LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LV, Issue 50, 17 July 1912, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Thirty-seven head of cattle and thirteen horses were shipped north last night. A firm at Palmerston North lias its own idea of how to encourage maternity. A local paper announced tile other day that "Messrs. Barraud and Abraham have decided to close their premises and keep next Wednesday afternoon a halfholiday to celebrate the fact that three ef the staff have had their families increased by baby girls during the past week, the happy fathers being one of the managing directors and two members of the staff."

Bowlers wending their way to the meeting in the New Plymouth Club's pavilion last night found diversion from the entertaining topic of bowls in anathematising the local municipality for the muddy and slippery state of the Brougham street footpath. More than one of the fraternity' slipped on the path, which badly needs a coating of asphalt or at least of gravel. The state of the path is not improved by the action of drivers of vehicles in using it in preference to the road, which at times is little better than a quagmire. The navy looms large in the public eye just now, and it is satisfactory to know that all parties agree the British Navy must be kept supreme. The British nation is determined to keep the navy in the forefront; so aro the proprietors determined to maintain the popularity of Crescent Tea, which is sold in three grades at 2/-, 1/10 and 1/8 per lb re-spectively.-—Ad vt.

According to Bishop White, of Carpentaria, the aborigines there, when swimming the rivers, always place the : women at the end of the line, and the eldest women last of all. They have found by experience, they told him, that in these swimming processions the alligators always attack the hind-most members of the party. According to the statistics supplied to the Borough Council by the Department of Internal Affairs, there are 244 motor-cars and 87 motor bicycles in the Taranaki district. Canterbury has 1482 cars and 2078 motor-cycles, Wellington and Wairarapa 431 and 457 respectively, Auckland 615 and 180, Hawke's Bay 500 and 322, and Otago and Southland 535 and 791. Including other districts with smaller quotas, the total number of registered motor-cars and motor-cycles in the Dominion is 4137 and 4297 respectively. Of the motor-cars, 1585 came from the United Kingdom, 1550 from America, 684 from France, and the balance from a number of other countries.

The Minister of Marine, the Hon. F. M. B. Fisher, has had transmitted to him by the Board of Trade, London, a silver medal awarded by the King of Italy to Mr. W. E. Long, formerly a servant on the s.s. Ophir, in recognition of his services in connection with the earthquake at Messina, in December, 1908, and requesting that the New Zealand Government, on being satisfied as to Mr. Long's identity, will cause the medal to be presented to him in a suitable manner on behalf of the Government of Italy. It is probable that the Prime Minister will make the presentation on the first occasion on which he visits Auckland. Mr. Long is now second steward on the b.s. Ngapuhi, and resides at Auckland.

A civic dispute of no public interest occupied the attention of Mr. A. Crooke, S.M., for the . whole afternoon at . yesterday's sitting of the Magistrate's Court. Okey and Rollo sued the Oaonui Dairy Company for £4B 12s 3d for extras on a contract, involving concrete work. The case was heard at a previous sitting of the court, when a non-suit was granted on the plaintiffs' application, on the grounds that they had been misled by defendants having stated in a letter that the quantities were not in dispute. Mr. D. Hutchen appeared for the plaintiffs and Mr. Grey defended. The evidence tendered was on lines similar to that given in the original case, and, in addition, witnesses were called by the plaintiffs to show that the quantities charged for were not in excess of those supplied. For the defence it was alleged that the charge for the extras was excessive, and that the quantities had been over-stated. A number of witnesses were called by both sides, the hearing of the case lasting until shortly before six o'clock. The Magistrate reserved his decision. Sitting in his civil jurisdiction at the Magistrate's Court yesterday, Mr. A. Crooke, S.M., gave judgment for the plaintiff by default in the following cases: State Guaranteed Advances Office v. Mrs. Y. M. "Yeates, claim £2l Is, costs £1 3s; Westport Coal Company v. P. D. Henderson, claim £l, costs ss; Nathan and Co. v. Henry and Wm. Lee, claim £l2 5s lid, costs £1 3s Gd; Collier and Co. v. Margaret Warner, claim £2 3s 3d, costs 18s. In a judgment summons case Henry Peat was called upon to show cause why he could not settle two debts, £8 13s (id and £3 7s 6d respectively, owing to George Fox. Two judgment summonses were issued against defendant in respect to the amounts, which represented rent in arrears, at the rate of 10s Gd per week. The defendant, who is a married man with one child, is in receipt of a weekly wage of about

£2 Bs. Peat said that he had settled all his debts with the exception of the two in question and an amount of £3 10s 6d owing to a medical practitioner. An order was made for payment of 2s Od a week on account of each summons, with the option of ten days' imprisonment. Mr. C. 11. Weston appeared for the judgment creditor. The following interesting extracts from the London Daily Telegraph in connection with the Royal International Horticultural Exhibition have been received by the firm of AVm. Rowe, New Plymouth, from Messrs Hurst and Sons: —One of the greatest difficulties was the judging of the best novelty in the whole show. A twenty-five guinea cup was offered and there were numerous new plants which vied with each other for the premier prize. Two of the chief claimants were Brasso-Cattley's "The King," and a half-hardy shrub, with brilliant red flowers, from New Zealand, named leptospermum scoparium Nicolli. Eventually the directors awarded the prize to the leptospermum, which will hereafter he known as the best novelty of the International Exhibition of 1912. Other awards included the Birmingham Botanical and Horticultural Society's medal to Captain Dorrien-Smith for oleria dentata, a new flowering shrub from New Zealand. Seeing that the competition was so keen and against the whole world, this will no doubt be a 1 source of much gratification to New Zealanders, and it would seem that the Dominion of the iSouth Seas may have not yet yielded up all its botanical treasures. The Defence Department has notified the 'Borough Council tlistt Cabinet decided early this year to make a grant to the Victoria League of Auckland for the purpose ©f keeping old soldiers' graves in good repair and erecting a monument, and that its application for a grant for New Plymouth has been referred to that body. The Department encloses a copy of a letter received from the Victoria League with regard to the New Plymouth Borough Council's application. In it the League states that it does not approve of the removal of the graves as suggested. It heartily concurs, however, in the proposal to erect a memorial or obelisk in some suitable position in the cemetery for the purpose of preserving the memory of fallen soldiers. In view of the fact that it contemplates the erection of a national memorial for all those who have fallen in New Zealand in the cause of the. Empire, the League regrets that it is unable to give any monetary contribution to the local memorial. The League states that it would be very pleased if a branch of the society could be formed in New Plymouth to assist in carrying out its work. It would appear that the Auckland League looks upon the Government grant as one for its sole use and benefit, and that Taranaki and other centres will be deprived of any grant towards the up-keep of soldiers' graves. Hitherto the practice has been for the Government to apportion an annual rate amongst the various provinces.

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The Marton district has produced from 20,000 to 20,000 tons of chaff this season, about 4000 tons being held fo» spring cutting. Authorities on the subject state that oysters are this season more plentiful in New Zealand waters than has been the case for a number of years. A freak of nature in the shape of a white blackbird was shot last week by a Waverley lad (says the Patea Press i. He forwarded the curiosity to the Wanganui Museum.

The petrol shortage, which a few weeks ago caused a certain amount of perturbation amongst motorists, has been brought to an end by the arrival of several shipments of benzine. The heaviest sea experienced for some years was runing in New Plymouth yesterday. -At high tide last night it was washing right into the municipal swimming bath, where some slight damage was done.

Cabinet sat on Monday evening and transacted a considerable amount of routine business. The Prime Minister (Hon. W. F. Massey) informed a Times representative that there was a very iar<*e accumulation of business bequeathed from the former Ministry, and the only way to dispose of it was to sit every night for the time being. On a table in the Cabinet room were two stacks of documents relative to matters that would have to be dealt with. There was, said Mr. Massey, nothing ot a general nature for publicaiton.

An agricultural writer, remarking on the earth worm, states tnat it lias been shown that the action of earth worms modifies the soil to an extent far surpassing the 'estimates of casual observers. They appear to alter the soil's physical condition, making it more porous and pulverulent by their action on the subsoil, portions of which they bring to the suiface, and by passing earth particles and organic, matter through their bodies they reduce and make available large quantities of plant-food material. Darwin estimated that about 11 tons of organic matter per acre are annually added to the soil by this agency in regions where worms abound. In some parts of England it is stated that as much as forty tons to the acre is placed on the surface by the activity of the worms below.