LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 9588, 7 September 1909, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Mr J. 0. Boddington, of Upper Plain, reports 8£ degrees of frost on Fridi.y. 5 degrees on Saturday and 2 decrees on unday. Tbere were four births, two deaths, and one marriage recorded in Fertherstun or August.

The rocial arranged to be held uncle*- the auspices of the Masterton Fi?>e Band on Thursday next has been postponed till Wednesday, 15th in star.t. in the Exchange Buildings. Mr F. Jones, of Bowlands, has purchased, through Mr C. C. Rosa' igency, Captain Gardner's .farm of 850 acres, known as "Highfields," in the Manawata district. At the Police Court, yesterday morning, before Mr G. Heron, J. P., a first offending inebriate was fined ss, in default 24 hours' imprisonment.

With the view to forming classes for instruction in life-saving. Mr Alf. Snowball, who is a medalist of the Royal Life-saving Society, will give an address on the aims and object 3of the Society in the Y.M.CA. Rooms, at 8 o'clock, tonight.

Advices received by mail indicate that action has been taken by a European and American syndicate of jewel merchants to secure the output from the gem mines in Ceylon, which will have the effect of increasing the price of sapphires, rubies, cat's eyes, Alexandrites, and other stones.

The Customs duties collected in Napier last week amounted to £2,296 19s 4d, the beer duty to £46 14s 3d, and other receipts to £22 178 lOd. making a total of £2,366 11a sd. The figures for the previous week were as follows:—Customs duties £1,229 2s sd, beer duty £54 12s 6d, other receipts £24 12s sd; total £1,308 7s 4d. The Treasurer of the Masterton Hospital acknowledges with thanks the receipt of £2 8s 6d, being the full amount of a collection kindly undertaken by Mr A. P. Feilding at the football match, Banks and Law Clerks v.' Stock and Station Agents. The contribution with the Government subsidy added will amount to £5 6s Bd. The local office of the New Zealand / Shipping Company has received no 1 information concerning the cabled advice that the Rakaia kad broken down near St. Helena. It is believed that the mishap was of a trivial nature, or a mora significant message would have been signalled by the captain. It h customary when engines are stopped at sea to put up the "not under control" signal. It is a regretable but nevertheless patent fact that a sordid element is gradually creeping into our alleged sport (says the Auckland "Observer ") It is seen nearly everywhere; on the bowling green, the cricket and football fields, the tennis lawn, the golf links The tendency is towards quibbling over small details. Losers no longer seen? disposed to accept defeat in a sportsmanlike spirit. In • stead, they seem to make a beeline for the rule book in order to see whether they can upset the victor by means of a quibble. Taranaki, as the starting point of officials who have attained distinction in the Public Service, has altogether a glad record, as outlined by the Accountant to the Treasury, Mr JR. B. Vincent, during the presentation to Colonel Collins recently. The Secretary to the Treasury, the recipient of the presentation, hails from Taranaki, together with the following:—Mr Batkin, a former Secretary to the Treasury; Mr Gray, the late Secretary to the General Post Office; Mr Hursthouse. former Chief Engineer of Roads; Mr Blackett, former Engineer-in-Chief of the Public Works Department; and Mr Percy Smith and Mr Humphries, who have both occupied the office of Sur-veyor-General.

The practice of surreptitiously aporopriating goods from shop conn ■ ters is. according to the detectives, again becoming prevalent in Sydney. The department is consequently showing increased activity, nnr\ judging by the attitude which Magistrates are adopting towards this class of offender, some exemplary punishments may be expected. During one day recently several arrests were made. A remarkable feature is that in almost every case the shop-lifter is a person who could well afford to purchase the trivial articles stolen. "I can't understand it," said one officer, "these people are models of respectability in their neighbourhoods, but the mo • ment they get inside a shop they seem to become possessed of a desire to lift something for the sake of lifting it."

The lambing shows a high percentage this year in the Taratahi district. The recent sharp spell o* wintry weather does not appear to have had an injurious effect on the lambs. Mr Drummond, Headmaster of the Lansdowne School reported at the meeting of the Committee, last evening, that the pupils were preparing, under his supervision, seventeen plots with a "iew to experimenting with varieties of grass seeds. Mr F. E. Nottage, Government orchard inspector, who is to give a demonstration of pruning and spray- 4| ing of trees at Tenui on Wednesday, 4Q> under the auspices of the Tenui branch of the Farmers' Union, arrived in vpstfrday. liie Waihi correspondent of the Auckland "Star" understands that a new lode has been discovered between Waihi and Karangahake by a proapecto*, but he declines to give particulars further than stating that the lr.de is neavily mineralised, and is situated in good country. Sly-grog selling in the public streets of Wellington, is said to be the latest thing in the way of infraction of the licensing laws. It is reported that two men were caught conducting such traffic i'n the neighbourhood of Taranaki ante Tory streets on Sunday, and that: supplies of liquor were found in i their houses. It is also stated that j this practice has been going on. for some time, and that the principals ' have had canvassers at work about the streets. More will be heard of the matter in the Magistrate's Court on Friday. It is decided that in future State school cadet battalion camps will not be approved unless it can be shown that the cadet companies composing a battalion are well grounded in elementary subjects. Company camps will supersede battalion camps in such cases and the boys will be trained in the subjects necessary to ensure a proper co-operation in case of battalion operations. A systematic musketry and physical training wilf be the chief feature of such company camps. Scouting, tracking, finding; • direction by day and night, develop- A ing the powers of observation, judging distances of objects, pitching: and striking tents, making hasty Bhelter, the use of the compass, reconnoitring, the writing of brief field rpports, map-reading, etc., will also form part of the camp instruction.

A shareholder in the New Zealand! Dairy Association referred at a meeting at Auckland to a cheque of £4O or £SO which he had mislaid for over 18 months, and he asked if the Association upon finding that it had nut been presented for payment, should not have forwarded him a reminder. The managing director, (Mr Wesley Spragg) replied that the duty of the Association ceased when the suppliers received their cheques. "On one occasion," he, said. "*r* shareholder brought along a bundle of cheques which had accumulated during a period of two years. He i said he had retained them because they were about as sound as anything he could keep, until such time <*s he was prepared to pay off his private mortgage. Why," continued Mr Spragg, amidst laughter, "some of our cheques have actually been framed." "That is so," re- "s—----joined a person from the body of the hall, "I have one for 6d." The ordinary meeting of the Oddfellows' Lodge was held last evening, Bro. P. Smith, N.G., in the chair. One new member was duly initiated into the Order, and one candidate proposed for admittance. Bro. Len Dixon was accorded Lodge honours. It was decided that a . social, taking the form of a "Pound H Night" be held after the next meet- ™ ing. As showing the benefits to be derived by being a member of tha Oddfellows' Lodge, M.U., the secretary announced that one of the visiting Brothers, after having hi* contributions considerably reduced for a number of years, had juat received word that by a further surplus he would not have to pay any further contributions to his Lodge for the next five years. It is fully expected that the Masterton Lodge will, at the next quinquennial valuation, be authorised to declare a surplus among its members.

"It does not often happen that mortality takes place amongst sheep on account of feed, but such has been the case at Mangatu," remarked a settler from that district to a "Wanganui Herald" reporter. jflP The winter has been so mild that!* there has been an abundance of feed all over the district, Not knowing how the season would end, the farmers were unable to put more stock on their land at the beginning of winter, but as it turned out the sheep have, literally speaking, been in clover. The outcome of this, has ; had a none too pleasing effect amongst the ewes in the Mangatu district. Having had suib an extraordinary quantity of feed tor the time of the year, the ewes got overfat, with fatal results when lambing commenced. "There has been," said the settler referred»-■' to, "as many as 1 to 2 per cent, of deaths of ewes during lambing at Mangatu this season owing to their being too fat." On the other hand, he states, there hlis been practically no loss at all amV ongst hoggets.