LOCAL & GENERAL NEWS.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLVI, Issue 75, 25 March 1912, Page 4

LOCAL & GENERAL NEWS.

. A dance will be held in the G-rovo-town Hall on Wednesday evening. On the same evening a euchre tournamert. will take place in the Kovomiko schoolroom. • The 6heep-guessing competi^cn, which, excited so much interest :\t the Hibernian spoits on last Wednosiay, war. won by Mr I*. Niooll, of Oka ramio, with a guess of 150 Ibs', the exact weight of the' sheep bsjng 156ilbs. On May 24 or 25 (at the option of teams) the New Zealand- Farmers' Union rifle teams competition will be held, the trophy being a shield val iod r,t £20. Each member of the tei.oi ct six men must be a financial ordinary member of the branch of the Union for which he shoots. The distant will be 200, 300, and 500 yardo. hevtn shots at euch iange. Entries elosil on April 30. Each momber of the winning team will receive a gold medal valued at £1.

The curtain will be rung down on .the swimming season' on Wednesday, when the second carnival of the local Amateur Life-Saving and. Swimming Club will be held. The committee has made a. new departure in holding the carnival in the afternoon, and as the result of this there should be a .good

atendance of the public. The . programme is a good one, and the several contests should provide exciting finishes. The New Zealand Olympic Council 'reports that so far £142 Is is in sight to pay the expenses of the representatives (Hill and' Wilding) at Stockholm. Of this amount £75 has been guaranteed by Auckland, and the committee in Wellington has raised £67. A further balance of £60 is required, and an appeal is now being made to sports bodies and sympatJiwors to help. As the funds must be in hand by the.'end of the month an immediate response is imperative.

Our Flaxbourae correspondent writes:—A public meeting of Flaxbourne ratepayers (convened by the Settlers' Association) was held on Saturday night for the purpose of nominating a candidate for the Awatere County Council election. There were twenty ratepayers present, a/nd Mr J. J. Jenkins was voted to the chair. It was resolved to nominate two cajididates for the Flaxbourne Riding, and Messrs E. A. Weld, J. J. Jenkins, Freeborh Parsons, and D. ' J. Scott were proposed. Messrs John Cummingham and Alex Thomson declined nomination. A ballot _ was taken, and it was decided to nominate Messrs J. J. Jenkins and Froeborn Parsons. A vote of thanks to Mr Scott for his services on the Road Board was passed., .In replying, Mr Scott said that he intended to contest the election against anyone who nominated.

Can a telephone conversation be admitted as evidence" in court? The •question was raised1 in the Invercargill Magistrate's Court during tho hearing of a civil case. A witness for the plaintiff stated in his evidence that the plaintiff and foe had rung up the defendant . "How do you know that it was the defendant at: the other end of the wire.'' asked* counsel for the defence. Th© fitness hesitated. "Because he said it was he speaking," said the witness. '■"That's no proof. It . might . have/ been anybody using his name/ retorted counsel, and he submitted thaß this could not be treated as evidence. The'-court, smiled. The Magistrate remarked that telephone conversations entered into cases-; almost) every day, a^id although perhaps theyj were , not very reliable, they were admissible j as evidence. » ( >

In the Wairau election petition case • 5G witnesses were called by petitioners' counsel, several being recalled, and one witness was brought forward by respondent's counsel. j

Friday's K;>ikoura Star says:— jti response to an invitation from tho Culverden-Waiiui Railway Extension Leaguo, Mr J-imes Allen, M.P., visited Waiau last Tuesday, and in the evening was entertained at a s6';(.agathering. Dealing with.'"the question of railways, Mr Allen saw! ''the construction of the Main Trunk Litkj must -be'delayed if the Waiau c\t<'i* sion was to be built by the Go'-'i'm-ment, and, in his opinion, the district deserved the extension and should get it." ■Seemingly, if the Reform Pa'ty. gets on to the Treasury Benches, the South .■ Island Main Trunk'will hiore than ever become -subservient to small branch lines that are only of the fir-t importance on the..districts they <vjinect. But'perhaps Mr Allen's '&taio-_, merit was only "pap."

Intense - public interest was manifested in the decision of Sir Joshua Williams and Mr Justice Chapman inthe Wairau election petition case. At noon on Saturday what was perhaps the largest assemblage ever seen in the Blenheim Court-house listened with colse attention to the, former judge's reading of the judgment, which occupied three-quarters of an hour. Every part of- the Court \vas densely crowded, tho fair sex being largely represented. Several ladies had occupied seats in the gallery for more than an hour before the sitting of the Court. Many male, auditors, having failed to gain entrance to the Court, stood on the window-sashes at the .rear of the building and listened in that position. Tho announcement i that the petition was dismissed was followed bjr an incipient demonstration of applause, which was immediately suppressed by the Court officers.

; iitt)':,iui«iuuuiu; "luimo in mm* «caje of fares, rates, and charges in. force on/the l^icton section of -railways - appear in a recent Gazette. \L'he passenger' charge for conveyance by rail and stea ncr between Wellington and Blenheim via Picton has been increased from 20s first class return to 21s, from 14s 9d second-class return to 16s, from 11s 6d second-class return to 12s 6d, and from 15s second-class, single, to 16s. In . respect' to , goods booked through between Wellington or the port ol Nelson and stations on the Picton section of railways, the rate for, pressed hay aiid straw is.increased from 17s 6d to 20s. In place of a rate of 2s 6d per 100 super feet of timber,! the following rates apply: —New Zealand timber •up to 24ft lengths, 3s 3d; New Zealand timber, ?4ft and undor 36ft, 4s3d; hardwood timber up to-20ft lengths, 3s 9d; haa-dwood ..timber, 20ft and under 30 ft, 4s 9d. Class A, B, C, D, go up from los to 16s 6d per ton; undumped1 rabbit skins from 3s 6d to 4s per bale. The general charge on barley, beans, bran (1501b bags) grass seed, malt, peas, potatoes, , pollard (1501b bags), oatmeal, onions, oat*, and, wheat has been raised from 9d per sack to Is, and that on chaff from 6d per sack to 7d. Clover ■ seed is now charged at the" rate of Is 6d per bag, and flour 8s 6d per ton. Barley booked through from Seddon, lliverlands, and intermediate stations to Wellington, and shipped from Pict<- '11 h

~ „ ._ on, wi .c charged Is 3d per sack instead of Is. "Malt, flour, wheat, beans, peas, barley, potatoes, pollard, oatmeal, onions, oats, ' bran, and grass seed between the port ; of Nelsou and stations between Picton and Blenheim, inclusive,- will be , charged Is Id per sack instead of Is

Why do men wear hats when they |go out in the evening? asks the Melboiirne/Argus. The "wearing of hats ' m the evening, it says, is a. convention which lias lost all its meaning: it has come to us from other climates, and wo have slavishly adopted it, though our own climate robs it of all serablanca of rationality. The general doing away with hats by nightwould simplify .the work of the police, for then they would be quickly able .to distinguish true men from knaves. As for the argument that the hat is a covering whereby the bald-headed way shelter his ' infirmity froni the scoffs of an unfeeling world, it may ks> replied, that wo are not as in tho days of the prophet; baldness has be- ., come so nearly universal that it no longer excites the derision even of the most unmannerly children; moreover, it is veil known that many men attribute baldness to the excessive wearing of hats. No, the practice" has no basis in pure reason; it is indefensible ; but, like many other indefen • sible practices, it endures. Such is the cowardice of mankind; such is the fearful power of a custom Avhich has, once got itself established. These? things ore a parable.

---„ Mr J. T). Rockefeller's method; of defying the cold weather, by wearing paper clothing, which wa's mentioned by Mr Andrew Carnegie in his dence- before the Congressional Committee, has aroused fresh enthusiasm among English paper-clothing. enthusiasts. The cold-resistiing qualities of paper garments are well known, but the wearing of paper clothing is practised almost exclusively by millionaires and beggars. "We have beo-n advocating the use' of paper for motoring and other coats for years," said the editor of tihe Tailor and Cuttor. "I should' not bo. surprised if paper proves to be ' the clothing material of the future; paper which had been treated in some manner to prevent its tearing easily. It is splendid stuff for resisting the cold, and perhans it may become a favored material for women's frocks, for it would lend itself to beautiful color schemes, and have a delicate .lightness of appearance." . HAIRWORK ON APPROVAL. Every description of hjairwork mad«? to order. Only best luair used. Color gnftramteed1. Money returned if color or other conditions not satisfactory.— • Mrs C»wy Trafalgar Street, Nelson, 'j

White-painted streev- crossings, are' ■ io be tried experimentally at suitable * ■ ntervals 'in the leading Paris' thoroughfares. Pedestrians will >c invited to crossN the i voads at those places j only, and a-heeled traffic is to h<>^ required t<i slow down on approaching a- white patch. The police, knowing the ways }f the Paris drivers, doubt the efficacy jf these measures. One police officer expressed the opinion that only the insurance companies will derive any benefit, as they may refuse .to pay damages for injuries received by a. pedestrian who attempts to cross a. road anywhere except at the white crossing. "Taste and try before you buy" is a good motto, so next time anyone shouts you a drink say, "Mine's a M.irtell," and taste it attentively. It's "Martell every time" after that.* An interesting "Life" of thelato Mr Quong Tart, the well-known Chinese merchant of Sydney, has been written by his wife, and published by a Sydney firm. * The sub-title is, "How a Foreigner Succeeded in a British Community," and few men can have so won the admiration, and respect of an alien community as Mr Tart did. "Quong Tart is as wellknown as the Governor himself," said a Sydney paper "and is quite as popular with all classes." Records in the " book show that this was n no exaggeration. Mr Tart, it may be mentioned,, -did a great deal for his countrymen: in Australia. He was foremost in the campaign, eventually successful, for the abolition of the importation of opium. The book is an interesting account of a most useful life. A word to farmers! Speaking of the resti Its of the third Christchurch wool sale, the Farmers' Co-op* reEiarked: "The Dominion woollen manufacturers' representatives wera -more active than at previous saies, and to a large extent the very firm values ruling for the fine wools wera due to their influence^' . Isn't £hia conclusive evidence thqt all farmers should support the country that sup- - ports them. Insist on KAIAPOI Clothing and KAIAPQI Woollens. * 1 People whoso business or inclination drew them to the banks of the Upper Yurra one afternoon recently (says the Melbourne Argus) were attracted by a sculling boat propelled by a .portly, middle-aged 'man at a ■ r pace altogether too slow ! for ' the i power exerted.' The rower was fore- ; ing his sculls through the .water "in a ' [ manner which showed- a familiarity with ideal rowing methods, using" back, legs, and arms strenuously, but the boat was proceeding at a snail's pace. Club crews, pleasure - boats , ;•• and canoes sped past him, though no . greater power was applied in their craft than his. The- explanation was' that,the veteran was demonstrating ; , a claim that it was possible for a man jby rowing a boat between Prince's ■ bridge and Twickenham Gardens, a : distance of about four and a-hatf j miles, and back again .to 'Prince's bridge, to lose 71b. in weight, within the interval between 1, o'clock. There had been.a, good deal of debate on the possibility of the weight being lost in t.he time and. distance, doctors' and 'athletes being on both sides in the argument. Edwards and Son provided the rower with a sliding-seai f out-rigger, with an ordinary' iron' bucket made fast behind it under the water. It was because he, was towing the bucket opening foremost that his progress was so slow. The Henley mile was covered iti three-quarters of an hour, and the return journey was finished in five "hours. The scales* showed that the oarsman, who had 'weighed 1861b. when "he went out, had lost 9Jlb. in weight'on the journey: The. experiment is. one- Qf great interest to medical men,' trainers, and i trainees.-

Few people stop to think that their progress and prosperity depend on that of the whole of the Dominion. If they did/, they would not need . urging to buy Dominibn-irwde goods Think of the hundreds of hands employed in growing the wool, shearing, classing, selling, manufacturing material, then making KAIAPOI Clothing ami retailing KAIAPOI goods. Yes think —and act as one's good sense would suggest. - , * . The alterations that' are being mad© to the Lyttelton Post Office, con- , sequent upon the raising of the clock tower, have brought to light letters thatjigve heen lost for over'twenty years. Leading from the clock tower to the room in ■ which private boxes are situated is.a wooden tunnel abon;fc a foot square for the accommoda-t.'or; of weights suspended from the clock, fn the room on the.first floor there is a window looking into the tunnel. When the workmen opened up *he bottom of the tunnel to clear away . some mortar that had fallen into it from the top, they were surprised to see several. old .letters-, and one or two ancient newspapers. Further investigations disclosed a- bundle of letters tied up as if for delivery. The letters were nearly all post-marked to show that they had been' post^Kl in April or May, 1889, and they wervs all addressed to people in.Lytteltnn. Some of the addresses are still alif**, and residing in the port, and others —officers and men on board &hips — have left, but their names are remembered, and others, again, have • died. It seems, from the condition of this belated mail matter, 'that some letter-carrier or deliverer tf mails of twenty years. ago, has1 taken this means of disposing of a 'ctt troublesome letters and newspapers, - so as to avaid the fatigue of delivering them. People who know the design of the building scout the idea that the letters could have fallen Accidentally into the tunnel. The letters, technically, are "dead,1' but it ' is probable that the post office authorities will do their best to deliver us much of the mail as'possible.