LOCAL AND GENERAL

Evening Post, Volume CIII, Issue 3, 5 January 1922, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL

The Evening Post Almanac will, be circulated with the iswie.of the Evening Post' to-morrow. """ Brisk V>usin«e wu experienced by the municipal 'biißes in Palmentoi) North during the holidays. In ten days 20,097 paeeengen were carried, the receipts being £251 5» 6d.. Mr. F. K. Hunt, S.M., presided at a brief sitting of. the Magistrate's Court this morning, and dealt with three inebriates, two of whom were first offenders. .-...■■■ ; ■-.■:-:.. ■ ■■•' Tlio Mmieter of Lands, the Hon. D. H. GnUirie, h(W intended visiting Palmemton North next Saturday, ;ji order to meet a deputation from the Returned Soldiers' Association in connection with representations by soldier settlers in the district. The associaiion, however, is unable to get the settlers concerned to-gether-by that time, and the Minister's jviait will be postponed, probably for about a month. ■ The heather planted at the Tongariro National Park some years ago.by Mr. John Cnllen, honorary warden of the area, has thrived wonderfully well, and to-day covers approximately 3000 acres.; At the present time the French Bell heather is a mass of bloom, and in many places its growth. is almost, as dense as" on the moors in Scotland. It will continue to flower until about the middle of this month. The French Ling heather is, expected to commence blooming at the beginning of March, and will continue in bloom, until the end of April. The ordinary Ling heather flowers from January to March. Earl Ovington, engineer, ■ manufacturer, and builder, of Santa Barbara, California, has designed and is occupying a one-room house that combines, living, dining, bedroom, and kitchen in one. Before moving into it, he opened it for inspection, and crowds poured in, da>\ after, day, and were surprised at its clever arrangements. Mr. Ovington has several new ideas, for which he has asked patents; one is a fireplace which heats by forcing the warm air into the room from two angles, while the bared 4 smoke pipe in the rear is warming another part of the house. Another idea is to make the bed serve as a seat, by a novel plan of stiffening the springs. The house is modelled after the cabin of a yacht, but is considerably larger, and has ground and flower beds around it. It is planned to erect and sell a number of houses of this type. The illness of Dr. M. R. Neligan, formerly Anglican Bishop of Auckland, which was mentioned at the sitting of the Auckland Anglican Synod in October/appears to.be of a severe nature. In a letter received by the present Bishop, Dr. A. W. Averill, in acknowledgment of the cablegram of sympathy forwarded by the Synod, Bishop Neligan stated _ that he was unable to do more than dictate the letter to a typist.. His signature was typed, and he could only jost append his initials. The letter contained the following passage:—"lf I can I will dictate a. few letters to pyple in New Zealand. Perhaps you will be further kind, and if the opportunity s.erves, tell anybody you come across that I would wish to write to each person, but that now I simply cannot. I know they are all so kind that they will not^put my silence down to anything but the real cause, namely, my inability to write at all. My, wife is able to come to Scarborough, where I am dictating this. It agrees .with her very well, and she ie wondei-fully brave and plucky. We have taken a house.hi Scai'mnwißh far, at any vate, three month* more,"

L An interesting aeroplane "stunt" was witnessed in Wellington last evening. When the Avro stationed at Lyall Bay was flying over the city at a height of about 2500 feet the pilot'(Mr. S. V. Mallard) shut off the engines and glided 'back to Lyall Bay. He landed at the Bay without restarting the engine, and thus accomplished' what many people might have regarded as the impossible. The old- proverb about an ill wind) seems to apply here. The Levin Chronicle remarks that a number of factories in the Bush district are congratulating themselves, on the fact that the steamer Somerset was delayed for some weeks in discharging her cargo in London. ' The market, wa» very bad for cheese when *he arrived, but by the time she had discharged there was a considerable improvement, and the cheese, although damaged, sold iexceptionally well, compared with prices Tilling when the ship arrived. How best to deal with a man who is unable to exercise any degree of moderation in his consumption of liquor is a question that often exercises the minds of Magistrates. When Richard Andrew Byrne, with three - previous convictions for drunkenness against him, appeared "before Mr. F.- K. Hunt, (S.M., this morning, Sub-Inspector M'Namara made a suggestion that the man should be sent to the inebriates' home at Botoroa for a term. "It's his only chance," said the Sub-Inspector. "Whenever he is in liquor he takes seizures and collapse* in the street. Since 30th October he has cost the country £9 14s in medical and ambulance fees." The Magistrate: "It is a great shame that the country should have to keep an able-bodied man like this. I don't believe in sending him op to the island for a holiday. Fishing .off the rocks is no good. I'll give him three months' hard labour, and if tfcat doesn't cure him I'll despatch him to Rotoroa for two years." i Specimen* from apple and pear trees reported to be affected by frrebß^ht have; been forwarded to ■ the Horticultural' Division of the Agricultural Department from' Patea. In discussing the matter, the director of the division (Mr. J. A. Campbell) said that'so far it has not been decided whether the disease is or is not ftreblight. Fuither investigations, he said, were being made by the biological section, and definite information would: not J» available for a couple of days. If the disease should prove to be nreblight, it could only hare been communicated to the hitherto immune Paten district by; contact. However, if it could' be transferr<4 to Patea, which., fortunately, was riot -a,, great fruit" district, it might just as easily be carried to such districts as Hawkes Bay, where the fruit culture was! an important industry. This..was the! aspect of the case which mads the reported outbreak, at Patea of;;» much importance. Mr. Campbell is hopeful that investigations will prove that the trouble is'some other pest than fireblight. One satisfactory point about the matter is that Patea has few hawthorn hedges, [ On hawthorn being particularly, subject, to fireblight. Moreover, if ; the worst fears are realised, it should be a com-, par&ttvely. eiay matter to confine the outbreak to the Piitea district, and completely stamp it out before it has a chance to spread. ,■.,,.. Taswngei'iS, parcel*,,and checked luggage despatched from the Thorndon Station on journeys, long or short, during the holiday rush seasons of the last three years have been reduced to terms of aggregate figures and £ s, d in an" informative return prepare3v by the «W Uoninaster. The railway nwh. is reckoned from 16th December of each year'to 3rd January, and during those periods the number qf passengers taking train from the station was §1,334 in 1919-192O( 23,673 in 1920-1921, and 21,914 in 1921----1922, while the revenue figures, in the same order, were £10,619, £12,266, and £11,751. At a rough gu«ss one would say that suburban passengers r would nuaiber at lwart double the long-distance '< travellers, but L the returns show that during the three holiday seasons: the Auckland passengers numbered.9lo, .976, and 850; the " suburban passengers, 12,259, 13,993, and 13,213; aikt the- pa*> ' senger* bound for otier stations, 8165, 8819, and 7561. Revenue for the holiday rushes of the three years is also shown : Ohriatmas Eve, £1140, £1118, £796; Boxing Day, £974, £1745, £1078; New Year's Day, £408, £784, £658, while the parcels revenue for the three rush seasons is shown as : 1919-1920,, £1569; 1920-1921, £1733; 1921-1922, £1874;. andthe luggage checkings : outward,*1 4097, 4194, 402?; inward, 3644, 3868, 3470. Yesterday was the 53rd;. anniversary of the commencement of the assault that ended in the capture of the Ngatapajpa, in the Poverty, Bay district, the moun-: tain stronghold of the rebel Te Kooti. After the ai«g« had been in progress for several days, Major-General (then . Colonel) G. S. Whitmore, decided to make an immediate attack on 4th January, in order to prevent the enemy escaping from the rear of the fortress. A concealed movement was accordingly carried out, and the right and left extremities of th« outer wall were seized, the intention being to blow up the inner lines.' The operationv w»- nearly completed at dawn next morning, when it was learnt that the enemy were escaping. The fortification was immediately entered, and it was found that Te Kooti had made off, lowering his men, and some of the women down the steepest, and therefore least guarded, part of the cliff. A large portion of the Native force . was at once in eager pursuit, and by. sundown the number of killed, either in the pa or in the pursuit, had reached 120 By the evening of the following ' day most of the pursuers Had returned, > bringing two of Te Kooti's wives. Of his followers 136 were killed. Major ! Ropata, N.Z.C., who was chief of the Ngatiporou tribe, and Colonel T. W. Porter, C.8., were in charge of the friendly Natives, and.were assisted by Captain Preeoe, N.Z.C,, and Captain Gundry. Mr. Walter Delaney, of Whangarei, who wa* only 12 or 13 years old at the time, was bugler to N the Native division. . The festive atmosphere at the Grand Hotel, Auckland, on New Year's Eve proved too much for a big four-seater Hudson car that had been standing complacently against the kerb outside while x within a gay and haprjy throng welcomed the New Year. Just as the first waters of 1922 began to flow it emerged from its tranquil state and set off gently down Princess-street towards the' Waitemata (states the Auckland Star). Having freed itself from the restraining influence--of that hard and unsympathetic kerb, it gathered confidence, and it* momentum increased accordingly. Right merrily was it proceeding when the verandah posts of a little shop at the top of Shorland-street, where numerous Celes-: tials ply the iron, attempted to spoil its frolic. They were unsuccessful, and were badly buckled for their interference, while the front of the-shop presented the appearance that it had attempted to shoulder all the cares and tribulations of the old year. On sped the Hudson, and cut a path through the fence surrounding the reserve that overlooks the harbour and, breaks the steep fall about Emily-place. Cupid is wont to stray here at timee, but fortunately had chosen other pastures to look for New Year victims, arid when the car crashed into one of the inviting trees jusf within the fence the trunk proved stout enough to bring the car to a halt, and back to its normal sobriety. When the owner of the straying vehicle went along to recover it lie must have felt thankful for the Ejrowtli of that tree, for beyond was a fair field of destruction. The Hudson suffered damage to the extent of £200.

There hae been placed in the Wanganui 'Museum a rnsty/ three-legged, castiron pot, which.^ was part of ttie pricetobacco, gaudy1 cloth, beds, mirrors, razors, pots, and many other thing* which pleased the eye and the vanity of savages—paid to the Natives (or the present «ite of Wangauui in 1840. Then it was sand drifts, toi toi flats, and flax swamps. A creditor' meeting may not be a success unless there are creditor* present, and since there was not even the heffiniiiiiß of a quorum in the Official Assignee's office yesterduy afternoon, Peter Maldnev, bnnknipt, will be required to meet his creditors on a date to be arranged. Maloncy, whole debts amount to £95 and whose assets are nil, claimed to have been dismissed without justification from the Police Force in 1915. A commission, hi Mid, found that he wae not- guilty of the offence with' which he had been charged, and in 1917 he was granted £350 compensation. He had a wife and four children, and while engaged in cleaiinj? up his case he lost a good deal of money and incurred some debts. These he paid with the compensation money. Bankrupt had had no regular work for the past six months. Hie unsecured creditors were H. F. Doogan, solicitor, Greymouth. £58; A. Pore, solicitor, Petone, £6 16s; E. Feist, storekeeper, Lower Hutt, £30. Seven Europeans who were peacefully and pleasantly engrossed at Greymouth in the fascinating but illegal game. of pakapoo were rndcly disturbed by the police, and ac a result they will be required to attend the Greymouth Magistrate's Court next week. The scene ofthe raid was an establishment in China.-, town, and the raiding party was led by Detective Young and Sergeant Fryer. Their sudden entrance caused wild excitement among the Chinese and whites on the premises, and the lattei cast desperate glances round for an avenue -of escape. The police arrangements had been well made, however, and the haul was complete. The men on the premises realised that the "game was up," and names and addresses were quickly forthcoming. While the raid ,was in progress another patron of the "bank" arrived, and on reaching the door -was met by the polite query from Detective Young, "Do you want a ticket?" The visitor lorgot hi' manners in a hurry, and when last seen was exceeding the speed limit. At the outbreak of the war the little French gunboat Zeelee vi-' lying in Papeete harbour. On learning of the approach of yon Spee'a squadron the commander, Lieutenant Destremaux, decided to scuttle his ship, after landing her artillery for shore defence. It does not appear to be disputed that by taking this action Lieutenant Destremaux performed a most valuable service, since upon the improvised . coast battery opening fire the Germans sheered off, contenting themselves .with, pitching a few shells into the town. . Had he instead gone out in the gunboat and offered' battle to the Scharnhorst' and Gniesenau his tiny, ship would have been destroyed at the' first salvo, and very possibly the Germans, intoxicated with this cheap victory,' would have landed at Papeete, and indulged in a little "frightfulne»i." Yet the FrencTi Minister of Marine.of the day, M. Augagneur, took ah advene view of Lieutenant DestrenuMix's procedure and administered a severe reprimand, which the officer, it is eaid, took so much to heart that he died. Now efforts aie being made by distinguished French admirals to see that justice is publicly rendered to the memory of a gallant officer, who "did the right thing under difficult circumstances." Blue and White for 1921, the ably edited annuil of St. Patrick's College is received: It is printed on heavy art paper and consists of 168 pages, liberally illustrated. Much of the text relates of course to college activities, and especially to high achievements in the sports arena, "St. Pats" keeping up its old high reputation for ■nanly games! "Bes i Sacrae" are not overlooked, for to the spiritual, side of the boys great attention h paid at the college. In the "leader" it is laid down, "The ideal of our character-making is the Christian.jtentleman. Not the gentleman without Christianity—the polished pagan—nor yet the Christian boor, if sueh N really ex--1 ists, but the two-qualities, one natural, the other supernatural worked upon the natural blended into a glorious tapestry —the most perfect object of human workmanship." This ideal, judging from the contents of Blue and Whitr appears to be kept ever prominent in the daily life of principal; masters, and boys of the college. Close touch is kept with old boys, news of their movements and activities are furnished in the pages of Blue and White. Well written artioles on the glaciers of South1 Westlwd; on "GallipoK after six Tears1" (by Mr. W. T. Jennings M.P.), the new Church of St. Mary of the Angels; the new college to be - erected at Miramar; some excellent verse; and a page or so of humour make the 1921 number of Blue and White of interest to the general reader, but much, more so, of course, to the boy« of the college of to-day and of other days. Evidently business in the hqtel line has not been very brisk of We. Giv-, ing evidence at the Arbitration Court at Palmerston North, Mr. J. R. Foster,, of Wanganui, said that never .before in the history of the trade had there been such, a small number of people travelling, while the' number of people who patTonised the hotels for-social greeting had also showed a ■ considerable falling off. During the last six months the falling; off in some of the takings of several of the Wanganui hotels ranged from 25 per cent, to 50 per cent. The Customs tariff : ■which came into force four weeks ago ' was having a big effect. Several hotelkeepers could now only afford to get. their supplies from week to week, instead j of in big quantities, as was previously I tho case. Thie condition of affairs was ] not confined to Wanganui, for evidence, was (riven by representatives from Palmerston North, Napier, and other places' as to a similar' condition of affairs. A' Palmerston North witness said his house trade had dropped 75 per cent., and bar takings 30 per cent. He did not think i the position would brighten lip within at least f2 months. An aoinuntant' at Napier testified to the decline in business there, and remarked that hotel keeping was not a profitable proposition at present.