SHIPPING NOTES.

The Shropshire berthed yesterday mop. ine and. -will proceed to load the foUowinf carrro for Liverpool:—so,ooo carcases mutton 7000 boxes of butter, and 700 bale« of wool She -will also load at Gisborno and Welling brigantme Zita. completed her loadint yesterday, and is now awaiting a favouiabli wind beforo Bailing' for Wellington. The Wakatu is due hero from Wellington vis. Kaikoura., to-night, provided sh* coj work • the latter place thi® ■monuas'. She i: to sail on Monday a-fterrwon on tho retnri tr^ a Citv of Edinburgh is expccied: to ge away for". Dunedin to-night or to-morrow morning. . . _ The New Zealand Shipping Company re ceived n. wireless- message from tho Woodaxrs yesterdav, stating that the ve&ael woulc arrive at Lvttelton to-morrow moromff. A wireless meE-aag-o was reoeived yesterdai from tho In aha Mam, statins that the. reaee emects to arrive in. the stream at 8 ocloor this- morning'. . The Canopus, with a full load of coal, n expected here during' tho week-end. Oi completion of discharge she will load fo; Westnort to, tho agency of Blund and: 00. and is expected to ea.il on ttednosciay. _ Captain Braidwood, who h»« been on, now day leave, has resumed command of th< Calm. Captain Robertson, who had relieve* him, has again taken eommand of the Storm vice Captain. ilcL/uchlan, tvlio has xevortec to chief officer. . T . There is a, shortage of bunker coal in Ltjt tel ton. at present, and many of the emallei vessels are living from hand to mouth. Prac tically all tho bulks in port are empty, analthough. big- shipment* of coal are «rpectec within a few days, most of it is for tin Railway Department. A plea, of guilty was entered by Join Fi'gher, formerly chief *teward on the PoiH Alma, which has now left Zealand, wher he was chamed before Mir F. S.SI.j at the Magistrate's Court at Wellington or Wedncsdav, with deserting from res«i Mr G-. G. Watson, who appeared lor th< shipping company, eaid that the case wa* unusual, in that the of cas«« wer« against firemen or sailors. but, Fi&her hac held a position oi trust. Tbere was no «u&Bastion of anv defalcation, lasher said that he had left tho ehip because- oondition» were uncomfortable. He had married mec® h< came ashore. "You are going 1 to find conditions a good deal more uncomfortable ashore for a time." said tlio Magistrate. lam not ■roing to discriminate between your case and That of a fireman or sailor, for by deserting srour position you have put your employers to a pre at deal of inconvenience and expen&a ¥ou aw sentenced to fourtcea days' imprison"our London correspondent writea: — Just before the war Captain A. D. Blair,(Green [s'andl, joined the R.N.R., and took com:nand of a unit of six patrol trawlers. Ifter 6C rved in command of H.M.S. Heligoland O ]7. one of the Mystery ships), of whicli the late Lieut-Commander W. E. Sanders, CC. (Auckland) waa navigator with him. It rks in H.M.S. Prize that Sander® received lis coveted decoration. Early in 1918 Capain Blair trauMerred to the Xa.va.l_ Transport Service, and took bi» discharge in .Tune ge t He intsnds to return to the merchant service, and has sailed from England by the lore's, to take command of ft steamer on tiie c ß 9t Coast of Africa, owned by the company vita whom he was working before the >-ar It is interesting tr> recall that jap'tain Blair was commonded for tie ar•anffemeats he made to defend the town and nuriiion factory at an Irish port dunnjr the jinn Fein ri.un?. He was a!*o commended >v the Admiralty for work against eubaarines la July, 191 S.

CARNEGIE TO "DOCK. The wagr.etio' survey briga-ntine Carnegie is to ST" into dock on Tuesday for cleowns and painting. She -will be floated out towards tho end of next we«k. COLLIERS BAB-BOUND. Tiie colliers Canopus and Kaitansala. are botb bar-bound ot Wesiport and Greymoutfi respectively, and tJioir arrival tib LyUalton is at present uncertain. Tlio Kitta.wa, with timber for Lytic!ton, is aliso hold up at G'Teymoxith. y.z. SHIPPING COMPANY'S LIKE. Rimulaka —Homeward bound, left Newport NVws 23rd instant. Or*ri—Outward hound, left Newport News 2Srd instant.Remuera —Or.t-rard bound, ernved Colon 23vd instant. Suffolk—Lc itos Melbourne Srd proximo for New Zealand to lond for London. Inalo Maru —Is expectod to arriva o.t "Welt linerton this morning from Newcastle. Woodarra—A radio roe-ssa.£e ha« been received advisinjf that this utoajmer is due to arrive at. Lyttolton from London on the ■morning of tho 30th instant. QUARANTINE REGULATIONS. MELBOURNE, October 29. In the Houso of Representatives the Quarantine Bill "was •recom'nj.iUed, _ond amended to empower tho Minister to waive quarantino charges, if that were warranted, ill tho com of veesels trading on the coast, to New Zealand, or tho Islands. MARAROA RECOMMISSIONED. Having completed an extensive overhaul and refit-tiny, tho Union Company's passenger steamer Mararoa ha« 'been lecommiftsioned at Port Chalmers for the Auckland-Gisborne-Napier service! She left Port Chalmers on "Wednesday evening direct for Napier, find will sail from the latter port to-morrow evening for Gisbome and Auckland. Captain L. C. H. Worrall will talc® the Mararoa as far as Napier. where he will b« relieved 'by Captain H. Dryden, of the Araiura. Tlio following officers 'have signed on tho MaTaroa'a articles Chief, Mr W. Hendea-son; second, Mr C. J. third, Mr A. Lansley; chief eaironeer, Mr A. R. "Watson: second, Mr L. O. D&vies: third, Mr N. F. Fleming; fourth, Mr F. McMaster; fifth, Mr Macdonald. MISHAP TO STELLA. (TRUSS ASSOCIATION TEIJSGBAM.'f DUNEDIN, October 28. The damage to tho steamer Stella is not bo serious as was thought. Apparently several rivets were started . under.. the e.ngin*-room. The inflow haa been stopped, nnd tho vessel will be docked to-mortow forrepairs. It is expected that «h« will iesum« early nest week. COLLISION IN A FOG. LONDON, October 27. A eteamer collided in a fojj with the P. and O. steamer Delta, anchored below Gravesend, inward bound from.' Bombay. A hole wa/S torn in tho Delta, which wm beached and tho passengers landed. BENZENE ON SHIPS. I # CARRIAGE CARGO.

Replying to questions by Mr • P. Fraser (Wellington Central), regarding the deletion from the draft nogtuartionu of the prohibition against the carriage of benzine as vJeclc cargo on ships, the Minister of Marine (Sit' William Hemes) made the following- statement:—

"Tl>o Minister who' presided nt tho > conference (Sir Francis BeJd) made it plain from the beginning that tli9 Government must be alone responsible for the regulations, and that the conferontssi was convened for the purpose ctf advising tli-s Government as to the matters to be prescrilxsd. The printed copies issued to the> members of the conference were not the regulations themslves, but' draft regulations, -is prepared by the Government aiter the conference £or the further reference to the conference before gazetting. The pTint did not contain the proposal of the regulation Toferred to. That clause was not included in the regulations as finally gazetted after receipt by the Government of comments by the various bodice represented at the conference. Tbo Seamen's Union throughout objected to deck carriage of benzine on passenger ships. Objection to clause 2 was received from the The cla-use was. deleted with the knowledge said consent of the Minister of Marine on a special report thereon from the Marine department strongly recommending its deletion. •. -Co organisations represented at the conference were notified that the deletion, of the clause waa contempl&ted. It would probably have been better 'had that course been adopted, but the views of the workers' organisation* had already Ibeen fully before the Government at the conference. Further objection by those organisation* would hot have affected the decision which waa arrived M.t. It is not considered 'hat the lives of the crew oi £fcseent?or boats, or o£ the travelling 'public, are endangered by ihe 'permission to carry a "deck cargo of petroWnra c.r benzine. It was cJoa.r!y demonstrated, to the Government that the email vessels trading round the eoa&t of New Zealand and supplying the BeUlfcTß scattered along tli9 coast vitU benzine would Jiavo been shut out, and the settlers greatly inconvenienced if tlje- rearulatione had been included in'those gazetted."