NEWS BY CABLE.

Otago Witness, Issue 3802, 25 January 1927, Page 49

NEWS BY CABLE.

ii.. WINTER IN ENGLAND. LONDON, January 22. England is covered in snow throughout the country. BJJSH FIRES EXTINGUISHED. L ADELAIDE, January 22. _ The bush fires in.. e been extinguished. They caused damage exceeding £lO,OOO. REV. R. J. CAMPBELL MARRIED. } LONDON, January 17. The Rev. R. J. Campbell was quietly married to his private secretary (Miss Ethel Smith). . RAIN IN SYDNEY. '•T . . SYDNEY, January 22. Owing to rain, which lasted all day, most of the cricket matches and other sports were abandoned. HISTORIC CEREMONY. ■' m SYDNEY, January 28. There was an historic ceremony yesterday at the unveiling of a tablet at Camp Cove to commemorate Governor Phillips first landing at Port Jackson 139 years 1 FIRE ON BRITISH FREIGHTER. F NEW YORK, January 21. When fire damaged the cargo of the British freight steamer Karroo to the extent of 1,000,000 dollars on Friday, the vessel was scuttled at the pier here to prevent spread of the flames. fi MISSING STEAMER FOUND, f NEW YORK, January 22. The Boston cargo steamer John Tracy, which has been missing since January 11. has been found off Cape Cod. She carried a crew of 27. GAIN BY IMMIGRATION. SYDNEY, January 18. It is officially estimated that Australia had a net gain of 42,200 to her population from immigration last year. PACIFIC CABLE REPAIRED. SYDNEY, January 20. The Pacific Cable Board states that the cable ship Faraday has removed the defect in the new’ cable, and is returning to Sydney. ' RECOGNITION OF TURKEY. WASHINGTON, January 18. The Senate on Tuesday refused to ratify the Lausanne Treaty, re-establish-ing diplomatic and commercial relations - with Turkey. CHAPLIN DOMESTIC TROUBLES. WASHINGTON, January 22. The Treasury Department on Saturday officially informed Mrs Chaplin that it was unable to assist her to collect alimony, as the Chaplin funds are tied up ‘ in income tax liens. OPENING OF CANBERRA. MELBOURNE, January 20. A florin of special design is being issued in May to commemorate the opening of the Federal Parliament at Canberra. A special stamp is also being issued. ■ INVESTMENT MONEY. LONDON, January 20. In response to the recent offer of a 4 per-cent, consolidated loan the Treasury received offers of £209,358,000, of which £81,298,000 were cash applications and £128,060,000 conversions. BELGIAN COINS. BRUSSELS, January 22. A The National Bank is buying up old gold and silver coins at the rate of 27 belgas for a gold 20-franc piece, and hopes to receive the contents of “small farmers’ stockings.” POLITICAL PRISONER. MADRID, January 17. It is reported from Lisbon that De Silva, an ex-Prime Minister of Portugal, who was imprisoned in a fortress in consequence of his political activities, has escaped. COLD ELECTRIC LIGHTS. LONDON, January 22. Mr J. D. Robertson, a former Victorian, claims that he has produced a cold electric light adaptable to the illumination of motors on aeroplanes from the waste energy of the magnetos. . KING FERDINAND. BUCHHAREST, January 20. The physicians recommend radium treatment for King Ferdinand’s cancer. Professor Sevceneau has gone to Brussels to buy radium at a cost of £40,000. . MISHAPS TO HORORATA. LONDON, January 20. The Hororata grounded at North Foreland, but was refloated on the next tide. She anchored in the Thames, where a iog - descended, and two steamers struck her . and holed her above the water line. SOCIAL RESEARCH. ; ■ LONDON, January 18. Sir Arthur Dyke Acland left £lO,OOO to the trustees of Labourites Co-operators -ifor travel scholarships for young men' and women to study the social and industrial conditions in other countries.

A ROMNEY STOLEN. LONDON, January 20. Detectives are searching for Romney’s picture of “An Officer,” which is believed to have been stolen for a connoisseur from an exhibition of the late Mr W.'A Coats’s collection at the Royal Society of British Artists at Haymarket. This is the third recent picture theft. ;=■ SOVIET ELECTIONS. LONDON, January 20. The Daily Telegraph’s Riga correspondent states that Russia is in the throes of elections for the Soviets. It is reported that the richer peasants are leading an active campaign against the Communists, and several prominent Communist propagandists have been killed in Moscow and in the Vladmir and Tambov districts. NEW HEBRIDES. MELBOURNE, January 22. The Government has appointed Briga-dier-general Griffiths Administrator of Nauru, to represent Australia on the Royal Commission which is being sent by the British Government to investigate the position of British settlers in the New Hebrides under the condominium. THE ATLANTIC FLEET. LONDON,' January 17. The Atlantic fleet, comprising 40 warships, has sailed for Spanish ports; It includes mine-sweepers, the third battle squadron, the fifth and sixth destroyer flotillas, the second cruiser squadron, the Hood, and the flagship Revenge. JAPAN AND AMERICA. TOKIO, January 18. Baron Shidehara (Foreign Minister), in a speech in the Diet, said that he regretted that America had not adjusted the question of immigration discrimination, but he was glad that a true understanding of Japan’s pacifism was growing among the American people. BRITISH AIRMEN. PARIS, January 17. The International League of Aviators has decided to award two medals to British airmen for their achievements in 1926. They selected Sir Alan Cobham for his Australian flight and Captain Barnard in recognition of his notable air work. The world’s champion will be selected from the medal winners on January 28. TRAGEDY IN TEXAS. NEW YORK, January 22. News from Austin, Texas, states that eleven members of the Baylor University basket-ball team were killed and eleven injured (five perhaps fatally) when a passenger train struck an automobile bus, twenty-two miles east of Austin, on Saturday. ' TRADE RECOVERY. LONDON, January 18. The first indication of Britain’s new year hope of a trade recovery is contained in the fact that the Board of Trade figures show a reduction of 63,000 in the number of unemployed compared with last week. Nevertheless the total number of unemployed is 1,432,000, which is 210,000 more than a year ago. THE AMERICAN NAVY. - WASHINGTON, January 17. The Senate Appropriations Committee reported the Naval Supply Bill to the Senate providing appropriations for three additional battle cruisers, increased perso u'ncl for the navy, and additional aeroplanes, thus overriding the wishes of Mb Coolidge and the Budget Bureau. NURSE CHARGED WITH MURDER. MELBOURNE, January 19. A woman nurse has been arrested on a charge of wilfully murdering Eileen Clark, who was found dead on January 13, apparently as a result of malpractice. The deceased was a single woman, 25 years of age, "and was employed as a waitress in a city restaurant. MR CHURCHILL IN ROME. ROME, January 19 Mr Churchill had an interview of half an hour with the Pope, who discussed the situation in China, especially :with reference to the danger to Christian missions. The Government gave a dinner to Mr Churchill in the evening, at which Signor Mussolini -was. present. - TITLES FOR CANADIANS.. OTTAWA, January 19. J, Speaking at a banquet at Toronto to the retiring Lieutenant-Governor, the Premier advocated lifting the ban on the granting of titles to Canadians. He hoped that the Ottawa Government would see that the “defect whereby Canadians were ineligible for royal honours” was remedied. SHORTAGE OF CASH. MELBOURNE, January 20. Owing to the reduction of the Estimates for the military forces, the Defence Department is so short of cash. that it is unable to pay the train fares of the permanent soldiers, and has circularised the adjutants of all battalions in the third division, which' embraces the whole ot Victoria, ordering that the movements'of ■ troops entailing expense must be-elimim ■fifed. This • win seriously hamiper the training of the citizen forces.

.VOTES FOR WOMEN. LONDON, January 18. The women’s franchise organisations have combined to launch a great c.p paign for the immediate granting of the vote to all women of the age of 21 on the same terms as men. All the constituencies will be invaded. Mrs Pethick Lawrence (president of the Women’s Freedom League) will open the platform tour. BOOK WITHDRAWN. LONDON, January 18. Messrs Hutchinsons, publishers, have withdrawn from circulation a book in which the author stated that Lord Kitchener’s private secretary was a German whose efficiency made him indispensable. The publishers find that the statement is untrue, and apologise to the secretary, who is still living. —... • * A ROYAL FARMER. . LONDON, January 17. The Prince of Wales was so impressed by his visit to Grove Farm, on the banks of the Trent, near Nottingham, that he decided to buy the property, a farm of 120 acres, with a high reputation for stock-raising and hygienic milk production. A h<.rd of cows is being transferred there from the Prince’s estate in Cornwall. STORM IN N.S. WALES. SYDNEY, January 21. A terrific storm, accompanied by thunder and lightning, occurred at Parkes. Many buildings were struck by lightning and ruined. Other buildings were unroofed by the force of the gale, and trees were uprooted. Nearly two inches of rain fell in half an hour, and some places were flooded. NEW ZEALAND APPEALS. LONDON, January 21. The Privy Council allowed the New Zealand appeals in Doughty versus the Tax Commissioner (restoring Chief Justice Stout’s judgment, and granting costs for the appellant in the lower court), and in Gardner versus Te Porou Hirawanu and others (endorsing the judgment of Mr Justice Ostler, minority judge, and granting costs here and below). MAN OVERBOARD. GIBRALTAR, January 20. Fine seamanship saved Lieutenant Burges, whom a huge wave washed off the destroyer H.M.S. Splendid. Lieu-tenant-commander Falls manoeuvred the vessel to where Lieut ?nant Burges was floating oh the crest of a wave and hauled him on board as it dashed on to the ship's side. The cook, who also went overboard, was washed back on the deck by a succeeding wave. SMALLPOX OUTBREAK. SUVA, January 21. The Ganges, from India, did not enter Suva harbour, but went direct. to . the Nukulau quarantine station. The passengers have been landed. A message which appeared on Wednesday stated: The steamer Ganges is due at/ Suva from Calcutta on Thursday with 540 Indian passengers. She has 13 cases of smallpox on board. Four deaths occurred during the voyage. .DROUGHT IN QUEENSLAND. BRISBANE( January 21. The chief pastoral inspector, after a tour of the State, reports that, with the exception of the area east and south of Charleville, the country is in a bad state owing to the drought, and from three miles north of Charleville to Longreach it is in a deplorable condition. It will only be possible for the holdings to carry on with the present feed for five weeks. DOMINION BUTTER. SYDNEY, January 21. In tlie Assembly, in reply to a question, Mr Lang said he thought the suggestion quite reasonable that' New Zealand butter imported to New South Wales should have to bear the same markings on the package as to quality as the local product. He said he would consult the Attorney-General on the subject. JAPANESE PARLIAMENT. TOKIO, January 21. The Opposition decided to withdraw the vote of no confidence. The entire political situation has undergone an unexpected change as the result of the Prime Minister’s efforts to reach an understanding. Consequently it is believed that a threat of a dissolution of the Diet will be averted. THE SOVIET ARMY. ' LONDON. January 20. The Chicago Tribune’s Berlin edition reports that _ the secret services reveal that the Soviet army is • the strongest in Europe. The personnel is 1,270,000 permanent infantry, 370,000 trained reservists. 560,000. cavalry, and an air force of .80,000, with 2000 aeroplanes, 860 of which are obsolete, but are being rebuilt and fitted with apparatus for spraying deadly poison gas, ostensibly to protect the Russian forests from parasites. ■ ARMY MEAT CONTRACT. ■- ■ LONDON. January 19. It is- understood thaU Messrs Weddel -have secured the army -contract for their Argentine factory. . Mr Hassan, the Australian Meat Council’s representative, says, that this result is not, surprising. The success of South American meat is due purely to organisation, militant marketing, and the personal

Uwioh in negotiation. "This h the oospel which the friends of the Australian producers have been preaching for years.” CHAPEL ROOF COLLAPSES. 1 . ! LONDON, Januaiy 17. Fifteen children were injured when the roof of London’s oldest Baptist chapel, the Regent Baptist chapel, in.Lambeth, collapsed during the singing of the final hymn of the children’s service. Only the chapel treasurer's stern command to keep still quelled a developing panic. He marshalled sixty uninjured children and marched them out a side door. MR MAHONY’S RESIGNATION. SYDNEY, January 18. Mr W. G. Mahony formally tendered his resignation as a member of the Federal Parliament to the Speaker of the House of Representatives when the latter arrived in Sydney to-day. Mr Mahony has resigned on the ground of ill-health. Mr E. G. Theodore has been selected by the Labour Party to contest the by-election. MOTOR BUSES. SYDNEY, January 19. The Assembly read the first time the Transport Bill, which is framed on the lines of the English and New Zealand Acts. It provides for the. appointment of a Transport Board, consisting of th'e Railway Commissioners, which will be empowered to operate motor buses in competition with privately-owned services, and to undertake the insurance of passengers on public vehicles by the owners. DEATH IN PRISON. MOSCOW, January 17. Shablin, a former Bolshevist—executioner, has died in prison, having been recently sentenced to ten years in gaol for embezzlement. Shablin’s executions in a period of five years exceeded 500. He W’as an expert shot with a revolver, with which executions in Russia are still carried out. The condemned man is stripped, except for his undershirt, and shot through the back of the head. NEW ZEALAND BUTTER. SYDNEY, January 20. In the Assembly the Premier promised to bring to the notice of the Acting Prime Minister of the Commonwealth the question of protecting the New South Wales butter producers against the competition of New Zealand butter, which could be sold at a lower level than the price fixed for local butter by the recent producers’ conference, which decided that Is lid per pound was a reasonable price for butter produced in New’ South Wales. A NEW SARGENT. LONDON, January 17. The artist, Sir William Orpen, writing in the Daily Mail, announces the discovery of a hitherto unknown Sargent portrait of a Spanish peasant woman,which he chased from a Bond street dealer for a considerable sum. He says: “Mona Lisa” is nothing compared with this masterpiece. It is Sargent’s greatest work, and is painted with the deepest feeling.” He considers that it was painted in Spain Qnly a stupendous offer would induce him to part with his purchase. AN AUSTRALIAN DELEGATION. MELBOURNE, January IS. The Federal Government has announced the personnel of the Industrial Delegation which is proceeding to the United States. It numbers eight, and consists of an equal number of employers’ and employees’ representatives. They will be charged with the making of a thorough investigation of the methods employed and the working conditions in the manufacturing industries of the United States, and reporting on these matters. CAULFIELD TRAIN SMASH. MELBOURNE, January 22. The Railway Department found Milvain and Hargreaves, the motorman and the guard of the train in the Caulfield smash, guilty of breaches of duty, and ordered them to be reduced in grading. The unions to which the men belong threaten a regulation strike if the men are penalised. AIR FORCE TRAGEDY. MALTA, January 18. An Air Force aeroplane, attached to the carrier Eagle, crashed into a cliff.. Two officers, E. Chafe and G. O. Owen, and the telegraphist, G. W. Burton, were killed. It is reported that a third officer perished. The plane was flying in a downpour of rain and a boisterous w’ind. In attempting to make a forced landing it struck the cliff and fell into the sea. The officer, who was previously unidentified, is Flightlieutenant Brewerton. AT HIS FATHER’S BIER. TOKIO, January 17. The steamer Siberia, with Prince Chichibu on board, anchored in Yokohama Harbour to-day. His younger brother and the officials welcomed Prince Chichibu, who entrained for Tokio, where immense throngs packed the station square. There was no cheering or mueOe. The crowds, bareheaded, bowed in sympathy. Prince Chichibu immediately proceeded to the Imperial Palace. He Was first conducted to the chamber of the dead, where he alone paid homage to his father s casket. ILL-FATED empress. BRUSSELS, January 17. The Empress Charlotte of Mexico is dying. Her mind has been deranged

since her husband was murdered in 1867. The ill-fated ex-Empress of Mexico is the only daughter of Leopold 1., King of' the Belgians, and was born in June, 1843. When still a girl she married the Archduke Maximilian of Austria, being then one of the most charming and cultured princesses in Europe. In 1864 Maximilian allowed himself to be persuaded by Napolen 111. of France to accept the crown of Mexico, and three years later he w’as court-martialled and shot. MOSLEM '"{l > CAIRO, January 18. Egyptian Moslems no longer will be able to divorce their wives in a fit of temper by simply repeating “I divorce thee” thrice before two witnesses, if the Government adopts the recommendations of the special Commission which is investigating marriage and legislation. The Commission recommends a drastic tighten- - ing of the marriage and divorce laws, including . the prohibition of polygamy, except where the husband has established his ability to provide for an additional wife without prejudicing the position of his earlier spouse or spouses. , MYSTERIOUS DEATH. VI / LONDON, January 18. ’ A The police are making strenuous inquiries regarding the fate of Mrs Dorothy Rushton, a young woman whose muti- . lated body was found on the railway near Wickford, in Essex. She was only married on Boxing Day. ' She left her husband affectionately at • Catford on January 12, saying she was i going to her sister at Lewisham, but she never arrived there. The police are puzzled, because tho woman’s handbag is missing. The train ■ arrived at Wickford with the doors of all J the carriages closed. . SWIMMING FEAT. '‘“‘J OTTAWA, January 17. ’ Mr Henry O’Bryne, of Toronto, who paid all the expenses of George Young ; when training on the Pacific coast forthe Catalina Marathon, will receive 10,000 dollars of the prize money. Mr Coates, commenting on Mr Young’s performance, said: “We too are very proud to know that Young belongs to the Empire. We have boy and girl swimmers in New Zealand, but none so great as your champion. I hope that this boy will receive all the fitting complimentary’ rewards and benefits that he deserves.” MURDER OF BABIES. J , WARSAW, January 18. The name of the professional fostermother is Lentina Tydrich. She charged a fee of 30s. Mothers seeking to see their children were informed that they were being reared at a country home. The persistence of one mother revealed the home to be non-existent, and there was no trace of the children. It is alleged that Tydrich murdered the children immediately they were received, afterwards cremating the bodies. - A previous message stated that a pro- 1 j fessional foster-mother was arrested at / Bialystok, Poland, on a charge of mur- \ dering 60 babies. \ I PLASTIC SURGERY. • <• LONDON, January 20. “The age of miracles is not passed,’* said a member of the Wandsworth Guardians, referring to a New Zealander (Mr Gillies), who has had his face restored. Mr Gillies, who was an inmate of the local hospital, had his nose, eyelid, ana cheek blown off in war time. The speaker added that the patient was now more handsome than any member of the Board of Guardians. . ■ A PHENOMENAL HAILSTORM. SYDNEY, January 21. A terrific hailstorm swept Barden Grove, near Dungog. The com crops and fruit trees were stripped, and a large number of pigs and fowls killed. Horses and cattle also suffered severely. Hailstones weighing Boz fell denting the roofs as if they had been struck by hammers, and cutting the telephone wires. Lumps of ice were found in the centre of water melons,- most of which were chopped to pieces. LIBERAL PARTY. v LONDON, January 21. Lord Grey, Sir William Plender, and Lady Bonham Carter have resigned their trusteeship of the Liberal Million Fund. Mr Vivian Phillips has resigned the chairmanship. LONDON, January 21. Under the presidency of Viscount Grey a new Liberal C’-uncil is being formed with separate headquarters, and not associated with the official Liberal Party, but acting irrespective of Mr Lloyd George’s policy. The personnel includes Sir Donald Maclean, Mr H. V. Phillipps, M.P., Mr W. M. R.> Pringle, and possibly Mr W. Runciman, M.P. ; DI PINEDO'S FLIGHT. •?'’ i. •ROME, January 21. Consequent on Signor Mussolini’s request to use his next flight primarily to demonstrate speed, the Marchesse Di Pinedo has altered his plans. His route will now be triangular, to South America, San Francisco, British Columbia, and back across the Atlantic via the Azores and Lisbon. He expects to complete the whole flight of 25,000 -miles in two months. . ■< MYSTERIOUS TRAGEDY. . ' ; MELBOURNE, January 21. ' A three-year-old boy named Robert Murray Boyd died in the Prince Alfred Hospital. from the effects of poison. When the boy reached home he told his

• pother, who lives at Richmond, that a ■: nan Jhad stopped him and asked him if ho wanted a drink. The man then handed the boy a‘lemonade bottle. The boy became ill, and was removed to the hospital. A post-mortem examination revealed The fact that the boy's mouth and throat wore burned, possibly by spirits of salts. NEWSPAPER ETHICS. LONDON, January 17. The Sunday Worker retorts to the Trade Union Council’s demand for the withdrawal of “its unjustifiable accusation” with a declaration that “no confidence was ever reposed in or . accepted by the Sunday Worker, which did not receive a copy of the report although it was later circulated among the capitalist press. The report was handed to the Sunday Worker by a. delegate to the conference who requested its publication. “We are entitled,’’ it adds, “to obtain and use material in our own way.” A REMARKABLE TRIAD PARIS, January 20. Two men and eight women were convicted of assaulting the Abbe Desnoyers, of Bombon. He was stripped and flogged by a number of persons for Bordeaux, who accused him of wizardry. The convicted prisoners were sentenced respectively to eight and six months’ imprisonment, fined 100 francs, and ordered to pay the Abbe Desnoyers 500,000 francs as damages. The accused pleaded that they had acted legitimately in defence s gainst the s forces of Satan. The judge pointed out that the penal .’code did not provide for such an eventuality. SEARCH FOR A SPARROW. ' PERTH, January 19. Lip to the present Western Australia has kept free from the sparrow pest, triet precantions on the part of the authorities having prevented its introduction. Last week a boy caught a sparrow at Fremantle, which the Agricultural Department immediately destroyed. Inquiries disclosed that two sparrows sheltered on board the American tourist steamer ' Carinthia when the ship was crossing the Australian Bight. They were caught, and released by a passenger when the vessel reached Fremantle. The Agricultural Department is conducting a wide search for the second bird. The introduction of the pest is regarded as a menace to the fruit industry. SOUTH AFRICAN FLAG. .. CAPETOWN, January 19. When General Hertzog brought forward his proposal to incorporate the Royal Standard in the South African national flag, doubts were expressed as to the possibility of doing so, the Royal Standard being tire personal flag of the King. It is now stated that this point was referred to the Prime Minister, who replied that further information had convinced him that the Royal Standard could not be incorporated in the -national flag. General Hertzog’s proposal, which was first announced at the Labour Congress, no doubt influenced the decision of the congress to support the Government's flag policy.' DEATH INTERVENES. OTTAWA, January 17. A message from Liverpool, Nova Scotia, announces the death to-day of Mr Jason Mack, President of the Legislative Council, who recently refused the request of the Premier to resign. A message received on January 4 stated :—Mr Jason Mack, president of the Nova Scotia Legislative Council, has J " written to the Premier, Mr E. N. Rhodes, refusing to resign on the request of the latter, who wished to appoint a Conservative successor. Mr Mack, who is a Liberal appointee, states in a letter: “There is considerable doubt as to the legal power of this Government to dismiss the president of the Legislative Council. In the circumstances I do not think it is in the public interest to adopt your suggestion to resign my office.” SHORT SKIRTS. LONDON, January 17. - “Women have reached the limit as regards short skirts. They cannot decently show more leg; and therefore it peems that the only alternative is to clothe their legs in trousers. One thing certain is that they will never return to long skirts,’ stated a leading West End dressmaker, supporting Mr Paul Poiret’s prediction that women thirty years hence will be wearing trousers, while skirts will v- be as obsolete as long hair is to-day. Baroness de Stocckl. Court dressmaker, says that women are becoming moremasCuline daily. “See how they have adopted pyjamas,” she said. \ On the other hand, Lady Poynter couaiders that skirts will last another century, when women might return to trailing draperies. Personally, she imagines says that women are becoming more masthat trousers are terribly draughty. THE AGE OF OIL. LONDON, January 18. Sir John Cadman, speaking bn oil from an Empire viewpoint at the luncheon of the Royal Colonial Institute, lamented the fact that only 2 per cent, of the world’s oil supplies came from within the Empire. “But,” he said, “these natural deficiencies are counter-balanced by the enterprise of the Empire’s sons. Public opinion m this future will applaud the'foresight and Statesmanship, which/ finding Britain’s •applies of oil dangerously small, has not

hesitated to take a hand in tho great centre of supply, and secure control of the Anglo-Persian Company?’ He emphasised the point that this was purely a commercial undertaking, and was in nd way an instrument of government. He prophesied that “the ultimate destiny of our coal must be its conversion into oil and petroleum gas, leaving a residue of no calorific value.” ■ ■ A MECHANICAL SLEUTH. LONDON, January 17. The latest addition to twentieth century •wonders is a van like an undersized Black Maria with a circular frame aerial on the rooL It is used as a Post Office sleuth in tracking down wireless oscillators. A hand bn an innocent looking dial inside the van is able to point with unerring certainty to the actual house in which is the mysterious annoying oscillator, after which the officers enter and gentle persuasion and expert guidance follow. It is truly an ingenious system. Bearings are taken on three sides of the area visited and are plotted down on a largescale map. If the lines intersect each other the location of the oscillator is known and the van proceeds immediately in the indicated direction; ■ As the house is approached the oscillations become gradually fainter till the zero point is reached when the van gets immediately before the house. / NEW GUINEA NATIVES. MELBOURNE, January 22. An official report states that the special expedition of five Europeans and twenty native police, which was sent to the area to arrest the murderers at Salamoa, New Guinea, found paths studded with spikes and the villages deserted. When the party at length got in touch with the natives the latter threw spears and fired arrows at them. The natives were driven from their stronghold, but later attacked a party of carriers. The punitive expedition then intervened, and called on the natives to surrender the sub-chief. This w’as refused, and an engagement followed, during which two natives -were shot. The natives retreated to another village, where further fighting occurred, in which four natives and the sub-chief were shot. There was one Government casualty. The party is now posted in the disaffected area to maintain order. ARTIFICIAL SILK. ■ LONDON, January 21. The Daily Express understands that a working agreement has been reached between the British artificial silk firm of Courtaulds, the Italian firm of Sriiaviscossa, and the German concern, the Glanzstoffi Fabriken Company, which already controls American and French artificial silk production. The combine will therefore control production in Italy, England, America, France, arid Germany. The growth of Courtaulds is an outstanding romance. Twenty years ago it had a capital of £250,000, while the present market value of its authorised capital Of £20,000,000 is £60,000,000. CHILD ENDOWMENT BILL. SYDNEY, January 21, At a meeting of the Parliamentary Labour Caucus Mr Lang stated that the Government was concerned over the question of the constitutional validity of the proposed child endowment scheme, and that Mr A. T. M’Tiernan (Attorney-General) had gone to Melbourne to consult the constitutional authorities on the position. The feeling generally amongst the Labour members is that the Bill will ne dropped, as it cannot legally be applied to the children of workers witfiiu the State who are governed by -Fcderal awards. HOMILY ON WOMEN. LONDON, January 21. “Women, though so charming and useful, are really the cause of all our misery, degradation, and disease, because they first teach us wrong habits and feed us wrongly,” said Sir Arbuthnot Lane in the course of an address. He added that dark-haired women were unable to resist disease as easily, as blondes. On the other hand, red-haired women had extraordinary power to resist infection of disease. In England they were always trying to collect money for hospitals, which consisted of smelly out-patients departments and operating theatres, where poor people were operated on and dosed with drugs. The money thus collected should be spent in teaching everybody the simple law’s of health. People had no more right to be ill than they had to be criminals. SAHARA DESERT. PARIS, January 2L From Paris to Niamey, Nigeria, in eight days was the remarkable motoring exploit of Lieut. Estienne. Hitherto it had been supposed that special cars were necessary to cross the Sahara. First, caterpillar wheels were tried; then a sixwheeled car. Lieutenant Estienne conquered the desert in a small, ordinary, six horse-power car. He left Paris on the afternoon of the 7th, embarked for Oran on the Bth, reached Niamey on the morning of the. 15th, and handed, the Governor a Paris letter only a week old, whereas normally the post takes six weeks. : Lieutenant Estienne intends to proceed to Kinder (Sudan) arid Kano (Nigeria). ANNULMENT OF MARRIAGE. ROME, January 20. The Sacred Rota has annulled Mr Marconi’s marriage on the '’round ''that the couple agreed before marriage that; they

could separate whenever they wished. As marriage is regarded as indissoluble by the. Roman Church such a condition makes the marriage null. It is understood that Mr Marconi is engaged to marry Mary, a daughter of Count Francesco Bezziscali, of the Papal Guard. Mr Marconi recently sought the annulment of his marriage with the Hon. Beatrice O’Brien on the ground that/ before, the marriage, his wife made it a condition that -she could separate whenever she should wish. The* marriage, of which there are three children, was dissolved in 1924. PLAGUE OF MICE. NEW YORK, January 19. Buena Vista Lake, California, comprising ten square miles, was drained and transformed into a. vast Wheatfield. Reapers, a year ago, reported that a tremendous number of house mice had invaded the field, and in the late autumn they found the surrounding grass land alive with the rodents. When thousands of sheep were turned on this land the mice moved towards higher ground. The hordes invaded the Wheatfield and nearby towns. The highways were carpeted with the pests, ■which swarmed into homes and barns, destroying foodstuffs, clothing, and crops. Dr Raymond Hall, the University of California’s zoologist, declared that the extent of the scourge was unbelievable. The farmers tried to save the crops by ploughing furrows around the fields, filled with poisoned grain, but despite this the mice forged ahead. THE WORLD’S SHIPPING. LONDON, January 18. Lloyd's Register, iii its annual summary of the world's shipbuilding in 1926 shows that 600 vessels of a tonnage, of 1,674,000 vzere launched throughout the world, of which 639,000 tons were in Great Britain and Ireland. The decrease throughout the world, compared with 1925 was 518,000 tons, and the decrease- in Great Britain and Ireland was 445,000 tons. Compared with the year of 1919, the decrease for the world was nearly 5,500,000 tons.- -The world launchings included 22 vessels of a tonnage of over 10,000 and eight of a tonnage of over 15,000. . The largest vessel ■ was the turbine vessel He de France, of 43,000 tons. The tonnage afloat in June, 1926, was 59,117,000, compared with 42,514,000 in June, 1914. The tonnage of the tankers was now 5,665,000, compared with 1,479,000- in 1914, and the motor ships- 3,500,000 tons, compared with 234;000 tonsi while the tonnage of steamers fitted with oil fuel was 18,850,000 compared with 1,310,000. YOUNG WIFE’S DEATH. LONDON, January 20. The mystery concerning the death of Mrs Rushton has deepened. The police received through the post her handbag intact, wrapped in brown paper. There is no clue to the sender. A message received on January 19 stated: The police are making strenuous inquiries regarding the fate of Mrs Dorothy Rushton, a young woman whose mutilated body was found on the railway near Wickford, .in Essex. She was only married on Boxing Day. She left her husband affectionately at Catford on January 12, saying she was going to her sister at Lewisham, but she never arrived there. The police are puzzled, because the woman’s handbag is missing. The train arrived at Wickford with the doors of all the carriages closed. PRAYER BOOK REVISION. LONDON, January 20. The bishops completed the revision of the Prayer Book three days earlier than was expected. The provisional draft will be published on February 7, when the Convocation meets. A Church of England newspaper understands that the bishops are practically unanimous regarding the changes and additions to the morning and evening services and occasional offices, and have completely remodelled the marriage service, in which there are notable omissions and many interesting additions. They have revised the baptism and burial services, and added new prayers and collects for both. These are consistent with the Church’s fundamentals. The newspaper believes that the revi-" sion will be acceptable to churchmen of ail schools of thought except the oppom ents to any change, for whom the present Prayer- Book -is available. UNION FUNDS. LONDON, January 21. The loudest and most spontaneous cheering of the Trades Union Council strike “inquest” was heard to-day when it was announced that Mr Justice Eve had dismissed the test case questioning the validity of T.U.C. payments for poli-,-tical purposes. A member of the Shop Assistants, Warehousemen, and Clerks’ Union sought an injunction to restrain the union from making payments to the T.U.C. so long as the latter used the money for. political objects, including the financing of Labour newspapers, and the campaign in favour of the nationalisation of mines. The Registrar of Friendly Societies had previously decided that the. payments complained of did not constitute political objects within- the - definition of the Trades Unon Act. Mr Justice Eve - held that the Legislature had. not contemplated that the complainant, when lie failed in his appeal to; the Registrar, could go to the courts.. The remedy he sought was . riot; founded on qbreach oi

rules, but on a breach of statute. The latter had not been established. FASCISM IN ITALY. LONDON, January 20. , .“Fascism has rendered service to the; whole world,” said Mr Winstou Churchill/ when interviewed at Rome. “The fear besetting every democratic leader,” he said, “is the likelihood of extremists overbidding him. Italy has shown a way of fighting the subversive elements by rallying the mass o” the people wishing to defend the honour and stability of civilised society, -thus providing an antidote to the Russian poison. It is absurd to suggest that the Italian Government is not popular when it is supported by 20,000,000 Fascists. England has not had to face Leninism in the same deadly form. Fascism, by its own methods, will succeed in grappling with Communism and choking out its life.” ROME, January 20. The Italian Government has decided to drop the prosecution of Miss Violet Gibson for firing at Signor Mussolini, as she was not responsible for her actions. Moreover, the authorities are desirous of avoiding the prosecution of an Englishwoman. Miss Gibson will be handed over to the care of her family.