LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 21, 19 October 1907, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

_ 0Tho pharmaceutical examinations con ducted in tho four centres of tho Dominioi n-ero brought to a close on Thursday night A. total of seventy-three candidates sat fo tho examination, distributed as follows:Auckland, Section A 17, Section B 8; Wei lington, Section A 12, Section B 12; Can terbury, Section A 6, Section B i; Otago Section A 7, Section B 7. Tho results wi! bo mado known on the second Tuesday i November. Particulars with reference to tho firo i Oxford Street, Levin, on Thursday morning wore rccoivocl by Inspector Ellison yestordaj Tho report furnishod by tho constable state that the. contents of tho shops occupied b Messrs. B. F. Levy, chomist, and A. Tozei jowqller, woro totally destroyed, and th shops thomsolvos noverely damaged. I'n misos occupied by Messrs. Gappor, groco: Pink, bootmaker, and Ching Lee, greci grocor, wero damaged by fire, and tho coi tonts suffered from the water poured in I tho brigade. Thero was an insurance of £2i on Capper's shop,'and £550 on tho content both in tho Standard Company. There \vei two policies on Levy's stock—£2oo in tl Royal, and £200 in tho Royal Exchang Tozer's shop was covered for £100 by tl Royal, and Pink's for £500 in-tho Now Ze land office.

The Land Bill completed its passago irongh Committee at 2.35 this morning, lion tho resolution to report the Bill with nendmcnts was carried amid applause. bo consideration of the report will bo taken l Monday ovoning. A leading drapery firm in Wellington rcjires sixty hands, and despairs of getting lem. A Dominion reporter called on tho anager of the establishment yesterday after--3011 and wanted to know the reason why. ,'hcro were the girls? Tho manager said lat that was what ho wanted to know. "If sty girls camo to me to-morrow prepared to d dressmaking, tailoring, and that class of orfc, I would employ them straightaway, and uep them going for months. Wo havo two cad-dressmakers in our establishment. I >uld do with four. Each head-dressmaker mid keep 50 hands omployed. That makes 30.- I haven't got them, and consequently avo to refuse a largo number of orders. In ict, wo havo the greatest difficulty in fill--lling our present' engagements. There, are arious reasons for the shortage in tho supply E hands. Perhaps the principal ono is that iris nowadays do not consider that omploylent of this kind is sufficiently genteel. Wo' avo no difficulty with our millinery depart--lent." In the matter of the cancelled Bank of ustralasia notes that got astray from a ackago in the hold of tho steamer Turaina, Chief Detective M'Grath states that j far no ono in Wellington has reported aving cashed, or been asked to cash, any f tho notes. Some of tho notes may havo eon presented, and even cashed, but, so ar as ho was aware, it had not been reorted to tho police. Mr. A. P. Webster, nspector for tho Bank of Australasia, bates' that, two of the cancelled notes wero resented to the Te Aro branches of .'the lank of New Zealand and tho, National Sank. Ho also states that the faco value, f the cancelled notes was between £16,000 nd £17,000, not £60,000 and £70,000 as has eon stated. \ Tho Postmaster-General has been advised, hat the London Post.Office proposed to take dvantago of the steam ships of the Ausralian mail lino running between San Fran-, isco and Auckland for the transmission of orrcspondence from the United Kingdom or Now Zealand. It was proposed to des-' >atch mails on September 14 and on n every ourth Saturday thereafter. Mails will conain correspondence which reaches London ifter the despatch of the jmails for New Zealand by the Suez route on the previous veiling,, in addition to • correspondence ' speiially superscribed by the senders for transnission by way of San Francisco. The mails vill' be due at Auckland about thirty-eight lays after despatch from London, •: With regard to the question of the control of the tramway traffic, Mr. H. J. H. Blow, Under-Secretary to the Public Works Department, states that, tests which have jeen made of the brakes on tho city .electric ;ars, show''that these are quite efficient for ill emergencies .on the flat, but that on tho.steep grades of the Brooklyn, lino they might'not be sufficient to arrest the progress af an over-loafed car if it got away. On this line, therefore, precautions are even how takeif.; against 'over-loading, and no "strap-hangers" are allowed.. Mr. Blow points out, however, that some of the grades on the Tinak'ori Road and other lines are practically as sharp ; as those" at Brooklyn; though not for such long distances. . Down these grades cars aro allowed to travel that are'greatly ovor-loaded, aid'some control of traffic is badly needed in the interests of the public safety!Tho Wellington, Choral Society, is to give a performance of the "Messiah" at tho Town Hall on December 10. ; •Apropos of Trafalgar Day, his Worship tho Mayor (Hon. Thomas W.Hislop), who is President of tho Wellington Branch of tho Navy League, has issued the following circular to the. citizens:—" Dear Sir,—l beg to remind you that Monday nejxt, October 21, is the, 102nd'anniversary' of Nelson's'famous victory at Trafalgar, an event fraught with such tremendous issues to tho destiny of the British Empire and'to tho freedom of'the nations of the world. It is highly desirable that such an important event in the world's history should' not be forgotten, and it is suggested that, wherever, practicable, bunting should be.displayed on the day in question. This would in a way help the League in its aims to focus public attention on tho undqhiable fact that the retention of the naval supremacy won at Trafalgar is absolutely necessary for the security of our oversea.trade and commerce and our actual existence as a nation." Tho. Wellington Rifle Battalion paraded at tho Central Drill-shed last night. There was an excellent muster of all units. The Battalioc Band was also on parade, and the Volunteers, headed by the band, afterwards marched through tho streets, tho spirited strains, attracting quite a crowd of spectators. ' '•;.■. On Monday next, October 21, the "Kebbell Shield" will bo presented to tho No. 3 Battalion Wellington Public School- Cadets (Major Burliuson) at Lovin. The Minister for Education, the Hon. George Fowlds, will bo prcsont, together with tho Mayor of Levin, the Chairman of the, County Council, and other local personages. ; ,\ ' A coromony: which, will mark an epoch in tho history of Druidism in New Zealand mil tako place in tho Druids' Hall, Taranaki Street,' on Monday evening next, when tho ciiarter from the Grand Lodge of Victoria constituting tho North Island District; Grand Lodgo of Druids as a separate Grand Lodge will be presented to tho Grand Lodge Executive. Tho Post Offico advises that n Brindisi mail of 115 bags left Sydney by tho Victoria on October 10, and is expected to reach hero by tho Manawatu express on Tuesday, October 22. A letter is to bo circulated among tho industrial unions of,employers recommending that Mr. S. Brown be .nominated as employers' representative on tho Arbitration Court, and Mr. W. Pryor, deputy-represeu-tativo. Certain questions have been put to tho Association by Mr. Avcs, tho British Economic Commissioner, and it was decided to obtain the views of tho affiliated bodies oiv tho points raised. In connection with the visit of Mr. KeirHardio to Wellington, the affiliated bodies are to be asked for an expression of opinion as to whether any action should be taken by tho Federation. Messrs. H. limiss, T. Ballingor, and W. H. Bennett, were constituted an organising committee to work the South Island contrcs after the end'of tho present session of Parliament. Sirs. Ethel R. Do Costa, LL.B. (nco Miss Ethel R. Benjamin of, Duncdin),, after practising for some years iu that city, has commenced practice as a barrister and solicitor in No. G Nathan's Buildings* corner Grey and Peatherston Streets, Wellington. Mrs. Do Costa has the distinction of being tup only lady practising at tho Bar- in the Dominion. Intending clients can depend on prompt and carofcj-, attention at Mrs. De Costa's hands. /