LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, 9 May 1919, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

A grateful South Taranaki land agent wrote last night to the News: "We advertised a farm in to-day's News for the first time, and sold it. the same day, as the result of your publicity." The inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the death of the wife of the Rev. J. N. Milne was continued yesterday afternoon before the District Coroner (Mr. A. Crooke, S.M.), but, on account of the inability of Dr. Blackley to attend, it had to be further adjourned.

Some members of the Taranaki Education Board yesterday visited some of the schools on the South Road between New Plymouth and Opunake. At one settlement an elderly Native, who had had none of the present-day educational advantages, expressed regret for his loss in that respect and said if he had had education he would have been "the big fella" to-day, and, judging from the intelligent way in which he spoke, it was easy to believe the Maori was right. He was very anxious that the present Native children should tako advantage of the chances they had of acquiring a good education, and expressed his appreciation of its value in a truly Native fashion when he said: "He no education, he only one eye, see one side canoe; want two eyes, see both sides." At a meeting of the executive of the Star Football Club a resolution was passed emphatically protesting against the exchange of Part of Reserve T, situated in Barrett Street. Westown, New Plymouth, for the Ratapihipihi snd Ratapika Scenic Reserve, situated at Westown, and also that sufficient reasons are not forthcoming why the exchange should be completed or take place, and also that owing to the town of New Plymouth expanding as it is, at the present rate in the very near future the above reserve will be needed for recreation and sports. This resolution in | dieates that others thar. cricketers are interested in the preservation for public use of the best reserve for such purposes ifi the west side of the town.

Wise advice was given to the chairman of the Taranaki Education Board yesterday by a Native at one of the coastal settlements along the South Road, between New Plymouth and Opunake. Some members of the Education Board had met some of the members of a certain school committee, and also some of the Natives of the district, for the purpose of adjusting a difference that had arisen between the teacher and the Natives on account of the mistaken punishment of a Native boy at the school. Full and ample apologies were given by the teacher, and the boy was completely exonerated in the eyes of the whole school, before whom he'had been punished. Notwithstanding this, the boy had not returned to school, and the board members deemed it wise to give the father an opportunity to place his view of the matter before them, so that tlisy might give him their assurance tliat everything would be all risrht in the ■a«£MC This was done, and-the wholo j matter was cleared up to the satisfaction of everybody concerned, and the Native ng-reed to send the boy back to school. -Mr. Masters was then asking another Native present what could be done to induce other Natives, who were not doing so, to send their children to school, and 'how the board could help the Maoris to appreciate the value of schooling for their children, when the dusky one replied, with an appropriate gesture: "You done pretty well to-day; you try bite too much at once you choke!" No one enjoyed the joke more than the liainufln. himself.

In speaking to the deputation that met the members of the Education Board at Opunake yesterday, Mr. R. Masters (chairman) said that, after aU, the board was only a glorified school committee, having a lot of schools under its jurisdiction, instead of only one. There are indications of renewed mining activity around Thames, although nothing of a startling nature has occurred (reports the Star). One or two prospecting parties are out, and, in addition, some old claims, long neglected, have been taken up and old drives which have fallen in are being cleaned out and preparations made for pushing the drive in further. An Otaki resident at present at Raetihi who was there during the bush fire some time ago, states that the country never looked better than at present. The fire did much harm at the time, but good has now come of it. Feed is plentiful, farmers have had a specially good season, while several beautiful homes and fine shops have been erected.

A sensational accident occurred on the Makuri Gorge road last week. A fivehorse wagon was being driven through" the gorge when a part of the road subsided, and without a moment's warning two of the leaders slipped from their harness and fell a distance of 40ft down a perpendicular cliff and were killed instantaneously. The vehicle and the other horses remained on the thoroughfare without mishap. In the Perth Court a few days ago, Lieutenant Leslie Tweedie, who is under order to proceed to Victoria as aide-de-camp to the State Commandant, sued Mrs. Daisy Hope for £7O 10s, military allotment collected by defendant during plaintiffs absence on military service. Defendant, it was claimed, collected the money as plaintiff's fiancee, and then married another man. During the hearing defendant seized some letters produced by plaintiff's counsel, tore them up, and thrust the fragments into her blouse, declaring, "My letters aren't going to. be read in this court." The court imposed a fine for contempt, and adjourned the case, defendant having raised the plea of infancy. Alice Anderson, a young person, just out of her teens, says the Sydney Bulletin, is an expert mechanic who runs a stable of six cars, with half-a-dozen •girl shovers, all of whom she has trained herself. Each shover knows her car in a way few women know their sewing machines. The Anderson garage is a regular Princess Ida affair—not a man about the place. The girls working about just wear "blueys." They have concluded, however, that no girl looks well in ordinary pants, so they are evolving a brown twill working-suit. When they drive they wear pants and leggings with the usual chauffer's tunic and cap. Miss Anderson wears her hair close cropped and a boy's suit. She began three years ago ,with her own car. Work increased and she trained help. She needs more help now, and last week an advertisement for "girha" to train brought her 168 applicants of all ages. She likes to catch 'em young. One apprentice (not yet a chaffer) is a girl of 13. The girls take touring trips as well as city work, but they avoid night jobs as much as possible. The chauffers wear khaki drill. It 'does fade," they complain, and are preparing a boiler of green dye in which to transform their uniform.

Under the heading "Some War Achievements" the following appears in the official journal of. the Royal Colonial Institute: "Although New Zealand is a small country with a proportionately Bmall population, over 100,000 trained soldiers have, up to the present time, sailed from the Dominion to take part in the war, while a still larger number have joined the colors. Two line hospital ships have been fitted out and fullyequipped, and over 500 fully trained nurse* have been sent to the frontHorses to the number of have been sent to Egypt for military purposes. Up till now New Zealand has borne the entire cost of her war effort, amounting to £40,000,000. Whether the Dominion can continue to meet its own war expenditure depends largely, on the shipping outlook. If sufficient ships can bo found to carry the country's products, her financial position should be assured."

There are thousands of people in and about Sydney who do not know what it is to have homes to themselves (says a Sydney paper). In some streets—in many streets, in fact— a house tenanted by one family has the novel freshness of an oasis in a wilderness of bricks and mortar. Some people prefer this mode of life, but in the vast number of cases they have simply become inured to conditions which they cannot control. They have grown accustomed to living two and three, and sometimes more, families under the one roof. They have surrendered to circumstances with which they feel themselves powerless to deal. And what is happening in one suburb is happeiiim;' in almost every other thicklypopulated suburb. There are not nearly enough houses to go round. In common with many other municipalities, Mascot, for example, recently reported a shortage in tin.' number of new buildings. It is stated that during 1913, IM4, and 11115 the buildings erected there numbered 1(18, 175. and 105 respectively, while in 1910, 1917, and 191S the figures dropped to 49, 30, and 4S respectively. The average cost, it is stated,' had almost, doubled. Mascot, however, '•» not a glaring instance. There is a shortage of houses everywhere, and with soldiers returning in thousands—many of them are bringin? brides from across the sea—the position has become accentuated.

A strip of country running right down the eastern coast of the North Auckland Peninsula has been practically without rain for nine weeks, with the exception of a few hours' downpour about six weeks ago, and very occasional light local showers, states the Kawa Kawa correspondent of the New Zealand Herald. The position is now becoming serious in places. Stock are dying for the want of water, and large numbers are getting in low condition. Dairying in the affected area is coming gradually to a standstill, as the feed lias not much substance, and there is not much of it. A large number of places on the east side of the peninsula stock well up, as a precaution against fire, and other places burn their grass in January. This means that both these classes of holdings are not in a good position to stand prolonged dry weather in the autumn. They are, therefore, suffering accordingly. The price of stock reflects the shortage of feed in the district. On the west side of the peninsula there has been sufficient rain. If a map of the North were taken and a line ruled down the centre, one side could be practically classed as suffering from the dry spell, while the other side has had enough rain to get a good autumn growth of grass. Even If rain fell now, it is too late to expect sufficient feed for the winter. The outlook is, therefore, most unpromising, and there is a possibility of a heavy mortality among cattle.

Farmers whose capital is limited, and who desire to start dairying on a farm of their own, should read W. H. and A. McGarry's fresh advertisement on page one.

A widow, Sirs. Mary Amor, wai fined !is without costs for failing to send her son to continuation classes. >Mr. G. Pascoe, truant inspector, told the S.M. that the boy had a will of his own, and though his mother wished him to attend she could do nothing with the lad. Some amusing incident? regarding the life on New Zealand transports during the great war were related by Captain G. Doorly, R.N.R., at the Town Hall at Wellington on Friday night. He told how one New Zealand soldier was admiring a resplendent sunset, when he remarked "that it was the finest sight he had seen since he had left home." "What are l you talking about?" ejaculated another New Zealand soldier, who was hard-by. "Ever had a squint through the window at the officers' mess?" The audience was convulsed with laughter.

Three territorials, A. Henley, .1. C. Rich, and L. L-ukasohefski, were brought before Mr. A. Crooke, S.M., yesterday on charges of failure to render the personal service required of them. Hurley and Rich pleaded not guilty, stating they had been granted exemption, whilst the third defendant produced a medical certificate which had not 'been forwarded to the Defence Department. The two first cases were adjourned for a week, and if the exemptions are in order the prosecution will be withdrawn. Lukaschefski was fined 5s and costs, the magistrate remarking that defendant failed to take the proper steps to notify the Defence Department. Two prosecutions against residents of the Taranaki county for allowing stock to wander on the roads were dealt with by Mr A. Crooke, S.M., yesterday, R. P. Roebuck, for allowing three cows to be at large on the Main South Road near Okato, on April 4, was fined £3 (costs £2 6s). The county road foreman deposed that defendant's cattle were frequently on the road night and day, and he had been convicted on two previous occasions. James Shamrock was fined £1 (costs £1 18s) for allowing two bulls to wander on the- Tariki (Road. Mr. R. H. Quilliam appeared for the County Council in each case.

Reports in the Australian papers of the surrender of the German navy by world wide consent the most impressive and Significant episode of the whole war,' shows that each enemy ship was looked after by a ship of the British navy. To the Australia was allotted the new battle cruiser Hindenburg, while the 28,000-ton battle -cruiser Derflinger was the special charge of the New Zealand. In each case; the escorting warships sent a. boarding party aboard the enemy ships to make sure that according to the conditions laid down the latter was unarmed. It was the first time that the New Zealand and the Derflinger had met since that afternoon, two and a half years earlier, when they hammered each other in the battle of Jutland.

At Foxtott one evening kst week Mr. Fred. Pirani, asked by a returned soldier if the effect of the issue of a rum ration to t&a soldiers at the front had had the effect stated recently by Sir Robert Stout, said he could only speak from personal experience, and it was laughable to ascribe anything of the sort to> the very smhll rum ration served out under most exceptional conditions. As a matter of fact his experience had been that the most abstemious of the men he saw at Homein England, Ireland, and Scotland—were the New Zealanders. Notwithstanding the fact that they were better supplied with money than, almost any other division, thero was not the slightest sign of the abuse of their money. He put down this mainly to the wet canteen system. Certainly, on the trip back to New Zealand on a transport, where every kind of intoxicating liquor was barred to the men, they had an "interlude" of what some folk call enjoyment at Colon, hut if ever that kind of relaxation was justifiable, it was there. Quite a numoer of the men had as much, if not more, than was good for them, but no harmful result followed, and he doubted very much if as many were induced to become hard drinkers abroad as by their stay in Trentham Camp. It was very hard for folk out here to realise the conditions the boyß had to endure while they were away, and it was not the time to indulge in Pharisaical criticisms <>!' them or their conduct. \

Something altogether unique and quiie Unprecedented in the history of New Plymouth is perhaps the best description of what is likely to happen in connection with the peace celebration balls, to be held in the Coronation Hall. The matter of the children's fancy dancing is in the capable hands of Mr. J. Hoskin,'who has made wonderful progress in the four rehearsals he has had with the children. It is estimated that there will be about 1000 children taking part, and, with the many fancy costumes and the lighting effects, the spectacular result will bo n revelation. For some special dances Mr. Hoskin is preparing two sets of about twenty girls each, and those who have seen what is being done are most enthusiastic over the prospects. The town school teachers are eominsr to the assistance of Mr. Hoskin in helping to control the children at the practices. A groat feature of the ball will be the competitive element for various dress desiens. Last night there, were about SOO children present at the Coronation Hall, and the next practice will be held at 3 o'clock on Saturday afternoon. To-day the Melbourne, Ltd., received advices from their Home buyers that further advances have taken place' on all lines of Leicester hosiery. As \hefo comprise prncticallv Hip whole of the cashmere socks and stockings imuorled into the Dominion higher retail prices may ?oon be expected to take effect. Buyers should make a note of this.