LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Wairarapa Age, 5 January 1926, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

i Lighting-up time—7.s3 p.m. The Masterton A. and P. Association has received a special prize valued at £1 1/ from Mrs A. Buick for the best maiden greyhound at the Masterton show in February. The fortunate winner of the £3OOO prize in connection with the £5OOO art union, drawn in Dunedin, Mrs Healy, is a resident of Waihi, a widow with three children.

A busy time was experienced in the Masterton Telephone Exchange on Christinas Eve. Outward toll calls totalled 397 and inward 404, a total of 801 calls, compared with 790 on the same day in 1924.

Last month, the Masterton Borough Council issued 40 motor drivers’ licenses and 5 heavy traffic licenses. For the nine months ended December 31, 1009 motor drivers’ licenses were issued, being a little over one for every eight of the population. For the same period 45 heavy traffic licenses were issued. The Masterton County Council issued 15 drivers’ licensee last month, making a total of 950 for nine months.

The vital statistics for Masterton in December were:—Marriages 11, births 19, deaths 8. The year’s totals (last year’s figures in parentheses) were: —-Marriages 102 (87), births 295 (260), deaths 94 (103). These figures are very satisfactory, showing a fairly substantial increase-, in the birthrate and a decrease in the death rate.

Papakura is sticking absolutely to concrete for its section of the Great South road from Auckland, as it does not think its ratepayers will vote for bitumen. As the Main Highways Board will not subsidise the whole >cost of concrete the Papakura Town Board is inquiring if it will subsidise on a small stretch of concrete in the centre of the town. A case of remarkable ill-luck was brought before the notice of the Deputy Official Assignee at New Plymouth (Mr J. S. S. Medley) when, two young men, Leonard Hanson Wood and William Norman Leech, farmers, of Awakino, appeared in bankruptcy, the cause of which was stated to be the loss by fire of £250 in cash with which bankrupts were a few days later intending to purchase stock for their farms.

A bather at North New Brighton failed to enjoy his dip as much as ho might have done (relates the Christchurch *‘Star.”) On leaving home he brought with him a small bottle that, according to the label, should have contained cocoanut oil for use to prevent sunburn. Someone, however, had .changed the mixture, ahd when the bather had carefully smeared himself over he found that his. skin was reacting painfully. Then it turned out that the “oil” whs really furniture polish. When last seen the victim was scraping it off with a knife. Later particulars of the fixe at the Alfredton boarding house show that it was discovered at 2 a.m. by Mr A. Edmonds, who- was sleeping downstairs. There were 22 boarders, who had just time to make their escape. Mrs Hartley lost £l6O in notes and one of the boarders lost £22. In half-an-hour the building was completely gutted. The fire is believed to have started in the kitchen. The building was an old one, part having been erected in 1886. During the December quarter, withdrawals at the Masterton Post Office Savings Bank exceeded deposits by £13,259. For the same period in 1924, deposits exceeded withdrawals by £1894. Last quarter’s figures (1924 December quarter in parentheses) were: Deposits £85,813 (£73,023), withdrawals £99,172 (£71,129). It will be noticed that, during the last quarter, the withdrawals exceeded those of the same quarter last year by £28,043.

CULTIVATE THE HABIT. Of using SANDER’S EUCALYPTI EXTRACT as a mouth-wash and gargle every morning. So simple: 2 drops in half-glass of water. SANDER’S EXTRACT, thus used, will prevent decay of teeth and pyorrhoea; it will disinfect the mouth and throat, and no cold ’flu, quinsey, or bronchitis can settle the deodorant effect of SANDER’S EXTRACT; banishes bad tastes and breath; its aroma and pungency cause a healthy flow of saliva and good digestion. It is the distinctive quality of SANDER’S EXTRACT that gets to the root of things; its high antiseptic and penetrating power. The regular use of SANDER’S EXTRACT will keep you healthy by preventing disease. Sold everywhere.

John Rupert Lawrence, of Gisborne, was fined £5 and costs for conducting a game of chance at a sideshow in the street, in which one person threw a dart at a board of numbers, and others made bets on the result.

On Christmas Eve the Masterton Telegraph Office forwarded 834 telegrams, including 360 greeting, and received 860 and transmitted 476, making the |otal messages handled 2170, compared with 2158 on the previous Christmas Eve.

During the Christmas and New Year season, a heavy rush of business was done by the Masterton Post Office. Although the actual figures are not available, it is believed that the amount of mail and parcels handled was quite as large as last year. Last month 10 permits for buildings valued at £2516 were issued by the Masterton Borough Council. During the year 164 permits, valued at £78,627 were issued, as against 157 valued at £97,723 in 1924 and 169 valued at £90,434 in 1923. The Japanese training ship Iwate is expected to arrive at Wellington on February 18. She has on board for training 90 naval cadets, including a Japanese prince, grandson of the last of the. Shoguns. The vessel will be at Wellington for a week, and will then proceed to Auckland. A pni’.cy has been adopted by ’he Bd’ nhcad Borough Council with a view of minimising accidents from increasing mtr.er trafl’t. Th.s is ii the direction of rounding off difl : cxH street corners. The mystery surrounding a £lO note which a Christchurch tram conductor found among his takings ha l been solved. A lady, who was taking a troop of children for a seaside trip, has explained that she gave a £lO note in mistake for a 10/ note. The note of larger denomination has been returned to her. A man wh*b; while under the influence of liquor, catena a Lnnnevirkc butchers shop on Boxing Night and allegedly took without authority a leg of mutton and a side of bacon, of the total value of £3 9d, and also damaged a side of bacon valued at 19s 6d, appeared at Court and was convicted <ind ordered to refund the value of the meat taken and damaged.

The young man who jumped to his death from Grafton bridge, Auckland. James Chapman Rule, was 27 years of age and a resident of Waihi. He was a French polisher by occupation. When he left the home of his married sister on Christmas Eve to spend his Iclidays in Auckland Rule was in his usual good spirits, and nothing had occurred to suggest that he was likely to take his life. It is understood, however, that he suffered from fits of depresson which (says an Auckland paper) came upon him from time to time as the result, apparently, of aji accident about eight years ago, when he was an apprentice in Mr Thomas Quinlivan’s racing stable at Hastings. While al riding work there he was thrown from his mount and dragged some distance with his foot caught in, the stirrup iron. The horse kicked him, and he sustained a fractured jaw'end a broken cv.* drum.

“The fruit-growing industry may be said to have made a further advanced after several trying years,” states the Director of Agriculture. “The T 'olume of exports of apples in the TJL'> season (some 233,000 cases) was not quite! up to the 1924 level, but g< od returns were obtained for shipments, except at the tail-end of the season. The prospects for the cur rent season’s crop of apples and pears are excellent, and it is expected that exports will reach upwards of 400,000 cases. The export trade still has the valuable support of the Government guarantee, which! enables ready finance to be arranged for exports in addition to ensuring the producer an ultimate return.”

An “Otago Daily Timtes” reporter boarded the Manuka to gain some idea of the extent of the fire in No. 2 hold. Judging by the reception he met with from several members of the crew it appeared as if he were a sort of felon. He had been aboard about half an hour when the presence of the hated press became known. Then quite a small gathering of firemen and at least one self-confessed trimmer collected round'the hapless reporter and invited him, with a certain amount of emphasis, to step ashore. It appeared that their grievance against the press was based on the publicity that has lately been given to their waterfront idiosyncrasies.

A rovcl form of a children’s service was held at the Kuripuni Methodist church on Sunday afternoon (in pla/’o of the Sunday school, closed fur the vacation), when children brought to the service various ob jeets mentioned in the Bible. The ▼< se in which the object was mentioned was written out and signed by the child and attached to the article. The minister. Rev. P. Bothwell, stated his intention of speaking about the objects at next Sunday afternoon’s children *s service, those articles not possible of being dealt with on that Occas on being kept for portion of the Sunday morning services. An interesting collection was presented, the most original being a rod of iron, an egg, birds on a tree, a .miniat’re horse’s bit and bridle, a cup of water, grass, a nail and a pearl. ,

CAN’T DO BETTER. A child’s whole future depends upon its goqd health, and good health depends largely on regularity of the bowels. You cannot do bettei than give your children Chamberlain’s Tablets, following the directions for giving this preparation to children. Chamberlain’s Tablets can be given with perfect \ safety to children, because they act naturally and gently, stimulating the liver and bowels to perform their functions without assistance. Sold by all chemists and storekeepers.

Christmas passenger traffic on the railway has bee£. very heavy. The traffic from Masterton is still keeping up and the morning train t& Wellington’yesterday was very fulL The south-bound Thames express ran into a cream cart at a level crossing at Paerata yesterday morning. The horse was killed, and the cart smashed, but the driver, Fred. Hughes, escaped. Two hundred and nine boys, members of the Stop Qut Club, organised by St. Peter’s Mission (Wellington), are enjoying the annual camp, which is being held this year at the Ashhurst racecourse. The Rev. T. Fielden Taylor is in charge. Joseph Boyd, aged 82, formerly employed as a wharf labourer, was found drowned beneath the Greymouth wharf yesterday. He was seen alive half an hour previously. At the inquest the evidence showed that he suffered from senile decay. A Masterton resident, writing from New York, expresses great appreciation of the beauty of the trees in the streets and avenues of that city and the hope that the tree-plant-ing by the Masterton Beautifying Society would be . continued. The trees of New York made an immediate appeal to the eye of the visitor. Two parties of Scouts arrived by the Moeraki yesterday from Melbourne. They are from South Africa and Victoria, and are proceeding to Dunedin to take part in the great Scout Jamboree in the Exhibition grounds. In the Victorian party there are fourteen Scouts and in the South African sixteen. Whten the two industrial sites at Pctond wore sold at auction last month, the purchaser of one of them remained unnamed, having acted through an agent. It is now stated that his principal was a large American motor concern, which handles several well-known cars and motortrucks, and which intends to use the site for a large assembling factory to supply the New Zealand market.