LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXVI, Issue 18018, 5 November 1920, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Entries for the Wanganui Agricul tural Association’s Show on November 17 and 18 close to-morrow evening. In another column will be found a notice to school committee members and teachers in reference fo Armistice Day. In a single day 15,000 tons of coal are required for New York’s three public services—transportation, electric current, and gas. ' Parliamentary stationery is to cost Great Britain £5.769,104 this year. In 1913 the stationery bill was £l,237,708. The convener of the public meeting re tram services is determined to place before the citizens as clearly and concisely as possible the reason for the unsatisfactory services delivered to the public. Woodville Borough Council has decided to get a report from a firm of Wellington civil engineers in respect to an independent hydro-elec-tric supply for the borough. The vital statistics for Wanganui for the past month were:—Births 62, deaths 23, and marriages 29. Seven of the latter were contracted at the Registrar’s Office. The births so far are well ahead of the aggregate for the whole of last year. “I never saw a more contented lot of farmers than the soldier settlers of Kopane,” said a Feilding man the other day. “They are a sturdy lot of young men, and can walk in grass right up to their knees. They are doing right well.” A woman went to a photographer’s shop and asked, “Do you photograph children, sir?” “Yes, madam.” was the reply; “that is my speciality.” “What do you charge?” “Twelve shillings a dozen, madam.” “Thank you very much,” said the woman, “but I’m afraid I must call again later on. I’ve only got eleven.” A sitting of the N.Z. Pharmacy Board will be held in Wanganui at the Technical College on Tuesday, 23rd inst., when candidates will be examined in Section A of the pharmacy examinations. Candidates will be present from various centres on this coast, and it is hoped that the examination will be the first of a permanent series in Wanganui.

The Harbour Board's engineer, Mr Haszard, and the dredgemaster, Mr Simpson, leave for Westport to-day to take over the dredge Rubi Seddon. The crew will be sent down early next week. The Kaione will be laid up as from Saturday, and will be tied up at the Town Wharf, when some minor repairs will be put in band.

Generally speaking, the Wanganui Education District is the only one in which toothbrush drill is being carried out to any extent, says the Feilding Star. It has been started in Taranaki, but has not reached such a large extent as it has here. By the end of the year between 60 and 70 per cent, of the school children in the Wanganui district will be undergoing treatment. At the Manawatu Show, in the dog section there were very good entries, particularly in the rough coated collie class. Many successes came to Wanganul- A. Greener, of Harrison Street, scored two firsts, a second and a third in the rough-coated collie class; E. Prince two firsts and a special in the Irish setter class, and Mr T. Mills, of the Commercial Hotel, two thirds in the pointer class.

Fifteen tons of table potatoes in a pit were sold on Friday at a clearing sale at Christchurch for 10/-, and seven and a half tons in a pit on the same property were sold for 15/-. The purchaser was the man who bought the farm. There were no other bidders, as it was stated that after bagging them and carting them there would be nothing in them for the buyer. The sale took place at Russley Road, not five miles from Christchurch.

The usual monthly meeting of the Wanganui District Nursing League was held at the Board’s office on Monday, November Ist, 1920, at 3 p.m. Present —Mesdames Christie (chair). Grant, Taylor, Demn, Williams, Roche, Silk, Cummins, Burnet, Reeve, Spurdie and Miss Taylor. Apologies for absence were received from Mrs Fox and Miss Cruickshank. The nurse reported that she had paid 281 visits during the month, 8 patients were discharged. A donation of ,10s was received, with thanks, from Jlev. Thompson. To improve tn e physique 6f the younger generation, the authorities intend to establish cadet physical training championship rules, drawn up by Colonel Sleeman. The competition will be two sections, one for cadets of secondary schools and one for ordinary senior cadets. Every cadet will be examined in physical training and teams will be chosen from the fittest secondary school boys and will compete for a cup, given by Mr Eric Riddiford, and the others for a cup given by Colonel Campbell, and certificates will be awarded in addition.

Says the Lyttelton Times:—"We find this North Island administration distributing £1,170,627 on roads and bridges in the North Island, leaving £416,852, or a mere 26.3 per cent., for South Island. The two Auckland road districts get £497,074 more than the whole of the South Island. They are given 31.3 per cent, of the total expenditure for the Dominion, and 42.4 per cent, of the expenditure for the North Island. Canterbury gets 3.5 per cent, of the Dominion expenditure, or oneninth of Auckland’s share, a sure indication that Canterbury does not vote on the right ticket. We are slowly beginning to appreciate that delightful joke the Aucklanders indulge in about ‘the roadless north.’ ”

Russian newspapers announce that compulsory military training for women has been introduced in Petrograd. An Auckland telegram says that some trouble has arisen between the watersiders aqd the Sugar Company regarding the employment of a certain man on one of the Chelsea lighters who is not a member of the Watersiders’ Union. The company refused to discharge the man and sent <the lighter concerned away. Work is proceeding as uhual.' The Wanganui Fire Brigade received a call to No. 74, Carlton Avenue, Gonville, at 12.28 o’clock this morning. The scene of the outbreak was the kitchen in Mr Jas. Ogilvie’s six-roomed house, and the promptness of the brigade prevented a disastrous conflagration. The. fire was quickly got under control, but not before the kitchen was gutted. There was slight damaged by smoke to other portions of the house. It is understood that the damage is fully covered by the insurance. Matthews, whose sensational arrest at Lyttelton was reported on Tuesday, and who is charged with the Timaru murder, was born in Invercargill about 26 years ago. Early in the war he went’ to California, apparently to evade military service. While he was in America his pursuits included that of a professional boxer. After the* war be returned to New Zealand, and on August 25th, 1919, he was sentenced to nine months’ imprisonment for having committed an indecent act in the Christchurch Botanical Gardens On September 12th, 1919, he escaped from Lyttelton Gaol, and had ■been at large since. Under the name of Reginald Irving, he had been working as a ship’s fireman recently. For some time he was a fireman on the Union Company’s steamer Waipori, from which he signed off on October Sth. His mother is living in Taihape.