Northern Territory Times and Gazette (Darwin, NT : 1873 - 1927), Friday 15 December 1911, page 2


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Darwin: Friday, December 15. HEALTH IN THE TROPICS.

Some most interesting evidence is be-ing given before the bagar Commission now sitting in various p*rts of North Queensland. At Townsville Dr. Anton Breinl was examined at great length on the subject of the health of the white race in the tropics, and the pos-sibilities in the direction of a deterior ation of the race. Dr. Anton Breinl

was examined at great length on the subject of the henlthof the white race in the tropics, and the possibilities in

the direction of a deterioration, of the race. Dr. Breinl furnished a long paper on this subject, and later on, answered several verbal questions from

the different members of the Commis

sion. The general opinion formed by Dr. Breinl seems to be fairly summar-ised in the following paragraph occuring in his long paper, viz.:

" My short and limited experience does not enable me.to pronounce any definite opiniou on the suitability of

N,orth C^aeensJUn,cï aÇjd, thç N,o/th.eç!i J

Territory as a white man's country. But com pat ing it with other tropical countries, it seems far superior as far as climate is concerned, and given the hardworking, sober settler, there should be no difficulty "

Dr. Bretni states that to decide defi-nitely whether any deterioration of the white race will tike place in the tro-pic*, a large number of anthropométrie measurements of the second and third

generation born and reared in a tropicil environment is needed.nnd that be-fore any positive decision can be got in respect of this complex question caieful investigations extending over a great m my years, will need to be car-ried out. At pi osent, owing to the comparatively recent settlement, true representatives of a third generation are comparatively rare. There are also several avoidable factors affecting the health question, such as unsuitable hodsing, clothing, and food. Men as a rule have better health than women, but whether this is due only to a lack of physical exercise, or whether physio-logical life .has changed under the in-fluence of a high temperature, can only be definitely cleared up by future work and patient investigation.

Some of the tropical diseases referred to by Dr. Brei ni in this paper are ankylosfomiasis, in which each person in fected becomes a centre of infection ; sprue, a citan hal inftction of the in-testines, the etiology and method of transmission of which complaint is still unknown, but is believed to be due to impure water; blariasis, the germs of which are transferred by a mosquito ; various types of malaria j

and alcoholism.

NORTHERN TERRITORY

DEVELOPMENTS

UNDER.above heading the N.Q. Regis-ter of December 4 contains reports of of an interview with Mr. J, W. King, the general maniger for the N.T. Minet and Exploration Company, who had just arrived in Townsville on his way south after a trip of 750 miles across country by buckboard, via Camooweal and Cloncurry, occupying three weeks and a day,

Mr. King is reported as stating that the lodes in the silver lead proposition at the Mc Arthur River are from 50 to \50 feet wide on the surface, showing carbonates and galena of coarse low grade ; that they are well worth sink-ing on, and held out every hope of richer deposits at a depth. Mr. Powell, the expert, after a careful examination, has recommended an expenditure of .£5000 in developing the property. The Company holds altogether 640 acres in four 80 acre blocks Two of these blocks aro near the McArthur, River Station, on Barney Creek, known as Cook's lode. Mr. King has been 20 months in the district, and intends re-

turning after the wet season. He and a companion started out originally in-tending to inspect an island in the Gulf of Carpentaria for phosphoric tock, but found the deposit not rich enough to pay. They then went on to the McAr-thur Uiver, where they decided to take up certain silver-lead and other lodes. In the meantime their boat went ashore in a gn'e and they experienced great difficulties in obtaining supplies. If the mines prove a success it will mean a great thing for the Territory, and will certainly do much towards the opening of that portion of it, The necessary capital is forthcoming and an honest attempt to be made.

Mr. King remarked, further, that a flying survey is now being made up the McArthur River by Captain Barclay, sor a railway that will open up a won-derful extent of fertile country on the Barclay Tablelands. This survey is being started from one of the islands off the mouth off the McArthur River, under which neep water and adequate shelter for vessels exist. The idea is to connect this island by a bridge (!!!) The distance to be bridged is not very great, and the water between is shoal even at high water springs,

Mr. King describes the country from Camooweal to the Katherine as being splendid pastoral land, whilst the coas-tal lands " will grow anything." As instancing this he states that he him-self grew the most beautiful vegetables, and that on the old Limmen Station, abandoned for years, he found fine water melons and bananas still growins and and fruitinsr.

Referring to the Barclay Tablelands Mr. King stated that there was an abundant sub-artesian water supply, but that he understood the Federal Government intended sinking 7000 feet if necessary in an attempt to tap an

artesian flow.

THURSDAY'S SPECIAL WIREThe newly elected member, Rep. Gor-don, inquired in the House of Repre-sentatives yesterday - whether the Federal Attorney-General, in view of the opinion expressed by Mr. Mitchell, K.C, of Melbourne, by the Crown Solicitor of South Australia, and in face of the statement from Sir Josiah Symons, still adhered to the statement

that the north to south transcontinen-

tal railway line could be built outside the Territory.

The Prime Minister, in reply, stated that he had already informally expres-sed the opinion that under the provi-sions of the N.T. Acceptance Act the Commonwealth could, if it wished, deviate into Queensland. He had taken other opinions besides tho39 quoted by Rep. Gordon, and the At-torney-General, still adhered to his opinion that the line could be taken

outside the boundaries of the Terri-tory.

At the special speed trials of the new super-Dreadnou&ht battleship Orion, a 6erce fir o broke out on board. In combatting the flames three high Ad miralty officers, four officers of submaine boat No. 13, and several of the crew were severly burnt. Some of the victims are in a critical condition.

Great damage was done before the fire

was beaten.

The King formally announced dur-ing the Coronation Durbar, the trans-fer of the capital of India fro.m. Cal-cutta \Oj 5>elbi.,

RE-TRIAL OF PR. PEACOCK.

Thb following details from a late ex-change, showing the grounds on which the Federal High Court his granted a new trial in the case of Dr. Peacock, recently found guilty and condemned to death on tbe charge of murdering the girl Mary Davies, should be of in-

terest.

Mr. Duffy, K.C., moved for special leave to appeal from the decision of the Supreme Court on the points as re-served by the Judge. They were as

follow :-Whether there wns sufficient

evidence of the death of the person who was supposed to have been mur-dered ; whether there was sufficient evidence that if dead the person was murdered ; whether there had been a mis-trinl, because the Judge did not direct the jury that they ought to hesi-tate before convicting on the uncorrob-orated evidence of an accomplice, if they considered it was uncorroborated; and, lastly, whether there was a mis-direction by the Judge as to the effect of the treatment by the jury of the prisoner's unsworn statement.

Mr. Duffy said that one of ¿he points which they had persisted with referred to the wrongful admission of evidence, which, after the damage had been done, the Judge attempted to withdraw from the jury. If they succeeded on that, they would be entitled to a new trial.

lhe Chief Justice. Cari you get a new trial in a capital case 1

Mr. Duffy said it was provided for in the Act. The only evidence of the girl's death was her disappearance and

the doctor's statement that she was dead. But the only person who said the doctor made this statement was the

young min who had been keeping com-pany with the girl

After further argument, leave to appeal was granted.

DISTRICT COUNCIL.

Only Councillor Drake (chairman) and

Councillors Barnes and Kirkland were

present at Tuesday evening's meeting

of the District Council. Letters were read from several absentee owners of town lots (or their agents) asking for

further information re the new method of assessment, and in some cases ex pressing astonishment and incredulous puzzlement at the amount of the un-improved values placed upon their hold ings. Letter was received from the Council's labouVer (F. D. Holland) stating that he had written to an acety-lene gas expert re Abe capacity, dec, of the Town Hall "generator, and enclos-ing the said expert's reply thereto. The Chairman, commenting upon this, com-plained that he had lately been flooded with literature from a certain air gas firm to whom Holland also appeared to have written, and he thought it was high time the Council's lihourer should be given a gentle reminder that in writing these letters he was going out-side his duty. Resolved that Holland's letter be received, and that he be asked to confine his energies in the future to carrying out the duties for which he was engaged, and that Council's corres pondence would be attended lo by the

Town Clerk. After some discussion it was also resolved, in view of altered conditions, that a small extra charge be made for use of gas in Institute reading room When meetings were hold there of Clubs, «fee, not connected with the Institute. Accounts aggregating £12 8s. 3d. were passed for pay ment.

A TERRIBLE TRAGEDY.

Long details appear in late exchanges respecting the recent tragedy at Alli-gator Creek, N.Q., in which a whole family named Ching-with the excep-tion of the husband and father-were done to death, presumably by a man named George David Silva, who worked on Ching's farm. The tragedy took place on November 17, during Ching's temporary absence from home. After his arrest Silva tried to implicate twoJ neighbours named Dooley Khan and Charles Butler in the crime, but there is no evidence to support this state-ment. Prisoner is supposed to have shot his victims. A peculiar thing is that the prisoner, after murdering his victims, locked the door of the house and awaited Ching's return. He told Ching that the family had gone to visit a neighbour, and the two had tea to-gether. After tea Ching went to look for his family, and on returning anxi-ously opened a window to gain access to the house, and discovered the bodies. Silva was still there, and offered to go and report the murder. He did so, taking with him a bundle containing the bloodstained clothes he had worn when perpetrating the crime. These

he tried to burn on the way, but por-

tions were afterwards recovered by the police. Silva reported the murder and returned with tho police. Two of the children missing from the house were found shot in a back paddock. The footprints of the prisoner were found leading to and away from where the bodies lay. At latest accounts the prisoner persisted in his story that the Hindoo neighbour and his mate parti-cipated in the crime. It is alleged that the prisoner wished to marry the eldest daughter, Maud Ching, but that Mrs. Ching would not hear of it.

GAMUT OF GIRLS.

From Ada to Zoe, in batches of, four,

and then leaving a lot of 'em out.

[By «Muan, Jun."]

Eleanor, like " Lost Lenore,"

Of poet's tender vision is ;

The poet sang " They've gone before,"

And you were 'midst his visionaries'.

# * #.

Florence, Fiore ace, I remember

'Tis just twelve months since last

December

That 1 earned a woman's scorn

And wished (just once) I'd not been

born !

# * #

Gertrude, when my eyes first saw you,

Surely then my bosom thrilled;

Years have passed, but ever since then

Happiness has got me filled.

* * *

Honore, please accept a tribute

To thy name and to thy pride ; Honor thou wilt please distribute

''¥,on§8t tbJf çWrçn by ^Iïy sjdç,.

FOUND DEAD.

[AU Rights Reserved.]

By " Tehdebfoot."

He lay there dead, beneath the ban«

yan's dense and spreading shade,

Close-nestled to the ground, as 'twere

his mother's breast ;

No sound of city's strife could reach

him in that peaceful glade

But murm'ring trickling streams had

lulled him to his rest.

A bag, containing food, beside him lay ;

that death, accursed,

Of hunger, had not been his lot ; nor '

had he died

As others had on son-parched plain,

that fearful death of thirst,

For bubbling streams of water clair

here ran on every side.

To solve the mystery of his death we -

took a glance around,

Wondering who he was, and whence he

came, and how ?

When something swinging caught my

eye, and going near I found - > A satchel, tied securely to a hanging

bough. < > I opened it, and spreadTmt on the

ground with gentle care

A bow of blue silk riband and a

woman's glove,

Some faded flowers, a photo, and a lock

of raven bair, . ,, " _" _ And a locket with the words engraved :

" From Kate with love."

The photo showed a picture of a young

and lovely maid, - '

Whose eyes betrayed a woman's

strength to love or hate ;

Across the face was written in a man's

firm hand : " A jade,"

And on the back, in girlish scrawl,

« With love from Kate."

We dug a grave beneath a palm and

buried him that day,

And laid the satchel with its treasures

by his side,

And in the gathering twilight we sadly

rode away

Still wondering o'er the queries of how

and why he died 1

Darwin, 11.12.'ll.