OMNIUM GATHERUM.

Otago Witness, Issue 3029, 3 April 1912, Page 4

OMNIUM GATHERUM.

Crime in Scotland shows a decrease of over 3 per cent. for v the last year. In Germany 23 playing-card factories have produced in one year 6,279,941 packs of cards. A lamb with six legs was among a lot yarded at the Mokutuku (Hawke's Bay) solo last week. The average daily attendance at the Carnegie Publio for the week ended Saturday was 596 persons. The public examination was concluded at the Ixmdon Bankruptcy Court of a woman who was sworn as Alice Mabel Frances Emily Paola Bianca Mary Catherine Stewart, which she said was her full name. Mw> Rockel, a pioneer of Wairarapa, who is now 90 years of age, was a competitor at the recent Masterton Horticultural and Industrial Society's Show, and was awarded first wise for a quilt worked by herself. Hawks are becoming a great pest in the Waikato, and have been playing havoo among young pheasants and the partridges recently imported from England. In and around Cambridge 3d per head is to be paid for hawks' heads, for which purp"ose subscriptions are being invited from local residents. A request from the Wellington General Labourers' Union for the payment of wages to certain casual labourers who were off work during the tramway strike came before the Wellington Council on Thursday evening. The Finance Committee recommended that the request be not acceded to. This was agreed to. A well-known dairy farmer, near Invertrj.rgill, while endeavouring to coax a refractory cow into the bail, threw a stone in the animal's direction His aim was not true, and 1 the missile struck his 10-year-old daughter, who was standing near by. The child sustained a nasty cut on the forehead, which necessitated the calling in of a doctor " Trouble is spreading through New Zealand," remarked Mr V. G. Day, S.M., at the Magistrate's Court, Timaru, "because the children are not subject to proper discipline. Parents nowadays have not the same control over their children as our fathers and grandfathers had. Parents must exercise control over their children at all times." Shavings, a thoroughbred brood mare belonging to Mr Dette, Gisborne, was recently killed through falling into a trench dug through his property by the Borough Council in connection with sewerage works. The council decided to adopt the report of the Finance Committee on the matter, and to pay the sum of £65 in full settlement of the claim Rabbits will be taken at the Mataura works as from the 25th (says the Mataura Ensign), and exporters have been busy of late preparing crates and cases. A new firm has booked space for the season, and it is understood that opening prices will be better than was anticipated. Rabbits are fairly plentiful this year, so a record season may bo looked for. Except for a period of 14 days, while between Capetown and Hobart, the Athenic was in constant wireless communication with the outside world on her voyage from London to Wellington. The longest distance at which communication was maintained was 1146 miles, withR.M.S. Otranto, and a message was sent to Wellington at a distance of ?60 miles. The Victorian Agent-general has arranged for 14,000 berths for immigrants for the present year and the two to follow. The various shipping companies with which contracts have been made have decided to construct seven new steamers, five of which will be reserved for Victorian immigrants only. Each of these new steamers will possess refrigerating space for 100,000 carcases. An observant traveller through the Folding district states there are now to be seen many more hay and ensilage stacks than ever before. He attributes this highly satisfactory state of affairs to the fact that last year's dry season and consequent shortagt of feed having taught the farmers a lesson and to the übundanoo of grass this season. The maize crops have been practically a failure owing to the wet summer. The present season has been anything but propitious in and around Waimarino, on tho Main Trunk line. Tho grass seed harvest has been a grievous disappointment, only about 20 bags being harvested from areas from which five times as much had been expected. Residents of that district speak of the season as " this winter," as though that time of tho year had already arrived, so unseasonable has it been for months past. On Thursday morning Constable M'Quarrie of Winton, arrested William J. Walsh at ' Browns on a charge of having committed perjury during the hearing of the civil action Crow v. Walsh, in the Magistrate's Court, Winton, on February 12. Accused was brought before Messrs R. Jamieson and J. P. M'William, J's.P., in the afternoon, and, on the application of tito police, remanded to the 29th inst., bail being forthcoming. An old pensioner, aged 75 years, was brought before the Magistrate's Court, Christchurch, on Wednesday, on a charge of insobriety. It was his first offence, and he triumphantly informed the court that he had never been intoxicated for 73 years.

Mr H. W. Bishop, S.M., who was on the bench, remarked humorously, " You mean 75 years; you couldn't have started drinking at the age of two years. The offender was convicted and discharged. It is probable that the Midland railway will bo opened for traffic as far as the Bealey before very long. The formation work is almost completed to the Glacier Hotel at the Bealey, and is well in hand from that point up the Bealey River. Pile driving for the bridge over the Bealey River will be commcnoed shortly. _ Ballasting operations t.re to be put in hand at once, with a view to opening the line for traffic to the Bealey as soon as possible. Anyone visiting the Queen's wharf on Thursday afternoon (says the Wellington Post) could not help being impressed with the extent of the work in progress, and the importance of the operations on the harbour front. On practically every tee there were huge piles of merchandise awaiting shipment, and between the wharf gates and the outer tee there was a maze of delivery vans, lorries, and other vehicles. At one period during the afternoon no fewer than 62 vehicles were engaged in handling cargo. A dairy farmer who was a juryman at the Supreme Court sitting .in Masterton last week asked to be relieved from further service, en the ground that he had no person to look after nis cows. Mr Justice Edwards, in granting the request, commented upon the fact that the country districts had asKed for sittings of the Supreme Court, and when they got them they objected to service" on the juries. " Why," he asked, " did they not petition the Justice Department for a reversion to the old order of things?" A stutterer of a very bad type attempted to give evidence before Mr H. W. Bishop, S.M., at the Christchurch Police Court on the 19th (says the Press), but no one could make out what he was saying, though his efforts to speak were awful. " I wish you wouldn't produce witnesses hke that," said the magistrate to Air Gassidy, who was examining the man. Mr Cassidy: Well, I couldn't help it, sir. He gets worse when he is excited. His Worship: Anything you like to say I'll take for granted, but take him out of the box." An observation of some interest to solicitors was made by Mr Justice Denniston in Christchurch on March 23 in holding over an application for probate. Ho stated that the attestation olause was defective in not stating that boh witnesses were present at the same time when they signed. This defect, which was common to many printed forms, had 1 been frequently referred to, and wad the subject of a recent judgment by Mir Justice Edwards. Practitioners should see that the rale on this point was strictly observed. An affidavit must be filed A Timaru young man who went to Woimate last week with the Srnithfield picnic to " have a good time" did not have his wishes satisfactorily fulfilled. The young man entered for one of the races, and divesting himself of his coat and waistcoat, placed them in what he thought was a " safe " position, where, to use his own words, ho " did not think they would be seen." On returning after the race he found that his clothing had been disturbed and his pockets rifled. The pockets contained about 10s in silver, six coppers, and a half-penny.