NEW ZEALAND GENERAL

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXXIII, Issue 2, 12 January 1905, Page 19

NEW ZEALAND GENERAL

It is said that a fruit-canning factory will shortly be established i n Christchurch. uuiny

The soim of £130,000 was invested on the totalisaber *tf and' 11 ™ 8 raC ° meetings m New Zeala nd on Decem-

'ihe l Triad ' for January contains a good deal of interesting information on music, science, literature and art, and is beautifully illustrated '

A trout weighing 22ft was shown io Blenheim recently, it was to be forwarded to Wellington after beine ho/en at Picton 6

Speaking to a representative of the ' Press 'on Monday, Mr. J. <J. Blackmore, Government pomologist stated that orchards m Central Otago were remarkably prolific this year, and that the cannmg factory at Roxburgh would have a busy time before it

'Ihc Borough of Timaru is apparently a very desirable place in which to live, as during the month of December not a single borough resident died. The registrar says this is the lirst time within his recollection that such a state ot aftairs has existed.

It is notiiiod m the ' Gazette ' that Mr. Hugh Gribben, ol Chnstrhurch, has been appointed a justice of the peace. Mr. Gnbben's many friends on the West Coast, especially in Hokitika, where he had been for many years Supenntendent ot the Lunatic Asylum, will be pleased at the honor conferred on him.

An occasional correspondent writes : The parishioners ol the Lower iiutt held their picnic as usual in the presbytery grounds. It was a great success, netting iSO for school purposes. The grounds were visited in the attcrnocn by the Kight Hon. the Premier, Mrs. Seddon, and family, also by Sir Joseph Ward and family, who made themselves most popular. Des,pite many counter attractions the picnic has been an unqualified success. A iatal lire occurred at Oamaru on Saturday morning, George Leslie (tobacconist) meeting his death. The outbreak occurred in Leslie's shop and spread +o the adjoining premises of Fox (bootmaker), Miss Brown (art repository), and Miss Falconer (dressmaker), the upper portions of the shops being destroyed and the stocks damaged by lire and water. It is supposed Leslie overturned a candle and set lire to his bedclothes. He was found lying on the floor, evidently suffocated when endeavoring to reach the door.

A Geraldme correspondent writes : A mission opened m Geraldine on Su,nday week, New Year's Day, and was brought to a close on last Sunday evening. The mission was conducted by the Rev. Father Shearman, C.SS.R., assisted by the parish priest, the Very Rev. Father Bowers. The exercises were remarkably well attended throughout, the beautifully kept church being well hlled all through the week, while on Sunday las,t iti was densely crowded. The number of communicants was most gratifying, ana the mission was in every respect a great success.

There was a slight suhock of earthquake in various parts of the North Island on Tuesday morning.

There was midnight Mass at Christmas in the Church of the .Sacred Heart, Keefton, which was celebrated by the Key. Father Uallais, a large congregation being present. The beautiful music (says the ' Inangahua Times ') was the theme of general admiration, and the choirmaster, Mr. T. Phillips, together with the members of the choir, deserve great praise for their energetic and painstaking eflorts. The music selected for the occasion was Mozart's ' Kyrie,' ' Gloria,' ' Sanctus, 1 and ' benedictus,' and Forester's ' Credo ' and ' Agnus Dei,' the ' Adeste Fideles ' being rendered during tjie offertory. Thanks must also be given to the members of the Orchestral Society, whose valuable assistance was particularly noticeable throughout.

The Wellington correspondent of the " Otago Daily Times ' states thai an interesting experiment is 16 be made on the railways. Two motor cars are to be obtained, similar to those now in use on the railway lines in Groat Britain, and these will be employed on suburban lines solely for passenger traffic. If the experiment is successful, then the number of cars will, of course, be increased. It is hoped by this means, to give a more frequent service on such lines as from Wellington to the Hutt.from Auckland to Onehunga, from Christchurch to Lyttelton, and trom Dunedin to Port Chalmers. The motive power will be electricity or benzine. It has not yet been decided on which line the experiment wiii be made. The bodies of the new cars are to be constructed within the Colony.

Sir J. G. Ward, interviewed last week re Mr. Massey's comment in Auckland on the disparity between the Government's expenditure on the poultry industry and the returns therefrom, said it was not to be expected that in starting a new industry it should x>av trom, the jump. That the Government had done the right thing was shown by the fact that the returns of the second year were much larger in proportion to the department's expenditure on the poultry section, and he expected that, as in other branches the Government had taken up in the interests of producers, the industry would s,oon be on a self-reliant footing. With reference to the northern papers'sarcastic reference to his remarks in Parliament against Mr. Massey's suggestion that, in tairness to depositors the Savings Bank interest should be raised, Sir Joseph said he still held the. belief that the raising of the Savings Bank rate was a mistake, even in the interests of small depositors, as it tended to limit employment. His motto was: Plenty ot money at cheap rates. 1 hat was the way to keep the country prosperous.

The following statistics bearing on , the Chinese element in New Zealand are interesting. In 1881 (says t/he ' Lyttelton Times '), when a poll tax was first imposed, there were 50 04 Chinese in the Colony, and the number gradually dropped to 3711 in 18U6. The numbers in Nqw ZeJaland on December 31 of the years 1(898, 1899, 1900, 1901, 1902, and 1903 were respectively 3464, 3263, 3077, ,2846, 2792, a nd 2800. The following figures show the arrivals during 1898, 1899, 1900, 1901, 1902, and 1903 ; 28, 26, 27, 75, 69, and 132. The arrivals during the first eleven months of 1904 were 199, which indicates that )th-e Colony is increasingly popular in China. From August 3 to December 14 no fewer than 102 Chinese arrived in Wellington, of whom 67 paid t<he poll tax, the remaining 35 being on a return visit. Considering that the Chinaman cheerfully parts with his £100 as his .price of New Zealand spil, he is evidently of opinion that the Colony will prove a gold misne to him.

Just prior to her departure for the south (writes the Glenavy correspondent of the ' Oam&ru Mail ') Mrs. P. Gough was made a presentation, which took the ah>ape of a purse of sovereigns. Mr. James Breen, in making the presentation, referred to the respect and esteem in whiqh Mrs. Gough and her husband were held by the people of the district. He concluded a masterly speech by wishing the family long life and haopiness in their new home. Mr. I. Cuthbertson alsio bore eloquent testimony to Mr. and M,rs. Gough's many good qualities. He had alway<s found Mr. Gough a true gentleman. Mr. Cutfobertson concluded by assuring Mrs 1 . Gough that it her husband or herself ever visited Glenavy they might be sure of a hearty welcome. Mr. Barclay Martin also spoke in a similar strain. Mr. Thormas Corcoran, in replying on behalf of Mrs. Gou^h, said that he was sorry first of all that Mr. Ooug'h hiad left, but on the other hand he was glad as the step meant promotion. He had to thaak the donors heartily on behalf of the recipient for their handsome unlooked lor present, and on behalf of Constable Gouigh said that they would be glad to give any of their friends a warm welcome to Winton—unprofessionally.

Good progress Is being made with the work of reerecting the Stoke Orphanage, which was destroyed by fire some eighteen months ago, and it is expected that the building will be completed by the end of March The work is being carried out by day labor under the supervision of Mr. John S. Swan, architect, and there is every probability that the estimate of cost (£8250) will not be exceeded.