LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LV, Issue 209, 5 April 1913, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The Garrison Hand will play in Devon street to-night at 7.30 o'clock, weather permitting.

At New Plymouth t'J- Ministerial Party visited the oil wells, and were evidently much impressed l>v the magnitude of the works in progress. The Inglcwood Ihirough Council, in response to a petition signed by 107 burgesses, has decided to take a poll on the weekly half-holiday question. The employees of the Eltham llox Company will hold their annual picnic at the East End beach to-day. The picnic was postponed from last, week owing to the rain.

"1 can drink whUkv as well as the rest of them, I suppose."- Intelligent remark by a member of a local body, when appointed a member of a deputation to wait on the Ministers of the Crown.

Mr. Massey told the people at Okato yesterday that in the past few days he and his fellow-Minister had met thousands of Taranaki people and travelled over thousands of miles of Taranaki roads!

There was a good attendance at the meeting of the. Eijuilablo Building Society last night, Mr. J. S. Pa ton presiding. Two appropriations of £l5O each in the No. 1 group were drawn, the successful shareholder being Mr. J. N. Johnson. In No. 2 group two appropriations of £l5O each were drawn by Mr. Fred Boulton.

The Prime Jl mister stated yesterday .that one of the best engineers of the Public Works Department, now on his way to Europe, had received instructions to visit Belgium, which led the world in light railway construction, and to furnish a report upon the methods adopted. It was definitely stated that the Opunake-Moturoa railway, if constructed, would be a light line". The fact that primary school committees are not allowed subsidies on private subscriptions was one of the points raised by Mr. V. P. Corkill in speakinjr on behalf of a deputation which waited on the Prime Minister yesterday. Seeinp that High .Schools were subsidised in this connection, he thought that the primary schools should be. entitled to the same consideration. Mr. Massey said that there was a good deal in Mr. Corkill's contention. Though it would require a special Act of Parliament, he was in favour of the concession being granted.

By th'fl death of Mrs. Katorina Urn, at the residence of her son, Mr. Harry Uru, in Riccarton, last Thursday evening, Tuahiwi lias losfc one of its oldest and most respected residents (says the "Lyttelton Times"). The deceased lady was over ninety years of age. and was married seventy-live years ago to the late Mr. John Uru. She reared a family of twenty-one children, all of whom she outlived except three sons, Messrs. Hopere. Harry and TTape Oru, and one daughter, Deceased was a well-known figure in the Canterbury district, and the large attendance at the funeral on Sunday testified to the esteem in which she was held.

An incident that bordered on the tragic occurred at Blenheim recently. A constable was standing under the verandah of a boarding-house with a man for whom be was arranging accommodation for the night when. the report of a firearm sounded across the street, and a bullet Hew past them and struck the wall near the doorway. The mi>sle passed within two feet of the con't-'ib'p, find in.iib' a hole ;> couple of inches deep in tin- brick. Someone was cxaminim; a revolver in one of the upstair rooms ot' the Public Works Department, when (lie weapon unexpectedly '•yplfid'-d. strilfinir against an ir-on girder, and deflected across the road.

The Union Celebration Services tomorrow in connection with the Methodist Church promise to be of exceptional interest. The preacher for the day will be the Rev. S. hi wry. President of the United Conference. The morning service will be held in the "Whitcly Memorial Church, when Sister Florence will be ordained as Circuit Deaconess by the President, and afterwards there will be a united Communion service. In the nfternoon at 3, in '.he Theatre Royal, there will be a Sunday School demonstration; and in tin; evening at 7 there •will lie a People's Service in the same building. Special hymns will be sung, led by the united choir, and hymn-sheets will be provided. The case of the child taken in charge by the Tarauaki Hospital Hoard, and who was "wanted" by the police on account of a warrant issued by the Education Department for her arrest and detention in a home for defectives, was brought under the notice of the Prime Minister yesterday by the Chairman of the Board. Mr. R C.'.T. Ilellringer. Mr. Bellringer detailed the facts of the case on the lines of the statement already published, asking Mr. Massey to cancel the warrant. Tin* Minister undertook to immediately get in touch with the Minister of Justice with a view to complying with the Board's request. Meanwhile the child is >ti!l held by the Board in defiance of the ukase of the Department.

Opportunity was taken by Mr. V. V. Corkill (Chairman of the Central School Committee), in the course of an interview with the Prime "Minister yesterday to urge that Empire Day, which fulls on May 24. should be made a holiday in place of Dominion Day. He regretted that the old-time patriotism surrounding the celebration of the day at the schools bad been knocked on the head by the substitution of Dominion Day. In reply, Mr, Mas«cy said it was not "a small thing." "1 am," he said, "very strongly of v the opinion that Empire Day is much more important to us from an Imperial point, of view than Dominion Day. and is likely to be of much more service to the rising generation."

Wednesday was the 4!)Ui anniversary of the Battle of Orakan. the last engagement in the Waikato, where the Maoris concent rated their forces and put up a very stubborn ivsU:ance. One of fiie regiment* taking part in the encounter was the lStb Roval Irish, under Hie command of Captain and llrevclMnjor .T. 'l*. Uaine. who was nionallv wounded while leading his party. A train of powder was laid on to the Natives' po-i(ion, and they were warned to surrender by (leneral Cameron, but they took advantage of the withdrawal of some of the troops from an angle of the redoubt to make a frantic rush for an adjacent swamp. They were pursued by the troops, and about. SO of their number were >bot down. The encounter resulted in 42 of the troops being killed and wounded. A short time afterwards the whole of the troops were withdrawn to England with the excention of the 18th Roval Trish. who were here until IS7O. The .-.Oth anniversary of the rally of the survivors of those wdm took part in the battle will take place on July 4 next, and those who desire to take part in the function should communicate with Mr. Joseph Neylon, Green Lane—Auckland '-'Star."

| A comparison of the ship canals of J the world demonstrates the colossal na- > turn of the new Panama waterway. The \ cost is estimated at £80,000,000, whereas, j the Suez Canal cost only £10,000,000, the Manchester Canal £15,000,000, and the Kiel Canal £8,000,000.

There passed away in Hamilton on Sunday, at the age of 88 years, another of New Zealand's oldest settlers, in the person of Mrs. Helen Clara Snow, widow of the late Charles Hastings Snow, of Wellington. Mrs. Snow came to Auckland with her husband in 1859.

A local gentleman informs us that many years ago when he was in the bush south-east of Taupo he came across numerous white kiwis. Of the ordinary variety there were hundreds, whilst kakapos, the non-flying parrot, were there also in considerable numbers. The ' bush was at that time very thick and heantiful. and afforded a perfect sanctuary for both the kakapos and kiwis.

One of the men who took a hook at the Gear C'o.'s freezing works at Petone is a well known fanner and the owner of race horses. During Easter time he had souks horses running at Tauherenikai;, but kept at work at the board. lie is reported to have said that he would have liked to see hi* horses run, but was determined to stick to the company right through. The erection of rural telephone lines, privately owned, are a great boon to the settlers in the north (says the "Herald"), and there are now very few districts where the farms are not linked up amongst themselves, and in many eases connected up with the Government lines. The system is also growing in favour in the south of the province The annual report of the Matamata branch of the Farmers' Union contains reference to the fact that three, and probably four, lines will shortly be erected in that district. The report incidentally extends the thanks of farmers to the postal authorities for the help the latter have given in establishing tho system. The method hitherto in vogue of appointing Justices of the Peace has been altered. The lion. W. Eraser explained the position to a deputation of settlers at Tangiteroria, in Hobson County, which asked his advice on the way they should set about having a justice appointed in the district. i JPr ,]'raser said that formerly big batches of justices had been appointed by the authorities regardless of whether they were required in their respective districts, or not. That system had led to confusion, but the present Government had made the matter much simpler. When tlifiRet tiers of a district required a justice, all they had to do was to select one of their number, recommend him to the member for Parliament for the district, and that person, if suitable, would be appointed in due course.

Luxury in woman's dress has reached such a pitch in Paris that societv women there are proposing to organise a simplicity campaign. It is not so much the prices paid for the dresses themselves as the money asked, and paid, for accessories, which are exceeding the powers of all but the deepest purses. The extravagance in stockings has grown in inverse ratio to the thickness of the material. A shop near the Opera sells stockings at Bs. per pair at the cheapest. An inquiry for the most expensive produced some at £4O and £4B a pair made of Chantilly lace. Mechlin lace, or tissue of gold. In the Rue de In Paix, a fashionable purveyor of white underwear stated that he had no trousseanx under £2O, and that £2 and £4 were the prices for "cheap" nightdresses. Another shop of the same kind, making a speciality of corsets has quite cheap ones at*£4 each, and a little better quality at £8; "but of course," said the shopkeeper, "when a lady wants a really fashionable corset she has to pay for it." Oakum provided (he lighter effects in connection with the Ministerial visit yesterday. First there was Mr. H. J. Ok'ey's speedy denial that he had ever stated, as Mr. Adlam had credited him with stating, that the district was neglected by previous Governments because their member was on the wrong side of the House. Mr. Adlam had expressed the hope that Mr. Okey would get greater consideration from the (lovernment now that he was on their side. Then Mr. Blackball rose to remove an alleged belief of Mr. Wilkinson. M.P.. flint (lukura was a very poor district. Mr. Wilkinson denied ever having said so. Then Mrs. J. R. Dougherty, who disclaimed any

"suffragette" intentions, made the first lady's speech of the tour. She likened Taranaki to Cinderella, with Auckland

and Wellington as the two more favoured sisters. She hoped Mr. Massey would prove to be the fairy godmother, and, she concluded, addressing the Prime Minister, ''Please give us the railway like the yood old (she was just going to say 'boy') Government that you !ire."