Poverty Bay Herald. PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING. GISBORNE, WEDNESDAY. MAR. 8. 1905.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXXII, Issue 10301, 8 March 1905, Page 2

Poverty Bay Herald. PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING. GISBORNE, WEDNESDAY. MAR. 8. 1905.

The Fire Brigade meet this evening

The Hon. J. Carroll left Auckland on Monday morning for Kawhia by way of Hamilton.

At a meeting of the local dentists, held last evening, it was decided to form a branch of the New Zealand Dental Association.

Lieutenant Kretschmar, formerly of Gisborne, lias invented and patented a target-holder, which was to be tested at Auckland, last Saturday.

Mr Jacques, fruit-canning expert, arrived by the steamer this morning from ■the South on a visit to Poverty Bay. He inspects Mr Petchcll's orchard to-mor-row, and- proceeds to Auckland on Saturday. The Karaka .settlers have undertaken to provide hfncheoii for the Ministerial visitors ami memibers of tlie chief local bodies on the occasion of the "opening of the railway. There will be accommodation provided for 25 to 30 people.

A second offender for drunkeiines, Frank Seymour, came before Mr R. Johnston, J. P., at the Court this morning. He was convicted and fined 10s, costs 2s, m default 48 hours' imprisonment.

In ordier to cope with the increased goods traffic which m anticipated by the opening of the new section of the Gis-borne-Karuka- railway, 16 new waggons are being sent by the Department for the local railway.

Tho Union Company's s.s. Manuka niiide a good 'passage of 19 hours 35 minutes from Auckland to Gisborne. On her last up trip the Manuka made the passage ml9 hours 19 minutes. On neither occasion was she pushed.

"I prize above everything the freedom I have at the present time," said Mr A. W. Rutherford, at Amberley, alluding to his position m the House of Representatives. "I don't care a *d' for Massey or Seddon or anyone else."

The Matawhero stock sales will be held to-morrow. There are record entries. Messrs Dalgety andl Co. and Common, Sheltotii and Co. commence their sale at 10.30, and Messrs Williams and Kettle and the New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Company start sellitiE at 11.30. b

The following weights have been declared by the handicapper, Mr C. J. Bennett, for the Handicap Hack Race at the Tolaga Bay meeting next week: — Borax 9.0, Ladylike and Luck's All 8.0, Te Uku 7.13, Reay and Mozart 7.0, Hinetaramoa 6.13, Ruagnaiehu 6.7. The name of Goodhvood has been altered to Motokehu.

Three vessels, coal-laden, are expected to arrive at Gisborne shortly from Newcastle. These are the lima, Ururoa and Frank Guy, and' they left the Australian port within a few dtiys of each other with 1000 to 1500 tons of, coal, consigned to various works andl firms here. A busy time is expected at the local wharf. The lima, the first of the trio, arrived m. the roadstead to-dlay. .

The TaruNeru Cricket Club's team to meet Union to-morrow comprises : H. E. Clark, Charles, Hodlge, Bovd, Lasker, H.. E. Evans, Roadie, W. Clarke, Goldie, McPherson, Sims; emergencies, T. Sharp and Osborne. The Union team will be : Lang, Sheridan (2), Torkington, Robinson, Delany, Don, Andrews, Melville,' Rice, Pirie; emergencies, Priestly and Morgan.

Yesterday afternoon Mr W. Swan.«-on, of the Native Lands Office, was presented! with a silver-mounted walking-stick •on behalf of the local Government staffs as a. mark of their goodwill. Mr J. Brooking, as senior Government official, made the presentation m suitable terms. Last ■evening at the Royal hotel, Mr Swanson was made the recipient of a handsome travelling bag by a number of friends, the presentation being made by Captain Whiteley. Mr Swanson left for Auckland this morning.

At the last meeting of the Hawke's Bay Metropolitan Jockey Club a letter was received from the Kurakai Racing Club giving evidence taken m connection with i\\^ appeal against the ruling of the Club m regard to the protest made by the owner of Te Uku, m connection with which the protest money has been refunded. — It was decided to" instinct the Karaka Club to re-collect tlie protest fee wrongfully refunded. '

The Gisborne Rifles are losing their experienced and. able head, Captain Warren, who is resigning from the leadership of the. corps. Captain Warren, has seen 37 years' service as a volunteer. He first joined the Victoria Rifles m Auckland, probably" the first volunteer corps m existence, and took part hi the Waikato war. In Gisborne he was a member of the old J Battery and the Hussars for many years: Lieutenant Lewis, the senior officer of the Rifles, will succeed Captain Warren m command! of the corps.

An Act of Parliament was passed last session for the purpose of adjusting • claims to native lands m various parts of the colony, and a commission has beeii set up consisting of Mr G. B. Davy, ex -Judge of the Native Land Court, Judge Scannell, and Mr A. T. Ngata. The commission hold its first silting at Hawera ktst week. Mr Ngata was unable to attend, having been detained m connection with a papatupu case now being dealt with on the East Coast. ' Mr Tuta Nihoniho, of Gisborne, appeared on behalf of one of the claimants. The commissioners 1 , who have gone on to Auckland, and are expected at Gisborne shortly, will report to Parliament on the various cases. There are nine Gisborne cases to be. heard.

At St ; Andrew's Church this afternoon Miss Eveline Jane Armour, eldest daughter of Mr W. Armour, was joined m bonds of holy wedlock to Mr Francis August Farmer, second son of Mr John Farmer;- Ormond. The Rev. J. G. Pater--son -was the officiating minister. Misses Edith Wallace and Madge Armour were bridesmaids. The best man Mas Mr H. Farmer '(Wellington), brother of the bridegroom, and Mr G. Graftz was the groomsman. The bride was tastefully attired m .white sur'aij silk, jtrimmed with white, satin and white silk yacht' lace. Miss Wallace wore -white, muslin trimmed! with silk lace and insertion, and Miss Madge Ar.mo.ur white, j silk trimmed' with satin, . liotiti bridesmaids wearing white chiffon h(its. : The groom's present _o the bride was a :gold necklet with greenstone heart, ami to the bridesmaids pretty gold brooches. .The hsippy couple received many handisome wedding gifts.

At a very large meeting of settlers to arrange for tho iuilway opening, it was diecided to hold a monster sports gather, ing at the racecourse, half a mile from the railway terminus. The sports will commence at- 11 a.m, . The Ministerial party will.be invited! to attend, and it was proposed that from 12 to 2 p;m. be taken up m tlie reception of 'visitors and luncheon. A strong committee was formed to cany out arrangements, -with Messrs Lewis, Devery and Sefton joint secretaries. A total of £50 will be offered m prizes at tlie sports, which will include Lloydf-Lindsay . competition, leaping for horses, etc., all events to be open. A great gathering is. expected, and uo trouble nor expense will be spared. The balance will go towards a. publik library at Karaka. The grounds are most suitable, there being beautiful pkices for picnic parties, and' the admission to the ground) has been fixed at the moderate sum of Is.— Karaka Correspondent.

The movement to present Captain Scddon with a sword of honor has provoked even the Government newspapers to indignant protests. The Lybteltou Times says :— "lt would bg positively indecent, m face of his settlement with Mr Taylor, to allow a little party of thoughtless friends to reviye a single feature of the controversy." The Wairarapa Age also has a word or two on the subject. "Personally," it says, "we sympathise with Captain Seddon iin the unpleasantness to which he was subjected, and we feel convinced that he displayed bravery on the battlefield 1 and quite as much ability as the average British officer of low rank. But how it" can be seriously urged that the people of . this colony should niake Captain Seddon a. 'public testimonial we are entirely at a loss to understand, and that the* presentation" should take the form of a sword of honor, as has been suggested, is a miserable piece of folly, past all comprehension. It is very gratifying, no doubt, to wear the victor's laurels, but before they can be worn they must be won. Tlie presenting of a sword of honor does not make a liero of the man to whom it is presented."

A splendid mob of 2000 sheep, from Mr G. C. Ormoud's Mahia station, passed, through Wairoa last week for Napier, where they will be shipped South.

At a meeting of the Hawke's Bay Metropolitan Jockey Club the following programmes were approved: Waiapu Racing Club, March 27th ; St. Patrick's Sports, Gisborne. March 17th.

Attention is directed to the programme of the Monster Baby Show and com petitions advertised m another column. Competitions are tilling fast, so that those who intend taking part should send m their names at once.

A meeting of the Gisborne branch of the Farmers' Union is called for Saturday next to deal with the question of ragwort andl also to consider a letter from the carters with reference to the County Council's regulation as to tlie width of tyres.

Captain Scott Harden., the London Chroiucle'.y war correspondent, recently from Port Arthur, i s v Suiting Napier, and lectures there. There ik some probability of Captain Scott Harden being induced! to visit Gisborne, and give one of his popular lectures here next week.

The Union Company has altered the time of departure of the ferry steamers Mararoa and Rotomahana from. Wellington to Lyttelton from 7.45 to 8 p.m. The steamers will connect with the second south express train, leaving Christchurch at 11.55 a.m.. Audi reaching Dunedin at 9.15 p.m.

A witness at Gore gave the Lamd Commission a lecture m a somewhat excited tone, and after he had departed it wins found that he had absent-mindedly taken away with him the Bible on which he had been sworn. The local constable was despatched after him, and the missimg book recovered.

In conversation! with Long, Truth's Wellington correspondent gathered that last week was the 15th execution he has performed m New Zealand, and that he gets £30 for the job. Previously he was m India, and had a good deal of experience m the business. The number of hangings he assisted' m m India is, he says, past counting. He frequently strung up four or five coolies m one morning at a fiver apiece, but, lie added "Of course that wasn't every morning." He speaks of liis horrid! work with enthusiasm, and is specially proud of the ropo used on Tuesday week, but. he added reflectively, "I djori't think I'll use it any more. It's a good rope, but I'll get a new one." Ellis is one of the pluckiest men. he ever operated' on, so he says.

The Rev. Dawson Thomas, who was chairman at the gathering m His Majesty's Theatre last evening, gave his view of the no-license movement. He first referred to the necessity of a good stirring-uij) occasionally for the party engaged! m this, great battle — a W tie m which they were going to come out "on top. Continuing, lie said that not long after he came to Gisborne, he took his stand for prohibition. He had, howeevr, since been informedl by a. friend that it was rumored ho had! taken down his flag and changed his color. He desired to publicly announce that he still stood side by side and shoulder to shoulder with tliat great, grand, growing party who were not ashamed to call themselves Prohibitionists, with a. capital P. Tliey did not hear abgufc the no-license movement m Sydney, so when he arrived here he came with an open mind, "but," he as.verted, when he saw ''wliat a beer-swilling place Gisborne was," lie took his stand against the liquor trade and he intended to keep that .stand. When the time came to vote he promised confidently they would hear more from him.

Referring to the 'recent discussion at the Gisborne Railway League's meeting, tlie Wairoa Guardian says: — The people of Poverty Bay are not satisfied with the slow progress the railway is making towards tho Motu, and' their conscience pricks them that Wairoa has not been considered m the past. Our trade, of course, is the objective, and as far as •that is- concerned, if Poverty Bay people succeed m developing railway communication, that will help Wairoa, they deserve alii the trade they can secure. Napier people johou'ldl long ago have induced the powers that be to push the railway from the Spit to Wairoa, and' bring m the northern trade', to make up for tliat diverted to Wellington. But they have been supremely supine m the past,, and though of late years more active, many golden opportunities' have been lost. Now that there is the possibility of securing from Waikarenioana power for the wiorking of an electrical, railway the people of Poverty Bay are desirous of seeing the Karaka railway s o worked. No doubt it would result iti a. 50 per cent. Having, and that saving would go far to extendi the present railway or a lighter line on to Wairoa, We do not think tho local Railway League has yet been dissolved, and! if we are correct m our surmise it should he agaiin called together m support of Gisborne efforts on our behalf.

Some amusement was provided by an elderly prisoner who qaine'iip for' sentence m the Wellington Supreme Court He. was not only elderly, but he was very deaf, and he came from thi> Emerald Isle. When, asked -what lie had to say, he remarked, "Perltaps the less I say tit* better," and then he went on to point to the ingratitude of the man whose, beluivrour led up to the change of wounding. *T took him into my camp and gave hhw plenty of tucker and beer, and gave him a good time for the New Year'/Tlten he robbed me, and I hit him with an axe." Then the judge passed sentence, and an ear trumpet had to be improvised out of a roll of blotting paper. , The thin end of this-, wa.s placed m, the' prisoner's? ear, and the Court orderly bellowed aresume of his Honor's remarks into the other end. ''You're not" speaking," plaintively remarked the prisoner— and the Court roared. Tlie orderly tried again, and had got as fiir as "His Honor says," wlieir the prisoner ejaculated m an aggrieved tone, "Six montlis?" This set the Court off afresh, and his Honor suggestedthat perhaps Mr Garvey would be more 'successful. He was. He summed up his Honor's remarks .into two words. "Another month," he called out down the tube, the prisoner nodded his appreciation of the information, and was down below before the echoes of the head gaoler's voioe had died away.

-Mr Clias. Poole, m His Majesty's Theatre "last evening, gave a verj' entertaining account of a 12 months' tour of the United Slates, which he entitled "Making Friends with Uncle Sam." The address was illustrated with a series oi about 80 slides which were exhibited for the first time m New Zealand. Tlie exhibition was introduced by a display of some gems of our colony's scenery, with which the lecturer toured! America, showing them to large and appreciative audiences. The series also included 1 an interesting • collection of Fijian views, where Mr Poole resided a short while. Approaching the States -from ..Vancouver, thence to the Golden Gate and 1 San Francisco, he "hustled" the attention of his appreciative audience across tlie Rockies through to that capital of industry, Chicago. There' he gave interesting accounts of Armour's packing hoijse, employing 10,000 hands, Marshall Field's with. 8000 employes, and the destruction of tho Iroquois Theatre and its- '7OO patrons. Chicago, with its '.population! of three millions, is the centre of 20 railway systems. Narrating briefly the circumstances of the Louisiana purchase for £3,000,000 from the French, the lectur-. er gave his hearers some intelligent details of the great Fair," which covered an area of 1200 acres. He characterised, the Exposition as "the brain of God m the hand .of man.".. Thirty million plants' were utilised m the horticultural decorations of the ground's. There were 25 mile.M of 25ft side-walks' and two miles of amusements. In conclusion,- Mr Poole returned thanks for the patient hearings he had receiyedl, and he expressed an earnest hope tliat his visit -would stand m the memory of the Gisborne people. The Rev. J, G. Paterson led a hearty round of applause to the visiting lecturer and l also to Mr A. Thompson for 'his excellent manipulation of the limelight lantern.

There was an exciting scene at Wirth's Circus m Christchurch on Thursday night. During the performance tickets had been sold for the "looping the loop" act m the menagerie tent, the idea, being apparently that all should leave the circus tent, and that those who had purchased the extra tickets should return to the menagerie, where the feat was to be performed. But the people became congested m the small tent, and exit was practically stopped. Owing, appareiiHly, to so many who had not bought tickets being packed into the tent, .through the want of inadequate . mentis of exit, it was announced Jhat- the performance would not bo given. Demands were made for the return of the money, but this wa.s refused, it beinig stated tliat if those holding tickets qaine at 11 a.m. the next day the money would be returned, or live tickets would be available for the next night. The crowd became annoyed, and, according to the Press, threats were made by those belonging to the circus .that the lights would be turned out, and some one did a most; reprehensible thing by bringing two of the large elephants m to crush the people out. It was a miracle that some serious- accident did not occur, sayts the Press, from such an insane act as to force huge animals inito a mass of people. As it was, great consternation was caused, particularly amongst the female portion of the audience. After these happenings a spction of the audience evidently meant to take matters m their own hands, and subsequently a number went back to the loqat-ion, brpke down. the fence, took one of the circus waggons out and ran it. up' to Lichfield street. It was left here for a while, the crowd returning to the oircus evidently with tlie intention of doing some more damage. The police on duty liaving been reinforced,, the crowd returned to Colombo street, to wlnerc the waggon had been left, and ran it into the river at the end of Lichfield street on Oxford Terrace, '

The Government haw approved of the disbandniPtit. of the Otaki Mounted Rifles.

The mext annual -communicaitiion of the Grand Lodge of New Zealand Freemasojis ""ill take place at Palmerstou North on Wednesday, May 10th.

. At a meeting of the Ashburton County Council the chairman said tha.t he had counted out 10.000 heads and eggs of small birds, gathered l by one lad:.

According to the Levin paper, the largest sheep ever killed at the Gear Company's works was one which turned the scale, when diressedi, at 1951b5.

A giant kauri 40ft m girth was levelled m the Waimui bush, north of Auckland, last week. Alter the tree had been felled 36 persons got on the stump, and more could have been crowded on.

An exchange states that all (he creditors of the Ward Farmers' Association save the bank have been paid 20s m the £ by Sir Joseph Ward personally since the date of liquidation.

The Napier Telegraph states that arrangements have been made by which, from the 10th to the 12th inst., 19,000 sheep are to be .Tent away from Napier breakwater to Canterbury. Several thousands of these have already left.

The New Zealand exhibits from the St. Louis Exposition will be brought back lo the' colony by Mr F. Moorhou.se, of the Tourist Department, who is a passenger by the Ventura, due at Auckland on the 13th inst.

"People prefer the freehold,"' states Mr A. W. Rutherford, M.H.R., "because they can cultivate their land according to their own intelligence, and not according to the intelligenjce of Government officials."

A New Plymouth resident went lo Waitara. to meet his brother, whom he only remembers seeing once m his life, and that was 45 years ago. Yet only 100 miles has separated them, one living m New Plymouth and the other at Raglan.

At the Palmeiston. North Chamber of Commerce meeting it was decided to organise a deputation to Parliament next session to secure a. vote on the Estimates for the early completion of the Main Trunk Railway.

A Wellington warehouseman, on a visit to a. Wairarapa town the other day. was stopped by a constable m the street, and given 24 horns to get out of the town. He was mistaken for a suspicious character.

Mr Andrew Carnegie has now expended for libraries the sum of £7,865,000. He has nearly 1300 buildings pledged to English-speaking .people. and almost £6,000,000 of their aggregate cost has beeti expended! m America.

Dr. Bell, who arrived from Canada last week, to take up his duties as New Zealand Government Geologist, and Mr J. Hayes, the Inspecting Engineer of the Mines Department, have gone to 'Taranaki to inspect the oil-boring works.

Stephen B. Roath, a, Chicago .millionaire, lias just divided a. second 1,000,000 dollars among his relatives. He distributed the first million 18 months ago. He wtys he does not want any litigation over Ins estate after he is gone, and wanits to see his relatives' enjoyment of their port ions.

The Postal Department is calling attention to the large amount of imperfectly addressed correspondence which passes through the post. Last year no less than 1300 letters and book packets were wiungly directed by the senders to Wellington alone, enqiiiiy proving them to be intended for other places.

A -haunted house .scare" has existed for some months pa.st m a certain street m Wellington (says the N.Z. Times). Various persons who have tenanted a par. tiieular home m tlu. locaJitv .state that strange noises were to be heard at night m ihe building, their beds moved, and cine door opened and shut, occasionally without assistance. The restles:,- spinit held responsible for this violation of domesticity takes a vacation at times, and always returns to labor with renewed vigor.

Use more we come lo know about the battle of the Sluiho, the more fully we are brought, to realise that it was not f.« much a battle as a butchery, m which the Russians lort 60,000 man and the Japanese 16,000. Such, a vast disproportion m loss is inexplicable, save under the condition that the Russian army is unequal to its enemy m battle tactics and leading, since • during the greater part of the engagement the* Japanese were themselves the assailants.— The '1 imes.

On Ihe passage from Dunedin to Lyttel ton on Friday, the Huddart-Parkcr Company's steamer Wimmera. had a unique experience. Shortly after the ve:i>e! cleared the Otago Heads, she passed for a distance of about a mile through what appeared to be a. thick shoal, or rather bank, which gave the. sea a .reddish appearanice. After a time the engineer on watqh noticed that something was amiss with the 'injection valve pipe leading to the condenser, and on examination being made, it was found that thousands of the tiny Crustacea known as whale-feed had •got iv through the grating over tho mouth of the injection valve, completely blocking the pipe, while thousands more were drawn into the condenser. 'The circulating pump had to be .stopped, the work of clearing the pipe and the condenser occupying some time.

Speaking the other night at Christchurch, Captain Scott Harden, the war correspondent, who has just arrived from Manchuria, told a good story against the War Office., When the captain was m the middle of the waterless desert two years ago, m the campaign agahist "the Mad Mullah," General Mantling ordered lu'm lo send a message to the War Office, requesting that six pumps should be despatched for trial, as there was the greatest difficulty wJlhout proper materials to get isufftcieut water quickly for the men and animals after a long march, when a well happened to be found. Capta.?n Harden consulted an engineering officer, and Parsons' patent puni]*: were r-eenm-medvd. The telegram was sent, and tlie pumps wore anxiously looked for. But to tho Surprise of the whole field forejj, four Church of .England and two Roman Catholic chaplains arrived.

The paradoxical statement that "Jack's all at sea when on land," luis (snys the Wairampa Leader) been proved a fallacy m the case of an able seaman from the Euryalus, who visited some Gladstone sheep run/* on Sunday Meek. Having told the station hands that he was an. equestrian, he was provided with, a few pig-jiunpers, and rodte them like a Centaur. The pride of the "boundary rildL ere was touched, and so they brought along some of the gtation liacks which had the reputation of bucking off. the proverbial mosquito, but that able seaman—although he allowed 1 daylight 'to peer beneath him — clung to the bow-bent backs as if he was m his native rigging m the teeth: of a. wild. gale. And he worried; those station rebels till they gave up, and stood as quiet as oldi working bullocks. All day long he was provided with horses, and the Gladstone people state that the show wns- ; better Than the best circus that has ever, visited' Carter-" ton. It transpired that the able seaman as a landsman, had! served an ardtuous apprenticeship as a butcher, boy, and had never forgotten his previous skill.

A remarkable discovery has recently been made which promises to revolutionise the method of milk supply throughout the world — namely, that whereby it. call! be reduced to a powder, and. sold m that foi'm instead of m the liquid state, ft must be borne m mind that milk i.s not essentially a fluid., but is capable of being reduced to a. solid by means of evaporation under a special process, the result of long, scientific re : search. By this new discovery there is produced a light, yellowish, flaky powder, which., when water is added thereto, is immediately reconverted into fresh milk of the finest quality, but with the inestimable advantage that it is absolutely sterile and free from microbes and bacteria, neither of wliich could possibly survive the evaporating process. Careful and 'exhaustive chemical examinations have been unable to detect any difference m chemical composition between ordinary milk and tliat produced by the simple addition of water to this powder. The result of many hundred bacteriological examinations has demonstrated that dried milk is absolutely sterile; m fact, .the powder is absolutely pure and indefinitely prcservable. A long series of experiments lvave ; also • proved tliat the uutritiye properties '^f the milk are not impaired by the"* evaporating process. The officers- of the Health Department of New York, together with the directors of several charitable institutions, undertook a long and exhaustive series of experiments a year or so ago. Eight hundred! aiid fifty children, from five days to two ' years of age, were fed exclusively on milk made by tlie addition of water to dried -milk. The result of these experiments, . which were made during the three hottest months of summer, M'hen. infant mortality reaches its maximum, is unique. Not one child died, and every one gained m weight. Dried "milk is "equally suitable for adults arid for every kind of household Use, and only requires to become more generally known to very largely- displace tlie supply of milk m the ordinary form, with all its attendant dangers from bacteria, germs, etc., none of which can possibly survive tlie drying Process.' The manufacture of this milk, undbr the name of Defiance dried milk, lias been entered upon by Messrs Joseph Nathan and Co., Limited, Wellington, on ai very large scale at their recently-erected Bunnythorpe factory. The milk is now. on sale throughout the colony, and the demand for it is sure to steadily and rapidly increase. A very special advantage with regard to the dried milk is that the process it undergoes renders it easy of digestion by even, . flw- most delicate stomach. Itcan, be always on hand andl made (to any required: richness) at a moment's notice by the simple addition of water.

The 13,000 sheep sold on the opening day at the Otekaike (North Otago) sale, realised £14,000, an average of £1 2s 9_d per head.

An Oamaru auctioneering firm lias sold 30,CC0 sheep this year for Caaiterbury. Of these 18,000 were sold to one Ashbu'rton purchaser.

Messrs Mac Lean and Co., Wellington, timber merchants, have .'ccund a Huge timber contract from Au;:Li.ill.i. The contract .is for 25,000,000 ft. of white pine, and extends over a period of five years.

The Westport Times waxes joyous over the increase of deer and opossums m the Grey Valley. -At Donald's Terrace a herd of oight fine deer was seen a week r.r two ago, and tracks are often .w.-n iv the vicinity.

An interesting curiosity has brm sent to a Dunedin resident m, the shape <>f a sprig of gentian, which Professor Park and party recently found growing at Hanmer at a height of 3000 ft above .yea level.

A curious case resulting from an operation is that of Thomas J. Maguirc, of New York, who hndl hi*" tongue cut out to the roots on account of cancer. He has since learned l to talk ard sing almost as well as any man. and he can distinguish between sweets' and' souls.

A correspondent to a New Plymouth paper humorously complains that when the compliments and "mutual admirations" were being dispensed over the success of the exhibition a very important class — the guarantors — were overlooked. The point of the complaint is that they are not to be overlooked now.

The Inspector of Awards, Napier, has filed with the Clerk of Awardfe at Wellington, four applications for the enforcement of the Napier Drivers' Award, against tbe Hawke's Bay Motor Company, Ltd. Tlie applications em. brace 43 employees.

Farmers m the Masterton district have so far been very fortunate as regards bush fires 'reports the Age). In the Forty-Mile Bush districts these fires have been doing considerable damage, and m one or two instances around Eketahuna homes have been m peril, the occupants having had their furniture packed up ready to quit at anymoment.

The B!kiecliffs run, of 17,C00 acres, m South Canterbury, has been twice offered at auction without finding a purchaser. It adjoins the Statioin Peak estate, on the Canterbury side of the Hakataiamea. The estate is Crown land, and was held on lease until two years ago by Mr R. H. Rhodtes, whose improvements are now charged against it. Both upset rental and valuation for improvements have been reduced.

John Sharman, a merchant, of Halifax, Yorkshire, England, made his 79th trip last month across the Atlantic. He arrived oil the Arabic, and aw soon as the Custom House officers had examined his trunks he rushedl aboard the Cunard liner at an adjoining pier. The man. is dleclared to have the "crossing habit," and he always- takes the next steamer back as soon as he can transfer. His trips are made, he says, to "cheat the doctors."

There were 2185 hours of sunshine m Christchurch last year, as registered by the recorder installed! at the Press office. Gisborne had 2170 hours. The Press observes that against this record those of the popular English health and holiday resorts make but poor showing. Brighton, for instance, had only 1649 hours, Bournemouth 1696, Eastbourne 1681, Hastings 1667, Margate 1471. Torquay 1698, and Ventnor 1620. and 1 these are among tho "brightest places m Great Britain.

An early move hi being made by the New Zeahmd Rugby Union to complete arrangements for the proposed visit of an, Australian Rugby team to ..this colony during the approaching season. It is likely, if the negotiations come to a definite issue, that the tour will take place soon after the season opens, and the New Zealand Rugby Union arc now m communication with* the various unions m order to get matters satisfactorily under way without delay.

According to H. L. Macpherson, clerk m the New South Wales Treasury at a salary of £250 a year, who was examined m bankruptcy, his bankruptcy was caused by borrowing from money-lenders at exorbitant rates of interest. He had been borrowing from one to pay another, and could have paid) back the moneys borrowed but for the rate of interest. He had paid as high as 240 per cent, to some of the money lenders.

Mrs Ogden, Mills, one of Gotham's social loaders, gave a dhnce to SCO. of the creme de la creme of New York society. There were several new fancy figures, m one of which the women dancers posed as living pictures ib large gilt frames, from which their partners chose them. Another figure was Hint of a large American beauty rose bush m full bloom, which was rolled into the room, and the roses were then picked and then given to the girli dancers.

At the Christchurch "Children's Court" „,?.• W - Bs » ho l>, S.M., enquired what facilities existed' for whipping boys who were convicted of offences, and! the subinspector replied that the police had a supply of rods suitable for all ages. The -Magistrate, after hearing the evidence, remarked that there was a tendency to deal too leniently M-ith juvenile culprits, and he issued an older that each of two small boys 'charged! with stealing some bottles of aerated waters should receive six strokes with a birch rod.

The first Danish co-operative dairy was opened m Jutland m 1882, and the growth of the nioveußtut ■ may be judged when it is known that there are- now upwards of 1100 such dairies m Denmark, with st. membership of over 150,000, and dealing with the- produce of 750,000 cows. ■ The total value of the imports of Danish butter -into Great Britain m 1902 was £9,302,000, as compared Avith £8,029,000 m 1900, amd representing, at most, ten times the total of the entire ■ co-operative output of this country. Truly an object lesson for us (remarks the Dublin Formers' Gazette), when we consider that the whole country is not much larger than the province of Minister.

A singula.* incident happened m connection with the fire m High street, Christchurch, last week. The block m which the fire occurred consists of three shops— one occupied by Mr Khouri, m which the outbreak was discovered', the next a fruiterer's, and the third' a tobacconist's. Whilst, the brigade was getting the flames under m Mr Khouri's premises they noticed what appeared to be fire m the upper portion of the premises occupied by Mr Wilkinson, the tobacconist, and broke the window of tho front room aikd! sent a strong stream of water inside. The cause pf all this was a lamp m the room, tlu> light from which was evidently mistaken by the brigade as part of the original outbreak. member of Mr Wilkinson's family, who was just retiring to bed, received a rude shock when the water ■commenced! to pour m. Damage was done by water to Mr Wilkinson's stock to the estimated! extent of £60. The family liad to seek lodgings for the night elsewhere.

Writing from "The Hermitage" to a member of the Timaru Post staff, Miss G. E. Beuham, the well-known Alpine climber, thus complains :— "I am leaving here, liaving done practically nothing m the way of climbing. It is not; safe to attempt ascents over snow-covered glaciers with less than three on the rope, and it seems to me to be hopeless to wait till I can get two guides to myself. Mount Cook is out of the question be. cause of the expense. The. charge for guides here is enormous, and it would cost me £12 or probably more, for the ascent, and I do riot think the game is worth the ' candle. I iim naturally very disappointed, as my chief object m com. ing to New Zealand! was to climb some of your mountains, but the Government Tourist Departnient\would not' allow me any reduction m the way of guide fees, so I must go my way without climbing."

A Masterton paper recently referred to the juvenile intemperance a"nd gambling m that town, and' now follows up that article by saying: — '"It is an alfrround reproach to the press,,, perhaps, as well as to the churches and the ratepayers, that Masterton should! bear a name for disorderliness. What is needed is some official appointed by the Borough Council to report on- the increasing- intemperance among youths, gambling, obscenity of language, and crime which is alleged to exist m the borough. We want to gob at the facts? m the first infctance-r and theti to apply the remedy. We know, from enquiries which, we ourselves have made, that there is grave necessity for ' cliecking disoidterliness and crime m this town ; but we do not know if there be a suffcient force of public opinion m the community to insist upon Masterton being well-governed! and 1 well ruled."

Mr G. J. Roberts, Commissioner of Crown Lauds for Westland, mi n the course of au interview with a Lyttelton Times representative, said :— "As soon as the Scenery Preservation Commission reaches Westland it .- will be asked to set dowm several places m. its list 7 of sanctuaries. The most important of these is Open Bay Island', which is off Jackson's Bay." Mr Roberts states that some native birds, especially sea birds, nmy be seen on the island m very largo numbers. He has seen the little laughing owl there, and has been, told that the island is the home of a swamp rail, while Maoris state that it also possesses a small species of the woodhen. It is also proposed to make sanctuaries at Lake Bruiuier, Kangaroo Lake, Lady Lake, Mount Kckeinga and Mahinapua Lake, and some steps will probably he taken m regard! to the famous Lake Kauieri. Other spots selected are the Okarita Lagoon, Paringa Lake, and the Tauwherikiki lakes and swamps. The seal rookery at Cascade, just south of Jackson's Bay, is getting on very well, the seals increasing m Humberts. On Open Buy Island, also, Mr Roberts saw a number of seals when he visited there tsome years ago.