LOCAL & GENERAL NEWS.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLIV, Issue 28, 4 February 1910, Page 4

LOCAL & GENERAL NEWS.

In view of the tour of inspection by Lord Kitchener, it lias been decided that the Boy Scouts will specialise in signalling, first aid^ and hut-building.

It was reported in "Wellington shipping circles on Tuesday that a quantity of kauri timber has come ashore at Ohiro Bay during the last day or two, and that it is possibly from the derelict of the barqnentine Rio Loge, which is believed to have been flooded iv Cook Strait several months ago.

A very heavy thunderstorm raged in the Herbertville coastal district on. Monday afternoon, accompanied by severe lightning (says the Dannevirke Advocate). A couple of valuable young draught horses belonging to Mr D G Speedy, of Pipi Bank" were killed by lightning. A heavy rail or rain was also experienced.

The Minister for Agriculture has arranged for Mr'Hallam. the Nelson Inspector of orchards, to visit Tasmania and gain information, in regard to the export of apples, with a view to the Nelson districts despatching between 4000 and £000 cases of apples to London, and more if possible subsidised by the Government to the extent of Id per pound, direct shipment.

At a meeting in Masterton- of the committee appointed by the MastertoJ* yhamber of Commerce, it was decided to draw up a prospectus for a company to prospect the Tararua ranges west of the town for gold. Satisfactory prospects have already been made, and those interested are satisfied that gold is present in payable quantities. y

The Wairau Road Board decided this morning to hold anotfier poll of the ratepayers upon the proposal to raise a loan of £2700 for different works throughout its district. The chairman said he was quite satisfied that the poll would be carried, as at the last poll the proposal was lost by only four votes, and only half the ratepayers recorded their votes.

Remnants at F. W. Smith and bo. s Sale.—Dress material, muslin print, damask, cretonne, embroidery insertion, lace and ribbon, at half! price. ' * "All seats free" in Anglican churches finds a powerful advocate m the Rev. H. S. Woollcombe. The pew rent was not popular at Home. ?r« c al f meetin S in Welling! ten on Saturday, and he found that it existed in New Zealand. He had a sturdy sympathiser in Bishop Nehgan, of Auckland, who stated tH hfri'^fi? 13-™1 ™s *St onethird of the seats m churches should ferf^TVW SUch seats shouMbe churchfs °Ver the Mvid«al H^ll mS be!"^ oi\ lted out tefore that statted, but at the present time the cSabVV^ J- mich «*«tuatod! Constable Steere is away on a fiveweeks' honeymoon tour, and no provision has been made to fill his £ This leaves the town very badly protected as regards police supervision although there are plenty of men available m Wellington. The author" ties at headquarters cannot be aware ot the situation, or else a relief would nave been sent over ere this

n xy S u- /? uffer from Rheumatism, bout, bciatica, or Lumbago, you can RPwm lrr? btt in relief> A bottle of KJ±Ji,UMO, the one remedy for these uric acid diseases, has cured many a sutterer. Remedies claiming to cure nearly every disease will not give you relief. RHEUMO cures because it removes the cause. Sold at all chemists and stores, 2s 6d a U d 4s Gd per bottle. 2

What is claimed to be an improvement on the rafts carried by steamers at present has been designed by Mr R. G. Palmer, of Blenheim, who intends to protect his ideas by obtaining patent rights. In appearance the raft is not unlike the present model, but on going into the.de. sign carefully a great difference is detected. The outer air chambers are encased in wood, and instead of having only one along each side there ar« several. This gives greater safety to the raft, inasmuch as if one chamber becomes punctured the others will keep it afloat. The floor is flexible, which allows of the rart's being folded up, thus occupying but little space on a vessel's deck. Among other improvements the raft is fitted with life-lines, water and biscuit lockers, mast and oars, and a canvas chute for transferring passengers from ship to raft. It would be interesting to note the result of trials of the invention in a heavy sea.

Excluding Maoris, the population of New Zealand increased by 22,281, or at the rate of 2.32 per cent, during last year. To this increase the excess of births over deaths contributed 17,----562, and the excess of arrivals over departures 4719. The number of marriages, excluding Maoris, in 1909 is estimated at 8181, againstJß339 in 1908. The estimated population at 31st December, exclusive of Maoris, was 982,923. The Maori population at the census of 1906 was 47,731, and the population of the Cook Islands is 12,340; the total is thus 1,042,994. Chinese are included in the above. The number in New Zealand on December 31st, 1909, was estimated at 2,824, of whom 67 were females.

Filled with confidence in his ability to manage a sailing punt, a young man inveigled two trusting friends to accompany him for a sail at Sumner one day last week. All went well until the centre-board touched the bottom and the boat capsized. The captain forgot all the traditions about sticking to his ship and struck out boldly for New Brighton, while the passengers clung tenaciously to the bottom of the punt. However, the skipper had not swum far before he found that his leg was seriously entangled with a rope, and swam back and resumed command. In stern, albeit hasty tones, he ordered his passengers off the boat "before it sinks, you idiots." The Sumner pilot quickly launched a boat, and rowed to the rescue, ultimately towing the punt back to safety. When the captain^ was reproachfully addressed, "I thought you said you could sail a boat!" he replied, with much asperity, "Well, so I thought. How the dickens was Ito know ? I'd never tried before."

The Pamerston labour office was, says The Dominion, very badly taken in a little while, ago. It may not be generally known that, in deserving cases, where men are desirous of going to other places in search of, work, they are supplied with railway passes free. Recently a poor applicant, totally blind, found his way to the office, and asked for a ticket to carry him to Wellington, where a basketmaker—he gave the name and address—had promised him work. The applicant appeared to be in such sorry straits, and his bona fides seemed so genuine, that the local inspector ?.iot only gave him the'ticket, but gave him other assistance, and sent his clerk to help him down the stairs and put him in the right way to find the railway Then the matter, as is done in dvie course, was reported to Wellington, and the officials there made inquiries, only to find that there was no such basketmaker and no such address, and that the man was not blind at all. The local agent says it was a superb bit of acting, but all the same "blind" men had better keep away from his office in future.

F. W. Smith and Co.'s Sale Bar-gains.—Double-width dress goods, lOd yard; blouse lengths, Is each; gloves, 6d pair; white underskirts, 2s 6d each; bkmses. 2s 6d each. * An unusual case was heard by the Justices at Waimate on Thursday last (reports the Advertiser), when W. Bannernian (teacher of the Waihaorunga School) was charged with kicking William Black (chairman of the School Committee) on the leg. The complainant's statement was that on December 16 preparations were being made for a school concert, and he and some others were attempting to remove from a fence «to' the school a platform to be used as a stage. De-

An unusual case was heard by the Justices at Waimate on Thursday last (reports the Advertiser), when W. Bannernian (teacher of the Waihaorunga School) was charged with kicking William Black (chairman of the School Committee) on the leg. The complainant's statement was that on December 16 preparations were being made for a school concert, and he and some others were attempting to remove from a fence «to' the school a platform to be used as a stage. Defendant came out of his house and protested, declaring that the platform was his own property, and, during the altercation which followed, kicked complainant on the leg, which was still painful. The defendant (who took the Scottish form of oath) said he had been asked to get up items with the scholars for a concert. He agreed. Some 24 hours before the event he was told there was also to be a dance. This he objected to, and was supported in his objection by the Board. The hoarding had been given to him by Mr Dowthwaite. He remonstrated with Mr Black, who failed to desist. Peter McAllister and the other man desisted. In scuffling with the boards they pushed against one another and he might have given Mr Black a kick. He had no intention whatever of kicking. It was -a mere accident of the scuffle. He objected to its being called a kick. The Bench, alter retiring, regretted that the case had come into court: it might have been settled otherwise. Defendant was fined £2, and costs (£1 17s). Half the -fine went to the complainant.

A third crew is now to be sent to Westport for the Norwegian barque Odd, which has been held up for several weeks owing to a deadlock between the master and the men, on the ground that the former did not observe the dietary regulations in the ship s articles. The men who arrived t«>m Sydney last week have refused a «V an? c NonveSian Consul (Mr A. W. .Newton) has now arranged to secure the crew of the Norwegian barque Imacos, which was recently wrecked at the Tonga Islands. They arrived at Auckland last Wednesday by the Tofua.

Mi Justice vJhapman would seem to Have a profound respect for the acumen of "the temperance expert^ hT aWptr "Cnbe-f him' In Chambers m Wellington it was submitted by m bulk for a, hotel was no index to the quantity retailed. "Don't "you it out? his Honor asked. "I have no doubt a temperance expert would S Thl -le added >;if™m **»* i J,™. » r cllsc°veries in the

hy be a weak woman! ? Why m-ag out a. weary existence wlie.ii Steams' Wine of Cod Liver Extract possesses the qualities to replace wetness with strength, and will make of y GU a , strong, liealthv woman ?

Under the will of the late Mr R, tenodgrass, of Nelson, a number of local institutions benefit, the full list being as follows :-St. John's Methooist Church (trust funds), Suter Art Society, Nelson Aid Society, the poor of the city ot Nelson, St. Andrew's £st eSf !^ n'\ Bi Sh° P of Ne™on! £2o sack; Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, Christ ChurcW parish AIL Saints" parish, St. Jota§ ■ Clerk for distribution. Those to the Bishop of Nelson. Christ Church, an! All bamts' are to be devoted to Dio! cesan objects, and the legacy of £%> to St. John's Methodist Church will be distributed at the discretion of th* Minister of that church. *

i,o? helt has ins $ been landed in BleniV 17 It test idea in cycles The machine, a 1910 model ■\f n P- dumber, was imported by nl ™ S Wmtringham and teugarde^ ? f Blenheim Garage, to order of a fitted li$ mT ent > <?* machi*« >* dav le+S; hill|- f Wei linSt<>n on Smw Rev' A W 1 h°P^ f Waia Pu (RigW ftev. A. W.- Avenll) spoke in a strikLook at the tendency thronghontthe world to relax the binding nature ol facUiS P T ia, ge br d-the bincSni lacUities for divorce. Men and a'°SoiS bein^ e-ncouraged to makea thoughtless choice— encouraged totreat lightly a matter of the most vital importance, not only to met* and empires-by offering to them a' 3°f remed? for suffering occas^ loned hy a wrong choice. We arevery short-sighted as a rule in judging of these matters, and politician* are sometimes only an echo of those who make the most noise. If divorce laws relieve a small amount of suffering they increase suffering tenfold perhaps a hundredfold. In ma n^ cases they are the incentive to sin' and consequent suffering: they are* certainly the incentive to. the degra-i datum of the sacred duty of choice. and they are certainly teaching tha£ duty is all very well as long as il is pleasant, but as soon as sufferihar comes and duty becomes hard, thea nmg duty and conscience to the winds and escape suffering at all costs* iney are certainly lowering the standard of morals in the world "