LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LV, Issue 76, 16 August 1912, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

- There is every probability of some record prices being obtained for butter this season. A coastal factory has just turijed down an offer of Is. •

Government has derided to make a grant of £23 to Mrs. Mary Lee, a TarAnaki. heroine, now resident in Gisborije, for services rendered during the Maori war.

ilil replying to a presentation in recognition of services rendered, a speaker at j a Taranaki football gathering naively j concluded: "I like to see a good game !* of football, but I think our club should liavfe a referee of its own." A ( large number of butter and cheese \ buyers are on their annual visits to the various dairy companies in this district J (says .the Eltham Argus), and for the j first; time in the-history of the . dairy | industry, Continental buyers and, also I blenders are represented.' "Commend me," said, a flabbergasted J country storekeeper, for jvant Tof a bet--1 ter, word, as a highly indigpaijt eus- { tomer left -his shop. "Well, that beats all. - Here's a man conres in and wants me to lend him some bonedust, and on my tluj't I stock it and call sell ihlhi some, be calmly announces that he Jias some ordered from a. New Ply- : mouth merchant, but wants some urgent: I ly> /tfd. will' return it as soon as liis . arrijves. On my refusing his request he leaves nie .very offended, and I will probably lose a good customer." The. fair ■) sex, however, can easily give ppjnts to tlie 'sterner male when'it comes to the jinejioints of shopping, as a shop-keeper in - a Taranaki town lately discovered. ■ A (Jainty morsel of femininity gaily tripled into his emporium -arid,wanted a. book of poems for a birthday present for ;a friend. After some considerable time spent in perusing the entire stock, j she ultimately appeared suited. A few { days later she returned and pointing tout! a microscopic Haw in, the binding [asked could she exchange it, as she" did j not;want anything but the best for her ) friend. The bookseller cheerfully - ac- ) quiesced, but judge of his feelings next day: when another prospective customer examining'the book discovered boldlv inscribed on its fly leaf the following words. "To with love from That he considered was the limit.

Maintenance cases occupied the attention of Mr. A. C'rooke, S.M., at the Magistrate's Court yesterday morning. Margaret Conway 'proceeded against James Conway, who made no appearance, under a maintenance order for the payment of arrears amounting to £2B up to May 20. -Evidence was given by the complainant in support of her case, but tiie magistrate declined to make an order, adjourning the case for two months in order to give the defendant an opportunity to pay. A final stage was reached in the case of Johnson v. de Silva. Mr. F. Wilson appeared for the complainant, and Mr. J.. C. Nicholson 1 for defendant. Johnson claimed for the payment of arrears under a maintenance order, while the defendant brought a cross-action for the cancellation of the original'order and the remission of the arrears. Evidence was given on behalf of the complainant.' Hie defendant's evidence had previously been taken in Wellington. Both counsel addressed the magistrate, who, after reviewing the evidence,- said this was one of those dill'icult cases in which one did not know what to do. In stating 'thai he could not see his way clear to make an order for the imprisonment of the defendant, Mr. Crooke said that such action would do neither side any good. To his inind it was best not to make any orders, and he accordingly dismissed hoth cases. Another maintenance case was that in which the police proceeded against Harriet Ellen Johnston for'arrears amounting to £3 5s towards the support of her child (a boy), who was being maintained by the'Eduoatioil Department. According to SeniorSergeant TladdreJl, the defendant had treated the order of the court with contempt. This allegation was passionately denied by Johnston, who promised to make an effort to pay the arrears, if allowed sufficient time." An adjournment of two weeks was granted.

The Government has under consideration a proposal to appoint an inspector or inspectors of alcoholic Tiquors for sale in the Dominion. The Mangatoki Dairy Company paid to suppliers last season 12.55 d. Butter was manufactured, but this season the company is going in for cheese. The Acclimatisation Conference resolved: "That the Government be recommended to open the shooting season each year, but for two Aionths only, such two months to be lixed by the local societies."

The New Plymouth Brotherhood Literary and Debating Society will meet in the Good Templar Hall tolnight, -when the subject of debate will be: ''That a system of leasehold land tenure would be more beneficial to New Zealand than a system of freehold land tenure."

Replying to a question bv Mr. Okc>v M.P. for Taranaki, the Hon. W. H. • Herries stated that, if possible, legislation dealing with the Taranaki oil industry would be introduced this sescvion. As to a geologist for the industry, the Hon. TV. Fraser stated that this would involve a larger expenditure tliaii the Government was prepared to undertake at present. At the Hastings Court on Tuesday morning, a girl about seventeen years of age, in masculine attire, was charged with, on August I*2. at Kereru, being an idje and disorderly person under the Police Offences Act, in that she was disguised in boy's clothes. Sergeant Hogan said the girl ran away from her home in Taijiapc about twelye months ago, and sice then she had been masquerading as a boy, living at 'different places along the Main Trunk line. Information was received that a boy who was suspected of being a girl was living with a man at Kereru, and a : -constable was sent out, -with the result that accused was arrested. He (Sergeant Hogan) asked for. a remand to Napier. This was granted.

The.' Inveixjaririil correspondent of the Lytteltou Times states that an occurrence at the hospital there j occasioned great annoyance to the ■ .parti'es concerned. Two- men died at the hosiptal last week, and both, were to l>e buried on the same day. The hospital authorities, somehow or other, placed', the bodies in the wrong coffins. The mistake 'passed unnoticed in the case of .the first body, which, was conveyed. to the cemetery ' and' was duly interred and the burial | service read. The friends of the other I deceased meanwhile arrived at the hosIpital, and discovered tlifit a mistake had been made. A message was sent out in hot haste to the cemetery, and the body i that had been buried was disinterred jand brought back to the hospital, when ! the bodies were placed in. the right V caskets. One of the deceased was a j Roman Catholic and the other an J' Orangeman, and a priest, owing to the blunder, read the burial service over the .latter.

Tims the Auckland Observer, facetiously, on the Egmont election:-—"Tam Mackenzie, the grim Southron, who wrested a Northern seat from the old Opposition and rushed into a short-dated Premiership, goes Higli Commissionering. Hence a wrestle will occur for the vacated Egmoiit seat. Young Wilkinson, of Hawefa, is rushing back from Canada to j fill, the job, if possible. He is, to j speak, the 'Whiteley' of Taranaki, who ) made a fortune in business in ft feW years. Bright, business-like and clever. Mr. Wake, who was blown out in 1905, has the same cbance at the coming by-election. 'Bill' Jennings, the habitual Parliamentarian, who had to ! stand down wihen the last numbers for Taumarunui went up, will probably give the universal provider' a tough run. Mr. Wake is an ex-schoolmaster, now a lawyer, if that will help him. ; Mr. Dive is the type of man TAra'naki usually sends to Parliament —slow, serious, not particularly well'informed, and scorning the niceties. If Taranaki. is true to its traditions, it will' agree that as Mr. Dive would be the least suitable in any other electorate, -he"ial the thing for Egmont." the newly erected boarding establishment in connection with! the, New Plymonth High School was thrown open yesterday afternoon for 'public inspec- • tioh, and many persons ,availed themselves of the invitation of the' Board of Governors. The building, which has already been described.'in our columns, is designed on 'up-to-date and hygienic principles, and came in for much favorable comment. It is fitted up oil a generous ,scale, with ample provision for the future, and is replete with all modern conveniences. The boys .are well looked after, and are afforded every facility for private study. Although it has only been established a few weeks it already houses a number of boys, who, if appearances count for much, are a hale and hearty family. The want of Kueli an institution has long been felt in '(connection with the High School, and it is not unreasonable to expect that when it becomes more widely known many more parents will consign their boys to its care. Tt will make for an esprit de corps which every school prides itself on, and in more ways than one should prove a valuable aid to popularising the New Plymouth High School. Prime Minister told a remarkable tale at the dinner given by the Wellington Chamber of Commerce to its new High Commissioner, the Hon. T. Mackenzie. He bad in his hand, he said, a foolish pamphlet which had emanated from the High Commissioner's office, and which lias been paid,.for, he pointed out, by the .people of New Zealand. He. went on to quote from the pamphlet. ''New Zealand has a responsible Government." That, said Mr. Massey, was news for the people of New Zealand. The pamphlet also said: "It should not be overlooked that New Zealand is almost entirely peopled by Britishers, and, therefore, the English language is spoken generally throughout the country." Tliat, said Mr. M assey, is news for the people of New Zealand issued from the High Commissioner's office. The pamphlet went on to say that in New Zealand the newspapers were printed in the same language. (Laughter.) That was what the High Commissioner had spread broadcast, practicallv telling the people that the Evening Post was printed ill the English language. (Renewed laughter.) "Don't you think with me." he asked, "that it is just about time we reorganised the High Commissioner's department and placed a capable man at its head? And I believe that in the Hon. T. Mackenzie we have found the very man we want." (Applause.)

The Minister for Defence (the Hon. James Allen), replying to a question ad- J dressed to him by Mr. Escot (Pahiatua)f in the House of .Representatives, said the Government had decided to grantfree railway passes up to 100 miles to competitors at rifle meetings, as formerly.

The issue of season tickets to persons travelling on the railways second'class, with the same proportionate reductions as arc granted to first-class passengers, was suggested by Mr. Okey in a question addressed to the Minister for Railways. Mr. Herrics replied that provision was already made in the tariff for the issue of first and second-class season tickets. Where, however, the rates for secondclass tickets exceeded the prices of the all lines annual tickets, which had been lived on an exceedingly low basis, the passengers were given the benefit of the lower rate. It was not proposed to issue second-class all lines tickets, as in order to do so it would be necessary to increase the existing rates, which were unremunerative.

At the. monthly meeting of the Hawera Borough Council on Wednesday evening the following motion was carried: "That in the opinion of the Hawera Borough Council the report of the Commissioners on the proposed railway or tramway in South Tnranaki does not ( pay sufficient attention to the large and increasing traffic between Kaupokonui and Ilawera, and that the proposed railway route will not meet the requirements of this most important section of' the traffic; that the Commissioners did not take notice of the proposed deviation of the route from Inaha to the Beach, thence to Tokaora, and that this route not only provides an easy grade, but opens up a seaside resort, and also gives jiccess by rail to the. deposits of shingle at the beach, a matter of great imgprttance to farmers and to Manaia and Hawera, and that the objection he brought before the Government."