LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 12, 2 June 1914, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

A dightly inebriated gentleman created & disturbance at a meeting of a laborers' union in (the Town Hall Last mighlt, and his frequent interruptions ibeing resented he was politely but finyiHy removed to the stair landing, and after a. short but wordy altercation he departed.

Mr T. L. Buxton, secretary of the local branch of the New Zealand Society of Accountants, forwards a copy of the society's prospectus fop 1914, giving, among other inj formation, the syllabus of professional examinations and of tihu exani'inaitivui .for book-keepers. Ooipies may -be obtained from him on application. Complaints are being made a.s ito the condition of the street leading from the gravel pit at the back a? the gaol. The street is full of holes, and the canity which continually carry gravel over it for the Borough Council do not improve matters. It is suggested that a little gravel in some of the holes woiu'd al least effect some improvement. One of the council's carts is reported to have been nearly "bogged" there yesterday. The Taranaki County Council intends to go into the. question of replacing the old wooden bridge over the Timaru river at the Beach road with an up-to-date concrete bridge. The matter was brought up at yesterday's meeting of the Council by Cr. C. Andrews, who referred i to the treacherous nature of the river,' and the dangerous condition of the present bridge. The County Inspector is to supply an estimate of "the cost of the work to next meeting of the Council.

The Fukekura Park Board discussed last night tJhc advisability of utilising the moneys recently raised by subscription in draining the swamp between the band rotunda ami -the tea rooms, w:ith a, view Ito formimg a cascade of water there, and extending tlie liiy pond near the batdhcries by excavation and planting the embankment with yoimw ferns, Mr Oocik, the chairman of the board, in bringing up the maltter, advocated systematic expenditure of public subscription in spcc'iflc imrovemonta .of that nature. The fißitor for 'tihe month will confer with (the curator oat the matter.

The premises of Mr Hellrer, of Wai;t»ra, were burglariously entered on Sunday morning, tihe tiil being rifled' of four shillings in coppers.

The Buikekura Pork Board desires m thank Mr William Arthur for two dozen large leaved tainui pjants, and an anonymous Taumarunui donor for native pliant seeds. Tho Borough Council arc .proceeding vigorously with tlhe work of installing tho water mains at Wesltowm. A gang of about twoniy-fivc men are employed making the necessary excavation.

The total Customs duties collooted during May by the New Kjimouth collector (Mr J. 11. Hempton) amounted to £3015 lis (Vd, excise dluty £7l 6s. In May, 1913, the duties amounted bo £3802 0s Sd, ibeer £66 10s. Few people realise how rapidly the natural foresits of the world are being used up. For the making of printing paper alone vast areas are annuauy devastated. One acre of spruxM) fwe.it yields about six tons of paper. There will be a special meeting of the Taranaki bounty Council On Thursday next, when the council will inspect the Waiwakaiho bridge, with a view to deciding on repairs as recommended by the inspector (Mr R. W. Bond.). During the monlth of May there were 35 births, 8 marriages. and 9 deaths in the district of Plymouth registrar (Mr J. S. S. Medley). For the j corresjponding month last' year the staj tistics were: 39 tiirths, 7 narriagea and 14 deaths.

The following notice appears in tihis week's Gazette: Empire Day will be celebrated on Wednesday, June 3, tli" anniversary of the birthday of His Maj&ity the King, and thait day will be observed as a public 'holiday In the Government offices throughout tilie Dom

.irnon. One of the largest hauls of fiallii caught in recent years, off the entrance to Porirua harbor, arrived art Paremata on Thursday. The catch included, several classes of fish, and was so- largo that "the fisferman's large launch was insufficient ■to accommodate the load, and a dinghy had also to be utilised fof the purpose. The catjch constituted over 1400 bundles. • "The wing of tar on our roads is going to solve the diusit problem, as far as motor cars are concerned," said a Councillor at the Masterton Borougii Council meeting last week, Eltlham local bodies have found tar capable of insisting ta solve a much ntare difficult problem than this, viz,, the financial j problem, adds the local paper. A Licensing Bill will !be brought down next session, a Bill framed in the interests of tlhie No-license parity. But as it will not be a party measure wo do not think it is likely to pass all its stagea. It is never safe to predict unless you know, sio we slhlafl nolt venture upon prediction, but merely exprees the opinion ithat there is a grave possibility of the Bill meeting with a muoh regretted, serious Occident in committee. ■Such things do occasionally happen to debatabf.e measures. —U'thara Argus. What might be termed a marvellous performance has just been accomplished by an e.x-Wlanganui gji'rl now residing in O'hristohuwilii, states the Wanganui iierald. Miss Kobler, an enthusiastic motor ) cyclist, arrived in town last week on a J visit 60 her parents, having covered the distance from Wellington (147 nines) on her machine without a single mishap. Jit was Miss Kobler's intention to make tihe return journey in the fastest pos-iilble itimo, but the roads <at present undergoing their winter gravelling prevent (this, so probably an attempt wili be wade early in the following summer. Mr. Oi'ton Sltev.enpj, a victim of the railway accident, had engaged a berth in one of itke other cabins, but finding that there were several unoccupied Iberths, 'he asked th'e attendant to l allow 'him 'to use one of the two-berth cabins In TOsponae to this request he was moved from- the last compartment; which woa >(jhe one that alm/ost escaped injury, to the middle of (the carriage. The luggage carried by the passengers apparently served to protect soone oi them from more serious injuries they received, for examination afterwards showed 'tiha,t several suit-civcs and their contents fhad received the greatest force of the shattering timber. A Chinese wutnessa appearing in a civii action in ithe Wellington Magistrate'.. Court yesterday evidently had a deeper respect for the loath administered to him t.ian many a European who has occupied tile box. Whatever siajtcmentat he had made in the past, he wag evidently de termincd, whi!e in the box, to teCl the "truth and nothing but the truth.'' This, however, proved rather disconcerting to his solicitor. '"Did you -not Bay that to rnc 011 Monday." asked Counsel, referring to a certain statement the Ghinaittan had made to him. "Yith," replied tlbe Oelesjtial naively, "I say that when I see you last Monday, but when I come here I must tedium truth." Sweden's new naval programme, which includes! the construction of eight baittleshiips, wilj impose an enormous burden on a country ijhlat ail-ready is paying a very heavy bill for defence. Tile scheme of universal service in force in Sweden require® every man to serve with Ithe colors for fjiosn eight to twelve months, and provides an army of (100,000 strong in a population of approximately 5,500,000. A ibatttehip for whicilii the nation has paid by means of voluntary »übscripitions ig under eon struction at itilie present time, and Sweden possesses some soivicMibi'e coast-defence vessel* and a large array of torpedo craft and submarines. Yet the Swedish navy can never present a really formidable faxmt to a Artf-cUss Power. Some interesrt ha# been caused by a story of the discovery of diamonds by a resident- of Opotiki, who -hat# refused to disttase the locality in which- tinstones are Mid to have been found, The opinion has been expressed (says an Auckland paper) that, the iiiwler has just recently (eft the employment of the New Zealand Sulpibur Company on White Island, 'it was mure than iprohable that 'the sltones, which lie is said to 'have been informed on good aii--tliority are genuine diamonds, were found upon the island. Examination of the sand 111 the alluvial drift* on Whit.Island has shown it to be of a diamond bearing cthava-eter, and, ill addition, ->ev -cral very small olivine.*, minerals asso ciated with diamonds, 'have been discovered. 80 far as the New Zealand fWphur Company, which' is carrying 011 weraitiona on the island >' aware, no genuine diamonds have ever been secured from the locality.

QUICKLY DISAPPEARS. "All last winter I Oiad my twa bovs ill with rery bad eolds," savs Mr. ft. Archlrold, No. 1 Baker iitreet, Le.wisham, N.S.W. "Having heard from a friend about Chamberlain's Cough Remedy T gave it a trial with the result that the coltls quickly disappeared. My baby, aged four months, has a cough now and I am giving him Chamberlain's Oouijh Remedy and there is already l a decided improvement." Bold by all chemists and storekeepers.

"The bottom has not falle» out of T;i i'aiiiilii l.nul,'' said an auationeer at the land halo in Hawera ©n £ftuturday. Hi: added tlbat he believed iiS would yet go up to £IOO per acre.

The Eltliam OaWiolic Church, vftic!i was recently removed from the old sit» to it/he new site in Stanners street, and whidh has been considerably enlarged and improved, was reopened on Sunday by ibis Grace Archbishop O'Shea, There was ji veiy large ewnigregation, the church being filled. An address of welcome was presented to llis Grace by iur Ij. B. Grimstone on behailf of Che parishioners. His Grace administered confirmation ito about «ixty candidates, A collection in aid of the building fund ■was ta-ken aip, and amounted to over £IOO.

Butter, says the annual report of the National Dairy Association, has now to nx'et tlh« eompcitiiti'on of margarine. This article, which is now extensively advertised, is perpetually forced upoai the notice of the public, and offered for sale without thie slighted conjunction. A few yc&vs ago iit was kept in the liackground, buit now it is pushed forward and attention directed to its eJiea ) pne?s and suitability as a food. BecentSy the manufacturers l of ina.rgarine obtained a pronouncement from a leading scientist |wiat margarine contained all the eon•st.iiuenta of buittcr, the result bfting that many lasge contracts, hitherto filled wiith butter, are now satisfied witHi margarine instead. Its comparative cheapness and general get-up render it a ferioua menaco to the sale of genuine ibutt/er, These remarks, of course, are applied to the United Kingdom and not to Uie Dominion.

A tragic death occurred last week in the ibuflli at Pirinoa-, near Mjiitinborouglhl, the victim 'being a boy named Franciis Forbes Camming, 17 years of age, who belonged to Pailimersiton North. With a companion, he was out on a slWooting expedition, the pamp being situated in dense bush nmtong the hills. On Thursday morning Ciunming left in search of pigs. Heavy follcwed by mist, came on and he did not return. The settlers in tihe vicin:tty were arowed, and for dare a Search, was made. Yesterday the body was found. Apparently Gumming lost all sense of direction, for his tracks were found, showing tfliiat he had walked in circles, tearing down the grmvtth which obstructed his (path. Trees bearing 'lbJazefi" made by him were discovered. When completely exhausted, he apparently lay down to die, but marks on the ground showed that lithe unfortunate boy struggled before I oblivion came.

The invasion of nearly ail the great European countries and tfli'o United States by whiat iB known as the poster stamp has been noted by the Australian postal authorities, and an order has boon issued to postmasters throughout the Commonwealth ithat writers of letters will be permitted to affix stamps of tliiis description to the back of their envelopes. The poster stamp ft primarily useful for advertising urposes, but in their design s* of ticai are of Interest from an artistic point of view. GAnnuany is said 'to have produced the first specimen about a-year ago l ,'but it is well ,within tile recollection of many Australian business men that it made vta. appearance in Australia long before the first Oerman prodniction was ever thought of. being used by patriotic manufacturers for the purpose of fostering local industry. Be that as it may, itherc seems, says the 'Melbourne Argils, a bright future for Australian artists in designing Mumps to su : it local business requirements.