THINGS IN GENERAL.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLVIII, Issue 14868, 20 December 1911, Page 11

THINGS IN GENERAL.

I THE AUCKLAND CITY ARMS.. \ Vini-E ago wo had a little joko about the new coat of arms for New Zealand, cut out, built, embroidered and pressed by the artificers in the College of Heralds. Xow the joko has come homo to roost. Xhe new roat of arms of the city of Auek- | > ;, s nd will arrive shortly. Tho design is I THE being dignified and likely to A while ago wo had a little joke about the new coat of aims for New Zealand, cut out, built, embroidered and pressed [>y the artificers in the. College of Heralds. >,'ow the J°ko has come homo to roost. The new coat of arms of the city of Auckland will arrive shortly. Tho design is t(oscribed as being dignified and likely to bo satisfactory. Tlio full description* of I ■ the production, in the graphic and illuminating phraseology of tho Heralds is not yet available. But tho coat is described ,' as comprising a two masted ship in full !sail, miners' implements, and a cornucopia, surmounted by a mural crown and phor- • mium Umax. Tho supporters are two kiwis. Within limits, the design appears ' to bo reasonably well. Tho two-masted ship in full sail is quito a pretty compli- | ment to the Waitemata, among whose rivI . ' • ing craft the fore-and-aft scow i s quite "a J .common feature. It is to bo hoped that S ,-tho Heralds, with a limited knowledge of 3 1 : local conditions, have not put in a brig • by mistake. Brigs never x come here. Then the miners' implements and the cornucopia ;ue entirely right. Auckland, •; in common with Mew Zealand as-a whole, owes a great deal to tho hard-working men who toil in the bowels of the earth ,md drag forth her hidden riches. Moreover, it is very blessed. Of some twicegifted lands it is said that one has but to 1 tickle its ribs with a hoe, and it will . laugh a harvest. Scarcely is that true of ..Auckland; but it is still a land of plenty, and tho cornucopia, with its surplusage of good tiling ever welling forth, is a figure requiring only a small license to be true, «nd none to be .acceptable. Then tho mural crown— crown or circlet of gold, ■-narked like bricks to represent a wall— this is a device intended to honour ono who first scales a wall or plants a standaid. It may bo taken as a delicate reminder of the days when Auckland was the capital of New Zealand, flying the first standard upon Government House. The phormium tenax is a' plant selected . as representative at once of New Zealand's native, flora and of an industry of value to the Dominion. With tho exception of ,'the timbers, in fact the' flax is the only native plant wo have that is of high commercial value. And in place of the lion , and tho unicorn, there aro two kiwis. These comical little birds, though not beautiful, have some queer attributes. To begin with, they have long since discarded wings as useless; but they cherish a tradition concerning them, and sleep soundly with their heads comfortably tucked under r the wing that no longer exists. Secondly, the females lay eggs of phenomenal size ; ; for such small birds. Thirdly they aro so rare in New Zealand, and especially hereabout, as to bo almost mythical.

•' MILLIONAIRES' LUXURIES. The multi-millionaires of New York have adopted as their private hobby the con--1 ruction of enormous organs in their private houses, and there is very keen rivalry among them for the honour of securing the most superb of these great instruments. Mr. Clark, of Montana, the millionaire mining $f linking,; has placed in his mansion in Fifth A , <"nue, the costliest organ in the United ■, State.?. Ho is said to have paid £24,000 it this prize. The cheapest private organ possessed ,by a New York capitalist is one ;'"«iing- 4 £40u0, which has been installed in one ot Mx. J. Pierpont Morgan's country hor.-es at Greenwood Lake. It has been ' huilfc under the supervision tf Mr. Mor- .' jran's organist, Mr. Homer Norris, who will ' be the only person >. permitted to use it. Mr. Charles 51. Schwab, the ironmaster, ■ has in organ in his New York residence which cost £9000. Mr. F. G. Bourne, vhosa r.ame is well known in Wall-street, ■is said-to have paid £20,000" for an organ which adorns his home at Oakdale, Long Island, and Mr. John D. Rockefeller." Mr. •William K. Vanderbilt, Mr. Joseph H. Ch'oate, Mr. August Belmont, Mr. L. C. M'ifiany, and Mr. Andrew Carnegie have - all been affected by the "organ craze." In most cases the organs have been built in to !vate owner's and there is very way that the among them for the honour of securing the most auperb of these great instruments. Mr. (Kirk, of Montana, the millionaire mining king, has placed in his mansion in Fifth Avenue, the costliest organ in the United States. He is said to have paid £24,000 for this prize. The cheapest private organ possessed ,by a New York capitalist is one costing £4000. which has been installed in one ot Mr. J. Pierpont Morgan's country houses at Greenwood Lake. It has been built under the supervision of Mr. Morgan's organist, Mr. Homer Norris, who will be tli" only person permitted to use it. Mr. Charles 51. Schwab, the ironmaster, has An organ in his New York residence which cost £9000. Mr. F. G. Bourne, whoss rame is well known in Wall-street, is said to hav paid £20,000 for an organ which adorns his home at Oakdale, Long Island, and Mr. John D. Rockefeller, Mr. William K. Vanderbilt, Mr. Joseph H. Ornate, Mr. August Belmont, Mr. L. C. Tifiany, and Mr. Andrew Carnegie have all been affected by the " organ craze." In most cases the organs have been built in to their owner's houses in such a way that the t l ' scattered pipes seem to send. forth their music from every corner of the building.* . Mr. Schwab's organ and Mr. Rockefellers? are furnished with numerous separate keyboards, so that they can be played from different parts- of the house. The magnificent instruments, of course, are of little use unless highly-skilled musicians can bo found to. play them, and the millionaires pay very high fees for the services of the , few distinguished organists in New York. . Mr. Carnegie is the only one who enjoys organ music every, day, dressing to the ac- -.. companiment of • the "instrument. Other organ-lovers use their instruments largely . a& a means of entertaining their friends. There are more than 200 elaborate private ' ' organs in New York, and the number is . i increasing rapidly. The latest "craze" - certainly has a great deal more merit than many o*£ the fads which have been favoured by those unhappy people who aro burdened with the necessity of finding new ' channels into which to pour their wealth. j THE OLD PRESS GALLERY. A famous journalist died 90 years ago j in the person of James Perry, the father of Parliamentary reporting. In ' 1782 Perry, who had already made his mark in London, became editor of the Gazetteer, ■ a comparatively obscure daily newspaper, ■ and he conceived the idea of presenting his readers every morning with a comprei "' hensive report of the previous day's pro- , ceedings in Parliament. Both branches of the Legislature had ordered that no newspaper should be permitted to publish re- - ports of speeches made in Parliament, and , no facilities were offered,to journalists. ,'The reporters' had to sit in the Strangers' Gallery, and they were ejected by officials if detected in - the act of making notes. 1 The ordinary editor of the day was content to rely upon the memory of a man who would sit in the gallery during the course ' of a debate, and then return to his office .to-set down what he remembered of the ( proceedings. Bub prompt publication of , lengthy reports was impossible under this " system, and Perry decided to send several . reporters into each House, a piece of enterprise that caused much astonishment in .newspaper circles in London. The -Gazetteer's, reports of * the debates quickly became famous, and the day was hastened .when journalists were given proper facilities for doing their important work in 1 Parliament. Naturally the reporters of • the older school regarded the innovation • with little favour. ...William Wood fall, of >.. the Morning Chronicle, was extraordinarily expert in his work. Ho used to listen to a debate that extended often for eight ' or .10 hours, and at the conclusion would write a report containing as many as 15,000 1 words. Woodfall was very accurate, but , he could not resist a jest, and occasionally complaint was made on the floor of the House by men whose utterances had been " Riven a humorous twist by the unauthorised reporter. Perry's innovation destroyed the peculiar prestige which a few men like Woodfall had enjoyed for years. MARRYING A SUFFRAGETTE. •Chicago's first suffragette marriage, says - the New York correspondent of the Standard, took place on September 28, be--3K tween Edward Matt and Gertrude Ellis. Before the ceremony was performed they ■. both visited the County Recorder, witn - whom Mr. Matt officially filed the follow«£affidavit, to be sworn before a notary: ~- To whom it may concern— Edward Matt, agree to allow my wife all the privi- . :;rleges of a free-born American woman. She may have her own way in everything, except in buying my cigars; she is free to go and come when "she likes, to choose her ' own friends, and I agree not to be jealous. P agree not to go gunning for a fellow because he, admires her beauty or because i he. smiles when he tips his'hat. I will not interfere in any of her plans. I will , be.good and kind to her. I promise to ' .'" B P,, rr ' , earnings into her lap, and it | shall be her privilege to do with it as she ■likes-so long as she feeds me well. When . we.have a surplus and it goes into the bank , * -agree that I will not hold the keys. - Uieqaes may be signed by both to make them good. I promise not to be afraid :■>j go home at night, and to be there at all proper times or to make valid excuses. 1' further agvee not to talk about the pies my mother used to make, or to grumble because the buns are soggy. I further agree to let her get a Reno divorce right bare in. Chicago if I do not behave as- a 1 Kind loving, gentle, and considerate -huß-

A VIRTUE OF COLD CUSTARD.

A dissertation on ice cream was contained in a letter read at a recent meeting of the Lower Hutt Council from she borough medical officer (Dr. Purdv). Some apprehension was felt by councillors at a previous meeting as to the effects of this delicacy on tho organs of th 0 human body, and it was accordingly decided to consult Dr. l'urdy on tho matter. According to him, good, wholesome ice cream was a very palatable and delectable sweetmeat, and taken in moderation and at a suitable time could not have a deleterious effect upon children. There, was, however, very grave danger in improperly made ice cream composed of injurious substances. There had been numerous casualties, reported from lite eating of ice cream that had become tainted; and Steps should be taken periodically to see that all ico cream vendors were selling a pure and, safe, article. Personally ho was inclined to think that ice (ream made from custard would be a safer sweetmeat than that-made from cream. This is distinctly comforting. When ono pays sixpence for ico cream, and in the presumption that one will get cream, and is put off with a sapid custard, it is well to know that the vendor has in : mind nothing less sordid than a > nice consideration for his customers' health. ; The General.