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Mataura Ensign, 15 May 1912, Page 4

Tito turnip crops in the Tuturau district are looking well and are equal to anything that can be seen in any part of the district so that the farmers there should have ample feed for wintering stock. The cost of raising sheep in New Zealand lias been worked out at 6s Id per head per annum. Dividing this between meat and wool the cost of raising one pound ojf meat is given as 2.28 d, and of one pound of wool 6.26 d. The Wellington correspondent of the 'Lyttelton Times' telegraphs: One of tho most interesting political portents in an eventful period is a change in the control of tho '?Vew Zealand Times.' I understand that this well-known morning paper, so long identified with the Ministerial side of polities, is about to 001110 under the direction of the United Labor Party with Professor W. T. Mills as one of the active controlling heads. Mr Frank Hilliker defends the allround system of play and the percentage system of scoring in deciding the Is©\v Zealand draughts championship. He points out that on a, population basis the New Zealand tournament lias far more competitors than any country in the world, that the prizes in number and value exceed any other, and that to other systems greater objections may be taken, such as balloting out players after 12 games, as in Scotland. When anything out of the ordinary takes place it is curious how very few people can fix time. For instance, at an inquest at Auckland the other day several witnesses stated that an accident occurred at 2.30 p.m., while another was equally positive it was 1.40 p.m. A female witness, however, settled tho matter, to the amusement of the court, by remarking, "It must have been halfpast two, because I was on my way to I make a call, and I should not dream of calling upon anybody earlier." j The Hamilton School Committee has passed the following resolution: "The] committee feels it a duty to approach :he Minister for Education asking that a Commission of teachers, business men and others be sot up to fully inquire into the present system, and if possible! to make alterations that would give j better grounding in the most important' subjects, liberal treatment of teachers, 1 assure committees reasonable powers and finance, and secure for the Boards men deeply interested in education." I A returned New Zealander says he never saw any display of New Zealand products or a stand containing exhibits from the Dominion at any show he attended in the Old Country. He had several talks with young men who were thinking about leaving the Old Country, \ and they seemed to know all about Canada, but nothing about New Zea> j land, except in the latter country one' could get nothing but leasehold land, and that was no good to them—they wanted freehold. Says the Sydney 'Sun': The leader of the Palace orchestra will probably object to a repetition of an unrehearsed incident in the last night of "Bonnie Mary." In the bedroom scene the hero and the villain struggle for possession of a revolver, which in the usual course of events tho hero see fires. On the night in question, however, during the scuffle the revolver flew over the footlights, bumped the forehead of the conductor, and hit a member of the audience. Few people noticed the incident until the gentleman wha had caught the flying weapon walked down to the stage and threw it back, whereupon the hero, Guy Hastings, confounded the villain amidst j great enthusiasm. One of the members of the Peace Council deputation that waited on Hon. A. M. Myers at Christchurch to protest against clauses in the Defence Act said that the Government had violated his home by sending two of his sons to prison. New Zealand was in the position of a conquered nation. King George sent his Governor to the Dominion, and the people bad' to pay him a salary of £7OOO a year. King George was grandson of Queen Victoria; the German Emperor was also a grandson of Queen Victoria, and it mattered little t-o him which of these gentlemen nominated the Governor, seeing that the New' Zealand taxpayer had to find the salary. The Minister: "Then you would be equally satisfied if you were ruled by Germany?" Mr Cooke: "Yes; if I had to pay £7OOO for the Governor's salary and two millions for an occasional Dreadnought, what matter is it if I owe allegiance to one grandson of Queen Victoria or another, so long as I am subject to him?" Ah Chong, all smiles, presented Jiimself at the Feilding Court to answer a charge of keeping a grocery shop open on Wednesday afternoon. Sergeant Bowden explained that the defendant had two adjoining shops in Manchester; street. One was stocked with groceries, \ and the other with fruit. The front ; door of the grocery shop was closed on { Wednesday afternoon, but there was an open doorway between the two shops. The Chinamen had been told repeatedly to close up this gap, but, though promising to do so, had never done it. The defendant, on being asked what he had to say (reports the 'Star'), treated the matter as a huge joke. He laughed heartily when the magistrate told him be would have to i close up the gap, laughed still more! when he was ordered to pay a fine of j £1 and 7s costs, and was convulsed' j with merriment when he was informed the next would be a heavier one. Toss- j ing his cap carelessly oil his head, he ! bade the court "good-day," and left apparently the man in the world.

The dairying season is drawing to a close, and notwithstanding the rain, has been a most successful one. The Tuturau Factory is now only taking milk on three days a week, receiving about 700 gallons. "

Most of the farmers in the Tuturau district have got their crops threshed or in the stack. Those who have threshed are reported to have obtained good' returns and the samples are said to be very satisfactory. Mr A. Dickie has part of a 14-acre crop to cut yet bnt a continuance of the present weather should soon see it in the stack.

Replying to the toast of "Local Industry" at a social at Mataura last night, Mr John Hamilton, manager of the local freezing works, stated that when lie came to Mataura 19 years ago about 250 sheep per day were slaughtered at the old works. To-day they put through an average of about 1700 and if occasion arose the works were capable of handling 3000 carcases a dav.

Pabbit-trappir.g for export purposes is in full swing just now in Central Otago, and despite the fact that rabbits are fairly numerous at oresent the price has been increased to od ner pair Some remarkably good cheques*(according to tho Dunstan Times') are being made by local trappers—one or two averaging as much as £2 ner daywhile it is said that a man and his two boys mad'e over £6 for a day's work

Cablegrams published in Australian newspapers sty to that tho nianyjjjor of ;i London music-hall, realising what a st<u attraction the chairman of the Senatorial Committee of Inquiry into the loss of the Titanic would be,'cabled to that gentleman on the subject. The was in tlio form of an iiivitation to Senator Smith to visit London and deliver a lecture or scries of lectures on "Navigation, and th<> Safety ol Liners at Sea- ' 'I be seriousness with which the offer was treated was evidently greater than that with which it was made, for the gentleman who has made himself so conspicuous in the Titanic inquiry replied stating that acceptance of the offer would be inconsistent with his position as a Senator. It was, in fact, impossible for him to comply with the request.

At the last meeting of the Sawyers' Bay League of Service the chairman (Mr Forbes) gave an address on "Enemies." Ho said there was a good deal of foolish, and indeed wicked, talk indulged in in regard to this subject by people who ought to know better. He strongly deprecated the suspicion and jealousy as to other nations which some people seemed to take a delight in promoting. If they did not wish to attack other nations, why imagine that the people of these nations were any worse than themselves? The fact was that they had only one real enemy to fear, and that was themselves. Each individual had to fight constantly against his passions and desires, and that was the only kind of fighting they should think of or suggest to others.

j The Irish language is said to be dying out, but a witness at the Magistrate's | Court at Christcliurch the other day j proved that in some parts of Ireland it j is still flourishing. The witness got into the box, but was unable to give any I but the most fragmentary evidence owing to his limited acquaintance with English. On being questioned he burst into a voluble chorus of musical Irish, which was full of vowels and sounded . something like Italian. The magistrate addressed a police officer, a compatriot of the witness, and asked him to inter- , pret, hut the officer, although fairly | well acquainted with the tongue, found ) himself unable to follow the witnesses' idiomatic phrases. Speaking about the matter afterwards, the officer said that while, in some parts of Ireland tho Erse tongue was as extinct as the dodo, in others, notably in parts of Kerry, it was the only language spoken. In his native town, he said, the people on one side of the river spoke nothing but Irish, but on the other side English was tho staple tongue —a curious illustration of the disinclination of the older peasantry to venture far afield. Mr J. Grupen, an Onehunga fisherman, says he has often been surprised with the contents of his fishing nets after drawing them, but he got the surprise of his life the other day (says the Auckland 'Star'), when he landed a well-conditioned stag. Mr Grupen iliad placed liis fishing net on what is known as the middle bank in the Manukau Harbor, between the north channel, traversed by coastal steamers, and tho south channel, used by the Waiuku steamer. The entrance into j the channels is at the Horn, travelling from Onehunga. The net contained a stag with antlers quite three feet long. It had the appearance of having just died when caught, as its flesh was quite sweet and fresh. How tho animal got into the harbor is a mystorv, and also where it came from. It may have been chased from the Waitakcrei ranges and fallen over a cliff into the Manukau Harbor. Tho middle bank is always bare for miles at low water, and perhaps the animal got stranded there l and was gradually forced on to the highest point of the bank by the flood tide upti! it got entangled in the net and drowned. Farm for sale. Post—Pinc-nez. General wanted. Wan ted—Carpenters. Furnished rooms to let. To let—l-roomed house. Homo Mission, Methodist Church, tonight. Trespassers not allowed on Mairairua Estate. Try Burrows Bros, for fruit and forest tn>es. Nurses wanted for Scad iff Mental Hospital. Special bargains at McGruer, Taylor and Co.'s. Smart .footwear for ladies at D. Newman's. All kinds and qualities of gloves at W. Lewis and Co.'s. i Great stocktaking sale new in full swing at Farmers' Co-op. Fred O'Neill, cordial manufacturer, Invercargill and Gore, inserts a notice. Wright, Stephenson and Co. hold

important «alo of and horses at Invorrargill on May 22. i To those about to be engaged or rnnr- ' Ti'fd: Read Baker's aflrcrtisoment; it will interest you: is the man yon should visrit. For Children's Hacking Cough at night Woods' Great Peppermint Cure, 1/6, . 2/6. I