NEWS OF THE DAY.

Colonist, Volume LVII, Issue 13737, 27 March 1915, Page 4

NEWS OF THE DAY.

A. slight earthquake was felt in Nelson at 11 o'clock last night.

The annual meeting of the Wakatu Cribbage Association will be held at the Burlington tea rooms on Holiday evening. New teams are requested to notify the secretary.

At Wellington, in the Supreme Court in Chambers, on the I^Oth/inst., on the motion of Mr. J. Glasgow, Mr. Justice Chapman granted probate of the will of the late Robert Kerr to Mary Cecilia Kerr, his ;vidow, the sole exec^nx named in tiie will.

Tuesday, Ap_ril Gth, will be observed as a special bank holiday.

The Rev. F. H. Spencer, agent of the British and Foreign Bible Society, will preach at the Presbyterian Church at the midday service to-morrow.

Sections in the Wither Settlement. Marlborough, are now open for selection on renewable lease, as advertised by the Commissioner of Crown Lands for that province.

Blankets and Eider Down quilts. Our new stock has arrived, and prices are the same as last year. We bought before *h© rise, and now pass the benefit on. All we ask is that you compare our prices; 'business is sure to follow. Is in the £ cash discount.—Trathen and Co.*

t For the convenience of returning hop pickers, the Kaitoa will make a daylight trip from Motueka to Wellington to-morrow, leaving Motueka at 6 a.m., for Wellington direct.

The Collector of Customs (Mr. W. Devenish) has been advised that the remission of the duty on flour and wheat has been extended to December next. "

The 12th Regiment Band will give a sacred concert in the Theatre Royal tomorrow evening. The programme will include the test selections, quartette, trombone trio and solos to 'be played at the forthcoming band contest at Christchurch. A collection will be taken tip in aid of the Red Cross and Belgian funds.

When the Liberals were in office, Mr Allen was accustomed to denounce what he was pleased to regard as the extravagant administrative expenditure, and to assert that if he were given tho opportunity he would institute great economies that would lessen the burdens of the people. He has had his opportunity.—"New Zealand Times."

A generous donation to the Belgian Fund has been made, by Dr. E. Porritt, of Wanganui. He, is the owner of a block of land near Hamilton, consisting of ].<SO acres, and he has given the whole of this property, to the Belgian Fund. The land will be sold, and it is estimated that it will realise £1000.

Major Cohan, of Wellington, who has been the editor of the "War Cry," is conducting the harvest home meetings at) the Salvation Army Citadel all "tay to-morrow. On Monday there is to be a novelty ; everybody who pays sixpence at the door will receive a sixpenny p: esent. At Easter the Wellington South Brass Band will be spending a holiday in Nelson, holding special meetings at the Citadel.

By advertisement in this issue Mr. Wm. Wells, of Wakefield, thanks his neighbours for saving a number of his stacks from destruction by fire en Thursday. Mr Wells lost a stack valued at £60, and uninsured, and but for the efforts of his neighbours—men, women and children—would have loss others, making his loss very much more severe.

Interesting light is thrown on the "Polish question" by the fact that the Cossacks, when they drove the Germans out of Gumine, found that the last remnant of the Germans who lingered there were burning with benzine what houses in the village still stood. In one house which had been spared 50 Germans were discovered in the agonies of cholera. As these were ■ first-line traops, the cholera scourge must have obtained a firm hold on the enemy. The Germans burnt al! the hamlets where cholera showed itself, regardless of the entreaties of the destitute Polish peasants.

At a largely attended committee meeting of the Nelson Poultry Association at Mercer's rooms last evening, *t was resolved.to write to Mr. T. A. H. Field, M.P., thanking him for the interest he had taken in the question of food for poultry, but expressing disappointment at the Government's attitude in the matter. It. was decided to ask Mr. Bailey, of Wellington, to judge the oats at the association's show in July. Sub-committees were formed to prepare the catalogue for the show. The catalogue will again be distributed gratia. A list of the special prizes that are to be offered will be published as an inset in the newspapers.

Organ recitals will be J?iyen *n. *nG School of Music by Mr. Tait, assisted by his pupils. Miss Huia Bamford and Miss Jean Martin, this afternoon at 3 and this evening at 8.15. The first part of the programme will include a movement from Dvorak's symphony, "From the New World." The composer, who was for a few years principal of the National Conservatoire of Music at New York, made use of the melodies of the Southern negroes in this symphony. These can be readily recognised in the "Largo/ the movement selected for performance. The second part of the programme will onen with an arrangement of "The Pilgrim' Corns" from Wagner's "Tannhauser," and concluded with the War March of the Priests, from Mendelssohn's "Athalie." Miss Huia Bamford will contribute two songs. "In Summertime on Bredon" (Graham Peel), find "Winter," from Tennyson's "The Window" (Sullivan). Miss Jean Martin will take part, with Mr. Tait, in the duet for organ and piano, Pastorale in A (Guilmant). Ad- j mission is free. The collection, after deducting necessary expenses, will go towards the British and Belgian Relief Fund.

There is no doubt about the fur values and assortment at Trathen's. If you want an inexpensive set at 15s lid to 455, or a handsome set of rare and rich quality furs up to 15 guineas, we can supply you. Bear, fitch, wolf, fox, squirrel, marmot and Thibet .sets in good variety.*

As the Town Clerk, Mr. G. A. Edmonds, will be away from Nelson on leave for some days aftei Thursday next, people wishing to see him on matters connected with enrolment should do so before that date. The roll will be closed on the 30th inst.

An epidemic of diphtheria has broken out in Waitara.

The Napier Harbour Board has insured the Waikaka dredge against fire for £3000, tho rate being 15 per cent.

An Auckland fisherman has been fined £10, with £6 costs, for using explOssives to catch fish.

A writer in a recent issue of the "Whakatane Press" states that last winter a farmer on 628 acres in the Rangitaiki Swamp fattened 500 head of cattle and 200 sheep, besides grazing 30 horses.

The "Kawhia Settler': says: The Maori "King" refused a large sum of money offered him by local natives, declaring that he had come to visit his people—'not to collect money. "Kia ora," adds the writer.

Portugal has been making military preparations most, of the time since the war began. Part of the army already has been mobilised, and, its strength at present is believed to be about 100,000 men. A second mobilisation would bring this figure up to at least 245,000.

If tho Allies can take Constantinople —in time a possibility—Russia will be assured of an untraitimeled right-of-way from the Black c - a to the Mediterranean while Tv- . y will become merely a bad n.emo.. —Christchurch "Sun.""

The Thermometer.- ' t three o'clock this morning the th< uoroeter outside this office registered ) degrees.

The u*=e of carbon papers for taking duplicate copies of business forms and transactions is now universal, and the1 method has proved a great convenience in commercial and professional work, | but a drawback experienced has been! the want of a device to enable the form to be next used beiflg readily turned to, j time being consumed in turning over leaves to find the place. This difficulty has been effectively met by a patented method, consisting in a reduction in any part of the form which remains in the book, which enables the next unused form to be instantaneously found. For order, delivery, consignment, receipt, memo, invoice, and other books where copies are required, the device is a very great time-saver and convenience. Messrs Bond, Finney, and, Co., proprietors of "The Colonist," have been granted by the patentee sole manufacturing and selling rights of this device for the Nelson district, including the counties of Waimea, Takaka, Colhngiwood, and Murchison, and they invite inquiries from business firms.*