LOCAL & GENERAL NEWS.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLVII, Issue 138, 13 June 1913, Page 4

LOCAL & GENERAL NEWS.

The defence authorities advise that examinations for first appointments have been postponed until early in September.—Press Association.

Ten per cent, will be added to all hospital and charitable aid rates in the County of Sounds which are unpaid on the Ist July.

The annual meeting of the Marlborough Rifle Union has been postponed till June 21st, owing to the illness of the secretary.

Captain Cameron, of the Pateena, reports sighting wreckage in Cook Strait (says a Wellington Press Association telegram). The obstacle, which he believes to be a mast and spars, is a menace to shipping.

A solicitor's clerk named J. Crombie was fined £3 and deprived of his civil rights for five years at Timaru for failing to fulfil the requirements of the Defence Act.—Press Association.

Commencing next Monday evening,, skating sessions will be held in the Grosyenor Hall every afternoon and evening, under the management of Mr C. Browne. Private lessons will be given by arrangement.

The Gazette publishes the following average of actual crops for the season 1912-13:—Wheat, 27.28 bushels per acre; oats, 34.12; barley, 36.75; maize, 47.43; potatoes, 6.29 tons per acre. Regulations are also gazetted providing for better accommodation for flaxmill hands.

An Invercargill Press Association says that a meeting of members of the Sports Protection League, the Gun Club, and tlie Coursing Club passed a resolution protesting against the proposed prohibitive clause, suppressing pigeon shooting and Plumpton coursing, in the Bill to be brought before Parliament.

According to a Wellington Press Association telegram Captain Halsey explains that H.M.S. New Zealand is making her second visit to Wellington for the express purpose of overtaking routine work, which it was impossible to carry out heretofore owing to the many calls which she has had to make at the various ports of the Dominion. In consequence the vessel is not open to public inspection. The officers gave an "at home" yesterday, and to-night a ball on board will be held.

Rather a pretty compliment was paid to Marlborough on the occasion of the visit of the school-children to the big warship at Picton. A Blenheim school oommitteeman, _ proud of his charges, remarked' to an interested sailorman: "These are the future men and women of New Zealand." "Yes," replied the son of the sea; "and they are the finest lot of youngsters put aboard the warship yet, and I have been with her round the coast." He also added that the "weediest lot were from Wellington."

The second meeting of creditors in the bankrupt estate of Walter Shaw, solicitor, was held at Timaru yesterday. The Deputy Official Assignee reported that he had been investigating the estate, especially the securities, for the last two months, but, owing to the chaos which prevailed, he had not made much headway. The books had not been balanced since 1906. He said that it would take another twelvemonths to prepare a complete statement. One creditor said -that Shaw's was the most extensively furnished house in South Canterbury.r—Press Association.

With the winter season at hand, those who are in the habit of making their own cough mixtures will be interested to learn that neither paregoric nor laudanum should ever be included. While these two drugs exercise a more or less soothing effect they do so only because of containing opium—a most harmful element, as everybody knows. The effect produced on coughs and colds by these two poisonous opium preparations is succeeded by considerable digestive disturbances, and often by constipation. A wise mother will never include paregoric, laudanum, or any other preparation of opium in her family cough medicine.

Some remarks weTe made by his Honor Mr Justice Cooper at the Auckland Supreme Court the other day in regard to the dangerous habit of leaving motor-cars on narrow country roads. In the case then before his Honor such a practice had led to a collision between a coach andl a standl--ing car, owing; to the former vehicle not having sufficient room to pass. "I cannot express too strongly," said' his Honor, "the extreme danger of motorcar drivers leaving their oairs in stich an exceedingly narrow road, taking up, as in this case, one-third of the whole distance of tho 20ft. of roadway. On one side was a hiq;h cliff, and on the other a lake, witlh a considerable drop from the road. Tin's is what makes country roads so exceedingly dangerous."

The thermometer registered etx degrees of frost on the grass during the night.

At the request of the wife of. the defendant, a prohibition order, the application for which vroA unopposed, was ordered by Mr F. 08. Loughnan, S.M., to-day to be issued against a Blenheim residents

At the meeting of householders held at Wairau Valley recently, the following School Committee was elected: Messrs G. Leov, E. Timms. ,T. ,Timm£, P. Vorbach. and E! Murphy (chairman). The Bai Falls Committee for the ensuing year is as follows: Messrs S. Gardiner, C. W. Mills, W. B. Colper, W. Eyes, and J. Brown, junior (chairman and secretary). The effort to hold a meeting of householders at Nydia Bay again failed.

In regard to one application made to the Wairau Licensing Committee yesterday it was reported that the applicant was convicted recently of a breach of the licensing laws. The chairman explained that the offence was not that of Sunday trading, but of exposing the liquor to view during prohibited hours. The licensee was found in the act of supplying a drink to one of his servants, but in this particular he was not doing wrong. The offence consisted of the act of keeping the bar open. For this he was fined; and a stranger was fined! for being on the premises illegally. The application was granted without further comment.

A member of the Blenheim legal fraternity who has not a little Attic salt in his composition, and a tall hat in his wardrobe, just missed transferring a joke from his own expense to that of a brother in the profession, v^hose high public position counted for something at the H.M.S. New Zealand festivities in Picton. The tall hat was responsible for the error of a boy who approached him and saidi: "Excuse me; are you a cabman?" "No," replied the legal light; "but if you want a cabman, go to that man standing over there." The boy was just prevented from ordering a cab from the Member for the district by the arrival of his mother.

While visiting H.M.S. New Zealand at Picton, a Blenheim resident, who did not turn out for the occasion in 6ilk attire, received the credit for a piece of generosity that was wholly unintentional. With his wife he was shown right round the ship by one of the crew, whose attentiveness was so appreciated by the good lady that on the conclusion of the tour she suggested a present of two shillings. The husband willingly concurred, and presented the escort with two coins. The recipient beamecL and was overheard to say with a fine contempt to a less fortunate companion t "None of the bell-toppers for roe; give me the other fellows and you can take all the blooming aristocracy." He had received a sovereign and a shilling! ,

It is reported from the Bay of Plenty that an extraordinary series of earthquakes were prevalent in the district durins the last week in May. A resident of "To Teko states that on May 26 the shocks were particularly severe, causing most of the (residents to rush out of their houses. The shocks continued for some time, snd many chimneys cracked so badly that people ran outside as soon as a shock commenced, for fear of th© bricks coming through the roof. The earthquakes had been felt daily for nearly a month, but were not nearly so serene as those, experienced later. At night the residents had a partioul airly trying time, many going to bed only partially undressed, with' coats and shoes ready to snatch up as soon as a 'quake commenced.

The indifference shown by somo women at picture shows in .the matter of the convenience of those sitting behind them is quffce painful (remarks the Christohurch Press). At one of the theatres this week a woman entered adorned in a terrifying t<ype of hat. It was of the round tower species, and in itself was easily capable of obscuring half the soreecn toi anybody unlucky enough to be in the line of sight, but what aggravatedl the offence was that attached to the bulky hat was a wonderful decoration resembling nothing so much as a largesized folded shirt standing on end.' That hat and the shirt adornment together effected a total eclipse of the picture passing on the sareeii.

Bealey (24) was easily the coldest spot in the Dominion at 9 o'clock this morning. The local reading vraaj 41.

Mr Willis, Speaker of the New, South Wales State Parliament, in be-t half of the Members, cabled condolences to the Hon. Mr Massey and to Lady Guinness on the death of Si^ Arthur Guinness.

It is understood that a Palmerston1 company is being formed to work tie marble deposits at Takaka HiUs, Sandy Bay, Nelson. The marble is described as being free of flaws, andl of blue, light grey, and variegated! blue and white shades, and of great tensile strength. It is intended to use the marble for monumental p»r-< poses, as well as for building.

An unrehearsed incident at the drawing of the art union tickets at His Majesty's Theatre last evening was amusing. Those who were supervising the drawing of the tickets were; concerned mainly with mixing them as much as practicable, and during the revolutions of the barrel the top* fell off, scattering tickets broadcast dxt the stage. After many hands bad gathered up the tickets and placed them in the barrel, the work of drawing the successful numbers was pro ceeded with.

"The milking machine isi a. most valuable invention for the dairy; farmer in these days of a scarcity of labor. It would be practically impossible to continue the development of the industry without the aid of sueb} an invention." Thus spoke a southern; farmer who has a wide and intimate knowledge of milking and machines. Continuing, he said, "Although their*! may be sins laid at the door of the machine, they should rightly be placed to the account of the careless farmer* The state of hia byres, of his stock, and of himself, are often indescribable, and the supply of milk unden such conditions miust always be detrimental to the general supply. It is the dairy faa-mer who should1 mendl hia ways. There is no more valuable addition to the equipment of a diairj\ than the milking machine, and there should therefore be no disparagement of it in the first instance."

Aesthetic people who have settled down in Ashburton to the practice of prohibition and the pursuit of the gentle trout may not relish the idea of the surrounding country being converted into a vast oilfield, but according to a Christchurch paper there is nothing very surprising in the business men of the place having been persuaded to promote a prospecting company for the purpose of testing the dreams of great deposits of petroteum lying buried beneath the surface of the Canterbury Plains. Most of the ground is particularly favorable for boring, and it is estimated that probably a tenth of the money that has been spent upon the- Taranaki fields will be sufficient to settle once and for all whether the Canterbury Plains are to remain in the hands,of the leisurely followers of the plough or to be surrendered to the hustling captains of commerce and manufacture.

A Government valuer who appeared! at the Assessment Court in Wellington last week to support his ideas of value was closely cross-examined- by one of the assessors, Mr o'. P. Lynch..) There had been an advance in the district values, and Mr Lynch wanted it explained. The land did not produce more, in fact, grassed, areas were "wearing out," then why was its more valuable? The valuer suggested! that the produce was worth more; the* pnoe of wool had risen. "Can you tell me what will be the price of wool next year?" asked Mr Lynch. "No." "Nor oan any one," returned the assessor. "Then why this increase? There is an insinuation going round the country that you valuers have had instructions to write up values, is that so?" "There is no truth whatever in it. I have never had an instruction from a. Department or from the Government of the day to raise values." "I am glad to hear it," said the assessor. The valuer added that once a Departmental head had! said to him: "Be careful; your valuer frighten me."