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Auckland Star, Volume LVI, Issue 190, 13 August 1925, Page 6

■James Crai? Cumrnings, asjed 74, appeared at the Police Court late yesterday afternoon, when for the sixth time since 1907 he was charged with attempting to commit suicide. Sergp.int Calwell said that accused had no friends and no money, and he had led a wasted life. His long list of previous convictions comprised mostly offences arising out of drunkenness. Cummings had already served two sentences of six months' imprisonment for attempting to take his life. He had spent his last penny in buying a bottle of poison. He then went to hospital, swallowed the contents of the bottle outside the gates, and then walked inside to dii> 4 In sentencing accused to another six months' imprisonment Mr. Poynton said that it would be useless to allow him his liberty. He would be better under supervision. "When it's wet you have to take your boots off to get to the pub," complained an Inglewood county councillor when impressing upon fellow councillors the inconvenience a certain blocked culvert was causing to ratepayers. Xeedle39 to say (says the "Taranaki Herald") the culvert is to be made effective as soon as possible.

"The council's reply to my letter is a distinct shuffle," began a communication from' a Devonport ratepayer to the local borough council last evening. Instantly Mr. Henderson was on his feet with a resolution that the letter be "not received." He said that in their capacity as councillors they were there to transact the business of the borough and to do their duty in the right way, not to provide targets for argumentative ratepayers. Accusations such as the letter contained were not in order in the deliberations of a public body, and should not be tolerated in correspondence. The resolution was unanimously carried, and the letter was not read beyond its opening sentence. '"The \ankee sailors are making full use of the mail," said a Post Office official this morning. "It is quite a sight to see them lining up in queues to buy stamps at the G.P.O. counter every afternoon. Although they are permitted to use United States stamps purchasable on their own ships for any correspondence, they evidently prefer to adorn their letters" with New Zealand stamps, and they make a beeline for the Post Office immediately they come j ashore. They are frequently* puzzled with their change, particularly with the half-crown. This coin is not in such use in Australia as here, and to have a coin ! that is worth 60 cents passed to them upsets their arithmetical balance, accustomed as they are to their own metric system. which progresses in multiples of five and ten." The provision in the City Council by-laws for a motoring signal indicating a turn to the left was mentioned by Mr. J. Roberts at the meeting of the council of the Auckland Automobila Association last night. He considered that the signal was unnecessary, and also dangerous, as it was likely to be confused with a righthand turn. The signal of inviting the vehicle in the rear to pass was also criticised. The form it now took in the by-law was again confusing with the signal for a right-hand turn. It was decided to ask the City Council to amend the by-laws in question to make them conform with the signals approved by the New Zealand Motor Unions. "Dismissed," said the magistrate (Mr. J. \V. Poynton, S.M.), after hearing the evidence in a case yesterday, in which John William Bradford (Mr. R. A. Singer) was charged with negligent driving. The charge arose from a collision on May 20 at the corner of Grafton Bridge and Symonds Street between a car driven by defendant and one of the Royal Motor Bus Company's buses. The driver of the latter vehicle deposed that the fault lay entirely with Bradford, and he was supported in his contention by a fellow-employee and another witness. Mr. Singer called, however, an independent witness, who testified to hearing the driver of the bus say that "he wasn't going fast, but was looking for passengers,"' to which the deponent replied to the effect that if he (the driver) was engaged in that pursuit the speed of the bus belied it. A resident of Papakura. in a letter to the council of the Auckland Automobile Association, at its meeting last night, suggested that land owners along country roads should be asked to give small sections of land necessary to round off the road corners. He pointed out that the right-angle corners were a' danger as far as traffic was concerned, and he felt sure that landowners would give sufficient land to enable the corners to be cut away with a 33ft diagonal. It was decided to inform the writer that the association would take action in support of the matter. The annual report of Dr. Barnardo's Homes stated that over 98,000 children had been admitted to the homes. Last year 13.37S boys and girls were dealt with, while 7300 children were in residence. One thousand three hundred and twenty-eight children were under five years of age, and of these 399 were crippled, blind, or deaf and dumb, 3394 being boarded out. Nine hundred and seventeen boys and girls were under industrial and technical training, 400 boys were in training for the navy and mercantile marine at the Watts Naval School and Russell Cotes Nautical School, while 28,900 had been sent to the Dominions, of whom 98 per cent did well. When several members of the Management Committee of the Auckland Rugby League took exception to the wording of the minute, which contained an offer to advance the Otago League £100, instead of guaranteeing that amount for a visit of a Dunedin team to Auckland, the chairman (Mr. W. J. Hammill) said that the minute was correct, and the guarantors would not agree to a guarantee of £100. Mr. Glover, representing the Marist Brothers' Club, feared the visit would be oft", and asked if the league would take any exception to private individuals guaranteeing the Otago team's expenses. The chairman: "Xot at all." Mr. Glover: -Well, if there is a , profit, who gets that?' , Mr.' Hammill: '"The Auckland League."' Mr. Glover: : - And if there is a loss?" Mr. Hammill: "The men who find the money lose." Mr. Glover: "'I see: heads I win, tails you lose, eh?" Mr. Hammill: "That's it." It is not often that prisoners serving sentences at the Wanganui gaol escape from custody, but at about 1.30 o'clock on Monday afternoon a young man named Arthur Thomson, who is serving a thirteen months' sentence for attempted theft, made a dash for liberty. His freedom was short-lived, for be was back in prison at 2.5 p.m. It appears that Thomson, who arrived with a batch of prisoners from Auckland about ten days ago, was engaged on work near the tramway bridge, Gnyton Street, when he suddenly succuntbed to impulse, tipped out a load of sand he was wheeling, and disappeared through the old cemetery. While the prisoner, who is about 31 years of age, made good his escape for the time beinV he did not escape the vigilance of Warder Pardington, who had no alternative but to watch him disappear and return the other prisoners he controlled to the gaol, before setting out to endeavour to capture the escapee. The warder, after making a 25 minutes' search of the locality, discovered the man hiding under some telegraph poles stacked up near Churton's Creek. Thomson made no resistance and returned to gaol quietly. One case occupied so much time at the Magistrate Court yesterday afternoon, that two counsel, tired of waiting, at last determined to break in. Mr. R. Matthews, getting leave to intervene, asked for a nonsuit. Mr. J. J. Sullivan, who appeared on the other side, remarked that he was so worn out with the manner in which the case before the Court had been prolonged, that he felt he was entitled to some costs. Mr. F. K. Hunt, S.M., said he was always pleased to grant a nonsuit so late in the afternoon. The ex-German floating dock, No. TTIT. completed her voyage to ?dalJa satisfactorily early in July. The dock left Sheerness on June 1 in tow of six tugs, and accomplished the journey within four weeks, although six weeks' provisions were carried. _ ■*- ■-. >- *i