TOWN & COUNTRY.

Timaru Herald, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 12906, 19 February 1906, Page 4

TOWN & COUNTRY.

" Xo'.v that haixesting operations ai'e being coxnjjlel<;r] in lbs district.'"—Uta.t is imn a Maslboj-otigh papei-. It will be wm« lime b(-f<u'e those words can be applied 10 South ("anterbury. Members of the Sociity of Musicians are reminded that a general meeting is to be held at Strathmore School • this <erening. It is very necf<s.ary that 1 ben- should be a good attendance. -.1 the Supreme Cerent, Chivtchprcb, on Friday, in chambers, his Honour Mr Juslice Dennijton. on the application of Mr Hajptr, grantifd leave to appeal in the matter cf Chbell v. Thoraley. At the last meeting «f the Mount Peel Boad Itoaid. Mr Da\-id Sbeehaa, the Board** head -surfaceman in the lla'incliC dfolrict. *e»i in his resignation, which tbe Board accepted with great i'egret and placed <oa itcwd tbe« just appreciation of his service* over a pe:iod of t«r<lv« years. Tb« " Maj-lborotigh Kxjuwkk " isays that, tic brcal Survey Department ha* received inductions to prepare separate map* of the l<:c.rtbiie.< of all public schools in the MatJ borough <3isfjict, the drawings to cover- the arv.a within a five mile jadius of each building. Some thirty maps will be prepared. thif of the most striking things about, the Masonic Service of Sorrow 'a+t ev-en-ing was the way the hymns were sung. The men sang out iull voiced, in a manner that made one wonder why men don't, use their voice* ;<s -energetically when >ir,ging in ■churches.

A nasty looking accident occwred on Saturday aft era omi near King's stables. It was ih.e old story of pulling the wrong rein, .and a fanner ran his trap into another a woman W3* driving. The vehicles upset and were badly smashed, and the occupants were thrown out. Fortunately neither was hurt.

The Marlborough Land Bosurd had a difficulty put before litem for solution lout week. A young woman drew a tillage lot in a leans in perpetuity settlement, and her brother undertook to put up a temporary dwelling for her. He vent to work, found *urrey peg-*, dug a 30 well, ' put up fences, and altogether pat on £4!) worth of improvement*;— and then Use had been working on the wrong section. The Boaxd vaad thvy could neither txdxaoge the section (though tbe one operated on had not been taken op), nor grant any compensation— not erea for the yiJl. Our Point correspondent writes: —Har- , vesting is now general tfarougibot the district, and tie fine days lately have been made tbe most of. The heaTy rain w Wednesday hindered work, but did no damage, the chief fear being for a strong i!«r.-welter. which would shake out xnwt of the oatK. Extra laibourern seem' plentiful in the township, and apparently thews

i<? some questionable chaxaclers about a* the jschool-houise was visited by aa undesirable in the early hours of Saturday morning. His presence, however, was diiu ctirered. evidently before he lisud attahred his object, and lie retired through the <din.icg ux.im wiTvi«w in time to escape detection. Resident* jnKt. sow should *ee that their window? and doors are well secured j" night*, or they may wake to find the jarder empty. .

The Ciiristcuurcii Ram and' Ewe Fair will' be iield cn the show-grounds, Addington.' on the Bfcii and 9th March. Entries fall due on the 28th inst. After a- considerable interval tie work •ef .iiliing up the space under the northern "Caroline Bay viaduct is again in progress. A few days' work has nearly filled the fall height of the hollow.

Mr R. A. Fai B.Sc., of Dunthe winner of the Rhodes and Exhibition Science Scholarships, lias been notified that he has gained the M.Sc. degree with double honours, first- class in geology and second class in electricity and -magnetism.

We understand that Mr •T. Hughes, U.A., treasurer of the New Zealand Educational Institute, and formerly of Geraldine School, Lu-s -been nominated' as one of the South Islnad representatives on the Teachers' Superannuation Board. Mr Hughes • should make a good • member. An incident showing someone's quick ingenuity occurred at the sacred concert last night. Mr Marschel," in announcing the pictures shown, was stumped by a Welsh name, which he spe.t—a wonderful collection of w's, y's and consonants. He told the audience to do their best with' it, and a youth downstairs suggested 1 that perhaps whistle- it. was a fair attendance at. the Theatre Royal last night, when Mr Barrie Marschel and some members of his . companv gave' a: sacred' concert. In addition to. a number of sacred songs, a large selection of lantern siides was including photographs of _many of Britain's beffuty spots, Continental scenes, famous cathedrals, and so on. Several New Zealand views were also shown.

A light nor.-westerly air prevailed yesterday till evening, and then a dry southern blew ; up. The change was heralded by the passage across the sky of a. remarkable- cloud. Southerns frequently bring up on their front a. long rounded, billow of cloud stretching from horizon to horizon. The cloud last evening was rounded on the upper side and flat beneath, so that- it presented a sharp edge in front, and it was shaped in long almost- straight 3ines. The adjourned statutory meeting to consider ' Timaru Harbour Board's accounts, etc., f0r..1905, and the ordinary meeting of the Board, will be held at the Board's office, at 11 a.m., on Friday, March 2nd. The star-ding Committee will meet 'at 11 a.m. on the previous day. The meeting is to be held one week later than usual to allow of the balance sheet being received back from Wellington. The. following meeting wi.l be held on March 30th. instead of' March 23rd thus giving" four clear ■weeks between the meetings. A committee meeting of the Floral" Society was held on Saturday evening. Present: Mr C. A. Schmidt (in.the chair),, Messrs Wallace, Beswick, Wilson, Parks, Mair, Knowles, Cross' and the secretaryVarious matters pertaining to the welfare of the Society had been transacted through the week, and the chairman's action was approved. The Society are to have some large posters printed and distributed so as to -reach all interested. ; The staging committee reported, on what "they had done, and in view of the anticipated large entries,, are to report- again, at- ai later date. A hearty vote of thanks was passed to Messrs J. K. Bruce and. Company through Mr James Wallace, for their kindness in supplying the Society-with-admis-sion tickets. Donations have been received from the following;— Archdeacon Harper, Hon. Win. Hal!-3obes,' •'"Canterbury:'-. Farmers' Co-operative Association, Mr and Mrs A; S. Elworthy, Messrs C. T. H. Perry, S. F. Smithson, and James C-raigie. The entertainment committee are arranging an excellent entertainment, and this part of the Show should be worth hearing. The allocation of class stewards and doorkeepers wi'l be decided next Saturday evening, when a full attendance of the committee is expected. A vote of thanks to the chairman closed the meeting.

Puny boys and girls" need careful attention. Nothing quite so good for them as Stearns' Wine" which makes hew blood, sharpens their appetite aid -restores 1 childhood's happy vigour.... A powerful machine for heavy cutting is the McCormick Daisy Reaper. Morrow. Bassett. and' Co., - Christchurch. — (Advt.)

if ever a dull moment at Penrose's. Leaders are brought forward eveiy day of the month competing activity and- attention. While Penrose's are getting ready the winter goods time can be well spent in giving close attention to some of the most marvellous values in embroidered linen goods here specifiedlß x 27 inch ; hemstitched tray cloths nicely embroidered in drawn thread -and satin .stitch, Is 3d each; 20 x 30 inch-,cloths with deep hemstitched border and neat spray design, Is 6d each; "20 x--30. .inch hand embroidered cloths suitable for pillow shams, Is lid: each; 30 -x 30 inch fine muslin tray cloths artistically designed in shadow work and swans and water lilies, guaranteed hand dope, 3setch; 32 "x 32 and 36 x 36 hand embroidered and hemstitched tray cloths at Is 9d, 2s 3d, 2s-sc» and 3s 9d each. Penrose's Drapery Establishment.—(Advt.) bra.us and machinery are being exhibited at Berg's. The brain creates the musical composition". The machinery in the Apollo piano player renders that composition pei iwctly.. I'lays anything at any time bi anybody. It's passed ail exams, with honours. and can play, any composition better than the greatest living artist can do. Price. £37 10s.—(Advt.) A Bad Taste in the Mouth.—lt is anything but- pleasant to awake with a bad taste in the mouth. This always arise? from a disordered stomach and may be corrected by . taking a dose of Chamberlain's Stomach and J,;vef Tablets immediately after-, supper. They cleanse and invigorate the stomach, improve the . digestion and give one a relish for his ' food. They are easy to take and pleasant in effect. " Just What You Need." Only Is 6d. Sold by J. C. Oddie.—(Advt.)

Megg's have the latest piano player. It's «ombination ; ',of brains ; and/- x machiiierv. •Only half jno@<&yiesj and is already driving its cpnapetitors -from 4ha market;,' It's named the. "Apollo," and as worked by a. spring. motor, the pedals 'being used solely for the. production of lond and *oft. effects.. The -, turning over and 'faacl if the: inusic is. done automatically. The «nob for .regulating . the Tempo" pr*6slnces its effects and to • marked the flight -pressure of a button gperaies th.e ; pedals of the tpiano. A most. usefulinnovation; is the ability by the turn,, pf a. screw to change "the key in winch the music is written, and a special feature-is . the. fact that the pieces of music may be hired, as. books are from at circulating 'library, not: necessarily ■bought. Thus you .may have a repertoire, of thousands of pieces of music. to select from, without purchasing. Exhibitions are given, daily at Begg's.—(Apvt.) p°m.petition.— 7 The utfiform success, •of Chambai'lain's Colic, Cholera, and- Diarrhoea Remedy in the relief and cure of • u'bothi in- children and adults has- brought it into almost universal so that it is practically without a riva,:, and as everyone who has used it knows, is without an equal. Sold by J. •€- Oddie.—(Advt.)

The Lyttelton Harbour Board last year spent £13,000 on salaries and wages.

The " Oamaru Mail" states that there are so many people looking at the Waitaki Plains settlement that all the lots will probably be taken at the first ballot. The Government Spa at Jlanmer is lit) by means of natural gas from the springs, and a settler named Potter' has lately had a burst of gas appear in his domestic well. A Greymouth resident has asked the Labour Department to immigrate some single women, as iiQji.sOTiKv.ds cannot be got in his district. There were 105 single girls landed in Wellington lately, and they were all absorbed by the city.

A waggon.carrying slores to Mr A. WRutherford's Mendip Hills station was Tipset in the Waiau river iast. Thursday, and the whole team of eight horses was drowned. Mi- Rutherford says the team and stores were worth between four and five hundred

pounds. The Returning Officers give notice this morning of the election of licensing committees for Timaru, Waitaki and Geraldine. Nominations of persons as committee-men fall due on the sth March. There are 17 polling places for Timaru, 26 for Waimate, and 14 for Geraldine. The date of election is March 13th.

A rumour has emanated from Wellington that- the Taranaki Ironsand Company has been successfully floated in London. Mr D. Berry,- one of the. prime promoters in New Plymouth says the. report is untrue. The latest advice shows that a. Board of Directors has been appointed, but no shares have been allotted. The Caiifornian salmon and whitefish ova which Mr Aysori, Inspector of Fisheries, recently brought from American, arrived in Oamaru on Saturday. They, were takeu charge of by Mr Deans, of the Otago Acclimatisation Society, and' were taken on to Kurow in the afternoon. The salmon ova will be hatched out at Hakateramea, and the whitefish are destined for the lakes in tie Mackenzie Country. On Friday night a meeting of directors of the Motor Bus Company was held. A great deal of data referring to plant was submitted, and being of a cumbersome nature for the body to deal'with, .was relegated to a committee of two, Messrs Gunn and Caldwell. They will" sort out the information,- and submit it to a meeting on the 22nd inst. The secretary stated that shares are' going off freely, and those desiring to take up some would do well to apply early. The. Oamaru, Borough Council at a special meeting dstermined not to elect a licensing committee, seeing that no license has been carried. in the district. There is a space of | three months between the time the present committee should go out of office, and -the. coming, into operation of no license, but there will be nothing for a- licensing committee to do in that period except-grant conditional licenses for sports or races. Ashburton has determined not to eleot a committee.

Ernest Chittey, a blind student of Auckland University College, has received intimation that he -has passed.the final of the 8.A.. examination. Mr Chittey has been studying at., the University for ; three years. He is quite blind, but' has a remarkable faculty for remembrance. He got through all his examinations without failure. His is considered a remarkable record, as he took mathematics, general and constitutional history, political economy, mental science and jurisprudence. The students read to him,- and in examination he dictated his answers to a typist. The .statement made by. a witness in a divorce case at Wellington on Mohdav afternoon that she had paid 10s a week for two small, unfurnished rooms in Taranaki street,' "with the use of the kitchen," evoked from His Honour the Chief Justice another refeience to the rents demanded "in that city. He said:—"Well, I don't know, biit if this is a« sample of the rent charged in Wellington—a small city—l think it's about time the Government, or. somebody else, took the matter in hand so as to enable persons of smcdl-means," ta. live, reasonably. This seems tci be monstrous. I knew rents were high, but I did. not think they were as high as is stated here."

By advertisement the" local Educational Institute strongly urges upon teachers the necessity for sending at once to Wellington- notice of intention to contribute to: the superannuation fund. Only those whose notices reach Wellington by Wednesday will have a vote in the election of the Superannuation Board. And the first Board will be a most- important one, because it- will establish so many precedents for future guidance. Those teachers who have thought of delaying joining the fund are reminded that by delaying thev are reducing' their own retiring allowance and at the same time , weakening the fund. Already Boards are making, regulations that no -teacher may go on teaching. after he or she has reached the compulsory retiring age for superannuation,'hence even elderly teachers should' join the fund "at once! No" other , form of investment can' provide so good a return for one's money.

" The name, of Mr S. Turner, -F.R.G.S., is already known to the general public as that of the mountaineer who, a few days ago, successfully accomplished the hitherto unaccomplished feat of traversing Mount Cook. ' In these terms a representative of the " Marlborough Express" begins an account of an " interview" with Mr Turner. wao was in Blenheim last week. This report almost givss Mr Turner the credit of traversing Mount Cook alone—he enjoys the honour of being the first to go up one side of Mount Cook and down the other"—but later oh he adds Messrs Ross. Fyfe . and Graham accompanied him ; but. •' obviously, rTrithout" Mr Turner's 'incitement- and experience, Mount Cook would have remained untraversed." The narrator goes on : " Mr Turner -added that judging from one version of the expedition, the Aew Zealand Alpinist has a good deal to learn yet. On this point Mr Turner was eando-ur itself; he. was not at all pleased w'.th certain things that had been written about the expedition, ani.djdjiot.disguise • his --

.The: Labour Journal" has the following report on the labour market of Timaru for January/:—Building trades: I&rly busy ; -and va. few big jobs "coming, out.. A lew bricklayers idle-at present, but only temporaii]y i; i«g ; trader; Very agricultural, maemnery : . -JBoot rn aC lv - - bus y ; 331 making full time. Uothmg trade : -Not- so- busy as "before the holidays, but better than same month lastyear; all hands fully employed. Dressmaking : Owing to the drapery sales this branch is exceptionally busy, and making ei t lme " . Retail trade: Groceries, good steady business doing; clothing, a shade quiet: boots, rather quiet. Miscellaneous : l lumbmg and gasfitting, very busy; painting, very busy; saddlery, only middling; laeksmitlnng, busy: cabin-etmaking. verv improved prospects? carriagebuilding. very busv: wood-turning: and jpmery, very brisk. Unskilled labour: DuriHg the period the labour market- has greatly improved. The two local freezing works having opened for the season lias absorbed all surplus labour! The total tons exported during December, exclusive of wool, was 2690 tons. Wool, 6836 bales.

The Wairarapa " Standard " says that by reason of the fact that the New South Wales Government has decided to pay colonial pay to contingenters, who received Imperial pay, a well-known Featherston carpenter will benefit to the tune of something like £IBO.

His Excellency Rear-Admiral Sir Wilmot Fawkes, in commend of the Australian station is to officially visit the coal measures at Westport and Greymouth, and report on them to the Lords of the Admiralty. He and his "principal officers ■« ill be taken there in the s.s. Tutanekai. During the five years ending 1905. the respective increases of shipping trade of the ports named was :—Wellington, 65 per cent.; Auckland, 41 per cent.; Lvttelton, 19 per cent.; Dunedin, 14 per cent.; Timaru, 31 per cent. Last year Lyttelton exported 1,021,043 carcases of sheep and lamb, Wellington 734,237, Timaru 601,611. The Lyttelton Harbour dredge Manchester, now 16 years old, in 1905 lifted 551,232 cubic yards,. or 765,504 tons, at an average cost of 3.3d per tonj total, about £10,500. The worst stuff to lift met with appears to have been rubbish thrown overboard from steamers. The chairman of the Harbour Board stated that the dredge will shortly require very extensive renewals of working parts. The high price ruling for potatoes has at least one disadvantage-—the prompting of the thieving instinct. The Southern " Standard ' reports that the Chinamen's gardens in Gore have been visited—frequently, it is evident—the potato rows undermined, and the potatoes removed from the shaw roots. The Chinamen only discovered their loss the other day, but inspection revealed that- the thefts must have been going on for some time, as a large number of the shaws had been stripped. During December and January 715,000 sacks of wheat were exported from Williamstown, Melbourne, and three times as much more was expected to go. Twentynine sailing ships and three steamers had been loaded, and other steamers had taken part Cargoes. Rome idea of the expedition with which the work-of loading is being carried out may be gained from the time occupied in the ease of the Boadicea, Into which 11.000 sacks were loaded between .11 p.m. one day and 7.30 p.m. the next dav.

. At Wellington a few days ago a cabman named C. D. Hargreaves was fined 20s. with 15s costs, 'for uver-charging a passenger. Not only did he charge 4s for a 600 yards journey (the fare being 3s), but when the amount was protested against he held the passenger's luggage till the sum was paid, Dr McArthur, S.M., in dealing-with the case, said he had heard very bad accounts about- over-charging in Wellington. People said that Auckland was bad enough, Dunedin was all right, and they gave Cliristchurch a good name. They did not blame the authorities for the overcharging that went on. Questioned as to the origin and character of the disturbance in the weather, the ■effect of which has been felt from Cape Maria to the Bluff, Captain Edwin, according to the "2few Zealand Times," states - that' the disturbance, which is cyclonic, is of -huge proportions, spreading out so as to encompass the whole colony. It appears to have swooped down on New Zealand (the centre moving along at a rate of about 240 miles in 24 hours). from the north-west, and passed over Norfolk Island. The vortex of the disturbance was about 100 .miles to the northward of East Cape' on Saturday morning, and was moving away from the colony in a southeasterly course. Captain Edwin explains that, although the weather was fine on the West Coast, the effect of the disturbance was manifest, but the highlands to the eastward intercepted the rains which prevailed in the isobars of our- cyclonic visitor. THE SPIRIT OF • SPECULATION. In an article in the January number of the "Australian Accountant," Mr A. De R. Barclay, writing of Wellington and its progress, says:—"The spirit of speculation has taken possession of the people to an extent that is startling -when you come to - realise it suddenly. That is why the land boom is what it is just now. It is a bubble that is swelling too fast, and it will burst unless there is a check. The price -of land at Island Bay can't go on lifting much above £ls a foot without a smash. The straightening of the Hutt railway doesn't justify £l6 a foot and over at Petone. The land! market is in a state of ridiculous flatulency that should be cured, because it is unhealthy. One man told me how le ha.d made 600 per cent, in a land deal in twelve months. He was in the first Miramar syndicate. He put in £3OO. After five months he got it back again, and at the end of the year he lifted another £IBOO clear profit. When news of that kind of -business gets about it is not good. It sets up a sort of inflammation in the public, mind that leads to rashness and false progress." At present land is changing hands in Wellington every day,- and men have been "making monev fast. Prices have gone up ridiculously, and the cost of living has become exorbitant. But the whole thing—or a great part of it -is paper dealing, and there is no bottom, to it. A pretty shrewd man of business told me that he thought there would be a pinch before long, but that pinch wou'd seriously affect only a few holders—that- it would not be much diffused over the community as a whole. May be. But it seemed to me that the speculating mania was pretty general, and that there would be ;i gveat many burnt fingers if the fire grpw too hot. At anyrate. the road to richross looks too easv just r.ow to be safe."'

SYNOPSIS OF NEW ADVERTISE MENTS.

Special sale at Waslidvke—Of sheep and cattle on 15th March. New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Company—Temuka stock sale tomorrow, Geraldine sale on -Wednesday. Canterbury Parmers' '. Cp-operaiive Association—War at ah for "private sale, stock sales this week.

National Mortgage and Agency Company—Geraldine eale on Wednesday,, town properties on. Saturday, farms for private sale.;--; -

..(Juinness and LeCren—Clearing sale at Levels on Bth March. T. and J. Thomson—The place for solid stuff ; prices. . '"Tesoro'—-Good for .tooth and other cures.

J. -W. Pye, Geraldine—Wants an assist ant draper.

Mrs Pigeon—Wants to lease " Roeslyn.'" At Ballantyne's—Overalls and trousers for farmers and others.

T. W. Mee, Claremont—Wants general farm hand.

Educational Institute—lmportant notice re teachers' superannuation. Society of Muscians—Meet at Strathmore Schcol to-night. Alex. -Montgomery—Biinkruptcv notice of Peter Mcintosh. -

Christchurch Ram and Ewe Fair—On Bth and 9th March.

Thomas Howley—Notice of Timaru licensing election. Geo. V. Cochrane—Notice of Waitaki licensing election.

F. W. Stubbs —Notice of Geraldine licensing' election. Perry; Perry and Kinnerney—Call tenders for land and buildings. John King and Co.—Details for Home goods ex Tokomaru.

Lost—Silver mounted umbrella, reward at Union Bank. Funeral notice—By J. Radcliffe.