LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Hastings Standard, Volume V, Issue 1429, 21 January 1901, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

On our fourth page will be found cable news and other interesting matter.

Britain's bill for foreign fruit, vegetables, and poultry is £9,000,000 a year. During 1900 there was 153 dredging companies registered in the colony, with an aggregate nominal capital of about £1,400,000. « If the Ameer has been a close student of Russian aggressive methods, he will learn with grave misgiving that some of the St. Petersburg and Moscow papers are charging him with hostile designs. History shows that this sort of pretence has almost invariably preceded every fresh endeavor of Russia to extend her Asiatic territories. It is perfectly true that Abdur Rahman has latterly done all in his power to increase the fightibg efficiency of his regulars; probably, too. the number of soldiers on the frontier has been increased. But the provocation came from Russia. The Ameer took alarm. But he has never departed from a purely defensive position ; he calmly waits for that " unprovoked attack " which, under his treaty with England, would entitle him to claim British help. Interviewed in Sydney last weak, Mr Seddon was asked by a Dunedin Star reporter : " Was there any danger to be apprehended from the personnel of the Federal Government to New Zealand if the colony decided (as seemed highly probable) to remain aloof from the Commonwealth ?" On this point Mr'Seddou was unmistakably emphatic. "It does not matter, so far as New Zealand is concerned who is in power. The colony and its leaders are on excellent terms with all the leading statesmen, whether in office or out of it." (This allusion was clearly meant to apply to the Right Hon. G. H. Reid, with whom Mr Seddon and several of us New Zealanders had just previously spent a most agreeable ana profitable hour). Continuing, he b.ud that "he feared no measures of a .uprisal character. This was a mere bogey. Public opinion would prevent anything of the kind, and, as he had stated at the Commonwealth banquet. Australians evidently had a warm heart for their friends in their own native land. Federation bad been brought into existence for the purpose of removing intercolonial barriers. For the Commonwealth to set up a barrier against New Zealand would be against the spirit of Federation, and against the wish of the people of New South Wales.'' Loss of appetite, nausea after meals, and headache are symptoms that the patient is suffering from indigestion, the prevailing malady of modern life. Tm= Ti-ill lead to most disastrous results unless prompt remedial measures are taken. The one medicine which cau eonadently be recommended to effect a radical cure is 1 jirtv'. 4 ' May Ai ixt.' A-k your chtmiut i v r jti X'UW 2i.

London uses up 240,000 horses a year,

A correspondent of the Poverty Bay Herald says that one Maori suffered so much from ma I rf« >ner during his trip over to the Commonwealth celebrations that he offered £2O if any of his comrades would shoot him.

Messrs Williams and little will hold a stock sale at Stortford Lodge yarJs tomorrow, commencing at 1 p.m. The lines to be offered for salo are advertised in our other columns.

The annual general meeting of the Hasting Horticultural Society will beheld in the Council Chambers to-morrow, commencing at 7.80 p.m.

At the Addington maikets on Wednesday last a draft of Mr Hurst's (of Oakleigh) halfbred wethers were taken for export at 23s Id, and a lot of maiden ewes

brought 20s 3d. In the course of a conversation which a member of our staff had with the General Manager of the Meat Export Company yesterday relative to the discrepancy in the prices of North Island and South Island lambs, Mr Sladden stated that although he had known a mob of Canterbury lambs to average 461b frozen weight, the general average weight of lambs from that part of the colony when frozen was only four or five pounds more than that of the North Island lambs, say, 361b or 371 b.—Exchange.

Ic seems that there are some historical grounds for the notion about the leap-year priviliges of single ladies. We learn from Chambers' Journal that in 1288 the Scottish Parliament passed an act by which it was decreed that in leap-year a " maiden lady of either high or low estate shall have liberty to speak to the man she likes. If he refuses to take her he will be mulct in the sum of one hundred pounds more or less, as his estate may be, except and always if he can make it appear that he is betrothed to another woman, then he shall be free." Sydney hasn't got a cheer left, and the people can't even be stirred to applaud, A case in point—7oo soldiers from the war returned this morning, and although a distinctly Imperial tone was given to the proceedings by the presence of the British Fusilier regiments, and the glitteringly uniformed Oriental warriors, who stirred the people to the core a week ago, there was an entire absence of enthusiasm on the part of the people. Here and there a faint cheer or round of applause was given, but that was all. They have got " that tired feeling,"—Post's correspondent. The Mayor of Auckland took a hand in suppressing the fire on Sunday morning, and the Star, after remarking that it was found absolutely impossible to throw any jet of water to the upper storeys of Messrs Nathan's building, or the five-storey building occupied by the New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Company, on the other side of the street, which for a while stood in imminent peril,- says: Now, while we cannot but admire the energy of the Mayor in ascending to the roof of the latter building and stamping out the incipient flame, it would be more to the purpose if His Worship, despite the rebuffs which he has received in the Coun. oil, had stood to his his guns and ham* mered away until he had secured for the city an adequate and efficient system of fire extinction.

Both Auckland papers cry out for an inquiry into the Custom street fire, and for reform of the Fire Brigade. The Star says : —" Perhaps when another £90,000 worth of property has been desteo.yed the City Council will begin to consider the necessity for bringing our primitive fire appliances up to the leyel of modern needs." The Herald remarks ] " Close upon £IOO,OOO has disappeared. A million pounds has been in imminent peril. There is every reason to consider that this has resulted from the utter disregard of efficient fire-prevention methods which characterises our city, and which has over and over again been commented upon. Had the wind blown furiously from the north instead of lightly from the south, the people of Auckland might still be watching helplessly the annihilation of their most valuable properties and be confronted by a commercial disaster and industrial stagnation which would carry loss and suffering to thousands of now happy suburban homes."

The members of the Hawke's Bay Mounted Rifles held the first of a series of monthly field days on Saturday and Sunt day. The first party, under Lieut. Gordon, left Hastings at 3 p.m. and proceeded to the Tauroa woolshed, where they camped for the night, after surveying the neighborhood to prepare themselves for the morning attacks. The second party left the drillsbed under Captain Russell and Lieut. Canning at 11 p.m., and camped for the night in the open near the woolshed. The men were roused for battle at 3.30 a.m., end plenty of serviceable " kopjes" were discovered and a considerable amount of rough country was in evidence to give both troopers and horses an opportunity of experiencing some sound practical work. The horses were then unsaddled and allowed to run in a paddock while the men cooked their second breakfast, Mr Chambers kindly presenting them with a sheep. Im. promptu sports were also arranged, and the signalling section was divided and posted at long distances on the hills, re. peating the messages to the satisfaction of the officer in command. A short church service was conducted by Captain A. H. Russell, after which he explained the different movements carried out in the morning attack, and invited discussion on the same. The horses were then brought in, and all marched down to the river, where there was deep water. The men stripped and mounted the horses bareback, being led into the river by Captain Russell and officers, and an enjoyable time was spent swimming the horse*! A pleasant spot was next found on tha river bank where the horses were picketed, while the men cooked dinner, each section forming itself into a littlj picnic party. After a lengthened stay for dinner Lieu* tenant Gordon moved off with four sections in the direction of home, which was sup« posed to represont the rearguard of a retreating army. Lieutenant Canning wa3 given command of the attacking party, which had to scout the hills alongside the Waiinarama road and the river bank, and during which some good work was done by all parties. Captain Russell officiated aa umpire throughout the manoeuvres, and the party returned to Hastings at 4.30 p.nij This was the first of series of field days, which should go a long way towards making the corps an efficient one. J STOPPED THAT COUGH and CURKI^^^ very bad cold by a single bottle of Pascall's Coueh Mixture.—Signed, w M'Donald, 1/6 and 2/6. Eccles Chemist, 3>«tmes and Napier—Ami. Ccre For Cholera Ixi axidi—Nbvek Kn'own To Fail. During last May an infant child of our neighbor was suffering from cholera infantum. The doctors had given up all hopes of recovery. I took a bottle of Chamberlain's Coiie, Cholera and Diarrhoea Remedy to the house, telling them I felt sure it would do good if used according to directions. In two days time the child had fully recovered. The child is now vigorous and hwalthy. I have recommended this remedy frequently and have never known it to fail.—Mrs. Cl'rti* Baker, Bookwultor, Qhio. Fee saio by J, W. tfak's, Ciiewwt. Hubtiuys,