General News

A Present from Australia. The drainage of many of the malarial swamps of Palestine was accomplished with the aid of Australian eucalyptus trees, said Dr. Eenzion H. Shein. emissary of the World Jewish Organisation, yesterday. Dr. Shein was describing the reclamation of some of the waste places of Palestine, and said that | after drains had been dug. eucalyp- , tus trees were planted with very i good effect. "I always think of | those trees as a present from AusI tralia," he said. The School Journal. ; Suggestions that part I. and part ' 11. of the School Journal should be I enlarged, that more plays might be I included in all three parts, and that j an additional issue of each part at ; the beginning of the year consisting ! entirely of poetry should be made, ! which were offered recently by the j New Zealand Educational Institute, ; will receive the consideration of i the Education Department, according to the latest issue of "National Education." The department ha;', however, already stated that difficulties of copyright make the issue of suitable poetry impracticable. | More Old Coins. 1 It appears that there are ancient j coins in general circulation in ( Christchurch. Since the publication j in the general news column of "The i Press" yesterday morning of a para- < graph describing a 99-year-old halfcrown, four more coins of early ! dates have turned up. The first was I a half-crown of 1826, the property lofMr W. J. Le Cren. It was a welli preserved coin, bearing the head of ! George IV. Later, a shilling piece j dated 1826 was sent in. It was received in change in a city establishment. An employee of "The Press" ! received in his wages about two | months ago a half-crown dated 1821. I The last arrival was a half-crown with the head of George 111. and ' dated 1817. The coin was sufficiently I well preserved to make the head land date easily distinguishable, although the other side was rather I worn after 117 years rubbing in j pockets and purses. A Lyttelton | shopkeeper, Mr D. Bruce, said yesi terday that he had received over the ! counter within the last few months i another half-crown of 1817 and also !a shilling of 1820. I i A New Golf Course? The size and position of the proposed domain at Fendalton was naturally one of the most important J points to be considered by the new j Domain Board at its first meeting last evening, when Mr J. Mawson Stew- ' art presided. Mr H. C. Hurst emphasised that it should be so laid out las to appeal to persons of all ages '—children, young people, and the 'ajied. Recreation might bf found for some of these in football grounds, tennis courts, and bowling greens. Mr A. fl. Blank suggested, amid laughj ter. that it would be a good idea to start a new golf course there for all lages in the community.

j Minerals of the Dead Sea. ; The important pari which the minerals contained in the waters of the 'Dead Sea would play in the industrial development of Palestine was .mentioned m an address last evening jby Dr. Ben/.ion Shein. the emissary oi' the Zionist Movement to New Zealand. The water of the inland sea | was so impregnated with minerals in I solution—bromides, phosphates, sulIphates, and nitrates were the most i important—that when one walked in lit, it was very much like walking in i jelly. Because of the high specific ;gravity, one could not sink or drown |in it. Already hundreds of workers i were engaged in extracting the minjcrals from'the water, and there were j opportunities for hundreds more. Dr ! Shein said. ■ Stewart Island Whisky. j Stewart Island is to-day a "dry" area, but about a generation ago it I had a "still." manufacturing whisky ion a large scale, though the public l:n(-w JittJe about it. A man now i living in Christchurch, who was a ; partner in the business, likes to recall those adventurous days. With j a partner lie had taken a large area ; ol' the island for a cattle run. The ! cattle woiv killed and the beef i salted and put in barrels lor : hip- : ment from the port of Riverton. The hides were also shipped in the same way. One day the paitr.ers discovered an old still j;i an old wharc, hidden by the dense bush. In the place they also discovered the recipe for making whisky. They resolved to attempt its manufacture and after one or two trials succeeded. H was then an easy matter , to secure a market for it in Riveri (en. Indeed one dealer was willing to take all they could supply. Their plan was to ship the whisky with the casks of hides and beef. They did this successfully again and I again, and only once were they i nearly caught. They were carrying '; a barrel of whisky in a hand-bar- : row towards the dealer's home. jTbe night was dark and very wet. ! Through the darkness came the l policeman. "A bad night tor your work." lie said. "Ye.;." was the reply. -'These hides are heavy." The ■ policeman passed on unsuspecting. iThis station and whisky business 'came to an end when the partners \ lost, on her first trip, a vessel they Iliad bought to trade round Uie | southern coasts. ! i Governor's Bay Fruit Season. The fruit harvest in Governor's Bay this year has been very bounteous and has produced very heavy crops of cherries, plums, apricots, and peaches. The weather, though somewhat cold, has been favourable, and the bay escaped the heavy hailstorm which played such havoc elsewhere. Cherries secured a ready sale at good prices and peaches were so abundant that they were something of a glut in the market. They scarcely repaid the trouble of picking, and one orchardist who had a very heavy crop secured no more than £ls for the lot. Apricots were good, but owing the appearance of brown rot had to be picked j before they were quite ripe. They , however found a ready sale at fair [ prices, bringing up to (is a case. Street Lights Fail. Because of a defect somewhere in the line all the streets in the Fendalton lighting circuit were in darkness last night. The electrical engineer of the Waimairi County Council, which controls the circuit, made several attempts to discover the fault, but all were unsuccessful, and further investigations were deferred until to-day. Mr W. H. Olliver. of Ashburton, states that the Duncan Stiff Tooth Cultivator he purchased, has proved itself a great success, and is by far the best cultivator he has ever ! worked, being much stronger and more | convenient than any other machine he has seen, and it does wonderful work, whilst Mr H. F. Hiatt, of Hororata, says that after G months' trial he finds it satisfactory in every way. P. and D. Duncan, Limited, 196 Tuam street, Christchurch, and a( Ashburton. ' — 6