NEWS IN BRIEF.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLVI, Issue 14018, 25 March 1909, Page 6

NEWS IN BRIEF.

■ ,■ ■ A fakmeb at Wfllowbridge has just :. .2 .threshed a crop of oats which yielded 100 bushels per" acre. y.': ; A reward of £50 is offered by Mr. J. Cox, of Wellington, to any launchowner who will locate the wreck of the steamer Penguin. Within the past fortnight between 6000 arid 7000 . carcases of mutton were railed : •/.-.' from Oamaru to Port Chalmers for shipment for London. -:' , ' 'In givjng evidence against a farmer on ," . a " charge of - failing to destroy rabbits, a Southern, rabbit agent eaid : that. 25 ; rabbits ate as much as a cow. At a recent meeting of the Greymouth Harbour Board it was said ; that ~ the * expense of running the new dredge Mawhera % . for three months would be £300. Nelson is arranging a " red-letter day" . . for the berthing at the wharf of the first /IK;.' '•' ocean-going liner, which is expected to take place in about three weeks' time. ." Babbits are extremely plentiful this sea; son (says the Gore Standard), and are to be found in large numbers quite close to '.'.:• the town. . Weasels are also reported to be in evidence; - i; •-':' ' : "■■ Two.thousand, subscribers are .now at- j tached to , the metallic circuit of the telephone system in Christchurch. Only 600 nave to be attached 'before the work con- i nected with the circuit is complete. The body of the late Mr. H. J. Underwood, which was washed ashore from the Penguin wreck on "<: Sunday, was brought i into Wellington on Monday. The inquest j will be held to-morrow. Over £40 has already been collected in j Napier towards the Penguin stewardesses' I ' memorial fund. At a j public m acting j held at Hastings in connection with the i same movement, £11 was collected in the room. , j r'.v. :■: •:!'..' ■■: ' . ' ■■■~■■■..•-•■.■. ■:■■ .-. :■■.■■ ;.•■; ■'.■.-„■;■'. : ■ ■...■ ■■ - The brick walls of the new post office"! ■ i at Bolls have been badly damaged by. the g; ; : recent .fire, and will probably be pulled down. The town clock, which was erect-! Ed by public subscription, at a cost of £300, was totally destroyed. The big direct liner Corinthic, which ■ , . arrived at Wellington from London on Monday morning, brought 576 passengers, > British mails, and a large general cargo. "' During the voyage a male infant was born j at. sea on February 25. j Owing to'* the prevalence of -measles j • among pupils of the Timaru Main school, "' the school has been closed for an indefinite , period. On Thursday last 300 of the 800 children on the school roll were absent owing to the epidemic. An accident happened at Moehau, near Cape Colville, on Sunday, to a little eon of Mr. and Mre. '■ Charles Geard. The child fractured its leg,. and was brought to" Coromandel in Mr. Bronlund's launch. The sufferer was '< admitted to the hospital. v : ! The state> of His ..;. Majesty's, prison, Auckland, for the week ; ending March 20,"1909, was as ; follows';—On: remand, 4 males," 1 . female awaiting trial,. 10 ; males; sentenced to ", life, 1 male; hard labour, 242 males, 16 females; default of bail, 3 males j; received during the week, 25 males; discharged, 21 males,. 1 female; total in prison, 260 males, 17 females. A deputation from the Women's Christian Temperance Union waited on the Prime Minister, / and asked for the repeal of the Contagious Diseases Act. " Sir J. Ward said the law was recognised to be a dead letter, and that fact was a big argu- ?. - ment in favour !of its repeal. The representations of the deputation would be considered By ; the ; Government at an early - date. , .