GENERAL ITEMS.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXVII, Issue 44, 17 September 1918, Page 3

GENERAL ITEMS.

A cold storage shod has just boon completed at E-arotonga. Up to the, present time the residents, especially the European population, have had t° depend entirely on the island meat, which .'is {■ composed.principally of ih.addition to tinned m6au ■,' ‘Zhaland meat can now be shut td'tjW Islands and placed in cold storage, and be sold as re-

, f: - ■ Speaking at'-Kuniara: 1 on Wednesday, the Hon. G. W. Russell referred to the necessity of a reorganisation of the subsidy system as regards local government bodies and hospital boards, • i order to assist the development of sparsely-populated and unsettled districts such as those upon t’ho West Coast* Ho intended to bring before Cabinet proposals whichi if given effect to, would make Subsidies payable more according to the interests jVtho-v 1 dtc- | cording to their wealth. , Ho Togard|j ed, flat subsidies, wHicli made no dis.crimination, between settled and xth- | settled ; (districts, ; as unjust, . jnequit-Kfvble,.;a-iul not calculated;,.to assist the development of the other districts of i the Dominion. ‘

The “New York .Times’’ correspondent with the United States Army on the Marne tells how a solitary American named Leiiert captured eighty- | three Germans off Ids own bat. Len- ’ ert got himself surrounded by Gormans about 3 a.m. Seeing he was alone, he thought it best to call off the fighting for a bit. Lencrt is'ft Gennan-American. His captors show'~ed great interest in knowing- hpw I many Americans were in the attackj irig party. Lencrt told them eight 1 regiments, and, many more coming after them. The Germans knew the American barrage had cut off their retreat, and they told Lencrt that since so many Americans were coming it was useless for . them to light any longer, and craved the honour of surrendering to Lencrt. He ordered the Germans to throw all their arms 'away, and then, placing himself behind the eighty-thfoe Bodies, ho marched them triumphantly to the rear. The Australian troops have won two reputations in this war—one for courage and initiative the other for lack of discipline. According to Bishop Long, who lias boon at the front, the latter is as undeserved as the former is deserved. At first ,he held the common opinion of Australian discipline, but after he had seen the men in France and listened to the comments of regular office's “who know what real discipline exists, men who do not mistake the trappings for reality,” he changed •his opinion. He quotes a general of the regular army, a. taciturn, shrewd officer who had commanded men in nil parts of the world: “Stout fellows, high-spirited, yes, need proper handling. Undisciplined, no! Good common-sense, stout fellows! Fewer crimes since they came hero than ever before.”^

The captain of a steamer told n a London pressman a story of Ids carpenter and a U-boat. The car* pouter, 'quite a character in Ids way, was, fixing pictures in the captain's cabin, when a submarine was “annouirced.” The carpenter had just Risked where a certain picture should ffiie hung, out the captain nad hnrRticd to ilic bridge just in time to see |,« torpedo miss the stern of his ship hbj ii few yards. Shot had begun to play on the periscope when he became conscious -that -the carpenter had followed him. A second torpedo was discharged and came even closer, and

then tile -periscope' disappeared. A 1 most before the torpedo had'•‘••'passed, the carpenter asked: “Would you like me to put the pretty indy to the right or left of your sir?”