LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 34, 30 June 1914, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

"This week I drew £5 2a 7d. On an average I get £4 a week," declared a wharf laborer when giving evidence in the Magistrate's Court on Saturday.

At a dinner in London last month Sir Bobert Baden-Powell, referring to the action of the colonies during the South African war, Baid that for hard workers tiie Canadians could not be beaten; for locality and for never being lost, the Australians surpassed anything he had previously witnessed; but the New Zealanders were the bravest of them all.

The pinnacle of perfection in pictures and picture projection has surely been reached in the "Prisoner, of Zenda," now showing at the Theatre [Royal, and, in view of the crowds expected tonight, patrons will do well to secure seatsi eauly. Special incidental inusic »s played by Mr Arthur V. Carbines, the popular picture pianist.

A company lias been formed in Englandl to distil motor spirit—said to be not benzole and to bo equal to petrol —from coal, and that can Ibe produced at iy 2 d per gallon. Perlrapaj this is too good to be tiue. If not a wonderful impetus wift. be given to the use of internal combustion engines. Even if it is but approximately true something equivalent to an engineering revolution is in Night, tor with cheap m'o'tor spirit many agricultural and other operations now carried on 'by 'the aid of horso power will be more cheaply pea-formed 'by motor driven machinery.

Two brothers namer Peter and John McLaughlin, belonging to Waipuku, Taranaki, went to Wellington about a fortnight ago, presumably each with a large cheque. On Friday, while walking down Upper Willis street, it is alleged under the influence of liquor, Peter McLaughlin slipped, striking his head heavily on the pavement. He was removed to the hospital, where he died at a;bout 11 o'clock. It is thought that death was due to an internal injury. The brother was arrested by the police on a charge of drunkenness, and was remanded for a week for medical treatment.

Members of the North Taranaki Mounted Rifles from Waitara, who were competing in the gymkhana at Hawera, had to come home without their horses (says the Mail). On Thursday night, after the sports, the animals were put in a paddock adjoining the Dominion Hotel, with the intention of entraining them on Friday morning:. But on Friday morning the horses were nowhere to be seen, and that day and the next were spent in a fruitless aeaTch. The four animals missing are worth quite £IOO, and the owners are naturally anxious. There is some idea that the removal may have been done by way of a joke. If it is meant as such the perpetrator must really have a curious sense of humor.

There was a large and representative meeting of adherents to the Catholic Church in the Holland Hall on Sunday evening. The main question discussed was the agitation of the Bible-in-Schools League for a referendum. While the meeting was strongly in accord for a recognition of the Sacred Book, there was a strong opinion that the agitation was not warranted. Olie Sjpea'ker suggested that, following the example set by the Prohibition Party, tho Catholics of New Zealand should send a delegation from this Dominion to march on to Parliament, asking that the violation of conscience of a minority of the citizens of New Zealand should not be countenanced by the Parliament of New Zealand. The suggestion was agreed to, and it was decided that at least one hundred delegates should be sent from Taranaki.

Reports from Ascoli-Piceno, Italy, give details of a fatal conflict between the mountain populations of Umite and Vallecchia. .'For many years past a bitter feud has existed oyer the right of pasturage in a strip of neutral meado>wland which separates these two hamlets. It was observed at dawn that the shepherds of Vallecchia had brought their flocks and herds to the disputed territory. Fierce resentment was roused, and representatives of the leading families of Umito rallied 300 men and cut off the shepherds' communication with Vallecchia. A few followers, armed with shovels, rakes, scythes, axes and guns, Moved forward stealthily to the attack early in tlie afternoon, while the herds* men were dozing beneath the trees. A terrible onslaught followed, and the fighting was so fierce that when, two hours later, a detachment of infantry arrived, the "oattlefield" was covered with the wounded and dying. The chief farmer of Vallecchia was found with his head completely severed from the trunk, and hard by lay the corpse of his aged father, whose skull had been battered in. Of more than fifty wounded, ten were so badly injured that they were not expected to survive. Troops whieh were sent to TJmito to capture the attacking force were met only by the womenfolk, the entire male, population having fled to the most inaccessible mountain heights so as to escape arrest.

Wireless telephone communication between, say, Sydney and Wellington is not a mere dream, according to Mr. E. T. Fisk, of the 'Amalgamated Wireless, Ltd., of Australasia, who is in New Zealand just now. In the course of an interview with a newspaper representative, Mr. Fisk bad something interesting to say on the subject of wireless telephony. Mr. Fisk made it clear at once that wireless telephony was no longer to be regarded as a scientific freak. Very rapid progress was being made in the science, and with the improved continu-ous-wave systems, gradually being perfected toy both the Marconi and Telc--funken companies, telephoning by wireless was now reaching the stage of a commercial proposition. Experiments had shown, said Mr. Fisk, that wireless telephony was going to 'be of great service over long distances, and there seemed to be a good prospect of it displacing the present trunk lines of ordinary telephony. Tests recently showed tha.t the voice sounded much more clearly through a wireless telephone apparatus over a distance of, say, 150 miles, than through the ordinary wire telephone trunk line. It did not take a very great prophet to forecast that Australia and New Zealand would be linked up by wireless telephony lin the liot-fai'-distant future. He thought that it was well within practicable prospect. Mr. Fisk added that the ships of the Italian navy were now being installed witli wireless telephones, and it was to be expected that this method of communication over long distances, especially over rough country and over water, would come into greater use very short! v.

In connection with the Haweva gymkhana weight-judging competition, two persons juilged the correct weight, 1901bs, and divide t'le Ji.rst and second prize money, £3 3s, and five others, as follows, were within hftlf a pound of the actual weight: 11. H. Street (New Plymouth), H'Olhs; S. H. 'Williams (Tokaora), 1901b>.; Miss M. Carry (Hawcra), 18))%lhs; M. Rudkin (Hawera), W/ji-bs; E. P. Oox (HaweTa), 181)%lbsj A. Langtou (Opunake), 18l)y 2 lbs,; Mis® Owen (Disraeli street, Hawcra), lMy^hr.

The Dunedin correspondent of the Auckland Star states that the Otago Harbor Board has completed arrangements through a local broker for the sale of £50,000 of 4% per-cenl. debentures at a satisfactory price. i Some big deals are being made jin hotel goodwills in Sydney. Mr. H,' S. Wdsscl has disposed of the goodwill and lease of the Courthouse Hotel, Oxford street, to Mt. J. 0. Peterwn.-for £17,000. This sum nearly approaches the record price which is 'held by the First and Last Hotel, Circular Qbay, ■which was sold last year for £22,000. Mr. Trautwein paid £10,500 to Mr. Mayman for the hotel property at the corner of King and Pitt streets.

The sum already spent by the Hutt Rivi'r Board in protecting the river banks, amounting to about £40,000, has proved of immense advantage to the district. In the upper river area a, considerable amount of protective work is urgently needed. Acre after acre of valuable land is heing swept away by each succeeding flood, and the necessity of extending the protective works is becoming so acute that it ie proposed to ask the ratepayers to sanction a further loan.

The youngest newspaper in NVw Zealand is the Waiuku Advocate, avhich blossomed into being on Thursday last. The proprietors are Mefßrs R, J. Barnes, formerly associate-editor of the Hhwera Star, and W. C. Cargill, «.\-proprietor of the Paten Press, and more recently of Stratford, who own the Pukckohe Times in adjoining territory. Mr W. H. Hutchinson, mlso nn ex-Taranaki journal-, ist, is the local manager. The "Advocate" jg a we>M produced sheet, and if the standard of excellence of <th« first number is maintained it must speedily become what the enterprising proprietors in their introductory loader hope it will ibe, "so in'omative and interesting that it will find a place in every home." It is understood that the Dominion is likely, through the initiative of the Prime Minister, in his capacity as Minister of Agriculture, to have a visit from two distinguished experts—Mr. A. D. Hall, M.A., who was a director of an agricultural college in England, and subsequcntly the director of the Rothamstead Experimental Farm; and Professor Wood, of Cambridge. Both men are distinguished agriculturalists. Mr. Hall, at the instance of the Asquith Government, accepted a position on the Development Commission, and it devolved upon him to make arrangements with the Board of Agriculture to further the agricultural education of England. The Government has offered to pay their expenses, and it is almost certain that they ■will visit New Zealand, in which case they should be able to give very valuable advice.

Unpleasant c'iscoveries were made recently by the Federal Postal Department, when it wt;s reported that certain postal note 3 hid been cashed 'twite. Investigation snowed in certain instances that postage stamps had been placed over the stamped portion of used notes, and that money had been paid twice tor the amounts represented. IA, parson who cashed two notes was detected, and sentenced to a term of imprisonment, ■but that was »i% the beginning of departmental action. As the result of investigation, it was decideid to prefer charges against two officers who had been in tSie service for a considerable length, of time. A (board q£ inquiry was appointed to deal with their cases, and one of the officers has been dismissed from the service. The board is now inquiring into the charge preferred against the other officer.

Mr. C. Cater Scott, chairman of the London General Omnibus Co., presiding at the sixth unnuai dinner of that company, gave some figures indicative of the phenomenal growth of motor 'bus traffic in the metropolitan area, jj e stated that last year the company's motor 'buses carried 576 million'persons, which was equivalent to 100 journeys per head of London's population. The fares amounted to £s<ooo,ooo and tlie wages to £1,500,000. The company's staff numbered 18,000 men and 20,000 including the staffs of allied companies. The company posses** 3000 Tmses, and 10,000 drivers and conductors. The buses worked over 500 miles of route and covered 105 million miles. It may be added as supplementing the above information that some 2,600,000 aw reported to have motored in and about the metropolis on Easter Monday. As a result of the agitation some little time since regarding the price of bread in Oamaru, (says the Mail) the committee appointed at one of the meetinga of consumers have now consummated their efforts in the way of preparing for the formation of a co-operative bakery in the town. The prospectus of a com- ; pany to be called "The North Otago Cooperative Bread Company," has been registered, and shares are now on offer to the public. The capital of the company is £IOOO, divided into 2000 sharcß o"f 10s each, payable in two instalments—namely, 5s on application and 5s on allotment. The promoters point out that their object is the supplying of good bread to the public at a reasonable cost, and safeguarding the interests of the consumers against monopoly, and also, as the company is not formed for a monoy-making purpose, that all profits will be returned to the shareholders and cash customers in the way of bonuses, thus ensuring that the consumer will receive his staff of life at the minimum price.

Says the Timaru Post of recent date: A woman passenger by the first express from the north tlhis morning created fwnowhat of ,i sensation at the Timaru railway station. Having got off the train to speak with friends, she evidently overlooked the fact t'hat the five minutes warning bell is now a custom of the past, and consequently when tl,•> train started) in its way to Dunedin the fair passenger found heil<elf about two ■lengths to tflie bad behind the guard's van. Things immediately happened. W'ith a dash and screams worthy of a militant --ufTrngette she hustled" nnd bumped tho ciLwd on the platform ns she sprinted after the fleeting "train. Porters who rushed to prevent her 'trying to board the train were unceremoniously brushed aside until the forsaken one was cantured by the stationmaster. She. vouldi listen to no reason, and threatened generally, whereupon Mr. signalled the -train to stop, and a smilins and thoroughly appou •■<•,! female was led to her carriage, and i unit of the- New Zealand Government Railways was allowed to depart on il-i way in peace.

Mr Newton King advertises some goo,! grade and' Jwscy cows to be sold by nirtinn ot. next- Waiwa'kaiho sale on account of A[es-rs W. G. Stanton and C. 0. lfawke.