LOCAL AND GENERAL

Waihi Daily Telegraph, Volume XVII, Issue 5607, 2 May 1919, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Among the soldiers returning by the Paparca, which arrives about May 13, are Lance-Corporal Anderson, of Waihi, and Lance-Corporal McClung, of Katikati.

A bunch of keys found at the Waihi Beach last Sunday is lying at the Paeroa Police Station awaiting an owner. Application can be made at the Waihi station.

The Returning Officer, Mr W. M. Wallnutt, notifies that all candidates' deposits anti fees in connection with the municipal election will be refunded at the Borough Council office to morrow between the hours of 9 a.m. and 12 noon.

All who were fortunate enough to hear Miss Winnie Layhourn, Hamilton’s favourite soprano, during her visit to Waihi a year ago will be delighted to learn that the young lady is coming again to assist at the Methodist Church anniversary on Sunday and Monday. Miss Eva Clover, contralto and elocutionist, is accompanying Miss Laybourn, and both young ladies will sing at the services on Sunday. Un Monday a musical programme of exceptional merit will be given in the Miners’ Hall. Songs and duets will be contributed by Misses Lay. bourn and Clover; humorous and other recitals by Miss Clover, and Mr B, Daltcu (late of the Expeditionary Forces) will sing bass solos. Vocal and instrumental numbers will also be contributed by Mesdames Seven and Aitken, Misses Painton, Hawking and Stokes, and Messrs E. Morgan, Addy, Tayler and Hicks. Tickets are one shilling each.

The pound-keeper notifies that a stcir will be sold at twelve o’clock to morrow at the public pound. Mr Harry Carter returns thanks in another column to all who supported him in the Borough Council election. An official scrutiny, m accordance with the Act, of the roll used in the municipal elections on Wednesday was made yesterday by the Returning Officer and his assistants. The rolls are reported all clear, and there were no cases ot dual voting.

The Thames local elections resulted : Council Hardman, 530; Muir, 481; Lucas, 470; Dr Derrick, 419; Howe, 419; Eadj,4l7; Glaxton, 414; Eusor, 346; Hillman. 312. There was one Labour Party representative amongst five others who were defeated. For the Harbour Board—A. Burns. 540; W. J. McCormick, 537 (successful).

A Chinese merchant named Sai Lauio was arrested at Auckland on Wednesday on a charge of assisting two Chinamen to enter JNew Ztaland without paying the poll-tax of £IOO. The arrest was made as the result of inquiries following upon the apprehension of Lee Sam and Lee Tau, alleged prohibited immigrants, in a market garden at M.vgere last week.

Clarence Kennedy, a contractor in the Waihi mine, met with a painful accident yesterday afternoon. He was working a popper drill when the steel flew out of the machine and the point of it struck him on the calf of his leg, inflicting a cut about one inch and a-half long. The muscle of the leg was also badly bruised. He was alj once taken to Dr Brown's surgery, where his injuries were attended to. It was found necessary to put in two or three stitches.

In connection with the cross system of voting at elections, the borough returning officer slates that in his opinion, as the result of actual experience, such a system is not effective in providing an accurate expression of the true intention of the voter, because the cross associates in the mind of the voter the act of crossing out, and yesterday it was quite obvious in many cases that where crosses were placed opposite the names ot a number of candidates in the longer ballot papers the voter’s intention was to vote for those names remaining. In Mr Wallnutt's opinion the system of striking out the names is not to be improved upon, because if a voter does not wish to vote for a particular candidate the suggestion immediately comes to his mind lo strike his name off the face of the ballot paper.

Some of the returned soldiers now in Upotiki (says the Herald) are desirous ot taking up land under the Lands for Soldiers Settlement Act, and in pursuance thereof they endeavoured lo obtain forms of application for financial .assistance. After a good deal of chasing round, they discovered that apparently the postmaster was the proper official from whom to obtain- the necessary forms, but he did not even know that he had been so appointed, and he certainly had no forms. The secretary of the Beturned Soldiers’ Association thereupon communicated with the Crown Lands Office stating the facts, and in reply was informed that “the forms had run out, but would be forwarded as soon as possible.” We have thus another example of the manner in which the returned soldier is being treated by those in authority.

Mr W. E. Busch is having a gaslight display to-night of Hellaby’s good things. We understand that during the winter he will secure regular consignments of SeHaby’sl goods, which will doubtless be appreciated. The first sale takes place to-morrow.

A correspondent writes to the London Evening News of March 5 : casualty statistics given to the public have not got beyond general totals so far, but a New Zealand medical friend gives me some interesting details concerning their losses. Among a total of 55,000 casualties in the New Zealand Force, including 15,000 killed, there has only been the surprisingly small number of twenty cases of blindness. The ‘ limbless ’ cases also have been remarkably few in number, when it is borne in mind the loss ot any portion of a limb, from a hand or foot upwards, brings a case under this classification. Losses of fingers or toes do not count limblessness, but practically everything above this does. Of such cases the New Zealand casualties include only between 800 and 860, which works out at something under 1£ per cent. All these men,. I am told, are undergoing special education courses wherever their loss has made a continuance of their pre-war occupation impossible.”

According to John Bull tboro has been an enormous waste of foodstuffs during the war. “For instance, in Australia, for want of shipment, hundreds of thousands of tons of wheat are stacked and going rotten and being devoured by rats. The same remark applies to Fngland, where in 1018 one-half of the early crops was given to the pigs—having been stored and held buck so long that it went had. Then take the case uf Paraguay and the River Plate .vhere the same conditions prevail—farmers and others remaining idle because die slapping had been messed about and used for all sorts of improper purposes. Again, take the position at the Front. The wastage has been enormous. Cheese for many months has been thrown away, the men being sick of it, whilst fires are actually lighted with the help of butter. When I was out in France in September, 1917, I saw one roafl which had been built on a foundation 'consisting o(j unopened tins ol moat and pots of jam.