LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Waikato Independent, Volume XXV, Issue 2453, 31 March 1925, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The Health, Department lias advised Rat ansi that the proposed big gathering at. Faster must be postponed owing to the infantile paralysis epidemic.

A discussion on patients’ fees at. a meeting of th.e v Wellington Hospital Board, last, week, disclosed that during the Current year'about 35 per cent of the psij tents’ fees-would be collected.

IXI r Tom Kelly and party have .been in the Rotorua district on.a fishing expedition daring the last few days, and report fairly'good sport, the party taking fourteen fish in the two. days.

Motorists likely to visit Itotorua will be interested to learn that grading on the road over the Mamaku Hill has now been completed and it is reported that the road has settled dowii jjvell, giving an excellent surface.

Ait outbreak of fire occurred in the cattle pavilion at the Hamilton A. and P. Society’s show' grounds late last Friday night, but the fire brigade made a good save. The building was filled with' hurdles for sheep pens and these had somehow become ignited. The damage is estimated at only £5.

“An Angry Husband” writing from a settlement twenty odd miles 'from New Plymouth arid enclosing a corrected solution, of. a' cross-word puzzle which appeared in the local paper, says: “The wife sat up till threethirty solving the enclosed. For God's sake let it be your last.”

We are informed that a proposal which may result in a drastic change for the better in matters judicial is being considered by the Honorary .Justices Association of Wellington. It is that eases of. litigation in w'hieh question;-: of equity only are concerned should be referred to Justices for Arbitration instead of being taken to Court with all its costly and unpleasant litigation. In reference to our paragraph concerning water-pumping costs in Saturday’s issue the Town Clerk states that when the electric motors -wore first installed the Borough Council were charged a flat rate of £1 per day for powmr whether the pumps were used or not. This was afterwards considered excessive, consequently the Power Board were requested to iritall a motor which reduced the; cost to £lB per month. The figures recently published of the registrations of electors in the various Parliamentary electorates show a total of 704,443.. - At last election there were 700,111 on the rolls and 620,650 voted. It is interesting to note that Waikato’s figures increased from 7507 to 9257. Waitomo’s increase was, only vory slight, going from 7603 to 7846. Hamilton also has only a slight increase, the figures being 10,151 to 10,416, while Rotorua’s increase is only from 7157 to 7259. .

Anent the recent paragraph to the effect that a Waitoa farmer, by driving copper nails into peach, trees greatly increased the production thereof, a southern correspondent states for the information of orchardists that this process tends to shorten the life of the .tree. The driving of nails, etc., into the trunk of the tree threatens its life arid causes it to dissipate its energy in the natural effort to perform its life work before dying. t I believe that the ultimate effect of this device is to shorten the fruit-bearing life, of the trees by more than 50 per cent.

The following gives some idea of .the profits made by farmers out of sheep during the...last season, statos • a Rhctihi last yoar's Karioi sheep fair a local , . farmer was offered 14/ for lii.s ewes, which he, declined to accept. Since then ewes returned near .100 per cent of lambs for which, he got £1 each, and the wool clip brought in to the. credit of the farmer nearly 10/ per head. At - the fair at Karioi on Thursday last the same old ewes were disposed of at 22/7. By keeping, the sheep the farmer bonofitted to the'tune of £1 15/7 per head.

The secretary of the War Memorial Committee .(Mr. G. H, Bellamy) informs ns that lie lias made tlici necessary application to the Minister of Internal Affairs to. have an Qrder-in-Couneil to approve of thedesign .of the Memorial. The .Minister,of Public Works, iifts also been "written . to, and replies have been received that the matter, will . receive eyery .. consideration.,; If a favourable reply is received local bodies who have signified their willingness to make donations will then be able to make their payments to the Memorial Committee. With (lie Order-in-Council granted the wip-ing-out of the debt will be in sight., and the present stigma attached to Cambridge’s Memorial will to some extent bo obliterated.

Did you know that Lord Jellicoe was a devotee of the “weed?” He chiefly smokes cigarettes, but; confines himself, to one packet of ten per diem.. Quite moderate! Yes. Borne people .smoke thrice that, quantity between breakfast and lied. But despite the popularity of th.oM‘eig,” millions of smokers prefer the pipe. As to the injuriousness of smoking it largely- depends upon the tobacco.' The imported, brands, as a rule, are simply- loaded with nicotine, so that their habitual “use cannot, lie good.'. In that respect: they differ materially from our New Zealand grown tobaccos. Those arc toasted —hence their delightful flavour and fragrance. Also, they are comparatively free from nicotine and do not burn the tongue, wreck the nerves or affect the heart. There is unquestionably a great future before these tobaccos, and already the growing, curing and manufacture of the leaf is becoming an important New Zealand industry, and farmers arc find-ing-a tobacco crop a, profitable one to cultivate. Brands chiefly in demand .a re . lkrvcn'hefid Gold, amid; Navy Cut (Bulldog), medium; and Cut Plag No. 10. folk

We have received a letter from the Mayor, with reference to the pumping costs, but, owing to want of space, are compelled to hold this over until our next issue.

His Worship the Mayor (Mr C. If,. Priestley) has very generously donated a silver cup to the Cambridge Rugby Union as a trophy for a knockout round at the eoncilusion of the 1925 senior clubs’ competition.

Rev.. Walter Avorill has received from the* secretaries of the To Awamutu Returned. Soldiers’ Association a cordial invitation from all members of ihe Cambridge branch ! to attend tlieir annual . moke concert and re-union, to be held at To JVwamutu on Friday next, 3rd April.

The intrusion of outside buses at Hamilton on race days and other holidays to ply for hire in competition with the local proprietors-, is greatly resented by the latter, and when a large deputation of proprietors . visited Wellington last week, together with similar representatives from Auckland, the matter was brought before the notice of the Actihg-Prime Minister, Sir Francis Bell, and the Minister for Internal Affair's, the Hon. R. F. Bollard.

At'a largely-attended and enthusiastic meeting of the committee of the Cambridge Literary and Debating Society, held last night, the .president (Mr S. Lewis) in the chair', * the syllabus for the' forthcoming session was adopted. The session will commence on Monday, April 20th, with a 'social gathering, and meetings will be held each alternate Monday, until Septem-. bor 21st. Miss Moorhouse was added to the Society’s committee.

Mr R. J. ' Morrison ' (care JjfiA.C., Cambridge), 'lias ' been appointed (district representative, of the Agricultural Corresponderifee College, an institu-' tion that should serve a most" useful, purpose in New Zealand. Instruction is given by a graduated series of written lectures. The courses are based on sound practice, the object being to provide' l students with that wide and varied knowledge of agriculture it is so essential for the successful farmer to have. Mr Morrison will be pleased to supply full particulars. to any person interested.

Our Horahora correspondent writes:. -—lt is interesting to note that two divers are- at work at the Horahora rapids. Where the .new dam is being made there is a very deep hole at;' the spot where the unfortunate man was drowned at Xmas. Three pumps have been working to empty the hole,' which must be' 20 to 30 feet deep, but this made no difference to the water. Therefore two divers were engaged to investigate ;where., the water,still came in and have been at work during the past week, and will probably bo engaged some time as this hole must be emptied before the dam can be completed.

During a discussion with • the Ardkeen soldier settlers,, the Minister of Lands, Hon. A. D. McLeod, in ado an important announcement regarding liis proposals to facilitate advances to soldier settlors. 'The Minister stated that, it was his intention to put into effect legislation providing ,for the capitalisation of the value'of improve-, ments made by the settlers with the object off relieving current, accounts and enabling the land boards to give further assistance in the .matter of advances from stock, etc. This would mean that* where money for advances was used for purposes which aould rightly be classified as capital expenditure. 1, it could be capitalised and repayments spread over a number- of years. 'By this method advances would be available for'stock and ordinary working expenses, and the drain on limited current accounts-would-iiot. be so great. .o :