LOCAL AND GENERAL

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXVI, Issue 17780, 31 January 1920, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

In Egypt cottonseed oil cake seems to be proving a satisfactory substitute for coal. The present value of oil cake is less than a fifth of the cost of coal.

It is no use saying one thing about the alleged wool scandals in Britain and meaning another. If the profits made are a tithe of those reported to have been made, somebody ought to be hanged. That is the plain English of the situation isays the Christchurch Sun.) “I know a man who bought an area of land in a certain part of Canterbury for £3O per acre,” said a speaker at a meeting of the Christchurch Returned Soldiers’ Association, when referring to the exorbitant prices for land charged to soldiers. "Lately I met him and ask. ed him how much he wanted for the land, and he said £6O per acre. Yet that man lost no blood, nor, as far as I know, sent either kith or kin to the front, nor, I believe, did he give a single pound to any patriotic fund."

Miss Violet Price, A.T.C.L., teacher , of pianoforte, violin, voice produc- ! tion and singing, announces in an- i other column that she resumes tui- | tion on Monday, February 9th, at [ the music studio. 66 Dublin Street, j “You can take it for what it is worth, [ but before very long there <s ■ going to be an industrial upheaval," i said one who is well informed in Labour i circles to a Manawatu Herald representative recently. "Take a lesson from I the ant, and incidentally, the store-, keepers, and gel- in supplies—if yon I have the means!’’ The Auckland Hospital Board is I asking the Government to provide , £14,000 for a venereal diseases ! clinic. Reasons to prompt the Government to hasten its financing of the scheme were mentioned, not the least of them being the fact that the ; already existent clinic, established with terribly short accommodation and great lack of assistance, was now I treating no less than 260 patients, whereas a few months ago, when it [ opened, only six were being attended.

An unusual spectacle was witnessed in Queen Street. Auckland, the other day, when a little girl was s-.en proudly leading a large walking doll. A large crowd colleced to watch the life.like movements of the doll, which stood about two feet high. So life-like were its movements that a pedestrian who inadvertently knock, ed it over, was quite concerned as he thought the “child” would be injured by the fall. The presence of the doll, however, did not conduce to the orderly procession of traffic and a policeman found it necessary to request the little girl to remove her “baby.”

“There is a considerable, display of antipathy to English people in America.” Mr Robert F. Bell, representative in the United -States for the National Sailors’ and Firemen’s Union of Great Britain, informed a Post reporter. Why it existed, he could not say. but as an ex-New Zealander he had found it to '.is advantage in some circumstances to claim colonial birth. In some way the American dissociated the Briton from overseas from the Briton of the Motherland. “In this.” added Mr Bell, “I can see the results of German propaganda, which has been so active for years, and is still being persisted in.”

Entries are rolling in fast from all over the Dominion for lhe 36th annual gathering of the Caledonian Society, which is to be held at Cook's Gardens on Saturday, 7th February. This year’s Caledonian Sports should see the strongest array of athletes ever congregated together in Wanganui. Very strong entries have been received for the tug-of-war, which will be certain to provide many stirring tussles amongst the strongest of New Zealand's strong men. The piping and dancing will bring out the premier performers in the Dominion. anA alone should provide an entertainment worth travelling miles to see. A Taranaki correspondent of the Dominion writes to point out the grave danger arising from the gene, ral practice of killing calves. He states that between 30,000 and 40,000 calves have been killed in the Waikato this spring, while the report of one Taranaki firm alone stated that, for the November sale, 5100 calfskins were catalogued, and the stock inspectors estimate that killings in Taranaki are 40 per cent. So many freezing works are now operating (many of them overlapping one another), that the slaughter of calves is suicidal, for in two to three i years beef will be unobtainable. The New South Wales Government has tackled this calf-killing question, and when townspeople have to pay 2/ to 2/6 per lb. for steak, then the cry will go up, “Why didn’t Massey see to all this?”

There is a movement on foot in Nelson to form a company for the purpose of establishing an aerial service between Wellington and Nelson. Captain R. Russell, D.F.C., Croix de Guerre, of Invercargill, is in Nelson, and the proposal to form the company mentioned is the result of his visit. The Colonist states that the terminus on the Nelson side would be at Tahunanui, a seaside resort about two miles from the town, and at the Wellington end ‘a landing could be made at one or ot: er of different available places. The distance of something over a lii/ndred miles between the two cities would ordinarily'be covered in well under two hours, and Captain Russell has no fears of the regularity of the pro posed service being interrupted by adverse weather conditions. The projected company would also arrange to take passengers on short flights from Tahunanui, as is done from aviation centres in other countries.

Victoria stands head and shoulders above the other States of the Commonwealth in regard to the profitable working of its telephone system. The telephone exchanges in the State (says the Age) are proving a prolific source of revenue to the Commonwealth Postal Department. For the last financial year they showed a profit on the year’s working of approximately £60,000, which is over £lB,OOO in excess of the profits de. rived from the same source in South Australia, and more than double the profits -earned by the telephone exchanges in New South Wales during the same period. The Sydney exchanges, which earned the huge sum of £465,099 during the last financial year from a total of 39,296 subscribers, yielded 'a net. profit on the year’s working of only £35.500. When the. congregation of a certain church was assembled on a recent Sabbath evening (says the Kurow correspondent of the Oamaru Mail) a pet lamb walked in and down the aisle looking for its young mistress. It uttered a loud “baa,” which startled several and caused amusement to the younger folk. Its young mistress rose and walked out with it, reminding those present of the well-known story of “Mary had a little lamb.”

The New Zealand Institute hs« coudrmed the recommendation c. | the .'.wards committee conferring the 111 'tion Memorial Medal on the i lorn K. Hollaway, D.A.S.C.. '»r -w ert’fle research, and the :iee®' , |me hl I, r ethnology on s. ”,y ISmi h, cf New Plymouth. i In order t promote a more exteni sive knowledge of the French iam Iguage and literature, the New Zealland University Senate has adopted |a recommendation by the Arts and [Commerce Committee, and in future lan annual travelling scholarship ftf>- | French valued at £2OO and ten..ble i lor two years is to be offered. I The Feilding A. and P. Show will j lake place on Tuesday and Wednesi day next. People's Day being Wednesday. The committee have sparsd I no pains to make the function a sue | cesstul one, and have been favoured , With excellent entries in all sections, [those in cattle constituting a record ! tor the Association. Numerous side [shows have applied tor space: hot i water will be provided free, and the i comfort of exhibitors and the pub IHe has been studied in everv re- | spect. h. r statistics for Decern- ' r .*' -how curious diversities r/ 1 ’ 1 ?-. Insta *ces; Milk in HamiL itarttt’r" Strict). 6Jd per .u-art, Wellington td. Christcht reh I ed- Bread varies from 5d in New * inm lnOUtil lu in w hangarei; cau I unLT' 6d a ' Auck ‘a*”l. 1/6 V _ Dun. din. and 1/10 at Hamilton- g T I Per 1000 fl 'I/O ... rr * ... r , a ’ Hamilton. 6 3 iaf Dunedin and Whangatei. iltnn w' !1 I '’ , ‘ '- n l!an '' p 'irke. Ham Wm'tr Plymouth and .whib u ;<i ' Vell 'ngton; 'sto-ik In vv Per Ib ' *? cllarKed tor rump steak in Wanganui, and 11 Id in Wel•■ogjon. A cursory glance at (hr s atistir.il table shows that II is ven r, S r r J?. IiVP in , !he coun,r y. especially Tor butter and cheese and meal, ant .that m the heart of the producing c.stncts. ' The number of young men «ho an I adopting tile profession ot medicine in I New Zealand, as revealed when the exI examination lists of Otago University |\were published wax the subject of some I comment, and a fear was expressed ’ that in a year or two the profession | might become overcrowded. In thi* connection (says the Press) some statistics | in the December issue of the .Journal ot the Department of Public Health are of | interest. These show that whereas in November, 1917. there were only 501 | civilian practitioners in New Zealand. • at the end of last November there were i 628, besides 22 medical officers in mili- | tary work in the Dominion and 53 overI seas. On the former date the averag • I population, including Maoris, to e.a< h medical man was 2269; two years Jatcrl it was 1872. Details of the forty bo*"* pital districts in the Dominion show J;hat in twenty-six of them the average number of the population to each doctor is above this average. The North I Canterbury district approximates most closely to it. with 187*. The comparai tive table shows some remarkable di«- | crepancies. Thus, while in five districts there is only one doctor to over 3000 people, and in one. Stratford, only one to 4816. in the Waihi district there | is one to every 992. and in Maniototo j one to every 961. Tf the latter number is sufficient to provide a medical practitioner with a sufficiently good Jiving, then there is obviously room in the Dominion for all the young doctors that Otago can turn out for years to come. Il would have been hard to find two more disappointed men in Melbourne recently tnan (. han Lai and Chan Mo, printer and nightwatchman respectively from the steamer St. Albans, or tc find a richer lining in a suit of clothe.' than that which two watchmen and searchers ot the Customs Department succeeded in discovering (states the Melbourne Age). At about 11.30 p.m. the two officials in question were on board the St. Albans at Victoria Dock when the Chinese returned from town.” Much to their pained astonish- j ment they were detained and searches by the two officers. Then followed a» interesting spectacle—a sort of golder rain of sovereigns and half-sovereigns many of which were concealed in th»legs oi underpants, in boots, and in coat pockets. Upon Chan Lai was discovered 2(K) half-sovereigns and two sovereigns and on Chan Mo 64 half-sovereigns ami 38 sovereigns. The sequel occurred next day, when the Acting Collector at the Custom House held an enquiry into the case, under section 15 of the Customs Act. and heard evidence, which disclosed the above facts. The exportation of bullion from the Commonwealth is prohibited under a proclamation of July 14th, 1913. unless the assent in writing of the Minister has first been granted. No such permission having been granted in the present case. Mr Green is making a recommendation regarding the matter to the Minister for his decision. In the meantime the whole of the sovereigns and halfsovereigns are being held by the Customs authorities.