LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 302, 31 May 1915, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The Taumaromui by-election will take place on Juno 15. T.ho Eltham Borough Council Is considering the question of takiny a, poll for constituting a Fire Board. For the Belgian relief fund Kaponga raised £.277 lis Sd, tlie expenses against this amount being JCU Os (id, j Money is evidently "tight" i» CliriJichurch, as two local vaudeville liousea and one picture hall have closed don*. As the, result of a plain and fane/ dress hall field at' Cardiff Jad« week £l2 will be handed over to tlio local patriotic committee. Tlio South Taranaki Bacon Company has applied to the Eltham Borough Council for a license to slaughter aheep and cattle. A special committee is to report on the matter. e We are in receipt of a parcel ot pil-low-slips for tue hospital ship from Mrs. C. Parker, of Wat'ea. We. have duly handed the parcel over to Mrs, Burgess, of the Victoria League,. A Belgian flag made by Miss Matson, llawera, who was formerly in Stratford, has been presented iby her to the Stratford Patriotic Committee. It will ba sold in aid of the hospital ship fund, together with a pole donated by 'Messrs Evans and Ticbion. At a meeting of tha Taranaki Provincial Scottish Society, held at Stratford on Friday, it was decided to organise a social and gift auction, the proceeds to be devoted to a special fund for the assistance of sick am} disabled troopers returned from the front. At the Police Court on Saturday two men, John Power and 'Walter Kendall, were brought 'before Mr. A. Crooke, S.M.. charged with behaving in a disorderly manner in a public place while drunk. The first-mentioned was fined £2, or in default three weeks' imprisonment, and tile latter £4, or one calendar month's imprisonment. The ladies' committee in connection with the fire brigade ball met on Friday to make final arrangements for the function, which is to be held in the Coronation Hall on Thursday, June 3. There are plenty of supper dishes promised. Tickets are going off very well, ana everything points to a large attendance, as usual. An Opunake visitor to Hawera to see the Opunake contingent off was presented with a Cloth of Gold rosebud. lie suggested selling it for the Opunake Belgian Relief Fund, which was accordingly done, and it realised the magnificent sum of £*2o Is. 'He has banded the amount to the Opunato Belgian Fund. —Star. It was recently reported that the Wellington Hospital required the services of doctors and probationary nurses. Many applications resulted and the authorities now announce that as they have, many waiting appointment there is no need to call upon tne services of any below the age limit, namely, 21 years. The Defence authorises,have received 1 cabled advice that the 4th Reinforcements, which left Wellington oil April 1.7, have arrived safely at their destination. The health of' the troops am». horses was good. There were no cases of serious illness, and only a small percentage. of the. horses were lost. The children of the Eltham District High School are working very energetically on 'behalf of the hospital sdiip. The girls are making bandages, handkerchiefs, pillow-slips and other necessary articles. The money to buy the materials was collected by subscription, the children throughout the school being asked to bring one penny. In many, cases t]ie children 'brought a larger amount. Many of the articles have been completed, and the work will be going on for the next few day r s.—Argus. Major McXaught, group commander, Taranaki district, said at Hawera on Friday that he was quite satisfied tha; the men who had been selected for *hc front would do their duty as soldiers. He would like to make an appeal to those who had not already enlisted. There were 110,flD0 men between 20 and 4./ years of age in Ke.w Zealand who were eligible lor service, and of that number so far 21,000 had responded, The Empire was "up against it," and required the services of all who could possibly go to the front. The "prophet" Rua, who created a , stir on the East Coast some time ago by his crusade, partly religious, has just fallen into serious trouble. He was

Mharged at Whakatanc with sly grog selling by selling liquor to natives, anc some variants of this offence, and as hi had previously been convicted of a simi lar offence and ordered to come up foi .sentence when called on, he was now ordered to gaol for three months. H< had the effrontery to tell his follower/ that the imprisonment he had to under go ''is nothing but a trial of your faitl in me, and t.o institute some 'blaapheni' ous parallels." Newspaper advertising is the royal highway'to wealth. It is the vital principle which makes for success in any business anywhere. Whenever you find a great business leading in its particular field, you will find that its success has invariably been achieved by scientific, purposeful advertising. Ask any successful business man for the basic reason of his position, and by what medium lie achieved it. He will tell you that it was by becoming known to everybody, or, in other words, publicity | by means of tlie newspaper with the large circulation. Tlie Daily News covers tlie whole of Taranaki and has the,best and largest circulation. Several commercial men in Dunedin express surprise at the statement made b.v the Prime Minister that there is going to be a shortage of oats in New Zealand, and that prices will be high before next autumn. It is thought that such an announcement will have a tendency to precipitate speculation in oats, with tlie result that farmers will bold on to their stocks, and that the public, will be called upon to pay high prices long before there is any real scarcity. The feeling among buyers appears to be that if the Government can do nothing to prevent inflaof prices of grain and foodstuffs nothing should be done or said to precipitate it. A local lady (says the Waitara Mail) acknowledges the receipt of the follow'n!, r Irom an anonymous cnrresTiomlent: "Many thanks for feather. Happened to show it to a young lady to-day, who ro-ojfiiNitl the writing. I have expected to hear that you have volunteered as -nurse, but then asain you are a hit (iwkwai'd. However, I hope your fowls dnn't feel ihe cold this weather; you will have to get; some bacon if they 'h.ut lay. Surry 'i have had to keep waiting long for a, reply, but did I'.il. think you we're so common.'' Kvidently (here are some, white feathers Willi distributed in tile town, but the !j■ iPi e:;t. ol the letter lias not taken part, in the distribution, and her fowls lit home happen to be black. The writer of the letter evidently keenly resents the white feather being sent to him, but puts up no defence against what is implied.

An area of land containing <yrer 17,000 acres, in tho Kaipara district, and situated to iiiio north of lviiipara harbor, has icon sot' aside by tho GoTcraniant as a sanctuary fur imported and native, game. There are a number of lakes on the l)loek, but apart from these tho area is mainly composed of sand. The Hon. H. n. Bell, Minister of Internal Affairs, stated recently in Auckland that for the ■present the block will serve aa a means of protecting the numerous (birds that , now abound on it. In the courn; of tiino the Gorernment may establish hakhorie* on the reserve and otherwise develop its suitability for the purposes of a sanctuary for gams of yarious kinds. The Stratford County Council has applied for the consent of the Governor to , erect a toll-gate on the Mountain road, : on the Stratford side of tho Waipuku river, for tile purpose of providing funds for the maintenance of the road in the Stratford County, 'but before tha Government is prepared to consent to the proposal it is considered to be just that the adjoining local authorities should hare an opportunity! of being heard, and that if possible the cost of maintaining the road should be apportioned among local authorities ivhose traffic uses the road rather than that a toll-gate should lie authorised. Under these circumstances Mr. W. S. Short has teen appointed a commissioner to inquire into the matter. The inquiry will be held at Stratford on June 10. fT respectfully record my protest against that word 'gratitude,"' declared Mr. A. M. Myers, M.P., at a gathering of members of the Overseas Club at Auckland on Monday night, referring to the word vrhich both Mr. Asquith and Mr. Bonar Law had used in expressing the nation's appreciation of the services Xcw Zealand had rendered to the war. "England owes New Zealand no gratitude," said Mr. Myers. "The Mother County's cause is our cause; we , have a common inheritance of freedom. Wo have common principles to assert ' nnd common interests to maintain. We | are bound together by the closest ties of sympathy and affection. We would indeed be a craven people if we took all the privileges and protection which the Empire has afforded and shirked our responsibility in the time of peril. With the greatest respect, I object to that , word 'gratitude'—it was our duty..While ■ We appreciate the sentiment, we should . prefer that our action should bo regard- . Ed as an obligation which we are proud , to fulfil, rather than an act of grace which we are pleasqjl to perform." i A 00ft. addition, together with ex- , tensive alterations, makes Aula's Genuine Re-building Sale a necessity. See the Ladies' Keady-to-Wear Felts and ; 'Black Velvet Hats (were 10s 6d to 15s ' Od) for 6s lid.