LOCAL & GENERAL NEWS.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLIV, Issue 222, 26 September 1910, Page 4

LOCAL & GENERAL NEWS.

Bunting was flown from all the principal local business premises, and also the Government Buildings, today in honor of Dominion Day.

At the Town Hall to-night Mr T. E. Taylor, M.P. for Christchurch North, will deliver an address, the subject being, "What Democracy Means." His Worship the Mayor will preside.

Messrs Griffiths and Son sold on Saturday the privileges in connection with the forthcoming meeting of the Marlborough Racing Club. The inside publican's booth was bought by Mr R. J. Paul for £40, the outside booth by Mr J. Bacon for £12, horse yards by Mr Anderson for £2, and the refreshment booth by Scott and Co. for £2.

A correspondent writes to the Editor as follows: — "What is Democracy? This will be the allabsorbing topic to-night, when the question will be answered by Mr T. E. Taylor, M.P. ' C-arlyle "-answered it long ago, as follows: ' Democracy, or universal counting of heads, means universal solution into slush and drownage of all interests, human and Divine.' " ,

An Auckland telegram states that a young man named Thos. Duffy was charged on Saturday with obtaining valuable consideration for the goodwill of a business by falsely representing certain promissory notes as genuine. He alleged that he bought the goodwill of a business in Wellington for £140, paying half in cash and half in promissory notes. He then sold out to another purchaser. He was remanded to Wellington.

The British Pictures are to-night at Marlboroughtown with last week s double programme. This week there are a lot of unique films, sensational, pathetic, comic, dramatic, industrial, and scenic, including another ot the inimitable Foolshead screamers, lhe star picture is a story of the frontier, in which an Indian saves a kidnapped child and returns it to its mother. The change of programme will be shown on Wednesday evening, and the synopsis will be given to-morrow.

The social flield at Tua Marina under the auspices of the Aoatea Hockey Club on Friday evening proved a great, success. About fifty couples occupied the floor, which was in its usual splendid order. The music was supplied by Miss Horgan, and dancing was kept up until the early hours. The best thanks of the club are due to the president (Mr Redwood) and the willing band of workers who so kindly assisted with the supper arrangements and the decorating of the hall. The duties of M.C. were carried out by Messrs Horgan and Gardiner.

Mr J. R. Wallace, of Kaikoiira, topped the Addirigton market on Wednesday for both fat sheep and cattle (states the Star). The line of sheep he took down by; the Cygnet on Sunday ranged from 25s to 28s, and two fat steers brought £15 2s 6d and £17 10s. The latter price was for the bullock .with which Mr .T. Boyd was successful at the last Kaikoura Show. ' .

Mr Maughan Barriett's scheme for the establishment' of ■ a municipal orchestra/has been ratified by the Finance Cbmmitfee of the Wellington City 'Council. Before the': idea' is filially adopted a full meeting of the •Council''will-be' asked to consent. The1 guarantee is now over £400, so that the Council is considered to be sufficiently guarded against probable loss. Probably two, or three concerts will be given before Christmas.

Last evening it was proposed by the Hibernian Band to give a promenade concert in Seymour Square, but the lamps were in bad order, although the kindly assistance of Mr Can* was utilised in the endeavor to put them right. The band thereupon adjourned to the rotunda in Market Place. There was hot much difference in the light there, and the Salvation Army torches were requisitioned, and gladly lent, and a programme of good music was given. The band has greatly improved lately j and apparently has given more time to practice. The concert was greatly appreciated; ;

Zymole Trokeys are ]ust" the thing for hoarseness. They clealr the throat amd soothe the/•irritated inembrame. Absolutely harmless. ,

A somewhat startling incident occurred at the crossing near the Master ton railway station the other evening. A train: of empty trucks was standing across the road, and had been signalled to return to the ■ station when the driver noticed a motorcar coming towards the train,! and, fearing consequences if the tram was in ' motion, remained stationary. The motor-car, which was travelling at a good speed, then dashed into the train. The occupants were thrown out, and had a miraculous escape from serious injury. The motor-car was seriously damaged.

A petition bearing the signatures of 55 Chinese laundrymen residing in Wellington was presented to the House of Representatives on Thursday by Mr Arnold, protesting against the provisions in the Factories Act Amendment.Bill limiting the hours of labor to 8f daily. The petitioners also, point out that it is almost an impossibility for them to keep a wages and overtime book in, English, as nearly all of them came to New Zealand before the passing of the Immigration Restriction Act, 1908. The petitioners ask for an amendment in the Bill so as to permit laundrymen to work at their trade at least 54 hours a week, and to allow washing to be delivered up to 10 p.m. on Saturdays, and up to 9 p.m. on other days; also to allow the wages and overtime book to be kept in the Chinese language. The petition was referred to the Labor Bills Committee.

The Minister for Defence is being asked by Mr F. M. B. Fisher, M.P., "whether he has noted the fact that^ owing to the supreme efficiency of the defence forces of Great Britain, the Imperial Government is unable to find useful employment for so able and distinguished' an officer as FieldMarshall Lord Kitchener," and if he (the Defence Minister) will "consider the advisability of consulting with the Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Australia with a view to securing the services of the FieldMarshal as Commandant of the Defence Forces of Australasia."

Statistics in last week's Gazette show that the estimated acreage under wheat cultivation is 311,000, and the yield per acre, 28.24, a total of 8,783,098 bushels. In oats, 377,000 acres are estimated to yield 35.88 bushels to the acre, or a total of 13,----526,830 bushels are under cultivation. In barley, the estimated yield from 41,500 acres is 1,227,757 bushels; ryegrass (56,550 acres), 1,547,912; cocksfoot (29,500 acres), 5,185,3101b.; potatoes'(3o,soo acres), 192,484 tons.

The criticisms that have been passed upon the Hon. Dr Fintsiay s scheme for the utilisation of prison labor in respect to fruitgrowing, have not changed the opinion of the Minister for Justice in regard to the usefulness and expediency of the proposal. "On the contrary," said Dr Findlay, in replying to a reporter's inquiry on the subject in Auckland the other evening, "I have increased reasons for believing that the scheme would prove of great benefit in regard both to the promotion of settlement and the cheapening of fruit to tfte class to whom it is now almost an unknown luxury. There seems, however, to be some misapprehension as to the means by which the scheme can be carried into operation. So far as my Department is concerned, no legislation is required further than that which already exists. Probably, however, some further* legislation will be required to enable the Land Settlement Department to proceed along the lines suggested, but the Justice Department isj of course, already in a position to supply the necessary prison labor." In reply to a question as to what steps the Government were likely to take in the matter, Dr Findlay stated that the matter had not yet come before tEe Cabinet. ■■'•■-. ■~-■••

Three persons were charged at the Christchurch Magistrate's Court on Tuesday (says the Star) with offences arising out of the sale of liquor to a boy under thirteen years of age, who had been sent by his father to buy, sixpennyworth of beers .In commenting on the case, the Magistrate, Mr -H.'vW. Bishop, said that the law regarded with great disfavor the introduction of children to hotel bars,, and/he could .see no excuse for it. -A mail who had the personal interest of children at heart would never dream of sending them into an hotel; It was the duty of the licensee to satisfy himself i-egarding the age of all'young people who asked to be ■supplied with liquor, ho matter what their apparent age was. If he had sunything to do with the statute, he would certainly make the prohibited age a, good deal higher. There was a distinct onus oast upon people who supplied, boys of any age. They were under no; obligation to supply children^ and he could not understand why a hotelkeeper should run they risk of prosecution by selling a .few pence worth of liquor to a boy. The licensee should refuse to serve such young' people, and- should send them out of the house.

As the art of. flying develops in England, it has become necessary to have, certain rules of the air (to correspond with rules of the road for vehicles) so as to ensure that when two or, mre machines are travelling 'the same course there shall be no collisions. Such a rule has been found necessary at the big-aviation meet- 1 ings, as otherwise an aeroplane sailing along in a steady breeze might lose that pressure by another machine ''taking the wind out of its sails,"- so to. speak. Mr J. B. Clarkson, who officiated at the Wolverhampton aviation meeting in July, brought back to Wellington a copy of the rules for the conduct of the meeting, I which embodies the one now generally adopted by fliers. This is as follows:—"A competitor shall only pass another competitor on the outside, and on no consideration whatever shall the faster-travelling machine be allowed to pass either directly above or below another machine, but in every case a space of at least 75 feet, shall' be left . between the two machines." A penalty of not more than £20 is attached to a breach of the rule. The difficulty, one would imagine, would be in an overhauling flier being able to judge at a height of a few/hundred feet what 75ft. of j air space would be. I

"What is Labor?" asked the teacher. Said the school girl, smart and bright : "Tt is Labor to be coughing, As some people do, all night!" "What, is Capital?" he asked her, After a brief interval. "Woods' Great Peppermint Cure!" she answered. "Mother says that's Capital 1"

Few boys (says the London correspondent of the New Zealand Herald) can boast of a career so varied and adventurous as that of a New Zealand Boy Scout, aged 18, who recently called at the Young Men's Christian Association in Russell Square. He has played many roles S3 nee he left school at the age of 13 and became an errand boy to a chemist. Getting tired of the shop, he went to work for a picture-frame maker, whom he quitted after a time to be a lift-boy. He followed this up by working in a coal mine. He left this occupation as the combined result of an accident and the claims of scarlet fever, and entered hospital. On his discharge he decided to travel, and he shipped as steward on a local trading ship, but this not suiting he became a hop and fruit picker. Once more the desire to travel seized him, and he set off for New Zealand, where he found employment on a farm. He soon exchanged the farm for a flaxmill, followed by another turn on the sea. -Then, ashore, he ]omed the Boy Scouts. His next berth was on an Austrian vessel, where he was the only speaker of English. He then changed to the s.s. Tokomaru and worked his passage to England as a coal trimmer. He purposes now to see what England has to show, and, if possible, to find some relatives who live in the Midlands. After this he will return to New Zealand and "settle down!"

About ten o'clock on Saturday night the fireballs were set going. Excitement naturally followed, and a large crowd gathered in the streets and in the neighborhood of the fire station. Both engines were got going,, but it was found that they would not be needed, for on this occasion thebells "tolled" a lie. The alarm wasgiven owing to a fir© in the grate ia the ladies' waiting; room of the railway station illumining the window and the roadway in front. A coincidence of the alarm was that, simultaneously with the firebell ringing the picture of "Love ye one? another" was being shown at tbe? Town Hall. There is in this picture &. representation of a fire, and the bell rings out an alarm from the back of the stage. In this case the town bellssupplied the effects.

There is an area of 238,000 acresof Crown land available for settlement in the Nelson province, on therenewable lease system. The land can be acquired without ballot. Half of this area comprises national endowments and half is governed by themining district regulations. It liest principally along the Buller Valley,, and is reached from Nelson by railway, to Tadmor and then by coach to Inangahua. There is not, however, at present a ready disposition to takeup the land, which is heavy forest country, but after being cleared it would make good cattle and sheep farms for people with brave heartswho are prepared to endure hard work. , The terms are very reasonable. ■ .-■.■■■■