LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Waikato Times, Volume 101, Issue 16983, 20 December 1926, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Over .4000 bags of overseas mail, including 1200 for Auckland, will reach New Zealand early this week. Train arrangements etc., in connection with the Christmas anil New Year Holidays arc advertised.

Enjoyable selections -were rendered on Ferry Hank last night by the Hamilton Oily Rand. There were many listeners, the night being an ideal one.

Mr Fred Donald, winner or £IOOO in the Kia Ora art union, is an engine driver on the Wcstport branch of the Government Railways. He is married and has three children. He had only one ticket.

an Friday the Cambridge Co-opera-tive Dairy Company's secretary, Mr P. G. Harvey, received cable advice that a parcel of 1000 boxes of butter from last season's make had been disposed of at 170 s cwt. In connection with the reported attack on a New Zealand girl by a Frenchman on a steamer at Rangoon, it is believed that the victim is a daughter of Dr. A. 11. E. ''.Vail of Wanganui, who has been on a trip to Europe and who contemplated returning via India.

An increase of 10s a ton in the price of all grades of raw and refined sugar is announced by the Colonial Sugar Refining Company. The increase will take effect to-day and will bring the wholesale price of No. iA, or table, sugar to £25 10s a ton. This is the fourth increase within three months.

Over 1000 immigrants, now at sea, will arrive in time to have their first Christmas dinner in New Zealand. The Shaw, Savill and Albion liner Athenic is due at Wellington this evening with 539 passengers, and tiio New Zealand Shipping Company's liner Rotorua, with over 500 on board, has reported that she will reach Auckland next Friday morning. "If half the tuck shops in the vicinity of the schools were closed, and less soft sweets and ice creams eaten by Iho children, they would have better teeth than they have," remarked Mr J. Caughley, Director of Education. "With the exception of one member of our family of eight, who suffered a deal of illness, not one of us has lost a tooth," lie, declared. On Friday night Risliop Chcrrington paid his first official visit to Cambridge, when lie conducted a confirmation service at St. Andrew's Church, in the presence of a very large congegation. Thirty-two candidates were presented for confirmation, and the very beautiful service was carried throught most impressively. The Risliop delivered two forcible and excellent Lddresses. The Maeroa and Frankton Methodist Sunday Schools closed for the holidays yesterday in a worthy way. Christmas offerings were made by the children at both schools in aid of the orphanage funds. The children showed, in a generous way their desire t'o help their less fortunate friends. At Maeroa the children were asked to bring present or money, and 30 gifts and 17s were handed in. At Frankton the scholars brought eggs or money. Two dozen eggs—which realised four shillings—were received as well as 10s in cash.

"My advice to male passengers on the Hastings street trams," confided a resident to a Napier Telegraph representative, "is to get into the smoking compartment and draw away as hard as they can at the strongest tobacco they can purchase. "Us pretty hard," he went on "to sec the non-smoking compartment nearly empty and to find oneself surrounded by women in the smoking section. They seem to do it on purpose and a man feels diffident about lighting up when he is faced with several members of the other sex."

\n unusual and rather amusing situation arose in the Invcrcargill Magistrate's Court during the hearing of a group of Ave claims against the same defendant. The defendant was represented throughout by a wellknown Invercargill counsel, but when one of the cases was called and His Worship inquired who was appearing for the plaintiff, counsel for the defendant rose to reply: "I am, Your Worship." "What!" exclaimed His Worship. "You surprise me, Mr —" The court was thereupon treated to the interesting spectacle of counsel conducting the case for the plaintiff and immediately answering himself on behalf of the defendant .

"How they.get away with it beats mo," said Mr Ultan MoCabe, of Wellington, discussing the American tariff wall wilh a Wanganui Chronicle reporter. Ho pointed out that though America exported vast quantities of her products, particularly motor cars, to other countries, she endeavoured to crush competition within, her own borders by heavy taxes on imports. "America for Americans" was Iheir mollo, and one could not help admiring the manner in which they observed it, although the extent to which other counlrics purchased American goods was admittedly puzzling.