Local and General.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXX, Issue 3490, 2 April 1912, Page 4

Local and General.

An attempt is being made to form a sports and social club by the members of the now defunct Y.M.G.A.. and a meeting is to be held to-morrow evening in Robb’s Hall for that purpose.

Mr Buswell, of the Borough electrical staff, informed a Times reporter yesterday that either to-night or tomorrow night Childers Road. Palme:.--ton Road and Grey Street will be Irby electric light.

In reply to a question yesterday ilie Borough Engineer stated that- he did not think the construction of the tram line would be commenced till after Ea ster-

It is understood that the New Zealand Shipping Company. Ltd., intend shortly to erect handsome and commodious offices in brick and concrete at the corner of Childers Road anu Customhouse Street opposite the Poverty Bay Club and adjoining the offices of the Union Steamship Co.. Ltd.

“I attribute my present- position to the land boom of 1908.” stated a judgment debtor from Wellington in the Fleets bun a Magistrate's Court last week. _ “Then you have been speculating.” remarked counsel for the plaintiff. “Your assumption is entirely wrong,” replied the debtor. “I am two or three hundred pounds to the bad through others who had speculated being unable to pay me."

Here is another illustration of the necessity for simple bookkeeping on the farm. A Featherston farmer was sued by a man whom he had employed for wages alleged to be due over a period of 19 years. There was considerable conflict of evidence, and finally the judge preferred that the case should be tried by a jury. Under cross-examination the farmer had to admit that- he didn't keep books. An entry or two might have saved all that litigation. Some splendid deer-stalking has been obtained at Lake Tennyson and at the source, of the Waiau River, in North Canterbury. The stags were in splendid condition. The stalkers are members cf the Tapanui Deer-stalking Association, and have had considerable stalking experience. They are enthusiastic regarding the country, which, though high, they consider equal to anything they have hunted oyer. They are of the opinion that, with abundance of luxuriant feed, both in the bush and on the clear ground, the country is capable of carrying several thousand head of deer. They report that Lake Teunyscn is well stocked with trout, and that the camp at. the lake lies in the midst of superb bush and mountain scenery. Last year the number of bicycles reported to the Christchurch police as missing was over 300. Onlv a small proportion of the stolen machines are ever recovered, and when they are recovered they arc so knocked about that they are of little use to the owners. The average bicycle owner losing Ins machine is himself often to blame on account of the careless way in which lie leaves bis property for iiotirs at a time outside with no chain or lock attached. The ‘‘found bicycle” room at the Christchurch police station at present contains nearly fifty bicycles, and these include good examples of standard makes. There are not many ladies’ cycles in the collection. There is no evidence of wholesale or organised bicycle stealing, but the largeness of the proportion that disappear . utterly would lead to the conclusion that the stealers of them know .’how-do. .effectually- disguise them beyond recognition. The thieves appropriate cycles not- only from the open street, but from corridors, backyards, cvcle-raoks, and private verandahs. ’

The truth of the adage ‘Take care of the pence and the pounds will take care of themselves,” is being understood by those who do their trading at the ' People’s Emporium, the new shop next the Ivimpton Cycles store. The wonderful values are the talk of the town *

While working Gisborne last Wednesday week the Union S.S. Company’s Monowai lost an anchor and 23 iatlioms of cable. This was located by a diver last week, and was recovered by the John Townley and brought to the wharf. It will be shipped bv the Ivowhai to Dunedin. A somewhat sensational bolt took place in Gladstone Hoad about noon yesterday when a grey pony attached to an empty gig galloped furiously along the road from the direction of the firebell. A nasty smash seemed inevitable, but the "pony slipped on the asphalt crossing when attempG.ag to turn into Lowe Street, and fell. The animal was at once caught bv a bystander before any serious damage was clone.

One first offending inebriate was convicted and fined 5s with costs ?s, in default-24 hours’ imprisonment mi'ore Mr W. A. Barton, S.M. in the Police Court yesterday. A Native named Kota Teipu, alias To Mo mo, appeared on a charge of forging a jiie<|ue on the Bank of New South Wales at Gisborne for the sum of £32 in the name of C. Williamson, and that he did utter the same to one Charles O’Connor. The accused was remanded to appear at Tologa Bay, where the offence is alleged to have been committed.

Few persons except those who- have travelled in America have any idea of the enormously high cost of living in the large cities. For a. 1 very ordinary three-course meal on the American express trains, similar, sav, to those served in the New Zealand" dining ears on the railways, the sum of six shillings. and probably more is charged. Each item on the menu is charged for separately: Soup. 25 cents, say Is; vegetables 15 cents (7-id) for each helping, and the rest in proportion. For an orange to he eaten in the true American style, with a. spoon and sugar, the charge is no less than 50 cents (2s).

The spectacle of Maoris gathering sea-eggs is one which is to lie Been nearly every Sunday, and often on a week-day, at Takapuna Beach, states the Auckland Star. The Natives confine their operations to the vicinity of the rocks, and work industriously among the pools that , are left bv the outgoing tide. Groping about among the silt, they trace the eggs with great precision, with the result that they generally have well-filled sacks to bring away as trophies of the chase. The sea-egg, on the outside, somewhat resembles the body of the porcupine. It contains a mass of dark liquid, which is swallowed by the Mac-ri with great relish, but which to the European looks decidedly nauseous-

A party, consisting of Mr and Mrs E. R. Bloomfield and tlieii: little daughter, and Mrs Rathbone ana daughter, had a perilous adventure when returning to Auckland from the West Coast on Sunday (says a Press Association message). In company with two other motor cars, they were travelling the road along the face ot the cliff, with a sheer drop of 25 t to 30ft. Bloomfield’s motor was dr ven to the edge to avoid a quagmire. Tiic ground giving away, the car toppled over tlie embankment, and skidded until it brought up by a tree. The occupants scrambled" up the bank, leaving the car in a very dangerous position. A party was sent from town with gear, which proved inadequate to lift the car.; Another attempt is being made to-day to restore the car to terra firma.

Half a dozen men sitting on the heads of two stalwart draught horses on the footpath in Willis Street, Wellington, on Monday morning attracted some hundreds of people in less than that number of seconds. The horses were employed to haul a. lorry, but on this occasion had taken it into their heads to have a romp by themselves during such time as the driver was awev from the vehicle reclaiming his hat, "which the gale had whisked off near the Town Hall. Galloping into Willis Street, the horses essayed to part company, hut sprawled over on the slippery pavement, one on each side of a cast-iron verandah post. There they were promptly sat upon by people who seemed to. know that that was the proper thing to do, and eventually, when unharnessed, were allowed to regain their feet. The casualties were nil.

Some months ago, when Sir RobertStout, Chief Justice, was asked to admit a number of young barristers and solicitors to practice the New Zealand Herald), lie remarked smilingly that the profession was becoming so strong numerically that he was commencing to wonder where work was coming from for all of them, whereupon Mr Martin Chapman, K.C. suggested: “There is still plenty of room at the top.” It appears that at the end of December last the number of legal practitioners in -th&JDominion was 918, an increase of 37 on the previous year’s returns. Evidently the gentlemen of the peruke and stuff gown practising in Auckland have little need to fear any shortage of employment in Auckland. On Tuesday there were. 157 civil cases on the list called on before Air C. C. Kettle, S-M.