LOCAL AND GENERAL

Evening Post, Volume XCVIII, Issue 114, 11 November 1919, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL

■ The Kaitangata miners held a stopwork meeting yesterday morning, and decided not to resume work until after the funeral of Robert Grundy, a miner, who was faially injured in the mine on Saturday. This means that the mine will be idle till to-morrow morning.

Councillor Cotton last evening reported to his council, at Lower Hutt, the work accomplished by the Wellington Expansion League, and commended the fostering of the league to the council. Mr. Cotton was thanked by the council for his work a-s representative on" the league.

"Writing to the School Committees' Association which met last night,, the Education Board stated that there was no ■regulation respecting children, attending pictures, but the practice was for the headmaster to confer with the chairman of the school committee.

A Press Association telegram from Oamaru states that Louis Gilbert Reilly, headmaster of the Livingstone School, who was charged in the Magistrate's Court with indecent assault on three pupils, was discharged. The Magistrate severely commented: on the destructive character of the evidence of the various witnesses. "It might be suggested," Mr. Bartholomew ■ said, "why should children say these things?" Often he regretted to say, in his own experience, and in that of others, childrep got depraved ideas in their heads, and their imagination ran away with them, and they said alj kinds of things which were found to be false. There was no case against the accused, and the information was dismissed.

A deputation from the Hutt Football Bazaar Committee waited on the Lower Hutt Borough Council last evening with a request that the Football Club be allowed to erect a gymnasium on' the local recreation ground. . The speakers, were Messrs. Slinn and Campbell. The deputation mentioned that the committee had in hand some £200, and expected to. raise a like amount by way of a bazaar, and with the price to be obtained from the sale of a section of land they would have sufficient to erect a 'suitable building. They made request for a. portion of the recreation gronnd to be set aside for the purpose1. In answer to questions, the deputation said it did not ask for the freehold, and would be quite prepared to cede the use of the building, under conditions, to the Scouts and school children. The Mayor and Councillor Macaskill mentioned the difficulties in the way of allowing the control of any portion of the ground to pass out of the hands of the council, and also difficulty of debarring other sections of the, -community from the use of the building. After the deputation had withdrawn, it was decided to obtain the opinion of the Municipal Association's solicitor on the legal aspect of the question.

Under the new regulations, the Wellington »School Committees' Association has no direct representation on the Technical Education Board. A letter to this effect received at; last night's meeting of the association stated that the Education Board, acting in accordance with the powers .conferred upon it, had appointed the president of the association as one of its delegates to the board.

"To call yourself a farmer nowadays," said his Honour Mr. Justice Hosking in sommong up to-day the evidence in the trial of a man for obtaining goods under fake pretences from prominent city firms, "appears to be a sufficient indication that you are a man of substance— at any rate to Wellington shopkeepers."

The outstanding features of the present raisin situation in Australia are the lowness of local stocks and the immense outside demand (says the Melbourne Age of30th October). Had it been possible to ship the whole of last season's crop away grewers would have been very much in pocket, but there was a limit placed by the authorities on export, irrespective of which one of the obligations voluntarily assumed by the Australian Dried Fruits Association is to see that the local market is adequately provided for. About the end of May last, when the associated agents had made their allotments for the year, and had retained only sufficient stocks to meet estimated requirements, the Customs authorities saw fit to unreservedly lift the embargo on export, which had been in operation since early in the war, with the consequence that persons who had purchased fruit ostensibly for the local trade took the opportunity to ship overseas in order to secure the higher prices ruling in the world's markets. / As the result of representations, however, the embargo was a few days ago reimposed, and all shipments beyond the Commonwealth completely stopped. But this has made it iimpossiblc for agents to fill their New Zealand orders entered into immediately after the last harvest. The despatch of those orders was held .up for three months owing; to the shipping strike, inflicting liardahip. and inconvenience on the consumers jind distributors of the Dominion, and now that freight is available the action of the Customs authorities has blocked the business. Efforts are being made by the association to have the embargo lifted so far as New Zealand orders entered into prior to the renewal of the restrictions are concerned. In view of the efforts being made to build up an extensive trade with the Dominion the present state of things is unfortunate.

An endeavour is being made to form a School Committees' Association in Nelson, according to information revived ut laat night's meeting oj the local body,

The association had been misinformed as to the curtailment of subsidies, stated the Education Department in a letter read at last night's meeting of the Wellington School Committees' Association. The Department would still give a subsidy in accordance with the provisions of section 159 of the Education Act. It was decided to write to the Department requesting that a list of items on which! subsidies would be paid should be supplied to thfe association.

A" correspondent of a Melbourne paper draws attention to the fact that a good deal of rubbish, m the shape of children's toys, is being imported into Australia, evidently from Eastern' countries. ' He etate3 that he recently purchased a child's cricket ball at a shop in Brunswick for l&j which went to pieces after half-an-hour's use. Upon dissecting it he found it waa made up of an outer skin of poor quality white oilcloth, with a nice external gloss, embellished with neat black stitching. Underneath was a piece of newspaper, with Chinese or Japanese characters printed on it. Around this a few threads were wound. The interior was composed of what seemed to be sweepings from an earthen floor, and some pieces of gravel.' The correspondent considers the marketing .of such articles to be approaching fraud.

A young boy, Donald Young, ten years of age, received rather severe injuries as the result of an accident, which occurred at the corner of Willis and Manners streets afc 6.25 o'clock last evening. The boy, who was selling papers, ran across the intersection to serve a customer, when a motor-car proceeding down Willis-street, struck him. He was admitted to the Hospital suffering from a fracture of the right leg and severe brusises. His condition to-day is mnch improved. .

The perfect stability of modern aeroplanes and their.safety as passenger carriers has just been amply demonstrated by Flight-Lieutenant W. H. Treloar and First Class Air Mechanic H. F. Lord, who left Essendon on 11th August' and returned there on 28th October, after completing a tour which covered 3000 miles (says the Melbourne Age). During the tour .the plane visited Echnca, Deniliquin, Hay, Wagga, and many other towns. It' took up at different stages an aggregate of 400 passengers, and had no mishaps whatever, nor engine trouble of any kind. This constitutes a record in Australian aviation. The machine used was a De Haviland 6, fitted with a 90 h.p; "Eaf" engine. The return flight from Benalla occupied 84 minutes, .the machine being favoured with a northerly wind. Amongst those who took the air were Rev. Dr. Anderson, Bishop of Riverina; Mr. and Mrs. Leigh Falkiner, •Mr. Frank Guthrie (who has become addicted to flying), Mr. Thomas Ellis, Mr. Sugden, and the Mayors and Mayoresses of various municipalities. Messrs. Treloar and Lord are taking the machine to Belmont Common, Geelong, where they intend to flit- about the Western district.

The Lower Hutt Borough Council had before it last evening an application for, a permit to alter an existing wooden building now within the brick area. The proposal was to put a new front on the old Oddfellows' Hall, a. building about 25 years old, and to make the alterations for the greater part in wood. The borough engineer, Mr. E. A. Gumbley, considered the council had power to grant the permit on the ground that—(l) The fire risk would not be made greater; (2) the life of the building. would not be increased, and thus defeat the object of the creation of.a brick area; and (3) the proposed alteration would improve the street. He recommended the granting of ■* the permit. The Mayor moved, and Councillor Hobbs seconded, the issue of the permit subject-to' certain conditions. Councillors Macaskill and Cotton opposed, on the ground that it was playing "fast and loose" with the. brick area by law. The Mayor pointed out that the alterations were to cost about £900, whereas if a brick building was insisted upon the cost would be about £5000, and quite prohibitive, and so it was a case of either improving the appearance and usefulness of the present building during its life time, or allow it to remain for a similar period in its present unsightly condition. The motion was carried. Councillors Macaskill, Cotton, and Hardy recorded their votes against the"'proposal.

Matters political were under discussion at last night's meeting of the Wellington School Committees' Association. Miss Coad and Mr. Parkinson, of the Teachers' Institute, attended the meeting, and outlined the action which the institute intended to take in connection; with the General Election. The president and secretary of the association were appointed to act in conjunction! with representatives from the Education1 Board and Teachers' Institute to frame questions to be submitted to candidates.

The death occurred yesterday, of Mr. George Remington, who was born in Wellington 67 years ago, and had lived here nearly all his life. Deceased's parents arrived by the London in the very early days. After he had left school he was apprenticed to Mr. Laurie, plumber, and on receiving his indentures he went to Australia to gain further experience in the trade fie was employed by several large firms in Sydney and Melbourne, and in 1876 he returned to Wellington, and three years later he began business in Cuba-street. Later on he managed a plumbing shop in Mercerstreet, and he then opened out again on his own account, remaining in business until failing health compelled him to retire a few moriths back. Thirteen weeks ago he contracted a severe chill \\hile on'j visit to Lyall Bay, and he was practically confined to his home in Maarama-crescent from that time until his death at 10 o'clock yesterday morning. Mr. Remington; who was very highly esteemed, was a great lover of flowers and a noted grower of roses and sweet peas. He was one of the founders of the Wellington Rose and Carnation Club, and a prime mover in the establishment of the rosary at Newtown Park.' By his death the- Wellington Bowling Club has lost one. of its earliest members. He has left a widow—a daughter of the late Mr. William' H. Randell, a pioneer 6ettler of Wellington. Mrs. Randell has survived her husband, and is now, at the advanced age of 90, living with one of her sons (Mr.' Richard Randell) at Karori. She and her husband came to live in Wellington just at the time when the residents were much excited over the big earthquake.

A conference of master builders—the first since 1916—will open in Wellington on Tuesday next, when important questions will be discussed.

Tress stands "for value, in the Hat World. See our new opening of Tress and Company's hats and caps. Geo. Fowlds, Ltd., Manners-street. —Advt.

Really! You'd be surprised at the way No Rubbing Laundry Help cleans the dirtiest clothes. Is packet sufficient tor seven large family washings. Mrs. M. Jones, Tasman-street.—Advt.

Ladies! Lessen work. Avoid damage when shifting. Engage us, motorvan ; also careful, skilful men sent. The New Zealand Express Company, 87-91, Customhouse-qway.—Advt.

The Sample Costumes showing at; The People's Store are a very fine range of fashionable and well-finished garments. Being mado tip in tho newest mterials in new shades of putty, navy, and summer tweeds, there is one suitable for each occasion. Samples like these are not to be bought every day, so wo recommend you to giva this matter your immediate consideration. * It will profit you well, liko all your other transactions with C. Smith, Ltd., The People's Store, 96-102, Cubastreet, Wellington,.—Advt..