annual meeting of the New Plymouth Card Clubs' Association will be held in the Central Fire Brigade Station on Thursday next. In furtherance of its desire to better the local railway train service, the council of the Taranaki Chamber of Commerce has decided to ask the Minister of Railways to visit New Plymouth at a convenient date. The export of butter from the Auckland province is now practically over for the season, as owing to the lower prices on the London market most of the dairy factories are now storing butter for local requirement in the winter. A recent Hawke's Bay visitor to Australia states that the Education Department in Victoria is making a new departure in illustrating lessons by means of moving pictures, which is found to possess many advantages over the ordinary oral methods. In the Queenstown district a travellermet a man and wife who walked four miles to see his car, never having seen one before. He found the people had a decided aversion to motor cars. This is explained by the narrowness of the roads in a hilly country. A benefit night lias been arranged at the Empire Picture Theatre for next Tuesday in order to help to provide funds for uniforms for the local Boy Scouts, and to .defray part -of the cost of sending members of the corps to Wellington on the occasion of the Baden-Powell visit. A new church attraction has been instituted in the Magdalen Islands. This is a group in the Gulf of St. Lawrence so isolated as to be inaccessible during the winter months 011 account of ice. The population is about four thousand, and the Covernment of Canada has established a wireless news service for the benefit of the people, sending a thousand words every Saturday night, which is read by the Protestant and Catholic clergymen at their Sunday morning services. The German paper Vorwaerts reports a remarkable case before a Berlin court, in which an hotel-keeper was sentenced to a years hard labor for bribing a workman to take his place in prison. The hotel-keeper had been sentenced to three weeks' imprisonment for a small offence, and, as is usual, was allowed time to arrange his a,flairs before going to prison. He used the interval to°pei° suade a workman to serve his sentence for him. The trick was successfully carried out, and was only discovered afterwards by the garrulity of the pretended convict. The workman received the same punishment as his employer, _ When (ieneral Sir lan Hamilton was | inspecting the fmperial forces in South Africa last year he met at Harrismith Mi. J. 11. .T. Wessels, a TJoer, who when the general was wounded at Majuba, lent him a bandana handkerchief with which to stem the flow of blood. The general promised to send tiie handkerchief to Mr. 'Wessels on his return home, but recently lie sent to the Mayor of Harrismith for Mr. Wessels a new liandkei chief in an inscribed silver casket, 1 with a letter stating that although the coat and kilt he wore at Majuba were still preserved, the handkerchief, harinf been bloodstained, had rotted away to nothing. Tidy fortunes are being piled up by Australia's grain merchants this season, ■so much so that the visit of Mr. Patten, bi other of the. American wiio cornered the wheat market in the States, may not be mciely for pleasure, as is given out (sajs a Melbourne paper). Anyway, it ' is known that the game of gambling in ■futures' is now firmly established in Australia, some smart American dealers having set the ball rolling in Sydney One Melbourne merchant has picked up the points of the sport with ready acumen, and is reported to be drawiii" close. 011 a thousand pounds a month irotn a Sydney •'future" speculator, who is paving him a handsome premium for 1 gram which 110 picked up cheaply in Adelaide for cash.

| The authorities of St. Patrick's College, Wellington, have purchased from Mr. Charles Hawkins, 'one hundred acres at Terrace End, Pahnerston North, including the fork between the junction | of the Main Trunk line and Hawke's Bay railway, for a site for St. Patrick's College, which w to be removed from Wellington within the next four years, oil the sale 'of the valuable site now occupied, which is too small for expansion. Thirty acres of the new purchase are within the borough of Palmerston, and seventy just outside it. The site ia situated on high land admirably adapted for the purposes of large playing grounds, and a farm institution, it is understood, will be added, including an agricultural, dairying, and fruit growing college. The new institution will be one of the largest in the Dominion. Dogs that go to church, and owners who refuse to admit ownership of their canines when tlie latter are within the lanctuary, received short shrift at the hands of the Rev. Mr. Colvile in St* Mary's Church last evening. Just prior to commencing his sermon, he remarked that he had an unusual announcement to make, which might perhaps cause some to smile. All knew, he went on to say, that the dog was a very lovable animal—outside of church. His presence in God's house, however, did not make for reverence. Proceeding, Mr. Colvile exhorted his congregation to do their best to see that their dogs did not come to church. If they did enter the building, then he wished owners to kindly accept the responsibility of .their charges and forthwith proceed to conduct them outside. "Do not," he enjoined on those present, 'leave it to somebody else." A rather good yarn, which is said to have the merit of being true, comes from a southern district. On a certain farm there is a certain cow which has always refused to allow a woman to milk it. (But in this "catchy" weather time is precious, and a day or so ago the man who owns and has always milked the cow in question, was out in the fields getting in his crops. His wife, a resourceful woman and a helpmate in the best sense of the word, decided that she would milk the cows that night, including the one which showed such an aversion to women. But it was no good. The cow would not allow the woman to get near her. It suddenly dawned on the woman that she might work a little trick on the cow, and going to the house she dressed up in one of her husband's suits, and strolling back to the stock yard, with all the dignity of "a lord of creation," she had not the slightest difficulty in approaching and milking the beast, which was quite content when it thought it was being milked by a man.

The hail that fell yesterday hud a disastrous eeil'ct on many Xew Plymouth flower gardens, a big proportion of the plants, in many instances, being cut to pieces. It is going to come to this: when a man puts a cow in a saleyard lie will have to produce her record. It may not come for some years, but it will come ultimately."—Mr. Graham, Government dairy instructor, at Gisborne lately. The world Ins been mistaken throughout the centuries in supposing that the coining of spring has been due to the rise in temperature caused by the influence of the sun. Professor lluntz has just explained to the French Academy of Science that the real cause is the increased activity of the microbes, which simply obey a certain atavism that makes them increase their nitrifying properties at that particular period of the year. "Were [ Prime Minister of Xew Zealand," said Mr. George Elliot, president of the Auckland Chamber of Commerce, "I would miake every other question subservient to the opening up of Maori and other undeveloped land." lie made no difference between undeveloped land held by the Maoris, Europeans or by the Government. If this were carried out honestly and fairly they would have the greatest wave of industrial prosperity New Zealand had ever seen.

"A great change has taken place in the public school of to-day," declared Mr, Grundy, headmaster of the Clyde Quay School, at the householders' meeting recently. "There is a very different atmosphere to that of twenty years ago; to-day the schools were places to be happy in." He said the change had been wrought chiefly through the passing of the individual examination, and to the fact that the teachers—the persons best qualified to know of a child s progress—had the power to promote the children when they were fit to be promoted. The new spirit of education had made the schools happier places than they were twenty years ago. The first account of powdered milk is found in Marco Polo's report of his travels in Tartary, in the interior of Asia. In about the year 1290 he found the Tartars drying milk in the sun, pulverising it into powder,'and placing it in sacks to bo carried into the territory of their enemies. Although their methods were crude, they undoubtedly prepared a food which could not be excelled for their purpose, as dried milk contains more nourishment, pound for pound, than any other food which can be produced at a reasonable cost; and is. in fact, an ideal food for fighting men," as well as 1 for infants. The first successful vacuum process for the manufacture of powdered milk was invented by Dr. Martin Ekenberg, a Swedish scientist. Kaupokoriui Dairy Company expects to turn oyer between £140,000 and £130,000 this season. It was not many years ago that the company was congratulating itself on having a turnover of £20,000! The .Joll Company, which operates in the same district, one of its factories only being a. mile distant from the Kaupokonui Company's main factory, should have a revenue equally as big,' whilst Riverdale, but four miles from Kaupokonui, will also show a large turnover. Probably there is no dairying land in the world so productive as the Wai--1,1 ate Plains, in which the companies named operate. When the season ends, it will probably be found that the Plains will have produced over a third of a million sterling from the manufacture of butter and cheese alone. Some idea of the universal interest winch the game of Association football commands may be .gathered from the fact that a postcard from Bordeaux, rranee, lias been received by' Mr. F. Lynch, hon. secretary of the Xew South Hales Football Association. The communication is written in French, and the card bears a reproduction of a photograph of the champion team of the South-west France. Following is a translation of ttio message:—"Sir,—Our champion club would like to organise for the first time among all French clubs ajtour in Australia. I hope that our proposition may interest you; therefore I take the pleasure to submit it to you, trusting that it may be realised. Awaiting vour kind reply, accept, sir, the assurance of my consideration.—Henri Gasqueton, 47 Rue Huguerie, Bordeaux, France." If able men on the sunny side of middle life, with all their powers alert anil robust, but with their spending restricted to their darnings, embark upon a parliamentary career, they do so at a heavy sacrifice. It is no good shutting our eyes to common fact. Men with equipment equal to the high functions of legislator can earn considerably more than £3OO a year without having to pass through a trying and costly campaign to earn it. "Under the circumstances, we have com« to the'conclusion that in the public interest, and the common and undeniable principle of making remuneration commensurate with labor and responsibility, the honorarium of members of Parliament in New Zealand should be raised. It is £3OO in Great Britain, £SOO in Canada, £ISOO in the United States. It should be afc least £4OO to £SOO in New Zealand.— Dunedin Star.

A Territorial writes to the Ilawera Star:—"As one of the men who went through the camp, I must say that the food that was given to the men was unwholesome. I saw with my own eyes the meat that the cooks were cooking, and it was just covered with fly-blows. The tea we got must have been the water that was strained from the 'spuds,' with a bit of .tea and some milk that was .three-parts water put in it. The porridge also was always burnt, and was never properly cooked. When we got a bit of meat it was never cooked properly. It was always raw and so tough that a fellow could hardly get his teeth through it. I must gay that I didn't get what you would call a decent meal the whole timo I was in camp. I even saw men come out of the messroom and rush the dry canteen and buy cakes and soft drink, so as to satisfy themselves with food. The first day we were on parade about; half-a-dozen men dropped in the lines, and had to be carried off. I was speaking to some of them afterwards, and they told me they were starved. How these officers expect to get work out of the men under them without giving them sufficient food, I don't know."

"In the course of a century the time necessary for the carriage of mails and! passengers between Great Britain and Australia has been reduced from eighteen to twenty weeks to about thirtyone days." ''Within the next ten or fifteen years we shall probably see u further reduction to about a fortnight," writ"-- Mr. T V rry Gullett, in the Empire Review. "We are to have new routes, which will mean more overlanding and less sea; also, we shall have faster steamers, as least over the Indian Ocean part of the journey. The traveller who is in a hurry between London and,.say, Melbourne, fifteen yeare hence, will cross Europe from west to east, run for a few days across Asia, and then, having raced down the Indian Ocean at 20 or 25 knots an hour, he will take to the steel rails again at Fremantle and whirl right across the Commonwealth." Australia and New Zealand, in common with other new countries, have been wasteful of their timber resources, and in many ways the Australian public is affected by the increasing scarcity of wood. Wood fuel is getting dearer, and timber for building purposes is steadily advancing in price. Apparently the day is not far distant when some substitute for wooden railway sleepers will have to be found. Mr. James Fraser, Engineer-in-Chief for existing railways in New South Wales, stated last week that his department required about 700,000 sleepers a year, but was only able' to get half the supplies needed, though practically all the sleepers offering had been secured. The timber was becoming rapidly exhausted, but the main trouble at the present time seemed to be that there were not sufficient sleeper-cutterg to keep up the supplies. They would have presently, he said, to seriously think about using steel or concrete sleepers, unless more wt«xl sleepers were available. "Is it an exaggeration to say that many children to-day could tell you the name of the winner of the Melbourne Cup for the last 12 years, but would be ouite unable to tell you the names of the Twelve Apostles?" s'aid the Dean of New castle (New South Wales) in the course of a sermon last week. The majority of young Australians to-day were, he said, ! without any religious sense. Religion to them is something foolish and unmanly. Religion to those who from infancy are taught that the whole object of jife is to secure as mneh pleasure as possible can never be attractive. The fault does not lie with the church, but with the homes. When so many homes to-day, if not actually irreligious, are at least nonreligious. must not the result be that the children of those homes consider religion foolish and unnecessary? "Yet, as surely as night succeeds day," he went on, "so surclv will the greatness of our Empire wane when the God who has made her what she is is forgotten. It will not be an alien foe, at least, not directly, who will crush that greatness, but foes in the Empire's heart—the foes of luxury, sloth, and self-indulgence." Some stories of the South African war were told in Sydney last week by Lord Denman, the Governor-General of the Commonwealth, at a banquet given by : the South African Soldiers' Association. One recalled the foraging capabilities of the colonial troops under General French. The soldiers were all lined up one day by the officer commanding, who appeared to be in high dudgeon over the reputation that liis command had gained. His wrath was awe-inspiring. They were supposed to sweep the countrv bare like a plague of locusts that went through the land of Pharoah; and there was ringing anguish in the voice of General French as be recounted what terrible things were said about his regiments. These reports bad even reached the ears of Lord Roberts; who had complained to him as officer commanding, and now this commandeering, pilfering, or what ever harsher term might be used, must cease, the General angrily declared. The soldiers all stood aghast at the stormy lecture the general was reading them. Sheep wandering about must not be commandeered, and, speaking with dire earnestness, the general said that any man found killing sheep would be shot: The troops winced at the order, the stern tones of General French impressing his hearers. But the order had a saving clause. "Of course," the general added, but still with the same blaze of indignation in bis eyes nt the pass things come to, "if a sheep attacks a soldier"— A roar of laughter like a #lvo of artillery drowned the conclusion of tjie interesting tirade. "The soldiers,"'naively remarked Lord Denman, after he bad referred to this story, ,f often h'ad-io defend themselves." 'I