LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20365, 20 September 1929, Page 12

LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

No trace has been found yet of Mr. Kenneth Mdc Donald, aged 52, farmer, of To Kowhai. Mr. Mac Donald disappeared from his home on September 9.

Fifty-eight years ago to-day —on September 20, 1871, Bishop, John Coleridge Patteson, first Bishop of Melanesia, was murdered at Nukapu, in the New Hebrides. Tho bishop embarked from tho mission vessel Southern" Cross in a boat with' the Rev. Joseph Atkin and three Melanesians. * They were met by some native canoes, and the bishop transferred to one of these, which took him ashore. Soon afterwards nativos in other canoes fired poisoned arrows at tho boat, and not long afterwards a canoe was floated out from shore, bearing tho bishop's body, wrapped in a mat. It bore five wounds, and on the breast was a palm-frond with five knots in it. It was believed that ho had been killed in revenge for tho carrying-off of five natives by "blackbirders." Eight days afterwards Mr. Atkin and one Melanesian died at sea of tetanus due to arrow wounds.

Tho appointment of Mr. F. C. Lopdoll, assistant master at the Southland Technical College, as vice-principal of tho Auckland Training College, has been approved by the Education Department. Mr. Lopdell was selected by a special committee of advice, arid the choico was endorsed by the Auckland Education Board. The department notified tho board yesterday that the appointment had been confirmed. The board will communicate with Mr. Lopdell so that he may take up his new duties as soon as possible.

The central committee of the New Zealand branch of the British Empire Cancer Campaign Society has initiated a movement for tho formation of a branch in Auckland. There are already branches at Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin. The Mayor, G. Baildon, has called a public meeting, to be held at tho Town Hall next Wednesday afternoon to discußS local organisation.

Efforts are being made by the Auckland Chamber of Commerce to have repealed certain sections in tho Board of Trade Act inserted during the war by the Coalition Government. These contain drastic provisions for the interference of tho Government in private enterprise. In a letter received by the council yesterday, the Prima Minister stated that tlje repeal of tho objectionable sections was being considered carefully. It was, however, impossible to say yet whether amending legislation would bo proceeded with during tho present session.

"Sooner or later all these people shake hands with a saw," said Mr. Justice Blair in the Arbitration Court at Hamilton yesterday. Tho comment arose from a case in which compensation was claimed for injuries sustained in an accident with a circular saw.

A novel wireless broadcast to bring to the general public the atmosphere of the Waitomo Caves and demonstrate their peculiar acoustic properties has been arranged by station IYA for this evening, when Auckland artists will present a concert in the "Cathedral Chamber" of the caves. This will be relayed by the Post and Telegraph Department over o land wire to Auckland, and from there broadcast. The Tourist Department is also assisting to present this novelty, which should have a general appeal to listeners. "We have so many leagues that we will soon have to index them, otherwise we will bo losing some," remarked the chairman of the Wellington Education Board cn Wednesday, when the Wellington Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals suggested the formation of a junior league. The board decided that the society be thanked for its efforts to inculcate in children a spirit of kindness to animals, but the society be informed that as that was a definite part of the course of instruction in the schools the board could not see its way to add to tho number of school organisations by the creation of a junior league. It was, however, quite willing to facilitate tho distribution of a circular in relation to essay competition.

So keen was one objector in the Assessment Court in Christchurch the other day to substantiate his claims for a reduction for depreciation that ho brought with him a quantity of powdery wood, afflicted with tho borer, as "Exhibit A" in his case. Some unpleasant possibilities occurred to one or two of thoso present, for the Court was sitting in tho Provincial Council Chamber, which suffers enough already from the hand of time without the assistance of this timber scourge. The clerk of tho Court mildly suggested to the objector that, in addition to removing his bits of porous timber, he should also swoep away tho borer dust that ho had left on the table. Tho objector did this, remarking that nobody respected the Provincial building more than he did.

Dairy farmers in South Taranaki are experiencing trouble with a cattle disease in tho nature of spinal paralysis. Cows develop tho symptoms of milk fever, becoming starry in the eyes and staggering. This goes on for a couple of days and finally the beast goes down. With milk fover tho boast goes down in a few hours. Where the disease is of a spinal nature, however, tho animal does not respond to tho usual treatment of milk fever—that of blowing up tho udder. Tho remedy is said to be a specially prepared injection over the spine. One farmer near Hawera recently lost three cows by tho disease and others have suffered similarly. It is usually tho bestconditioned animals that aro stricken, the poor ones not being affected.

Tho causes of tho diminution of nativo bird iifo were discussed by the council of tho Stratford Acclimatisation Society last .Monday, when a loiter was received from the Otago Society in defence of tho opossum. It was somewhat concerned, the Otago Society stated, at statements in tho press relative to the supposed damage dono by opossums in forests, soino writers claiming that the eating of greon shoots tended toward a decreaso of nativo birds. Acclimatisation societies, on tho other hand, stated that tho chief bird enemies were stoats, rats, ferrets, wild cats, and such other vermin. With a view to obtaining evidence on tho matter the association had circularised trappers asking for an expression of opinion. Seventy-four replios had been receivod. Of that number 55 gave opinions as to the cause of the diminution of bird life. The stoat was mentioned in 47 letters, tho ferret in 20, tho cat in 18, tho grey owl in 15, the rat in eight, and the hawk in two. Thirty-eight poisons had caught 218 stoats in tho traps this season, and seven trappers—-who gavo approximate figures only—ll3. Thirteon had caught 42 ferrets and 34 wild cats, while 18 had caught 58 rats.