LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume xxi, Issue 6077, 25 September 1903, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Weather Forecast.— paptaiu Edwin* wired to-day:—Strong winds from between north and west and south-west after 16 hours from now, gla«a fall.

Thb —We understand that Messrs Sbaypjin and Sutton, of Staveiny. have each made hauotsojjaedonations to the building fund of the proposed newj church. The Meat Shop Scheme.—Commenting upon Mr Seddon's meat shop scheme, the " Buenos Ayres Standard " says:—" It may be that Mr Dick Seddon is reckoning without the cold £tora<?e and other meat' rings ' now so great & facibor in this country; and he may discover, that two cm pJny at the ■. game of securing a vast bnsiijess afc the i sacrifice of profits. The situation is full of startling possibilities j and its development will be watched with the keenest of attention in thia country.' Accountancy Examinations.—Altogether seventyeight entries have been received for the annual examinations of ths incorporated Institute of Accountants;which are to begin on October 19 in the. four chief centres of the colony. They include ninteen candidates for fellows' certificates, thirtyeight associates and tw«nty.one student?. Educational Correspondence. — The Education Board is. still in the dark as to the Government's intentions regarding j the franking of letters. The date on which the Board's power to frank was to lapse was extended to October 1, and the general I impression is that some modification of the original regulation will be made. The Discovery.—-Writing to Dr Farr, of j Christchurohj the secretary; to the Vice?, Admiral of the Australian Squadron states that the Antarctic, exploring, ye3sel, the) Discovery, still belongs' to the Royal Geographical Society, and if she is extracted from the ice she, with the Morning and Terra Nova, will return to Lyttelton. If the Discovery cannot be extracted from the ice, then' the 'relief expedition ships will bring her officers aod crow to Lyi^eltoo,'

Good Prices.—At the Culverden cattle ■ Bale yesterday 133 fat steers from Leslie' i Hills sold at an average price of £117s per , head, and 64 heifew at .£8 9s. The highest price realised for the steers was £13 per head for a pen of nine, and for the heifers £10 for eight. A Good Recommendation,— Regarding the Beries of lectures to farmers being delivered weekly at Lincoln College, Mr M. Murphy, F.L.S., considers that those who attend.the whole series will at the close have a very fair idea of the anatomy of the horse, and will be able to treat all ordinary diseases* Damsons Wanted.— Inquiry has been received from a leading English firm for damsons preserved by the sulphur process, for the purpose of jam making (says the Otagp "Times.") There are in New Zealand, however, only a few isolated trees of the true damson, and the total production of the fruit doe 3 not reach a commercial quantify. It is doubtful whether it would pay to grow damsons largely in New Zealand, as, though the crop ia very heavy, the normal price in England is very low — something like £6 to«£8 per ton. The Moras Hazard.—The Christchurch manager of a large insurance company told a representative of the '• Lyttelton Times" on Tuesday that the "moral hazard" in re■gard to fire insurance was much less in Canterbury, Ofcago, and Southland than in other parts of Nevr Zealand. It was recognised, he said, that the public in the provinces named were of a higher standard, and the fact was considered in deciding the rates of insurance. Asked how the " moral hazard" yraa gauged, he replied, "By bitter experience." Dhsign for new Postage Stamp.— The Colonial Treasurer offers a prize of five pounds for the best design for a new Government Insurance Postage Stamp. Specifications may be obta;ned on application to the District Managers at Auckla> d, Wellington, Christohuroh, or Dunedin. Record Prices , for Cattle.—Kecord prices were realised at* the Loan and Mercantile Agency Company's sale, of Mr Carl Anderson's stock at Palmerston North on Wednesday. The indication is that Holsteins are: coming into favour in this district;. (sne crossbred cow realised £26, another £2&, and the whole herd, including several late cnlvers, averaged £11 13s 6d. An old Holstein buli was bought niter strong competition fori-M), and a calf two days old for ill.-:"' Lyttelton Harbour Board Representation. -The Mayor has been informed by Mr-McL-iohatii M.H.R., that the Ashburton Borough Council is more likely to gain its representation on the Lyttelton Harbour by an amendment to Mr Witty'a Bill, as a separate local Bill will stand no chance of getting through this session. The Mayor has, therefore, takeu steps to srop proceeding with the Ashburton Bill. Social atLowcliffe.—A very enjoyable evening was spent at Lowcliffe Hall on Thursday eveiling, when their many friends assombleid.to-bid farewell to Mr andMis3 Gillian. Mr Gillman has now' held" the position of schoolmaster for the last four years, and is about to take up a similar position at. Le Bon's Bay. The Chairman (Mr Fountane) referred to Mr Gillman's good qualities and popularity, and presented him on behalf of the subscribers with a travelling bag and a sat of massive gold sleeve links, also asking Miss Gilman's acceptance of,a lady's companion. Mr Gillman suitably responded on behalf of his ;*i3boc pnd himself. Musical items wer/ contributed -by Misses C'ullen, Watson, Howie, Mrs Fasley,'Messrs Laraman, Hop wooii,and Leatham and Hewett (recitation). Messrs Alien and Hewett also contributed a very laughable dialogue. After the concert, danoiug was indulged in until the small hours o,f' the .morning, the music being contributed by Misses Gullen, Howie, Dove, Vleasra Jjdge, MsLachlAn and Dove. The success of the enterfcaininjsnt was due to tie energetic secretary, Mr E. Ash ton and Mr A, Kelman,

The Public ■Weighbridge QaEßfroN. — The storeman in one of the largest grainhandling businesses in Timaru, or the colony for that matter, writes as follows on the " Public Weighbridge Question ": —I think the terms of your competition do not gjve, competitors enough scope to do the matterjustjee. For instance, I think you chould aid pi jvate as we}l as public system of weighing to the conditions fcQ be observed, for the thing could be settled in a few words if only public weighing was tak<sn into account-,, as all that anyone co.ild recommend would be for. the truck 3to be weighed immediately *ft,fter they were empty fey some responsible person, not, a* now, by every Tom, Dick, or Harry. A3 we all know, trucks vary by hundredweights, from the tares marked on fchom. Thus, when valuable produce is weighed, it makes a considerable difference to either consignor or consignee, as the case may be. Now the idea I intended to press home is that the farmer himself should see his weights right before they leave his premises, and theu he iqnH defy anyone to say he was wrong. For example,' t ha?e and sent out hundreds of thousands p.f sacks,*(i" may say millions) in 35 years here, where we have received on an average 100,000 sacks or more per year, and wye very rarely have any trouble with our customers who are situated all over the colony, so that the thing is not 8b bad as it appears, providing a man looks affeer bis owe business, arid does not relegate it to others to do for him,

Soctal.—One of the most successful and enjoyable socials'of the seasoirwas held in the Tempgrancg ifall, AahbWrton, on Wednesday evening, ana Wij# giyen by Mb arid Mrs Stock in honour of £he twenty-first birthday of their sou John, arid the thirteenth of Miss A-my Stqc'k, and also as a farewell to jbhe jfqrmer, wljo is about to take up hji9 residence \ ft Bangjbra. ' Dancing c immeuced at tfre usuaj hqur, and kept up with great vigour till after midnight, the programme being pleasantly varied with songs and a recitation. The refreshment department was very tastefully laid out with delicacies of the most tempting description, $$ the mvited guests did ample justice. The musje' sjras ?uppljed by the Mi'sß.eß Williams, Patching, and Westropp, sj,nd Mr Smith, as accompanists to the soijgg; whjle Messrs Smith, Hughe3 and W. Amos Btfpplie(| fchat fqr the diincers. VTr J. Brown acted as M.B.,'a^d ff fche ball rolling." Songs were given by Misses A. Hew3on, and Messrs Schwartz, Brown, P. and F. ? B- Stock, T. Thomas and \j*ster3 Q. and Ht. Stock (i/i*e. t^rq youngest boys of the Stock family). MrR. Frizzelle, in his usual humorous style, gave a recitation, nud also, 0B beh&lf of the guests, returned thaufes for the very hqspi^able and pleasant evening tb«y had sp^nfc, wishing Mr J. Stock every sue -ess in mo gyb.*va to which he was going. Mr J. Stock briefly responded, wjien. "For he's a jolly good >flHnw" was'pung fustil| p, fihe gathering snorfcly after breaking up, fully pleased with everything and everybody.

Excellent Reading.—Another first-class bill of fare ia presented to readera of to-mor-row's Guardian, tha literary supplement which will be issued with it, containing -four pages £jt entertaining and instructive reading matfcerJ' Oonjmeii^ng in the fiction line there are the stories of # The Burglar i and the Lady," " How the Prince Escaped," " A Bundle of Sticks,"" Miss Martin's Hour," and " Philip. Darren's Wife." A character sketch of Pope Pius X., reveals the occupant of St. Peter's Church at Rome in a mostl.amiable light, and two articles from the New York "Sun " —" Latin Ameri- j can Atnazons," and "White Leaders of; Savages," are sure to command attention. " The Royal Conquest of Ireland," furnishes an entertaining account of the visit of King Edward and Queen Alexandra to the Emerald Isle. On the Unes of natural science and health are Dr. Andrew Wilson's " Doctrine of the Average," and the articles "Intellect in Plants," ''The Strength we Waste," and "Why Fat Babies are not always healthy." The story of <(A city Plagued by Ants," and the artioies on " Cats and their Characters," " The. World's Oldest Tribe," and "A Very Wise Dog," will also be read with interest. A variety of other articles with the Women's World Notes, &c, complete the very readable 32 additional columns of matter presented with Saturday's Guardian. "All that glitters is not gold," nor are all Hair Curlers reliable. Try New Century Soft Rubber Curlew.

Coming.—The Westminster Abbey Glee and Concert party have booked the Oddfollows' Hall for Tuesday, Ootober 6th. A Handsome Bug.—The rug presented to Mr Hunnibell at Elgin last evening came from the establishment of Messrs Mitohell and Turner, and was made at the Kaiapoi Woollen Faotory. It was one of the best presentation rugs made in the colony. The initials of Mr HunnibeU were interwoven in the corners; A Motor Race.—The motor cycle race promoted by the Christchurch Cycling Club was held yesterday, the course being from the Eiccarton Church to Sheffield and back, keen interest being taken iv the race. The course was about seventy miles long, and F. Smith put up a very creditable performance by doing the journey in half a minute under two hours. The competitors had some miles of muddy road to traverse at the Sheffield end.-Results: -T. G. Williamson (2 h.p. Mitohell), 2hr7min 30aec, I; F. Smith (3 h.p. twin cylinder Clement), lhr 59min 32sec), 2; B. Hargreaves (2 h.p. Mitchell), 2hr 14min 15seo, 3; L. Brown 2 h.p. Swift), 2hr 17rain sseo, 4; E. Clarke (2 hp. Mitchell), 2hr Bmin. 5; R. S. Harraan (2 h.p. F. N.), 2hr 31miu lOsec, 6•; H. Soanes (ll h.p. Clement), 2hr 44min, 7 ; T. E; Whitfield (2 h.p. Mitohell), 2hr 34min 32sec, 8; L Dumergue (2 h.p. Mitchell), 2hr 33min 45sec, 9; H. Stewart (2 h.p. Mitchell), 2hr 43min 83ec, 10. Chkistchorch ShiSppiet.d Motoh Race. —In the motor race yesterday, F. Smith on his twin cylinder " Zealandia-Clement" put up the fastest time, his actual riding time being lhr 59min 32sec. This is a remarkable performance, considering that the distance is just over 70 miles. The local agents, Messrs Oates, Lowry & Co., are preparing for a big business in Clement motors and" invite intending purchasers to inspect their stock.