LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Wanganui Herald, Volume XXXIX, Issue 11643, 22 August 1905, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The. Government has acquired Cole's property,, of fifteen acres at Petone for-work-men's homes. The price paid is '£9000.

The United States Secretary of Agriculture caused 1200- suits to be begun against railway companies for violations .. of the statute requiring live stock in transit to be unloaded once in 28 -hours for food' and water and. allowed out of cars at .least five hours. j

A profitable deal in land was made some months ago in the Orepuki district (says the Western Star). A settler purchased an area of btish land partly cleared, 'with substantial dwelling and out-buildings erected thereon, for the sum of £600, which price he shortly afterwards received for the standing timber from a aawmilling. hrm, so that the buildings and ground cost him nothing.

On Friday afternoon a fisherman at the New Plymouth breakwater, a Chinaman named George Wai, had a very trying experience. When Captain Hood learnt that the four fishing boatSgWhieh had left the harbour in the morning had not returned, and were not in sight, he immediately signalled the dredgemaster to look up tho missing boats. Three were -met homeward bound, but the fourth was not to be seen After an hour's search Wai was found in an exhausted state, anchored under lee of the Saddle Kock, having pulled in several miles against the gale, and wtts brought home by the dredge after a- reryunpleasant experience. The fishermen were loud in their praise of Captain. Hood's forethought. — News.

Many firms, recognising the value of .the diamond for cotting stone, have sought to make a diamond-toothed saw suitable for commercial purposes.' Many- have -failed, and some have even" be.en brought te.-ruin by their experiments (says the Sketch). \ Setting was the chief difficulty/ and it was not until Messrs George Anderson 'and Co. hit upon a method of sealing the diamonds by plectficity, after thejr had been, Bgecial^'. ly prepared for the' process, that the tool became a trade possibility. " Then came the difficulty of selling the saw when made. For a long time the conservative British builder and contractor was not willing to accept the idea of a diamond cutting edge 1 ; now he uses it for dividing the- stones for most of his important work.

At last night's meeting of the Education ~ Board Mr Pirani, in moving the re-elec-tion of Mr G. S. Bridge as chairman for the ensuing year, paid a high tribute to the ability that had been displayed by that gentleman, who was, he said, the member best fitted, for the position. It was Mr Bridge's ability, and. ■ foresight, continued Mr Pirani, which had raised the Board to the high position which it now held among similar bodies in the colony, and he hoped when this year was up they "would again have the pleasure of re-electing him. These remarks were heartily endorsed by MrCarson, who" seconded the motion, and Mr Spurdle, and the proposition was carried unanimously " amid applause.

A new disease has made itself known in London, and hundreds of victims are suffering the excrutiating agonies of strawberry gout. A West End physician, in describing the symptoms to a repje-, sentative, explained that the" persons so afflicted had themselves to blame for eating too plentifully of the king of fruits. Strawberries wera postively poisonous to some constitutions. The ankle and knee become tender and show slight swelling. Before the swelling the patient invariably experiences sharp shooting pains in the knee and ankle joints. Other "victims are affected in the small of the back. Nondrinkers do not escape the complaint, aidmany temperance people 'who have ' con-.-suited their local doctors have been bluntly told to knock off drink for a week- or two. - Of course- a qualified apology."follows when the disease has been afterwards diagnosed as strawberry gout.

Leonora Romaldo, the wife. of a farm hand at Villacienso,. near Burgos, has awakened from a trance which has lasted thirty-one, years'. ' The case has been under the close observation of medical 'experts during the whole, of that time, and by their instructions liquid food was regularly administered by a tube placed in the mouth of the, sleeping woman.- At times it was believed^hat the woman was waking, , and various means were employed to restore her to consciousness, but they failed. She has now regained her senses, but cannot be- persuaded that she has ' slept for years. A curious feature of the case is that she remembers the incidents of her girlhood up to the time she fell ■ into the trance. Set body is fairly well nourished, but lier hajr lias turned white.- ■ On being shown, a mirror the woman shrieked with horror, and declared that the image reflected was not her own; .

Mr Selby Morton, secretary of tlie.-Wan-, ganui Agricultural . Association, has sent us a copy of the Association's poster, which that energetic institution lias had. specially drawn and published to order with the view of still f urtherj advert; ising the forthcoming' annual show, which .promises -to be the most successful on record. Jt is with pleasure we '-note that the posters are a local production, . and do credit _to all concerned. The arrangement of the various 'groups of live stock forma a most effective' and' striking coniposittonvand em... braces a comprehensive display of life" connected with pastoral pursuits: — Poultry, dogs, pigs, sheep, cattle and* horses," all find a place. Two very good process ' views are printed in, and make complete an excellent sample of advertising art. The design and drawings are by .Mr Benoni. White, and the printing comes from Mr A. D. Willis's Caxton Works, and is a credit to all concerned In- its production*

- There have been 200 men put on the railway .works at Ohakune, above XJtiku, for formation and clearing operations. The cost of Gevernment cablegrams beyond the colony during the year ended March 31st last -was .£2261. A bill to provide for the legitimation of children bora before wedlock was passed by the Tasmanian Assembly on the 3rd instant. Mr Louis Cohen, the well-known solicitor, was to-day- nominated as a candidate for the vacancy 4h the Borough Council, caused by the retirement of Mr G. S. Bridge. Mr D. T. Mclntosh, the popular district railway engineer, has been transferred to Auckland, and his place here will be taken by Mr. Viss, ,of the northern capital. The Hamilton Borough ■ Council -has decided, to approach Mr Andrew Carnegie with a view of obtaining a grant in aid of the library. A former application was refused. . The outward 'Frisco mail closes at the local Post Office on Thursday at 11 o'clock, •and leaves Auckland on Friday, in the Sierra, 'for San Francisco. The" next inward Frisco mail is due at Auckland on Monday. _ . •_Mr It. .B. - Beckett has withdrawn from the contest for- the Bangitikei seat at the forthcoming elections, for the reason that lie -finds the interests of the southern portion of the county opposed to the northern end of the Bangitikei electorate. * A certain-West Coast political candidate was asked if he would be in favour of educated J's.P. To which he replied: "Noo Zealand J.P.s represent the 'ighest form of colonial culture. Hi ham a J.P." • The Pretoria News, commenting on the" South African stores report,' says the ugliest part of the question is that the Press correspondents in Pretoria -would have warned the public, but were prevented by the Press censors, acting in the "best interests of the army." • \ The Southland branch' of the Navy League is sending a wreath Home with the object of having it laid on the Nelson. Monument in Trafalgar Square, London. The wreath will be frozen in a block of, ice and despatched to England by the Tongariro. The- story of an American murderer who left JESO by will to his executioner is recalled by the thoughtfulness of a wine merchant in Paris who, face to face with financial ruin, planned suicide, but was first thoughtful to the extent of setting aside a dozen bottles of wine for the undertaker. Lieutenant Peary, who leaves shortly in 'his ship the Boosevelt bound for the North Pole, says that if successful he will try the Antarctic in search of the South Pole. Asked what he expected to find at either end of the earth, he replied : "Perhaps gold and other most valuable minerals." The large block of land mown as the Syndicate, Lake Braimer, comprising several thousand acres, is to be resumed by the Government for closer settlement. Negotiations are well in hand,, and the reports, are now in the hanus of the Government. 'This will, throw .open 'a large extent, of "rich agricultural land. Well-fitted hospital cars are an unquostionkble' boon 'on railways. On the Belfian State railways a service of the kind as -just been experimentally introduced. Each car contains eight movable couches, a dispensary, and an operating room, besides a complete set of road-mending appliances. The cars arc 48ft in length. Discussing the prevention- of sheep•leaJing,..j}t. a .meeting, ; of .the Timaru. A. and'T*. Society on Saturday the president mentioned a recent case. A man. bought a flock of sheep at something, over a pound a head, and for convenience put them in a park, with a double fence of netting and macrocarpa, absolutely rabbit-proof. Next. morning he found 22 missing. -Another member of the committee immediately corroborated the story.

The mildness of the season is the subject of comment- from end to end of the South Island. At Picton willows are already coming into leaf; although the foliage has not been off for 6ix weeks. The Marlborouglr Press states that the- willow lias become evergreen in some parts of the Sounds. At the other end of the Island a Milton paper states that a settler of 42 years, has never known such fine weather at this season of the year.

Judging by Lord Kitchener's despatches, lie is quite certain that Russia will some day descend upon India. It will no doubt come, as a surprise" to our readers (says an exchange) to learn that since the opening of the Orenburg- Yashkent railway in September, Russia has, in spite" of the war in the Far East, been steadily accumulating an army of 200,000 men within a few days' march of Afghanistan.

During a fierce nor'-wester /experienced down South recently, a builder had a quantity of corrugated iron and flooring boards awaiting delivery at the . Baling railway siding. Although the iron was weighted vyith huge sleepers, the gale successfully removed them, and leap-frogged "the bundles of iron until they were completely doubled, and only useful for fencing purposes. • The flooring boards were scattered for a couple of miles.

A 'ball of beeswax- introduced into the shell of a living fresh-water mussel has resulted in producing the most remarkable "artificial" pearl in existence. It is about X inches in length, oval in form, and pink in colour, and is now the property of the Smithsonian Institution. The ball of wax was placed near the hinge of the bivalve, which, being kept in a tank of fresh water, was carefully watched. The irritation of the wax caused the mollusc to protect itself by coating the foreign object with a smooth coating of pearl stuff — the same material as that which is used .in lining the inner surface of its shell.

Whilst riding homewards from Alton on Wednesday night Mr C. Burke, of Manutahi, says the Patea Press, met under the most peculiar circumstances what nearly proved a most serious accident. He -was taking a short cut ' cross coun- • try" and had dismounted to lead his horse through a dilapidated wire fence, it being necessary for him to lift the' top wire to enable the horse to pass underneath. The wire,, which was a barb, caught in the saddle and the horse became frightened And plunged, causing the wire to snap some . yards -further along the fence. -The end immediately curled up and wound. itself around Mr Burkes legs. The horse, being unable to' disengage' the saddle, continued to plunge, and before being released, twice- kicked Mr Burke on the head, but without any serious "result. Mr Burke was also badly cut about the' legs with the barb wire but is able to be-about.