LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, 29 June 1918, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Mr. C. J. Hill won the name-guessing competition at the Coronation Hall Social on Thursday night. Xames of business men had to be guessed from descriptions, some of which were decidely original, while others were far-fetched.

The chief postmaster notifies that cable messages of a personal or domestic nature, in plain language, may be accepted for places in occupied Palestine territory at rates to Alexandria, where messages will be posted. The address must contain the name "Alexandria."

The residents of the Waimate Plains, the richest portion of Taranaki, have taken to heart the statement that they have contributed less than any other part of the province, towards patriotic purposes, and are now starting out to adjust the balance- Manaia led oil the other day, and 3iow Auroa has undertaken to do its share bv finding £IOOO within a few weeks.

The following remit was received from the Kaimata branch at Thursday's meeting of the Taranaki executive of the Farmers' Union:—"That, as the Government has commandeered dairy produce, wool, meat, etc., at a fixed price for export, the Government should supply kerosene and benzine to farmers at cost price landed at Wellington." On the motion of Mr. Maxwell, seconded by Mr. Buclceridge, it was resolved—"That the request of the Kaimata branch verges on the question of prices fixed by the Government, a subject upon which the union must (be most guarded when expressing an opinion. The executive would point out that the union is not in any way a trading concern, and that the Farmers' Co-op. Federation is taking steps to safeguard farmers' interests in this respect and to prevent profiteering." A correspondent states that passengers arriving by the train which should have reached New .Plymouth at 0.15 p.m. last night complain bitterly of the way in which this train was overloaded and the rough handling they were subjected to. The trouble occurred between Lepperton Junction and New Plymouth. At Lepperton Junction a long string of empty waggons was attached to an already fairly long train. At Smart Road j the train was pulled up with a suddden jerk, nearly throwing passengers off their seats. Thfs occurred three timeß during the short run. After leaving Staart Road, the engine was unable to pull the train up a small grade, and had to go back, bumping the passengers right and left. The marvellous thing is that some of the passengers were not injured. Our correspondent states he has travelled on the New Zealand railways for 35 years, and this experience is the roughest he has ever had, even allowing for the fact that this train is a goods train with a oar attached for passengers. The judgment of Mr. Justice Edwards in the case of George Appleyard v. Noti Wairahui, which was heard at the February session of the Supreme Court at New .Plymouth, has been delivered, The claim was for £227 14s 8d upon an account stated. His Honor said that, in his opinion, it was clear that it was definitely and finally agreed at the conference between the parties that the plaintiff should abandon his application for confirmation of the lease, and that defendant should pay to him the amount admitted to 'bo owing to him by tho document which she signed upon the advice of her solicitor and in the presence of her husband. "Tho defendant, for her own reasons onlv, Ims failed to perform her part of the agreement. plaintiff is, therefore, entitled to judgment for the amount claimed, with costs according to scale " At the trial Mr. F. C Spratt (Hawera) appeared for plaintiff and Mr. P. B. Fitzhcrbert represented the defendant.

Tho attention of those in search of good dairy cows is drawn, to the clearing ( sale of Mr. Owen M'Phillips' pedigree' and grade Jersey herd, which is ibeing conducted by the Farmers' Co-op. Organisation Society, at Sutherland Road, Manaia, en Wednesday next. Mr. M'Phillips, during the past twentj; years, has spared r.o money in securing the best eows obtainable, and has bred a number from tested cows himself, and the result is shown by the herd having averaged Slsll> of butter-fat for the season under tost at Kaupokonui factory.

A meeting of dairymen interested in the dried milk industry is to be held at the Carrington schoolroom Monday evening, when the question of establishing a factory in North Taranaki will be considered. is one of vital importance dHßgzmcn, for it may mean thettadflHHHMhJiers' incomes and foj^fl|^HHH^Hkhould HHHHI <«ife

Many thousands of ■violets are being despatched from Otaki daily but growers are unable to eoipe with the demand. .Several growers are making well over £5 per week. The Foxton Herald says: The recent ballot has called our two local constables :o arms, also the local stationmaster, his chief clerk, and two engine-drivers. The local headmaster of the State School has drawn a ticket, also Mr Heali'v, a local chemist.

A native named Keiti was killed in a peculiar manner recently at Okere, Wairoa. He was out pig-hunting, when a dog knocked down a loaded repeating rifle, a shot from which entered his thigh and passed through his chest. He was taken to the Wairoa Hospital, where he died. American doctors are doing more than a ''bit." There are more than 23,000 of them in the United States service, and SIBO iu the Medical Corps of the Alli'efe. "Jt is remarkable how healthy we keep while they are gone," says the St. Louis Star.

A Welling ton Quaker, who, having conscientious objections to a military life, was sent to the Weraroa, State Farm on the soldier's allowance of 6a, a day, became so tired of. the farming life that he enlisted for active service and is now at' Trentham.

''l am in harem," writes Private John Wallace Davis, of the London Irish Rifles, to his uncle at Surbiton. "Of coerce, the ladies have gone, but it is an earthly paradise. For convalescence they have sent me to the Sultan of Egypt's Alexandra seat. My bedroom has whito and .gold fittings, and the royal armsara emblazoned over mv bed. There is a gorgeous reading-room with a marble floor, and divans with round long cushions, and we have a small army of Egyptians to wait on us."

Interesting comments by German civilians have been furnished, from ?.n enemy mail ibag captured by the British before it was delivered to the soldiers along a section of the Flanders front. Almost without exception, references are made in the letters to the stoppages of leave and the parcel post from the front. The tone is resigned, not recalcitrant. One letter from Berlin, dated April 25, said: "Peace does not seem to be coming along as we fondly hoped. All this fighting in the west is toe wicked for anything. Four years of it now and no sign of the end. We hope every day it will come to decision and that the British will be driven into the North Sea, but they stand firm."

Property owned in the United States by the Kaiser and Dr von Bethmann Hollweg, the Junker class generally and the German Government will be the first to foe sold under the authority to be granted to Mr Palmer to sell alien property in the United States, Mr Palmer's evidence before the Appropriations Committee of the Senate shows a direct purpose to destroy the German outposts in America. Mr Palmer told the Senators that the enemy should know that the connection that he had been able to maintain with American industry and commerce was broken, not simply during the war, but permanently. His' intention was to use the proceeds of the sale of enemy property to buy Government 'bonds.

In the feuds of the Southern States of America, the individual who had a dispute with hig neighbour discovered that the handiest and most lethal weapon with which to settle it was a sawed-off shotgun well stuffed with buckabot and discharged at short range. The Americans are making use of this experience in France. The shotguns provided are short repeaters of the pump-action type, holding six cartridges in the magazine, and strengthened to carry a bayonet. Each gun weighs SJlb. The cartridges contain nine pellets of buckshot of the size of a .32 calibre bullet, and the gun sprays the contents of each cartridge over an area of nine feet wide arid 3ft high. These weapons are likely to do considerable execution among masses of the enemy at short range, as, according to the Scientific American, they will drive their shot through a 2in. plank at 150 yards from the muzzle. In the hands of experienced fowl shooters they should be particularly deadly in close fighting. Mr Hamilton Holt, the editor of the Independent, one of the most influential journals in the United States, told a London interviewer in April that America could put at least six million men into the fighting line in France without dislocating industry at all. In order to do as well as New Zealand hag dona in the war, he said, his country would have to put eleven million men in the field. "If necessary," he added, "by really pinching ourselves hard, we could do more than that. There is only one thing you can Maine us for. Barring inevitable mistakes, we have done as well as we expected in the raising and training of our army, in the expansion and employment of our fleet It is in regard to ships that we are culpable, and it is in our timetable we have fallen down." But he believed that America now understood that ships would win the war, and a visit to fourteen of the principal shipyard? of the Atlantic Coast had convinced him that by January 1 next year, America would be "turning out ship like Ford er.rs."

No film releases of recent years have attracted the world-wide interest occasioned 'by the wonderful "Goldwyn" pictures recently launched on the film markets of America and Australasia. These brilliant productions set a new standard for motion pictures and reach that; pinnacle of the "superior picture" for which the public and the exhibitors have vainly waited during tho last few years. No advertising matter can fully do justice to the exceptional excellence of new pictures, and it is only after viewing a "Goldwyn" film that the public can realise this great advance in motion pictures. "(Polly of the Oircus," the first "GoMwvn" picture, will be screen;"/!, at Everybody's next Tuesday and Wed* nasday.

Catalogues are now in circulation for the pedigree sale to be held at Hawera on Thursday, 13th July, on account of Mr. A. E. Watkins. Any fancier who has not, as yet received a copy should a PP'y the auctioneers at once, and make an early inspection of the herd. On Thursdy next at Mangoaraka. 'Bell Block, Mr. Newton King will sell on account of Mr. C. W. Wyatt a very nice line of pedigree grade jerseya, which should attract attention from the most fastidious dairymen. Mr. Wyatt has held a premier position as regards test at the Bell Block factory, and his caitle on inspection amply bear this out. To-night will see the final of Emmy Wchlen in Metro's wonderplay, "The Outsider," at the Empire. On Monr day night the management will present "A Kentucky Cinderella," on* «f thf famous Blue-bird productions.