NOTES AND QUERIES.

Otago Witness, Issue 3099, 6 August 1913, Page 47

NOTE S AND QUERIES.

Questions for reply in coming Issue to reoeired not liter than SATURDAY night.

Si'X’.AY Pump. —Spraying your apple trees with a non-poisonous sheep clip is a very doubtful experiment, and one not to be recommended. You can procure emulsion oil from Howden and Moncrieff (Lid.) for 3s 6d for ojie gallon, or 3s per gallon for four gallons, to make a winter preparation for spraying. The proportions are:—Four pounds special soft i-oap, four gallons red oil, 68 gallons cold water. Preparation: To make the emulsion put the soap into a tub and pour boihng water over it. Stir briskly to a good lather, u/ul add i broil. Make use of your spray pump. Put both delivery and suction ends of hose into the tub, and work the pump steadily for a few minutes; this will cause a perfect emulsion. Add the 68 gallons of cold water, and the mixture Is iearly for use. To be used when the trees arc quite dormant. Early application is recommended—say, July or August. Spraying with oil late in the season, when the buds are swelling, is apt to destroy them. Bex Tuck.— Agricola” writes:—“l stated in Rural Notes of July 23 that ‘quicklime slaked falls to a very fine powder, which is soluble in water, and becomes evenly distributed through the soil and more thoroughly mixed with it tiian any ground unsoluble material (like ground limestone) can possibly be. Herein is constituted its superiority over the ground rock. It is something like dissolving a cupful of sugar in a pint of water and mixing that solution in a bucket of water. Every particle of water present in the bucket would be more or b-ss sweetened by the sugar.’ Any powdered lime would attach itself to the outside of a sod. The liquid would penetrate through it. The action of lime is largely to sot in action the dormant residues of plant, food present in the soil. It cannot do that completely unless it reaches them, and it can reach them best in solution. An application of ground limestone is good so far as it goes, but even if twice the quantity is applied it is not so effective as quicklime in its action. Its manurial effect is due more to its producing a certain chemical action in the soil, described in the Rural Note mentioned, then to its affording nutriment to the crops. 'I hat action is set up more immediately in a liquid form.” O.maku. —(1) Members of mounted corps must attend parados when held at someplace within an hour’s journey on horseback of their place of abode. (2) Under certain circumstances a staff sergeantmajor can call a parade on his own account. (3) You can decline the honour offered you of being promoted to bo a corporal. Write to die officer commanding your company. (4) You are entitled to put your own earmark on the sheep which you have purchased bearing another person’s earmark, so long as you do not remove more than one-fourth of the ear in doing so. Any person destroying, deor altering the brand, except the lawful owner, is liable on conviction to ' imprisonment with hard labour. (5) Wo understand that specialists have removed :i person’s eve. and after attending to it has returned the eye, which the owner lias afterwards found to bo quite serviceable. Cahd. —Mr is generally placed before the name of a vi-itlng card. As it is coti-s-derfd incorrect for a baronet to pur “Barf.” after bis name, for a knight to put “K. 0.8 or “K C.5.T..” or any such letter- or for a member of Parliament to put “M.P.” after his name, it would also bo incorrect to use letters such as F.R.G.. etc., on a visiting card. They should bo reserved for a business card. J IT. —As yet no legislation has been passed appointing any special day or days as holidays for farm labourers. This is a matter which should lie arranged when an engagement is being made INQUIRER. —A school teacher mar gitenj the

meetings of the school committee by permission of the members. The committee can refuse to allow the teacher to attend their meetings. Inquirer, Middlemarch. —(1) Kiwis are to be found running about in a natural state in various parts of New Zealand. There are four or five species. One, the brown kiwi, belongs to the North Island, and is becoming very rare. The others belong to the South Island, and are for the most part now to be found in any numbers on the West Coast. (2) Some kiwis arc usually to be found in captivity at tho Botanic Gardens, Dunedin (3) So fur as we know, two of the members of the House of Representatives in 1905 professed tho Roman Catholic form of religion, while in the present House of Representatives thfere is but one member of that persuasion. R. T.—The chairman is always presumed to have complete charge of a meeting. If a master of ceremonies was also appointed his duties, we presume, would bo to bo the chairman’s executive officer. M.vtai. —(1) Write to tho Under-secrctarv for Immigration asking for a refund. (2) Cable rates to Ireland: Ordinary, 3s per word; deferred, Is 6d per word ; week-end letter, 9d per word; the minimum to be 18s. Those rates arc via Pacific cable, connecting with tho Western Union. Nero asks:—“ What would it cost to purchase a lease in perpetuity section of 40 acres under the' Land Act passed last year? The yearly rental is £l6. and the lease is 20 years old.” Tho total cost would be about £525. Novice. —If you communicate with tho secretary of the Pipers and Dancers’ Association he might bo able to supply you w.th the information you want. B. —On making further inquiry we find that the International Correspondence School, Stock Exchange Buildings, is an American institution, and any communication sent to the address given will bo attended to. P. W., Hyde.—Progressive euchre is usually played us follows: —From five to eight tables make tho best number, and they should all be numbered, No. 1 being tne highest, or ‘‘king table.” Tho players, of whom there should bo equal numbers of either sc-x, draw for tables and partners, each receiving a numbered card, two ot the cards for each table being marked ‘‘A’’ and two marked ‘‘B.’ The lady and gentleman drawing, for instance, l ‘4A” proceed to No. 4 table and begin as partners, those drawing _‘‘4B” doing the same. It is usual to hove the ladies’ and gentlemen’s cards decorated w.th bows of different-coloured ribbons —the gentlemen red and the ladies blue—to avoid confusion. Tho top table plays the ordinary game of 5 or 8 points, and all the other tables score as much as they can. each pair of partners trying to be ahead of their adversaries when the first table having finished, a bell is rung, and play stops instantly, even in the middle of a deal. The winners at each table receive each a little badge or coloured wafer to stick on their cards, and the losers at the •top table go down to tho bottom one, while the winners at tho other tables move one up, and change partners. Play must not begin till the boll from the top table gives the signal for starting. At tho end of the ‘evening tho lady and gentleman- with the greatest number of badges are the winners, and receive piizrs. and there may be booby prizes for those with the fewest badges. Sometimes tho winners at the top table are given different badges from the others, counting two instead of one. or the losers are given ones that count ‘‘minus one.” Kaitangata writes: —“In a three-handed game of cribbage A plays a 9. B plays a 7, and C plays an 8. scoring 3 for a run. A calls a ‘go,’ as he cannot play. B plays another 7, and claims 5 holes. Is this correct?”- No; Bis entitled to score 2 only for making 31. Wages.—Yes; No, 3 player is entitled to score 3 for a second run of 3. Southland.— (1) The Waihcnio County lies between the Waitaki County on the north, the Maniototo on the west, and tho Taien and Waikouaiti on the south. (2) Part of tho Waihemo County is in the Oamaru and part in the Otago Central electorates. ■Vauxh vll. —The Brooklands motor racing track in England'is in Wyebridge, a cl istance of 22 miles from London. Bars. Nightcaps.—A mixture that will stop rabbits and harts from gnawing tho bark of trees is made as follows: One quart of tar and two gallons of water. Bothe tar and one gallon of water. Whet’ just on the boil, remove quickly, for fear of its catching fire, then add the rest of the water. Stir well, and apply with a small whitewash brush. This is said to bo perfectly harmless to the trees, and preserves its effect for at least two years. Another remedy, said to be very effective, is to apply castor oil. There is nothing that will touch a tree with castor oil on. Concerned, Caversham. —Mr 11. M. Davey. consulting engineer, replies:—“You will now see my object in asking you to keep an eye on the slip, for if it had come from a house drain it would not have denoncled on the weather, as apparently it has done. It would seem that although water nine come from several sources, still the rain is the cause of most of the mischief, and. as I pointed out. it may be the soakage into the trench that the drain is in. even more than tho drain itself leaking in the first place. Without seeing the p'aee. and. judging hv the sketch and desei'ption you send, it would seem that a concrete retaining wall is what yon will have to pur up. with water-hold* to allow water to eseane. or drainage to same. freeing you will now know how much water you have to contend with, you will easily know what size of drain would be sufficient.” K. C.. Springhille.—Mr 11. M. Davey. consulting engineer, replies:—“The saw that you want should take from 5 to 7 brake horse-power, depending on (he speed you want to cut, the hardness or toughness of the wood, and last, but not least, tho sharpness of tho saw, so even more power might be wanted if sufficient attention is not paid to these items. It is absolutely impossible to say whether you would have power enough without knowing how much water yon have going into your reservoir, and also the vertical or perpendicular height of the said reservoir from the place the wheel would bo placed, or. in other words, what fall have you? The size of tho wheel does not so much matter as whether it is made to take the amount of wafer you have when the same is measured. In the Witness of last April 25. at. I believe, page 29, you will see how to measure the water you have running in the creek.”

There seems likely to he no diminution in the building trade in Balclntha for some time- (says the Free Press). There .-ire quite a number of now houses, anel at least one large addition to business promises is spoken of. ' A report from Queensland says that the opening of the Panama Canal is not looked forward to as an nnmixeel blessing. The health officers at all ports, and especially the scientists at the Tropical Institute (Townsville), are very much afraid of the importation of yellow fever into Queensland by the iiew route.