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Auckland Star, Volume XLI, Issue 69, 22 March 1910, Page 4

The following is Mi/. D. C. Bates' weather forecast for 24 hours from nine a.m. | this day ; "Moderate to strong southeasterly winds, weather probably cool and changeable; rain probable; glass rise slowly." A Main Trunk line resident who suddenly developed a penchant for shooting with a Winchester rifle, recently occasioned much alarm to his neighbours. He had no idea of the gun's carrying capacity, and imagined that so long as he fired amidst the stumps with no one but himseif in the immediate vicinity, he could, do no harm. His first excursion, however, was fraught with trouble. In one of his shots he just missed the head of a straying farmer, but managed to hit a valuable horse, which died next day. In another shot, the sportsman narrowly' escaped lodging a bullet in a woman's foot. The question of possible damages has now driven all direct inter— in shooting from the sportsman's mind. The unsurveyed land in Taranaki available for future settlement is 92,000 acres, and the Maori land awaiting settlement 480,000 acres.

An inquest concerning the death ol Frank Ernest Hill, a seafaring man, aged 40, who was found drowned was held a. Gleeson's Hotel this morning by Mr,. Thomas Gresham, Sergeant Ramsay representing the police. Deceased went on board a small cutter named the Katie, lying off Mechanics' Bay, with the in tention of sailing down to Maraetai, where he was to get a load of explosives for his employer, Mr. Edward Hodgson, of Parnell, and was last seen hauling- in the anchor chain. Subsequently it was noticed that the boat had not gone away, and that Hill, who was the only man on board, was missing. Sergeant Ramsay afterwards recovered the body in the vicinity of the Katie. Dr. Peter Moir, who made a post-mortem, gave it as his opinion that deceased had been seized with a fit, and had fallen into the water. The master of the Katie said Hill was quite sober on the morning the accident happened. The jury returned a verdict in accordance with Dr. Moir's explanation. The town rivalry once so noticeable between Taihape and Mangaweka in their earlier days is at present in evidence farther up the line, where there is a sort of triangular duel between Ohakune, Rangataua, and Raetihi. All three places (says the "Dominion") are i progressing rapidly. Raetihi, which was ! laid out some fifteen or sixteen years '• ago on the assumption that it would be on the main line of railway, is the j commercial and fanning centre. It recently held a very successful agricultural! and pastoral show, and this season it has exported over £10,000 worth of wool. It is also the headquarters of the bank j which opens a branch twice a week at j Ohakune, and which is now on the point of erecting a new building in its! own town. Ohakune and Rangataua I , now claim populations of 000 and 700! inhabitants ■ respectively, and each watches the other with a very observant, but not very friendly, eye. Rei cently it was given out that Ohakune intended to transform itself into a, borough, and to rope in Rangataua in order to gain the necessary one thousand population. As Rangataua desires to play a lone hand in its municipal develop- j ment, this announcement was treated by its inhabitants as a sort of civic bombshell, and a meeting was hurriedly called to discuss ways and means of frustrating the alleged project. On it being stated, however, that Ohakune had no wish to absorb Rangataua, the latter party held its hand, but each district is now endeavouring to attain a population basis which will give it the status mentioned. A ninth of an acre of land, upon which a building is erected, changed hands in Haw era recently at £750. Allowing that the building is worth £200, the land value works out at over £4000 an acre. The section is in a side street. A Wellington traveller who has just been over the coach route between Tokaanu and Waiouru reports that ; thousands of wild horses are to be seen 1 on the margin of the route. The ani- '■ mals are usually first seen about eleven I miles from the railway line, but they ! often stray nearer, and two foals are | reported to have been captured by Mr. i Kennedy, of Waiouru. In the mobs ! which are to be seen galloping over the [ plains, the stallions are said to be in i excellent condition. The mares, howj ever, looked a poor lot. Some years ago ' a large number of the wild horses on ! the Waimarino Plain were captured by : a party headed by Mr. E. O'-s'cil, a well--1 known Wellington provincial horseman. , Each one of the party was mounted on a | fast horse, and sections of the "outlaws" i were galloped to a state of exhaustion J by means of relays. As each horse i dropped to the ground, its legs were | quickly bound; and then it' was blindfold- ! Ed, and left while the chase after other fugitives was renewed. Later the capI tives were yarded and broken as much j as their sullen tempers would permit. A petition has been numerously signed in the Hastings district, praying the Government' to take over the late Mrs. G. P. Donnelly's property at Waimarama —about 0000 acres. The petition will be forwarded in a few days. The recent meeting of the Wanganui Jockey Club was the first to be effected by the extra one per cent tax imposed by the Legislature, and it is calculated the Government will benefit to the extent of about £ 300 over and above what would otherwise have been paid in to the public exchequer. There appears to be a strong probability that chemically-treated New Zealand birch will be largely used in the Dominion in preference to the hardwood timber such as jarrah and karri. An experiment has just been conducted by Professor D. F. Mackenzie, F.S.L., of More—n Hall, Liberton, Scotland, on sections of Powellised birch, and also on "untreated" sections of the English branch of the Powell Wood Company. Both sections were placed in active contact with the dry rot fungus (merulms lacrymons) for something oyer a year, with the result that while the treated portions were found to be quite sound right through after the ordeal, the untreated sections were found to be entirely decayed. The outcome of this is that the life of birch timber for railway sleepers may be prolonged for fully twenty-five years, and following Professor Mackenzie's experiment.and statement, the New Zealand Government has placed an order with the Powell Wood Company, Rangataua, for 10.000 birch sleepers, wlii—. will probably be used on portions of the Stratford-Ongaxue railway line, near Wliangamomona. The fact that New Zealand birch chemically treated can be transformed into serviceable usefulness for such a lengthy period as a quarter of a century for railway and also for bridge purposes, is very important. There are at present large areas of birch in different portions of the Dominion, which are regarded as waste, and only fit to he burnt. They will now become a valuable asset' to property owners. As railway sleepers they should be unsurpassed. They tire hard and heavy, weighing 120 pounds, against the 40----pound silver pine sleepers on the Main Trunk line, which are being found fax too soft for the heavy traffic which daily thunder- over them. It has been reported (says a "Gazette" notice) that it is becoming a common practice to take vessels through the French Pass against the stream. This is a highly dangerous action, and is likely to terminate eventually in a serious disaster. Masters of vessels are, therefore cautioned against this practice. Not only has it been found that vessels will sometimes not answer their helm owing to the strong tide acting on their bow, but there is a great danger of meeting another vessel coming from an opposite direction, and not being able to see one another in suffieieflt time to avoid a collision. As Nelson is. now. able to be j worked at any state of tide by the local steamers., the temptation \o dq \]\\s i§ the greater, hence the need of this warn- j ing. - ! A Tuapeka West settler. Mr. Robert Hall, received- the other day what is considered a ' record price for a sheep-1 skin—namely, 12/0. It was taken from j a two-tooth wether which had escaped; the shearing, and- had an excellent | | growth of wooL ' I

Though the actual figures have not] yet been made public, it is understood j that the receipts from all sources in connection with the recent band contest at Wanganui totalled about £1,000. The expenses were very heavy, and it is anticipated that there should be something like £200 profit, which amount is to go towards the fund for sending the Wanganui Garrison Band to Ballarat. The weather throughout was beautifully fine, and, from every point of view, the contest was a huge success. The Wanganui Garrison Band carried off £140 in prize-money, also the coveted Besson Challenge Shield (value £50), and Messrs. Begg and Co.'s (Dunedin) silver-mounted -major's pacestick, valued at £6 6/-, in addition to a number of gold and silver medals for individual members. Petone won £60 in cash, and Nelson £50. If a person loses a purse or bag or pocket-book in a tramcar, and the idea to inquire for the same at the los* property office of the Tramways Department does not occur to him, it has in the past meant good-bye to the article I in question, even if the name and address of the owner are inscribed within, | or there are papers that easily lead to j identification. In Wellington this system is to be abandoned, and in future where an article found on the cars is inscribed with a name, or a name and address, or where papers, cards, or accounts indicate the identity of the owner, a postcard is to be sent to the person Xt once, giving information as to [ the rind. On calling at the office, the person will be asked to describe the. article, and on payment of the trifling expense incurred, the lost goods will. be restored. It is hoped that by this means many articles that are now sacrificed at the annual sale of lost property will find their rightful owners. Since mention was made some time ago of the presence of katipo in some j numbers at various spots in the vicinity: of Wellington, collectors have been at work, and several people have obtained' bottles and jars of this pugnacious and curious little creature quite recently from Lyall Bay—and have since had them under observation. In these cases (says the "Dominion"), the results of the observations were practically the same in each case. Whenever several katipo were confined in the same bottle, in company with flies, the flics showed no apparent fear of- the spiders, and the first attacks, whep hunger imposed on the spiders the necessity of being up and doing, were never made on these, la each ease— generally some hours after being first placed in captivity— of the katipo would plainly show by his movements that he was apprehensive of the designs of some one of his comrades, and that comrade, just as persistently, kept an eye on his intended victim. After some | hours the spider which intended to take the aggressive— the largest one in the —ascended the glass for some distance, spun a few threads from j side to side of the bottle, and then, descending. by a thread perpendicularly, lon to his quarry, bit the latter at the ! j junction of thorax and head. He.then ascended again with the defunct ! "mate," and proceeded to eat him, the 1 meal usually occupying about twelve hours. After that, some twenty-four or I thirty-six hours of comparative torpor ! would ensue, the appearance of the creature being considerably darker, and the red stripe on the body .'proportionately brighter. In.a day or two an at-, tack would be made on another katipo, but the flies in every case were the last resort. These were never molested while any other food remained in the bottle. The katipo is, apparently, before everything else, a slayer of his own species. Mr. Geo. Inglis, of Onehunga, died this morning at his residence, Selwyn-street. Deceased, who had reached the ripe old age of SO years, was greatly esteemed by all who knew him for his kindly nature and his many sterling qualities. He was a member of the Onehunga Presbyterian Church, and for many years acted as treasurer to that body. His loss will be keenly felt by all who knew him. It is estimated that upwards of 1000 Maoris attended the reopening of the historic church at Otaki on Sunday last. They gathered from as far north as Rotorua and Te Kuiti, and as far south as the Middle Island, so that every available place of shelter in the town was taxed to its utmost. Among the visitors were nearly all the chiefs of the Ngatikahungunu, from Lake Wairarapa to Mahia, and chiefs of the West Coast as far as Waitotara, and others frfim yet farther. Mr. H. W. Parata, as chief of the Ngatiraukawa, Ngatiawa, and Ngatitoa, led the proceedings at the ceremonial welcome on Thursday, while on Sunday orations were delivered by the Hon. J. Carroll, Mr. Parata, and other chiefs. On Sunday impressive services were held in the church, the quaintly beautiful buildings, with its Gothic windows and its Maori structure and decorations, being filled with worshippers, while 27 clergymen, Maori and European, were present. The Rev. A. O. Williams conducted the service, and Bishop Williams (who recently resigned the bishopric of Waiapu) preached an impressive sermon. In the afternoon the church was again unable to hold all the worshippers, when the Rev. F. A. Bennett, of Rotorua, delivered an eloquent sermon from the text, "Build up your battlements" (Deut. xxii., 8). The •Government intends (says the " Evening Post ") to reintroduce in Parliament next session the Bill providing that absconding husbands -who go to Australia may bo dealt with there instead of having to be brought back to New Zealand at the, cost of the wife or her relatives. The bill provides for reciprocal relations between the Dominion and Commonwealth in regard to this question. Mr. A. Shand, who has been a resident of the Chatham Islands for fifty-five years, is visiting Christchurch, where he will spend a few weeks before returning to his island home. He states that the Islands are following the even tenor of their way, rearing sheep and cattle and carrying on .other rural occupations. The native land diffi,cu\ty is as prominent there as it is in the North Island, and the famous " taihoa " policy, which seems to be invincible in that part of the dominion, is considerably retarding any progress the islands might make. Mr. Shand is deeply interested in the ethnology of the islands. He has written some interesting papers for the " Transaction's " qf the New Zealand Institute arid for the " Journal of the Polynesian Society," and he has fqrwarYded to Archdeacon Williams, of GKsborne, who is preparing a, now .Maori dictionary, a. vocabulary of the language of the M'Priftri-, who inhabited the islands before ' the Maori invasion. Mr. Shard's long terra of residence on the (-lia;triarna,is not a, record one.' Mr. Engst, a missionary, went to the 'islands sixty-six years, ago, arid hss never left them. ■' Kapok pillows,-1/, 1/6,1/11 each; Beds. 9/11, 11/9, 12/6; rugs, 2/11, 3/11, 5/11;' blankets, 8/11, 12/6, 15/11,. 19/11, 25/ at Grey and Ford's sale of sales, New—(Ad.) " '

The finances of the Auckland Hospital and Charitable Aid Board are just now particularly what Sir Joseph Ward would call buoyant. Revenue for the twelve mouths has exceeded the estimate by over £4000, and this welcome sum will practically meet' the amount of the extensive building contracts the Board .entered into last year. The Chairman (Mr. C. D. Grey) said it was most satisfactory, and great credit was due to the last chairman (Mr. George Knight), under whose regime the building programme was carried out, for the plucky manner in which he had faced the situation, and for the confidence he had shown in the Board's resources. As yes- ' terday's meeting was the last of the present Board, Mr. Grey thanked the ' members for the attention they had given to the business during the term ' he had been in office. On the motion of Mr. Maekay, the Board passed a hearty vote, of thanks to the chairman (who did not seek re-election). Mr. Maekay said their chairman had not' been in office - long, but he had filled it with great sue- : cess, and for the past five years had beea I one of the most respected members of ' | the Board. [ j The Auckland Highland Rifles,' who ( j have just received their hraw new kilts ij I and red tunics, marched out last night _ for the first time. There was a large num.- < ber of people at the Drill Hall to witness j the muster, and as the men marched down £ Queen-street and up S3lortland-street to t the Choral Hall, where the St. Andrew's t Society was giving a concert, they attracted much attention. There were over forty on parade, under Captain Melville, and, headed by the . pipe band, they 1 looked remarkably well as they marched s along. * " y For some time now the question of the , establishment of a conservatorium of , music in New Zealand has been mooted _ and considered in and out of Parliament . and considerably in musical circles, but j the question as to which centre of the , Dominion should become the musical hub ; of the country has been somewhat of a '< brake to progress. At yesterday's meet- '. ing of the Auckland University College ■ Council, Mr. Louis Cohen forwarded to - the Council an inquiry from the Musical : Recess Committee, recently appointed by ; the University Senate, as' to the encouragement and co-operation Auckland would be likely to come forward with 1 in the event of a conservator—m of music i being established. There was ample need i for the establishment of such a home of < music, wrote Mr. Cohen, who went oh to : say that one of the troubles at present ' seemed to be which centre should become ' the recognised musical centre. Mr. Pear ' cocke suggested the setting up of a com- : mi—c to consider the matter. Mr. C. .J. Parr thought that the Council should , express its opinion that the movement , ! was in the right direction. Anything : • j that was likely to establish a correct j musical taste should receive the support !of the Council, but evidently there would be a difference of opinion as to what centre should have the honour of being the musical centre of the Dominion. But he thought the committee, if appointed, should prepare some report showing why Auckland, the Corinth of the South, ar_j j the largest city in the Dominion, should j have preference. It was, moreover, pretty] well admitted that Auckland stood first j. in musical matters in New Zealand. "I think that this is the only college with a professor of music." That was so, explained the -registrar, the Rev. Canon Nelson, but Christchurch had a lecturer. It was finally decided to refer the letter to a committee, consisting of Dr. Mc- : Dowel! and Messrs. j.~&£ Tole_ and G.. . Peaeoeke. '"' " - ''" """' '"'■■-, There are 75 assisted immigrants on j the lonic, which is due to arrive -at Wellington from London on Wednesday after- , noon. They comprise 33 women, three j men, and 39 children. ' Qf the total 23 _ adults and 13 children were nominated . by relatives in ■ New Zealand, and 13 » adults and 26 children were, approved ■" by the High Commissioner. The adults '' include 10 domestic servant's, one farmer, ' and one housekeeper, and 16 are wives coming out to rejoin their husbands. A new departure in the school syllabus by the Wanganui Education Board has just been made, viz., to give the boys of the District High' Schools a course in agriculture. It 'is proposed that the boys should take the following: Practical drawing and elementary building construction, two hours; mensuration and elementary surveying, two hours; woodwork and forge work, two hours; anatomy and physiology of farm , animals, one hour. This is purely practical work, intended to give boys suffi- ; cient command over their eyes and , hands to deal with the practical problems that arise in connection with . land, stock, and buildings. ; Our Otahuhu correspondent 'writes; After six days and nights of continuous pumping at the new source of the township's water supply, the rate of, output ' being between 30,000 and 40,000 gallons an hour, the pump ceased operations, at ■ 9 ami. on Monday morning. The depth of water in the shaft was reduced by only six inches, thus showing that by the water rushing in at such a Tate a very strong stream must' have been struck. This test is considered satisfactory as to quantity, and the quality is pronounced as excellent. So ' there is every prospect of Otahuhu obtaining a water supply sufficient for the wants of the town for many years to come. • It is understood (writes the naval correspondent of the "London Daily Chronicle" on February 8) that the Powerful will remain on the Australian station as flagship until the new squadron is ready for service —.ere- This, would mean for the Powerful a stay of three years longer at the Antipodes, and the end of her active service career on 'her return, for she is too much of a "back number" to be placed in any but a reserve squadron in Home waters. When the new squadron goes to Australia it is probable that the event will ibe made a ceremonial one, as it is quite fitting that it should be. Mr. Matthews, late of the South Island, and „ large buyer of stock for freezing in connection with the firm's exportations, has just concluded a visit to the Northern Wairoa (writes our Dargaville correspondent). During his brief sojourn he purchased some very fine lines of beef— £4,000 worth— . which are to be shipped from here at " an early date. The greater portion of cattle was purchased on the , estate i through which the -western route of the! North Auckland Main Trunk will, tra-j verse, 200 head being bought on Mr. ; Riddcll's 'fine property at" Omana, whilst' ,a splendid draft was also purchased from Dreadon Bros, and others. jjr Mat-' thaws' was delighted 'with the Northern ' ! Wairoa cattle, a.nd he suites, that it is now- his intention, to make periodical visits here for the purpose of securing, fat stock. ° | The Marist Brothers' bazaar opens on Saturday next' at 3 pjn. at the Brothers'l school, and it is hoped that ..those who I patronise it will realise how badly'" in 1 need of a new house the Brothers are. The ■ proceeds of•' the bazaar are to be • devoted to this purpose.

About fifty men from the steamer _V panui, which struck a rock nis!_i_»l§ Strait, and is now lying in Imbs.i'.'l Bay, have arrived at Lytteltoh. •___ meu are, it is understood* anxious..to r«. turn to England, and many of themia.; tend to go back as passengers, while tha rest will take the first billet that offers on a Home-going ship. Painters, representative of all part-al ;'- ---the Dominion, will meet in . confereno, '. in Wellington on 20th "'arch.. A mas» of business coivcernht orking coadi. tions of the trade will be dealt vdih, -' : . The proposed consolidation of'Labbnt ■into a political party will also —enjoy __ . place on the order paper. It is under- '-' stood that replies favourable to the pr». pqsal have been received from ; Aik4."'' land, Christ—.urch and ___u_in. ;"" An application has been made to Cm. tain Linn, secretary to the Christ • branch of the Royal Humane - Society for recognition of the 'bravery of __a' ' Rait, a young man belonging to Sydenham, who effected a gallant rescue from drowning at Mount White ■ recently', by supporting a man named Wilson, who,',. with two others, had been capsized out of a- boat on the lake. Rait was the first: to notice the. mishap, and' ran half 9 mile to the edge of the lake arid swaaa' . but to the boat, where Wilson was clinging. He dived for the other Hewitt ' and Thompson, but was unable to rcicua them, and he.had a very hard' struggle ~-. to get Wilson ashore. ',- | , ° • . ■ , , ■ ,' '.• 't::_-ili;l ■!,£ -Just recently the Norwegian''bar Njord left the Kaipara with a big ship, ment of kauri for Liverpool. That vessel has now been followed by the barquj . Aquilla with a large consignment 'of _ kauri for London. These shipments (writes our Dargaville correspondent)|| are exceedingly satisfactory, and demon* strate to tbe outer world what a rich v place Kaipara is, when its exports off timber, gum, flax, wool, fish and|fat 1 stock are considered. In addition to tha Home markets being catered for, New.;' Zealand ports are also being provided:with' timber and other products, the brigantine Aratapu having sailed . for I; Lytteiton on Sunday, and the s.s.-' Bris- ■ bane yesterday for Wellington, both' full ships. i ■:" I The following hours will be observed by the Telegraph Office on Good 'Friday % and Easter Monday. On Good Friday which is observed as a Sunday, the'hoi—i§ of attendance will he 9.30 to 10' a__, and 5 to 5.30 p.m. On Easter Monday: the office will be open from 9 am. i. I 4 pjn., and from 7 p.m. to midnight. •. Tha j Telephone Exchange will be open ] usual. :-■:.-,•- ---i Open all day to-morrow (Wednesday), |.Gloves, hosiery, sunshades and umbrellas,', all at sale prices.—Grey and Ford's, Ltd.,' I Newton.-(Ad.) ';,■:. Fall clothing articles for men will T» found in our selection. _ Let us' shoni;. what we have.—Geo. Fowlds—(Ad.)-:'.. ■■■ ' ---•-. .-'"" '" ' •' ■-.'V ! s'-;^ I r:^:?fSfe We have just, received some new ideas | in boys' suits. You- should see them. They include :, Arran, Cromer, Whitley, : Suffolk and Rugby shapes.Geo. rj*'_, . -(Ad.)" * ..,'?-/.- ---j 35/, 35/. A first-class dark wot— suit j for 35/, at Grpy and Ford's sale of sales, Newton.(Ad.) • All the latest and the best in. neckwear has just arrived in our new _—- son's selection. —Geo. Fowlds.—(Ad.) y ■,} Moire—c tendersHit_in all "the' new.colours, selling cheap' at Grey and r _ord, Limited, Newton.—(Ad.), • • . . ' ; i •'.'.Dressy young men will like our, fancy ' sos designs. "__>_a.-_'i-itiyi-hew~— _ ; . nobby we have.I—Geo.1 —Geo. Fdwlds.V-CAd-V J Grey and Ford's drapery estab__vm_t i| will remain open for business all day to-morrow, Wednesday. The Newton.(Ad.) ' ' '-** B f..Are you going travelling? Then you p -will want some bags. Before buying, inspec our range of trunks, bags, basket% ! :M Fowlds.—(Ad.) j' • I