LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 148, 17 November 1914, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The French Parliament reassembles on December 15. Senators and Deputies serving with the colours will be given leave of absence in order to attend.

A Woodville farmer, in advocating the claims of clover, said that ho put 15 of his cows on clover for a couple of hours on Monday evening and again for an hour on the following morning before they were milked. Tlie result was that their milk increased by 551b9. in weight—almost 411)3 each.

Field-Marshal Sir Evelyn Wood, V.C., in a letter read at a recruiting meeting at Felsted, Essex, advised all who were able to be prepared to take military service. Sir Kvelyu added: "I have three soldier sons now serving. If I am called upon to sweep the crossing at Whitehall, I shall say, 'Right you are; give me the broom."'

The farmers of Clutha are giving five sheep out of each hundred they possess, to bo frozen free of charge by the Clutha Freezing Company, as a donation to the Relief Fund for the poor in Great Britain and Belgium.

The export of butter this season already exceeds double the quantity ffhip- } ed during the corresponding period of last season, during which shipments were made aggregating 41,11 id boxes, cornin ising £2,336 boxes to Lcr.don, 17.778 boxes to Vancouver, 7'ti'2 boxes to the l aeiiic Islands, and '290 boxes to South Africa. The approximate value of the exjiorts of butter this season is &24,\450. At a meeti gof the executive ol t:;s

The Paliiatua Herald tells the follow-1 ing in all seriousness:—"The cold is so 1 intense in some parts of Canada that on ' one farm Mr L. T. Herbert -visited re- . cently he saw, cows with their ears and j tails frozen off. The temperature in places is 00 degrees below zero, and fowl houses are put underground. JOver. tinm the fowls run the risk o! having tiieir toes frozen off when they ioost on the perch, and the .eggs, too, have a narrow | 'escapes of being frost-bitten." i The concert which was to have been held on Sunday at Messrs Sole Bros.' j te.Tutiful grounds. Aotea.'had to l>epost- i iponed owing to the unfavorable weather I This proved a disappointment to some \ 'two or three hunired people who j lad assembled early. The concert will, j however, be held on Sunday next, 1 weather permitting, when the collection will be divided between the East and West End Seaside Improvement Committees. The grounds will not bo thrown open to the public until 2 o'clock, as it is found that small boys running at will about the gromds do considerable I damage, thoughtessly. to the paths, 'banks, etc.

At a meeting of the executive of the j East lEnd Bathing ltescrves Committee, ■held at the conclusion of the annual meeting last night, it was decided to al once call tenders ior enlarging the ] iivil ioil by another Il&ft, and also for erection of modern sanitary conveniences. It was depided to accede to the Kquest of the campers 011 the reser\c anil rnstal water, and, if possible, electric light. The arranging of the musical programme for the year was left in (lie hands of Air. l.en. Smith. It was also decided to 'hold a 'monster picnic with C.iledonian sports included, on the reserve on New Year's Dajr

Albert Dorrington writes from London to the Auckland Star: —"Leave them," Bismarck once said, "nothing nut their eyes to weep with." It has remained to his chief desciple, William the Goth, to promulgate this doctrine of war. Tlie burning of Louvain, the Zeppelin bombs at Antwerp, the bayoneting of children, priests, women and girls at Ardcnne and jfuy, have put the. seal of the Red Indian all over the German (Amy. I have seen photographs of Prussian outrages, taken by American and Dutch officials, and the one thought evoked by their ghastly testimony is: What form of punishment shall Europoi mete, out when the day of reckoning comes to these lie.line.ted beasts of carnage and death?

"Without the scourge of war, national (labbiness would be hard to cure," writes -Father Day, of Preston, in his church magazine for September. "Indeed, the disease is gaining 011 ourselves, and 110 doubt certain symptons led the Germans to believe that the malady was far advanced. Wo have now to show them that we can shako ourselves into full manliness again. Without war we might even be betrayed into an easy-go-ing apathy, receiving all the advantages that accrue to us from belonging to a great empire without any effectual desire of making an appreciable return of gratitude. War at once rudely reminds 119 that these streams of good things may ebb as well as flow; that it is for eacli of us not simply to enjoy them for himself, but also to safeguard them for generations of Englishmen and Englishwomen yet unborn,"

Probably the Esquimaux nearest the North Pole, the pigmies in the hidden jungle of darkest Africa, and the giants of Tatagonia, have all heard of the great war which is convulsing the earth, and yet there is one man in the. world who is working quietly away in the bush, almost within a day's ride of Gisborne, who knows nothing of it. About the end of .Tunc last two mates made their way into the heart of the back country on a prospecting expedition, and tlie.y hardly heard sign or sound of man since. On Friday, one of them arrived at an outlying Poverty Bay township in quest of stores, leaving his mate in the camp, says the Gisborno 'Times. The bushy man from the backblocks was soon told of the war, but wouldn't believe the news until a Gisborne Times had confirmed it. He is now coming to Gisborne for a stock of newspapers, and his mate, still peaceful- j ly ignorant of anything untoward will,, if all goes well, iearu ilie news about j Wednesday next.

I The following amounts are to be paid out till is month by local dairy factor-ies:—-Stratford £(>BB4, Ngaere fiMGS, Lowgarth £1044, Cardiff £ls4o—Post

' Before til king steos to advertise vacancies on the leaching stall' of tli, School, tlie Board yesterday decided to appoint a- special committee to go into the question of salaries. Ai other committee was set up to go into tl)e question of urgent requirements for the leys' school. The band committee met last night night to deal with the tenders for instalments, uniforms, and satchets. Several tenders were it is understood, received, but pending decision on a few details, nothing definite was arrived at. It is expected that tenders will be finally accepted in the course of a day or two. ' A general mooting is called for this evening at the West End gymnasium at eight o'elodk of all persons interested in the improvement of tlie fcreshorc between the Belt road and the breakwater. There is an exceptionally fine stretch of beach ill this locality for bathing and seaside enjoyment and fjliis oilers special facilities for beautifying and improving. Wc hope to sea a large gathering of workers and supporters so as to give tho association encouragement to proceed energetically with the improvement of the foreshore and entertainment of oar seaside visitors

At a meeting of the High .School Board yesterday considerable Jisr>u<.sien took place relative t.» the preparatory classes, loth Mr Moyes, the principal, and llisa Grant, (he headmistress of the Girls' School being asked their views, particularly as to whether there should be an entrance examination or an age limit. Mr. Moyw strongly urged that the children of wealthy parents should be attracted to the school -uid remain there to tho end of their school course. Tlie preparatory school was, 1-e s-xid, the "apple ef his eye, <ml rtntained the finest kids we have." The matter wa3 eventually referred to a sub-committee to report upon.