LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXIX, Issue 109, 29 June 1911, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The Cardiff Dancing Assembly in-i tends holding another dance in the school on Friday evening next, 1 the 30th inst. On Saturday evening the Hon. T. Mackenzie informed a Christchurch “Press” reporter that while no matter of sufficient interest to bo describ-.; eel at length was happening in conr ncction witJi too experimental farms..at the same time, steady progress wasbeing made, and a groat deal of work accomplished. Tins steamer Star or Australia (6171 tour), which has just finished loading wheat at Darling Island (Sydney) dx; the outward agency of James Bell and Co., will take to tlie United Kingdom what will bo a record Sydney wheat cargo—Booo tons, approximately 99.000 bans. . r> Australian North Coast dairy farmers who are wont to deplore the absence of winter feed should take the fiist chance that offers to .secure soine Indian cane. A few weeks since some’ of Mr. Hogan’s pits of it at Raleigh sufficiently proved that the dairy mar. who is short of feed in winter has on!) himself to blame. The caile grows luxuriously on almost anv class of land , and is good, succulent, nutritious feed. A report from Winton (Queensland): states that Kynna finished shearing-, last week, after putting through 237.000 sheep. Porter was the “ringer” of the shod, shearing 7900 sheep. His highest tally was 184. Fogarty was second with 7596, the host tally being 175. At tlio Winton works on Juno stb the shearers put up a record. Twenty men shore 3600 sheep in 7 hours 40 minutes, the average being ISO. J. Herricks led with-310 R. Anderson was next with 203, and E: Brown third with 200. On the voyage from Sydney to Alt' I bourne the passengers by the Adelaide S.S. Company’s steamer (Iran-, tala had a unique experience. While the vessel was steaming along shordv after, dinner a gentle jar, was felt forward, and the next moment a whale, of considerable size rose close to the' ■steamer’s side and spouted, dashing away to the open sea. There was eon-, sidcrable excitement on board when it was realised that tiro steamer bar! struck the whale a“grazing blow as it was rising for air. A humorous incident of a recent' horse sale is being told in Christchurch just now. An animal that had obviously seen hotter days was put up, and the suggested bids" oy tire auctioneer gradually decreased until live shillings was reached, at widen figure there was no purchaser. A bright idea struck the auctioneer. Ho sub mittccl a horse-cover, and offered fcc throw the horse in, hot oven this w.-u ineffective, as a means of getting rid of the “crock.”

Whon the first shipment of froze : eggs arrived in London from A', stralia their extreme hardness n t.ri ishecl tho brokers, says the ' .Mark Lane Express.”_Ono man calling at ;■ shipper’s office was amazed to see mn taking aim at tiic wall with- an egg. “What the Dickons are yon at?” in raid, lint the broker let drive, t'u only result being a slight dint in the wall. The thing being explained, the man took a couple of the eggs, pul them in bis packet, and left to startle iiis wife. Arriving homo, ho waited till the family was assembled for.dinner, and then hanged an egg at th( new dado, lint the smile quickly faded from his face. The egg had thawed!

Not the IbasFrn foresting feature of ! the Coronation • music (says a Lohcloa paper a few weeks ago)‘ will life tho .appearance in public for the 'last time of Mr Edward Lloyd, who will not only form one of the very select choir which is being organised fqi the occasion, but will also, in all probability, take one of the principal solos. “In writing to Sir Ere dot k k Bridge on tho subject, Mr Lloyd bar happily recalled the fact that ho began his musical career by singing at the Abbey, where he was a member of the choir for upwards of eight years. It will bo a happy , and 'appropriate rounding off, therefore', o' the great cai.oer for the veteran tenor to sing for the last time in public uii. dor tho same venerable roof on such a memorable occasion as the Coronation.”

“Tho stock charge against, exam Illations,” said Mr E. K. Mulgan, chief inspector of schools at the cercmciiy of opening the Convent of the Sacred Heart, Hernuara, Auckland, ‘ ‘‘is that they lead to or. lend themselves to cramming.” If by cramming, h< continued, was meant the power qi being able to master part of a subject in a, limited time, it could liardlv lie said 'to l)e without educative o: utility value. Though after the examination the candidate might not have occasion to refer directly to 1 Sir subject, ho had acquired the pnwu of loearning with rapidity, perhapt to apply himself resolutely to a sub ject of little interest to himself. This was a splendid equipment for the hat tie of life, in which there were manj trials and hardships to be met. While there was such a tiling as injurious cramming, ho did not think it existed to any extent. He contended that many people who opposed examinations on tho ground that there win too much cramming, did not clearly understand what the term implied. There was a grave danger, however, in making ton much of examinations, and allowing them to divert the attention of both pupil and teacher Loir; the real and more enduring aims ol education. The fitness of tho toachei to instruct was an important one, and it was gratifying to note that tho effect of a new regulation would ho the withdrawal of tho whole of the pupil teachers from our schools.

That Christchurch harbours main, actors and actresses who have novel “starred” is well known, but not even the most enthusiastic .supporters o’, flic drama in Christchurch would ho Hove tliat the grand, total of aspir-

ants to a “super’s” part in “The Whip” would ho 280, representing 23( men and 50 women. The collection oi people that surged round the office door at tho Tneatro Royal on Saturday was a motley one, ranging from small i>oys, yet at school ,to hoarded men. 15 qfore the actual selection war made, tiie manager announced that tho selection would bo confined t>: tiiosc likely to bo fitted by tlio dross es in stock. After a long inspector the required twenty-five men were lined up in single (il.v.and informed who* th.cir .services would next he required, and the rest, with dejected mien trooped sadly away. Tho ladies weiy not such a varied crowd, though inch ages varied. There was trio lissom schooolgirl and there was tho person as to whose ago it would ho extremely unwise to hazard a guess. The selection of tho ladies occupied little tirno and tho unsuccessful applicants ,h this case took their departure wit careless looks which doubtless belied their real feelings. • For some t.inn after tho selection of the men had been made one young man persisted i* declaring that ho and his throe “cobbers” should most certainly havp beer selected, as .they, had boon “joqkrj’ and were “well up in the?. ways pi horses. ’

Mas ; Blainires-, vQio is Ap: -gpejik; at the after-clmrch meeting in the town Hall next Sunday, lias a most interesting story to tell. She is a fluent and pleasing speaker, and her incidents ato gleaned from a wide and varied field of mission work. 1 The N. Z. Loan anti Mercantile Agency Co., Ltd., have on view at their warehouse some line specimens ■ of Golden Tankard and Sugar Mangolds and Monarch swede grown by Mr John Mcßride on his Monmouth Road farm. The annual meeting of the Chamber of Commerce will ho held , this evening in the Borough Council ChamhdF. In addition to the usual business’ a discussion will take place oh Mr J. B. Richards’ paper bn mortgages repayable on demand. At the sitting of the Magistrate’s Court, to morrow' one charge of .assault and one of procuring liquor while prohibited will bo investigated, ’ and an information for a breach of tlio Borough by-laws will be dealt;, with., Eighteen ' civil actions (four of which will lie defended) are, set down for hearing, and seven judgment ■summonses will he gone into. Mr Henry Sanson, Flint Road, 'Stratford, yesterday afternoon receiv--gd the painful intelligence of the pleath of his brother John, which took place suddenly at Glen Oroua. De.ceased was an old and much respected resident of the Manawatu, his father ’having boon the founder of the township of Sanson. Mr Henry Sanson left Stratford by the mail train this morning in order to attend his la other's funeral. The s.s. Wapaka, which left Welington for Sydney direct, on Friday last, carried a shipment of 2580 stud sheep from Lyttelton and 16 horses. At Wellington she took on board 114 horses. The sheep alone are said' to ic valued at something like £9OOO. It is understood that her “live’,’ cargo is one of the largest that' has gone to Australia from New Zealand. The .consignment is due at Sydney in time to catch the July sales. For some considerable time the New Plymouth Chamber of Commerce has, boon agitating with a view jo having the southern ■ morning train arrive there some time before 9.30 a.m. To enable this to bo dono.it would.be necessary to start the train an houruul a quarter earlier at Hawora, mak-, iug the time of departure 6 a.m. To make a- connection the Toko train would need to leave Te Wera about 6.25. The stationmaster (Mr ,J. B. Campboll) is at present making ■.inquiries as to how the change would ■;o regarded by Stratford people, i > Among the persons brought before fche Ballarat (Vic.)"City Bench recently was an elderly man named. John Dormoody, who nearly 40 years 1 ago broke out of Ballarat goal with the notorious Captian Moonlight, the tho hank robber. Dormoody referring L ,o those days said he had “given the game best, as not being worth the ■andle.” Ho now merely finds pleasure in drinking with sundowners or in dancing jigs at street corners. On Saturday Dormoody was charged with disorderly behaviour. The Bench fined him 20s for his edcentric, conduct, while on a charge- of habitual drunkenness he was sent to gaol for two months. Dormoody: “Tiie same )ld gaol of long ago! Why don’t you ;ond me to Peutridgo for the rest of my natural life?”

During a social held by the Woodvflic .Rifles, reports the “Examiner,” Captain Nelson surprised those present by saying that ah officer who had served 1 in the'Maori w’dr astonished him by telling him that in those days they used to tiro at beer bottles, and to knock them over at a thousand yards?* with ’the olds Enfield; Captain Nelson had thought the matter over, and could only come to the conclusion that “there . were - giants in those days”—either in regard to beer bottles or else in regard to shooting men. Canon Eccles confirmed the story, and said that ho had repeatedly soon such firing, and ten or eleven bottles knocked over out of a dozen, though ho had never seen all twelve hit.

Wohavo just received from the publishcrs, Messrs Ferguson and Hicks, Wellington, a copy of Mr W. Jolliffo’s “Parliamentary Electoral Law.” It aims at simplifying the statute 'aw relating to Parliamentary elecions and contains the provisions of the Legislature Act, the Second Ballot Act and tho Amendment Act of last session, arranged in one logically continons course, enabling a ready reference to the law as it stands. The full indqx is also particularly useful. The work has been adopted and supplied to the Government for' official use and should he of considerable assistance to candidates _ and their committees. The work 1 is obtainable fro mall booksellers or from che publishers at 5s per cojay. For chronic chest complaints, Woods' Great Peppermint Cure. , Is 6d, 2s 6d*