LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 275, 17 May 1912, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

One of the young kiwis reared by Mr. W. W. Smith, curator of Pukekura Park, has been killed, presumably by a weasel.

Since retiring from the Ministry it does .not seem that Sir James Carroll has sung once in public or recited "Not Understood." He apparently realises now what these offences lead to.

The flags at the various post offices throughout the Dominion yesterday were flown at half-mast, as a tribute of respect to the memory of the late King of Denmark, a brother of the Dowager Queen Mother Alexandra. The Kaimata settlers have decided to sever connection with the Moa Dairy Company and form a co-operative cheese company, the supply from 750 cows having been guaranteed. Mr. Cuddle, of the Agricultural Department, has selected a site for the factory and given the settlers the benefit of his advice. It has been decided to form a local automobile association at Palmerston North. Dr. Wilson has been elected provisional president. Messrs. R. S. Abraham, A. J. Toxward and Dr. Wilson have been appointed delegates to attend the proposed conference of delegates of the automobile associations at Wellington.

There is money in some inventions. Recently two Aucklanders brought out a patent, the American rights of which were recently sold for a large sum. Three New Plymouth gentlemen, who had shares in the syndicate financing the invention, are reported to have netted £IO,OOO, besides receiving substantial interests in the American company.

A valuable Devon street property is reported to have changed hands, from the Railway Department to Mr. W. C. Phillips. The property comprises a piece of land between Hallenstein's block and Mr. Greiner's shop, being the old railway line and the Huatoki frontage. Report has it that the price was over £3OOO, and that Mr. Phillips intends erecting a large building on> the site. "I feel sure," .said the Hon. J. Colvin, Minister for Mines, on Wednesday, "that the country is in favor of giving the present Ministry a chance. I cannot speak with the same certainty of the House, bii't-I think the House will allow the Government to bring down its policy, and then I think we shall be able to survive." He would not, however, say that the policy would not be announced before the House met.

The Moa Dairy Company will pay out £3150 for butter-fat this month, as against £2340 for the same month of last year. At its last meeting, Mr. James, manager, tendered his resignation. A long discussion took place on the question of casein manufacture, and it was resolved: "That the chairman and Mr. R. T. Williams go down to the Wanganui district and interview suppliers of factories where this manufacture is carried out, and ascertain from them the benefits or otherwise arising from the manufacture, the delegates to be allowed 10s per day and train fares." Despite the predicted boom at San Francisco following on the expenditure of the millions voted for the exhibition, a late Waipawa resident finds that a deplorable state of things exists. Thousands are out of work, and these line up daily to receive the relief doled out by the city authorities. In his own trade he finds no chance of work except as a unionist, and to join a union will cost him over £lO as an entrance fee. Even then his chance of work is slender. He learns that men are employed to speed up the others, and any falling off from the standard set by these speed men is followed bv dismissal.—Hawke's Bav Herald.

Information about mules is conveyed in an American letter to Mr. H. D. Vickery, secretary of the Wellington Chamber of Commerce, from a Mr. Mowers, of Los Angeles, who states that he is arranging to visit New Zealand. "If a few high-class 'jacks' could be sold," he says. "I will ship a very few along of the kind that sire the 14001b. Missouri and Kentucky mules. The best class American-bred mammoth 'jacks' range in price here, in the United States, from 2000 dollars to 4000 dollars, and In height 15 to 15.2 hands, standard measure. As much early information as is possible relative to duty, etc., as well as breeding and sale possibilities, will be more than appreciated," the writer concludes.

There was a large and enthusiastic gathering in the Good Templar Hall last evening at a general meeting of the newly-formed New Plymouth Brotherhood. Mr. J. B. Roy was in the chair. Rules were adopted and plans generally discussed. During the evening the following officers were elected to hold office for the ensuing year:—President, Rev. J. W. Burton; vice-presidents, Rev. T. H. Roseveare, Dr. Home, Messrs. J. B. Roy, G. W. Browne, M. Fraser, S. Smith; secretary, Mr. P. H. White; treasurer, Mr. Brooker; musical conductor, Mr. W. M. Perrv; executive, MessrsG. E. Roper, W. J. Smith, H. Cocker. G. H. Dolby, T. Hardgreaves, Stanley Smith, C. Carter, Bruce, W. Amhury, W. Sadler, A. Veale. A number of subcommittees, including a "helping hand" •ommittee, were also set up. Who is the money lender of Europe? Not England, but France, where thrift is practised as a virtue. In the Moroccan crisis of last year Farnee is said to have thrown her great financial power on the side of peace. "What that power is (remarks the Standard) may be gathered from the statement that if France were to refuse to discount German paper the latter country would either have to go to war or declare herself bankrupt. Something like 30 million pounds sterling drawn from innumerable French stockings, teapots, holes in mattresses, and other primitive forms of safes have crossed the Rhine to assist German industries. Within the last, month or so France has once again determined to assert her power, refusing to make advances to any of the Triple Alliance Powers, or to their towns or' railways. It is not that the money is not there. A loan for 12 millions required by the State railways was covered 32 times over in one day! The length of the French purse is indeed an enormous bulwark of international peace,"

People in one quarter of Thorndon had no lack of excitement, partly merry, last week. Following a disturbance which sounded like a breach of the peace, two fire-engines, one from Thorndon and the other from the Central station, charged up, and it was vaguely hoped by some persons whose ears had been tortured that the briga'de had arrived to extinguish the outbreak of noise. The firemen looked about for (lanies and smoke, but did not even see anything describable as "incipient." Just when they were reaching the conelusion that it was one of the old brand of false alarms, a much agitated foreigner rushed up, and said: "T done it, but T don't want the firemen; T want the police." He said that he had been assaulted, and had pressed the bnllon in the fire alarm box in the hope that police aid would arrive. The foreigner had once lived in New York, where there is a push-button =ystem for calling the police, and he bad cvi'lenlly imagined that Thorndon was just as up-to-date.

The following entries have been received by the Hawera Winter Show for the dairy classes: Butter (it) (1911, 51): cheese, 00 (1911, 48). Four writs for damages have been issued by farmers in the Rangiotu district against llaxmillers for alleged pollution of streams with the refuse of flax.

A robbery took place at the Kaupnknnui Dairy Factory last Saturday night. It appears that someone entered a room occupied by the butter maker and, breaking open his box, abstracted £37.

The. Waimate Advertiser (Canterbury) states that a resident in the district has a 2'/s-aere field of onions that he expects to yield Hi tons to the acre. The price is £ll per ton. The same farmer has sent :» tons of broeoli away this season to a Christchurch firm of pickle-makers. The skating carnival attracted a fair crowd to the Drill Hall last night, and was responsible for sonic very novel "get-ups." Notable among these was that of Miss M. Gilbert, who masqueraded as a swagger. The judges had no difficulty in awarding her the prize for the most original costume. Other awards were made as follow:—Lady's most elegant costume, Miss Benton; best impersonation of a gentleman by a lady. Miss A. Norcross; lady's most' original costume, Miss L Norcross: gentleman's most elegant fancy costume, Mr. H. Smith; best impersonation of a lady by a. gentleman. Air. C. Lvttle; musical chairs, Mr. IT. KnaulT.

In order to facilitate the expenditure of Government grants by local authorities for road construction. Mr. MacDonald, the Minister of Public Works, has made a change in the method of securing oflicial sanction to the plans. Under the usual conditions, plans for work in excess of £250 have to be prepared in triplicate by local bodies, in order to undergo the. scrutiny not only of the District Engineer of the Public Works Department, but also the head office of the engineering staff. This has caused delay of several months in many instances, but the Public Works District Engineers are to be given power to pass works up to £IOOO in value in future, so that no delay will be caused in the majority of cases, Tt is with a similar end in view that the Public Works Department has agreed to modify its rule regarding bridge construction. It has hitherto insisted upon bridges even in remote districts being constructed to carry heavy weights, though they are so situated that no load exceeding a few tons goes over them. It has, however, been agreed that in certain areas what is known as the two-ten bridge design will be passed by the Departmental engineers.—Hawera Star.