LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, 25 April 1916, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

New Plymouth is the smallest borough in the world possessing an electric overhead tramways system. The rainfall for the 24 hours to 9 a.m. on Monday, as registered at the Pukekura Park observatory, New Plymouth, was 1.03S inches.

The number of patients admitted to the Hawera Hospital during the month was 39; discharged, 37; died, 2; leavin" 2D in the institution.

This has been an unusually good season for mushrooms in Taranaki," but the colder weather of the past few days has pretty well stopped the growth. Mr W. W. Smith, of the Pukekura Park, has recently compiled the records of the rainfall for the past sixteen years in New Plymouth. The annual rainfall averages 72.008 inches.

There is a big gathering of Maoris at Manaia at present, about 1300 beins camped at the Waiokura pah. It is understood that the gathering is connected with the visit of Morman missionaries.

Tarauaki's production of butter and cheese will this season run into over two millions sterling. Meat, wool, skins, hides, etc, will account for another million sterling; a total of three millions—a good record for a province of 5G,847 inhabitants.

The expenditure of the Huwera Hospital Board last year amounted to £5107, of which salaries absorbed £1434, fuel, light and heating £4Ol, repairs £234, provisions £705, charitable aid £BSO. contributed £915. It has been decided to levy a tenpenny rate this year, which should produce, with subsidy, £SIGS. It is expected that building operations will this year cost over £2OOO.

The fine turret-deck German cargo steamer Walkure, which visited New Plymouth a few months before the outbreak of war, and was afterwards sunk by the German cruisers at Papeete, arrived at San Francisco last month while the Moana was at that port. The Walkure was purchased by an American company, refloated, repaired temporarily, and, re-named the Republic. She then proceeded via Honolulu to San Francisco, where she was docked for survey, repairs and overhaul.

"This is not a class war," said the Premier at the recruiting meeting on Thursday night. "Everybody is lighting for their homes, for their wives, children and the Empire. One man down in Otago said he did not care what happened, as he felt he would be just as well off under Kaiser"Bill" of Germany as "Kaiser Bill" of New Zealand." The Premier added: "I would like to see some of those people have a couple of years in Germany." The current series of photoplays at /the Kmpire Picture iPa.lace that -have I proved so popular will be shown for the ' lost time tn-nurht.

Tlio Daily News is in receipt of a postal jioto for £1 12s Gd from Inglewood, dated April 22nd. Will the sender please communicate with this office as no covering letter was enclosed with the postal note. Tlie Minister for Defence lias been invited to the dinner given by the New Plymouth citizens to the Maori war •veterans and the Anzac veterans at 7 o'clock to-night. A Christchurch visitor, wiho has recently toured the South Island, remarks that the South Island has not yet recovered from the effects of the two years' drought. Taranaki is, in his opinion, the best province in New Zea- _ The value of the butter exported from New Zealand last year was £2,700,025, as against £2,338,576 in 1914, and the cheese exports were valued at £2,730,211, as compared with £2,504,125. The total value of the dairy produce exported in 101,). was £5,430,836, as against £4,902,701 in 1914, an increase of £528,135. The frozen meat export totalled £7,794,395 in 1915, as compared with £5,863,062 in 1914, an increase of £1,931,333, or over 31 per cent. A correspondent writes:—"l do not know whether it is planned to place more notice boards re speed limits on the South road, but one is certainly needed, either at Belt road or Morshead's hill, in the interests of the childre)! attending the West End school. One notice is very conspicuous at Cutfield road. This is all right when motorists are eominr,' from town, but it is absurd to have the speed reduced after having passed the school, where the greatest danger exists." A returned soldier informed a Masterton Age reporter that quite a number of New Zealanders of independent means | have made -Egypt their temporary homes, with the object of making the lives of invalided soldiers as bright as possible. He stated that Mrs. Studholme, wife of a well-known South Island runholder, had a car continually at the disposal of injured and convalescent men, and besides the outing the men were treated to all sorts of luxuries calculated to build up their health. Mr. George, a son of Mr, George, of George and Kersley, Wellington, was also doing similar good work, he liaving recently ,purchased a new car for this purpose. "It is this sort of thing," said the soldier, "that makes us think kindly of New Zealand and the people for whom we are making the supreme sacrifice." The engineering trade in Wellington, and, indeed, throughout the Dominion, will be seriously affected by the prohibition of the export from England of pig-iron, railway material, steel bars, girders, ingots and tubes (says the Wellington Post). Enquiries made from Wellington ironfounders show that the probable result will be the closing down of a large number of works in the course of a few months. In the meantime only urgent requirements will be attended to. It is probable that a meeting of manufacturers and merchants who stock iron will shortly be held to consider the position. Here is a splendid opportunity for Taranaki ironsand. It has been conclusively demonstrated that Taranaki ironsand will produce iron and steel of the first quality, and it only requires the cooperation of the ironfounders of the Dominion to set works in motion to produce material for all their requirements and place themselves independent of outside supplies. An interesting exhibit from Gallipoli, in the form of a machine-gun trophy, was secured bv the Canterbury Mounted Regiment during the August advance on the peninsula. Although not constructed on the latest German model, it strikingly exemplifies the advantage which Turkish gunners possessed. The German article contains many manifest advantages. Its weight is 421b, compared with 601b of the Maxim tripod, and the stand is slightly heavier than ours, but contains a knee rest for the person firing, possesses firmer leverage, and therefore is not so liable to work loose after a few rounds. One of the outstanding features of the gun is the simple method of connecting it to the tripod, the barrel merely having to be rested on a pivot. Half a turn, and the gunners are ready to let loose a leaden hail of 750 bullets per minute. Other good points are' the easy manner of travertiing, elevating, and depressing, lack of vibration, simple and quick methods of adjusting sights, and its feed block. The model is an old one (1911), and possesses all the inconveniences connected W'ith a watercooled barrel.

There will be no pictures shown tonight at the Theatre Royal, owing to the theatre being engaged for other purposes. The Famous Players drama, "The Unafraid," featuring Rita Jolivet, the beautiful actress, who was on board the Lusitania when the Germans sent Jjer to the bottom, will he finally screened tomorrow (Wednesday). Members of the Defence Rifle Club will parade at the Coronation liall at 1.45 p.m. to-day, in connection with the Anzac Bay celebrations, and not at l.lii p.m. as advertised.