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Auckland Star, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 171, 19 July 1907, Page 4

The following is Captain Edwin's weather forecast for 24 hour 3 from 9 a.m. this day:—"Strong winds to gale from between north and e-ast and south-east; glass fall, tides good. Rain probably heavy.

The waterworks engineer pointed out to the C ly Council iast week that the , men employed in City Engineer's Department were receiving 8/ per day, and that the men in his Department were entitled to the same rate. The Streets Committee recommended that the waterworks engineer be authorised to increase the wages of his workmen to a minimum of 8/ per day. This was agreed to by the Council. Dredging machinery to the value of £12.000 was exported from New Zealand last year, as follows: Victoria. £6833; Now South Wales, £5147; Pbillippine lsj lands, £700; Penang, £138; United Kingdom, £102: and Uruguay, £70. I Authority has been conveyed to the i clerk of the Coroniandel County Council j for the expenditure of £50 towards clearing out and widening the Kuaotunu sludge-channel to its outlet. j Scbeelite to the value of £3407 was exported from the colony last year. Eighteen tons were exported to the United , : Kingdom, the value of which is set down j ' :vt £001, or about £55 per ton, and 37 tons Ifo Germany, valued at £2410, being at I I the rate of nearly £65 6/ per ton. I The students of the Auckland Training I ! College paid a visit of observation on \\ ednesday afternoon las-.t to the straw hn L fateory of Mr Plummei in Rutland- j street. The process of working up the raw plait into the finished product was watched with interest—the owner sparing no pains to explain all details required. ; The visit, was most profitable, and em-! ' phasisrd how a progressive spirit can enable local industries to compete successfully with foreign ones. ! The Hunua Road Board wrote to the | Auckland City Council last night, ask- ! ing their support in urging upon the | Government the matter of securing the I Hunua Falls as a scenic reserve. It

was pointed out that since the destruc

tion of the Waitakerei Falls by the City Water Supply Works the Hunua Falls was the nearest waterfall to the city, and that there were a number of beauty spots in the neighbourhood. The Council decided to write to the Government urging them to fake over the area as a scenic reserve.

A trap accident occurred last evening (says our Waihi correspondent). It appears that Mr. H. Bunton was driving home in a trap accompanied by Mr. J. -McMahon, and when the incline opposite tin band room was being negotiated, part of the harness broke. The horse was trotting at a good pace at the time, and the cart, rushing on to its hind quarters, suddenly caused the animal to play up. In swerving suddenly, the trap and occupants were precipitated over a bank, with a fall of about ten feet, but fortunately both occupants fell clear of the trap and, beyond the smashing of both shafts, no further damage was occasioned.

At the meeting of the City Council last evening a communication was received from the Auckland branch of the Liberal and Labour Federation, enclosing the resolution passed at tile last meeting ot the branch with reference to the discharge of an employee named J. Fallentire, and requesting the Council to receive a deputation on the subject. The Mayor stated that there seemed to be some misunderstanding in the matter. The Council had gone thoroughly into the matter and had passed a '•That while upholding the action of the engineer there was no reflection on the honesty or integrity of Fallentire." Fallentire evidently thought so, but there was no such reflection, his conduct having been exemplary in every way. Unfortunately, however, his conduct in regard to giving information desired by an official was an error of judgment. The matter was left to trie engineer to re-instate Fallentire if he thought fit. Unless there was some fresh evidence to place before the Council he did not see what good could follow, and moved accordingly that the deputation be not heard unless fresh information were ■available. This was agreed to.

The total rainfall for June was considerably below the average in all parts of New Zealand, except in the province of Wellington. In the south of the South Island, where this deficiency follows several months of light rainfalls, the shortage is especially marked; and Central Otago and South Canterbury are now experiencing a very dry winter. The temperature was below mean in all parts of the country, and frosts were common in places rarely visited. Fogs were frequent also, in consequence of the low temperature and absence of high winds. The highest barometric pressure recorded was 30.6 in., on June 7,

The members of Parliament who intend going over the Main Trunk railway route left" Wellington this morning, and are due to arrive this evening at Raetihi, where they will be entertained by the local Progressive Association. On Saturday morning the party leave for Tanmaranui, where they will be banqueted by the residents of the King Country. A number of the party return by way of the Wanganui River on Sunday, and the remainder come on by special train to Onehunga, which will be reached at 1.20 p,m, Mr H. J. H. Blow (Under-Secretary for Public Works) and several other officials will accompany the party. The Hon. G. Fowlds has found it impossible to get away at the present juncture.

The Wainiata section (Gisborne), for which there were over 1000 applicants at a recent land ballot, and which was withdrawn on the eve of the ballot, owing to trouble with the natives as regards title, is again receiving public attention. At a meeting of the Gisborne Borough Council on Wednesday, the Mayor moved that the Council apply to the Government for the Waimatu section of 1117 acres as an endowment. He said the borough only had the reserve at Waerengaokuri, and 34 acres in the borough, and they had taken in 200 n-cics in extension cf the borough without endowment of any sort. He thought a strong case could be made in favour of the section being granted as an emiowment. Mr. Sheridan seconded the motion. He believed that Wi Pere, if properly approached, would give them every facility for obtaining the section lor the borough as an endowment. Other speakers also supported the motion which was carried unanimously.

We acknowledge the following further donations pn behalf of Andrew Cumming, newsvendoi, who has lost both of his legs:—Employees of Deyland, O'Brien Timber Co., £8 5/6; Donald Boyd, 2/.

A concert is to be given this evening in the V.M.C.A. Hall, the proceeds of which will be handed to a member who is now in hospilal as the result of an accident on the football field some weeks

ago. 1 The s.s.* Takapuna, which arrived at Onehunga. from the South shortly before | nine o'clock this morning, brought an unusually large number of passengers for the season of the year, there being no fewer than 167 of both classes. Included in the passengers were a number of the immigrants who recently arrived in Wellington by the lonic. A committee meeting of the proposed Manukau Harbour Board -Rill be held at Onehunga to-morrow (Saturday) evening, when it is understood that several matters in connection with the harbour will be fully discussed. Mr. John Rowe, , Mayor of Onehunga, leaves for Wellington on Monday next, and he will take the decisions arrived at with him for preI sentation to Parliament, and it is fully I expected that as a result something definite will be arrived at. 1 The adjourned conference of delegates

I from Onehunga, Mt. Rrifekill, Epsom, and !.' I One-tree Hill district, to consider the < I tramway difficulty, takes place thio I < j evening at Onehunga. Since the first j I conference was held, invitations have been • ] | sent to the Remuera, Nlewmarket, and j i I Parnell bodies to send a representative. to the meeting this evening, and it is ' expected that they will be represented, i when the legal opinion on the matter I I will be fully discussed. j i I A native at TJtukura was killed yester- ' J day in a peculiar way. vvTiiJe working lin the bush a kauri log fell off a skid :' on to a small piece of wood, which flew . ; up, striking the Maori on the back of;' I the head, causing death in half-an-hour. >' The Finance Committee of the Anck-I ■ land City Council, reporting on the re- j quisition from the master hairdressers ■ ;to have have the closing hours of their j ' saloons fixed for the Council's certificate, : stated that in view of the fact that of \ the 47 signatories 20 have cancelled the , signatures and 11 others have objected , making the number in favour 27 aud j against 31, to Council is unable to ac- ; j cede to the request. Several letters ■ were received objecting to the fulfilment j of the terms in a petition from a number ! !of hatters, mercers, tailors, and clothiers of Auckland, asking that a , i time and day be fixed for the half-holi- I ) ] day and ordinary closing. As, however, I ■ j the necessary proportion of signatories i

was attached to the petition, the hour : was fixed in accordance thereto. ! A number of immigrants who came to the colony by the lonic, arrived at Onehunga by the Takapuna this morn- j ing. Some of the new arrivals were met ; by friends-arid relatives who had evidently arrived sometime near last Christmas, and the conversation between them while waiting lor a conveyance to Auckland was most amusing. "Mon, Mon," said one old lady emphatically, "fancy £5 5/ for a. suit of mon's clothes. But what do you think, we had new potatoes and axeen peas for last Christmas dinner. Fancy that now, and," rambling on. "You know them lilies you pay 2/ each for in the Strand, why they grow all round my back door. And geraniums! why they're common, grow everywhere." Just as the conversation was getting interesting the tram came up and nothing more could be heard. The. steamer time-table, t.o leave Taumarunui on Saturday morning next. 20th instant, will be delayed until the following morning, Sunday, the 21st, so as to enable members of Parliament making the Parliamentary excursion of inspection to the Central Railway line to go i down the Wanganui River. This will enable intending passengers to leave Auckland and Rotorira on the Saturday morning instead of Friday morning. No less than eighty-nine applications —and their fecommendatious made three basketfuls—were received by the Auckland City Council last evening for the position of electrical engineer for the city under the electric light and power scheme. The pile was too formidable for the. Council to face, and the Streets Committee was instructed to go through the applications and reduce then to six. The secretary of the Eden District Cricket Club, in a letter which came befohre the City Council last night, asked that the soil removed in the widening of Mt. Eden Road should be deposited on the Kingsland cricket ground to assist in the improvement for recreation purposes of what promised to be "another lung for Auckland." The city engineer's note attached stated that he could make no recommendation until he knew whether the city itself might | require the earth for filling purposes, i but he would bear the matteT in mind. |It was decided to reply in terms of the j engineer's report.