LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, 2 August 1918, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

According to- a Taranaki boy, one transport from America that recently arrived in France carried 17,500 soldiers. A reminder is given to men who have been ordered into camp, or men who anticipate having to go to camp eventually, of the instruction class which commences at the Coronation Hall to-night at 7.30. The instruction will be given without any charge and should be ol immense assistance 'to nun when they reach camp. The number of births, deaths, and marriages in the district of New (Plymouth (Mr. J. S. S. Medley, registrar) for the month of July, 1918, is as fol[lows, the number for the corresponding | period of last year being in parentheses: !Births 36 (37), deaths 15 (14), marriages 12 (17).. In connection with the observance of the fourtli anniversary of the declaration of war, on Monday next, his Worship the Mayor of New Plymouth (Mr. C. H. Burgess) has arranged for a public meeting to be held in Everybody's Theatre at 2.15 pjn., at which the resolution sent out by the aeting-Prime Minister will bo submitted. Business people are invited to close their premises between 2 and 3 o'clock on the afternoon of that day. The annual meeting of the Whiteley Church Ladies' Guild was held on Wednesday afternoon, and was presided over by the Kev. W. A. Sinclair. The annual report showed that the Guild, under the presidency of Mrs. C. Carter, had undertaken a considerable amount of work in connection with the church. The membership stands at 71. The treasurer's report disclosed a substantial credit balance. The election of officers resulted as follows:—President, Mrs. W. A. Sinclair; vice-presidents, Mesdames Cannell and W. Ambury; secretary, Mrs. J. C. Morey; treasurer, Mrs. T. G. Sole; visitors, Mrs. Cannell and Mrs. E. Chattertoti. The retiring officials were heartily thanked for past services. Mr. J. S. Connett, president of the Taranaki Agricultural Society, addressed the annual meeting of suppliers of the Omata Dairy Company at the Hurford Road factory yesterday afternoon, when he explained at length the position and progress made by the society in the last two or three years. He also spoko in high terms o' the assistance given by the ladies in connection with the catering, and asked members to continue their support. The majority agreed to do so, ami a number of new members were obtained.

During the course of the hearing of the case for the enforcement of the compulsory clause in the Education Act Regulations, at the Magistrate's Court, New PlymouDh, yesterday, Mr. A. H. Johnstone, who appeared to defend the person charged with failing to send his son to continuation technical classes, said ho hoped he would be preserved from students who had undertaken a course of commercial correspondence. The Magistrate (Mr. A. Crooke) said he had known boys from secondary schools who did not know how to properly address an envelope. Next Sunday being the fourth anniversary of the declaration of war, special services of intercession will bo conducted in Whiteley Memorial Church, both morning and evening, by the Rev. W. A. Sinclair. A special order of service in w'hich the whole congregation -«anjnarticJßate-is being p/e^ftred.

writing of the match famine in London, a correspondent of a southern paper observes that smokers carry various kinds of lighters based on flint and steel, with petrol and tinder, and housewives are beginning to use gaslighters. The Otira tunnel is the sixth longest tunnel in the world, the larger ones being:—Simplon, 12| miles; St. Gotham, 9£ miles; Hoetsehberg, 7J miles; Mont Cenis, 7£ miles; Arlberg, 6J miles; Otira, 5J miles. The Otira tunnel was commenced at the Otira end in April, 1908, and at the Bealey end in July, 1909.

The Wanganui Harbor Board once had a valuable endowment, of 21,337 acres at Pohangina. About 40 years ago, according to Government valuation, it was worth 30s an acre, and was subsequently sold by the Board for perhaps twice that amount. If the Board had held on to this fine farming land the value would now have been twentyfold. J

The problem of a profitable disposal of our many thousands of benzine tins and the protection of young trees in exposed positions go hand in hand. A Bainesse settler has given a practical demonstration of this and is planting extensively on the sandy stretches, using benzine tins with both ends cut out to protect the young trees until they are established.

Daylight saving is being tried in the United States this year for the first time. It is estimated to effect a saving of 300,000 tons of coal and to diminish electric light costs by £1,500,000.

After a Second Divisionist in a township not many miles from Masterton had been passed as "Fit A," he candidly remarked, "I have taken enough dope to kill a horse, and yet it won't act." —Wairarapa Age.

Distressing accounts are given in letters received in Auckland of the sufferings which the crew of the Matunga, the Burns-Phillips steamer which was captured by the raider Wolf some twelve months, ago, are enduring in the German internment camps. It is shown :that both officers and men are without •boots, and have only the remnants of the clothing in which they were captured. Apparently, also, their food is very restricted. The officers and crew of the Union Company's steamer Wairuna, another captured vessel, are also prisoners of war in Germany, but are evidently faring better than their Australian comrades.

A spirited declaration of his willingness to serve his country was made at the Auckland Military Service Board the other day by the father of an appellant, himself a veteran and ex-non-comissioncd officer of the Life Guards. "Yes," he exclaimed, "my youngest boy enlisted as soon as war broke out, and I did my best to follow him! I shaved off my beard ami moustache, and told them a lie—yes, your Worship, I lied to them!—and told them I was 45 instead of Ga, I was so anxious to go. But it wasn't any use," he added sadly; "they wouldn't take me." In proof of his statement he exhibited a- document, stating that he had volunteered, but had been rejected as being over military age.

Mr. 0. T. J. Alpers, one of the passengers from the West Coast by the train on Saturday night, speaking to a (Press reporter, said that though he had heen detained on the- Coast for about a week, he had experienced the most perfect weather, and all the bad weather was on the eastern side of the ranges. "While you were having a blizzard in Christclmrch on Sunday," he said, "we were having a picnic in the Kokatahi Valley!" Old West Coasters said that they hardly remembered such a spell of fine weather at this time of the year. There was about a foot of snow in the fPass, but six coaches got tilirough all ragiht, with no untoward incidents except the snapping of one coach-pole. The train was only half an hour late in arriving in Christchurch. Mr. Alpers said the sight on the shady side of the Pass was very beautiful; long icicles were hanging from the rocks and trees in thousands, varying from one foot to seven feet in length, and some of them being as thick as a man's arm.

An Australian newspaper man, at one time of Wellington, writes interestingly to a. friend on the New Zealand Times about things in general in Australia. He writes as follows: "Over this way we are living briskly wondering what the war is to bring forth and speculating about stocks of paper—some of the offices are feeling the pinch. Meanwhile political leaders are helping to win the war by making long speeches. Hughes, unable to do more than talk in 1m own country, and disgusting everybody by his shilly-shallying over conscription, and by his inaction over such questions as ship-building, goe3 to London, and to the amazement of everybody here is immediately hailed as a genius! Isn't it pathetic? President Wilson seems to me to be the only man on any side in this war who deserves to rank as a statesman. Though the cost of living is soaring to extraordinary heights, everybody here seems to have plenty of money. The craze for amusement exists as keenly as ever, and the racecourses and theatres are crowded. Ido not know how people manage it; but there it is! Australia is a marvellous country."

On the motion of Mr. Quilliam (Govett and Quilliam) probate of the will of the late Mr. David Teed has been granted by the Supreme Court to Messrs Samuel and David Teed, the ■ executors therein named.

In the course of numerous experiments with rheumatic and gouty subjects, scientists noticed that the blood of every patient contained excess urie acid. Many prescriptions to neutralise and expel this uric acid were tried but without success. One of N.Z.'s leading chemists worked on the problem for many years. At last he compounded a medicine which cured in many cases—even sufferers for over twenty years. One told another of this wonderful medicine—RHEUMO—and thus the sales grew. RHEUMO seldom fails to give relief, as instanced by the testimony of a former Member of the Wellington City Council:— "1 experienced, a very bad-attack of Rheumatic Gout; so bad that I had to leave business. On arrival home, I immediately took a dose of RHEUMO, repeating same every four hours. The I pain soon left, and in the morning I came down to business as usual. I can confidsntly recommend it to sufferers from Rheumatic Gout." Get a bottle to-night, 2s Cd and 4s Gd, at chemists and stores. Barraclouglw; Magic Nervine rapidly relieves Toothache.

A Wellington wire states that the Customs revenue collected in the Dominion in July amounted to £282,113, and the excise beer duty to £22,054, compared with £305,063 and, £13,726 respectively for July of last year. The increase in beer duty is accounted for by the increased rate of duty which came into operation on September 15, 1917.

The Farmers' Union conference on* Tuesday resolved to endorse the attitude of New Zealand's representatives at the Imperial Conference respecting the captured German colonies, The decision is to be cabled to the New Zealand representatives.

Advice to harbor boards to build for big ships was given by the Minister of Marine (Mr. Wilford) at the Harbors Conference at Wellington on Wednesday. "In regard to wharves," he said, "it might be well to point out that, owing to the increase in the size of steamers and the increase in shipping trade that will, no doubt, occur after the war, it is advisable that boards should look ahead when erecting new wharves, otherwise they may find that in the course of a few years they will have too little water at their wharves and not enough space to accommodate the. ships visiting their ports."

Writes the Eltham Argus: One of•our townsmen Was carrying on a successful carrying business. He volunteered, was examined and found fit. He sold his business, broke up his home and went into camp. He has' done his training,, but on the eve of the sailing of the. transport by which he was to go he was. discharged because of a weakness in oneof his feet, So the man broke up Ms business,' the country has been at the. expense of maintaining him in camp, and' just a few hours before his transport sails he is discharged.' Is that good administration ? The purchaser of this rejected man's business volunteered' <m three occasions and on each occasion was turned down by the Medical Board. On the strength of these rejections, and believing that he Was medically unfit, he purchased the business referred to, and incurred many obligations. Now he has : again been served with the notice to submit to examination, and if he is passed upon this occasion further hardships are going to be inflicted.. This lack of finality abont the medical examinations is causing a great amount of distress and unrest."

Many hundreds of picture-goers have been interested by serial pictures shown locally, but they will be puzzled by "The Mystery of the Double Cross," a remarkable Pathe ferial starring Mollie King, the first episode of which ins showing finally at Everybody's to-night. As one patron remarked last night, "It's so interesting it will make you want to camp on the theatre steps until the next instalment comes along." Tonight's programme also includes a powerful seven reel Triangle feature, "I Love You."

The Melbourne, Ltd,, have still a small stock of the famous "Advance" and "S.S.S." plain navy and striped drills at Is Sol and Is lid respectively. As these drills are best English make and the wholesale. prices to-day is 23 pence per yard, customers should not require any urging to buy promptly for present and future requirements.