LOCAL & GENERAL NEWS.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLIV, Issue 205, 5 September 1910, Page 4

LOCAL & GENERAL NEWS.

The Athenic) }'which arrived at Hobart from Lowion yesterday and is to resume her'-voyage to Wellington to-day landed''34 passengers for Australia, arid' is bringing on 417 to New Zealand. j

The Fire Brigade will hold a wet practice in Market Square to-night, commencing at 7.30 o'clock. The re-cently-erected tank at the gasworks will be tried, and so enable the firemen to gauge,,to what extent the pressure can be relied upon.

"That's sarcasm," remarked a member of the management committee of the Wellington Rugby Union at its last meeting when a- letter was read from the Marlborough Union thanking the .Wellington Union for securing the presence of a South Isjland selector at the match on Saturday week. ;;

It has been .reported that onSiaturday,ia■locomotive: on Brownlee's tramway a^t ; Blackball ran iaway' and plunged overj.the end of-thei wharf into the river.' It> is said' that 'the driver got down from tb©-i'cab of his engine; and probably owing to a leaky throttle-valve ; letting steam into the cylinder, the^ engine started off with, thte above result. ;

A Feilding telegram states that Edward Travis, who started playing the piano on Thursday morning at 5 o'clock, continued until 2.30 on Sunday morning^ thus playing 69£ hours, a world's record. During the performance be• jwas transferred, with the piano, to another hall a quarter of a mile away without removing his hands from the piano.

The Kaikoura Star says:—Mr Courtier, Government Orchard Instructor, has inspected several gardens in this district, and is not at all satisfied with' the way some of them are kept, there being practically no effort made to eradicate orchard pests. The orchardist has power to hale offenders before a court of law, so it may be as well to issue a word of warning to the neglectful owners of a fruit garden.

A telegram from Eltbam states that Messrs Dive, Duncan, Scott, and Anderson, M.P.s, with members of the Railway League and other local bodies, yesterday travelled over the route of the proposed ELbhamOpunafce railway. The visitors were impressed with the need of a railway through the district. Messrs Duncan, Scott, and Anderson have gone to-day to- inspect, the oil,wells, at New Hymoutih.,■;., returning ,tq t! , Wellington tomorirow.!, ~ ; r :.•''■ r;-v-.

The British Picture progranfne for Wednesday next comprises some unusual features. Scenes will be shown of the recent MarlboroughWellington football match. The second series of the King's funeral will be shown, including the last sad rites and the services at St. George s Chapel. A 2000 ft film of Gounod's "Faiist" is a triumph of cinematograph art, and a number of industrial, scenic, dramatic, and comic films will also be presented.

The first line of stock to be sent over the new section of railway from Flaxbourne was of rather an unusual description, and comprised over 100 wild goats straight from the back country. They were mustered off the Blue Mountain jun by Mr W. McRae, and are intended for shipment to the North-Island, where they are to be used for eating down the blackberry. Owing to a snowfall a considerable number were lost again after being mustered. .

The Town Hall has been engaged on TbuTSday iiigbtby th© Catholic Club, when their annual sooal and: euchre tournament will be held. Everything promises to be of the best. _ A strong ladies' committee will superintend the aupper arrangements; a competent orchestra is under engagement, and the- floor will receive special attention. The usual weakly euchre tournament will not bo held to-morrow night, but will be combined with the social on Thursday1 night. Valuable, trophies have been donated.

- After he hiad celebrated Mass at Sii Mary's ''Church yesterday morning, the' Rev. Father O'Sullivan. gaid that it gave him great pleasure to; be1 back amongst the Blenheim , parishioners. There had been some suggestion that he should go elsewhere oa the completion of his f second" novitiate, but in accordance with ai promise made to Father Holley by-tjbe- Ecclesiastical Supervisors that he Should not be without a third priest for more than six months, he had been appointed to the vacant office.

While bushfelling at Rakanui Gully, on Wednesday morning (says the Kaikoura Star), Mr Albert Gill met with, a nasty accident, his axe gliding off a partially rotten ; sapling,. with the result that it inflicted a deep^ gash just below the right kneecap. He and his. mates quickly improvised tourniquets and bound the leg, and after some difficulty the injured man was brought into town where he was attended to. The wound was a severe one, a boric and an artery being severed, and Gill lost a great quantity of blood.

.The. many iri&am-''pi-''mrs' A.'3o. Wilkins, Tuia Marina,, will learn of hier death, which occurred! at her ; home yesterday morning, with de©p'regret, and much sympathy will-be eijbended to her husband and nine childiren in their bereavement.* The-deceased1 had he&n. ailing for the last few weeks, but the end 6ame somewhat suddenJy.yes'tbrday. The late Mrs Wilkins, whose age' was 40 '.years, wajs the eldest daughter of the late Mr Joseph Law; ot 1 Tua Marina, and had spent the whole of her life in Marlborough^arid was greatly esteem&d by'"all those ,'T^itn whom she came iri contact

The Mayor, on the suggestion of Councillor Carr, telegraphed to the Minister for Railways asking him if, in view of the fact that the Department is having the Opawa combined railway and traffic bridge renewed, it would adopt the suggestion of the Council to widen the by 10ft so as to provide a way for traffic clear of the railway line. A similar telegram was also sent to the Member for the district, Mr J. Duncan. The Minister has replied that he will be pleased to go into this matter, and that he is.obtaining a report on the proposal. .• "...

Take Zyomlo Trokeys for your cough. They will stop it by soothing the.irritated membrane of the throat. Hoarseness is relieved and the; throat strengthened.

A great deal of, excitement was caused in town on Saturday evening through a horse attached _to a baker's cart bolticg down High Street from Springlands. It appears that the man in charge of the Cart and horse was away serving, a customer, when the animal took fright and "cleared out." It careered along High Street at a high rate of speed without mishap, until it turned the corner by the Marlborough Club. Here the cart overbalanced and capsized, the top being thrown against the Club fence. Two girls who were close by narrowly missed being struck by the cart-top. The trap was not dam- i aged much, and the horse did not meet with even as much as a scratch.

Considerable interest is being taken in the Wellington City Council by-

election, which takes place- next Thursday, to fill the two vacancies caused by the death of Mr J. J. Devine and the resignation of Mr T. Ballinger. Thirteen candidates are contesting the seats, namely: W. H. P. Barber, J. Godber, W. J. Thompson, V. Jensen, J. B. Speed, B. W. G. Coleridge, A. H. Fullford, H. H. Ravward, E. J. Carey, M. J. Reardon, ■;s'. G. Nathan, A. R. Hornblow,, and S. .J. Moran. If any candidate fails to poll one-eighth of the votes, ireceived by the second highest contestant he forfeits his deposit money (£3). ;

The Rev. H. Darwin 'Burton, the new vicar of St. Michael's Anglican Church, Christchurch, who has just arrived from England, in the course of .an interview denied that the general mission which is just makingl a) commencement in Auckland is a High Church mission. It was, he said, . a Church of England mission, the members of which embraced all shades of thought from High Church to the lowest of Low Church. With regard to the Mirfield monks, they comprised some of the most able men in England; who were doing a great deal of work in the cause of Christianity.. "They are certainly not Roman Catholics in disguises, concluded Mr Hut ton, amusedly:. '

We have received from the publishers, Messrs Whitoomtm ..., and Tombs, Ltd., a copy of ia, b^doK entitled "Maori wars of the Nineteenth Century," by Mr S. Percy Smith, F.R.G.S. The work describes the struggle of the northern against the southern Maori1 tribes fpxior to the colonisation fof''NeW«Z/eatend'ia- 1840. Mr 'Smith is eminently, fitted to write stch^a bookV -wrfrich i$ the restrlt of' a great' deal of patient labor- • in' the collection from old Maoris of records and narratives. 'It - contains, in addition, . many' stories of ancient native' customs 'and legends, and is a valuable addition to.^he liijerature of Old New Zealand. ;, '

Some time, ago it; was mentioned tnat^anVinqmry "\rasi ix> be Keld| by the Mai'lborough Education Board into a complaint made by Mr Sheenan, Chairman of the Grassmere School Committee, that the teacher of the school woultt not recbgilise him in any way or even answer his letters. The-inquiry was held in due " course, with • the result that Mr Sheehan was -unseated owing to the fact that: h& was not a resident of the Grassriiele: school district. The boundaries hav^e been altered,1 however, aM Mr Sheehan will be eligible for election1'• stt the next meeting of householders should he desire to contest aA seat;/' The lot of the female teachei" in the backblocks is a Hard enough one at any time, and members of School' Committees should remember, that fact and make matters as easy as possible for these pioneers.

Maggie Papakura, the well-known Rotorua guide, who had been on a visit to Sydney completing arrangements for the world's tour of her company of Maori Entertainers, has returned to Wellington: The party-, which comprises forty performers, all of:the Arawa tribe, twenty-two men and eighteen women, leave Auckland for Sydney on September 26th, and after visiting the principal centres, depart from Perth for London. The itinerary of the company includes the chief cities of the United Kingdom. Then the party will go across to the Continent, taking in Russia and China before their return to New Zealand.

Delicious' exemplification of the bliss of whizzed through, the principal streets of the city on Wednesday afternoon (states The ; Dominion). Tooting along the .thoroughfares went a powerful motorcar, conveying an unsuspicious-look-:ing couple—a man and a woman. There was an unusual drag and clatter immediately behind which caused people to turn their eyes in the dire.ction of the vehicle. The dragging, clattering equipment was an assortment of discarded footwear. To anyone who understands the language of the old boots, and knows its necessary inseparability from courtships and marriages, explanation was needless, but, by way of interpreting, a very large sign bearing the following inscription was appended to the car: —"We were only married this mornUntil the South Island Main Trunk Railway is completed cycling is the next "Best" way of travelling. If you want an up-to-date,cycle to do the journey procure one of "Best's." He has Beeston-Humbers, Raleighs, Premiers, genuine 8.5.A., Windsors and Unitys. The prices are right, ! and the cycles the "Best" there are. Repairs are carried out, in a workmanlike manner by skilled mechanics, one of whom comes from a large centre in the North Island. Every customer of "the Best shop" gets civility, ; ''Best" attention, and "Best" satisfaction.

The "dictograph." is the name of a handy house telephone apparatus of intense sensitiveness- A service has been fitted up in the Wellington Post and. Telegraph Department on the top floor of the General Post office. The instrument when spoken into is so sensitive _ that it readily catches and transmits to any open terminus ordinary conversation spoken in any part of the room, and to get the Best results when speaking directly at the instrument a tone lower than that used in ordinary conversation should be used. The receiver, which must be placed to the ear, is constructed to give the loudest effect, and the result is that a person ' with ordinarily good hearing needs to hold it a little away from the ear.

Mr Field, M.P., has been informecl by the Minister for Internal Affairs, with regard to the suggestion that ther power to register dogs be vested ia county and borough councils only* that this will receive consideration whenever the Act is Being amendedIt is not proposed to amend the DogsRegistration Act this session, and itis considered impracticable to carryr out the first proposal contained in th-e^ resolution passed by the Horowhenuai County Council, viz., that it be art offence to allow any dog to be a&large without wearing a registered collar and badge.

A human1 leg which indicates thorise and'fall of the barometer was referred toV?'in the Wellington SupremeCourt the other day by Dr Giesent when giving evidence in a case in theSupreme Court concerning a claim foe damages for alleged bodily harm (states The Post). In maintaining:: that a person may be thoroughly cured of an injury, though pain majf arise from it subsequently, he instanced the case of a man, who n^ suffered from a broken ,leg. The limbr he said, might be completely mended and useful, but six months afterrwards the sufferer would complaint that his leg was like a barometer — he knew when a southerly buster waffcoming. .

;The. Otago Rugby Union receive*at times, some strange; communications, says the ,otago Daily Times. At* last meeting ..a c 4etter .was- "received^ from a wejl-kpown , ex-representativef-foo^baUer who wished to draw the* union's attention to a "small mat-' te'r•■''.; It appeared, that the writeir of, the letter in a misguided momeirb' had lent his watch ,to a referee in afootball match. The writer furtheir stated that the referee held the* watch in his hand, _ and shook its> about so much that it stopped an<£ was, handed back in that condition. Hs> had cost ,6s 6d to repair the watch^ Thei 0>R,,F..U., declined all responsibility sin the matter. ■■""■•■. .

-The Ibhg-promised Edison electric? si^rage battery, which has been ex-. pelted" to revolutionise traction, na& advanced a stage, according to a letter sent from New York by Mr G. W~ Winstone, .carrier, of .Auckland, to Mr Chas. Bagleyj chairman sof tho> Mount Roskill Road Board. Mr Winstone states that there are two> cars running in New York on a-horse-tramline, "and so satisfactory are these that the Edison Company have received orders to build cars so* as to displace all the horse cars." It. is claimed that the weight has beem considerably ' reduced, and that the? new storagerbattery cars run from 75» to 150 miles on one charge.

A PATENT--A REWARD

: The granting of a patent is a country's ■ reward of originality aiuf perseverance. Patents may be ob->----tained in practically every country ins. the world. Fullest information will. be supplied by HENRY HUGHES r Patent Agent, 157 Featherston Street,, Wellington. A pamphlet "Advice to Inventors" will be posted free on application.