CURRENT TOPICS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2299, 24 March 1898, Page 3

CURRENT TOPICS.

Nostrums for the cure oi diseass are frequently

put forward, aad probably no A curs disease is responsible for more

1 Foil than cjEgumpfioi 1 , that iasidicns ! ! consumption, malady vrLich roDd the world of \ j the fairest and mcsii aini&ble. ' I From a Borfc.pondcn' to the Age we learn tta-< , m Jk nitric* a mebhod oi Irea^ifcent ha? bten di* ■ : covered «fhich ia a aid to be cuiiug bundEetls j j daily, tven in adv»n«:cti Surges of oisess-e. Bs , rr.auV tfciugs o? this kind have their origin iv > America that oiifi believe? reluctantly, but vre j give a description of too method as pu v to;- ■ ward by the eorre&ponde-n% to out- Molbriuma j contpaipornry. Useeaistisab Professor Edutw, ci JSkw York City, Li* •.'emonsttated to th» j meiicai faculty that b- } m»acs of a- sytc.*l j battery coloured drugs may be passed through | the 85 stem to any organ. '• Tco aiedical clec- j trieian passes a powerful autiaf-piie through . the lungs or chest and destroys every microbe. ( An antiseptic more powerful than corrosive i sublimate, also an Atcericaa discovery, i* in no i j v,ay dangerous in any mijsefc." Under ordinary circumstances it might be well to s'.op at this point,, for adding, anything to a statorneut auch as the foregoing' sis like paintiDg the lily or adorning the rose ; but we proceed, for what follows is too good to be lost. In an article in the "Forum," March, 1894, Dr Herman Biggs, j of the New York Hospital, makes the follow- ' ing statement : — "' The indignant toe of sciences j I is about to luck a disease like consumption per- j i emptorily off the plane!;. I not only declare j, consumption to be curable, bnt that with our j present knowledge we have it in our power to j completely wipe out pulmonary tuberculosis . in a single generatiou." Another doctor say« : ( j "By a new process I project directly upon the j I luag or other organ attacked by tuberculosis »n J 1 antiseptic which destroys the bacillus Koch. IS ; I can be injected through the ekin, musolts, c-e ; I auy part of the body. My success has suri passed my hopes, and" my collaborators had the j I eacce success." The result of statements such , as these was that a committee of physicians wm j formed in Paris, and the report of their investi- j gations was favourable to tha new treatment, j So perhaps there may be something in it a£tec all. I j At the last tpeeting of the Southland County j Council a letter was read from a i electrocu- Wyndhamite which was very tion of original. Whether the sugsmall birds. geßtions contained in it are practicable is another matter. The small-bird nuisance sorely agitated the council, bub after long debate the only con- j elusion which could be arrived at was a motion j calling upon the Government to offer a bonus j for a specific or remedy that will mitigate the ] evil. It would have been much more sensible if soma method had beßn put forward of utilising the small birds as rabbits are now being utilised. It is well known that linnets | and epaivows readily pass for larks and even j q<\ail, and the adventurous Southlandei'3 who wiil uot poison tho rabbits because they are worth money for freezing might take up the matter. Meantime here is the suggestion of the ingenious settlsr at Wyudham :—: — I My scheme is to ereot wire fenced round any only crop of oats which is suffering fiom the i depiedations of the biul«, and in the case of a luge field some wires cjuld be run on high posts thioiuch the held. Have at hand a small electric j dynamo and engi".3, connected with the wire of i the fence-.. On the birds being disturbed they ! will lhe fiom the oats in flocks iind settle on the wires A s'loai current of electricity put through, the wit es would then kill the birds in large numbcis. l-i. it ihe electiic current will act in thif f.ii'l very effectually, too, any expert will t^T.ify to if tht ij n any doubt iv vho matter. That th' 1 LirfJt w.il *J, 'in tho way I have mdi!- ! catcd siyonc cau sh'.i>j v j himself by a walk near J tiny iield cf oats v.'ka'o i! a birds are thick. I Thi3 savours very roach cf the Lime-hononred method of putting saib oa a blni's tail. We wonder whether ths council's oorreaponclenb knows how many volts it takes to kill a sparrow, or whether it would not cost more to keep a < 7/ ire fence charged with electricity than to teed |ti birds. In any case what is the objection to Lhc old iashioned plan of hiring a boy with a j ciapper ? Is it too expansive, or is sudi commonjplace work degrading to the colonial

youth ? Someono might at least try it at all events until the Government e?oko that schema Oi: specific desired by the council. We have received a circular which intimates that a movement is on foot to a new commemorate the centenary burns 5 ea? (1896) of the poet's death MEsroBiAL. by the erection of some memorial at Mauchline, where Burns resided. The circular continues :—: — At Mauchline he also met and married his wife, " Bonnie Jean," a native of Vh.2 village. So successful has the society been in its efforts tlut a number of cottage homes have beta erected and aie now occupied. The homes arts ipou to poor and -vspictable old people of as?y country. ' There is also a small tower with museum under, neath. From the top of this tower a magnificent view can be bad of the " banks and braes," tbe woods and dale?, which. Burns made class:.: during his residence there. The tower is nearly finished, and the opening CPivmopy -vill take place shortly. It is expects < ( | that this tower will be self supporting, as a* snail ; charge will be made for admission. ! £'3775 has now heen subscribed, but the executi v« I are .desirous of raising iioOOO in all, so that ai ! endowment fund bs formed to enable the inmate: j to receivo a small weekly allowance, besides thi shelter cf a roof tiee. | A gieat deal of money has come iv from tmex>' ! pscutd source?, but much was expected frore > quarters which ara still strangers to us. The 1 executive are anxious that the endowment fund | i.o completed by the opening of the memorial -'v I spring. "With thwviawwe appeal to your many | renders to help us in the good wot'k. We hops thax; yet ia many quarters it has only | to becme known, to obtain support, that a bene- ! vulent memorial is being elected almost iv the j very field where Burus ploughed up "Ths Moun- ! tain Daisy," and unhoused "The Mouse," "Wee, 1 else :it, cow'ria', tim'rou3 bs.\stie," to the author , cf ihe nuiveisal doxology "Man to man the warH i o'er, shall biitJisrs be and a' tha^," the world's ] u&tional anthem (if wa may be allowed to Ude ihe I tuirn). " Auld Lan<? Syce," <Sc, &c. j The above rathsr flowery circular is signed bs j Mr Thomas Killin, 168 West George ■treft, I Glasgow, to whom contributions may be sent, j No doubb admirers of Barns will recdily respond to the appeal. j - ' In compliance with a motion tabled last sossiou by Mr Morrigoa a leturn has members' been printed to show the travtl- ! tjrayelling ling allowances which have been j allowances, paid to members of the House i of Representatives from 1 892 to i 1897. It may ba noted that in 1892 the I sum allowed to members for pas3»^ea I was £263 14-s Bd, and for expenses £139 ; 174 6d. In the financial year ended i March 31, 1897, members appear to have been [ more moderate in charging for passages, bat ' more lavish in the matter of expenses, for tho j firmer amounted to £200 5s 6d and the latter jto £169 5s 6d. Kr Morrison having moved for ; the return, he might naturally be expected to > figure to advantage in it, and it is somewhat 1 siflgular that his expenses come to exactly £3 ' every year. Mr Pinkerton seems to be able to ' accomplish the journey for £2 ; while Mr I Hutchison was more luxurious and seems to ! have spent £3 53. Mr Barnshaw rubbed alot.g j somehow on £2, while Mr Fish spent £2 83. I Mr O'Regan, hailing from the West Co?sl, I spends £9 on passage inoaey and £5 on ! expenses, while Mr R. M'Ketzie spends £10 1 5s for passage money and £6 15s oa expenses. I la this ease no one will attempt to deny that i the colony gets value for its money. When Mr Larnach goes a legislating it costs the colony £3 5j for passage money and £5 for "fxe3," this representative no doubt holding that the labourer is worthy oE his hire. "When i Mr Ward became merely a private member ! and could no longer claim the Ministerial travelling allowance, it cost the colony £1 for passage and £2 7s 6d for expenses, and -Mr Speaker charges £6 173 6d for passages and £4153 for allowances. A? a matter of fact hon. members interpret their liberty to charge in the most varied manner, though, of course, it I cannot be said that any of the amounts seem i exorbitant. The difference probably arises from i the varied temperaments which make that which is a necessity to one man a lusufy to another. Private intelligence has been received of ths death, at Melbourne, of Mr C. C. Murray, oE the firm of Murray, Roberts, and Co. He was ! formerly managing partner of the firm in Ihe I Norbh Island. The Napier Daily Telegraph alleges that a great deal of roll-stuffing is carried on, and cs an illustration says: — "On Monday last (the 7th insb.) several men left Napier for Wellißg- ! ton. These men are domiciled here, their j names are on the Napier roll, and their wivas I and families ara here ; yet before leaving they were not afraid to tell men of the • tight; colour ' that they were going to vote for having had their names ' transferred ' fron^^H I Napier to the Wellington roll. As the <^^^k allowing transfers provides that an appli<^^^H have his name transferred from the roll^^^H constituency to that of another must h>^^^| sided in the latter a month prior to luab^^^H 1 byplicatau, it !■< übvious that if any , j mtiii vuri'ri iv Wellington he' broke thei^^^H nv...st have a 'Wo committed perjuvy^^^^^^| nxui", ou the Y/tilingkm roll,'*.