LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Manawatu Times, Volume XLIX, Issue 2714, 23 June 1925, Page 6

LO CAL AND GENERAL.

The third test match is to be played at Sydney to-day (Tuesday) instead of on Wednesday, as was originally intended. The team is the same as last Saturday’s.

Workmen were to he seen in the Square yesterday engaged in the task of dismantling and removing the old gas standards.

Two first offenders for drunkenness were fined 10/- and 5/- rcpectively at the Palmerston North Magistrate's Court yesterday.

The executive officers of the Central Command have loft to take part in a conference at General Headquarters, Wellington, of the New Zealand Military Forces. The bones of a dead man, believed to be that of some prehistoric race recently found in a cliff face at Arapuni were discovered by Mr. C. A. Moore, a former Waipukurau resident.

Dredging operations arc to bo recommenced at Maori creek, near Greymouth, one of the richest fields in the district in (he boom days. A dredge which was recently dismantled at tho Ahaura river is being re-erected.

“I have a character, and that is why my word should be accepted,” said a witness at the Napier Supreme Court. “So we have all,” he was reminded by counsel for the defence. “That may be,” drily responded witness, “but mine happens to bo a good one.”

Nelson maintained its reputation for mid-winter sunshine last week, when the period of bright sunshine recorded averaged over eight and a quarter hours a day. On two days, there was Si hours sunshine and the 'lowest reading was 7 hours 55 minutes, slates a Press Association message.

Those who remember tho eloquent addresses of rue Palmerston North High School Boys at the Lunch Club on tho 24th Juno 1924, anticipate another great pleasure at to-days meeting of tho Club. Graham Crossley’a subject is “Energy,” lan Campbell's “Speed” and Malcolm Walker’s “The Geneva Protocol” in the order named. Mr. M. H. Oram occupies the chair.

With a view to fostering rowing contests between Australia and New Zealand oarsmen, the Council of tho New Zealand Amateur Rowing Association has recommended that an invitation be sent to New South Wales to send a team of oarsmen to New Zealand in about February, 1926, and that advice be sent to the Australian Rowing Council that New Zealand would he prepared to send a team to Australia in 1927 if possible, and if not, in the following season.

Glorious Silk Square Shawls for evening wraps with embroidered floral designs and deep silk fringe, apricot, peach, sunset, jade, begonia, black. Now on view at Tho C. M. Rosa Co., Ltd.’s. Those are delightful novelties that will lend charming grace to tho evening toilette Call and see them*

A meeting: of all ladies interested in the annual ball of the Terrace End School will be held in the school on Wednesday evening: at 7.30 p.m. Permission having been given by the headmaster, Mr W. A. Swinbourn, of College 'Street School, Soccer will be played in the school grounds every Wednesday afternoon at 4 o’clock Messrs. Simmonds and Dick will be in attendance as instructors. Readers are reminded of to-night’s W.E.A. lecture. The subject is Galileo, upon whose observations and discoveries is based the whole structure of the modern development of the sciences of astronomy and physics. With such material, a very, interesting lecture may bo looked for.

Wanganiti visitors to the show in Palmerston North, unwittingly gave our telephone mechanics much anxious searching for imaginary defects in the intricate machinery of the automatic system. During the five days and nights, many subscribers heard repeated rings, but could get no responsive voice, while in answer to their anxious inquiries, complaints department generally gave the “busy” tone. It transpired later that the calls were invariably from Wanganui visitors, who arc used to the Strowger system, in which the dialling is in the reverse direction to that of the Western Electric at Palmerston North. Our folks will probably replay the backhanded compliment when they visit the river city.

“And he drives a motor car, your Honour,” said counsel in a Supreme Court action recently at Aucklan\ in an endeavour to show that respondent was in a position to support his divorced wife, states the “Star.” “The car is an old 1914 Ford model,” explained counsel for respondent. "Oh, so it is not a motor,” replied Mr Justice Reed, adding “Still, it probably consumes benzine.” Later in the case, respondent said he had taken the car out twice, and it had broken down each time. The crank shaft was broken, and the “car” was practically scrap. “Do you use it only for pleasure?” respondent was asked, and he replied that he did. “I should not call it pleasure,” observed counsel.

He was first to be observed outside the Palmerston North Courthouse yesterday, keeping meek guard over a baby in a perambulator. Loneliness at last forced him to forsake his charge and seek admission to the chamber of justice, an opportunity for which was soon afforded him by a departing Court habitual leaving the door ajar. He investigated thoroughly •and rather noisily the room where the legal proceedings were proceeding, and sniffed the logs of the solicitor. He was thereupon ejected with little ceremony, and a subsequent yelp from the direction of the office was eloquent of the fact that he had met with little favour there. So back he was forced to the colourless existence of guarding babies, when abductors were a minor quantity. Truly a dog’s life! Years ago a Jack Tar bought a ticket in a raffle, for 2/-. Ho won the prize. When he went along to claim it, joy turned to sorrow, and when he showed it to his mess mates, sorrow turned to mirth, for the prize was an old horse, with defective eyesight and lajy habits. What could a sailor do with a horse? They found a use for the old crock by putting him to “hard labour,’’ which took the form of pulling the mower over the parade ground at Devonport, states the Auckland “Star.” Formerly this had been done by naval boys, but the horse saved them the trouble, and for a long time the aged beast toiled across the lawns. But he was never a success, and he never really endeared himself to the men of the New Zealand Squadron, owing to ■peculiar habits, so that, when he ■wandered away one night, a few weeks ago, ond got shut up in the pound, nobody lamented. The sailor who won him has long ago left the service, and to-day there is not a man who will find 7/G to “bail him out.” Meanwhile the lawns are mowed as of old.

Quite a little stir of excitement was caused at the Napier railway station on Friday morning-, prior to the departure of the Wellington express train from Napier, when a very much perturbed young lady discovered that she had lost her ticket which entitled her to a reserved scat. Being a lady possessed of a very attractive physical charms the usual morning bustle at the station was considerably augmented by the frantic endeavours made by various males to locate the lost pasteboard, and tor several minutes the platform presented the appearance of a vast room in which a game of “hunt the thimble” was being played. Men of all descriptions and ages peered and pried into all sorts of nooks and crannies, what time the damsel in distress looked serenely on, happy in the knowledge that man had come to the rescue. The creamof the incident occurred when the girl, in taking a powder puff from her bag, came upon the missing ticket, and uttering an exclamation of relief quietly boarded the train without saying anything about the matter, supremely indifferent to the frantic search that was still being made by the now perspiring and harassed-looking male hunters, who only relinquished the ch£Ws when ordered to take their scats.