LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, 23 January 1919, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Work in connection with dismantling the Taranaki (N.Z.) Oil Wells Company's refining plant, which was recently sold to the Auglo-I'ersian Oil Company, is now proceeding. It is expected the machinery will be taken away by a vessel coming to New Plymouth in March Fifteen applications for consent to transfer and mortgage from Crown selectors were dealt with at yesterday's Land Board meeting, three being adjourned and the remainder approved. Ten applications for the issue of fee .simple titles were agreed to. Rua ii net dead after all. Run's wife stated that the inftuanzri epidemic t'\l not penetrate the U.'ewern, country to Maungnp'jhatu or Kuatahiii.i. She states that Run, with some of bis followers, is coming to Waimana o-i Monday to attend the Land Office, and that only the outskirts of Ureweia were affected by the epidemic over & very brie/ psriod in November 1 "NAZOL" for Influenza and Catarrh.

Mr Joseph Dawson, the well-known Ifi.Tty-.Mile Bush contractor, and a member of the Wellington Land Board, states that he can con struct concrete vonds twelve feet in width at £l3 per chain (says the Wairarapa Age).

The Xew Zealand Insmanee Company lias received £2OO "conscience money" It was sent to them by a Duncdin clergyman on behalf of an aaiioiiymous donor.

The rare occurrence of a clean sheet at the Magistrate's Court appears to be -the case at. New Plymouth to-day. There are no charges set down (or hearing in the court this morning.

A reminder is given of the annual pitY.k at the East End Reserve to-day. A good sports programme has been arranged, the Citizens' Band will be in •attendance, and at night there will be a municipal band recital, and a dance in the pavilion.

"It is expected/ - says Sir James Allan '"flint it will be necersary ior the hospital ships to continue running for very much longer. We have not decided yet what we shall do with tlio ships after we have finished with them as libspTfcal ships. If we should deride to usa thorn <is transports wo should have to refit them, and as this would be a long and expensive business we may decide to hand them back to the Union Company to bo fitted out again for their ordinary trades." A rather interesting steer was yarded at the New Zealand Loan and' Mercantile Agjney Co-'s yards at Kolmiatahi recent!,' (says the Stratford Post). This animal as a young steer was evidently belled by a wire around its neck —a usual practice by farmers in the bush districts —but as the steer grew the wire worked into its neck, and eventually'cut through the windpipe. When mustered the wire and bell were removed, and the animal appears to thrive all right, although it makes a noise if moved about at a fast pace. In the opinion of Lieut. T. CDowd, of Masterton, who has just returned from England, the greatest difficulty at the end of the war would bs reconciling the munition workers to the new order of things Industrialists who had been earning about 30s per week prior to the war, had for some years paft been earning from £6 to £7 jkt week. Most of them spent their, money freely, and had saved nothing. Lieut. O'Dowd apprehended that there would be trouble in reverting to anything approaching the old order of things. Merchants do not anticipate any immediate fall in the current price for fertilisers. Speaking on the subject the other day, an Auckland merchant said it had been expected that a large shipment of bonedust would be received from Calcutta in March, but latest information was to tho effect that the boat would not now sail in February. The only other source of supply is Sydney, but as other articles have priority it is not thought that much will find its way into New Zealand from this source. Latest information is also to the effect that the export of slag from Great Britain has been prohibited All of what may be termed the fancy manures are ! practically unprocurable. Bearing these things in mind, it does not appear likely that the expectations of a fall in prices will be realised

There is an acute shortage of bridelayers, carpenters, and plasterers in Wellington, and as a result many contractor:! are several months behind the time specified in engagements entered into by them. The works principally affected are the Scots College at Miramar and the new Fire Brigade Station. Unskilled labor is offering much more freely than was the ci*se six months ago, but there has been no improvement is respect to skilled tradesmen. Difficulty is also being experienced iu retaining the labor of those employed, as there is a growing tendency among employees to temporarily desert their trade in order to work for meat export companies at Ngaha-uranga and Petone, where higher wages are offering A full order paper containing 78 items was before the Land Board yesterday at their first meeting for the year. Soldier settlement and the various questions arising therefrom bulked very largely in the matters discussed. Fourteen applications for financial assistance to acquire farms and houses were dealt with in committee, three being adjourned for valuations and five refuted and th<v remainder favorably dealt with Seven applications for 'further advances for stock, seeds and fencing from soldiers already on the land, aggregating £7OO, were passed. Applications from agents of selectors still absent on.active service for rental concessions were dealt with in committee, and others in the same position who required extension of time to complete statutory improvements or commence personal residence were granted the required time. A report lias been prepared by Col. Oibbon, Chief of the General Staff, on New Zealand's war effort in the dispatch of men for service aroad. The report will be a very complete summary of the work of raising and training the Main Body and the reinforcements, with statistics where they are needed. The paper is being printed, and it should for long be one of the most important documents in the New Zealand archives One of the interesting facts which the report will show is that this little country actually sent abroad for service 0 2 per cent of its population—men, women, and children. This reckoning takes no account of the men in camps—abont 12,000 in all—when the- armistice was signed. Counting these other men under arms the percentage would have been considerably over 10 per cent.

Tho Commandant of the New Zealand Forces lias promulgated a special General Order, covering some eight pages, containing instructions regarding the wearing of orders, decorations and medals. The business of wearing an order seems to be more complicated than probably many of the holders imagine it to be. The instructions are detailed and intimate. It is to be noted, for example, that "it is correct for civilians (gentlemen) to wear evening dress at levees, swearing-in ceremony of a new Governor-General, at the opening of Parliament, evening functions at Government House and evening functions which the Governor-Genera! is known, to he attending officially." But "when gentlemen are not in possession of an evening dresa it will be quite appropriate for morning dress to be worn at all functions such as those mentioned above, other than evening functions. This applies to commanders, officers and members of all, orders and holders of medals " flip, occasions on which ladies are to wear the stars and badges of the Order of the British Empire are stated in detail It is stipulated that the ladies are always to wear "full-size insignia" They must not provide themselves with miniature medala— Own correspondent. Riders of Harley Davidson and Indian Motor Cycles can now procure CLINCHER "DREADNOUGHTS* in. 28 x 3. Sold bj- the tracts only. • $1

Ei is reported that a mrrnajjs "'Hi K * celebrated i» Kasterton uhass& s*' & couple who are both deaf «iM&!:s|Si»

xlms Fred. I'irani (a meimTw »? C 3 Ncv/ Zealand Press delegation to Creat Britain) in tlie Feilding Star:--"For yearn past smoking tobacco by women in aristocratic circles lias been T.uite u common tiling, although the hauit hiw not been flaunted so boldly a3 during late years, when it has become quite common tu the expensive hotels to s.c guests of the gentler sex puffing cigarettes in the dining-rooms at breakfast time. Several times' I saw respectablelooking women smoking cigarettes in London streets as they strolled along arm in ar.u with a male companion. Airs .Bramwell Booth declared recently that ''smoking among women had grown so much that they had to put a room apart for smoking in their women's shelter. It was no longer a mere fashion but a selfish habit. If it does not stop I suppose we shall sec the mothers oi the future pulling c'.ouds of smoke into their babies' faces.'" A remarkable instance of fidelity in circumstances where it might not have been expected is recorded by the Samoa Times. Faasou. a Samoan police messenger, whs dispatched from the Courthouse, accompanied by a certain prisoner who was serving a sentence on | a conviction for threatening to shoot another Samoan: On their way -over the mountains both became ill with influenza, and it was with dillicnlty that they were able to i;-ach Aufaga, where Fnaaon's relatives lived. There Faasou died. His companion was also very sick and unable to move about for several days, but as soon as he was able to return to Apia, where he arrived twelve days from the date of his departure, ringing with him some official reports, together with the uniform of the dead messenger. The man had some three months of his term of imprisonment still to, ij:: \ the Commissioner of Police haa recommended his release, find he will then be offered a post as messenger in the Department.

Writes a Wellington medico with General Allenby's force in Palestine:— I understand the vole of the Hejas Arabs was tc cut off ami finish ihe Fouitli Turkish Army. Their failure caused U6 to continue the flight to j>aniascus. Much has been written of the Aral) army of the King of the Hedjas, of our brave Jewish battalions, and of the French military force. For political reasons it ia lamentable that much bosh is written. It is so untrue. We havo no great admiration for these. It was tho British Force that had for yea.-s borne the heat and burden of the desert; that constructed railways and plugged along. It was the British Yeomanry, Londoners, and Anzacs that brolSe the Turk and > drovu him across Sinai, Koraani and out of Gaza to the hills heyond Jerusalem and Jericho. The cavalry that pursuede and beat the Turk was composed of British Yeomanry, Australians, New Zealanders and Indians. The infantry corps that pushed across the front were of London, Welsh and Scottish, Irish and Indian regiments. The others were small in number, late arrivals and mere political units. As for the Hedjaz Arabs, a greater lot of apparently lazy murderous cut-throats in their jjictnresqne brigandage one could not expect to find elsewhere "Pieturesquo brigandage" is just about their description- We could easily picture many of them shining when opposed, say one hundred strong, to a defenceless woman seized for ransom. But opposed to resolute fighting force? Well, we have our doubts. Perhaps it ia better to have them as allies than have them shooting us in the back from under cover and in darkness.