Ladies and Gentlemen AND OTHERS.

NZ Truth, Issue 317, 22 July 1911, Page 1

Ladies and Gentlemen AND OTHERS.

Recently-deceased Captain Edwin, ex-Government meteorologist, passed out at the age of»71 years. He entered the Navy as a "middy" m 1853, and was present at the attack, by the combined English and French fleets on Sebastopol m 1854. He also took part m the China war. He retired from the navy m 1871. As a weather prophet, Edwin was the joke of the marine, who good humoredly referred to him as Captain "Headwind." * * • George Seifert,.. the well-known; Manawatu sport, who was the backer of Australian sculler Harry Pearce, when poor aid Bill Webb rowed his last race, and who is backing Fogwell, who carried off the sculling championship of New Zealand from Whelch, of Akaroa, left for England, via, Australia, last Friday. Fogwell, as is well known, is to row tfee English champion, Barry, shortly, and his -backer is the "Flax King." Seifert will be m England three or four weeks before the race. * * * Wellington Detective Department showed a mean sort of spirit over Detective-Sergeant Cassells's farewell. As is well known the popular "demon" has been transferred to Napier, for which town he took his departure on Monday last. The uni-^ formed branch of the police on Sat- I urday 'last presented the transferred . officer with a suitably-inscribed marble-clock, and wished him all sorts of good wishes, but the other branch, the "Dees," was not represented, and did not as much as say good-bye. These little things tell, and the fact should not be lost sight of when — well, when it is coavenoeßt , t o remember the fact. Wellington m losing Cassells has lost a very smart officer , and at the present juncture, he can be ill spared. . » • » Skin and hair should fly shortly if the libel action instituted by Denny Hoben, the red-haired editor of the "Manasssatu Times" against the proprietors of the "Rangitikei Advocate," of which W. H. Smith ia editor, goes to court. Hoben and ■Smith, . have not been playing "chanies" for some time ;( past, and the cause of the trouble' is the lease of. the "Times," of w&ch $mith is the owner, and even now %here is litigation pending m the Wellington Court of Appeal. Alleged libel is contained m a recent paragraph m the "Advocate" and concerns an interview said to have taken place between a newspaper representative and Dr Coward, conductor of the Sheffield choir, when the "chortlers" were m Palmerston North., • ■ * Latest reports are that the Mayor of Wellington, who fell a victim to the appendicitis fiend, is making rapid progress to complete recovery. The news, indeed, is satisfactory, because the seriousness of Tom Wilfo'rd's position has been carefully kept from the public Now, however, that there is no danger and that Tom is doing splendidly, "Truth" doesn't think any harm can be done m letting Wellington know how close it was to losing its chief magistrate. His case was a i very bad one, and it is due to the skiil. of his medical attendants that he is alive to tell the tale. It was ! necessary to perform no * less than ! live operations upon him, and deli- | cate operations they were too. I In the circumstances, it is not sur- \ prising that the doctors thought it necessary that the Mayoral patient j should not be bothered or pestered | 'by callers..

'Alfred Dillon, M.P., for Hawke T S Bay, has announced that he will not seek re-election. A. L. D. Fraser> exrmem-ber for Napier, is a likely candidate for the seat. .* • * Captain Crichton Maitland, late of Wellington GuVmint 'Ouse, arrived m England safely, so a private letter states, after a very interesting trip via Japan - and Siberia.; • • • H. P. Lyon, advaace m New Zealand for the Nacola "mystery" man, is reputed to be the oldest theatrical agent mi n these parts. Mr Lyon has been m advance of one thing or another for the past 50 years. Occasionally be Is found m print m the Sydney "Sportsman," where he has told many of his experiences. • - • • Another oldest inhabitant; has passed owt down at Oamaru, w^** is No-license and is bard-up. Said 0.1 is Mick Morgan, who * turned the game of life up at 93.' There i 9 nothing particularly : exciting to, record about Mick except that a) couple of years ago "Truth" immortalised him m verse on the oc* casion of his appearance before al Magistrate on a charge of annexing a Gladstone bag. His age was then given at 91. An pld identity m the person of Barney Winter, but better known as "Barney White Rats," bas handed m his marble down South. Barney, who was reputed to be 99 years of age, passed out m the Victoria Home, Oamaru, on July 13 last. He was a tramp and preferred to tramp with his Punch and Judy •show all over the Sorafch to the infinite delight of the school kids. It was o**ly recently that he had to take to the Old Men's Home, because he possessed that love of independence so characteristic of the >old time battler. A writer to' "Truth," m regretting that Barney is no n*ore, records the fact that, a ■few yeacs ago he met Barney on the road, and. the old 'un, who was fond •of his beer, wanted to know the wfaereatosputs of the nearest pub., Barney was told that it was forty miles off. He might be forgiven his sin. Barney, swore and declared that ProhiMfciorT was sending the country to heii. It is not recorded whether Barney . set out for that pub* or whether he struck a sly grog! joint. . * • • The queslteon which just now is concerning the Masseyites m the. Wefling-ton .East Elect orate, at pre-< sent heM by Labor man Dave McLaren, is wftto shall fly the banner, of Boodle ? Wowser A. R. Atkinson, who last year headed the poll,, but was defeacted by McLaren on the Second Ballot, has been advised to stand down for Dr Newman, but he shows no disposition to do so, and the suggestion has been thrown out that the Doc, should hike off elsewhere and seek' some constituency which might loo\k with favor on a' Hasseyite. The Hwtt, which is Tom Wilford's stronghold, is pointed o^tt to Doc. Newman, but the litUe re*tired medico won't budge, andthings generally promise to <#>velop into a huge burst-up. Wellington East, which for so long loved "Mary Ann" Aitken, is lo<js»d to next election to return an Oppositionist, and is going to be -he scene of much excitement m the futußS. The Government candidates threaten to ibe as thick as leaves m autumn, j while the Labor man is sanguine ofi re-elect' on. One can never tell how. {things will go until the numbers are up.