LOCAL & GENERAL NEWS.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LXIX, Issue LXIX, 28 May 1915, Page 4

LOCAL & GENERAL NEWS.

I *■• , ■"• ,«' j The Ontario Department r ofj Agri-} culture has, tor the growing cob a potato .war orop^ by 46,000 ehilqxen in^24s rural scnoois of the provinces. The proceeds will be devoted to ft jp£tri6tic purpose, * lAs* hedges arfe things of beauty besides being things ot usefum-ws, tbe Wellington Education Boaid has decided that "live" fences should be grown where possible, as they would sa\e portion of the cost ot the oidinary fences, and the school boys could do- a great deal of the work entailed in planting them.

"There 'is no doubt," states a paragraph with reteience to led deer, in the Wellington Acclimatisation Society's annual report, "that many of the best heads are poached out of the stalking season, and that a steady traffic in inouhted heads goes on, but. owing to the many? difficulties, the society's rangier is. unable to obtain conclusive evidence for a prosecution."

Mrs Despard, the veteran suffragist, and sister of Sir John French, has opened the "Despard Arms" in London, a publichouse of a new kind. It is not a drinking house, but a house for the public, into which anyone, young or old, may go for refreshment and recreation Cheap and good food is served, entertainments will be given, and the management will be in the bands of those frequenting tbe house. Mrs Despard anticipates that similar publichouses will spring up all over England.

"One 'ft the things that we medical men should, be proud; of," said Dr Orchard at a farewell gathering of the Automobile Association to->Dr W. H. Simpson (says the Christchurch Press),! ?"is- thß,,:i^V.that!-iifr^^^ there are hot enough medical men in the hospitals of New. Zealand. It is a distinct credit-to-us that the hospital authorities are asking that no more medical men should go to tne war." In one sense this fact is to be deplored, but from the point of loyalty it reflects the greatest of credit upon the niedioa' riien.'* ... ;

A "Maori" .prohibition order was issued at the Auckland Police Court the other morning by Mr F. V. Frazer, S.M. This type of order differs from the ordinary order, in that it remains in operation indefinitely, and is cancelled only when the native whom it effects can satisfy a magistrate that he vhas reformed, and may once more be trusted with intoxicating liquors. . The order made on Saturday was possibly the first of its kind issued in Auckland/but country magistrates frequently issue them to check undue drinking amongst the natives.

A Christchurch resident who has been in Italy showed a representative of The Press,a rather interesting article that he brought from that country. It is a handkerchief on which is printed a map Of Italy- and containing information as to the population of the principal cities reproductions of the coats of arms of the cities possessing them, figures relative to the population of the chief cities and information regarding the railways of the country. These handkerchiefs are issued to every man in the Italian- ar.my' in order that he can make himself familiar with facts relating to his own country.

The Civil Service Journal states that not a few public servants have taken advantage of the fact that they are now allowed to seek election as members of city councils and other bodies. Among the last list of elected councillors, it states,, are quite a number of Service people. Mr F. J. Stewart (of the Magistrate's Court, Auckland) and Mr J. Heenan (Internal Affairs, Wellington), .who were elected to the Borough Councils of Birkenhead and Eastbourne respectively, are offered the congratulations of the Journal.

Horticulture is included among the industries which it is intended that the proposed Board of Trade and Industries should foster. Mr A. R. Sennett explained to the Central Chamber of Commerce in Wellington (says the Post) that New Zealand's climatic conditions were suitable for the growth of almost every variety of medicinal herb. In Germany and in Belgium also the cultivation of these herbs and their distillation had been an important industry. Dr. Chilton, the eminent. New Zealand scientist, had assured him that New Zealand could grow these herbs equally well.

Over 30,000 acres of land in Hawke's Bay are to be thrown open for selection in the near future by the Government. A couple of thousand acres at Porangahau will come into the market first, in about two months' time. Soon afterwards 26,000 acres adjoining the Tangoio settlement and on the route of the East Coast railway will be opened for selection, and still later 4000 acres of good grazing land at Tutira will be placed on the market. Surveyors are at present engaged in cutting up all unsold sections on the Mabia. and they will be re-offered, to the public at a later date.

The wife of a member of the 10th North Otago Company, Otago Infantry Battalion, has submitted to the Otago Daily Times letters she received from her husband, written by him in the last few days prior to the embarkation of the New Zealand forces from Egypt for the Dardanelles. She has done so because, as she says, these letters show the fine spirit of some of the married men who have gone to the front, leaving behind them wife and children and all they hold dear in order that they may fight for the honor of women and children. "We are all well and hearty," the writer of the letter says, "and quite ready for the fight, as the sooner we get into it and get it over, the sooner we will come home." There are frequent exhortations in the letters, also, to his wife and family to be brave during tbe period of anxiety and suspense they have to undergo. The soldier's wife expresses a hope that the young unmarried men in the Dominion will "buck up" and show the married men who have gone that they are not less high-spirited and courageous.

"I respectfully record my protest against that word 'gratitude,'" declared Mr A. M. Myers, M.P., at a gathering of members of the Overseas Club at Auckland on Monday night, referring to the word which both Mr Asquith and Mr Bonar Law had used in expressing the nation's appreciation of the services New Zealand had rendered in tbe war. "England owes New Zealand no gratitude," said Mr Myers. "The Mother Country's cause is our cau.se; we have a common inheritance of freedom. We have common principles to assert and common interests to maintain. We ai-e bound together by the closest ties of sympathy and affec tion. We woujd indeed be a craven people if we took all the privileges and protection which the Empire has afforded and shirked our responsibility in the time of peril. With the greatest respect, I object to that word 'gratitude'—it was our duty. While we appreciate the sentiment, we should prefer that ou>' action should be regarded as an obligation which we are proud to fulfil, rather than an act of grace which we are pleased to perform."

vencei o£^J»peatK»i«Boards ,to discL&e 'tife subject of the, Act of 1914, but the Wellingtotpßoard considers Itiat it is rather early to hold a confoienee ot I the kind, and has decided upon a postponement of the matter.

In a letter written aboard H.M.S. Iron Duke by Admiral Sir Johi Jellicoe to the Wellington branch $)f the Navy League, are the following words, which will be read with interest: — yYou ask for a short message to the juvenile adherents of the Wellington branch of the League In reply, I Would say that no message from me is needed by the youngsters in New Zealand. One- need only point to their fathers and brothers and say 'follow in their footsteps.' We are filled with admiration at their magnificent example of patriotism for the Mother Country."

When the list of requisites came before the Taranaki Education Board on Wednesday Mr K. Masters said he did not think* the Board was buying its supplies to the best advantage. As an instance, he referred to the large amount they spent on ironmongery. They were one of' the largest builders in ' Taranaki>. and she saw no reason why they should continue to buy nails by the pound and iron two or three saeets at a tinte. He considered that they should buy much larger quantities and store them. A building for this purpose could probably' be erected on tiie present section, and the foreman could easily take charge of it. The Finance Committee recommended that ah order be sent to England in order to secure requirements more economically.

That the Farmers' Union had no de- , sire to " bump up against any other I section of the community" was stated | by? the provincial president (Major D. H? liuck) at the annual conference in j Auckland (says the Star). Their aims, Ihe added, were truly to promote the welfare of every class, and more especially what was known as "the workers." They truthfully contended and believed , that the prosperity of the Dominion as a whole depended .upon the success of the man wpon,,the land, and the encoiiragehient for a greater portibh of the population to settle on the waste lands of the country, and to become producers of wealth rather than dependants upon those who do produce almost a^l tbe real wealth and income of the Dominion, who mainly support the commerce, trade, and manufactures lof all its inhabitants.

The number of informal votes cast at most elections is a matter for continual concern on the part of returning officers and others concerned with the perfection of electoral machinery; How to educate the public in the simple methods of the ballot is apparently a duty which can_ hardly be relegated to the teachers .in our schools (says the Auckland Star). Details of the voting for members of the new Council of Education indicate a surprising state of affairs. Out of 200 votes cast for the election of secondary and'technical male teachers, six votes 'were informal. Out of 147 cast for the election of a member to represent secondary and technical women teachers, 10 were informal. For the representation of the mall teachers, in the North Island there were only two candidates, yet out of 607 votes cast, 27 were useless. Still worse was the record of mistakes made by the wo^ien teachers of the North Island. They were asked to make a selection from two candidates. Out of 661 votes cast, 52 were declared informal.