LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 12063, 18 July 1917, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Air Gordon Pearce, of Harewood, Papanui. euliserl with tho Sixteenth Ro. ir.forcemont.'--, and has now been in the. trenches in Franco for a considerable time, doing his bit for King and country. In spite of this, however, his name appeared in the April ballot, and only recently he wa.s ordered to parade!

Prohibition of the importation of Asiatic egg yolks is to be recommended bv the Minister of Agriculture, to take effect from September next. Tho President of the New Zealand Poultry Association (Mr E. Gallichan) states that there need be no fear or a shortage of eggs in consequence of this step. The executive of the association has taken the matter in hand, and is already in a position to guarantee that the local supply will be equal to all demands. Every member of the association is being urged to make provision for increased supplies. With a sense of evident pride, the Prime Minister (the. Right Hon W. F. Massey) showed a "Pest" reporter yesterday afternoon a "relic" of the Imperial War Conference of 1917, which he and Sir Joseph Ward attended on behalf of the Dominion. It consists of a "scrap of paper," on which are inscribed the names, in their own handwriting, of every person accredited to the conference. It was signed at Windsor Castle on May 3, 1017, and the signatures are headed by "George R. 1.," and in a long line of illustrious sign manuals appear the names of Smuts, Borden, Massey, Ward-all who were associated in the biggest Imperial Conference that, the world has ever known. It is an interesting fact that the signature of "George R.t." is the most legible of tho lot, but the remainder arc characteristic to a degree. They are regarded by Mr Massey as- not being his own property, but a national possession, and with that sentiment he is sending the historic document to t'he General Assembly Library for framing and publication. As with many other European countries. Austria-Hungary has just taken a census. The result.-, have .startled the politicians and .set them searching for remedies La prevent wholesale emigration. For, while it- was estimated that there would be an increase of 3,078,000 over the .figures of 1900, the increase only worked out at 2. (17.000, and current returns since then emphasise the trouble by .showing 20 per cent moro deaths than births tin.-) year. All over tho Empire America is shown to be the goat of the ambitious subjects of the Emperor. Nearly half a. million have left Galicia, 159,000 Bohemia, 93,000 Moravia, and in Hungary the land has been so depleted of labourers that farmers are powerless to secure, efficient, helpers. Lower Austria alone shows a slight ga.in, bearing out the comment that German and Italian localities have increased .somewhat-, while tho Polish and Czech districts have all been depleted. In ten years 727,000 left for America, last year's contribution being 150.000. Another serious, point in the situation is the difficulty of finding sufficient recruits for the army, for the flower of the youth have crossed the Atlantic. A correspondent forwarded the following paragraph to a Wanganui paper: A few yearn ago, when diphtheria was raging 'in England, a gentleman accompanied tho celebrated Dr Field on his rounds to witness the so-called _" wonderful cures " which he performed while the patients of others were droppin" on all sides. The remedy, to be rapid, must be. simple; all he took with him was flour of sulphur and a quill, and with this he cured every patient without exception. He put a tea spoonful of flour of brimstone, into a wineglass of water, and stirred it with his finger instead of a spoon, as th« sulohur cloes not readily amalgamate with water. When the sulphur was well mixed he gave it as a, gargle, and in ten minutes the patient was out of danger. Brimstone kills every species of fungus in a man, and plant in ten minutes. Instead of spitting out the gargle, he recommended the swallowing of it. In extreme cases, in which he had been called jus!- in the nick of time, when the fungus was too neaiduy elosingl- o allow the gargling, be blew the sulphur through a quill into the throat, and after the fungus had shrunk enough to alloiv of if, then gave the gargle. lie never lost a p;itient from diphtheria. If a patient cannot gargle, take a. live coal, put, it on a shovel, and .sprinkle a spoonful or two of flour of brimstone upon it ; let the sufferer inhale the funics and the fungus will die.

The Northern Wairoa sawmills report good supplies of logs, says the " North Auckland Times." Largo rafts continue to be towed from the Mangakahia, Klrikopuni and Manganui streams, and a steady supply by railway from Taita uid Ma'itahi is daily delivered at Dargavjlle.

There was only a very small crowd at, the railway station last night to welcome sixty-one soldiers who were returning from" the front. This was probablv due to the fact that only eleven of 'the. men belonged to Christchurch. There was onlv one cot case ior the Canterbury Military District, that being Private G. Blair, of the t ~>\e?t Coast, who will go into the Christchurch Hospital. Mr Green, the secretary of the local branch of the Returned Soldiers' .Association was present to welcome the solders. Hie northern men continued their journey by the ferry steamer. Mr C. H- P. Bronghton. who during the past, twenty years faithfully carried out the duties of signalman at Kaipara, North Head, has retired on superannuation and has settled down on a. line farm at Pjipatoetoe. During his lengthv term of office at Poutn, says the "North Auckland Tunes," Mr Bronghton v. as responsiblelor the. safe passage of many hundreds ol vessels over the Knip»r;i bar, and is possessed of particularly valuable maritime information in connection with (hose flays when Kaipara, was an important oversea shipipng port. In the. early days it was nothing unusual for from ten to iwer.iv barques, brigs and schooners to bo weekly lying at anchor at Pouto, whilst almost a similar number were loading at To Kopuni and Arntjipu sawmills. A chief export to Australia, in those days was log timber, both m the round and rough-squared state. At th'-> meeting of the. Court of Directors of the Royal Humane Society of New Zealand, held yesterday afternoon to consider awards, Mr 11. C. Bishop said that in the past the society had been inclined to bestow hHior awards than was granted by the parent, bodv in England for similar acts of bravery. The statement was marie in reply to a suggestion that in one ease a silver medal should be awarded! Mr Bishop instanced the, case of a, man who had jumped from a. steamer on the high seas to effect a rescue, and, on the act being reported to the Home authorities, he had been granted a bronze medal. Tho Bev E. Eliot Chambers supported MiBishop's remarks, and said that the bestowal of a silver medal was rare in the Old Country. Tho deed had to bo very meritorious. The proportion of silver medals to bronze awarded at Home -would be about one in a hundred. The bron-.o modal was considered a very great honour. The 'Court made special reference to the bravery displayed bv Beuben Hiitehings, a youth' of eighteen years, in stopping a pair of runaway horses -which were without winkers, and rescuing a > it. tie girl of nine years of age. Tli« report, of the Department of Lands and Survey dealing with discharged soldiers' settlement, shows that during the past, twelve months 14.832 acres wore opened in the Auckland district for selection by discharged soldiers. The total amount of advances authorised for the year was £2-1.183, and the amount actually pa.icl I'iiPOi?. In Hawkes Bay 45,500 acres suitable for sheep farming have been surveyed or partly surveyed, while in Taranaki B.'! K) acres, comprising -thirteen sections, have been made available to date. In Wellington seven sections have been allotted, containing an area of 283!) acres, tho total allotted now being 30,223 acres. The report states that in the, more remote districts abutting on the upprr reaches of the Wanganui River, below Taumarunni. the settlers will bo able to obtain any quantity of employment, as 41 miles of road formation are necessary, involving an expenditure, of C;'? 0.000.' Other land acreas set forth in tho report are: Marlborough, 7074 acres; Nelson, 10.500 acres acquired; 21,000 acres being prepared for offering ; Westland, 6505 acres available, none disposed of. The report adds that four estates have been submitted in the Canterbury district, also other sections, whilo area-': have also been acquired in Otago and Southland. Build up vour nerve, brain and body on all-British YiTAFEI?. recommended bv doctors and the Medical Press. "The Medical Times" says: "VITAMER is a food to be recommended where, exhaustion of the physical or nervous system is due to either illness or improper feeding." All chemists. Sample, 3s fid. post free, from J. A. Coltart, Chemist, Christchurch. ,

Start,ling tests of " Coal Ore " woe.! by Melbourne analyst: Entreated co;il burns 5 hours 20 minutes, treated coal 7 hours 40 minutes. Are you i iking this saving? llastie, Bull and Pi"kor. iug, agents. XI3O