OMNIUM GATHERUM.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 16964, 28 March 1917, Page 10

OMNIUM GATHERUM.

Rain is badly needed throughout the Wairarapa. d.saiet, ana tile puniwou is becom- . i"=s acrioub ior tne laanuig community. it «s estimated that tiu-.re are about 600 acres or nuid iyjiig non-productive m ttie buruuyn 01 Hastings. i me- ii.asm.uei; vji good coffee is grutitymg anu sCuiiuiauug to tne uppetne. Ooiteelovirs can ouiani. lrom " uuric s, Octagon, L/uiicum, not only good' coitee, but tne wuuus uost.... Tne lauranga, Fire Board, after an inquiry moo a recent lire, lias ivconmiended tuat more care bo taiien by insurance agents to ascertain tlie vaiuo ot stocks before taiuug risks. Un W cune-sday £119 was taken in fares on cue i\ew iriymouth trams, being tile largest revenue 10. one oay oince me in- ** auguration or tne service. Un iN'ew "iear's iJay tile receipts amounted to ±io3. An increase to id is announced by the Ureymoutn and J3.oult.Ka ually papers, iile Crey iuver states: "ll we lose the support already accorded us through. the inc.ease to m per copy, tne paper will ceiwc puuucauon in tlie near iature." Waters I'asrinaey re-moved to larger premises, iNc. i.f, iieXo tieroert, xiayiies.... Tne loilowmg notice appeared in a recent "oilic.al circular" to tne civil service:— " (Jwcws are notified tuat, during tne currency oi tlie war, voluntary retirements oi permanent ohicers Iroin tlie pubLc service Will not be permuted unless three montns' notice is given." At a crowded meetmg of the Miners' Union last week at Y\aihi a mot.on to rescind a resolution passed in li'euruary Qonating live pounds u month in aid of dependents ot men mnirisonea tor seditious utterances the Aucidaaid !itiuj was carried by a majority oi lb. The president' resigned. At a well-attended meeting of the Alice Parkinson Release Committee, held recently (says the Wellington l J ost). regret was expressed that tne committee Had not yet accompiisned its object. However, it was resolved to continue to use every possible means to do so. Tho hon. treasurer reported cash in hand £7 7s lOd. uile*st iUiormat.on may be obtained by sufferers Iroin pilts by simply calling at, or ' writ.ng, Marshall's Pharmacy, Princes street, Dunedm. American - Cure (ss)' is a guaranteed remedy of proved merit.... The Wanganui borough engineer is recommending concrete tor streets with a . line carpet oi tar macadam as a wearing surface, ihis class ot roadway is now the standard in Wellington, and costs about 8s per square yard, as against as for tar macadam, and 2(Js for wood-blocking. ' News comes Irom England of tne Home Secretary having issued to a baker who is now employaig two men and 18 women, wnerc in pre-war days he had 20 men; a license (aiter making lull inquiries into the conditions) for women to bake bread by night. It was thought likely that other licenses for women biucers would piobably be issued. »

Ihe world-wide value of British coinage was mentioned by Major Waitc, D.5.0., in a lecture at Petone on Friday night, when ho stated that anywhere in the Mediterranean a coin that has on one side the King's head, whatever it has on the reverse —wnether the Australian or English em-blem—-is always current coinage. Atmospheric pressure is now rather much to the square inch. Tall men are recommended to Wm. Crossan, Waterloo Hotel, Caversham

'ihe Poverty Bay Herald states that during the recent floods at Hicks Bay . a waterfall behind a house became blocked with a slip. The backing up 01 tile water sub-, sequently caused a big rush of water and andj the house was carried away. 'Ihe occupants escaped to the hdls, where the birtn of a <;hild took place. A very serious accident happened to Mr H. Ward, a well-known resident of Patea, last week, whilst driving shetip on the main road near the top of tne hill on the east Side of Patea. Jit is riot yet known what happened, but Mr Ward was tound lying on the road unconscious/ having sustained severe injuries to the head. A pathetic incident occurred last • week (says tho Auckland Herald). A returned soldier, who was invalided from the front suffering from shell shock, disappeared- from his home. With tho help of tiie. police, tho soldier _ was found at Avondale, and it was ascertained that he had been fot several days wandering about the Waikaterc Ranges. Arrangements have been made for prottssional treatment. . livery tiling no,v is being Specialised. Our Specialty is Ladies' Costumes. Good. Material, Careful Construction, and a Per- " feet Fit at Moderate Cost is our motto. See our new season's Worsteds, Serges, and Gaberdines; then entrust us with your order. —A. F. Cheyne and Co., Mosgiel.... The largest locomotive in the world has been put m service on the Virginian -railroad (says an exchange). It is hauling coal trains over the mountains. The locomotive is a mammoth triple engine, and it was built at tho Baldwin locomotive wefrks in. Philadelphia. It has 44 per cent, greater power than any other engine in the world, and is 101 ft long and weighs 422 tons. Its' pulling power is rated at 2375 tons. That young women can effectively take * the place of men is at present indicated, fn Timaru (says the Timaru Herald) by. the fact that a young woman is doing her brother's work (taking orders on a grocers round), while the latter is at the war. Prior to leaving, the brother had some difficulty . in getting any6ne to take ilia place, so his sister volunteered, and she has been doing the work well ever since, " Articles of clothing, which- cost 2s 6d before the war, now cost 3s 6d," said the manager of one of the bis* London stores recently. " The boot and shoe departments present the most difficulties at the moment, as practically no leather is procurable, the whole supply being in the hands of the Go- . yernment. We shall all have to go about in patched and old boots. All articles mado in England," he coueiudcd, "are high priccd, while the' cheaper lmes are being dulnped here from the UniteH States."

Waters' Chap Lotion is a guaranteed cure for rough hands: Is and Is 6d.... A glimpse of the pasture lands of Southland makes it hard to realise that March is more than half gone (says the Southland Times). There appears to be'an abundance of grass everywhere. There ought to be no necessity for farmers to break into their winter feed any earlier than they like to, and the saving at this end should providu a surplus of root orops when the winter has passed, which surplus always comes in handy as a reserve against a nasty spring.

■ A rather peculiar mariiicfcspecimen was washed up oil the Sumner bcach recently and attracted considerable attention - (says the Christchurch Press). It consisted of a living mass about two_ yards long arid 18 inches' across, comprising hundreds' of circular bodies, varying in length up to ab ( out eight inches. Tli" head of each was enclosed in a shell-like_ formation, and . there was a bunch of hair at the end. Each individual piece was sensitive to touch, and k"nt moving continuously. • Numbers of old residents and frequenters of the beacli v'owed' the specimen, but none remembered having seen anything like it before, and its identity remains a mystery.