LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 297, 25 May 1915, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The proceeds of the dance to be held ■in the East -End Pavilion on Thursday night will go to the Xew Zealand hospital ship fund.

The East End Pavilion lias been offered to the New Plymouth Patriotic .Committ-ao as a convalescent home for wounded Xew Zealanders.

Timaru reports that the Borough Council last evening decided to increase the general rate from Is 4d to Is lid (rateaole value system). \ Lieutenant C. W. Crutch will he in charge of the Defence Rifle Club instruction class, to be held this (Tuesday) evening. It is hoped all members will be present.

Yesterday was Empire Day, but in view of the national situation the occasion was not niarKed by functions. Elags 'were flown and a holiday l was observed in the schools. Whit Monday, one of tho few British oank holidays, this year came on Empire Day.

A conference of representatives of the Hawera, Stratford and Xew Plymouth Agricultural Societies was held at Xew Plymouth yesterday. The matters discussed wore detail questions in which the three societies were endeavoring to fall into line, no matters of public interesting being dealt with.

Mr. E. J. Doare has .rather a novel idea wliicli he has fitted in the window oi his hoot shop. This is a slot through which donations for the hospital ship, and later for the Belgian fund, may be dropped. The idea is that pedestrians and children can drop in. donation*, however small, at any time. Up to date the fund has reached 275.

Plans have been prepared for extensive .improvements towards .beautifying the East End bathing reserve, and the plans were considered at a meeting of the committee last night. On the hillside near the pavilion shrubs are to 'be planted and seats erected, while on the level a handsome 'bandstand will be erected. On the cast side of the river it is proposed to provide a lake 30ft. by 80ft.

Umbrage being taken at what was deemed to be an unpatriotic wording ot an advertisement of a Sunday evqning lecture by the llev. Chappie at the Unitarian Church at Timaru, a large hostile crowd assembled at the hall, hut, acting on advice, Mr. Chappie did not appear, and the gates remained locked. Mr. Chappie is leaving for an Almerjcan appointment shortly.™Prcss Association.

One of our horses is a candidate for the Victoria Cross (writes a lance-cor-poral to his schoolmaster at Leicester). It is a true story of animal devotion. The troops were charging at the time, and as one rider fell from his horse, wounded, the animal picked him up with his mouth by the clothes and carried him away to safety, where other men of the regiment were resting.

A resident of Tomuka has a novel kind of pet. It is a two-year-old paradise duck. The bird will allow children to play with it, and has become as domesticated as a cat. One day last week it took a fancy that it would like a change, so went to the runway station, about a mile from its home, and had mounted the platform of a train about to start for the north, 'when it was recaptured and restored to its owner.

According to the Woodvillc Examiner the value of wine at present stored in the Te Mata wine vaults is estimated at £100,001). Most of the hospitals in the Dominion now use the wine of this establishment, and business is yearly increasing with these institutions.' Owing to tho drought experienced last season tho output was only half the usual average, but tho grapes were of the finest quality the company had ever harvested.

Advertisement from a recent Opunake Times:—£s reward will he paid to the person first giving such information tci the police as shall lead to the conviction of the "Herman or Germans" who maliciously tore down and burnt up my front gate, destroyed the wires of front fence in twenty places, set fire to pine plantation and otherwise fired with the object of burning me out on the night of February 23.—AY. H. Claris, Bleak House, Lower Waitaki road.

The usual weekly meeting of the Egmont Lodge (No. 112) 1.0. C.T. was opened by C.T. Bro. F. it. l'eppcrell last evening. The following officers were installed for the ensuing quarter:— P.C.T., Sis. Mrs. Legg; V.T., Sis. E. M. Thompstone; fin. sec., Bro. T. F. Pepperell; treas., Sis, D. Blanchard; sec., i>ro. N. G. White; ass. sec., Sis. B. Watson; mars., Sis. Bruce; chap., Sis. Beilhy; sent., Bro. Reckitts; pianist, Sis. B. Watson. Bro. Pepperell remains in office as Chief Templar for the next quarter.

Dr. Tolhurst, Mr. McCaw and Dr. R. Stout joined the medical stall' at Trenthain camp on Saturday. The lighting of the camp is unsatisfactory at the present time, the buildings generally being dependent upon oil and candles, while the lines are inconveniently dark at night. The Minister for Defence stated on Saturday that the Public Works 'Department iiad been instructed to arrange for the installation of electric lighting in the camp. All the buildings already erected or now under construction will be connected with the current.

If any evidence were required of the advantages of the system in force securing a thorough inspection of all meat killed for human consumption, it was provided at the Hawera abattoirs last week. A well-conditioned cow, weighing 7001bs dressed weight, was slaughtered, and furnished one of the most shocking cases of tuberculosis whjch could Ue imagined. Every part of the body was badly affected, and the remarkable thing was that, notwithstanding her terribly diseased state, she was quite fat, and apparently otherwise in good condition. Needless to say, every care was taken to have every 'part of the carcase destroyed. But 'the incident opens up the difficult question of whether all cows, whose milk may be supplied to the public, should not be regularly examined and thoroughly tested.

The inspector's report on the Stratford school states that the regularity and punctuality of attendance was very good. For the year 27 first-class anil 40 second-class certificates of attendance were awarded. One boy. Wedgewood Boon, had an unbroken attendance for six years. The school time-table was very suitable, the discipline, order and tone of the school being very good. The rooms, outbuildings, grounds and general appointments were in a very satisfactory condition. The committee had carried out extensive improvements in the grounds. The inspectors awarded the school eighty points out of a tdtal of one hundred for general supervision, •condition of buildings and other appointments. The efficiency of the school -33 very sn;;s.;;ctc"7.

For some years farmers at Nuhaia liiive been losing many sheep and: cattle, j but owing to the distance from (iisborne and Wairoa the offences have not been detected. Police activity at Nuhaka has reunited in tile rounding ;;p or a batch of sheep-stealers. A constable was out for many months watching near some whares, but only on April 17 did lie succeed in witness!!);; the burning of a v.liare with -10 skins, tbo removal of blood-stained hoards where sheep hud been killed, the making 0/ a -lire and the burning of skins. When the-natives implicated left, the constable secured the half-burnt skins and took all the ears oil'. After a long hearing sit Osborne, Mr. Barton, S.M., convicted three Maori;-, and sentenced them to «ix months' imprisonment. Two others who pleaded guilty received a sentence of two months' imprisonment;, and a woman probation for 12 months.

To the average pakclm, Maori folk love is invariably interesting, frequently fascinating. Those ancient customs—tapu and makutu—die hard, and as a proof please note the great gathering of natives on Sunday morning to assist in tlie unearthing, or the. rediscovery, of a mouri, at 'Urenui. A mouri is a stone on which the old-time-'Maori engraved his autograph,- or whatever was the then equivalent. This marking of the stone was a very solemn and religious ceremony, conducted by some illustrious tohunga, who. was a'professed spiritualist; in fact, he, was looked upon as a miracle-worker,■ able-to "call" up spirits from the vasty -deep. During the ceremony each member of the tribe, while appending his signature-, called upon his gods to cur-se- tlie- locality (person or object), placed under the ban of makutu, the period'of'which greatly varied. Should a bad'man,, to wit, tamatu tato, remove the monri, the curse (makutui would continue until the mouri was replaced. Hence tlie Maori rendezvous at Urenui. The monri has been recovered, and the curse has been stayed. Kapai! Plenty patiki now, plenty cnonga soon! 'Pacrewatu!—Waitara mail.

T)r. Porritt, in reply to questions by the Wanganui Chronicle, declared that tile mutter of providing nurses for the front was being looked at in the wrong light altogether. Trained nurses and doctors were imperativektneoded at the,front, and the people of New Zealand' should' be glad_to put up with inconvenience i>v order that the men at the front might receive the necessary skilled' treatment. Dr. Porritt pointed out that there was a large number of girls, and' women in New Zealand who were holders of certificates in ambulance and nursing work. They were, eating out their hearts because 'they could not go to the front, and the authorities should allow them to enter the hospitals, so that trained nurses could be released. A certain number of trained nurses in every hospital were -necessary, of course, but, with the assistance of the girls and -women mentioned, much smaller trained staffs than were now employed would suffice. Of course, there would be inconvenience, but, concluded Dr. Porritt, "what is the greatest inconvenience we esm suffer in this country, compared with the misery and' suffering of those who are giving their- lives so that we may retain our many blessings?" Dr. Porritt mentioned that there wore about forty ladies in Wnneranui holding St. .■Tohn Ambulance certificates who would be glad to act as he had suggested if they were given the opportunity. A young man in a North Canterbury settlement, who has just joined the re--inforcements, very properly consulted his father and mother, who live in Christchureh, before volunteering. This is the reply he received, a permission and a blessing which sent him light-hearted-ly to the recruiting officer to do his duty to ins native land and to the Empire"We received your letter to-dav. You gave us rather a difficult question to answer. However, when the matter is honestly considered, there can only be one answer. Your mother and I have discussed the question and have decided that ;>e cannot ask you to shirk vour duty to your country, and to vour manhood. i\Vc are very sorry "that the position is so grave and terrible as, ;o lead you to the decision voir Have arrived, at, and we find it hard to "ive .Vou our consent to volunteer. But we are face to face with the fact that the J'-mpire requires some thousands yet, so we have decided not to stand in vour way, if you feel that you ought to <*o -Now I presume you have considered the dangers and hardships vou mav be called on to face. If you' have taken nil this into account, and still fee! it your duty to volunteer for service we give your our consent, praying that God will guard and guide you and make vou an honor to your regiment and vour country _ Your loving Father 'and Mother.'

Petono products are famous for excellence and value. Here are a few striking examples at the Melbourne Clothing Company's:—Flannel, per yard Is; men's large flannel underskirts," only 3s fid; knitted socks, lid, Is, and Is 3d; saddle tweed suits, 30 3 fid; grand knockabout suits, 37s fid; hushmen's navy knitted Kinglets, is fid; wonderful 'travelling rugs, "finest in the world," 20s fid, 30° 30s fid, to 59s 6d.