SOUTHLAND NEWS NOTES

Otago Witness, Issue 2667, 26 April 1905, Page 45

SOUTHLAND NEWS NOTES

(Feom Oub Own Correspondent.)

IXYERCAEGIIiL, April 24.

During .the week only a very limited business in oats has been passing in the local

market. The North Island markets are only buying sparingly, especially Auckland. Prices to farmers can be quoted oil a par with those rxiling last week viz., Is sid on tmcks at wayside stations, tboiigh in some cases Is 6d has be'en paid for good lines that has been loaded at stations close to town. It ie not expected that the above price can hold unless some large outside demand comes along, and it is pretty certain that a good deal of syec\ilative buying has been going on, and that as soon as this stops there is every chance of the market coming back. The best price- merchants have sold at so far is Is 9d f.0.b., sacks in, net ior B grade, and, allowing for railage and handling through store, this is equivalent to Is 5Jd, sacks extra, on trucks at stations such as Centre Bush in the "Western district and Edendale m the Eastern, so that, on present market price, merchants are only getting their cost out of the business. A good quantity o£ oats is coming forwaid to Bluff for storage on farmers' account. The local merchants expect to have the new season's grade samples fixed up diiring this week. New chaff is now offering pretty freely, and merchants are buying at from JE2 7s 6<l to £1 10s on trucks at country stations. Prices for wheat remain unchanged. Several samples of milling quality have been offeiing during the week, and sold at 3s Id to 3s 2d on trucks at country stations. Fowl wheat can b& quoted 2s 6d to 2s 9d on trucks. Farmers are not at all keen to sell, but it is reported thot a few lines have sold at 7s on trucks bagt, extra. There is no change to report in the local sheep market. Puces for all classes of sheep remain unchanged, and there i-s a. strong local demand for all kinds of young sheep, especially ewes. There is no move in cattle, though there arc plenty offering but buyers aic very difficult to find.

The weather ior the bowling tournament so far has been far from satisfactory. On Thursday theie weie some heavy showers of rain, and even hail, and play could not be staited till the afternoon. On Fiiday the rain held off, and the sun shone out, but the air was extremely cold, and the green, and especially the Inveieargiil Club's green, extremely wet. Saturday, however, was a very much belter day, and did much to remove the reputation of Inveroargill weather. Father Hays, the great temperance lecture:, made his second appeaiauce lieie last Monday e\ ening. and had an even linger audience than iju'oiCj jnobiiblv c^iute 3O'X>. As beicue.

the address made a deep impression on his hearers, and at its close hundreds crowded lound the platform to have tho honour of shaking bauds, with the lecturer and receiving the pledge from him. After the hall had cleared, the chief temperance workers of the town gathered round Father Hays, and the Rev. R. Ferguton, on their behaif, presented him with apair of greenstone sleeve-links and a greenstone cross mounted with gold as a memento of his visit to ScmtMand. On Tuesday Father Hays left for Milton in the afternoon express.

General Booth, founder and head of the Salvation Army, arrived here from Melbourne on Monday last, and delivered his lecture on "The Army its Past, Present, and Future," in the Zealandia Hall on Tuesday evening. Ho had a very good audience, and made a powerful presentation of ths claims of the army to public support. The collection, I understand, was very good.

On "Wednesday evening Mr William Thomson, lecturer and organiser for the Licensed. Victuallers' Association, occupied the Zealandia Hall, and discussed the licensing qxiestion from his own point of view, f Although the night was a very wet one, he had a good audience, and an attentive hearing. At the close Mr Nicholls, organising agent of the New Zealand Alliance, endeavoured to ask a. question with a view to refuting some of Mr Thomson's statements, but the question was not allowed, and Mr Nicholls, persisting, was threatened by the owner of the hall with; ejectment if he did not refrain.

Mr L. O. Mathias, Government surveyor, died very suddenly at his camp near Orepuki on Wednesday morning from apoplexy, and was biiried at St. John's Cemetery, "Waikiwi, on Thursday.

On Tuesday last Mr P. Dawson, accountant to Messrs Thomson, Bridgev, and Co., was presented by his fellow-employees with a. handsome marble clock on the eve of his marriage with Miss Ross, well known here for sonic years past as a teacher of shorthand and typing.

Other presentations during the week were a. pair of gold sleeve-links by the local staff of the National M. and A. Company, to Mr Giller on the occasion of his transfer to Christchurch ; and presentations to Mr and Mrs Domigan, from Gore residents, on leaving for the north. Paradise ducks aa-e to be protected this year The result of this will be that conscientious sports will spare fch«m, and there will be the more for the other fellows. On Saturday the Axemen's annual carnival commenced. Although the present one is only the fourth, this meeting has grown to be recognised as one oi Southland's premier gatherings, and the events are so well competed for that it now takes two days to get through the programme. Combining as it does chopping, sawiw rvmning and cycle events, the public cajiiiot complain of the bill of fare. The number of competitors., too, speaks well, no less than 227 individuals a&piring for honours, while the. total entries received for the 26 events reach to over 400. In entry fees over £160 was taken, while the number of logs required for the meeting runs to 200, varying in thickness from 12in for the ba:k-band chop to 24in for the championship event. Trophies and cash to the value of £307 are given away, the largest sum being competed for in the underhand handicap chop, 22in logs, when the first prize is £30. The weath-er for the first day ws>s cold and threatening, consequently the attendance of the public was not so large, although all interested and their barrackers rolled up in force. In some events only the heats were got off, the finals being finished to-day. The 440 yds for Amateurs was v.-oii by C. S. Smith, Union Handioap by L. C. WLaehlan, Three-mile Bicycle by W. Baldwin, Maiden Sawing by Chisbolm and M'Rae, One-mile Amateur by Brownley, 220 yds by E. Fisher, Single-handed N.Z. Championship Sawing by G-. A. Goold (world's champion), One-mile Handicap by "W. Couling, Maiden Chop by P. Baird. An unfortunate incident occurred in the final of the Three-mile Bicycle Race, when, through one competitor's wheel touching another's, four out of the six were brought down, and A. Brighton had to be removed to the hospital in a dazed condition, with his head badly knocked about. On inouiry this morning I learn tha.t he is progressing' favourably, and will scon be able to 2«ave his bed. The other competitors were not so seriously hurt ; in fact, on« of their number, Simmers remounted and rode into third place. The carnival will he continued to-day.

Sergeant Bowden, of the local police force, had an apopletic seizure on Friday, and is no-vr confined to bed, and not expected to be fit for duty for a coupla of months. Afour-stalled stable belonging to' Messrs Harlison and Spiers, was totally destroyed by firs last Thursday night.

At the annual Convention of the Canterbury No-license Workers on Friday it was resolved to recommend the Colonial Convention to instruct the Alliance to frame questions for submission to parliamentary candidates, the questions to be on the following- lines:— (l) Are yon in favour of repealing the provision in the licensing law reqiiiring at least one-half of the total number of electors on the roll to record their votes in order to make a licensing poll valid? (2) Are you in favour of amending the Licensing Acts so as to provide for a licensing poll to be held simultaneously witbi every general election of members of Parliament? (3) Will you endeavour to preserve unbroken the present local option rights possessed by the people? It was also decided to urge the New Zealand Alliance to give immediate and earnest attention to the subject- of scientific temperance instruction in public schools.

Provision is being- ma do in the forthcoming French Budget (-says a Home paper) for the extinction of the pensions conferred by Napoleon on his generals and marshals a century ago. Berthicr, llasscna. Ney, Bernadotte, Grouchy, Lanncs. and Oudmofc are among the hi=toiic figures of the Napoleonic epoch \vho=o descendant* have drawn pensions for 100 year<, and arc now to be bought out at 15 yeaiV puvchase. The reform will mean a saving of about 1,000.000 francs a yvar. A similar step in England would deprive the descendants of Lord Rodney, Et>vl Nplsoii. ard the Duke of Scliombcvg of their perpetual pensions amounting to £7700 per annum. Those conferred on Lords Napier, Har.lin^<?, Gough, Scaton, and Kcane ccaso at the death of the present peers, and will relieve the exchequer of an annual sum of £11.000. The Iron Duke's £4000 a year ended at rho demise of the late DuLo of Wellington. But the biggest pension in the vroikl ib tho £19.000 settled by Charles II on his natural son, the Duko of Richmond, and still punctually pan] to hi^ heirs a-> it has beeo these 200 ycara.