LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, 20 September 1915, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The Government offices throughout New Zealand will be closed on Monday, 25tli October ('Labour Day).

Westport coal shipments last week were;—Westport Coal Company, 32H4 tons l'lcwt; coke, 28 tons 2cwt. West-port-Stockton, coke 3889 tons 14cwt.— Press Association.

"It is in your Honor's knowledge and mine that land in the Wairarapa has riser, six times in value during the past twenty years," said Mr. A. S. Mentcath addressing his Honor the Chief Justice in the Supreme Court at Wellington ca Friday.

The Rimutaka, which arrived at Wellington from London on Saturday, brought four valuable blood torses, including the stallion Setferino, for Mr. J. B. Reid, of Elderslie, and three yearlings, for Mr. W. H. Wanklyn, Ohristchurch. A valuable Southdown ram, from Mr. James Baker's farm, Luton Hoo, Bedfordshire, also arrived, consigned to Mr. A. H. Bone, Ellesmere. —Press Association.

'the annual meting of shareholders of the Omata Dairy Company was held at New Plymouth on Saturday. Satisfaction was expressed that the company had paid out 14d per lb for butter-fat, which is a very good return for a small company. The company has absorbed the Oaicura factory, which will be run as a creamery. Mr. R. Allen was appointed a director to represent: the Oakura suppliers; Messrs. J. Jury and G. Spence were also appointed directors; and Mr. P. Raill was re-elected chairman of directors. Mr. C. T. Mills was reappointed auditor. The Eltham Queen Carnival competition appears to be lacking in "ginger," if the following, culled from the Argus, 'correctly sums up the situation:-—"lt is to be regretted that the fact had to be recorded that a period of lethargy has apparently set in. The voting has been so light that it is little short of a scandal that so small ail effort is being mode. Of course it may be that each committee 13 'holding its hand.' It's a certainty, however, that each has not a 'full deck,' so that a card or two on the table would keep the interest jigging.'" At Wellington on Saturday, Lee Gee, a Chinese, charged with entering New Zealand without fulfilling the regulations, was fined £IOO and sentenced to six months' imprisonment, or such less time as may be necessary for arrangements to be made for bis deportation. He landed from the steamer Knight of the Garter, which was under Government charter, so the shipowners are not liable for the fine.

A Tauranga telegram says that the fortieth anniversary of the landing of the first Stewart Island Special Settlement Party, at Katikati, by the Dover Castle, and Carisbrooka Castle, from Belfast, on September 17, 1875, was celebrated on Friday night at Katikati by a concert, dance, and banquet. Over two hundred people were present, including many members of all three Stewart Special Settlement Katikati Parties. Mr. Geo. Vcsey Stewart, who organised and brought out the parties, and is now eighty-three years of age, presided at the gathering, which was a record for Katikati, and great enthusiasm prevailed.

A grand patriotic concert, in aid of the Wounded Soldiers' Fund, will be held in the Inglewood Town Hall on Wednesday evening. The programme to be prelitci! is a very line one and comprises

items from the besL amateur talent liveable. Till' services of Miss Pearl i Mi-. Rcnee Maud), Mrs. 'Phil Nathan, in,'l Miss Hirst have been secured, and l:>glewood amusement-lovers should deem themselves fortunate in Having the opportunity of hearing these ladies in their selections, while the popularity of their own town favorites should appreciably increase the attendance. The promoters of the concert should be rewarded by a bumper house.

The success which attended the opening of the Red Cross mart in Xcw Plymouth was completely eclipsed when the mart was opened for the second occasion on Saturday. Large supplies of useful articles were received, and throughout the day the mart was patronised by a great number of people, who were very generous ill their purchases. The sum of £2! l was taken, which is more than twice the amount realised on the opening day of the mart. The success of the mart may now be said to be assured, fat if £43 can be taken on two days it will readily be seen that the mart is going to piove a valuable medium for collecting money for the wounded soldiers.

We give our readers a reminder of thi: Euchre Party and Dance to be 1 eld in the Holland Hall to-night.

The jJow Zealand Loan and Mercantile

Agency Co., Ltd., Stratford, are holding a pig 'sale in their new pig yards, on Tuesday. 21st inst, entries for which will be found in our advertising columns, anil include some good young breeding sows in farrow.

Good dressing is not extreme dressing. Melbourne, Ltd., tailored suits are not intended to gratify the freaky and extreme taste that some men affect. But they are intended to gratify good taste, which exacts rich, refined, distinctive dressing. And this at a price at least sft per cent, less than charged by custom tailors.

A long-felt want in the nature, of a refreshment room is to be supplied by the West End Foreshore Improvement Society. On and after Thursday next tea and light refreshments will be available at the bungalow, Kawaroa Park, on Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays. 4 small charge will be made and aii profits will go to beautify this popular seaside park. The ladies of the society are vol* untarily undertaking this work, and it is hoped that their efforts will be appreciated by the public.

A Sydney cable of yesterday states that heavy rain was dislocating telegraphic communication. It is reported that Mr. G. V. Tate will be a candidate for the election for the vacancy on the Waitara West Road Beard caused by the resignation of Mr. Fusseli. A scheme hafs been started by some retidents of Vogeltown to appoint a Patriotic in that suburb for the purpose of procuring suitable ground in which to plant potatoes for the Belgians. A settler of South Canterbury has' come to Masterton to reside, as he considers the environments of the town second to none in the Dominion (says the Age). Evidently the settler did not visit New Plymouth! At the inquest held at Eltham on Saturday concerning the death of Peter Kecnan, who died the previous day after a very short illness, the medical testimony was to the effect that the cause of death was heart failure consequent on dysentery, and a verdict was record|ed accordingly. The Hon. W. Carncross I acted as coroner.

In our notice on Saturday morning ot the Vogeltown Euchre Party and. Dance that was held in the Good Templar Hall on Friday evening, it was reported that the music was supplied by Mrs. George's orchestra, and Miss Brewer. We are asked to state that the inclusion of the word "orchestra" was an error, Mrs. George, personally, and Miss Brewer kindly providing tie music. To advance the interests of Vogeltown, a Settlers' Association 'has been formed, and the first meeting will be held in the Anglican Sunday School at 8 o'clock tomorrow night. The promoters have several 'schemes in view and one of the most important is the provision of a motor 'bus service between Vogeltown and the town. About two months ag} the horse 'buses plying between Vogeltown and the town were taken off and since then there has been no suitable means of communication

An interesting addrc.« on "Salutes," wns given at the New Plymouth Brotherhood, yesterday afternon, by Afr. 8. M Fennel], Mr. W. Ambury presided. Mr. Fennell traced the early history of salutes and then led up to their development until he came to the salutes of today. The lecture was full of very interesting information, and Mr. Fennell brightened his address with several appropriate anecdotes. During the afternoon Captain Allen gave two recitations. A demonstration of a patent carbon remover was made at Messrs. Thompson Bros. 1 garage, Inglewood, on Saturday morning, when the patentee, Mr, J. Wilkinson, of England, fully satisfied those present that by his process, which is as simple as it is chc»\p, carbon can be safely and effectively removed. It is called the Vulture Safety Carbon Remover and the Taranaki agent (Mr. T. Nicholls), hopes to give a demonstration at New Plymouth early this week. Particulars will be advertised.

The records of the New Zealand laying contest at Christohurch show for the 22nd week that the Black Orpington pen has increased its lead to 42 eggs, the Nixon pen putting up a fine performance o! 39 eggs put of a possible 42. This is the strain that Mr. Tom Nicholas, of Feilding, has introduced into his yards this season. Up to last week the Orpington pens have an average of just on 457 eggs per pen as against an average of just over 385 per pen for all other breeds in the,contest. The second highest pen up to date is a White Leghorn with a total of 500. The Orpington pens last week came out with a splendid average of slightly over 35 eggs per pen.

Private W. A. Clarke, writing to his friends in Masterton, says: "My opinion is that the worst of the fighting is over here. The establishment of abase and the position of the artillery is a •big factor accomplished. One has to ■be careful, even now', on account of sniper? in the scrub; ibut I think we have nearly got rid of them up to the present line of trenches. We are in a very safe position from rifle fire, but they occasionally land a few shells on our trenches. Their shells, lam pleased to say, are inferior to ours. I have not had my clothes off now for three months, and, owing to the scarcity of fresh water, it is hard to get a wash." The prevention of stowaways is a question that is continually giving trouble to masters of ships passing through the Panama Canal. These men, who are mostly American soldiers stationed at the Canal, seek passages to Australia and New Zealand ports. They soon grow tired of the quiet life at the Canal. All the way along the banks, soldiers are stationed, and at one of tin; highest cuts, at Knipire, 500 men are in barracks. Guards are continually at the head of the clill' to prevent oonimuiiicalion wifli passing vessels, Iml not infrequently the men os,ape and board ships, which are perhap.- lying along the banks. The City of Corinth while proceeding to Australia had aboard four American soldiers who had stowed away while the ship was passing through the Canal. These men say that the life at the stations along the Canal is unbearable, and that none of the men can stand it for more than a couple of months. The following is an extract from a letter written by one of our soldiers at the Dardanelles to his friend in Rangitikei. The extract is specially interesting, as revealing the heroism of the late Chaplan Grant. The extract reads as follows:—"Chaplain-Major Grant wanders up and down the beach all day long helping the wounded, and llnds cheery words for everyone. He takes absolutely no notice of the shrapnel and bullets; he seems to have a charmed life, as 1 have seen shrapnel dropping all around liini and he only smiles. He told me he has no orderly, and no dug-out of his own to sleep in, and was living on bully beef and biscuits. I asked him, 'But where do you sleep?' He said just where he dropped; he didn't care as long as he was with the boys. He deserves more than the V.C., and I sincerely hope that God will spare him that he may return safely. I have the highest respect for liiru, and so has every man on the beach."

The management of "The Annies of Europe" war pictures, to be screened at the Theatre Royal to-morrow and Wednesday, claim that this is the only genuine series of moving pictures of the Annies of Europe now showing in Australasia. This series difl'cr from other so-called war pictures, in that they are not a series of old military pictures, arranged with a number of "lantern slides" of present day officers and fostered cm the. public at a time when the spirit of patriotism is reckoned to make the venture a financial success. "The Annies of Europe" war lilms owe their enormous success to genuine and authentic pictures of the forces at present fighting in Europe, also t'hc fact that the series include the scenes of actual warfare Kincmatogiuphed at the risk of his life t)y Mr G. B. Holmes, who will be present at the Theatre Royal and explain the various scenes as they are thrown on the screen,