NEWS AND NOTES

Waikato Argus, Volume VI, Issue 449, 17 June 1899, Page 1 (Supplement)

NEWS AND NOTES

A blade of grass picked up at Gingin, 250 miles north of Brisbane, is stated to hare held nearly 5000 ticks in the curly stage of their development.

Several automatic tyre inflating machines have been imported into Melbourne. The machine is worked on the penny - in - the cne - slot principle, the nhnhle copper turning on sufficient air to inflate both tyres. One of these machines placed iu a prominent position in a public garden in Chicago collected over|£9 worth of coppers iu a few weeks.

The Ministerial New Zealand rimes says, referring to the work of Mr Edwards, the organiser of the Liberal party : " The courage of Mr Kdwards must extort admiration ; but we confess to being very sceptical as to his ability to reunite the shattered fragments of the workers'organisations in Wellington so as to make the Labour party once more a power in politics.''

Commenting upon the rumour that the Hon. T. Thompson is to be called to the Upper House, the Lytteltcn Times remarks :—" In any ca6e, we trust that Mr Seddon will not be tempted to Bud an asylum for one of his own colleagues in the Legislative Council. 1 hat would be a method of reconstructing the Ministry which only the most blinded partisan could applaud."

At the Rangiora Magistrate's Court on Wednesday C. Mands and his wifo were charged with making a wilfully false statement, whereby they obtained a certificate and instalments of old-ago pension. They took a declaration that they arrived in the colony in 1873, whereas they did not arrive till 1875. They were fined £i 10j and costs and placed on probation for six months inliou of & months' imprisonment, which the justice had decided to inflict.

A writer tells an old story of a Staffordshire farmer, rather cultivated ami exceedingly well to do, who was the warden at his own chuch. A strange parson who had preache was dumbfounded when in the vestry he saw the warden select and pocket the largest coiu. 1 What are you about ?' he gasped. The warden only smiled. * 1 have led the collection in this church for a dozen years with this half crown,' he remarked, 'and I'm not going to part with it.

The champion pugilist. Fitzsimmons, the ex-New Zealander, who is now playing at a New York theatre, has had seven valuable ciamonds, all the gifts of ladies, set in his teeth. Jeffiies, the manager of a rival pugilist, named Brady, has made a humorous protest, and he says he reserves the right to claim a foul should Fitzsimmons, during the forthcoming fight, endeavour to " dazzle his adversary by his smile." It is not many years aeo that Fitzsimmons was v ielding the hammer in a forge dowu at ! i.naru. Such is fame !

The natives hern (says the Rotorua paper), though they bestirred thorn* se'ves with unusual activity to secure their old ape pensions, and welcomed the same with all the gratitude they are capable of, are now revertiug to their usual condition of lassitude. They consider they should not be called upon to attend at the post-office each mouth to receive the money which has been awarded them on account of their honourable age, but that a pakeha official should visit the settlement* and p»y the sum due. We understand that certain natives in this district have represented their views in the matter to the Government.

Commenting upon Captain Russell's speech at Masterton, the Daily Times says :—To our miud, the best part of Captain RusseTs speesh was that in which he showed how the wreck of the Conservative pirty, but 13 in number, came back from the polls nine years ago, and by loyal and strenuous efforts held in check year after year the great Liberal party which was running riot. Men like Captain Russell and Mr W. 3. Buchanan, who, for nine years, have been out in the cold, but who have never faltered in the task they set themselves of defending the colony from a powerful majority, have done an immense service to New Zealand. The colony owes a permanent debt of gratitude to Captain Russell and his colleagues.

In connection with the promised peuny postage measure the New Zealand Times points out that there is now on the statute book an Act which authoi ises the reduction being made by the Governor in-Council, so that there is no need of another Act. The Times adds : " The brief history of the Act, so far as we can recollect, is that it was introduced by Mr Ward as PostmasterGeneral, and it was opposed by Mr Balance ou the ground that it would involve a loss of £70,000 a je.ir, for which, as Colonial Treasurer, be was not prepared. Mr Ward bong insistent, strained relations resulted, and it was re ported that the Postmaster General had threatened to resign if the Bill were not accepted by the Government. Probably the proviso tint it should come into force by direction of the Governor-in-Council was the result of a com pro mise."

At the opening of the winter show in Dunedin, the PrciiiVr, in referring to the prospects of ex tending markets at the Cape, said : "It is wellkuowu that New Zealand butter and cheese are sent from here to L»ndon, and thence transhipped to the Cape. Au oiler had now beeu made by a firm to run a Ht<Mmcr once a mouth for the purpose of taking produce from New Zealand to the Cape and ports further on. The terms on which this offer is made are, in in my opinion, most favourable. They nre three-farthings per pound for produce that >;oes into the refrigerating chamber, and £2 per ton for other ficiclit. I can say that the amount involved in obtaining such a service is a triflo compared with the great advantage c inferred on the colony. The Government have sent a communication on the subject to the Chambers of Commerce, to fiims, and to co-operative companies likely to bo exporters. If we combine, in my opinion we can give the requisite freight and obtain the service without the colony being called on to pay asiugle penny puce in respect of the required gnara tee." The Premier raid he believed further that there was a marketiu ludia lor our produce,