LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, 5 January 1917, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

A sharp shock of earthquake occurred at 2.25 a.m. yesterday.

There is a /considerable shortage of labor in the building trades in the Taranaki district. On many jobs carpenters are earning £1 per day, and painters 15s.

A wire has been received by tlir Resdale Dairy Company from its agents advising that the Imperial Government has commandeered cheese at fljd f.o.b The Government iviil probably pay storage. — Press Association.

The winner of the guessing competition for the gold watch presented by Sir. R. .T. Deare in aid of the Ngamotu Seaside Fund was Mr. F. T. Bcllringer, town clerk. As the result of the competition the funds of the Seaside Committee were augmented by £2B 5s The winner of the sheep-guessing competition was Mr. D. W. Thompson, of Westown. The weight of the sheep was flOilb. Mr. Thompson estimated it at 51 lb.

The Taranaki Education Board's construction stall' is engaged on vni'ious schools and buildings in the district. The Okato school is being remodelled, and should be ready for occupation before school resumes, and the re-building of the Stanley Road school is nearing completion. Tenders will shortly be called for the erection of schools at MountMessenger and Matiere. Work in connection with the building of the new engineering room of the Technical College is being delayed owing to shortage of iabor.

At the meeting of the New Plymouth Waterside Workers'" Union, held on Wednesday evening, it was decided to forward the following resolution to the Hon. W. D S. MacDonahl, Minister for Agriculture: "That this meeting of waterside workers desire to place on record our sympathy with the dairy farmers, owing to the fact that the latter are the only primary producers subject to an export tax; we further urge that the Government place an equitable all-round ta\' on exports, so as to reduce the high cost of living in the Dominion, and also obtain a greater portion of the war profits for war purposes."

Since the commencement of the holiday season the office of the New Plymouth Tourist (ind Expansion League has had an exceptionally busy time, advising, directing, and planning trips for holiday-makers. The mountain trip has 'been "the chief attraction, and the secretary, Mr. W. A. Collis, bar; maue arrangements for 115 visitors to make the trip. The inquirers include many local residents, as well as visitors from all parts of New Zealand. A number of people have mistaken the office a Government bureau, apd have made inquiries concerning holiday trips advertised by the Government Tourist Department. An interesting relic from Pozieres, in tin: form of a 'neatly-executed piece of brass and copper wo.rk. is on view in the window of the Empire ' Confectionery. The relic, which provides a I grim reminder of the war, consists of a dagger and sheath, and two knives, made on a -small scale. The blades of the knives were made from the copper driving band of a German shell, and the blade of the dagger was once a portion of the brass nose-cap of a German high-explosive shell. The bent handguards of the dagger are French bullets, and the casings," bullets, and buttons used to form the handles of the knives and the sheath and thS- ornamentations were once in the possession of British raid colonial troops at the front. The materials were obtained from the trenches in France by Private L. Haigh, and were fashioned by him at the base during a rest from duty in the trenches. The exhibit is owned by Mrs. Haigh,

You drink tea because you want a delicious ■ and refreshing beverage. Therefore, select a brand that possesses best flavor and rich refreshment —Desert Gold, the Queen of Teas; Buy tlieh if--o.«de.*

A municipal hand concert wili be given by the Citizens' Band at Western Park on Sunday afternoon next.

"He could not get labor to help him to work his farm, so he married," remarked a lawyer, quite seriously, when appealing for. the exemption of a farmer at the Military Service Board in Wellington.

A Xew Zealandcr who was lately in America states that the United StatePresident lost, many votes during th" recent election because he refused to make either the prohibition or Hie woman suli'rage question:- federal matters, preferring that the separate State? should deal with both. Internal problems had a good deal to do with 'he result. The whole election did not turn merely 011 Wilson's war policy A .Maori, living near Levin, saw a perambulator outside his house Then he rose at 4 o'clock to milk hir cows. Ho did not investigate, thinking that some neighbor had left the pram there for a few minutes. Ou returning to the Souse at 5.30 a.m. lit heard a child erving in the pram. It was well clothed and evidently had been well cared for and nourished. It was a. girl, about two or three months old. So far 'lie police have been unable to find anything that would establish the infant's identity.

Referring to the present shortage of shipping space, a representative of a dairy company with large local interests suggested to a Palmerston North pressman that in order to relieve fie pressure the cheese and butter companies of the Dominion should combine and charter neutral siiips. "It would be possible to secure American or Japanese ships," he said, "and if this -ere done it would relieve the Government as well as removing the large obstacle in the way of the dairying industrv at I'lle present time." The dairying industry is in a flourishing condition in the Wairarapa. Everywhere the factories are working early and late to deal with the large quantities of milk coming forward. The dai"7 farmers are reluctant to admit, hoW" v ev. that they are (loins well. ''The I etc. fat prices m - e good, I'll admit.' 1 said one dairyman, "but look at the rise ;n evr-ything that a farmer wants on finfarm Take fencing wire. We can't do without wire, and it has doubled itself over and over again in price; ~nd that is only one thing." ''How much virc have you bought, since the vr"" started?'' the visitor enquired. "Oh I've bought none iity-:elf. I'm makint the old stuff do.'

A couple of returned soldiers Interviewed by .111 Auckland Star representative seemed very unwilling to talk abou' their experiences. Said one of them: "1 would forget it all if I could. Tt is like si nightmare to me. And when I think how iittle these citizens realise what warfare is like I am almost pleased that it is so. Xo," he said, "I must not speak of Gallipoli. I could tell you things tlint you would scarcely believe, things too horrible almost, to refer to. Many of the Turkish regiments arc officered by Germans, and 1 have heard that the Turk is not a bad c ort of enemy to fight. Well, that has not been my experience. 1 have no love for either of them, and some ol their devices have upset all my funnel ideas of what constitutes war."

The following telegram has been received by Mr. T W. Woods, of Pukekohe, from the Minister for Defence, the Hon. James Allen:—"Pleased to advise yon ihnt a further fable received to-day reports your son, Thomas T. G. Woods, previously reported killed' in action, now reported fit and well, and with 'his unit. Death incorrectly reported by his unit. Error regretted." Rifleman Woods was reported to have been killed in the battle of the Somme in September, and his parents had no doubt about the accuracy of the news (states the Auckland Herald), particularly when their son's pocket-book, found on the parapet of a trench, was returned to them. Later a letter arrived within a month after the battle from the son they were mourning, and the enquiries thereupon made have resulted in the happy information now.to hand.

One son killed at the front, another reported missing, and her husband serving in the trenches is the position of a poor woman resident in Wellington, remarks a Wellington paper. The woman has three young children to support. In respect to her son who is missing she received the usual telegram sent by the Defence authorities in such eases, reporting the fact and sincerely trusting that satisfactory news would shortly be received of her'son. When her first son v.-as killed the mother applied for a pension, and it was refused on the ground that the allotments from her husband and second son were sufficient for the support of herself and family Now her second son is missing, and the Department has informed the woman that his allotment in favor of herself has been stopped, all hough no official report of his'death has been received.

Some of the reservists who appear before the Military Service Boards do not seem to understand their position clearly. Thcv take up the attitude of civilians who have been disturbed "vt their work, and suggest in attitude and tone that the military authorities arc encroaching upon their time.. 'T. can't wait any longer,'' said one reservist whose appeal had not been settled as quickly as 'he would have wished. "I have my business to attend to." The fact is, of ocurse, that the reservist who chosen by ballot for service with the Expeditionary Force is a soldier as soon as lie is called up. The whole business may be very inconvenient from his point of view, but the call is an imperative one, and he must do what hj? is told. Private interests have to stand aside, just as they have done ; n the cases of the tens of thousands of men who have gone forward already us volunteers.

A strange mortality among; «it.s is reported from the Pa'hiatua district, and it is reported that dead eats are to be observed in all direction; as far as Panikau, one "-eutlemaii having counted no fewei than a dozen in the course of a brief trip. In the case of kittens the first symptoms of the disease are watery eyes, and the kitten is listless and indifferent to his surroundings. _He then gradually declines and dies quietly. I" the case of adult eats the onset of the disease is marked by excessive sleepiness and dull eyes with, later, saliva dripping from the mouth. The disease [•.roves fatal in about three days. 18 has been suggested that perhaps the disease is communicable to human beings, and the above description is given in order that parents may easily detect the trouble in their domestic cats and restrain children from fondling and nursing thflm.

It is now an understood thing that clothing which is occasionally renovated lasts much longer. The firm of J r KHawkins and Co., dry make a speciality of renovating all classes of ladies' and gents.' clothing. '

Mr. W. Bailey, a well-known settler [,of the Mangaweka district, had a miraculous escape on Saturday. He was 'driving along the Kawhatui road when his horse took fright at a slip on the road and backed over the cliff, falling -40 ft below. Mr. Bailey just jumped clear in time. The horse's back was broken by the fall. "We fought besidt tin famous Black Watch, and their motto was, 'No quarter asked or given,'" Private Victory Rattray writes in a letter to his mother at Mamaku, in which he describes the battle at the Sonime. In conversation afterwards with members of the famous Scottish regiment, he could get little from tiiem except the words, ''Oeh, moil, but yon was hellish." A Black Wateh man said to the New Zealand soldiers; "Thae New Zealanders fecht like :i 1; gie ine thae colonials, and we'll frichten the enemy all' the airth." Motorists whose cars are dillicult. to start in cold weather should remember that a rag dipped in hot water and wrapped around the carburetor will usually cause the motor to start promptly, says the Scientific American. The reason is found in the condensation of gasoline on the carburetor walls. T?i" hot rag helps vaporise this liquid fuel. H

>ome suggestion of dignity, or some; thing akin to that, crept into the proceedings of the Wellington Military Service Board. The military represen.'.ive (Captain Walker) got in quickly: "What," he seta, ''there are retired admirals at Home who have come back to service, and are occupying the positions ot sccond-licutenants."

The position of single men in regard to the war was stated thus at the Military Service Board at Wellington on Wednesday:—"Every single man of military age will be called up for military service, and before lie can expect exemption lie will have to prove his ease. Vague statements cannot be accepted." It has been stated that there may be a 'oss on the working of the 'New Plymouth tramway system of jEInW or £20(10 a year. The estimate i.> c the fate side. The News will be surprised i': it is more than £IOOO foi the first rear. It has to be remembered, too, that the tramway system ir paying its sister service l'or electric power about £IW a year. ]t is not too much to say that the apparent loss of £1(W0 will be more than made up by th- increased Christmas trad? done by the townspeople.

The New Plymouth boy scouts who visited Opunake last week are now on the trek towards home. They wer~ at Ware# last night, and will reach Puniho to-day. A few days will be spent at Puniho, where the boys will bf given field experience., Major Sandford, who is in charge of the troop, reports that al- the boys are well. On Wednesday afternoon the Scouts were entertained at afternoon tea by the Opunake residents, and, in returning thanks, Scoutmaster Dent voiced the appreciation of the boys for the many kindnesses shown them by the townspeople. The Scouts gave an exhibition of building a model bridge, first-aid work, and physical drill.

The prospect of the fiovermnent offering to buy New Zealand-grown wheat at a fixed price for a period of two or three ,vear.i is stated'to be interesting some North Island farmers who in the past have not used their land for grain production. There is plenty of land i:i this island suitable for wheat-growing, ■an;i if settlers were assured o' a price not lower than 4s Dd per bushel, they might be glad to break up some oi their fields. The immediate return would he 'fairly profitable, even if the yield was low, and the ultimate effect in the improvement of the pastures would be 'important. Last Sunday afternoon Plimmerton ueaeh was the scene of considerable excitement, says the Wellington Post. Taking advantage of the beautiful weather % and an ideal sandy beach, many visitors were enjoying a bathe, when, to the horror of onlookers, a large shark, fvom "ft. to Oft. in length, made, it-i appearance near them. The bathers hurriedly left the water, and the shark continued to patrol up and down the bathing spot for some hours. At times he was quite near shore, in not more than eighteen inches of water. Many of the residents fired at him with shotguns, but without effect, and eventually lie was hooked to a sclwappcr line, but broke away again in a few minutes. An interesting question of interpretation has been raised in connection with the Military Service Act. Does a man cease to be a member of the Reserve when 'he attains the age of 4fi years? The Act provides for the constitution of the Reserve, consisting of all men over -20 years and under 40 years of age, and" p. proclamation war, issued accordingly. No provision -was made by the Legislature for the discharge of any man from the Reserve on account of his. 'having-i>ieachcd the age limit, and it is argued by some authorities that a person who .has celebrated his 4fith birchday since t'he proclamation of the Reserve .remains a Reservist, just as a member of the Forces remains i;i the service, although he may have passed the "military age." The Canterbury Military Service Board dismissed the appeal of a reservist who became 4fi years of age shortly after being drawn in the ballot.