LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LV, Issue 144, 5 November 1912, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

English and Australian mails by the Maheno at Auckland arrived here last night. - .

The. Taranaki County Council yesterday decided to join the Western Taranaki Railway League. The Pukekura Park Board met last evening, Mr. C. W. Govett presiding. The action of the chairman in giving 10 days' leave of absence to the curator ,(Mr. W. W. Smith) in order to enable him to visit Canterbury was confirmed. Mr. Smith left New Plymouth last Thursday. In voting the chairman (Mr. J. Brown) an honorarium of £IOO for his services last year, members of the Taranaki County Council yesterday highly eulogised that gentleman's services* to the County. Several members testified to his unfailing energy and ability, mentioning that the present satisfactory state of the roads in the County was largely due to his efforts. The Council was unanimous in its decision.

Recently an automobilist drove through the Puniho toll-gate without stopping to pay the toll of ss. The tollkeeper managed to descry tihe number of the car, which he immediately telegraphed to the County Clerk. The latter subsequently identified the car, and collected the toll. • At its meeting yesterday, the Taranaki County Council reviewed the matter, and discussed the .advisability of prosecuting the defaulting driver. Several members were inclined to think that, having accepted the toll, the Council had waived its right to further proceedings, and finally the meeting left the matter in the hands of the chairman to deal with as he deemed fit.

The Pukekura Park Board has secured a number of fine specimens of the Para Tawhiti, commonly known as the horseshoe fern. Mr. S .Percy-Smith says that this species of fern was probably introduced to New Zealand by the natives who migrated here. They were, he thinks, originally called "Para," at Tawhiti, but were designated Para Tawhiti in New Zealand, meaning "the Para of Tawhiti." This particular fern is fast becoming extinct, and the board thought it would be wise to secure some specimens before it completely died out. At its meeting last night a vote of thanks was accorded Messrs. Sole Bros., who secured the ferns from the natives.

Great Britain's action in the present War in the Balkans has been a policy of masterly inaction. Although her navy is apparently inactive, she is quietly concentrating the Australasian squadron. All leave has been stopped with the exception of Lieutenants Fairfax, Cunningham. Cuddy, and Grimston, of the firstclass cruiser, "The Turtle," who received special leave to assist in the production of "The Geisha" on Wednesday and Thursday next. A wireless received by the stage-manager at an early hour this morning, informs him that they are practising their concerted pieces on the main deck every evening after dinner, and are looking forward to the dress rehearsal on Tuesday.

Mr. J. McCluggage writes to the Stratford Post:—"l. see by your issue of the 2nd inst, the Government is reducing the men on the Whangamomona railway works, and by Christmas the. works will be practically stopped. If this is so, the Stratford and New Plymouth business people should call meetings immediately, and strongly protest against the stoppage of this important line. It simply means if the works are delayed at Wiis end and not at the Auckland side, the line from Ongarue will bo completed to Hie Ohura before this end readies Kohuratahi; then the whole of the King Country trade goes to Auckland, am! Stratford will suffer considerably through ill.-- loss of Imsiness. I would suggest i.hat the Chambers of Commerco at Stratford and New Plymouth should call meetings in this town. It is recognised toy the Department as one of the most important Hues in the Dominion."

An up-to-date public hall is shortly to be built at Te Kiri.

Companies which are gazetted as having gone into liquidation lately are the Town and Country Life Journal, Auckland, and the Tubeless Milking Machine Co.

The following Taranaki estates were certified for stamp duty last month:— George TunnicM, £1074; Robert A Gray, £1101; Ann J. Lawrence, £802; Robert Cross, £787.

A Maori girl, when wading on the seashore at Whananaki, near Whangarei, recently, was seized by a big octopus. Her cries attracted a "native boy, who attacked the horror with a spear, and, with the help of other natives, beat it off.

Mr. A. E. Sykcs has purchased 20 feet of the Devon street frontage of Messrs. Okey, Son and Arnold, which he proposes transforming into a first-class chemist's shop, on the plan of the latest Sydney and Melbourne chemists' shops. Mr. Sykes takes possession on the Ist prox. Lieutenant Mortenol, a negro, who is a native of Gaudelotipe, has just been promoted captain in the French navy. There are several Chinese officers in the French army, but Captain Mortenol is the first negro to attain high rank in the navy. It is noteworthy that one of the most brilliant officers in the French, army aviation corps is Lieutenant Bo Hu, a Chinaman.

An amusing postcard has appeared in Switzerland concerning the Kaiser's visit to that country. It shows the Kaiser interrogating a Swiss militiaman as follows:—"You have got 100,000 of these marksmen in Switzeralnd? Well, what would happen if I came with 200,000 Prussians?" "Then each of us would simply fire twice, your Majesty," replies the soldier.

An amusing episode occurred at WaiW the other day at the Central school. An assistant master noticed a boy evidently in some trouble. Asked what was the matter the boy complained tha,t Tommy B had called him "a bally arbitrationist," and the epithet had hurt some. "Well," said , the master, "and what did you say?" "Please, sir," was the tearful response, "I told him to go to h !" ■ Collapse of the master. Messrs Finlayson Bros., of Mangakahia, have sold 12,100 acres of their Nukutawhiti Estate to a South Island buyer. The increased value of this block during the past decade has been phenomenal. Once the property of the late Mr. W. Aiken it was on the market for £2OOO, was, in fact, onee offered free to the Salvation Army, and declined, and now, with its timber rights, is assessed at £50,000. Dr. Douglas, of Oamaru, writing from Edinburgh to a friend in Otago, says:— "We have been much struck with the growing interest in town beautifying everywhere. I noticed two days ago, while motoring through a mining and iron-working village of squalid conditions, that even there trees were being planted on the pavement of the main street, and in many places wrere footpaths are being laid down in asphalt, places are left for planting trees." More State enterprises are to be established in New South Wales. Already there are brick words, dockyards, lime kilns, stone quarries, irrigation farms, modern villages, and workmen's homes.' The latest proposition concerns fruit. The Government is to establish freezing works, by means of which it will be able to keep the meat market under control. It also intends to supply bread at a cheap rate than the bakers. New Soutli Wales will soon be a completely Socialistic State.

Sandy Alexander, a negro who has attained the great age of 111 and who was a servant at the White House when Mr. Folk was president of the United States, on September 6 married Susie McGhee, a blushing bride of GO, at Helena, Arkansas. The age of the bridegroom is established by his own record and memory of people who knew him seventy years ago as "Uncle Sandy," with tlrree grown-up children. Alexander attributes his activity and health to moderate living, but he is neither a teetotaller nor a non-smoker. He recollects vividly the British troops arriving in Washington in 1812, and the burning down of the White House and the Legislative Buildings. The first ascent of Mount Egmont this season wag made on Sunday by Messrs. W. McLaren and B. Joyce, of I-lawera. A start was made from Dawson Falls Hostelry at 4 a.m. and the crater was reached at 7.30. The descent was made on the New Plymouth side, and the party had rather an unenviable experience, being caught in a fog, which suddenly rose from the valley, while only 1000 feet from the summit. This necessitated staying on the ice for an hour and a half until the atmosphere cleared sufficiently to ■enable them to get bearings. This is the first occasion on which the mountain has been colled while still enveloped in its iwinter coat. The climbers returned to Dawson Falls the same evening.—Star.

The total value of the linen discarded in one year by the Union Shipping Company amounts to £IO,OOO. The usual stock held in the company's new laundry, at Wellington, ready to go away, may be roughly valued at £IO,OOO, or about equal in value to the yearly "discard." Altogether 30 persons are employed in the laundry —25 women and 11 men. With this staff the average output per day amounts to nearly 10,000 pieces of linen, the maximum for one week being 60,000 pieces. . The Maori, as a rule, sends 2500 pieces to be. washed, but in the busy season she often sends ashore as many as 4000 pieces. The Mauiganui runs from 7000 to 8000 pieces, and even to 10,000 in the crowded tourist season. But. in one day, the laundry is capable of doing the washing of any boat in the company's fleet.

To-day (November f>) is the anniversary of the raid on Parihaka when the Maoris were dispersed and To Whiti, Tohu and the murderer Hiroki taken prisoners. It was a hot sunshining day and the bayonets of. the volunteers on the hills surrounding the Maori settlement glistened in the sun, and when leaving the place in an express, the wife of Te Whiti took a good look round and remarked that she did not know there were so many people in all the world. On the way to the Pungarehu blockhouse Te Whiti shook his hand in farewell to some Maoris assembled on a bill near the road and shouted, "Kia manawa nui!" (Have a big heart). It has been suggested that members of the late Taranaki Mounted Rifles should have a re-union and ride match in commemoration of the event, but as the time is now too short to arrange matters the function will be postponed for a little, while.

You will be thankful that there ia • Drench like Sykes's. That is if you once try it. If you s*ave any doubt about it—ask your »«iigb.bor. We don't know if it saved any «ows of his last winter, but it saved a lot of cows—in a lot of places, and Jo quite a lot of times.— SYKftS. THE FARMERS' OffEMIST.-

Followers of all sports, whether active or passive, delight in the bracing effect of a bottle of CAMROO DRY GINGER ALE. As a non-alcoholic drink it has no equal; as a thirst quencher it is unrivalled. All hotels and stores. 6

One cow is nothing much to the number—more or less—in Taranaki. One cow off your herd is something to you —if you lose it. Many a farmer has lost one through neglecting some small ailment. Are you neglecting anv ailment with vour Vrd* If so see SYKES, THE FARMERS' CHEMIST.-Advt