LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 316, 4 July 1912, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The North Taranaki Hunt will not meet at Stratford this afternoon as previously arranged, but with the kind consent of Mr. J. Foreman the meet will take place at his property at Tikorangi. The side entrance to the local telegraph office, which has been available to the public after S p.m., is now kept locked, and entrance can only be effected by ringing an electric bell. This action has been taken, presumably, as a result of the burglar scare.

It is understood from official quarters that with the exception of those who obtained leave on account of sickness, the whole of the Taranaki Territorials (who include a small contingent from Now Plymouth) who failed to attend either of the two encampments at Hawera and Waverley, respectively, will be proceeded against in the Magistrate's Court at an early date. The mail train last night ran into a mob of cuttle on the line between Lepperton and Corbett road. The emergency brake was applied, pulling the train up sharp, but not before one of the animals was rendered hors de combat. The train then proceeded slowly, looting the whistle all the time and chasing the cattle ahead until the cattle stop at Corbett road was passed, when the train continued her journey, arriving in New Plymouth a few minutes late. It is understood that about 30 cattle from an adjacent paddock wandered on to the line as the result of a gate being left open. i

ITlie warden has given a decision at Paeroa that the Waihi-l'aeroa Gold Extraction Company must instal means to avoid running tube mills on Sundays, and has granted a permit for Sunday work for six weeks to allow the installation to be made. 1 New Plymouth poultry breeders were very successful at the Stratford Poultry, Pigeon and Canary Show yesterday. In ■ Black Orpingtons, Mr. Scott secured five two specials, and two seconds, whilst in Brown Leghorns, Mr. Boulton obtained three first prizes and two thirdprize tickets. "Patriot" writes to the Greymouth Star, suggesting a novel and ingenious method of punishing Territorials who refuse to take up the gun under the compulsory training scheme. Briefly, the idea is that all lads refusing to put in parades should be barred from playing, football, cricket, golf, (hockey, or any form- of athletic sport. They should be refused admission to theatres or boxing matches; and, in fact, should be ostracised from all social functions. If such a course were followed, he contends, it would do more to bring young fellows into line than all the fines indicted by magistrates.

! "Mrs. McSweeney" is coming to New Plymouth in August with Miss Maggie Moore playing "Bridget McSweeney." and all the laughs that it is possible to crowd into one play. It is said that "Mrs.*McSweeney" is the champagne big laugh play. It is such a rollicking, happy, cheery, farcical comedy that it has already made for itself the name of the funniest Australian humorous play ever staged. Your fancy only needs to picture Miss Maggie Moore portraying the buxom, jolly Irishwoman, full of the fun of the land of the Shamrock, and making every point a telling one and every laugh a side-splitter. A physiological curiosity in the form of a human acquarium has been discovered (says a London paper) by Dr. Farez. The subject is capable of drinking -from six to seven litres of water—that is, practically between 10% and 12 pints. The man is equally capable of swallowing four or five frogs or small fish, and } keeping them in his stomachic aquarium ' for about an hour and restoring them alive. Dr. Farez says that his subject has acquired this strange faculty by systematic training, and he has succeeded in developing his stomachic muscularity as other men. develop muscles in their arms and legs. At the last meeting of the Patoa Harbor Board the secretary was instructed to prepare a statement showing the amount of goods going to each town which imported through Patea. The chairman, who introduced the matter, stated that local business men had complained that owing to the preferential freight obtained by the up-country shippers, they were able to compete against Patea and Hawcra firms. In fact, he understood that in some lines 1 ' Stratford could undersell Patea. Local men thought that the wharfage to the northern towns should bo increased to protect them. Mr. Williams said it would be a huge mistake to "tinker" with the wharfage. The chairman remarked that there would be no harm in having the statement prepared at all events. He thought, too, that the local shippers had some ground for complaint if Stratford could undersell them.

A strange story of cannibalism was told at the London Guildhall by Mr. Phillips, bursar of St. Lawrence's College, Ramsgate, who recently had some,interesting adventures among the most degraded natives in the world—the West African savages of the Cameroon Hinterland. They were always naked, he said. Their food, when they got it, was indescribably filthy stud', and they were generally on the verge of starvation. When the pinch came, the children were allowed to starve before the women, and the women before the men. And then, when these excellent natives were very hard pressed, the men were allowed to eat the women, and the women the children! The teeth of this tribe were absolutely magnificent. When the narrator left them and journeyed toward the world of clothes, the nearer he approached to civilisation, tho worst the teeth became.

The Stipendiary Magistrate, on Wednesday, at Waitara, heard the objections raised by Messrs. Bone, Slight, Hayes and Millar (setlers in the Tangitu) to being included in the special rating district on account of the loan of £IOOO proposed to be raised for metalling a portion of the Uruti road. There are 27 occupiers of land included altogether, and the above four constitute the objectors, their reasons being that the physical fpatures of the Tangitu Saddle stood in the way of them deriving any use from the metal. They contend their outlet is the railway, and one of them, Mr. Slight, in evidence, said he already solely used the road to the Kiore railway station. The others said the road to Kiore would be completed within a rear, and they would then all go out that way. After Mr. Chas. Barnitt had piven 'his evidence in favor of the rating district remaining as outlined, Mr. Wilson (county solicitor) asked fr an adjournment to secure the presence of Cr. O'Sullivan. who is absent in Wellington. Tht Magistrate asked for the nature of bis evidence, and pointed out that no evidence could alter the physical facts, which went to show that no vehicle could reach the objectors' properties over the Tangitu Saddle, and in that case the metal would be no use to these people, who in that case ought to be cut out of the rating area. Mr. Wilson then asked that the matter be adjourned to New Plymouth for argument, and this course was agreed upon.—Waitara Mail.

With perhaps some idea of his impending fate, a well-grown bullock, weary of his stay at the Ngahauranga, yards, journeyed into Wellington on Saturday, and for a while blocked the thoroughfare in Victoria street. Soon a large crowd collected, but no member of "the Force" could have cleared the street to better effect than did this animal with one look over his shoulder. Tiring somewhat of pursuing common clerks, the bull turned his attention to two lady typists, who stood not upon the order of their going, but went at once, doing good time for a hundred yards or so to the nearest warehouse door. Then things looked serious, and the bull, with the idea of keeping the crowd warm on such a chill morning, charged from first one side of the street and then the other. Then came a picador, in the guise of a mounted policeman, armed with a .4."> Colt in default of the banderillos and lance. Three bullets from the revolver failed to effect a coup de grace, but the shots j were well placed. A rifle succeeded where the smaller arm failed, and the animal dropped in mid-career, and then, ftnd not till then, the crowd gathered round, a few typists came histatingly out from the office doors and message boys searched for the bullet holes with the air of Nimrods. Particular attention was paid to an employee of E. W. Mills, and he and his bicvele eame in for some rough handling. The bull'knocked him over, but luckily, however, the <inlv damage done was to his clothing. This necessitated a return home to cover certain deficiencies. WIDE AWAKE BUSINESS MEN.

From the Bluff to Auckland are realising every day the advantage of employing us. They get wood work, prompt work, and economical work. Carting or forwarding, Customs work, or parcels delivery—it makes no difference—We excel in all departments. 'l>t us know what von want done, and be sure if will receive prompt expert attention.—Tile \\Z. Express Coy., Ltd.—Advt.

A Imiaru telegram states that a i fisherman yesterday picked up, 35 miles jE.S.E. of Timaru, and brought to port, a large clean open boat with no name on. It was painted red outside. There was nothing in the boat except about 20 fathoms of 214-inch rope. The death of Mr. John Dunne, a very old resident of Balelutha, is announced in a Press Association telegram. He came to New Zealand in 18H3 to take charge of the Queenstown gold escort, and subsequently had charge of the Tuapeka and Balelutha police districts. In 1872 he started in business as hotelkeeper. He was Mayor of Balelutha for seven consecutive years, and held the same office on two subsequent occasions. According to a report from Vice-Consul D. V. dc Young, at Amsterdam, summarised in Chambers' Journal. Holland exports moro wooden shoes to the United States than ito any other country. Many hundreds of pairs are now worn in Michigan, lowa, Missouri, New Jersey and other States. The remarkable statement is- made that there is more wooden footwear worn in Chicago, Grand Rapids or Holland {'Mich.) than in the city of Amsterdam. The shoes exported from the Netherlands are mostly made in large factories by modern machinery. On '< the contrary, the wooden shoes worn in that country are generally hewn to the measure of customers' feci, in the village shoeshops, and the local price varies according to the amount of wood used and the market price of the raw material. In the course of an application for the presumption of the death of Archibald Scott, heard in Dumfries Sheriff's Court, evidence of a strange vision was given. Archibald Scott went to Australia in 1851, during the gold rush, and was lost j sight of. Mrs. Jane Debenham said that the missing man was her father. All efforts to. trace him in Australia had failed. His eldest sister, Sybella, many years ago told her that she was taking a walk with her father one summer evening, and along'the path, coming toward* them, she saw her brother Archibald dressed in the same check suit which he used to wear. She was a little behind her fathor, and in passing the figure never spoke, and she turned round to look and make sure. The figure alsa turned in passing .and then disappeared. She was certain her brother Archibald had died at the very hour she had seen the vision. Tho presumption or death was doclared.