LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Tuapeka Times, Volume XLVII, Issue 6376, 12 July 1916, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Mr Suudstrum's next visit will boon Thursday whon ho may be consulted from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

A lino tribute to the late Earl Kitchener was made in Auckland the other night by Mr \V. A. Beddoe under most unusual circumstances. While Mr Beddoe was in full flight in a lecture at the Grafton Library Hall on Germany and the War, the electric light fuses suddenly blew out leaving the hall in darkness. With barely a pause, Mr Beddoe, whose eloquence in impromptu speech is noted inAuckland, rose to the occasion with the remark, " While we are in the dark, 1 will say something about, the great and good man known to us as the late Earl Kitchener." He thereupon drew an eloquent word sketch of the death of the great soldier, "who lived a great and solitary life, and died a great and solitary figure on that warship ; his casket a great British battleship, his pillow the dreamless rush of the waves, his sarcophagus limited only by the seven seas, and the stormy dash of the waves upon the rocky shore his requiem." After a line extempore tribute to "a brave soldier, a brilliant officer and an honourable gentleman," drawing a parallel with the similar death, in the days of Raleigh, of Sir Humphrey Gilbert, Mr Beddoe connected up his fine impromptu effort with his main theme by stating that it was because Great Britain was rich in m ( ;n like that that Germany could never win.

The aimlyst sat in his .sanctum iili.ne, Jlis stall' had gone home for the night And soliloquised thus, in n critical tone, As lie hold a retort to the light. " Ws : \ os ! 1 confess 'tis compounded with skill.

Its components are poteut and pure; Jf thro' chill I fall ill. 1 most certainly will

Take Woods' Great Peppermint Cure.

Mr E. J. llighley, manager of the (Joromandel Hydraulic .Sluicing Co., is at present on a visit to his family in Lawrence. He looked in yesterday morning and in the course of an interesting chat spoke optimistically of the gold mining industry in the Auckland province. It is a great country for reefs and he thinks some of them will yet yield phenomenal returns. Hydraulic sluicing is hardly known in the north, his own coinpany being the first to introduce it, and he does not think there is a large field for this class of mining. In the first place they are not the same class of alluvial deposits as are found in Otago and water power is hard to procure. In the claim he is managing though the ground is described us alluvial there is little free gold, and that obtained is mainly found in broken quartz specimens varying in size which have to be finally treated by crushing. He has with him a number of these specimens which are undoubtedly very rich and should prove interesting to our mining men. The cost of saving these specimens and the removal of the heavy stones met with is, he says, a severe tax on the returns, but he thinks that notwithstanding these drawbacks the ultimate results will be satisfactory to his company.

A humorist round whose bed four doctors were consulting as to the best mode of producing a perspiration, overhearing the discussion, said ; " Send in vour bill, gentlemen. That will do it at once."

I* l'om a sale of sheep (donated by about 30 of the Greenfield settlers) at the Balclutha saleyards on Friday last nearly £2OO was realised. Ten wethers donatwl by Mr James Smith realised 34s each, 10 •wethers by Messrs E. Smith and Lucas 27s 6d, 10 lambs by Mr and Mrs Hyslop 255, and one pen

Tin; bi-monthly meeting of the Tuapoka County Council will bo held on Friday. Avoiding to a statement made by Mr J. A. Juhustone at the meeting of the Patriotic Association this morning the appeal for contributions to the sailors' dependents' relief fund will result in well over £17,000 being forwarded to England from Otago and .Southland. A deputation consisting of Messrs Arthur, Fisher, and Jones waited upon the executive of the l'atriotic Asociation at their lust meeting, and stated that there was a feeling in the community that every soldier who left Lawrence sliould, on the occasion of his final leave, have a present made to him in public, under the auspices of the Patriotic Aaociation and the Women's Patriotic Asociation. After some discussion it was decided to take steps on the lines indicated, and a committee consisting of Messrs A. Arthur, W. Fisher, F. H. Fish, H. C. Jones, and Dr Sutherland was set up to make all the necessary preliminary enquiries and arrangements so that each soldier may receive a public send off. It is the intcntiou of the Minister for Agriculture (Hon. W. D. S. Mac Donald) to aek Cabinet to sanction a vote for commencing a small experimental farm in Southland. Whether Cabinet will agree or not will depend upon the finances. Tho full vote will not be asked for this session.

As a result of a meeting of those interested in the Tuapeka Mouth Coronation Hall, at which it was decided to make a vigorous effort to clear tho hall of debt, the Hall Committee are now confident of being able to meet their obligations. The district has beon canvased and the settlers responded with their usual liberality, about £3O beingsubscribed in this manner. As the total debt is only about £43 the Committee hope that their fiual effort —a concert on the 13th July—will more than realiso the amount required.

A progressive euchre party and dance will be held in St. Patrick's schoolroom ■on Friday evening next, the proceeds from which .will be devoted to the local Bed Croßs and Women 'a Patriotic Committee. The deserving nature of the cause to which the proeeds of this entertainment are devoted should ensure a very large attendance.

The total shortages for tho Nineteenth Reinforcements up to yesterday was 181, and of this Otago is responsible for SO, Auckland 44, Wellington 12. and Canterbury 39. In a statement issuod by the Right Hon. W. F. Massoy the recruiting for this reinforcement is considered satisfactory, and it is believed the shortages will be fully made up by the date the men arc duo in camp.

There has been another death in connection with the Kakahi tragedy—Xeal Joffery, aged four, having died yestcr- ■ day in the hospital at Taumaranui. The .other victims are said to be improving. The latest casualty list in connection with the New Zealand Forces in France reports the death of Lieut. K. Munro and Captain-Adjutant MctColl (killed in action). Private 11. L. iHeywood, Lanco-Corporal M. McArrthur, Private C. Daking, Bifleman C. C. Coleman, and Trooper B. G. Cooke .(died ol wounds). f ..

Jlr A. E. J. Blakeley's next professional visit will be on Thursday, 13th July.

•' i'rom the way people are acting in this country," observed the Chief Justice from the Wellington Supreme Court Bench, the other day, when sentencing a number of prisoners, " they do not seem to realise' that there is a war on. They go on drinking, gambling, and horse-racing quite oblivious of the greatest war in history, and they do not realise the evil they are doing to others by the extravagance of their examples."

A novel scheme for augmenting the Belgian Children's Fund has been devised, in the form of a " Bottle Day " at each school (says the New Zealand Herald). In every home there is generally a numbor of empty medicine bottles lying about unused. These are in particular demand at present. In fact, bottles of every description—pint bottles, quart bottles, pickle bottles, etc., are in short supply, and the children arc being encouraged to bring all the Burplus bottles to a " bottle depot" at each school. In tho case of city and suburban schools the Belgian Consul's Committee will arrange for the collection and disposal of the supply from each school. In the case of schools remote from Auckland, bottles will be disposed of to the best advantago in the neighbourhood, and the proceeds remitted in the names of the schools, or if this is not possible the committee will endeavour to arrange for free carriage by rail where practicable. Tho scheme has been already a pronounced success in some of the largest schools.

On Monday last an appeal was made for money for the relief of Belgian children. For this purpose the male pupils of the Koxburgb School organisod a concert which eventuated in one of tho schoolrooms on Monday afternoon. Thore was a good attendance of parents and others and as a result of the function the funds will benefit to the extent of £6, mado up as follows ; —Collection £1 16s 2Jd, door receipts £2 Is Sid, sale of sweets (provided by the girls) £2 2s Id.

At the monthly meeting of tho Eoxburgh Borough Council on Friday night a vote of sympathy with the wife of and family and relatives of Sergeant Vernon, who was recently killed while oa active service in France, was proposed by the Mayor and carried in silence. The Town Clerk was instructed to forward a letter of condolence to Mrs Vernon containing a copy of the resolution. "Aerial" in tho Dunodin Star :—"I was recently informed by a voyager who had spent some days on a French Island that he found the hotel full of American bagmen from Honolulu. They were thoroughly pro-Gorman to a man, Whether their sentimonts reflect the nationality of the goods they sell is a question that ought to be looked into wherever these gentry appear in the South Seas."

Two eclipses will occur this month. On 15th there will be a partial eclipse of the moon, which will he partly visible in New Zealand. On 30th there will be an an- | nular eclipse of the sun which will be visible here as a partial eclipse.

Mr Asquith, in the Commons, said that the Government did not propose to treat Irish prisoners sentenced by court martial as political prisoners. Attention is directed to the advertisement of Mr C. W. Pattilo, the wellknown " bridal photographer " of George Street, Dunedin, appearing in this issue. His offer of a special framed enlargement, the " Auzac," must appoal to those whose sons and brothers have fought on Gallipoli. The market for sheep at the Balclutha sales on Friday was very buoyant, and " anything on legs " was readily sold (says the Free Press). One farmer remarked to this deponent, " Look at that lot, no bigger than kittens, and yet they fetched 25s per head. We farmers with turnips to spare can't look at prices like those ruling here to-day." Nevertheless it was a splendid sale, some of the extra animation being due to the operations of a Christchurch buyer. CHILDREN'S EYESIGHT. Children must go to School. But how much easier they learn if their eyes are strong. If they are weak, the child is soverely handicapped. Does your child show signs of weak eyes—headache, short sight, etc.? If so, consult me at once . Don't let the trouble grow worse. I will test them, and tell you what is needed to give him good sight and make his school life happy. H. Neill, D.8.0.A. Glasgow Optical House, 249 George St., Dunedin.