LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, 9 August 1918, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The chief postmaster advise 3 that the despatch of parcels to prisoners of war in Turkey lias been resumed. The late Miss Mary Waters, of Parnellj bequeathed £I3OO for Roman Catholic education and Roman Catholic indigent children in Auckland (reports the Press Association.) A Cromwell message reports tihe most severe snowstorm of the present season. Reports from all the outlying districts indicate that there has been practically no cessation of the snow/all and the outlook for the sheepowners is anything but •hopeful.—Press Association. Further subscriptions to the Amibury Memorial Fund have been received as follows:—'X. T. Maunder and Melbourne Clothing Company £1 la each; R. A. barge 10s fid; Rev. W. Drew, Percy Hoby. Mr and Mrs Joe Rainson, and In Memoriam 10s each; making the present total £37.

A meteorite .that fell on the hills at, the top of Britomart Street, Berhamporo, was shown on Wednesday night at a meeting <jf the Philosophical Institute. It is an eg'g-shaped mass weighing just under 21b., black in color, and crystalline in formation. Mr A. Clifford said he understood the meteorite had been secured originally 'by a man who saw the fall about ten o'clock oup night-. The man marked the spot and dug the meteorite out the next day.

| The spring bulbs are now coming out very fast, the mild weather of the past weeks bringing on the blooms, and in it few weeks time the gardens should be looking at their best. St. Mary's Sunday School has fixed the dates for its show for September 5 and C, and, given favorable weather, the display of blooms should be of the best. The varies committees are hard at work, and all arrangements are well in hand. The rose show, which was so successful last vear, will be held again on or about -October-10.

A 'pre,-.:i me--ago frc:n Oeym'ouiii i«=t night staled I]i.i.( the river was in heavy flood ov.'ing to warm rain, and that nine

s'lmmei''-. were held up ir. readiness to. sail. prcbably f:ii Saturday. A meeting of (he Xew Plymouth Efficiency IVard trustees was held yesterday, tiic-r:; were present: Mesoiv, T. Furlong (ciiairin.il)) and K. Whittle, Mr (■'• -I. iiilL '■eerotary, being a-b-.cnt in Canterbury on private 'business. Two oases V.ytb dealt with.

'J'iiii Siuidiiy afternoon music, recitals' will be resmred by the New Plymouth Citizens' Tjand, weather permitting, on Sunday next, the «ene being the BreakwM.er. Several new solos and selections v.-ill ]k> included in the list, and as it is some time since a recital •Was given, there will sure to be a large attendance. A collection is 'to be taken in aid of the ijiud funds, and ■the recital will commence at 2.1."> p.m. Extra trams will ho available.

John Joseph Lmlkin, who had several., previuais convictions against him, ap- ' peared 'before Mr. A. Crooke, S.M-, at (tie Magistrate's Court yesterday morning to answar a charge of drunkenness in a public place on August 7- He was» also further charged with entering licensed promises and with obtaining liauov during the currency of.a- prohslbition order. He pleaded guilty to all three charges, but muttered something, in extenuation About having <been wounded at Gallipoli and of meeting a friend whom he had not seen sinceibedng taken off the peninsula. Sulb-lnspector Button ' stated the licensee, of the Grosvenor Hotel had complained that *he man had come on to his premises and made himself a nuisance. Accused was convicted and mulcted in fines .amounting to £2 (with costs), in defaidtM days'imprisonment. He was allowed 14 days in which | to pay the fines. _ A note of warning in respect to rivalry in the dairying industry that would come from Australia in the future was sounded by Mr. 11. E. Pacey in Auckland a few days ago. It was claimed that Queensland manufactured butter was as good as any in the world, and certainly the best in the Antipodes. He felt justified in saying that ho had no ambition for changing places with them so far as factories and equipment were concerned. When over there recently he saw one or two that were aip-to-<iate, 'but the majority were deplorably out of date. They were, however, awakening to the necessity of pasteurisation and modem methods. In New South Wales, however, they had done wonders during the past two years by adopting modern method's; and now 5 per cent, only of the output was classed second grade, as compared with 50 per cent a <ew years ago There had ibeen marvellous improvement, and New Zealand would have to lock for rivalry from that quarter in the future. The necessity for care would have to be understood .by the farmer as well as in the factories.

The Defence Expenditure Caamussion report that MG7 soldiers have been returned to New Zealand from aJbroad medically unfit, witliouit ever having he-en in the firing-line. Some were sent back on account of 'being over age, others on accouni of being under age; some developed diseases after embarking—«uch. as pneumonia, bronchitis, rheumatism, and surgical disabilities—for example, ruptures and flat feet aggravated by ■strenuous training at Sling following the softening effect of *hc long voyage by sea. Others were returned having been rejected on account of changes in the Imperial Army Council standards, varied since they enlisted. The coat of training, maintaining, and equipping a man, and of getting him as far as Sling and back. is. on the average, £lso—amounting for 'ltfiT to £1176,050. This is supposing all these men were single men. Estimating that these men could have been pursuing their ordinary callings, on a low scale of pay the average earnings per man would bo £ll3O, a total of £1'51,7'10, making the loss to the country £320,760. In other dominions the percentage of has been much greater: in Canada and Australia about four times as much. "In spite of all that can bo done," the Commissioners remark, "the country must expect to have some returned tourists from oibroad who have never seen the firing-line; but there is no evidence to show that medical examinations have not been painstaking and satisfactory. We are convinced 1 that the Now Zealand Medical Corps is entirely to be depended upon." The shortage of matches is breaking down not only the Englishman's reserve, but his class distinctions (writes the London correspondent of the Melbourne Age). In smoking carriages the man with a match seldom strikes it without first looking round to see if there is anybody who wants a light. With regard to cigarettes with one match presages bad luck, and this superstition is respected even by those smokers who individually would scorn to subscribe to superstition of any kind. In the street it is becoming a common thing for one man to stop another who is smoking'a'cigarette and ask for a light from it. To' task for a match would be equivalent to 'begging* money, and would meet with' a curlt refusal. Since the war (began ihe consumption of tobacco has increased, ami it is now in restricted supply. Several things contribute to' the increased consumption—the two chief things being the increased amount of smoking among the soldiers and the growth of the cigarette habit among women. But, according to tobacconists, the shortage of matches has also increased the consumption of cigare'ttets. In order to save matches, cigarette smokers indulge in "chain smoking" —lighting a cigarette from the previous one before the butt is discharged. Cigarette smoking is now general, having displaced the pipe among all grades of the working classes except the elder men. The Chancellor of the Exchequer stated in the House of Commons in connection with the Budget that 75 per cent, of the tobacco consumed in Great Britain is in the form of cigarettes, 15 per cent in pipe tobacco, and 10 per cent in cigars.

"When the war is over and the Allies march victoriously through -Berlin the shade of Bismarck will probably be standinj,' somewhere handy, and he will be looking pretty glum unless by some chance Olive Thomas should be also handy with that irresistible smile of hers. Jn "Limousine life," screening finally at Everybody's Theatre to-night, she uses it with wonderful effect. "Limousine Life" is one of the. merriest tilings ever screened. It is a veritable joy-ride for innocence from start to finish.

The man who must have a Lc Roy oily canvas coat and delays making his purchase will surely lose money, because intimation of a serious rise Ims already been received from the manufacturer. The Melbourne, Ltd., have still a small quantity in stock at old prices, viz., ,55a and 50s Od. Boya coats 3» 3 -6d-to *9s AC

A mill; vendor was fined £4O wt Gismrr.K this week for having sold milk (lii Hera/ted with water. Sufo-Tnspector >"w stated that ii\u> analysis showed <!u Iteration to the extent of 3S per ~M. of added water. Tiie Magistrate haracterised the offence as a very bad me.

A small boiler used in the stereotyping department of the New Zealand Herald, Auckland, exploded one night last week, inflicting injuries on two men, Mr .Tolm Scott, head of the department, and Mr A. .Bruce, a newsroom foreman. Both were injured about the Biead, but the wounds- were not very serious. A heavy iron table eonneeted with the stereotyping plant, and all the windows in this portion of the 'building, ware shattered. .Several of the linotype operators were slightly injured.

An insurance manager, who was supporting an appeal before the Wellington Second Military Service- Board on Wednesday asked if the board knew that' country could not carry on without insurance- The chairman (Mr J. W. Poynfcon) answered Ghat the •board was not composed of children, and added: If the Germans came here insurance, policieswould not be taken Mas slightest notice of. It is just as well we should have, that'other insurance." The appeal was -dismissed.

It has-always been somewhat of a. mystery to most people as to why so many of the Gennan families* are, enf titled to use the prefix "von" itheir surnames. Mr. James Gerard, in his book "My Four Years in Germany," throws some light on the point when' he writes:—"All the-titles of'the-nobili-ty are not confined to the eldest son. The "Pocket Book of Counts/ published ■by the same firm, which published the 'Almanach de Gotha,' contains the Counts of Germany, Austria, and Hungary together, showing in this way the intimate personal relations between thenoble families -of these countries. All, the sons of counts are-counts, and so on ad infinitum. ■ Thus, in Hungary, there are probably seventy Counts Szeeheny, and about the same number of CountsZichy, etc. Some of the German noble families are not far behind. In fact, it may be said that almost any person, in what is known as 'society' in the Central Empires has a title of some sort. The prefix 'von' shows that the person is noble, and is often coupled with names -of people who have no title. By custom in Germany, a 'von,' when he goes abroad, is allowed to call himself baron. But in Germany he could not do so."

The cose of the Australian natural*! ised German, Henry Markwald, which has recently been dealt with in the English courts, is of great importance to all residents in British colonies inasmuch as the decision clearly defines the •position of all aliens who obtain naturalisation in our self-governing Dominions. Markwald was born in <JeT»iany in, 1859, and at the age of 19 (in 1878)*' went to Australia where he resided and? carried on business for' 30 years until 1908. In that year he applied for and. obtained a certificate of naturalisation., from the Commonwealth Government. • The following year, 1909, he went to England, and has since resided there continuously. It will thus be seen that 40 years out of a life of 59 have been spent in Australia and England. Last year Markwald wag prosecuted in london for having failed to register as an alien. Ee produced his naturalisation certificate and claimed to be a British subject, but the magistrate declined to admit the Australian citizenship as effectual in .England and entered a conviction. Markwald then appealed. The Court of King's Bench upheld the magistrate. It pointed out that the Australian Constitution Act gave- to the Parliament of' the Commonwealth theright to naturalise aliens in Australia, and that Naturalisation Act of 1903 (Australia) provides that any person to whom a certificate of naturalisation is granted shall; in the Commonwealth, be entitled to all the political and otherrights, powers and privileges and be subject to all the obligations to which a natural born British subject is entitled or subject in the Commonwealth. Thus the certificate only purported to grant citizenship in Australia and consequently Markwald could not be- treated as other than an alien in England unless he became naturalised there also. From this it will be Been that foreigners naturalised in New Zealand or any other of the self-governing parts of the Empire, cease to be British subjects directly they pass the boundaries—the three mile limit round our shores.

Slafcki Pasha (whoso < death was announced by cable last week) ranked asone of Turkey's leading and most successful diplomats, and his influence before Turkey entered the war was so great that he was regarded iby the- Germans and 'the Young Turks as a dangerous ally of the Entente. Only last year ho journeyed to Lucerne, witih the object of opening negotiations with Britain on behalf of the progressives and moderates among the Osmanlis, who had grown weary of German arrogance and the gross corruption of the factions in power at Constantinople, but again his* plans were defeated by Enver Pasha and the Young ._ Turks. OTakki Pasha represented Turkey at the Balkana Conference in London.

Paris is preparing in various ways (says the Paris correspondent of tSie Field) ifcomake things hot for the Germans in the great air roads expected in the future. Some of these preparations cannot be described, but one of them, in which iParisians have taken much interest/ must be known to the enemy, because it is carried out in public 0 and commented on by the newspapers? Little yellow b&llons began to appear' recently -in various parks and open squares throughout the city. Attached to tfhem were foTOwkHe mazes of -wire. Crowds gathered, and were puzzled. Brit on the first clear night they all rose into the sky, the network of cables disentangled, and.formcd a screen>of metal, invisible to prowling night marauders, whose end Will be sudden and inglorious if any of it/hem strike these protective strands of steel;

To-night is the night on which the big triple attraction programme commences at the Empire. Charlie Chaplin will amuse by his' impersonation of "The Count," and. those who are not completely overcome by the irresistible Charlie will surely succumb to Ethel Barrvmiore and Irving Cummings in "An American Widow." , Those patrons who delight in stirring adventure will get a full measure from "A Lass of the humberlanda." which features Helen Holmes. There will be the usual matinee to-mor-row when Charlie Chaplin and Helen Holmes will figure prominently iirtheir respective star picture.