LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume XLII, Issue XLII, 4 January 1923, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

♦ I The rainfall in Wellington for the' year was only 29.23 inches, which is nearly 20 inches under the average. Only two months (March 6.81 in., and November 5.46 in.) were wet. Notwithstanding the dryness of the year, the total amount of sunshine snowed a slight decrease. Mails which left Auckland on Oct. 31, per Niagara', via Vancouver, arrived at London on Dec. 3; also mails which left Wellington on Nov. 15, per Maunganui, via San Francisco, arrived at London on Dec. 21. The vital statistics for Hawera for the month of December, together with j those of the corresponding month of j last year in parentheses, are as follows : Births 16 (27), deaths 4 (5), mar- j riages 3 (8). The figures for year i 1922, with those of 1921 in parentheses, ! are as follows: Births 310 (314), deaths j 68 (68), marriages 74 (96). Five boys from St. Mary's senior class under the care of Mr G. H. Buckeridge,, left Hawera this morning with the intention of taking a trip up the Waitotara river. They intend to paddle their canoes about 60 miles and visit the various Maori pas en route. Papatupu pa, which was one of the first strongholds of Christianity amongst the Maoris, will be an interesting place of call. An envelope bearing the old embossed 2s 3d. stamp of Natal thereon (printed in Pietermaritsburg in 1867) sold foi- £13 at a London auction room last month, writes the Post's London correspondent. The envelope was a gift to a mission church in New Zealand, and v^e proceeds, without deductions of commission, are being forwarded to the Rev. C. F. Askew. , j "New Zealand occupies the unique position of being practically the only country in the civilised world where the quality of the liquor is not tested in the public bars. The law provides for inspection, but you never see an inspector in our hotels.^ The small farmer is fined heavily if He is caught adulterating his milk; there is no such fine imposed on the man who sells adulterated or lo\v-2vade liquor. These conditions are brought about by the powerful monopoly." (Colonel Bell at Mangakahia). j "Upon the point as to whether export can be made depends the future of the pis-raising industry," declared* Mr W. J. Heney, at a recent meeting of the North Canterbury district of the Farmers' Union. Mr Heney said that he had conferred with a representative cf a meat freezing and exporting company, who had informed him that his concern favoured taking up the business. Moreover, Mr D. Jones chairman of the Meat Producers' Board' had told him that there was a good outside market for pigs. Mr H§ney suggested that branches of th.c district should take the matter no. Everything depended upon the farmers themselves. Unless there were export the industry would be. 'blown out," because the rate of production was greater than the rate of consunmtion. It was agreed to communicate with branches. "New Zealand is a cradle for the training of world leaders." said the Rev. H.. W. Davies, in an Address at Masterton. "Throughout the world, Zealanders are taking a leading part. There is a good atmosphere for tmming leaders, and the moral atmosphere, though not high enough, is higher than elsewhere." Late on Christmas afternoon an unfortunate accident befel an Invercargill lad named Russell McCallum. nine years | of age. His mother had taken a furni ishe<l house on the One Mile Road for the holidays, and the boy was playing about on a stretch of ground bordering on the beach almost opposite the house. Here he picked up7i detonator • and it is supposed that in it he placed a cracker to which he put a light. An explosion resulted whicn blew away the lad's first and second fingers and portion of the thumb of his left hand, with which he was holding the detonator. First aid was rendered by some passersby until medical attention was available. Later McCallum was conveyed to a private nursing home, where he is progressing as well as can be expected. Ihe only possible explanation, it seems i that can be given regarding the finding I of the detonator in the locality is that some months ago a tree was felled about that spot, and possibly this form of explosive may have beeii used for blasting. "We should take our games in ear*, i t ■£Uns an artic!e entitled "teport and Life," in the December issue of the ot. Andrew's Collegian. "There is something wrong with the boy who does not play games. But far too many take games too lightly, and are satisfied with playing carelessly and indifferently. Such players never improve, and fail to get the real benefit out of a game. Well played, football is an idea] 2 ame to turn out a man and not an effeminate dandy. Cricket—real cricket, that is—likewise demands nerve, fitness and sportsmanship. Genuine boxing is the severest of tests of manly courage and fitness. Tennis— not pat the ball—is one of the most exhausting of modern games. Swimming gymnastics, running and iumning, are all part of the road to robust end glorious manhood. "We cannot afford to shirk them. Even if we do not really enjoy them all. we must (as Dr Truby King insisted") play them as part of our training for life. We want manliness; and that means hard play." The publication also contains the feature* usually found in school literature, and is well printed and illustrated, beino- i n every respect well in line with previous numbers issued. At a meeting of the Newcastle (A.S.W.) Hospital Board a balancesheet of the Crystal Art Union*, promoted on behalf of the hospital by MiThomas W. Collman, of Casino, was received. In an accompanying letter, Mr. Collman stated that the art union was launched in December, 1921, and at first the sales were good, because of the advertising methods adopted. In April, when the sales were increasing and success seemed assured, they were called upon to withdraw all advertisements, and in addition the propaganda against art unions sealed the doom of the Crystal Art Union. The'balancesheet showed receipts of 17,171 tickets at 6s to be £5151 6s, and expenditure amounted to £4027 19s 4d. ' Prizes to the value of £285 had been distributed, and £815 was still to be paid out, leaving a balance for the hospital of £23 6s Bd. The opinion that the art union was far from satisfactory was expressed during the subsequent discussion by members of the board. Exception was taken to the fact that whereas the expenditure was over 80 per cent of the gross receipts, the promoter had assured thorn it would not amount to more than 20 per cent. It was decided to send a letter to the Attorney-General, pointing out that the committee was far from satisfied with the result of the art union, and asking him to give t_« matter the strictest investigation. Look at tnese ! A few oi the most interesting lines in stock: Zephyr Frocks, all colours and sizes, 19/6; Silk Jumpers from 32/6; Silk all colours, 3/11: black and white Fabric Gloves, 1/- pair: also landed a large assortment of Henderson Hats.—Mrs Outred's, Xif T». St., Hawera—the house for Smart 1 rocks ani Millinery.— Advt.

The Echo de Paris says that there is a great shortage of priests in France, due to a large extent to the losses of the war. Rheims, the newspaper says, needs 200 more members of the clergy. Only three ordinations took place in that city between 1914 and 1918. A district resident who was at the Dunedin wool sales the other day told a little anecdote at the Owaka'Shew that was illustrative of the unexpectedly high values realised at the sales m question. A runholder from the Lakes district, who had sent forward a large parcel of wool in the expectation of getting 12d alb, was astonished and delighted to secure 22d alb. A well-known cattle dealer of Tasmania (says the Melbourne Argus) has discovered a large vessel jambed between rocks about nine miles beyond the Pieman River, on the west coast. The wreck probably occurred 40 or 50 years ago. As far as can be ascertained, the wreck was not hitherto known of. The vessel had been covered with sand for years, but the course of the sand drift had changed, and 'he sea I had washed the covering and exposed the wreck. The identity of the vessel is unknown. , William Harris, of Honolulu, who is regarded as the fastest white swimmer , in the world over short distances, has just completed his tour of the North Island, and was swimming at Christ- , church Municipal Baths last evening. iHe will arrive in Wellington on Fri- | day, and leaves for Sydney the same day. He expects to return to Honolulu about the end of February. While in Hamilton he swam the 100 yards in 55 seconds, five seconds faster than the New Zealand record. The New Zealand championships take place at Timaru on January 27, and the Wellington team will be picked on Saturday. The death of an aged cat in Boston (U.S.A.) has resulted in an action in the courts relating to the disposal of £5000. In 1904 Miss Ellen Barnard died, and left her estate in trust for her 13 pets—seven cats, two dogs, two canaries, a parrot, and a cockatoo. On the death of all these cats, dogs and birds the residue of the estate was to go to the wife of the lawyer who drew up Miss Bernard's will. Mewsey, a cat, soie survivor of the rest, had recently died, and the eight nephews and nieces of the testatrix, who are cut off with £2 apiece, seek eoual shares in the £5000, contending 'that their aunt was of unsound mind and was unduly influenced by the lawyer and his wife. A new and painless cure for ranter, according to inventor. Dr Francis Carter Wood, has gripped the attention of the scientific world. Wearing heavy lead armour, three doctors demonstrated a new X-ray apparatus, built for the ptrdy of.the disease. The demonstration took place in the Crocker cancer research laboratory at Columbia University, and was given to start a nation wide campaign week, to call the attention of the public to the' treatment of cancer, a d'sease from which twenty thousands are said to die unnecessarily every year. Tens of thousands of small animals have been inoculated with the disease during the course of developing the new cure, which is. almost perfected, according to Dr Wood. The House of Lords was created to an interesting spectacle the other day, when the Prince of Wales, who outranks all tlie lords, smilingly disregarded yirecedence by waiving the rights to which he is entitled as heir to the throne. When the Prince arrived to take the oath as member of the new Parliament, he found a queue of some fifty noble lords lined up ahead of him. The «?lerk of the House immediately hurried to the Prince to conduct him to. the head of the line, but the scon of royalty shook his head and retained his place at the end of the line. There was near-consternation on the faces of some of the lords and several offered the Prin-e their1 places in the line, but he smilingly declined and waited his turn, which was long in coining.