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Taranaki Herald, Volume LV, Issue 13994, 27 August 1909, Page 2

The annual horse parade under the auspices of the Egmont A. and P. Association will be held at Hawera on Saturday, September 18.

A Bluff firm of fish merchants is experimenting with a plant for canning oysters, which are preserved in their own liquor. The experiments are, it is reported, being carried out with considerable prospect of success.

The lease of the 500 acres of land in occupation of Mr. E. R. Hastie, on the Rama Road, Waimate, was offered for sale last Thursday, but was passed. hi, there being no bid. The upset rental' was £412 10s per annum, and valuation' for improvements £2500. , The Ferroconcrete Company of Australasia has just completed its contract for the construction in ferro-conereto of the new Queen Street Wharf, Auckland, the work being part of the Harbour Board's scheme. The contract was commenced about two years ago, and, altogether, the company has laid down 166,000 square feet, for a contract price of £82,296.

"There is one thing that should be put a stdp to," emphatically remarked the Rev. G. H. Cole during a lecture at Christchurch, "and that is the selling of papers in the street by little girls. 1 don t know whether you have them here as we have them in Melbourne, but I hope not. It is a scandal and a disgrace to civilisation and should not be tolerated for one moment."

The Wellington Collector of Customs, in the Police Court on Wednesday, stated th.it smuggling was carried on extensively, and that "these wholesale breaches -of the law" were very unfair 1 6; legitimate traders who paid Customs dues and rents. Smuggling, he continued, had become a large, lucrative .trade, and he asked, the magistrate to show no leniency to convicted offen ders.

Work at present is suspended on the Seddon memorial monument over the tomb in .Sydney Street Cemetery, in Wellington. Everything is complete save the allegorical figure surmounting the four-square pillar of Coromandel granite. The crowning statue is expected from England shortly, and on arrival will be hoisted into position. The P.ogt considers that the whole monument, with its simple chaste Doric design, will be one of the features of Wellington.

The Government intends getting a boat built for the Lake Wakatipu service. "It is my intention," says the Hon. Mr. Millar, "to offer New Zealand firms' a chance of tendering before sending' the job out of the dominion.'.' 'He added that he sincerely hoped, die. local *prices would be sufficiently close to justify the Government in giving the work .to a local firm. Thirty years-. ago vessels wpre built in Wellington, and he saw no 'reason why they could not bui)d again now.

The Minister fpr Mines, the Hon. R. M'Kensje, states that an application for y, Government grant in aid of prospecting at Terawlutf had \q be refused- because f;be Jand concerned was private property. He Recollected a rush of some magnitude to the "place twenty-five years ago, and he believed there was 1 gold tP be found there. Sums for prospecting purposes had been voted to miners on the West Coast and in Otago, Nelson, and Auckland provinces, Seventy years ago Tauranga was a mission station* and continued so for a decade, Theq Maori w-ars began, and the little settlement was nothing more than » military camp for a long tine. Gradually the war fever died,' and the village began to grow steadily. The special settlements of Katikati and Te Puke . accelerated the growth considerably, but subsequently a period of depression, affecting the whole colony, occurred, and Tauranga did not escape. But all that is past and done with now, and enterprising colonists have provided the town with a gasworks 4^l its own. It looks forward to freezing w;orks, railway line, and a water service,, and is very optimistic concerning its future: Cincinnati's memory is recalled by the account which Mr. Massey has given an Auckland interviewer of hi 3 entry into political life as member for Waitemata. "It was harvest time when the seat became vacant," Mr. Massey said. "I was in my stackyard building a cornstack when a telegraph messenger came along with a telegram. The stack was some. height from the around! and- the message was handed up to s^e on one of the prongs of a pitchfork by/ the driver of the waggon that was being unleaded at the stack." This telegram contained a request from a number of Wai^emata electors that Mr. Masaey would meet them on \}\p following day for the purpose of receiving a request tjo contest the seat. !! l met them on the following flay as requested," the narrator proceeded, 'iand I consented to accede to the request." After a keen fight Mr. Massey was returned. Three years later lie was elected for Franklin, for which district lie is member until the present day.

For the benefit of domestics and faim hands who may think of emigrating to New Zealand, Mr. J. E. Kyle writes to The Scotsman from the Occidental Hotel ir Dunedin a few words of advice. He bays (reports the London correspondent of the Post) : "It is general servants that are wanted, so I warn housemaids, laundryniaids, cookb, etp.j'to be carefuj before embarking on such a long journey, and not to run away with the idea that if they come out here they are sure of a rich husband. There are plenty of as good-looking girk here already as un> to be found feiiywhere. 1 wo^ld also warn them not to make an engagement under double' the wages they receive at Home, as the cost of living js very much higher here.. . . \\ is :\ rough life on the shppp Potion. I" P ianv places the, men are not allowed butter or jam. 'The majority of emigrant-* lend at Wellington, and if they can't iind employment there they nre advised, if Scots, to go to Dunedin, the Soots settlement ; irEnglish. to Chirstchurch; annd if Irish to see Sir Joseph Ward, the Premier, who will get them a Government biilet."

"The Holy Ghost and Us" Society, whose visit fo Australia in the mysterious yacht, Coronet, made such a stir, has received advices that the end oi the world is to' come at 1Q.20,.'JQ a.m. Wednesday, geptpmbpr Jq. A\ least, such is tfiP fapf according to an American journal. After making the stttement and giving the precise time and date, ■ the account continues : — "Rev. Frank Sandford, who originated the sect and calls himself 'Elijah. the Uncrowned King,' and several other euphonious titles, says so. The Holy Ghost and Us Society followers at Shiloh lays he ought to know, and are making preparations to don the pure white robe*, pass up to the housetops of their colony in the sequestered Maine village, and await the dread moment. When it comes they expect to see Hie sky go smash, the earth 'busted' into smithereens, the sun tumbling somewhere, and they \)\vnu selves transplanted into the realms of Miss, while all others pass into destruction, MfefcnwLile, they -have painted to* entire tabernacle at a cost of 1000 dollars and bought a great rug, so that the place will look jiioe My way when 'Elijah' gets Jiegne from his tfcip to Jerusalem and other places in the yacht CororiHrt. Sandford sent the word tome from Capetown, where he reoMitly touched, tliat tho world «»■» about 'done doing business, and he is expeetwl back in Shiloh within a few weeks," •

Notwithstanding the unfavourable weather there was a very fair attendance at the annual social of the Carrington Road Cricket Club which took place in the Hall last night. A capital musical programme was rendered and dancing was indulged in.

The members of the Wanganui Rugby Football team, which is under the management ot Air. G. Spriggins, chairman of the Wanganui Hugby Union, returned to their homes by the mail train this morning. Last night the teams were the guests ot the Taranaki Rugby Union at the pantomime "Jack and Jill." There was a large attendance at the weekly meeting of the Whiteley Literary .md Debating Society last night, wlien a debate took place on "Sociali&m: Is. it desirable and practicable?" Hie affirmative was taken by Messrs. L. H. Osborne, Taunt, and W. Lewis, and the negative by the Rev. J. 0. Chapman, P. White, and M. Rudd. There was considerable discussion, and ultimately the decision was given in favour of the affirmative. Owing to a counter-attraction on Thursday of next week it has been decided to hold the weekly meeting on Monday evening. A couple of city men were playing golf, when they saw an old gentleman looking at them wistfully. They ahked him to join the game, which he did with alacrity. He was mild in speech and manner and played well. But once when he had made a foozle he ejaculated vehemently the word "Assouan!" A few moments later, when lie had made another bad play, hi< repeated "Assouan!" The fourth time he said this one of his new-made friends said: "I do not want to be inquisitive, but will you tell me why >oii say 'Assouan' so often." "Well, s.iid the old gentleman, "isn't that the biggest dam in the world?" He was a clergyman. New Zealand extracts good value in work for the salaries it pays its Ministors (says the Wellington Times). Apart from the reception of deputations and the close watching of departmental matters under their control, members of the Administration have a formidable task in dealing with their correspondence. The Minister of Labour (Hon. J. A. Millar), though administering legislation which has the eightliour day as one of its chief features, often works two factory days at his office during the t went y-f our hours. A calculation was recently made of the number of letters sent out by the Hon. J. A. Millar from January 6 until the end of July. The total reached 5600, to that the Minister's long hours am easily explained. Not long ago there was an outcry nbout the disappearance ot the bell-bird irom New Zealand, but of late the bougf.ter, with his clear-throated call, has come back in considerable numbers. In the Rangitatau block, prior to the Inibhfclling operations, this native bird was unusually plentiful— so much, indeed, that some settlers declared it was not the real bell-bird. Mr. A. Hamilton, Director ot the Dominion Museum, and an authority on native fauna, reassured a Post reporter on the point, telling him that the bird in the Rangitatau is the Mokomoko, and that is the Maori name for the bell-bird. This bird has re-appeared in the Egmont Forest Reserv* during the last few years and is now frequently seen and heard. In "Nature Notes and Queries," in the Melbourne Argus. Mr. Donald Macdonald says:— "A Queensland visitor mentioned an interesting circumstance to me. The black and red poisonous spider is very plentiful in hw district. When anyone is bitten he simply crushes the spider's body and applies it as a small poultice, and has no further trouble. At a Queensland timber yard which lie visited some time ago he noticed on the shelf in the office a number of scorpions in a bottle. On inquiry he was told that there were a great number of scorpions amongst timber, and in stacking or loading it men were occasionally stung. In such cases the body of one of the scorpioiiß was immediately crushed and applied to the bite, from which there was no farther discomfort." The addition of another storey to Dalgety and Co/» wool and grain stores at Kensington, Melbourne, has involved a building feat which it is believed constitutes a world's record of this kind. The work had to be completed within two months from the time it tfas started on yuly 22, and during its progress business had to be carried on as usual. To meet these conditions the ccntractor decided t« raise the roofs bodily on fcrew jacks without dismantling them, and then .to build the walls up to them. Thedifficnlty of lhe operation will be understood when it is stated that these two glased "saw-tooth" patter* roofs are lfspectively 236 ft. and 216 ft. long, with a width of 10ft. In< the case of the first this was successfully accomplished. i The biggest annual pension that is paid in any part of the world is £19,000. The Duke of Richmond is the recipient of this vast annuity , which is perpetual, passing from son to\ son. It was granted 800 years ago. Taking the annual pensions at the present tune, Earl Nelson is in receipt of the highest outside the royal annuities, viz., £6000 per annum, payable in perpetuity to all and every one of the heirs male to whom the title of Nelson shall descend. The Duke of Wellington's annual pension of £4000 is for life, and Lord Rodney's pension is, like that of Earl Nelson, perpetual. The amount of royal annuities, excluding tho King's grant of £385,000, is £173,000. The pensions for naval and military services amount to Jb*27,700; political and civil, £13,286; judicial, iTOJOg. The largest pension on reding fre.m oftiee is the £5000 a year given to petMnfJ Lord Chancellors, And still the manufacture of antique, goes merrily on. says the Tribune. An English authority declares that there is not a variety of famous old English pottery that is not imitated on a large scale tor the English market. Continental factories are the sinners mostly. A firm in Hungary sends out such excellent copies that many a* collector is deceived. This firm, it is said, has imitated nearly all the important ceramics of Europe and the East. Another, a French firm, has simply flooded the market with clever imitations of Worcester, Derby, and the rest. , The beginner who pins his faith to the mark is making a mistake. Nothing is so easy to copy as a mark. The gold anchor is always found on spurious Chelsea. A cose, in the courts brought out lately a trick the German imitators had for hiding tho spurious marks from the Customs house officials. They simply paste a label with the familiar "Made in Germany" printed on it over the mark. The. "old china" case tried in London not long ago revealed tho extent nf this imitation business, but it is doubtful whether people will not go on being deceived just thu sainvt. "Hunting (.ho tliunWo," a perfectly legitimate and interesting game as played at children's parties, had an untoward and totally unexpected result at a residence in Nairn Street, Wellington, the other evening. A young lady, with no large experience of electricity and its habits, in her anxiety to secrete the thimble in a most unlikely place, lit upon the empty socket that usually holds the electric bulb and its filaments of platinum. The empty socket was not in active service, while its twin brother possessed a globo which glowed lustrously, but the unemployed- little thing demonstrated a nasty and spiteful fooling when the damsel endeavoured to insert tho thimble. As metal touched metal, lo! the young lady was uugently " shocked," and the whole nouse plunged in a swift and deop darkness. Wonderment became confusion among the small people. A candle was obtained, and light was shed on 'the occasion. Further illumination was afforded in two w.aya by a]w official who knew tbo vagaries of the ejoment. Tho current was restored., aiuf the' explanation advanced that a short circuit had boon occasioned. There may be a unniing concealed in these lines for tho unthinking or the innocent (says the Post), for the shrewd damsel stood a chance of being electrocuted, it is said, had she been standing on such a thjiy; as a fender.

Improvement* li«y« been made, in construction of telephones of such a cjiarftcter as to make, telephonic conviction possible, for a distance of no toss t|iHii ?.50Q miles. Thjs m«u»» that it will soon ho. )Kiss,jb)e ttt BiH?ak to a frion^ )u *n % v part of Australia, no matter how remote, providing it is possible to got connected. It is not difficult to see how markedly this would revolutionise business methods. The acting-British Consul 4»t Stockholm gives details of the new invention. Hp says that the inventors are two Swedes, Messrs. C. E. Enger and J. C. Holmstrom, the former being chief engineer in the Stockholm telephone administration, and the latter the president of the Telegraph Company's training establishment. By this invention they claim that telephonic communication can be obtained over » distance of 2000 miles with nwfeet cleaning This new juy»n*«wi has not only mado communication pwsmbtt* between Berlin and Stockl.f.lm. but ha* opened the door to the possibility of communication over a much greater distance. The invention is a microphone, which has increased the sounding capabilities by 100 per conf. Uttoerit experiments have given excellent results at a distance of 4000 kilometres (2500 miles) »vith 4.5 mm. copper wires, of 2000 kilometres with 3 mm. copper wires, and of 400 kHumetres with 4 mm. iron wir*. To achieve this result the apparatus has had to be made 40 to 60 times as powerful as that formerly in use,

Mr. S. C. Crisp was very successful with his cocker spaniels at the annual show of the Wellington Kennel Club this week. Yogel Victor won first in puppy and 3rd in open dogs and Yogel Fan first in puppy and first in open bitches. Mr. F. F. Callaghan's Papamii Gipsy, dam of Mr. Crisp's exhibits, was second in open bitches. Mr. G. Stewart's skye terrier Jock was second in maiden dogs and novice dogs.

The local agents for tho new '"(Join" have sent us a sample tin of their hij^h hill-grown tea, a bl«»id of the l>est Indian and Ceylon. They declare that nothing superior to this' blend can be grown. It is packed in airtight tins, so that it reaches the consumer with all its rich and Iragrant aroma intact. A personal trial of tho tea enables us to support the agents' claims as to its high quality.

Tho Poverty Bay correspondent of the New Zealand Herald draws a dismal picture of bad roads. He says boaie idea of the state of the roads between Gisborne and Wairoa may be gathered from, the fact that at one spot on the Wairoa side of Stewart's crossing on Saturday, nine swingletrees were broken and four or five traps were piled up on the side of the road throuuli breakages. The Wairoa county enjnneer was one of the unfortunate travellers who was thus stuck up, and a party of ladies who were with him had to get out into a sea of mud. It required the assistance of a party of eight natives, using levers, to extricate one vehicle from the bog. At the same spot on Sunday the Hon. James Carroll's buggy came to grief, the swingletrees being broken. The Mayor of Gisborne. when returning to town, had the axle of his trap smashed at another bad place on the road.

The chief surveyor to the Essex County Council, in his last annual report, mentioned that 617 miles 7 furlongs of road had cost a net sum of £78,801 12s. Although the cost of the mam roads in the Home Counties had largely increased, the increase in Essex was not large, and the condition of the roads did not compare unfavourably with those of other counties. Some criticism had been passed by motorists upon the use of larger, broken macadam on some of the trunk roads, but this was necessary to enable the surface to offer increased resistance to crushing by locomotives and pulverising by armoured motor tyres, ana also to strengthen the roads when the foundation was faulty. About 100 miles of roads had been tar painted at an approximate cost of £3000, and this added 25 per cent, to the life of the roads in addition to saving discomfort to resij dents in towns and villages.

Sir Ernest Cassel, who shares with Lord Iveagh the honour of having provided the funds for the new Radium Institute in London, and, again with Lord Iveagh, has ordered a quarter ot an ounce of radium (priced at £30,000) tor the same institution, is in some ways (says the Sketch) the most remarkable of the twentieth-century millionaires. He has been in a very peculiar sense the architect of his own fortunes, and while building up his vast wealth he proved himself so great a benefactor to Egypt that it has been rightly said that his only rival in that respect was Moses. Sir Ernest is immensely interested in everything that concerns the fighting of disease. Some years ago he gave a million francs in order to help stamp out ophthalmia among the fellaheen ; and, a little later, he presented our Sovereign with h cheque for £200,000 to erect a consumption sanatorium. Unlike so many modern millionaires, Sir Ernest Cassel is blessed with the best of good health, and thoroughly enjoys.Jife.