LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, 28 January 1921, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Scholars of St. Mary’s Sunday School, New Plymouth, about 200 in number, and also a party of adults, held a picnic outing nt Messrs. Lester Bros.’ Ngaere Gardens yesterday, and spent a very pleasant day. The gardens, with their picturesque surroundings and numerous attractions, make an ideal resort for a day’s excursion. The high prices that have been ruling for pigs during the past season have evidently caused dairy farmers to turn their attention to this profitable side line, as pigs are coming forward more freely this season than for some seasons past. Last week the number of pigs handled by the Inglewood Bacon Company constituted a record in the history /of the concern.

Pigs did not realise good prices at the sale in Eltham on Wednesday. A local butcher purchased a line of nine at £1 each; pip estimated to weigh about 7Olb. It is not so very long ago since weaners were realising up to £2. —Argus. Advice has been received by the Government that the special consignment of sugar which is being obtained from Australia to assist in meeting the requirements of. the jam and fruit preserving season was to be despatched from Sydney last night by the Koromiko for Port Chalmers. Under the new Counties Act, which comes into force on April 1, 1921, it is provided that, where the capital value of a rating district in a county is less than two-fifths of the capital value of all the ratable property in such county, the council may declare all such rating districts to be dissolved and be merged into the county. Some counties purpose taking action under the new Act in the direction indicated.

Prosecutions instituted by the Defence Department against cadets for failing to attend drill were heard at the New Plymouth Court yesterday, before Messrs. H. R. Cattley and J. Therkleston, J.P.’s. G. J. Bartley and K. R. Dutton were convicted and ordered to pay costs 7s, and a fine of ss, with costs 7s, was imposed against S R. Frewin and L. Sturmey. A number of cases were adjourned. Captain Hudson appeared for the Department. It is reported that there has been a rapid fall lately in the prices offered by outers for bacon pigs. Farmers who formerly sold their baconers at lid per lb are now asked to accept 6d. No explanation of the sudden change in the market is given, and farmers in many districts are complaining of the position, particularly as they state that there ha<s not been a commensurate reduction in the retail price of bacon. Hams and bacon are accordingly realising lower wholesale values than they were a month ago.

The Hon. W. Nos worthy, Minister of Agriculture, replying to a Press reporter, stated that the embargo on the •importation of New Zealand potatoes into Australia was still in force, but the New Zealand Government intended seeing what could be done to improve the position for next season. The Prime Minister had promised that tariff revision would be dealt with next session, and there was no doubt that matters affecting the producers of the Dominion would be considered, amongst other tariff matters, from the point of view of the best interests of the Dominion.

• Between two and three hundred children from St. Andrew’s and Methodist Sunday schools spent yesterday afternoon at Kawaroa Park, the day being passed in real picnic style. The attendance was swelled by a large number of adults, and all had a pleasant outing. The park offers numerous attractions for the young folk, and the recently-erected swings and glide were largely patronised. Further novelties of this kind are shortly to be added. This season the park has been the resort for a very large crowd of holiday makers, big attendances being recorded almost daily during the past month. The need for having constant examinations of rats was emphasised at the Auckland City Council meeting last week in a communication from the district health officer, who complained that “no rats had been received from the council” since last Septehber. The chief sanitary inspector reported that the last rat-catcher left his job because he was not allowed to accept 3d per rat paid by the Health Department. The inspector’s recommendation that a rat-catcher should be engaged at, say, £5 a week, with a definite instruction as to the amount paid by the Department, was referred to the works committee. It was pointed out that without public co-oper-ation one man could not materially reduce the number of rats.

“A small expedition will, I understand,” writes the London correspondent of the Daily Dispatch, “leave this country' shortly with a view to exploring the south-west coast of Australia. . Great secrecy is observed about the object of the journey, but the leader of the party has information about a tribe of pigmies who live underground in that district Fantastic though it may sound, scientists are agreed that a subterranean colony exists in South-West Australia. There is evidence, also .fr'om recent discoveries in chalk and limestone of small bones, that tiny human beings, with partly webbed fingers and toes, live, or at least have lived, far below the surface in caves, needing very little air.”

The members of the Gaming Commission, who are studying the allocation of totalisator permits have still a great deal of work ahead of them. They are not likely to present their report to the Government much before the end of March. They are making an extensive tour of New Zealand in search of precise information regarding the racing requirements of the various districts. The time occupied by the commission in the preparation of its report is not a matter of much importance, since the additional totalisator permits that* may be issued by the Minister of Internal Affairs on the recommendation of the commission will not operate in any case until next racing season It is anticipated that Parliament will have an opportunity to review the whole matter before any of the additional permits become operative. The N.Z. Loan and Mercantile Agency Co., Ltd., wish to <jraw client®* attention to,their Stratford sale, which they are holding in their Stratford yards on February 1, at 12.30 p.m. Full particulars of entries will be found on page 8 of this issue. There is only one SANDER EXTRACT, and that is why the people reject the many inferior and harmful substitutes and just as goods. SANDER’S EXTRACT is free from the objectionable qualities of the common eucalyptus. Sander’s Extract cures all infectious diseases, all winter ailments, ulcers, burns, sprains, eczema, etc. Insist on the GENUINE SANDER’S EXTRACT.