LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVI, Issue 219, 16 March 1914, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Over 4000 motor cars are registered in C'hristchurch at the present time.

It is reported that two train-examin-ers on the railway station at l'aekakariki won the first prize in a big sweepstake in Australia.

Wanganui citizens must be considered amongst the most public spirited in the Dominion. Their latest phase of generosity is the subscribing in one afternoon of £302 towards the District Nursing Fund.

Rabbit-trapping in the Ilimatangi Downs district is a very profitable industry just now (says the Manawalu Standard), some of the trappers making as much as £3 a day. Most of the rabbits arc marketed in Wellington. Saturday's weather was hopelessly against sports of any kind which could not be played in a steady and hopeless drizzling rain. Bowls, cricket, and tennis fixtures were accordingly postponed in the hope of better weather next week.

The recurrence at frequent intervals of unusually cold snaps from the south appears to indicate an early winter (says the Dominion). On three occasions in the past'fortnight our "Indian summer" has been intruded upon by really sharp-sot "southerlies," sometimes accompanied by rain. A Feilding telegram states that Mr. •lusto, a wealthy agriculturalist from Buenos Ayres, on Friday visited the High School boys' agricultural cam]) at Almadale, near Feilding. He gave an address to the boys and, after investigating the work they were doing, said he had a son at Washington Agricultural College, America, but the work being done at Almadale was much more thoroughly valuable thar. that at the American college. We beg to acknowledge receipt of a copy of the jubilee number of the Otago High School magazine. It is a very interesting publication, showing by pen and picture the marked progre-w made by the school during the fifty years of its' existence. Among its scholars are men prominent in public, professional and commercial life of New Zealand, and it is worthy of note that several members of the present Cabinet own the O.H.R. as their alma mater.

Among those who witnessed the first ocean-to-ocean ship pass along the Panama Canal (says the Manawatu Standard) was Mr. S. Osborne, son of Mr. E. Osborne, of Palmerston North. Mr. Osborne, junior, has been, in America for some considerable time visiting various places, and he was fortunate enough to be at the canal when the first ocenn-to-occan passage was made. He also saw the second passage, and was among those who rode on the big gate at Oatun lock as it swung open to let the boat through. Munificence in remembering his employees characterised the will of the lately deceased head of the big American dry-goods ihouse of Altman and Co. Much to the surprise of the employees, who had not been ltrade aware of the detail, some 4AO of them were called into the office one at a time and presented with individual cheques ranging in amount from £IOOO to each of those who had bean in the service for 35 years, to £SOO for each of those of 30 years, etc. The total sum distributed aggregated £200,000. A carelessly loaded cart was responsible for what nearly developed into a serious accident yesterday morning. A young man was driving down the Henui hill from New Plymouth in a light spring cart loaded with pieces of timber and ladders, protruding over the front of the vehicle to the horses head. About half-way down the hill, the hone became restive at the constant knocking of the timber, and bolted. Just across the bridge the driver fell off, luckily escaping injury, while the frightened horse "galloped on until a pedestrian managed to stop its career. The American Society for Thrift some time ago announced that it would award a prize for the school pupil who sent to it in Chicago the best definition of "thrift," and also for the best narrative Irf an individual instance of thrift (says the Newark News). At least three times as many girls as boys entered the contest; it was a pupil in the high school at Warren, Pennsylvania, who won the first prize for her definition of thrift. Hazel Haag, the prize-winner, wrote: "Thrift is management of one's affairs in such a manner that the value of one's possessions is being constantly increased." It is a popular notion that the mere fact of sleeping in a tent is a healthy thing. But this is not so. A great deal depends on the tent, as Nurse Rochfort pointed out on Tuesday in dealing with consumption and its prevention, at the Tuberculosis Dispensary (states the Christchurch Press). A tent which was fastened down all round was practically hermetically sealed, and did the person sleeping in it more harm than good. The tent which would do any patient good was one which would allow a free circulation of air by reason of one end being open and the sides rolled up. Unless the air really got to the patient, indicated Miss Richfort. the mere specific of sleeping in a tenf was of not the slightest use. Farm life appears to be fascinating to some, but to the woman it is often a ease of drudge. A case in point was ventilated in the Hawera Court, when a woman named Louisa Locker proceeded against her husband for persistent cruelty to her and her two children, and she applied for a separation order and the guardianship of her children. In the course of her evidence she said that she was married Beven years ago. Trouble commenced over the work. In addition to her household domestic duties, she was obliged to assist with the milking, feed the calves and chop the firewood. She used to go into the shed between three and four in the morning, when she milked 25 to 30 cows out of a herd of 112. She had to milk the same number of cows fin the evening, and did not finsh until close upon 8.30 o'clock. She was obliged to milk up till the night before her first child was born, and three weeks later she was in the shed again. When asked as to what money he had given her during the past six years, she replied: "One pound—nine shillings on one occasion, eight shillings on another, and three shillings on yet another." She had to rely upon her mother for money, from whom she got about £lO. Tire defence was a denial of cruelty. The husband maintained that the children were in a dirty condition, and on more than one occasion he had to sponge them. Tf he ever refused her money, it was because he had not any change. TIME. TROUBLE, MONEY SAVED BY CHECKING YOUR BAGGAGE Through us. Our Checked Baggage System saves you time, because you have neither to take your baggage to the train nor from it. It saves you trouble, because you are entirely spared all handling of it. Time and troublo considered, it saves, you money, too. We collect, check and deliver baggage immediately on arrival. Th« N.Z. Express Co., Ltd . _ j a £* ' . ,™?j

Considerable- interest was taken y l -- terday in a large party of native* Win were journeying from Waitara to Parihaka per traction-engines and trailers. Owing to the scarcity of water in the Waiugongoro river, the Hawera Electric Lighting Company's plant is being almost solely operated by the Diesel oil engine installed as an auxiliary some time ago.

The new carriage built at the Petono workshops far his Excellency the Covernor was given a trial run last week. The car, which is beautifully furnished, has three compartment. It was attached to a I'ahnerston train, and after a very satisfactory run was returned to Wellington.

What the natives describe as .1 "white tohunga," a woman, has been attracting many. Coast Maoris to Auckland for treatment of ailments of any kind. "Pilgrims" who have returned to their pas have been warm in their praise of the "cures" effected, and the indications are that many other natives will proceed north for the treatment of real or imaginary ailments. A Dunedin telegram, in recording the fact that the Government training ship Amokura arrived at Port Chalmers on Saturday morning, and anchored 200 yards from the shore, states that one of the lads, who had only been on tinvessel a short time, attempted It) desert by the somewhat crude expedient of swimming ashore, but he was discovered and picked up by the ship's boat. China contains WO millions of people -China is half the size of Australia. Tnilia contains 317 millions of peopleIndia is half the size of Australia. Japan is one-eighteenth the size of Australia, and contains, according to the last census, 51,592,342 people. The Australian continent, with nearly three millions of square miles, at the 1911 census (including colored men) contained only 4,4.')5,005 people. A little girl, s'/ 3 years of age, was knocked down by a cyclist when leaving the school grounds at Masterton one afternoon last week. The child had her face badly cut and her lip was split to such an extent that a doctor had to be called in to stitch the wound. The cyclist did not even wait to ascertain the nature of the child's injuries, if any, but proceeded on his way as though nothing had happened. The Hcnui bridge was the scene of a second accident on Saturday evening. Mr Parker, of Fitzroy, wa3 driving his car down the llenui hill, when the wheels skidded on tho greasy road and he '.lst control of the car, which swerved and crashed into the side of the bridge. Fortunately, he was driving slowly, so tne occupants of the car were uninjured, and the only damage was a badlysmashed front axle.

At a meeting of the session of the Duncdin Knox Church, the following resolution was carried:—"That the session leara withn regret that the practice of having funerals on Sundays is increasing. It expresses its disapprobation of the practice, involving aa it does a serious encroachment on the time and labor of ministers, and instructs its own minister to decline Sunday funarals except on occasions of necessity or extreme urgency." At a special meeting of the executive of the Hawera Tradesmen's Association held on Friday, the following resolution was carried unanimously: "That this Association, in view of the lack of unanimity of tradespeople as to closing on special holidays, declines to grant any further applications for same, and in- future will adhere strictly to the statutory hours of closing and the holidays provided for in the 'Associations rules—New Year's Day, Good Friday, Easter Monday, Labor Day, King's Birthday, Christmas Day, and Boxing Day, and also from noon of People's Day of the Hawera A. and P. Show.

A serious accident befel Dr. and Mrs. Parkes, of Auckland, on Tuesday afternoon, near Stratford. The doctor and his wife, have, during the past two weeks been making a motor tour of the North Island, and they were returning via the West Coast through Taranaki. Fine weather and an absolute immunity from mishap of any kind had characterised their trip until Tuesday afternoon. The liual stage of the journey was to have boon a run to New Plymouth, there to catcli the West Coast steamer for Auckland. It was while running down from the mountain house at Dawson's Falls towards Stratford that the accident occurred. While the car was negotiating a fairly steep incline at a good speed, the steering gear failed, and the car was precipitated with great force into a bank. So great was the impact that the front part of tho car became embedded in the earth. Mia. Parkes was thrown right through the wind screen out over the front of the car, and the doctor was also shot out. Mrs. Parkes sustained a fractured arm and other injuries, but the doctor was fortunate enough to escape unhurt. Although suffering severely from shock, Mrs. Parkes was well enough to be taken by her husband to New Plymouth, where they caught tht steamer, and arrived in Auckland nei! morning.—Star.