LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVI, Issue 163, 9 January 1914, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The chief guide at Mount Cook reports having seen the first of the chamois this season. The animal, he slates, was in good condition. During the New Year festivities at Dannevirke hooligans set the machinery of a motor ear going, with the result that the mechanism raced, and set fire to the car, doing about £SO worth of damage, A settler informs a contemporary that the potato crops in all parts of the'Xovth Island he has visited lately are badly affected by the blight, and he predicts high prices for tubers later iu the year. Similar reports come to hand from the South Island.

By a regulation published in the Gazette, schools in tirade V. to V 111.11., inclusive, an assistant will be substituted for a pupil teacher from the beginning of tlio year. Probationers are also to be paid .Co a year more than they have been entitled to in the past. An elderly man had an unpleasant experience at a boarding-house in Auckland 011 Thursday (says the Star), lie was walking past a fellow-boarder, who, in a playful spirit, stuck out his foot and tripped the other. Tlu- result was a fractured arm and a rest at the hospital. The Mangaweka papers says a wellknown sport returned from the Mnrton races with thrfepcncG and a "tole" ticket! ''llard to pick," was a common remark 011 racecourses during the Christmas and Xew Year holidays, which was a lair indication of the successful way the handieappcrs had done their work. Labor agitators in San I'raneisco tried hard to bring about a boycott of the Monna's '"arbitration" cargo, when the vessel was last in the C'alifoniian port, but their eloquence failed. Meetings were addressed on the subject, but nothing occurred to delay or hamper the work of discharging- and loading the vessel.

l.'p to date lil'ty-one specially chartered steamers have arrived in Wellington' since the strike with oversea coal. The latest to come into port is the tram]) steamer Hallete. The vessel brought about 7000 tons of coal to discharge at Wellington. JSy the end of next week the total amount of coal imported into Wellington since the strike will be about 00,000 tons.

There is a great scarcity of radium at the present time. Dr. W. 11. Ilosking, of Masterton, a few days ago cabled to the well-known London firm of Xiemen and Co., ordering .t'l2oo worth, lie was astonished and disappointed to receive a cable stating', "I,'liable to supply; scarcity." Radium has risen considerably in value and is now .CIH'2O a grain. <jold is worth only -d a grain. A report which lias had a limited circulation to tile ell'eet that the State co:il mines were not to be re-opened, was relerrud to the Hon. W. Vrascr, Minister of .Mines, on Saturday. Mr. I'Vaser said there was no frulti whatever in the rumor. "The Slate eoal mines," lie said, "Will be re-opened when work can lie carried on in a satisfactory manner, and I hope to see thi-> made posMble very shortly."

The Mayor of the little Ohio township of Marion would m'ciii to be a student of the (lilherl and Sullivan operas, lie recently had before him a man accused of stealing eggs, who was found guilty. The Mayor sentenced him to live dav's' imprisonment., his diet during the period of incarceration to consist of nothing but the stolen eggs. "I hope I will never see another egg," were the prisoner's heartfelt words on his rclea-o. In the course of an interview with an Auckland Star reporter, the chairman ot the Auckland Harbor Board (Mr. I'mison) said: "Various works are being carried out by day labor at an estimated co.-.t of CI I),OHO. The experience of the Hoard bus been that il is to its interest lo carry out Ihe work by that system. At the present time the board is'building wharves, sheds, and carrying on dredging work all by day labor. The outside stall' of workers at the present time is 400, apart from the permanent oilieials in the harbor and tratiii; department."'

[ A tangi is at "resent being held at i'apawai over the remains of Tula Niko niho, who died in Carterton last week. The deceased, who was a chief of the Ngati-l'oroii tribe, Cisborne, Hast Coast, states a country exchange, fought on the British side as a captain in th" N'gati-Porou Native Kill,*, during the suppression of th' llaii-llau revolt, and the disturbances caused by Te Kooti. I'or his .-crviccs he was thanked bv the Now Zealand (lovernmcnl, awarded the Xew Zealand war medal, and presented with a sword of honor bv her late Majesty, Queen \ ietoria. For some wars prior to his death, the late chief,' who was an authority o'l Maori caning and ■'.nliquities, was i n".'ged collecting .specimens throughout the Domiii'on for the Dominion .Museum. The funeral will lake place at Kaiapoi. Caiitc-burv. where his widow and family reside, ■Mr. .Alfred Scil'ert. Ilaxmiller, of I'almerston North, who returned from a i'-ip to ling-laud via America bv the It.M.N. Moaua, which has arrived at Wellington from San Francisco, inl'orue.J '' reporter (hat he found t hat tile bonus • I '..12.01]|) ollci'ed bv the Covernment, ior (he discovery of an improved method of treating New Zealand llax had created » gnat deal of interest amongst invent"is in Knglaud. Of course they were handicapped in experiment ill!.' in consequence of beiun' s„ f ;lr ilw . lv f,. (ini , 'aw material. Mr. Seifert beard comI' mills in England that the color of the ■(ripper slips (a variety of Max tow) was not what the manufacturerswanted. bi'i;:« much too green. It was stated' Mint if the si ripper slips shipped had been of the color of ordinary low the demaiid for the product would have oonfinucd.

•Inst the thing for Boils, Pimples, Heat Spots, etc., Sykes' Sulphur and Sarsaparilla Salts, easy and pleasant to take. Price 1/0 per bottle, Sykes* Pharmacy.

Thu annual report and tin i sheet of the South Tniftiiaki Bacon • <■■■ pany arc now being ciiuilnied, aud *•>•! he presented to a meeting "f hli.:rci.m : its on the 17tli in-tt. Tiie halam v-shw 1 shows u clear profit, for fii" tcn-moiu period of £1737 5s 4<t, whieli il i- jiro posed to distribute anions siippi.ers bj paying ail additional ! J4'l per 11) on p. ! .supplied. This will mean per ll> during the strike period, anil .VXi>' f ur the rest of the period.

The hot weather lias interfere:; »«w siderably with shearing opeiations ill South Taranaki. At two sncds at least on Saturday and Monday hurt, operations had to be suspended owiii? to iii ' exrevive beat prostrating and actually killing a number of sheep The ulucp ar« carrying unusually heavy fleesej. owing to the delay in shearing caused by the strike, and they are in no condition to stand being penned up inside u sbeil for any length of time. .Vlr. E. 11. Uilev (General MaW of Railways) told a reporter on Wed- , nesday that the speeding up of the' Auckland and Napier express trains was a ■ difficult and complicated matter. la dealing with the . n Trunk time., table, the Department had naturally to consider almost all the ij'orth Island system, as the branch lines had their junctions on tbo Weli.iigton-Auckland line. The whole matter was under the Department's consideration, Mr. lliley added, but no one could expect radical changes next, month. The National Dai 13 Association of New Zealand has rece'red the following cablegram ft'rom .Mr- Elison, the Association's London repiesentative:—"The Athenic's butter arrived ill .{rood condition. The cheese was a lit tlu heated, but not seriously.'' The Athcnic was the first steamer to get away from New Zealand with dairy produce after tho commencement of the recent strike. The cheese bad suffered to some extent before getting 011 board the steamer, owing to being delayed in railway trucks and sheds.

"A teacher runs the risk of being heavily lined when being promoted," said Mr H. A. Parkinson (Wellington) during a discussion ut the Tducational Institute meeting ij Auckland upon a motion that the t-*aiisfcr expenses of teachers should he raid by the Department. He stated tliat it sometimes took u teacher two years to make up in additional salary ' his transfer expenses. Many other instances were given by delegated, one of whom stated that when railway .-,' mints were transferred, the Department bore the whole of the cost.

On February :1. (lie Supreme Court will determine whether Mr. W. 'J'. Jennings, ex-M.l\ for Taumaruinii ai.-d liguiont, will he permitted l» retain his teat, on the Waitara Harbor Hoard. Mr. Jennings has occupied a position oil the lioard .-ince 100;}, being reappointed by the late (Jovernment in 11)11. The grounds of the objection are that Mr. Jennings' name, was r.ot oil the roll that was compiled for th;- election. A request from the Minister for Marine in June last for the member to resign his seat was declined. The ivMinister for Marine (the. Hon. ,1. A. M.iUr) and the present Mini-ter (the Ho;:. F. M, B. Fisher) will be subpoenaed i>y the defendant to the action. >

At Pa tea on Tuesday night, the Rev. .1. A. Luxford, of Wangaimi, gave an address on "Old l'atea," reniiniwcnt of his ministry in that town over 33 years ag'o. Mr Luxford recalled many of the interesting lui;;pening's of thosQ days, and compared the conditio:!* then picvailing with those o! to-d.'.y. Incidentally iio mentioned that i.;' 18S-t the Waimate Mains were sold. Capt. Wray being the auctioneer, and some of the land bringing; a* much as fl2 per acv». This was a high price in thit time, but since then the refrigerator rod the separator have worked wonders, so that today the same land is decnici! to he cheap at five times f!2 per acre, hi 1881 Mr Luxford was the only Wesb-y.in minister between Wanganni and Nev; Plymouth, whereas at the present (iir . there are eighteen men covering the srme ground.

.Some amazing facts with regard to the prevalence of "sweating" among women workers were placed before a conference in London a fcv. wciis ago. Ilxpcrts staled that more : nan Hill),(H)0 women engaged in earned less than lis for „ full week's employment. In Loudon f:v n ories some women earned (is a wee'., and many thousands received Ss to -is a week. Several typical women w,, kers appeared before the conference am! -dated their own case. A matchbox m..ker said she was paid :ld a grass, and could make four gross in „ix hours. A skirt-maker said she. and her liiisbam! 'had made fourteen dozen shiiis bv v diking continuously from ,"i.:;ti a.m.'lo ' I p.m. The gross payment was Ills (id. mid Ihev had to pay Is In.l for ctlon .n,d Is lid for Ihe machine. Hevclation- / f this kind are siidicient to an-nnn! lor a vast amount of "industrial uj. • -t" in the Mother Counti'v.

An Aii-itdiiiii existence by tin; hihabilills o( l.ord liow. slimK who «>•(' "I'lwl for fii' cxlrcnH' \.iidliness of their disposition*. nitd lor !w ; sinijilirity of their lives. An <'.\;iii!]ii,- of (he f,,,'-. ini'r vluracteristic was pini. by Mr. W. W. Kro;;j,'iiU. New Sif.it •, VViilcs novcriimciil Kiitoiiu>lo«Wt. «; the uminal nieetinir of (lie (inula -tp of liird I .overs in Sydney recently, Air. K'lilt sit it! that dnriii;; hi* .ccent vi-'il lo thu island lie li.id been Mnick will] the remarkable lameness ■ ! the birds with which tin* bush aboun.ifd. As one walked through the Imsh they hopped familiarly around. «aily >-,-i;t p'injr .their little soiifi.s of welcome. They would actually feed out of o»e% i,;,iiil*. This was because they were hoit molested, and to the islanders il sr.:-; : .ed notions* out of the common that t i. Mrds should lie as free, homely and s,iK-::i'd as theni--clvcs. The thro wiiijr of „ si one at a bird in the island would i,e regarded as an oU'enci'. Keccnik ae. died or who had obtained specimens of binN on Norfolk Island had t.: l.ord llmve Island fore .similar pnrpns". hut the resident!!, who were later on hacked up by the (loveriimeni. hail vented the "massacre'' from taking |l,