News From All Quarters

Auckland Star, Volume XLIX, Issue 41, 16 February 1918, Page 15

News From All Quarters

New-laid eggs were priced 7d each in a shop in Farringdon Street, London, recently.

Last year's potato crop in England and Wales is officially estimated at 3,339,005 tons, or 835,000 tons more than in 1010. It is the largest crop ever recorded, and the yield per acre—6.s7 tons—has been exceeded only four times in 30 years.

"SIMPLY DISGRACEFUL." At the Enfleid Police Court nearly 90 munition workers were summoned for income tax arrears. It was stated that their average earnings were £70 to £80 a quarter, and the greatest difficulty was experienced in getting them to pay the tax. The chairman, in ordering the defendants to pay forthwith, said it was simply disgraceful, and there was no excuse.

STRIKE OUTRAGE IN BUENOS AIRES. American employees of both sexes have suffered gross insults and violence in the province of Buenos Aires at the hands of police and strikers. Women had all their clothes torn from them and suffered other indignities from the mob. The trouble was caused entirely by professional agitators, who brazenly ofOr these women immunity for a price, and threaten vengeance otherwise. A BAKER'S DEVICE. A Chatham baker, summoned for selling bread baked less than twelve hours previously, told the Chatham Bench of an Interesting device to keep his bread moist. The loaves, he said, were placed on a perforated rack, heated by hot water pipes, the result being that, containing a special ingredient, they were kept warm for hours. He emphatically denied that the bread had been baked less than twelve hours from the time of delivery, but the Bench imposed a fine of £5.

POISON GAS OUTRAGE. The village of Sodus Center, 30 miles north of Rochester. New York, was thrown Into excitement the other night, when thirty persons attending a Red Cross dance, were overcome, npparently by some poisonous agency. Dr. Hitchcock, the village physician, after treating the victims, expressed the opinion the air of the room had been charged with a poisonous gas, the nature of which he was unable to determine. All the patients were expected to recover.

THE ANZAC'S MISTAKE. Several Anzacs who were in the Lobby of the House of Commons the other evenIng, were greatly interested in watching the Speaker, preceded by the Sergeant-at-Arms bearing the mace, marching in solemn procession to the House of Lords to hear the royal assent given to certain bills. "What does It all mean?" one of them asked. When the ceremony was explained to him, he gave a sigh of relief. "I thought it was some unlucky blighter on his way to execution!" he said.

AEROPLANE ACCIDENTS. One aviator was killed and two others narrowly escaped serious lnjur~ during tlon board at the Naval Airplane Station at Pensacola, Florida, a few weeks ago. Herman Bose, of New York, -while piloting his machine at an altitude of 200 feet, lost control of It as he attempted a landing. The machine plunged Into Penascola Bay, pinning Bose beneath »t In four feet of water. Another airplane with two occupants plunged from an altitude of nearly two thousand feet into the bay. The occui pants were uninjured.

A CANADIAN'S DEATH. Ernest E. Sharp, alias Emett, Thomas V. Magulre, Australian soldiers, and Joseph Jones, dock labourer, who are charged with the murder of Oliver G. Imlay, a Canadian soldier, near Waterloo, was returned at a recent inquest at Lambeth. The three men were present handcuffed. The coroner said ruffians who hung about darK streets and assaulted and robbed people should understand that if as a result of their conduct a man died they would be guilty of wilful murder. Mackinley, ImI lay's companion, owed his escape to his line physique—a hard head had saved him from a fractured skull.

1 AN ENGINEERING FEAT. The opening the other week of a large new aerodrome at Hanworth Park, near London, marks the completion of an engineering work which involved the deflection underground for a distance of nearly a mile of the Wolsey River. The stream intersected the field selected for main landing ground of the aerodrome and impeded the landing of aircraft there. To removo this defect, the ***igineers constructed a conduit, capable of carrying 27,000,000 gallons of hot water dally, into which the stream has now been diverted, and its bed levelled to give an unbroken flat surface for the aerodrome. The size of the conduit was such that before the river was diverted fifty soldiers marched upright through the underground way.

LONDON'S 6,000 BAD BOYS. During 1916, 0,023 children under 16 were taken Into custody in London, says the annual report of the Police Commissioner, compared with *,744 in the previous year. Small thefts were the principal offences, and the increase is attributed to the lack of parental control owing to so many fathers serving In the field and mothers being in temporary employment. During the year, 87,032 persons were apprehended, compared with 114.259 in the previous year—an increase of 1.3*50 in Indictable offences, and a decrease of 27,987 in minor offences. The police force Is 2,212 below the authorised strength of 22,355. Of 1,860 men serving In the Army and Navy, 183 have been killed. There are 30,612 special constables. It is officially stated for the first time that among the victims of the air raids was a chief inspector of the Criminal Investigation Department. SEA-BOTTOM FORTUNES. There are fortunes lying under the sea in the holds of torpedoed ships, and many minds are busy on the problem of recovering this wealth after the war. "Salvage companies are laying plans for raising both ships and cargoes on a big scale," said Mr B. H. Davis, managing director of Siebe, Gorman and Co., submarine engineers, London. "Cargoes to the value of millions of pounds are awaiting recovery. Apart from the bullion and silver in sunken ships, there is a larfe'e quantity of other valuable metals. In many cases, where ships cannot be raised, cargoes can be salved. Wo recovered £70,000 in Spanish gold coins some years ago from the Alphonso XII., 165 feet under the sea, off Point Gando, Grand Canary. We also recovered a large quantity of silver bars at a depth of 186 ft., from the steamer Skyro, off Cape Finisterre. These operations show what can be done after the war."

Less than 30/ a week is the wages ofl over 500 Glamorganshire teachers, who demand an increase.

The Dutch papers publlsti an agency report to the effect that the German National Library at Gotha, containing the largesc collection of works on German "kultur," has been completely destroyed by flre.

COSTLY PLY SWATTING. It cost 11. N. Zimmerman, a business man, of Hiawatha, Kansas, five dollars to> ! swat a fly that did a spiral glide and landed s on his bald head. Mr. Zimmerman wae '• attending church wbon tne swatting occur- f red. The minister was raising money and f had asked for five dollar subscriptions ■* when a fly alighted on Mr. Zimmerman'* head. He raised his hand to brush away, f the fly and the preacher caught the move- j ment. "H. N. Zimmerman subscribes flvai dollars; who will be the next?" too ■ preacher announced. Mr. Zimmerman paid . the subscription, as he said it was wort* * the price to swat the annoying fly.

BRITISH AUCTION PRICES. / Extravagant prices are being paid at public auction sales of spirits, cigars, an* tea. At a Covent Garden sale one parcel of tea sold at about G/ a lb, and another ' at 5/. The maximum shop price is 4/i-T Whisky lias brought 200/, and even 250/fl 1 -, a dozen bottles at public auction, and ■ high-class cigars have been sold for more , than the retail prices. "The reason is, ,, s said a retailer, "that people mean to have * a stock of these things in their homes ani -j are not deterred by high prices. TheJ|/ would rather buy a good supply at ex--5 travagant prices than get a little at a tima ' at a cheaper rate, with the risk of going without at last."

BATTLE WITH A BEGGAR. William Vaughan, of Liverpool, who wae charged with begging and assault on & policeman at St. Helena, -was sentenced t». six months' imprisonment. An offices stated that as soon as he spoke to Vaughan,-! who was singing in the street, the malt pulled out a knife and made a stab at him/ ripping his vest lining. Vaughan aletf used his heavy walking stick and stonee. and had it not been for a Mrs Doyle and Mrs Smea, sisters, the officer wonld have - been stabbed. The ■women wrested the -■ knife from Vaughan, and brought a brush, • with which witness was able to defend himself. All the time the struggle was going on two men stood by and laughed. The two women were commended by the BencS.

ALIENS ON BRITISH FARMS. ' Sir George Cave's scheme for permitting interned enemies to be engaged by farmers to do agricultural work has not met with the support that was expected. On inquiry at the Home Office a "Pall Mall Gazette" representative was officially Informed, that at present about 1,300 Aum trians and Hungarians have been placed ont; farms, where they are reported to be doinff useful work. Only in a few cases have the men proved unsatisfactory. If incompetent*: or unwilling workers they are No Germans are permitted to be engageoj,' under this scheme, but there are atjenst 4,000 Austrians and Hungarians In thai' camps whose services might well be utmse&. by farmers and others. •"

SAVED BY CHAMPAGNE. One of the inmates of Bermondsey MIS* tary Hospital Is a man nearly sixty year* of age, an old soldier, who Joined up be-4 cause his three boys were fighting. H4 was in the battle for Passchendaele Ridge, and developed double pneumonia. Three weeks ago the medical officer of the ward said the man was dying, said Major Tims, the officer in charge. They gave him not\ house grapes and a pint and a half o£ I champagne. On the previous day Ma]o( Tims found him sitting ap in bed reading^ When he remarked that he had got bettet quickly the old soldier said, "Too quickly, adding that he did not get any more ehanx pagne now. He, the major, had not th< slightest doubt that the champagne savrt the man's life. ~

200,000 ASH TREES NEEDED. «j During the past few weeks 3000 and 4000 ash trees nave been offered to the British Government, for the purpoM of aeroplane construction, as the result <rf an appeal to landowners by the Aerla? League, it is expected that this offer wltf shortly be increased to 50,000 trees. Thlr prospective supply, although large, is below the demand, for it is stated that Government requirements in the next H months are expected to exceed 200,000. Tn< plan is to ask landowners to offer theit. trees standing at a price of 4/6 a cnble foot, and the Government undertake t« do the felling, carting, and general handling of the timber. At the same time, the League, of which Lord .Montague of Beanlieu is president, has arranged to plant, two saplings in the place of every ash tree taken. In this way it is hoped to create a> reserve of the finest ash in the world.

PRINCE OF WALES IN ITALY. The "Tribuna's" correspondent at the ■' front recently devoted an enthusiastio "' article to the Prince of Wales, giving' • numerous instances of bis simple, dlgni- ->• fled, unaffected bearing and hia frank lore for Italy. At Mantua, accompanied Df, -~ three British officers, the Frince enjoyed ■ a picture show, joining heartily in the fun. . lie was afterwards treated to coffee by, a white-haired captain, who did not know his guest. While motoring near Mantua the Prince was recognised by a Bersag- ' lleri column on the march, who cheered' vociferously. The Prince replied by waring his cap and crying, "Viva Italle, viva King Victor Emanuel. British soldiers ara proud to flght beside Italian soldiers." Many Bersaglieri had tears In their eyes, acknowledging this tribute. The correspondent adds that the Prince spent his spare time at Mantua, Virgil's birthplace, reading the Aeneld. •WOMEN FOR THE NAVY. ' The British Admiralty announce that they have approved of the employment ot women on various duties on shore hitherto performed by naval ratings, aud have decided to establish a Women's Royal Naval Service for this purpose. The members form, and the Service will be confined to women employed on definite dutlee directly connected with the Royal Navy. It is not intended for the present to include those serving in cne Admiralty Departments, the Rnyal dockyards, or others civil establishments under the Admiralty. At the request of the Board, Dame Katnerine Furse, G.8.E., has accepted the position of Director of the Women's Royal Naval Sen-ice, and will be responsible, under the Second Sea &ord, for Its administration and organisation, including the con- • trol of the members when off duty, and the care of their general -welfare