LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, 25 October 1915, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Over a hundred children are absent from the Hawera school through measles. The Wellington-San Francisco mail despatch of Sept. IGth, which arrived at Frisco on October 6th, reached London on October 22nd., five days late. The formal proclamation by His Excellency the Governor under the National Act, requiring all males between the ages of seventeen and sixty years to register, is gazetted. The proclamation will come into force to-morrow. The Hon. I'!. W. Russell announce? his intention of establishing a great patriotic art union of pictures for the benefit of the sick and wounded soldiers at the convalescent camps at Rotorua and Hanmer. It is intended to work with and through the leading art' societies of the Dominion.

•Mr. H, Okey, M.P., is to open the "Fair' Play's Bonnie Play" Fair at tnglewood on Thursday, Oct. 28, at 3 p.m. The fair is being held under the auspices of the Methodist Church, and the proceeds are to he equally divided between the funds of the church and the Wounded Soldiers' Fund.

It is reported that one young lady of Wellington has combined business with patriotism. She lias induced three young men to enlist for service abroad in successive reinforcements, lias received a diamond engagement ring from each, and is in receipt of a weekly allowance of £1 iu respect to all of them.

A lady in Timaru has had a letter from a nurse in figypt emphasising the need for better matresscs (horse-hair recommended), and soft pillows, many bandages and bed linen. Air cushions were also needed, the beds now in use being shockingly uncomfortable.

When the names of several territorials were called in the Wellington Magistrate's Court on Friday morning, in each instance it was shown that the man was either serving the country lit the front or had enlisted. The charges against them for not carrying out their military obligations were consequently withdrawn.

During the height of the gale which was experienced in the Auckland district last Monday night, the Kopu Hall was taken right off its supports, lifted, and deposited about eight feet away. Numerous chimneys and flimsy outbuildings were demolished in other parts of the Thames district by tho hurricane, wind, and pelting rain.

Since the war started very little has been heard of Sir Ernest Shackleton's Trans-Antarctic expedition. The expedition is now at its winter quarters somewhere in the Weddcll Sea. Tt is equipped with a wireless receiving apparatus, and on the first day of every month from the Admiralty station in the Falkand Islands messages are - despatched.

The Eailway Department advertises train arrangements for the Waverley Races to-day. Holiday excursion tickets will be issued. At the Auckland Police Court on SatUMifty, Harry Turnbull, eii-hotclkeeper, charged with selling liquor to soldiers at Avondale, was sentenced to one month's hard labour.

On Saturday, Mr. H. J. Okey, M.P., telegraphed to Hon J. A. Hanan, asking him to extend his proposed visit to Taranaki this week to New Plymouth, as several important deputations purposed waiting on the 'Minister. Mr Hanan has replied that lie had to go south almost immediately, and that his proposed visit to Wanganui and Hawera had, therefore, been cancelled. "A Subscriber" writes to the Hawera Star thus: "On all hands we hear of more and still more men being urgently needed for service at the front. As a hint to those interested in recruiting, I suggest a visit to the Waverley racecourse on Monday; perhaps a few likely men could be secured there for enlistment."

Reference to the irregularity with which mails reach tho fighting line is made in a letter from one of the Jfew Zealand hoys now at the front. He states that a few days before writing he received, in one lot five letters from Ilia cousin, although there was a difference of nine weeks in the dates of the first and last letters. By the same ,mail he received from another person a letter dated a fortnight later than the latest in the hatch of five from his cousin.

Ih a letter to Monsignor McKenna, V.G., of Mas.terton, Chaplain McMenamin, of the Wellington Infantry Battalion, who is on active service at Gallipoli, says: "I can say that no troops, British or Indian, have excelled our own boys for bravery and determination. My predominant feeling in this terrible time is one of immense pride in our New Zealand soldiers. How they did fight! Though at times they seamed in danger of ibeing wiped right out, they never broke for an instant. I wish I could say the same for the others engaged here".

School boys and girls can do a lot of useful work for our soldiers at the front if they are given a good practical lead and properly encouraged in the work by their teachers. During his visit to the Matapu school on Friday, Mr. Bone Was shown neatly tied-up bundles of linen, knitted and towelling face cloths, bandages, etc., all ready for the next hospital ship. This work had all been done by the children in their own time, mostly- in their own homes, and the hoys had done equally as much as the girls.— Hawera Star. A circular letter has been .forwarded by the Under-Secretary of the Public Works Department to chairman of County Councils stating that votes provided upon the Public Works appropriations, as far as they related to new money provided, would not be available for expenditure until such time as satisfactory arrangements had been made for the raising of the necessary loan for Publio Works purposes, and it had been decided to what extent the funds then available would be sufficient to justify the prosecution of new works. Consequently, the Minister regretted that at the present time ho was unable to make any offer to the Councils of any such monies for expenditure.

Shortly after war broke out two little Gisborne girls, among others, commenced sewing for the poor in England, and got together a large number of outfits to fit 1 children from about three years to 12 years. These were shipped to England, but when the Tokomaru was sunk it was Relieved that the case of goods went down with the ship. The little girls were greatly disappointed, but commenced again, with the result that other cases wore sent later. The other day, however, the children received a letter from a little girl at Home, who was evidently in very poor circumstances, thanking them in simple words for the gifts she had received from them (says the Times). Great was the children's delight, when, on enquiries being made, it was found that the gifts referred to were included in the first shipment, which, it appears, missed the Tokomaru by one. mail.

Private N. R. Lawrence, eldest son of Mr. Walter 'Laurence, of Tariki, writing to his aunt (Mrs. J. B. Simpson, Durham 'Road) from Malta, under date August 17 says:—"l have got a. nasty crack at last from one of the Turk's bombs.' They are experts at throwing them and using them in their charges. I got hit on Sunday morning, August Bth. I heard someone calling for help in the front line, so I went up and started firing with the few that were left and it was grand shooting, the Turks coming within ten yards of me. T was the only, live man in two chains of a line, and I did not have much time to waste, as you can well imagine. The Turks are game fighters, earing little for their lives: they charged four times on Sunday before T was hit. Our worst enemy is the sniper as he shoots any wounded if they are exposed and start to move." Private Laurence was transferred from Malta to a militarv hospital at Portsmouth, England, and later on to another hospital at. Southsea. Latest news received, per medium of the Defence Department, states that he is convalescent, as his many friends and relations in the Moa district will be pleased to hear.

"hi front of the trench, we gaze on the landscape through a periscope." writes Captain Cross, of Wellington, from Gallipoli. "It is not considered a healthy practice to bob one's head over the parapet. There we can sec a strip of ground varying from 30 yards broad to 15 yards immediately in front, littered with broken rifles, bayonets, and equipment, with a number of brown heaps, which were once men in khaki--nearly all Turks. Bounding this, is a line of earth and sand-bags, which marks the trench line of brother Turks. Behind that is another trench, and in the distance we can see the famous hill we are fighting to reach, the one yon read about in the paper, but which I ' had better not mention, if this is going to pass the censor."

Never before in the history of the firm has the Melbourne Clothing Company had such a fine stock of men's up-to-date ready-to-waar suits. Almost every variety of tweed, worsted and dress coatings is represented in such an endless series of sizes that almost every mar. or young man can be perfectly fitted. The prices are only half those charged by custom tailors for suits made from similar fabrics.

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