LOCAL & GENERAL NEWS.

Marlborough Express, Volume LI, Issue 84, 11 April 1917, Page 4

LOCAL & GENERAL NEWS.

A; special general meeting of the Wairau Rowing Glut> will be held at Grpvetown to-moi*i"pw' evening.

-•;■ Meetings' will be ..held in various partjs of Christchiirclx; and. suburbs 'during this week in connection with the jietition for Jhe closing of hotel bars/;at six o'clock (during the war. , Dbn't miss ■ the. lOferland [film at His Majesty's tornighf:.—Advt. Grovetpwn residmits will be treated to the adventures7 r Qf. "Chimmy. Fadderi" by Fullers'^Pictures this evening. The Company goes to-morrow night to Ward, Friday to Seddori, and Saturday to Renwick;)' During the !;niQnthv6f March the estates of 315 deceased persons were certified for death duties. The; largest was that 6f. "George .Giddings. (Canterbury) £44,993. .„ The; only Marlborough i estate was that of Edith Cornelia'Cheesman, £8309. ■ •'-■••/ The consti%ctibn;i4nd f'asseinbling <of ah Overland car frbtir start-to finish; at His Majesty's to-night.—Adyt, I ■ The Diocesan H^o^e' Mission Festival will take plae^.'jin. the Town Hall, Blenheim, on Wednesday, May 2nd. A'ft'ervtJie^^eiiV'-'^vpubliiK niefeting will 66 held; the speakers' beirife1 the Bishop1 oi Nelson, the 'Hohi/A. T.'Maghmity, and Mr R.W. Simpson;

A total of 1074 ; voluntary enlistments;, was received A for the 30th Reinfdrceraonts/ leaving a shortage of 1203 to be made up by the ballot. The : figures for the . Nelson-Marl-borough recruiting. district were 18 and 64 respectively. .

• That New "Zealand';' newspapers are cheap is evidenced.,by :/q copy: :»f the Sauioiui, Times, which :is sold at. no loss a sum than .sixpence >a eopj.' The editor, printer, and publisher :>s ', adr cording to the titles'page, James .Ah Sue.' t; . ' ■:■•■•" -v.-'- -1";1 *' -" ■■"■•':'■■■ ..•;-,'

Gampeofli's victory5, in the Chamwagno Stakes at Ricpar,ton: on Eastor Monday gave Sir Gobrge Clifford his eleventh win in that event '(states the Press). When, i-Madam, Madcap, won the race for:'. him in 1910 she corr.iaerired a series . of. succrsses which, s^ince that yea>v has onl} r been interrupted by * the , f victory of Rencontre in 1914.

/The most instructive . and amusing domestic film ever- .shown—-the making of an Overland car:- —•Fullqrsr Pictures, to-niaht.-^—'Advt. ' On Satin-day i morinyig the three sons of Mr' J. T. Bjr'ic^, of ('hrist- • church, were playing with- Jde-: tonators, ■■'when one exploded, severely injuring Jacky aged ten, in the face, loft, hand; and leg. He-was convoyed to the hospital, where- three fingers had to bo amputated. The other lads escaped with Various marks of the explosion -about; the body. ' /,._./ . ;'

At the annual conference of New Zealand coach-builders, held at Wellington to-day a resolution was passed objecting to bracketing -A. ; and P. shows with horse 'racing, as shows mean education for. agriculturists. Another ; resolution advocated the closing ;down of racinVc in its entirety, because ,'it enabled gambling seriously to interfere with industiy. . " .' ;

The Waitohi Dairy Company,. Tua Marina, paid out" to; suppliers';£lls3, representing advanceSv^ind'bbnus, for the month of \Mar6li: .i^/The!- highest, test was .5.7, and thejloVesi f-V^ : total.number of crates, of cheese, shipped 'to'1 Wellington up to March. 31st was 1100. The Imnei'ial Supplies De-;. partment advance 90 per cent, of the amount after being in store twentyeight days, and the balance when the choese is shipped. .'- i

The Hon. G. W. Russell said at Wanganui that he wanted to see a nmternity ward in connection with every hospital. The lamentable wastage of life caused by the war made it imperative that the creation of population should be encouraged, and that when the children were born they should grow up into healthy men and women. The Government had a great responsibility in this matter. Some excitement occurred on the Paekakariki Hill on Wednesday, v. hen a large motor-car, bound for Auckland, caught alight (says the Manawatu Times). .The occupants managed to subdue th© flames, Init it is stated left behind a part of their luggage, which contained £100 worth of jewellery and £50 in notes. On reaching Otaki they noticed their loss, and immediately returned, only to find no trace of the goods.

Some years ago a,native of Inverrargill, Mr John Pomeroy, gave demonstrations in New Zealand of an explosive bullet of extraordinary power, which he brought rindor the notice of the War Office. Since then »'saye the Southland News), lie has travelled abroad, and has out several inventions. When war broke otit he left for England, and it is stated that tho explosive bullet has' been used with great success against raiding Zeppelins. - I

! An important development ha« occurred in connection, with the recent Home Rule resolution carried by the Christchurch City Council; The Mayor announced on Thursday that h$ had received for transmission to the Governor ,a petition from citizens protesting against the carrying of the resolution by the council. As j the petition was to his Excellency the Governor, he did not feel justified in revealing its contents. He would simply forward it on to the proper quarter... . ..."■•

In the South Island championships rifle meeting at Redcliffs (Christehurch) on JKaster Monday, W. H. -West (Blenheim) scored 45 in the Roberts Memorial match (10 shots at 3GO yards) and won 10s._ The niatoVi was won by R. J. Gillicik D-.RC.) with <a,score of 49. The light for tho opening of the filling was very diill and heavy, while therej was practically a calni, with •», vety ■ occasional puff of wind from the norti;v and this proved very tricky to some ,of the marksineh. Did you hear that Durrant had made the /New Commercial the most comfortable house to stay at in Wellington? Stay where you are known and appreciated.—Advt. -.Questioned as to the possible effect of the proposed railway economies on racing, Mr J{ B. Harcourt, president of the Wellington Racing Club, said the Wellington Club would probably suffer more than any other m Now Zealand. On'account of its distance from the city, trains would be necessary if people were to go'i© the races. Motors might take a certain nun-.ber of people, but the supply of motors would be quite insuflicient. Without making a.definite, statement 'Mr Harcourt intimated that the curtailment of the railway service , would mean closing the Trentham course. .- . : -

Many soldieiV returning ■to Wellington from BastferV leave in , the south were held up at. Lyttelton on Monday night owing to tho Mararoa being a >( full ship. A good number had their berths booked, but. all the soldiers arriving by the second express were refused admission to the ferry steamer, about 200 intending passengers- bemg, left on the vharf. The blockage was caused1 by orily one ydssolO'being available for the; return' of the ipussengers' who caine-South,.^by';' the "Maori oti: Wediicsdayi^ and:■ -•;/■'frl'le-'-Mararoa a'nd-'ToVAn'au oji ,(Tliuraday. Considerable difficulty wa.s ; e'xjjerienccd by # the disappointed soldiers and civilian passengers in obtaining accommodation in Ciiristchurch, states the Pi*ess. :

A correspondent writes to the New Zealand Herald as follows:—"A few days ago, I visited my son's sectioii at Riyerhead—he is at Hornehurcli, having been wounded in the Somme battle—and as a description of what. X J, saw there may be instructive to recruits leaving. New Zealand, I send you some details. I must first of all say, however, that he left without making any special provision for having his section looked after, merely closing the gate behind him. Well, the first thing I noticed,was that the i gate was wide open. Next I found ! that the wires—barb and plain—had ■ been taken off and away from about ! ten chains of the ..boundaiy fence. Then the whare—it* was only a poor little shack—where he was going to live the life of a pioneer, w.as completely dismantled and the material carried away. iJEven the few poor tools and pots and pans had b«en taken, making a clean sweep. Now I think the above conveys a lesson that even he who runs may read, and hope it may be taken to heart by those about to leave in future Expeditionary Forces."

' Mr Geo. Wareham has arranged to 1 _ import a pure-bred Holstein lieifcr, in calf to a pure-bred Holstein, from the herd of'Oakey's Farm, Ongarue, Waikato. Lieutenant F. J. \V. Stallard, of Nelson, who latterly has been sorving with the inodium trench, mortar batteries in \ France, has been awarded the Military Cross. Th&totalpaid to date for produce requisitioned in New Zealand for Imperial p'urpbses is £27,G52,000. Meat accounts for nearly £16,000,000 and wool for £10,000,000. Lisut. J. G. Salt, of the New Zealand Permanent Staff, who was at Gallipoli for seven months, has been appointed O.C, A.S.C., at Featherston Camp. At the outbreak of war Lieut/ Salt (then a, sergeant-major) was stationed in.Blenheim. . The outlook for agriculturists and stock-owners was greatly improved by the heavy downpour of rain which occurred last night. The ground received a much-needed soaking, which will facilitate ploughing operations and considerably relieve the farmers of their, protracted anxiety as .to the chances of being able to make their cereal sowings in due time. ;

In response to the request of the Mayor as chairman of the public meeting addressed by Mr B. P. Burbury (chief agricultural adviser to the Otuitorbury Commissioner of the National Efficiency Board), Ml* W. McLennan, president of the Marlboroaglv A. nod P. Union of Workers, cohroned a meeting of. farmlaborers and coimtiy workera generally for *he nomination of the labor representative on the Mdrlborcugh Committee of Advice iinder the juris-' diction of the JBfficiency Board. Tlie meeting was «held, in, the Council Chainl>ers last night. Only .about a dozen workers were present, J" the attendance doiibtl^ss.boing affected,by the heavy downpour of rain. In the absence of the Mayor, the purpose of the occasion .■ was ppcplained py the . Deputy-Mayor^ '(Mr.'. J3. <S. Parker). After cpn&iaerable discussion, in; which tho aims of the Efficiency Board .were .sympathetically treated, Mr W. 'JiteLennah was chasen for /the position i'pf labor representativß.. listof ,nominee.l?' for . the j district, committee'of advice isia^, follows.-r-Mr J. C. Ohaytor, agriculturists; Mr W.. Pollard, slieep-farmei^s; Mr Fi'od Parker, dairy•„ farmers-; . Mr. J.,, J. : CJorry. bitsmess mcii; and Mr W; Mcliennan, representing labor.,: \Dis r trict sub-committees representative oi \ the various local governing areas will be formed .to ; cc-roperato with .-the central executive.

The Mayor of Timaru (Mr E. R. 'Guinness), who has been a member of the New Zealand Racing Conference almost since its inception; has written as follows to the Minister for Interr harAffairs: "I feel it my duty to,infprm you what happened on March 15th,'the day of tlie Waimate races. The freezing works here were working' at high "pressure, and thousands of sheep and =;.' lambs waiting to be slaughtered had to be held Over because'the butchers took'si whole holiday to: attend the races referred to. I .consider this sinful. , I hope the Government will seriously take Jntb consideration the advisableriess of shopping racing altogether or' reducing it by two-thirds during the currency of the war.' 5 ><■'•■• , ■■'■•; ■"'

Sir Jameß Allen received a cablegram last week from the High Commissioner on ~ the subject of MiWhitakers report of the : lenient treatment of the Belgians. Sir Thomas Mackenzie, cabled*that there was nothing to. support the rumor circulated by Mr Whitaker. Mr^Hooyer, chaiiman, of the Belgian Relief Committee in Belgium, had declared that Mr Whitaker's statement was not acr: cerate, and was quite; misleading. Although,there was perhaps no, actual starvation, pwing to the generous "cohtributiipns to distressed Belgian^ from! all partsVof the' British Knrpjre/ there was nevertheless great privation among the bulk of the Belgian' people. A few of the'wealthy might be obtaining full supplies. • '

Mr Goulding, of: Nikau, has had the misfortune to lose, through a. plague of caterpillars, three..... acres of oats /says the Westporfc News). They Jiave not only eaten the oats i but also destroyed the '-stalks. Fowls, pigs, and ducks turned into the field failed to combat the.hordes of caterpillars, who have effectually destroyed the "crop as if a lire had run through it. Mr Goulding does not recollect anything so serious happening in his district before. •He attri- . butes the plague to the unusuuliy i dry teason experienced on the Coast.

>1 The Nordenfeldt gun which, it is- , stated, Duuedin is shortly to receive i should really come to Gisborno (say«- , the Herald). Apparently it is being, sent to Dunedin because it was capf tured from the Turks at Gallipoli by r the Otag» Battftlion, but the actual I capture was, effected by three GisI borne men, '■some of the many recruits who left this district to 'make, up Otago's shortages in the early ; stages of the campaign. Some* months ago Gisborne's claim to the i H o?^ T,^ 8, brou Sht under the notice of the Gisborne ' Defence Committee, und the Minister for Defence was written to on the subject! , As far as ■ can be lonrned no reply has beea receired concerning the matter.

What he termed a "bunch of weeds from the domestic garden" formed the:subject of a few remarks by Mr J. R. Cunningham, at the annual meeting of the Society for the Protection of Women and Children in Christchurch the. other evening. The first Vweed" he dealt with which made for domestic friction was "melancholy," or the stato of ever- '1 lasting depression, which, he said, was theronly state in which some "men and women'could be happy-.- The second was "irritability,' 3 which, said -Mr Cunningham, was a chronic complaint with sj6me, and was mainly due to "pure' cusseducss." (Bishop Julius: *?Hear, hear.") The third, the speaker continued, \s\as ' 'ffaultfinding," the everlasting' habit of some, peopkr who all- the time , imagined ' that that. they themselves were never at fault. Lastly, therewas; the most tembly common weed —the- most obnoxious of all— "haggling, >*' which ; was too well' known to need any description. To those four causes; Mr Cunningham ' concluded,, were due more than half ■ the separation cases- which came before the Courts. • ' This is the choice of *h<s man who wishes to' take-:/ whisky in ''■ tha pleasan test and most beneficial way* The mildly; aperient and ■ diuretic ' qualities ■of tyai-Rongod Natural. Mineral' Water counteract the" astringent'tendency of whisky and make , w • Ji a;Tor '*>* ter > mellower j fuller, n ai-Rongba . also blends perfectly - with * mes, milk^ etc., Hotels; clubs, -stores—Advt. •'•■;'•• - ■■•;/ ' '••.■ ■ - V