INTEEPROVINCIAL.

Evening Post, Volume LXXIX, Issue 74, 30 March 1910, Page 3

INTEEPROVINCIAL.

A somewhat remarkable phenomenon was to be obsei-ved at the Strath-Taieri A. and P. show at Middlemarch a few days ago. The air was full of what seemed to be a coarse white dust, dancing and shimmering in the sunshine, and, as the result of a gentle bree«e, drifting slowly across the showground. Investigation showed that the dust was really, myriads of tiny active insects, besfc known to ths harassed farmer under the name of turnip blight. This scourge is at present very prevalent in the Taieriand Strath-Taieri districts, ' and when there is a warm sun and gentle breez© it rises off the more or less ruined turnip crops and drifts about in the manner de« scribed. Just before the moon rose in puneclia on Monday evening a very fine display of tbe Aurora Australis was visible in the southern heavens. From a line drawn between St. Clair and Lawyer's Head ifc was particularly brilliant, and afc times huge beams of light appeared to radiate from small luminous areas, and shoot xm into the sky to an immense hei^it, ana" were mistaken by many people for the' rays of a passing searchlight. At 'ana < time the Aurora appeared to be advanc-. ing rapidly towards the city, bnt after, attaining its maximum brilliancy J itf! faded away before the spkndonr of~"tiM|k Easter moon. At an inquest on the body of William John M'lntyre, who was found by bia wife lying face downwards at the,edg» of a swamp at Htmtly, the evidence showed that the deceased practically died) from overwork. His wife stated that, besides working in the mine, he was constantly engaged in his spare time ia>clearing the 60 acres of land that he had:. just taken up in the block behind th«native settlement "at Waihi. He usually, worked from daylight to dark, and walked backwards and forwards to tha mine daily, a distance of some ten miles* Kawau leland, which is one of tho best known of the holiday re«jrts in the vicinity of Auckland, is to be ehorthj; cut up by the present owner (Mr. A. J. F. Farmer) for sale. The island; which, was formerly the home of Sir George* Grey, is (says the New Zealand HeraM), a perfect paradise in miniature, abounding in lofty hills, deep bays, splendidbeaches, with good fishing and shooting, and, fn fad, everything that the hearticould desire. The island embraces about 8000 acres, and the OAvner's intention is to cut it up into sections from ona to 20D0 acres, eveiy section having a water frontage. Kawau, since the opening of an accommodation house, has been year by year increasing in popularity, some of the excursion steamers taking nearly 1009 people for a day trip. Surveyors are now making the necessary surveys, and' in «i few weeks the plans will be ready. 1 The fipt portion of the island to b» hold will be about 250 acres, embracing; what is known as Vivian Bay. Alreadjr a settler has purchased five acres there," and intends building a. residence forthwith. This harbour is of easy access bj; motor launch from Mansion House Bay, to which there is even now a steamer three times a \voe-k. The Stratford Post understands that the East Mountain House Committee, which has in hand a sum of about £50 for expenditure on buildings at tha house, has decided not to &pend theamount there until something is don© towards putting the track in order. Th» amount held cannot be spent on th» track by the committee, which this year has not, as has been customary in th* past, received a grant from the-Goverat ment for track improvement purposed. Mr. M'Laren, M.P., challenged th« Lyttelton Times to deny that the British Labour Party is a distinct political party, with its party meetings, party leader, party whip, party cancus, ana party. • methods. The journal replies : "We have never implied for a. single moment tha* the British Labour Party is not a distinct political party. It would be absurd to deny the obvious facts. Butt we may be permitted to say, without drawing any invaiiious distinctions between the party leaders, that there i» a very wide difference between th,« methods of the Labour Party at Horn* and the methods of the party which Mr. McLaren is organising. As "for our correspondent's final challenge that w« should show that t4ie 'Independent Labourites' here are proposing to d<r something that is not- being done byj the British Labour Party, we can only, say that wo are not sufficiently in th«f confidence of tlie 'Independent La-i bourites' to know what they are proposing to do. But if Mr. M'Lare* and his friends are merely striving t* strengthen the hands of the Liberal Party so that it may carry legislation that is desired by a large section of the workers, we admit at once thatf their intentions are much more admirable) than their methods." '