LOCAL AND GENERAL

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 10606, 12 April 1912, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

The Age fund in aid of the distressed women a,ml children of -England will be closed on Saturday. 'llib.se wishing to subscribe to the fund should*thereto i'« do so afc once. A first instalment was sent to Wellington yesterday for transmission to the right quarter. The return from the Master ton dredge is 23ors. 12d\vts for 137 hours. Mr J. C. Boddington reports that the rainfall registered at the Upper plain for the 24 hours preceding 9 a.m. yesterday was 6 points. The monthly meeting of the General Committee of the Mastterton A. and P. Association is to bo held tomorrow. Several important matters are t> wbo Wi for d-imiswo-iv.

A number of lady hockey players held a practico on the old Masterton showgrounds yesterday. The pairs tournament in connection with the Masterton Bowling Club will probably be concluded to-morrow. The News understands that an effort is io be made to re-open the tannery at ClareviHe- on co-operative lines. A Masterton settler lias sustained heayy loss by. the depredations of deer in his turnip fields. The Gisborne Oil Company's bore at Waitangi Hill is producing three barrels a day at the 655 ft level. The Hon. R. McKenzie stated at the Labour social in Wellington on Wednesday that he expected another general election about September next. seitk-ris putting down two silos of ensilage this season. This form of winter food for dairy stock is coming largely into favour. The maize crops in the Masterton. district have been a complete failure this year, owing to the unreasonable weather. / Tlie Masterton School Committee decided at its meeting last night to call tenders for the usual quantity of firewood. The attcrdarce at the Masterton District High School has been slightly affected during the past month *)y the prevalence of mumps. For the quarter ending March 31*' . the attendance at the Masterton District High School returned a percent- 1 age of 95, which is considered highly satisfactory. A cat with nine lives may not be uncommon: A feline with two wellformed tails lias, however, been unearthed in Master-ton, and this is regarded as quite a fieak of nature. Several late ,'potato crops- are now being dug in the neighbourhood of Masterton. There is every indication of a keen demand for potatoes during the next few months. It is reported that ia picture, show is about to be'opened in {South Masterton. When the Town Hail pictures are going, there will .be three picture entertainments nightly in the town. According to the Taumanunui Press the "bums" duiing the dry spell just ended were not very successful. A few settlers in tlie Ohura were fortunate enough to secure a clean sweep; but the majority had very bad 'burns. • A . south Taraiiaki farmer recently sold his ifar.m at a price well over £6O an. acre.. He has quickly repented the Sale* for he' has offered the purchaser over £7OO to cry off-the deal.'. Aljout 4006 acres of:rill) 'land'.in. the Mercury Bay' district-of Auckland is 'now being surveyed into suitable allotments, and a ballot will, .follow the completion of the survey work. Tlie sum of £123 was paid out to farmers during the year ending January, 1912, from the Taranaki Master Butchers' Association pig insurance, fund for pigs condemned at the municipal abattoirs. , Mr H. C. Bar •et-t, of Ashburton, who was recently unpacking some cases of goods which, had arrived by the lonic from London, found that three of the cases had 'Jjecn- opened, ;and goods to the value of about £ll removed. Tlie effect of the strikes at Home is likely to bo felt in, the Dominion. Quite a number of Home manufafetiirers have already sent out notioe of their intention to increase prieeis on this account. A Thnaim business man showed a Herald reporter a sheaf of '.such letters. . The presence, |jf . Bathurst burr in wool has been.'declared by London, merchants to depreciate the value of a clip as much a ; . Id per lb. In Viepof this f.ict an effort is Ijeing made.: in Poverty Bay to exterminate the .weed, which should be cut- below the - surface of the ground at the present stage of the season. Tlie price for dairying land is still mounting up in Taranaki. The other day two sections in Inoho, which had previously been sold for £6O an acre, changed hands at £BO. Tlie prediction inado .some time ago tlkit the best land in Tarnnaki will, some day reach £IOO aa a«~e looks like fulfilment- in the near future. Whether it can be profitably. Avorked at these huge prices is another matter. The accident which bei'el 'J'. Pritcha'rd, the rider of Lcolanter in the Kimboltbn Hurdle Bace at Feilding, was brought about in a peculiar way. Corneliani struck ia hurdle hard, and knocked a big piece of the top rail of? and up into the air, with the result j that it struck Pritchard cm the -side of the face, cutting it badly and knock-" ing the jockey out of the saddle. He fell to the ground, and when picked up was found to have .sustained a broken leg - Sheep farmers in .and around Carterton are complaining of considerable mortality amongst their 'flocks, especially amongst young «heep. The cause has been ascertained to bo a red worm. One farmer rtt Ol'areville, who sold most of his stud rams at the recent Masterton fair, has had the misfortune to have most of his young rams attacked with: this worm, and nearly all have succumbed. Asked by a Ne\ys reporter it' he could explain the presence of the worm, he said that the only reason he could 'put forth' was the web weather,, 0n... consequence of which there were considerably more grubs and fii'es in the grass, arid the sheep picked them up. Farmers aro busy drent/hing to save a heavier mortality,