Lake County Press. PUBLISHED EVERY THURSDAY Arrowtown, July 17, 1919. LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Lake County Press, Issue 2794, 17 July 1919, Page 4

Lake County Press. PUBLISHED EVERY THURSDAY Arrowtown, July 17, 1919. LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The Cruet lha 4 . $ gnen thee guard, and to thyself be just.

Stewart Dawson’s have a ;new advt. on The Lake Connty balance sheet for year ended 31st March, 1919, appears in this issue. Special attention is directed to the advt. of Dawsons Limited, which will be found on page 1 of this issue. Young men of the district are advised to read Mr S. B. Pettersson’s advt. on page 4. It may possibly interest young ladies as well. Owing to Monday next being one of the days fixed for peace celebrations, the Arrow Public School will not open until Tuesday next (July 22). Rain set in on Saturday, and continued at intervals until Tuesday evening, when it cleared. Hard frost is now being experienced. Mr Forbes, secretary of the local Soldiers’ Reception Committee, acknowledges receipt of the following donation for the Medal Fund Mr W. J. Jenkins 10/-. An official intimation that Germany had ratified the Peace Treaty caused the blockade to be lifted. Trade will be renewed with Germany under license, with certain reservations. At the last meeting of the Ota jo Land Board the application for the transfer of half-interest in run 3408, Cardrona, 15,650 acres, from Mr David Kane to Mr Albert Kane, was left in the commissioner’s hands. The Acting Prime Minister has received a number of letters from women asking that as a peace bounty the next of kin of soldiers who lost their lives in the war should be granted a month’s free railway travel. The Minister says that he regretted that the request could not be granted. By the election of Mr John Reid to the position of Mayor, there is an extraordinary vacancy in the Arrow Borough Council. Nominations of candidates to fill the vacancy will be received by the returning officer (Mr T. J. Cotter) up to noon on Wednesday, 30th July. The election,, if any, will take place on Wednesday, 6th August. At Queenstown on Monday evening Rev. R. C. Hunter, who is leaving for the Home Country, was met by a representative number of parishioners and was presented with a substantial purse of sovereigns. The presentation was made by Mr John Salmond, who made reference to the pleasant relations existing between the congregation and Mr Hunter. Messrs John Cockburn, T. Houston, P. Reid, A. Simson, and W. Davidson also spoke, and Rev. Hunter suitably replied. Says a Levin paper : “ The land gamble is one of the loading topics in the district at present. The latest incident to give rise to comment occurred at Ibakura. A 100-acre farm there sold three weeks ago at £BO per acre. The new owner has already disposed of the property at £9O, and the third proprietor has put the farm on the market at £llO. It is stated that there have alreany been inquiries at his figure. A nother report states that a bnyer made £3,000 off a farm at Te Horo by selling it at an enhanced price before he had actually transferred it from the original owner.”

There is money in pig-rearing at present (according to the Courier). A very prime bacon pig hanging in a shop in Tapanui returned the farmer over £8 for about five months’ feeding. An indenting and importing firm adverise (or a “ young, live man of unlimited tnergy, as salesman ; must be sober and ereliable, and no poker player.” Hard to catch! It was a dear day at the Dannevirke Court recently (or motorists who had killed live stock while travelling. A dog cost a oar owner X3I 3s 3d, and a ram another defendant £ls 15s, apart from the cost of solicitors’ services. Mr T. Milton, manager of the dairy factory at Apiti, had bis motor oar destroyed in an unusual manner (says the Dominion). He was negotiating a hill when a back-fire caused the car to burst into flames, and in a few minutes the car was completely destroyed. The Glasgow correspondent of the Tidies of a recent data states that a great Scottish exodus to the dominions and America will commence directly the travelling restrictions have been removed. The shipping companies are overwhelmed with applications for passports. During the hearing of a “ habeas corpus” case in Chambers at Wellington the other day Sir Robert Stout, the Chief Justice, told a Scottish story. “It seems to me” said His Honour, “ the parties are fighting about nothing. It is like the old tale of the possession of a whitethorn bush, which was not worth sixpence, at the corner of two farms. As the result of litigation both farmers concerned lost their farms, and the white thorn bush went on growing.” In Anstralia to this day one can always find a knot of sportmen arguing the respective merits of the two great mares, Wakeful and Desert Gold. While the good deeds of the Maorilander are freely admitted, the admirers of Wakeful always clinch the arguments in favour of her by pointing out her great performance in the Melbourne Cup, in which she carried lOst and was only just defeated by Lord Cardigan, fist Blb. “ When do fruit trees begin to wear out ?” was a question asked by Mr Justice Hosking, in the Supreme Court at Nelson last week. The Riwaka resident replied that be knew of an orchard in his district 45 years old, which was bearing as well as ever it did. He believed some apple trees in the district were 60 years old. Peaches ran out in 10 or 12 years, bat pears were long livers. It is reported that the scarcity and high prices of woollen goods is due to New Zealand factories shipping their output Home. Considering that the factories are getting •the raw material so cheap from Government is another argument why all New Zealand wool should be sold locally next season instead of to the Home Government. New Zealand woollen factories are said to be making immense profits. Wool.has been sold at Home as high as 6s per lb, whilst N.Z. graziers get 15d. Some of the delegates attending the Farmers’ Conference at Hastings pretested that the farmers were not, as was generally supposed, largely responsible for the increased cost of living. Mr Hebenton, secretary to the Wairarapa Farmers’ Union, pointed out that it took six pounds of wool to make the material for a suit of clothes which cost five guineas before the war but could not now be obtained for less than eight guineas. The increased price that the farmers received for the wool was2s fid, certainly not more than 3s, and the remaining £3 was divided between the manufacturer of the tweed and the tailor. “ Everyone gets nervous the first time he is under fire, just exactly as most hunters get buck fever and forget to shoot the first time they see big game,” said a military officer recently, and added : “ During the war there were thousands of cases like that of the young recruit who, on the eve of his first engagement, was shaking like a leaf in a gale. He wasn’t frightened ;it was just a case of nerves, but the sergeant thonght he was in a fear. ’Jenkins,’ he said, ‘is it trembling ye are for your skin ?’ ’ No, no, sergeant,’ stammered the recruit, making a brave attempt to control his shaking limbs ; ’ I’m trembling for the Germans—they don’t know I'm here I’ ” According to Trentham Camp orders, arrangements are being made by the D.G.M.S. to provide facilities for inoculations against influenza of all officers and other ranks and civil employees in the Defence Department throughout the Dominion. Heads of Departments and officers commanding units will encourage all those under their command to take advantage of of these facilities, and to get inoculated at the earliest opportunity. The results of inoculation against influenza amongst New Zealand troops in the N.Z.E.F. overseas proved conclusively that it was very effective in preventing or minimising the disease. In the opinion of a local merchant (says the Christchurch correspondent of the Dunedin Times) the Government has made a remarkably good bargain with the Colonial Sugar Company considering the price of sugar in other parts of the world. The rise amounted to £ I 5s a ton, which was equivalent to an increase of lOd per 701b bag. Some time ago he had secured a copy of the British Board of Trade prices for sugar, which were from £35 to £37 per ton, as against the latest price of £23 15s in Auckland—equivalent to £25 7s per ton net delivered in store in Christchurch. The price in Melbourne was in the region of £3O. An increase in the retail price of £d per lb is anticipate^. A progress return of tlie Repatriation Department at June 20 shows the number of returned soldiers on the department’s register to be 53,824, including 27,159 who returned since the beginning of the year. Already 594 loans, totalling £131,465, to assist discharged soldiers to start in business have been approved. During the past month £53,000 was actually paid on behalf of soldiers in the way of furniture, tools, business, sustenance, training fees, subsidised wages, and assistance to apprentices. The total number of men being trained by the department is 819. The department secured during the month billets for 821 men who applied for such assistance. The high price and quality of much of the beer on sale—if there is such » thing as bad beer—has had the effect of resurrecting many almost forgotten substitutes. In Wales, for example, they have taken to making a brew of various field herbs, known locally as “snow beer." In East Africa “ saloop” has come into its own again. It is made from sassafras bark, and was once highly esteemed. Devon and Somerset specialise in “ white ale,” a slightly alcoholic decoction, which looks like milk, and which has a flavour distinctly reminiscent of real ale; while Yorkshire pins its faith to “ bee’s wine,” made from honey, a beverage known to our forefathers indifferently known as mead, metheglin, or hydromel. “ It is a serious accusation to say that a soldier is necessarily demoralised because of camp life,” states Brigadier-General MoGavin, Director-General of Medical Services, at the New Zealand Club luncheon at Wellington last week. Fundamentally, a man’s character is actually improved,and certainly he becomes more deeply religious, and learns to co-ordinate with his fellowmen so that they will all work together for a common ideal.” It was recognised that 2 per cent of the men in civil life were wasters and they were still just the same wasters when they became soldiers, and carried on in just the same manner as before. The fact that their actions received more publicity because they were in the army. The language used in the army was deplorable, he admitted, but in these days we did not regard that as quite such a serious matter as before. Adjectives from various countries were very readily adapted and freely used.

A narrow escape from a serious accident occurred one night last week in Gore (reports the Ensign). It appears that a young lady was walking along the footpath about 7 p,m., when she suddenly walked up against a horse which was sheltering on the path. The horse lashed out, and sent the young woman on her back in the slush and mud on the side of the street. Her raincoat was badly torn. It was owing to her proximity to the horse that she failed to receive the full force of the kick. The wife of a railway carter living at Compton, near Wolverhampton, recently gave birth to triplets* and the King’s bounty has been applied fori The mother, who with the babies is doing well, is nearly 41 years old. During the last 31 years she has given birth to 24 children, including twins six times and triplets 11 years ago, for whom the Boyal bounty was granted. Of 15 children living, the oldest son is in the Army, having served three years. Says “ Skirmisher ” in the Dunedin Evening Star : —" As there still appears to be some misapprehension with regard to the obligations of Territorials for service, I think it well to quote an extract from a letter from Headquarters, Wellington, in answer to a query :—“ The purport of the regulations in this connection is that men of Territorial age, having served overseas with the New Zealand Expeditionary Force, are to be transferred to the reserve of their respective Territorial unit. This regulation has no application to Territorials other than * those who have seen service abroad. Please ensure that this is made clear to all, and that those men of Territorial age who have not performed overseas service are made to comply with their Territorial obligations.” A cryptic announcement in the news columns of the Post (says the Wellington correspondent of the Dunedin Times) warns hotelkeepers to be careful lest more proceedings are taken under the anti-shouting law. Some months have elapsed since action was taken under this regulation, and the public and the publicans seem to have forgotten that there is such a law in the country. The legislation has never been enforced except for the fisrt few days after it came into force. It was then more or less a novelty, but very soon both the hotelkeeper and bis customers decided that they did not like it. The regulations are now completely scorned in Wellington, and offence would be taken on either side if a customer or an hotel servant attempted to observe the law. Probably the news item is a warning that the police feel that they must take action. “ Maoris and pakebas once made use of the front picket fence (of a Bay of Plenty office) on which to tether their horses,” states a correspondent in the last issue of the Eatipo, “consequently the footpath just outside the steps was in an awful mess. In and out along the top of the picket fence was run a naked copper wire, which was connected to a magneto, with the other end earthed. One man stood at the door to *say when’ and suggested to the horseman that he lift the wire, put the reins over the picket and replace the wire (thus preventing the horse shaking the reins off and escaping). In the act of raising the wire the circuit was completed, the man inside given the wink, and the horseman tethered his horse elsewhere afterwards. Maoris and pakehaa after being caught would hang round for hours to see some other man receive his cure.”