LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXI, Issue 9143, 20 July 1908, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

/V sitting of the Native Land C,nv mi'-sion will be held at Masterton 01 Friday next.

During the past week or two the sawnvlls in the Forty-milo Bush District have been very bu°y, and surp U3 labour has heen absorbed.

Three first offenders appeared be fore Mr J. 11. l J auling, J.P., at Masterton, on Saturday morning, One was convicted and discharged, the other two being fined 5s each.

A concert is to be held in the Y.M.C.A. social room this evening in aid of the rooms' furnishing 1 fund. An elocutionary contest will be held, and a varied musical programme submitted.

The Masterton Farmers' Union •Executive passed a tesolution on Saturday against the proposal that sheepskins should be tri-rnned, on the ground that such trimming would render too easy the obliteration of evidence ot' sheep-stealing. The resolution is to be forwarded to the New Zealand Woolbrokors' Association.

There was another large attendance of skaters at the Elite Skating Rink on Saturday evening. The chief attraction was a paper chase, which created a deal of interest. The race proved very exciting, and, after a very close finish, L. Scorrar proved the winner. During the evening several appropriate selections, were rendered by the Masterton South Band.

Mr C. ¥'. E. Livesay, Architect of Wellington, has moved to moro convenient rooms in the National Mutual Cimmbers, Customhouse Quay, (adjoining the Head Office of the Bank of N.Z.) Address— P.O. Box 771. Telephone 2692,

It is stated that efforts are being made to induce Mr W. W. Collins, a former to contest Christchurch North with Mr G M. Gray, M.P.

A public meeting convened by the Mayor is to be held in the Exchange Hall on Monday next, when Mr Hollings will explain to the ratepayers the Council's proposals regarding the projected £40,000 drainage and the £7,500 loan for purchasing the Masterton A. and P. Association's Showgrounds in Dixon street.

There was a good attendance at the weekly strangers' tea of the Masterton Y.M.C. A. last evening. Mr J. Hunter presided, the Ladies' Auxiliary supplying the refreshments. At the service which pi'ecedes the tea, Mr P. Gordon, junr., sang a solo, and addresses wtre made toy various members present.

A well-attended meeting uf the ladies' committee which has charge of the supper arrangements for the Catholic oocial on Thursday evening was held last night at the Prsebytery. The reports handed in were most satisfactory, and there is every promise of the function being a decided success. The charge for admission to the social will be 2s.

At the meeting of the general committee of the Wairarapa and East Coast P. and A. Society on Friday., the prize money in connection with the forthcoming show was considerably increased. In the horse classes about £SO was added, £75 was added to the cattle classes; £6O to the sheep classes, including fat stock; and £3O to the produce classes. The aggregate prize money will now be over £l,lOO.

The weather has continued extremely raw since the cold snap set in on Thursday last. The snow 011 the low-lyirig hill 3 has no doubt assisted to reduce the temperature very, materially, and intermittent showers have had an arctic flavour which has not made them welcome. Early lambs —and there are a few about will find the weather conditions trying indeed, while stock generally are not in tou good condition for such a frigid visitation.

The Inspector of Faetpries at Masterton (Mr Hoou) concludes his annual report with the following remarks: —I have found the factories, shops, and offices throughout the district in a clean and comfortable con dition, and there appeals , to be a gtntral desire on the part of employers„to studv the health and convenience of those in their service. In conclusion, I dtsire to record my appreciutoin for Llie courteous treatment I have received from those with; whom I have come in contact in my official capacity during the past year.

The following is the order in which members of the Morris Tube Association are to ehoot in the third competition for the President's Trophy to-night:— 7 p.m.—Messrs Tomlin, Lewin, Allan, C. Perry, Morris, Bannister. 7.30 p.m.—H. Perry, Culloty, McHattie, Burrows, Cook, Spring. 8 p.m. —Williams, Burridge (2), Hood (2), Lett. 8.30 p.m. —Taylor, E. Perry, McCalmont, Sutherland, Wellington, Johatisen. 9 p.m.—King, L. Barker, Spaekman, Lyttle, Brighting, Hornblow. 9.30 p.m.—Swanson, G. Barker, Hodges, Larsen, Gardiner, Wyatt. Redmond, McNabb, Galyer, Mcintosh, Smith, Pearse.

At a meeting of the"district branch of the Masterton Farmers' Union, held on Saturday afternoon, Mr W. J. Welch occupied the chair. Mr W. L. Falconer delivered an address on the question of trade and commerce, and declared that farmers should not be brought under the provisions of the.Conciliation and Arbitration Act. He criticised the policy of the labour agitator, and declared that where hard and fast wages making Acts would operate against New Zealand was in the fact that our raw material had to be sent away to competj in the free jtrade countries where material sent from cheap labour countries was on the market. Mr Falconer received a vote of thanks for his address.

The pharmacists of the Dominion ha v ve, within the past year or two, shown a commendable interest in legislation affecting professional matters. Sh.irtly the chemists intend to move in regard to the control of the vending of opticians', goods, notably spectacles, pince-nez, and eye-glasses. Such goods may now, it is stated, be purchased wholesale by any person and hawked through the country, great harm often being done in this way. At the recent conference of chemists, it wi»s pointed out that a person without teeth could get along better than one deprived of his eyesight, yet dentists bad to be certificated, whilst anyone could sell spectacles. The chemists argue that vendors of opticians' goois should undergo an examination in sight testing, and they intend a little later to ask the Government to bring down a measure similar to the Sight-testing Opticians Act, 1906, of New South Wales, which has proved an effective check on people who make a pretence of testing the eyes and make 500 or 600 per cent, on the goods bold.

"It is not only a revision of the Government land valuation but revision of the valuators that we want. I put that to the Government," said Mr Fisher in the House of Parliament on Friday. He instanced three examples in support of his contention that the Government values were too high. An Auckland estate which he .«aid was about to be cut up for sub - urban homes was valued at £64,710 The owners appealed to the Cour f . with the result tlni 4 : the assessment was reduced to £45,000. In the case of a Wellington estate the valuation was reduced by the Court from £11,7(10 to £3,000, whilst that of a Christcliurch property, after being fixed at £17,000, had been cue down to £IO,OOO. "Can anyone say in face of these examples," he asked, "that the Government valuers are not doing their best to force up the values of land." The values, he- said, should not be written up against settlers simply because some person who knew nothing about the matter came into a district and paid a fancy price for a farm.

Whothor resulting from a sprain or from rheumatic pains, there is nothing so_ good for a lame shoulder as Chamberlain's Pair. Balm. Apply it freely and rub the vigorously at each application and a quick euro is certain. For sale by all chemists and storekeepers.

There is likely to be a demonstration of the unemployed in the streets of Wellington to-morrow. Butter is now quoted at Is 3id wholesale (for pound pats) in Dunedin, but the Wellington price remains at Is 2Jd. Stocks in Wellington are low, but any increase in price in the near future is unlikely. The number of carcases of mutton exported from the Dominion last year was 1,821,426, as against 1,921,465 in 1907 and 1,500,773 in 1906. The weight exported in legs and pieces last year was 35,663 cwt., as against 37,456 cwt. in 1907 and 13,471 cwt. in 1906. The lamb carcases exported last year numbered 2,826,437, as compared with 2,519,417 in 1907 and 2,134,563 in 1906. Much anxiety ;is felt as to the safety of Mr Gordon Watson, who went out in a sailing boat from Colli ngvvood on Tuesday, and has not since been heard of. The boat has been found bottom up at Farewell Spit. Mr Watson, a young man of twenty years of age, is a nephew of Captain Watson, of Wellington. He is an only son, and has been engaged managing a sawmill for his father in the Collingwood district.

Sir William Steward, "father" of the House of Kepresehtatives, hsfe secured an interesting return' showing when each member was first elected. He heads the list with a record attendance of thirty-seven sessions and ten Parliaments, for he was sworn in on August 14th, 1871. Next is the Hon. Y. Duncan, who was elected in 1882, and has ceen nine Parliaments. The present Speaker and the member for the Southern Maori district, Mr Parata, have each seen eight Parliaments. There are five who boast experience of seven, and six who come next with halt a dozen.

The interim return showing the total number of sheep in the Dominion on April 30th last was laid on the table of the House cn Friday. The figures were:—April 30th, 1908, 22,124,202; April 30th, 1907, 20,983,772; increase, 1,140,430. The increase in the South island was 656,982, and in the North I&land 483,448. The following are the district totals in April last, the figures in parentheses showing the increases: —Auckland, 837,765 (50,055) ;Napier and Gisborne, 5,351,393 (231,492); Wellington and West Coast! 5,148,30$ (199,901); Marlborough and Nelson', 1,185,810 (63,370); Canterbury and Kaikoura, 5,301,595 ' (154,255); Otago, 4,299,331 (439,357)., At the North Island New Zealand Wyandotte Club's annual meeting at Hastings, the annual" report congratulated the club on the membership, which was over eighty. \lt stated that a new champion shield had been subscribed for the best birds in the club's show. The following officers were elected:—President, Mr John Jarvis; Vice-Presi-, dents, Messrs W. A. Boyet?, E. T» Bateinan, F. Dacre, L. Luxford, Captain Hood, J. Currie; committee, Messrs T. Jamieson, T. E. Boyes, F. Brsdley, T. J. Leighton; secretary, Mr T. R. Boyes; Treasurer, Mr Guthrie, it was resolved that the next Wyandotte show be held at Auckland.

A deputation from the Christchurch School Committees' Association waited \esterday m,oming upon the Hon. G. Fowlds, Minister tor Education, to recommend the medical inspection of school children, the adoption of single desks, and also an increase in salaries. Dealing with single desks, the Minister said that nearly all the advantages afforded by them were afforded by the dual desks, which should be introduced into all new schools. With regard to medical inspection of schools, he whs strongly of opinion that it was desirable. He could easily spend £150,0U0 per annum for that purpose if Parliament could see its way to vote that sum. The matter might possibly be dealt,' with this session, as it was under the consideration of the' Government. The sanitary inspector for the Redfern Council (Sydney), in his report at the last meeting, mentioned that ,he had come across a phosphorised carcase of a rabbit, which had .been purchased by a resident from a dealer. A membdr of the family that purchased the rodent was indignant when he discovered that the body emitted an iridescent glow. As he rather grimly remarked, there was no need to use a candle* to look forj the . remains in the vvashhouse, They illuminated themselves. The sanitary inspector advanced the theory that the rabbit in question was of parents that had become immune to phosphorous through having absorbed a great deal in small doses, in the same manner as strychnine or morphia victims are unaffected by these drugs. Anyhow, the purchasers who partook of a portion of the rabbit were not affected in any way. All the same, they were not overwhelmed with delight at the free lighting display they had happened upon (says the "Sydney Daily Telegraph").

A party on Mount Egmont on Sunday week last heard a sound of groaning in the scrub*near the mountain track to the North Egmont accommodation house. A search waa made, but no human being could be discovered. On Monday a large party went out, and discovered a woman crouching in the fern, with her head pressed between her knees, which she 1 clasped with her arms. She was almost nude, her apparel consisting of a man's'shirt and a short jacket, and she was evidently half dead from exposure and starvation, her extremities being swollei) with the cold. The wife of the custodian of the accommodation house, Mrs Morris,Jvas sent for, stripnod off some of her own apparel, and soon had the poor woman wrapped injwarm clothing. Then she busied herself in preparing soma food from the contents of {the gig, and eased the pangs of hunger, the unfor-

tunate woman expressing her gratituHe with her eyes, for she had not recovered the power of speech. Another messenger went off to a farmhouse to get SQine spirits, but only some light blackberry wine was available. This revived the poor crpature a little, and she was able to give her name, Pipi. She was taken to the New Plymouth Hospital, and ia doing fairly well. Sho informed Mrs Morris that she had gone into the bush to die. About eight months 1 ago her brother died, and she had no one else left. She had been living at Bell Block, and left there nearly three weeks ago. She had been in the bush during that time.

Figures prepared by the Wellington Tramway Department show that the average fare charged to passengers is 1.33 d per mile in Wellington. £)unedin has the sam 3 average, that «of Christchurch (2.12 d) is nearly •double the amount, and Auckland has ..an appreciable excess al3o (1.47 d). At Ohakune (Main Trunk Rail*way), states a Taihape Press Association telegram, William Olliyer was fined £25 and costs for having /•ten cases of whisky in his possession vin a prohibited area, in default three months' imprisonment. For carting • the whisky for Olliver, R. Malmari- ■ che was fined £5. About three or four weeks ago ' there was evidence that the hemp market was improving, but latterly, : says a contemporary, on account of i reported heavy shipments from Manila, it has again dropped, and it :is stated that the prices now ruling • barely cover the cost of production for the majority of millers. A meeting of the Napier Painters ;and Decorators' Union carried the folresolution as the outcome of an appeal for aid in connection with the bakers' strike at Wellington: "That this union absolutely refuses to grant any finahcial assistance to • the Wellington Bakers' Union, and disapproves o£ their action in strik-

■\Jy Can a man make a living off a small holding? is a question that is often asked by those unacquainted with the soil (says the "Hunterville . Express.") If the experiences of Mr P. Healey, of Mangaonoho, are any criterion to go by, then the answer is yes, and a good living at that. Mr Healey owns thirteen acres, not flat land either, and he informs us that last year he took an average of £l3 an acre off his small farm. This was not done by cropping, but from milking cows, rearing pigs, and fruit growing. "Get on the soil, young man," is Mr Healey's advice to the rising generation.

The following remit is to be moved ■at the Colonial Conference of the Famers' Union by the delegate from Taranaki:—"That the owner of land, where compensation is not provided for, be liable for improvements de- ) manded under the Dairy Act, provided that the tenant pays int.'rest on outlay during term of occupancy." Another remit from Hawke's Bay is •of interest to drovers and owners of stock:—'.'That the County Council and tfye Government, when taking . lands for settlement be urged to pro- ' vide camps for travelling stock. It was urged that on account of so many stock travelling, this was a important matter for them to take up."

Politics in New Zealand are very tame and cultured compared with those on the Continent of Europe; and even London's suffragettes take the game peacefully compared with the elect of Servia. A telegram from Belgrade on the elections at the • end t 'of May says excitement was . running high in almost every city and town. On May 25th, in Alex- . androvaz, whpre the Young Radicals (the largest opposition party) held ; a meeting, a fight occurred between the Young Radicals and the Government party, in the heat ofwhich revolvers were drawn and seven men ware wounded, two of whom are ex-

;J|!ted to die. The pakeha has much to answer for in his maltreatment of the Maori .language. The members of the Native Conrgess shook with laughter when a Maori mimicked, with tome difficulty, the common pakeha pronunciation of the Native words iu this short sentence: "I am sending some totara to Kumara by the Manuka." The Rev. Nikora lautau (Tauranga) rebuked his countrymen ' for adopting, in some instances, European perversions of their language. The popular "Kia Ora," for example, is now used, even by Natives, in place of the old salutation, "Tenakoe." And "Kia Ora," though it has since ueen used ;-as a greeting to English Royal blood, had its ofrigin in common drinking bars. It is a literal translation of the English toast, "good health." While all the Maoris at the CongriS3 •were in favour of the preservation ■of their language, there was some difference of opinion as to how this ; should be effected. , One tribal chief proposed that the dialect of his tribe should be made the standard speech. He said this, because he was convinced that the language of his tribesmen was ■ the best. He admitted, however, that he might be prejudiced in the matter, ard suggested that Mr W. W. Bird, inspector of Native schools, should be appointed arbiter to choose the special dialect which should be 'preserved. According to the "Feilding Star"

some of the Feeding people resort to -peculiar methods for amusement. . H?re i 3 our contemporary's veision of incident that occurred in the Feilding district the other day There are two men who are reputed to be sworn foes, and to hold a ven - detta each against the othei; but that may be a mere rumour. It happened that one of the two set out to do the other a turn that was anything but neighbourly, and the little plot was frustrated. Then the man who was to have been injured heard that the frustrated one was out after him "With a gun. Well, he thought, that's all right—he had a gun, too. So behold in the second act of '".his comedydrama two men going out gunning. They met, of course; and words led to threats, with the drawing of a revolver by one and the flourishing of a gun by the other. Now, as is generally the case in a drama, one character was a comedian, and the other was—well, he wasn't ulaying a hero's part. The comedian ha I load■ed his gun with blank cartridges, and lie carried a stick. At the psychological moment he culled the trigger, and simultaneously struck the other fellow on the back with the stick. Too excited to wateh the two actions, the man who was struck ' thought he was the billet for a bullet. • Certain that he should either be dead or dying, he made for Feilding and a doctor at express speed, burst into a surgery, and called jloudly for a post-mortem examination for the bullet that wasn't thfere! (Curtain.) For Children's Hacking Cough at night «oods' Great Peppermint Cure. 1/6 d 2/6. Send the documents of your importations to MESSRS J. J. CURTIS & CO. LTD., Customhouse shipping and Forwarding Agents, Customhouse Quay Wellington, who will quickly clear, pass *and forward the goods to you. Moderate, ■"Charges.

The oldest recipient of an old-age pension in the Dominion is a widower 107 years of age. The second oldest is an unmarried man, aged 104 years. The latter draws his instalments in person at the post ol.ice each month.

Captain Hugh Stewart, (formerly of Auckland) writes impressing the people of New Zealand with the great desirableness of donkeys for small country settleis, no the tiny donkeys of Auckland, nor the giants of France, but the common English donkey, as the special auxiliary of the New Zealand wife She often has to carry water up a slippery track from the also she has to drag home firewood over rough ground while her hus is away earning money with his pan of horses. Tonkeys are tractable and easily fed, and on a good road a common donkey will draw scwt. without any effort; it could carry bucket" of water on an improvised packsaddle.

The following are extracts from a letter recently received by a Wanganui man from a Nelson tradesman. —"lt is now the bewitching hour of 7 o'clock, Friday evening, when the poor unfortunate shopkeeper «± Nelson, vainly waiting for the cash (which does not come along under the new regime), sits and grins and bites his nails and cogitates ovei thii gs of the past and tries to persuade himself that the new conditions of things in keeping open shop on Friday night and closing on Saturday will make no ultimate difference to the "takings" and to his worldly position. As I write the shops are resplendent with their many attractions, shown to advantage under the glistening effect of our Nelrfon gas, and the hum and scurry of the street is—like unto that of a cemetery and poor miserable 'shoppy' tries to be happy and easy in his mind under the conviction that he is patriotically helping along the civic gasworks by using up their products, and rejoices in the knowledge that Nelson is leading the way in the new reform."

In the las'; number of "Te Pipiwharauroa," the organ of the Young Maori Partv, published in Maori at Gisborae., is an article by Archdeacon Williams on the history of the two letters in the Maori alphabet, ng and wh. Though these letters contain really two characters each, they are sounded as one. Attempts were made by early Maori linguists to solve this difficulty. At one time the letter ng was represented by er alone, as in Pagopago (Pangopango) the capital of the Samoan group. There was also a time when w alone represented either w or wh, and in the famous document of the Treaty of Waitangi, it is so used. This practice was found, however, to be unsatisfactory, as ware was not quite the same as whare. It was Dr Maunsell who first used the letters rig and wh, as we have at present. Archdeacon Williams suggests that new symbols should be found for these letters. For wh he adds a half v to the hj, and for ng he gets rid of the g, but lengthens the last leg of the n into a sort of j.

The owner of a 3heep-dog is advertised for. I • At the residence, No. 30, Cole street, to-morrow afternoon, Mr J. R. Nicol will sell without reserve, on account of Mr W. Murray, a fine range of furniture and effects. The leading lines are distinctly highclass and all the goods will be on view this afternoon to enable probable purchasers to judge of the special value to be submitted at the sale.

Applications are elsewhere invited by the Mnsterton Technical School for two instructors, one for wool • classing and the other for ;plumbers' work, which close with the Secretary (Mr N. D. Bunting), at eight o'clock, on Wednesday evening, 22nd inst. Persons desirous of joining the proposed class in wool -classing are requested to notify the Secretary as early as possible. The Winslow Skating Rink has been attracting a considerable number of skaters. The skates used are all of the best material, and are thoroughly reliable. The floor has been given strict attention, and is no.v in capital order. The proprietor is intending to hold a fourteert-lap race at an early date. The race will be for men only, and is attacting a deal of intersst among skaters. The winner of the race is to be presented with a pair of Winslow skates. A number ,of ball-bearing and plain skates are kept in stock, and can be purchased at a reasonable price.