LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXI, Issue 4, 21 August 1911, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

A sevcn-month-cld child died at Sydney as the result of being peeked on the head by a rooster. The skull was fractured. It was decided at Saturday’s meeting of members of the A. and P. Association that Mr. TV. G. Malone he heartily thanked for placing at the Association’s disposal paddocks for the butter-fat .competition. Large drafts of yearlings are at present going out of the Manaia district, says the “Witness.” Mr. ,'J. Ik Stevenson sold 200, which wore taken into the Dannevirke district, and another Plains man sold a draft which were taken to the Waikato. The N.Z. Loan and Mercantile Agency Co., Ltd., Stratford, will hold their first sale in their now yards at To Worn on Friday next, 25th hist., when a good yarding of cattle and sheep is expected. A conveyance will leave their office at 9 o’clock on Friday morning. It is expected that tire schedule for the next show of the A. and P. Association will lie fully framed by next Thursday. On Hie motion of Mr. Dobson at the meeting of members’on Saturday it was decided to invito chairmen of schedule committees to meet the executive committee to discuss the committees’ reports, In answer to Mr. Stewart at the meeting of members of the A. and P. Association on Saturday afternoon, Mr. Porritt said the executive had in mind the question of putting down gravel at certain points on the Show Ground. Mr. Stewart suggested that gravel was necessary about tiro stand, the booth, and the secretary’s office.

Argentine is making a hold bid for immigration. Over 71,000 immigrants arrived there up to April loth, from the beginning of the year, and it is anticipated that by the end oft the year the total number of arrivals will have readied 400,000. Arrangements are being made for providing employment for the immigrants, and also for offering land on liberal terms.

The following new members were elected at Saturday’s meeting of the .A. and P. Association members:— Messrs. H. TV. Climie, Hawera fproposed by Mr. Watson); TV. J. Kenrick, Tariki (proposed by Mr. Kcnrick); J. D. Faultier. Kahouri Bridge fprbposed by Mr. Webb) ; J. Richards (proposed by Mr. Dingle); T. McCarthy, A. C. Maher, A. J. Brown. IT. Chadwick, and J. Jans (proposed by Tii'. E. Jackson).

The icefields have their tragedies just as other parts of the world. In 1841 a big icc island was seen off the coast of St. John’s Island, Newfoundland. T cry near the centre of the island, embedded between two big hills of ice, were two ships, their masts gone, and evidently destitute of life. It was impossible to reach them, oven if it hal been worth while; but many old sailers believe that they were a part of Sir John Franklin’s expedition.

The question of getting out of the Show Grounds after a football match was referred to at the meeting of members of the A. and P. Association on Saturday. It was stated that at the match against the Maoris the big gate on the road had not been opened, with the result that many people had climbed over it. The secretary said the caretaker had been instructed to have it opened on the occasion of every match. On the motion of Mr. Osmond it was decided to enlarge the gate to the grandstand. A loading Hawke’s Bay settler made a very good suggestion to the County Council. He remarks that no has noticed that a considerable amount of damage is done by the metalling contractors’ drays ' following one another in a string when going long distances. Ho suggests arranging for depots for metal at stated intervals on all the roads, and lay up a store in the summer time when the

roads arc hard. This would enable the Council to repair the roads much more expeditiously when they arc soft, and would save a great deal of cutting up by the contractors’ drays.

Some Saskatoon (Canada) workmen, while digging a collar, discovered a vein at the depth of about six foot that was extremely rich in a mineral that had every appearance of being gold. A shovelful was taken to a jeweller’s shop, and oronounced to Its gold. Closer examination revealed that the vein is in a sandy, gravelly substance, and runs at a depth of six to seven feet, and about six to seven.inches in thickness. The men were stopped from doing any further excavating, and busied themselves by panning a generous sample of the dirt. The washings from it were tested before work was allowed to proceed. The death occurred in Kawc-ra on Thursday of an old and respected settler, in. the person of Mr. James Coupe r, who had been ill for some time, s’ivs the “Star.” Ills demise will be regretted by a wide circle of friends, in the early days the late Mr. Cowper fought in many of the skirmishes with the Maoris, and was one of the baud of military settlers who received a block of land from the Government to; services rendered. He did rot take part in the public life of the country, always being of a retired disnosition. Deceased leaves a wife and a grown-up family of two sons and four daughters. Three of the daughters are married, and arc Mis. C. h'. linker (Ifltham), Mrs. I’ 1 . Baker (Hawera), and Mrs. A. Allen (Alton'). The funeral took place on Friday afternoon.

An experiment which has been attended with remarkably .successful results is reported from Kcstcvon, Lincolnshire, Liigland. A strip of roadway was covered with a cement-like powder, which, being moistened, was converted into a hard dustless surface that has stood for three years without nei ding repairs. The amount of traffic it was called upon to carry is not stated. The nature of the suhfitan.ee, whatever it is, is worthy of further investigation. . The Gisborne Skating Rink was broken into the other night. The manager found that the door of the hail ha;! been burst open, and a cashbox was missing. The thief had apparently boon satisfied by the weight oi\ the box that he had enough to leave with, and several trophies in the shape of jewellery, in the same room, were left behind. He was probably much disappointed to find what the box contained, for it was used for patting in the odd pennies, and only laid about a pound’s worth in it. The completion of the Kaupokonui Company’s now store is proceeding slowly, says the Manaia “Witness,” the workmen being all engaged at the now factory. It is expected that the factory will be finished about the end of August, and there is a likelihood that the opening will take place about the same time as the official opening of the Manaia Post Office, both of which functions, it is very probable, will bo conducted by Sir Joseph Ward.

A farmer, noted for his absentmindedness, went to town and transacted Iris business with the utmost precision. He started on his way homo, however, with the firm conviction that he had forgotten something, hut. what it was ho could, not recall. As he neared home the conviction increased, and three times he stopped his horse and wont carefully through his pockotbook in a vain endeavour to discover what he had forgotten. In duo course ho reached homo, and was met by his daughter, who looked at him in surprise, and exclaimed: “Why, father, where have you left mother?”

A remarkable scene, in which the Farl of Lonsdale played a prominent part, was witnessed in Piccadilly during the Coronation celebrations. Lord Lonsdale was in the dense crowd in Piccadilly when ho noticed a man steal a brooch from a lady. He immediately went to the lady’s rescue, and was attacked by the thief’s confederates. With cnaracteristic vigour Lord Lonsdale felled the thief by a well-directed blow, recovered the brooch, and handed it to the owner. He then allowed the man to rise, and called out to the crowd: “I think, gentlemen, that you can deal with this rascal.” The earl then walked away, but not before he had been recognised, and loud cheers were raised for Lord Lonsdale as he made his way with difficulty through the crowd. An elderly man named George Stevens was arrested at Eltham by Constable Wade on Thursday afternoon, charged witii having on 15th August, at Stratford, obtained from Young, Hobbs and Co., 50 head of cattle, of the value of £55 5s sd, by means of false pretences. It is stared that accused went to Stratford and represented that ho had a farm on the Warwick Hoad, and purchased the cattle on the understanding that he was to pay a cheque for them in a day or two. He was given possession and then took the cattle to Hawera, where ho sold them to the N.Z. Loan and Mercantile Company’s yards at 7s or Bs. per head less than the price he purchased them at and kept the money, part of which was found in his possession. and 1 part: in the possession of his wife—in her stocking—and it would seem that he owns no farm on Warwick Hoad. Ho was brought before Mr. A. McGarry, J.P., on Friday morning, and remanded till the 25th August, bail being allowed in himself in £SO and two sureties of £SO or one of £IOO. His wife was also brought up on a charge of drunkenness. She pleaded guilty and was convicted and discharged. A rare and unpleasant accident happened on Wednesday last, says the Inglewood “Record,” whereby Mr. W. J. Matthews lost a very valuable horse. Briefly put, Mr. Matthews drove the horse—a grey recently purchased—to his sale yards, where he took it out of the" trap, tied it up to the fence, and threw his coat over it, and then wont on with the sale. Something startled the horse, whether the coat blowing about it or riot, no one knows, and it set sail for home, making the best time it has ever recorded. Finding its home gate shut, it continued its gallop up the hill and down the other side, where it gathered immense speed, and on turning on to the bridge it found the centre occupied by a dray, with a ton of slag on, going at the usual pace of sudi vehicles, and being unable to stop and not looking for jumping drays and horses, it took the next thing negotiable and jumped over the side rail of the bridge into the riverbed, smashing itself into jelly, and never moved again. The loss is a specially great one to Mr. Matthews, who prides himself on owning the best of any line of animal, and in this one had the champion of his class in all the A. and P. shows along this coast, forming, in Mr. Matthews’ estimation, an added value far beyond the actual pounds, shillings, and pence, and a value which, however, was not a small item, and it will not be easy to replace either.

Every man-o’-war needs a pet to complete its crew, and the Challenger, now en route to Wellington, carries a very attractive little animal which is beloved by all on board. It is a Mexican ant bear, which was purchased in a port with a very awkward name, for the equivalent of two shillings. The original intention was to present “Possum” to the Sydney Zoo, but nobody favours that idea now. The animal is of a very affectionate disposition, and is extremely intelligent. He has a long nose and a set of slender claws all well adapted lor scratching ant nests to pieces, and making a meal of the insects, but, in the absence of ants, he finds any food reasonably good, and can manipulate a raw egg as well as anybody’s grandmother. Growing to length generally, his tail is a very handsome part of him, and is longer than his body. “Possum” has strong personal preferences, and has, at times, made the round of the men’s hammocks waking up nearly all the sleeping members of the crew in a bunt for some special chum. While “Possum” has tho run of the whole ship, and makes himself as much at home among the captain’s cushions (which lie tears to pieces if lie is not watched), as ho is in the rigging, there is a still queerer beast which stays at homo in a tin box in a warm corner oi tho captain’s room. This is a horned toad. It is a sort of flattened frog covered with hard spines, and, dining the four months it has been on hoard it lu-s preserved its health and a placid demeanour without taking a morsel of food. Its previous owner was a lady, and it never ate anything whilse she owned it. Tho little beast scarcely moves of its own will, and its only exercise seems to ho to hoiso its body to a friendly finger. for it dearly loves to bo scratched. '

Mr. New’tou King inis received the following cable from his Sydney agents, re hides“ Lights firmer,” Applications are invited for the position of independent tester to the Stratford and Midhirst Co-op. Dairy Companies. The meeting of members of the A. and P. Association held on Saturday afternoon decided to recommend that a stockmen’s event be added to. the schedule for next show. The medical inspection under the Defence Act in the Stratford area has now been completed, and arrangements are being made for the commencement of training on September Ist.

The death occurred in New Plymouth yesterday of Mrs. Capol, third daughter of the late Dr. Humphries, who had boon a resident of Taranaki for nearly the whole of her life. She had been ailihg for only a short time. She leaves five daughters—Mrs. (Dr.) Fookos, Mrs. L. A. Nolan, Mrs. Hugh Good, and the two Misses Capel.

A sensational incident occurred al the Geelong College last week, says the “Argus. Several large pine trees are being removed preparatory to the erection of tho new school hall. A charge of dynamite placed under one of the - trees caused a startling explosion. A large piece of the trunk of the tree was blown 50ft into the air, and descended on to the.- roof of a room in - which tho vice-principal (Mr Price) was teaching. Tho wood crashed through tho ceiling, and was suspended hoove the heads of the class. Fortunately, nobody was hurt.

During the sitting of the Magistrate’s Court at Invercargill tho other morning two solicitors not .engaged in the case being heard were conversing audibly. His Worship (Mr. G. Cruickshank, S.M.), addressing the two, said: “You gentlemen don’t object to my sitting here, do you | i! doesn’t disturb your conversation, does it?” Needless to say, there war. no further demand for silence as .far as the two solicitors addressed were concerned.

Tho question of commission chargeable on an exchange of properties was discussed during the hearing of aland case in the Supreme Court at Palmerston North;'. The Chief Justice said he had never heard of 2.) per cent, being charged to both buyer and seller of properties, and he did not understand what the Chamber of Commerce rates meant by this. Mr. IT. R. Cooper said he had defended one or two cases of tho kind, and such commission had been allowed In law. His Honour remarked that ht had never hoard of it in the South Island.

Two applications for exemption from jury service were made to Mr. Justice Edwards at the Supreme Court in Auckland the other day. One man with scanty white hair, and not over-vigorous body, declared that lie had passed the three score years that gave him exemption, and his appearance'was elosuont verification of the statement. His Honour accepted the statement, and freed the applicant from service both at the civil and criminal sessions for which he had been summoned. The second applicant said ho was a butter dealer, and had no assistance, and if ho was detained on jury service his customers would be without butter, and his supplies would perish. “I will let yon deliver the butter this time,” said his Honour, “.but it must not be taken as a precedent.”

A remarkable tale cf the manner in which the. public are gulled by so-call-ed clairvoyants and - fortune-tellers was told at the Christchurch Magistrate’s Court the other day, before Mr. H. W. Bishop, S.M., by a young man, who said that his mother carried on such practices. He said that she professed to know a lot, but he reckoned he knew a givat deal more. He said that he had seen people come and buy her ‘‘medicine,” and cheerfully pay 7s 6d a bottle for it, being under the impression that it was what she said it was, a mixture made froin the best English herbs, whereas it was concooted of dandelions and such herbs as could be found in her back garden. The old lady, who professed to be a true gipsy, said she could only make about 8s a week at her profession, though she did not deny her son’s allegations.

New York’s firemen gave a thrilling exhibition of acrobatic skill recently in fighting a fire 560 ft in the air, on the top floor of a municipal building twenty-five storeys high, opposite the City Hall Park. The building, which is in progress of construction, is little more tnan a skeleton of steel pillars and girders. Fire broke out amid a largo pile of rubbish and temporary wooden flooring on the top storey. Flames leaped high in the air, rivalling the torch of the Statue of Liberty. The firemen could not roach the seat of the fire with a hose from the street, so they clambered up improvised ladders dragging the heavy hoso to the twenty-tlmd floor, where a standpipe is installed in the building. The hose was atttached to the standpipe, and carried two floors higher to the fire, while the engines in the street 560 ft below pumped water through the standpipe. The firemen balanced themselves like circus performers on narrow steel beams, ahd fought the fire half an hour before they got it under. It is believed that this constitutes a world’s height record for a fire.

Details of the tragedy in midocean on the P. and O. liner China, the Australian mail steamer, were received by the English mail. Two days after the liner had left Colombo, one of the stewardesses, Miss Alice Brewster, was found murdered in a cabin, and one of the crew, a Lascar, was charged with the crime. Miss Brewster, a tall, muscular woman, about 40 years of age, was in attendance on first-class passengers, and the man under arrest was bathroom attendant, his duties also concerning first-class accommodation. After he had prepared the baths, it was Miss Brewster’s custom to see that everything was in readiness for the ladies, and it is alleged that there had boon frequent friction between the two. chiefly about their respective duties. The tragedy happened during the night of June 10, two days after the vessel ! had left Colombo. Miss Brewster was not astir _as early as usual on Sunday morning, and to awaken her Miss Crutchlcy, another stewardess, went to the cabin. There, huddled in a heap, she found Miss Brewster dead, having apparently been attacked with a heavy spanner. Desperate efforts had been made to dispose of the body. The cabin had a large porthole, through which an attempt had evidently been made to thrust the body. All indications pointed to her having been attacked while she lay in bed, and a succession of blows were rained upon her. To protect her head she had raised her hand, for the back of her hand and her fingers were deeply cut. It is alleged that one of the reasons for suspecting the Lascar is that lie was found to have washed his clothes on the day of the crime. On the other hand, lie is of very small build, and it is said to bo hardly probable that he could have lifted the body as high as the porthole in the attempt to dispose of it.

Wo regret to have to announce the Jeath of Mrs. G. W. Pratt, of Warwick Hoad, which occurred yesterday, it the early age of 29 years. A husband and several young children (including a new-born babe) are left to nouru their loss. The funeral takes place on Wednesday. The Town Clerk complains that of ate it has become a very common mbit on the part of some persons to make extensive clippings from the newspapers in the reading-room. He points out that this is contrary to the regulations, and that a sharp look'nt for offenders will bo kept in the future.

A v«ry pretty and popular wedding rook place on ’Thursday at St. Mary's Jhurch, New Plymouth, when Mr. J. if. Strang, of Taumaruuui, solicitor, was married to Aliss Rita Crawford, fourth daughter of the late Mr. C. F. jrawford. Tho ceremony was performed by the Rev. John Wilkinson, 3.A., acting-vicar. Tho bride, who was given away by her brother, Mr. el. R. Crawford, of Stratford, was attended by two bridesmaids, her sisters .Aiissos Amy and Clara Crawford), i’he best man was Air. T. P. Anderson, of Stratford, and the groomsman Mr. S. W. Strang, of Eltham, brother of tho bridegroom. Tho happy couple left for Taumaruuui by tiro 1.20 p.m. train. The chairman of the Wanganui River Trust, in his annual report to Tarliamont, says that in the memory if the oldest native in the district the .vator in the river was lower than it nad previously been known, many of ibo streams feeding the river being absolutely dry. The greatest volume >f water came from the snow-clad mountains, Ruapehu and longariro, while the Ongaruo tributary contributed, although in a lesser degree than is usual. Despite these conditions it is most satisfactory to be able to report that tho traffic by steamers and launches from Tauiiiarunui to Wanganui, a distance of 144 miles, was fully maintained. The main efforts of the trust during tho year have been in the direction of clearing the steamer channel of large boulders and papa roofs. Tho exceptionally low' river made this very important work less difficult arid expansive, and most valuable work was accomplished. The work of improving the river channel is drawing to an end. An exponditwo of £IOOO per annum for two years should about suffice, after which time the revenue, derivable from rival- and other dues, should produce a sufficient income to meet expenditure for maintenance. Tho chairman urges the Government to provide £IOOO on tho Estimates for the purpose of a motor launch for maintenance work, and says it would save much of the present expenditure. Tho work proposed to bo undertaken next season consists mainly in the consul notion of training walls on various parts of the river, for which purpose he asks for £IOOO.