RAKE'S PROGRESS.

Auckland Star, Volume LI, Issue 196, 17 August 1920, Page 4

RAKE'S PROGRESS.

The third report of the British Public j Accounts Committee contains fresh I chapter- of the. familiar story of prodi- | gioiis waste during the war. Britain's j war effort was extraordinary in i-ize : and quality, but the judgment of history may be that the most serious blot on j iit was its extravagance. In the later I years of the war government by Cabi- j I net went by the board, and each Department became more or ices a law : unto itself. Millions and millions were I spent without proper preparatory inI qu : ry and without adequate supervision. | Treasury control, the foundation of ! sound and careful finance, became loose, and iv solnc cases money was spoilt without even approval. This is old history, but the point is that similar waste is going on to-day. The habits of wartime.are not easily dropped. Mr. Lloyd George's slroiig point is not control of his Cabinet, and even if it were 'he has . not the time to devote to the fiupervision that, is expected of a Prime Minister. The result is seen in a Budget of well over a thousand millions. The size of ("iovernment expenditure is causing concern in many quarters; nearly every English paper one takes up has .Something on the subject. Retrenchment is one of the cries of the day. Resp-or-sible people are alarmed at a. Civil service that costs £000,000,000, more than twice, as much as the whole national expenditure before the war, a.nd demands for ruthless "rationing" of the Departments are being made. Typical of the spendthrift policy of the Government is the decision to re-clothe the Army in scarlet, at a cost of three millions, which of all manifestations of extravagance ha« aroused the most criticism. Hardly anyone ihas. a good word to _ay for it. and the defence, that it is necessary for recruiting, is scouted. The man who said that '"Khaki i_ the omnodiment of the spirit of the trenches," expressed the popular view on the subject: and ;*o great was the outcry that Mr. Churchill at length promised to confine the reclothing to the Guards and Household (Xivalrv, and defer the question of exten-t-ion till next venr. But, that the Army Council should have decided on riich a step, and that Cabinet should not have vetoed it. haa created a painful impression. Incidentally we may mention that it ha.s been estimated that a Guards' officer will, under the reversion to r-howy i;niforms, have to spend £700 on his outfit, and this after the. war has conclusively shown that the army should be a career open to all with the talents? And. what is more cxl raordinary. the a-ithorities actually require officers of tho Air Force to wear swords! "Does any sane man suppose," asks the. "Spectator," "that if the Secretary of State for War and the Army Council were to have allotted to them the sum of millions a year, i.e., whatever was the sum which was apportioned to them out of ! the existing revenue, the W_r Depa.rt- ] ments. would dream for a moment of I wasting three millions of their money on I red cloth coats? - ' The whole question of economy is far from heinij of merely English intere-H,. It concerns us in Xew Zealand. We, too, have learnt that it i* difficult, to drop in peace commitments eaeily incurred in war. We know that Departments grow and multiply. All over the world -financial habits have been formed which will only be. dropped through force of circumstances or pre.s-, sure of public, opinion.

_=____r__________r__-__-- | The Weather Bureau forecast for 24 hours from, 9 a.m. this day is a* follows: "The indications are for easterly winds, stronp to gale. AYeather probably cold and changeable. The night will probably be very cold. The barometer has a rising tendency. Sea moderate swell. Tides high." [ There has been a considerable increase in ttie number of cases of measles re- j ported in the 'Wellington health district, says a Press Association message. The total for the past week was 9S, compared with 44 in the previous week. The disease is in a mild form, and the chief ; sufferers are children. Other cases of t : disease notified during the week are three of cerebro-spinal meningitis and ' one of infantile paralysis. Word has been received that the Faioosia has left Melbourne for the Bluff ' with a mail of 129 bags, including 110 bags from the United Kingdom. The. Paloona should arrive at her destination ' i on the 18th, and the Auckland portion should reach here on Sunday or Monday next. The Maheno, due here from Sydney to-night, has a large Australian mail, which will be delivered in the city to- ' morrow. The Whakatane Harbour Board's scow Vesper was put on the slips to-day, replesenting the opening of a new industry in Whakatane. Caddy Bros., returned Soldiers, formerly of the Xaval War Salvage ; Service, built the slip, which is _00 feet long, and capable of accommodating any . vessel in the -Bay of Plenty or able to . enter the port. Harbour officials -per- I [lormed the «_u-i_t-i__-g aaauoaf. j_

A narrow escape from death was experienced by two men who had a quarrel at the Customs Street cerner just after 6 p.m. yesterday. They came to grips in the course of their dispute, and fell, rolling on the tramline just in front of an incoming Heme Bay tram, which was jerked to a standstill just in -time to avert an accident. The story was told to Mr. F. K. Hunt. S.M., this morning, when Thomas Harrop (34) was charged with drunkenness, and he and Win. Ferguson (34) with threatening behaviour in the street, both men having been promptly arrested as they rose from the front of the tramcar to continue hostilities. Harrop was fined 50/ and Ferguson 40/ for their respective shares in the affair. On two charges of breaking the Auckland hotel employees' award Ernest Alfred Wakeman, licensee of the Commercial Hotel. Hamilton, appeared before Mr. H. A. Young, S:M., at Hamilton yesterday. The first was that defendant failed to allow a full holiday of 24 hours :ji ea<rh week during the ten weeks J. B. Davidge, a chef, was employed by him. The second was of failing to pay the full rate of wages to one Bhana Makam, a worker in his employ during the period from March 15 to April 2S, 1020. His Worship said a breach of the award had been made, as Davidge had not had the prescribed holiday. He inflicted a penalty of £5 and costs |i' 2 1/|. In the second case his Worship inflicted a penalty ot -El. 1 The snatching of hats, coats and umbrellas from halls, boardinghouses, hotels, and other public and semi-private places about the city continues to keep the police vigilant. Yesterday a man who was offering an overcoat for sale at a secondhand shop 3vas accosted by j Plain-Clothes Constable Meiklejohn, ana !he failed to give an account of the article I which, in the constable's onmion, j squared "with the man's dress and known circumstances. As a consequence, the I man. George Hastings (4_) came, before Mr. F. K. Hunt, S.M., this morning on a charge of theft of the overcoat. He was remanded for a week, and the police are now looking for a man. who lost an overcoat. According to report this class of theft is varied by thefts of electric light bulbs and gas globes from shopfronts and other places easy of access. ■ A foreshadowing of au increased rate of taxation on Mount Eden property ! was given at the Mount Eden Borough Council last evening, when a question of completing certain read works arose. It appears that this work was in abeyance on account of lack of funds for completion. Councillor T. McXab. in advocating its completion, stated that he considered the late Mayor had marie a mistake in not striking a higher rate, and suggested the council obtain an overdraft sufficient to meet the new road expenses. The Mayor (Mr. J. W. Shackelford) agreed with Mr. McNab, and said that the work must be completed. If there were need for further funds to carry on the work of the borough the rates would have to be increased next year. I In affirming his belief in vaccination as a preventive against American smallpox, the district health officer at Dunedin. Dr. Kr.leoner, remarked in an interview last week: ''There is plenty of evidence, for the conversion of those who entertain any doubt on the subject. Here is one. significant fact—that of all the smallpox patients we have hat! in (he fever hospital at Dun-din during the present epidemic only two were vaccinated in infancy, and there is one. who had an unsuccessful vaccination four and a-half years upo. I-et mc also tell you that, in Australia in 1013, when there was n similar outbreak there, out of a' thousand patients not one had lteen vaccinated within lo years. The risk js of unrecognised carriers in unvaccinated ai'cas. If vaccination became general wo rottld soon f-tamp nut this trouble as wo have it." ! In these days of alleged profiteering n.nd rackrents there is one set of tenants which apparently cannot complain of the amount, they have to pay. These are the people who hold land under tho Auckland University College Council. At yesterday's meeting Dr. H. D. Bamford ascertained that the value of the college endowments was about £61.000. arid that tho income amounted to something like £000 a year. He suggested that the return was « very, small one. The vicechairman (Professor A. P. W. Thomas) said that some of the lenses were falling in shortly, and no doubt when thrv were reviewed til ■ position would be different. Rev. J. H. Simmonds asked if there was :i proper system of supervision of the endowments, and on his motion tho property committee was instructed to go into the whole matter of inspecting properties nnd the carrying out. of the conditions of leases, and to report to the council. A compliment was p.t-id fo Sergr. Lander, of the Devonport Police, by Mr. Justice Stringer at the Supremo Court yesterday, upon the precautions taken in connection with the identification of a suspect. The serseiant had lined up ten young men, six of whom were instructed to difcaT.l their collars and tie-, and several of them were triven pairs of white boots ?n that the suspect, who wore whi*e boots snd had no collar, would not be identified, merely the?e circumstances. Other precautions were also described. His Honor said that, although identifications were often unsatisfactory as when a ?-mall man wa* lined up with half a dozen big policemen in plaip clothes, in this case the arrangeI ments reflected very great credit on the officer in charge. I A report concerning the deputation which went to Wellington last week to press Auckland's claims as the site for the p3"oposed schoc/1 of forestry on the Government, was made to the Auckland University College Council yesterday by the acting thiiirm_n_ (Professor A. P. W. Thomas). Professor Thomas and the Registrar (the Rev A. B. Chappell) were thanked for the that had been taken at short notice to see that Anck- : land's undoubted claims were not ignored. The unveiling of a monument in the. Tauranga military cemetery over the grave of the well-known Ngaiterangi chief Hori Ngatai, took place on Sunday in the presence of a large gathering of natives and Europeans. | A committee of Whangarei gentlemen has accepted financial' responsibility to find the money requisite, to purchase a large two-storey residence and grounds for Y.W.C.A. purposes. With building extension, furnishing, etc., the cost approximates £Sooo.— (Pre=s Association.) An inquest on Joseph Richard Brineley, who was ruii over and killed by a train at Waro on Friday last, was held at Whangarei yesterday. IA verdict of '"Accidental death" was returned, no blame being attached to the driver of the train. Ladies should protect themselves agains. influenza infection by putting about ten drops of Xazol on a handkerchief and placing inside a blouse on the chest. Use Xazol freely in this way — it doe 6 not injure the moat delicate ;._*_-(-._.—H__d.)

The training of territorials during the j war was hampered considerably owing to the fact that practically the whole i of the Dominion's serviceable rifles were ' , supplied to the Expeditionary Force. ; [ What weapons the territorials do i possess are old and quite useless for • anything but drill purposes. Arrange- ' ments have .been made t y the Defence i Department, ihowever, to equip all units i with new and up-to-date rifles, shipI ments of which are now beginning to ; arrive from England. The work erf re- j ; placing the old arms will be put in hand j ■ without delay, \ The Wellington Chamber of Commerce has endorsed the Canterbury Ctham-ber's I : , resolution, "That this chamber strODgly ', I protests against the principle of compul- I -! sory loans for other than urgent war ! ; ! necessities, and considers the proposed - action of the Government as a danger- ! , ous precedent and contrary to all the , i principles of British freedom and i i liberty." ft was contended that comi j pulsory loans would limit business . : enterprise. During the war they had not . | murmured at the Government's de--1 mauds, "out now the war was over they , : should think more of developing the ; [ j country aud increasing production. j M Opinion is sharply divided in Wan-I 1 ganui as the outcome of a proposal 'by . • ' the Railway Department to utilise a por- j v tion of the racecourse reserve, in the 1 middle of the toun, as a site for the 1 ; new railway station to relieve the conj gestion on the waterfront and at the ( ' present main station site. At a largely attended public meeting last night the _ Railway Department's proposal was ' condemned on the ground that the pre; sent racecourse was needed as a "king," , and that it is intended at a future date , '. to convert it into a sports ground and j park. The Department's present pro- % posal is to utilise a portion of the raeecouree only. The opinion was expressed ' that ultimately the Department would _ uped the whole of the racecourse reserve . , of al acres for railway purposes. i I I The suggestions recently submitted to ■local authorities for the drawing up of: • an amended Public Health Act were] i submitted to a committee 5T the Mount 3 Eden Borough Council, which reported : on it at the council meeting last night.! • The report was. in general, favourable ltd the scheme suggested. In respect j I of the proposal to remove the control' . of infectious diseases from hospital' boards it was recommended that the j j local bodies should control this work | only so far as it is necessary to pre-1 ' vent the outbreak of disease. The com- \ mittee also objected to the proposal to j set tip a central board of health, being I l of the opinion that all matters of public. , health should be controlled by the hos- | pitai boards of the district. Tt was, ' generally agreed by the council that it r was an attempt ito give local bodies further power over the prevention of disease, and as such was very desirable. -1 Sham Scotch tweeds, made in Germany, r are reported to be the latest evidejice of. '. Teutonic commercial smartness, (says a i London newspaper in a recent issue). | I During this week a traveller of neutral ,! nationality has been calling on clothing manufacturers and woollen merchants,] carrying a collection of patterns of tweed, i ' cloth*. The printing and writing on the f tabs provided evidence that the materi-i , alt came from Germany, but the charac- , ter and price o-f certain of the cloth- led | ', to the assumption that they might be ', genuine Scottish tweed-, originally pur- , chased by a Sontinental speculator, andi now offered back to .buyers in this! ] country. It was declared, however, that I the materials were manufactured in , Gerarany. One rather large bunch of patterns bore the legend, "Scotch • Cheviots." and they were'not bad imita-. ' lions of sports tweeds from Gala-hie.-.1 : The average price for the. cloth-i -was i higher than the present quotations of ( Scottish makers for the genuine product , of their looms. I Mr. F. J. Nicholson, secretary of the. .Transvaal Agricultural Union, who is ' making a tour of Xew Zealand and ' Australia, arrived in Ohristchurch on Saturday. Mr. Nicholson, in an interview, said his union embraced four provinces in South Africa. Bis mission was lo get Australasian farmers' views on wheat growing, and to inquire as to j ihe prospects of securing the importa- [ I ion of - turl sheep, cattle, and horses. Transvaal farmers thought it would be advantageous to import stud stock from Australian and New Zealand cattlo ! strains. They preferred Shorthorns, ' llerefnrds. Polled Angus, Ayrshives and j Channel Island breed*. South African j beef was now coming to the front in the ' j frozen meat market, and refrigerating plants were being installed in several centres. Transvaal farmers were also j determined to/ go ahead with dairying, ! ; the country being .suitable, as they ; could get nine months' milkin;: in the 1 \year. It was hoped that Transvaal | ! wool would soon compete successfully . with that of Australia and New Zealand | . merino. They had the advantage of a ; t, near European market. j '; Captain Burgess, of the Southern Cross, has cabled from Noumea: "Here \ . for coal; leave for Vila and Vurua with Bishop Stewart on Wednesday; expect t to arrive in Auckland about December i 2nd." The secretary of the Melanesian Mission Society. Mr. C. Grosvenor, ' explains that the Southern Cross will _ not be able to resume her second voyage \ until the first week in October, in which 'case she will not get back again to .! Auckland until about the end of j January nest, which is much later than, _ j usual. J John Chambers and Son, Ltd., have to I advise their many friends in Auckland : ] that they have just landed very large | shipments of the well-known Hellesen ■ dry cells.— {Ad.) , j Offer's Great Push-out Sale of Taylor's pftock starts Wednesday, 9 a.m." 44 , i Karangahape Road.— (Ad.) • j The Y.M.C-A. grows with its work, ! and its work keeps pace with the growth II of a community. During its history 11 since its foundation by Richard Shal- - j ders in 1855 the Auckland V.M.C.A. -has ■ j been built and rebuilt five times. The V.M.C.A. is a necessity. The expansion , | of the city demands t,he extension of the , j V.M.C.A. enterprise. The citizens' cam- i I paign for £16,000 in seven days -om- ! I menced Monday, 16th inst., and ends on | the 23rd. Help it to the best of your j lability—and (Ad.) , Offer is offering you a great offer by i offering you Taylor's stock at Offer's Big - 1 I Push-out Boot Sale, 44, Karangahape j 11 Road.—(Ad.) . i Hellesen dry cells arc in great demand ' - j at present, and we would advise early j ' | application for supplies to the wholesale distributors, John Chambers and Son, 11 Ltd.—(Ad.) _! Offers Great Push-out Sale of Taylor's ' stock starts Wednesday, 9 a.m., 44, ( Karangahape Road.T--( Ad.) > j Create an atmospfiere of Kazol about! I you, bo that you constantly inhale it. ! i About ten drops on the chest of pyjama j ,; jacket at night, or on the singlet ;n the I .morning, protects you against infectious! j: germs-—(Ad. ) Ladies, reduce cost of living while you i have a chance at Offer's Big Push-out _»_ci e_Je, -•*, _-_u-<u_g»n_.pe ___i_—<____..■ ]

I A single man named. James Smith ■ (581, a gardener, living at Williamson ' street, Epsom, was knocked down by * ' tram in Queen Street at about five I o'clock yesterday afternoon, and. was received into the hospital with bruised face, bead and shoulder. More serious is the condition of James Thomas Thorstensen (30), single, of Sale Street. He fell down -a flight of steps in Customs (Street East during the evening and received a severe scalp wound, while ! 'Sirs. Emily Charman, an elderly woman, ■fell down the steps behind her house in i Auckland Road, Onehunga. during the I nigh, and hurt her head and shoulder. I The acuteness of the newspaper situ--1 ation in the l\omeland is re-fleeted iv | the statement that since the war the ; cost of paper has risen fivefold, while printing charges to-day approach a rise of '200 per cent. This has necessitated 1 a large increase in tie price of many ' popular papers. The price of the ■•>.a-ion'' and of the. "Spectator" has gone up from 6d to !)d, whilst other weekly journals have been increased i from "(id to 1/. The price of the "Times" lhas risen from Id to 3d, and of the "Times Literary Supplement" from Id !to 6d. The 'Manchester Guardian" has increased from Id to 2d, and this I example has been followed by a numi ber of other daily papers. 1 Yet another loss in output of coal Tfom the Extended Huntly mine of the Taupiri Coal Mine-, Ltd., has to be recorded. On Saturday morning last the men had a stop-work meeting, a previous effort to hold the meeting one evening proving abortive, through, it is said, no one turning up. The loss in output as the result of the meeting being held in working hours, amounted to 300 tons. , An outbreak of fire was discovered in Coakley's two-storeyed 6hop and dwelling in Pollen Street, Thames last night. The place was full of smoke when the brigade arrived but was extinguished .after a little damage had been done. "Sr;ottiS|b Humour is the title of the . j lecture to be*delivered to-night at the I Epsom Library Hall by Rev. J. W. Shaw. I Offer's Great Push-out Sale of Taylor's stock starts Wednesday, 9 a.m., 44, Kara.ngaha.pe Road.— (Ad.)There has recently been an acute shortage of tihe Hellesen dry cells in j Auckland, and we are pleased to state ' this has now been overcome by John j Chambers and Son, Ltd., having just j landed a heavy shipment of same. (Ad.) I Offer is offering you a great offer by ' offering you Taylor's stock at Offer's Big , Push-out Boot Sale, 44, Karangahape |Road.-^(Ad.) I It is better to use Nazol too freely i than too carefully for inhalation. Iteffect is more pronounced and reduces i the danger of infection from influenza germs. — (Ad.) Sprinkling about ten drops or Nazol on tlie chest of the pyjama jacket at I night, or on the singlet in the morning, is a good way to get the benefit -of | Nazol inhalation—just try it.—(Ad.) I Ladies, reduce cost of living while you have a chance at Offer's Big Push-out Boot Sale, 44, Karangahape Rd.— (Ad.) j A few shillings spent in the free use lof Nazol to protect the mucous membranes of tha mouth, nose, and throat against influenza infection is better than hours of suffering.— (Ad.) I Ladies, reduce cost of living while you have a chance at Offer's Big Push-out Boot, Sale,, 44.. Iyarangahape Rd.— (Ad.) I Ten dfops of Nazol on a small piece of linen or flannel and placed between the shirt and singlet is a good way to get the benefit of constant inhalation— which protects the air passages against influenza infection.— (Ad.) i I Offer is offering you a great offer by offering you Taylor's stock at Offer's Big Push-out Boot Sale, 44, Karangahape Road.—(Ad.)