IN OTHER CENTRES.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 135, 2 March 1908, Page 8

IN OTHER CENTRES.

(nr TELEGEArn —SPECIAL CORRESPONDENTS.)

AUCKLAND. February 28. Dissatisfied Immigrant. An .anonymous - correspondent ,sends the following letter to '.the " Herald", bewailing his fate as an immigrant: "With reference to the much-discussed question of labour and immigrants, may I, as a working man (and not as'an armchair, theorist), give two of ,my similar, experiences &- teen mouths in-'-. New- Zealand? , In' my opinion, tho; decrease in immigration is • tlixe to the fact that men having'similar-: experiences to myself write Home' stating how tilings really are, and advising -friends not to come here., Most new arrivals are so disgusted to find liow the -paid Government agents at Home,'who so assiduously praise up the country as an earthly paradise, Save carefully ignored the fact (ono aniong. many)' that high "cost of living alni'ost, if iiot puite^neutralises the .extra wages'; and they inf-wntiijgHome'"aro; perhaps .m 'tliqir tli's-' appointment, ; liable to overlook 1 ; somei' of tlio country!.?' advantages. . Surely -it would'' b'e better to .let. people at Home k"iiow/(as I believe' the Canterbury .Trades Council intends .doing) the real state of affairs, anil> above all, the relative cost of living. Last autumn I left a job at 30s. a week in Auckland to go to a farmer, who lived seven miles . from Whangardi, • and who, I stood, through, a friend, would give ,me. £1 a week to start. Oil arrival ; I was oflored 10s., .and on-" protesting and pressing ' the argument to a conclusion,'was given as an instance the case' of a man on an adjoining farm, who was a thoroughly expert farm hand, and who 'cot 15s. a week. At the beginning of winter, finding ' difficulty in getting work, and seeing, so much unemployment, I accepted a job as caretaker' for three months of a gentleman's seaside residence at 6s. a week. When leaving this I was offered two other jobs in the vicinity at clearing, scrub-cutting, boating, chopping wood, "etc., each at 10s. a week. When one takes into consideration the fact that .the accommodation usually consists (as I recently saw it aptly described) of a 'bare bunk and a kerosene tin,' it is hardly to be wondered at that men', fight' shy of. country work; and they will continue to do so until the farmer is compelled, as practically all other employers are, to treat his employees as human beings."

Defeated. .• '' ' The efforts of tho Hospital Board to obtain a .portion of the Domain for a consumptive annexe havo been promptly dofeated. When tho Board's request for an exchange of la-rid oamo boforo tho City Council last night. it was refused. /In tho' course of. the' discussion on.-tho : question, Mr. A. J.. Entricair said that ho had been informed on good authority ■that tho tendency of public -bodies In' the past to traffic in public-reserves was having tho effect, of. making would-bo public benefactors hesitate to make boquests ,to. tlicso bodies for public, purposes. . He.,believed that owing to this . oause i'mariy legacies,' ■p-hich would , otherwise "bo ■ mado towards public objects,, wero: bairn* l -,105t.. Humanised. Milk. ■■■ Thq.' Finance Cqninyitteo .of the. City Council,, in. reporting upon a resolution of: a recent, public meeting' urgiug , tho municipality. to; supply,.humanised milk .for/infants and pure. milk.for all, .recommended .a. reply "Tliat the Council.is. in,full sympathy with this movement/inaugurated, by Lady but seoing that a'committee, has been set up to, foster.: this .movement,. and that ,humanists! milk. is now being .supplied-, by private enterprise, the Council . would not bo, justified in entering into competition' thorowjth." Tho committee' reeommonded' that application bo iiiadb to. havo tho..Chi.ef Sanitary -Inspector. . appointed an officer under, the Sale' of Fqod .aiur.Drugs Act ,in. regard .to.,tho' inspection of milk. Tho motion was adopted. Bathing Accommodation. ;

, Tho . question of: bathing accommodation on tho beaches was'touched on by tho Works Committed; Jn its recommendations to tho City .Council'.'last droning.. The cbmniitteo rocommonded' that tho City . Eiigiiioer .bo authorised' to expand £200 in drafting- dressing, sheds, at Shelly.Boach,. and, that arrangements bo. mado for placing a caretaker in charge during tho bathing', season/- at, £2 per week. Tho: committee had, resolved to , request a conference with the Works Committee- of tho. Harbour Board on tho: subject of providing a! salt-water bath in the vicinity of tho Hobson Street wharf, it.had fur.thpr-..resolved .:.-^ha;t. tie..,Gity .'; Engineer., submit. an .estimate', of tho .cost,of constructing tepid, bath's at tho entrance to Victoria Park in Patterson .'Street. Tlio recommeiiclations wero adopted.. : . •

In Search of Grown Lands. A correspondent,, signing himself " Omf who has been humbugged,'' writes '.to '■ the " Herald." with a complaint : aboutSthe treatment . of. those, in search'. of .Grown, .lands. Ho saysl ,r«oived' printed plans of. lands for ..selection from' a .Crown Lands' .office,, also . rules . and regulations,., stating :-.thati applied', ti6ns...must. bo mado on or before. February 26,. the .ballot to .take place the',',following day.' Well, Sir,' I. made' provision., for .my family;;to.; stay., wliero. they wero while. I went post, haste to present myself.'.to the Auckland' iand_ office. 1 I selected a section,' liiado alii', application,' and presented myself on,tlio,day fixed .for- ballot,.only, to find,that- tho ballot was, postponed t .until -March 10.. VJJow,;. Sir," why should ;I, have to trainp .tho.streets, for eleven, days \mbroj- and; how; am I-'.'tb'.provido for "my; family '500. miles, away? •'

; CHRISTCIIURCH. -'j | Preservation .. " ~: ! '.Word has .b'eeh rebeived i frok Premier, that' means, aro to. be. taken "to pre'servo the" bush ; on_ .tho main' r'cjoach- road, 'to, Kailcbura.' Instructions: liavo iiflw .tjeeii;. given, for,..this suryey i t''o'f v 'a';belt Qf, bush',.twenty -to .thirty, chains .wide ,'froni-. the. road,- "and the • asMssV mont of compensation .to eight-'or tori .teridiits of Maori .'land's.' As soon .as this is 'done, , the Government will take over -the land, under the Public Works Act. . Cost,Of School: Books. , .Mr..Arthur Vile, of.Wellington, criticising some .remarks' by the " Press " regarding: uniT form'ity. of; school books, ; . questions the statement by tlio paper. that the cost of , school books , for a. family of four.'children does not average during the children's' school life— : a period of, say; • fourteen -years—mora than. 145.; or ,-15 si per annum. He says, that ho himself pays not. less than £i annually for ".school apparatus" for four children." " Eis f experience," replies tho" Press," "is an unfortunate one,, but- it- does, not affect' the -accuracy, of our statement. We. have .had- our calculations checked by an unimpteachable-autho-rity • on. the subject.- ,ao • reckons .'the: total cost of the school requisites for., a child'spending' eight" year's' at' school—two years' in,: the infant room; and six years in the standards— as ..follows: —First' year,' Is:;'' 'second,?. 2s. • third; 4s.' Gd.; fourth, -55.; .fifth, 7s. 6d: j sixth, Bs.; seventh;..lls. : ; and I eighth; 10s.—a : total. of £2 9s. The cost for four children would .bo proportionately less if, ai often happens, ! tno ; books were handed down from one child to another, or, following a. common practice, wero sold at half-price to other children. Much depends upon the care; that is. taken 'of .the books. ' In. one case books can bo handed down to successive members of a' .family in good condition,, whereas in another they havo.to bo renewed from term to term. Wo have, ,of course, referred'only to tho cost of books in this district. ,In other ...districts,. as wo admitted, unnecessary oxpendituro may, perhaps, bo forced upon parents,.though, wo believe, this is tho exception rather than, tho rule." /

NAPIER. v • Napier, February 29. The.Waimarama block has again come into prominence owing to a special meeting of "i lie Hawke's Bay Land Board held on February 19, at which the following resolution was passed That ' Miss Gertrude • Meinertzhagen's application for a grazing lease for the areas awarded by the Crown in'the Waimaraina, Okaihau, arid Waipaku blocks, and containing 10,027 acres, be granted as from January 16,' 1908, at a rental of Is. ner acre!per annum, payable half-yearly, m advance, and that the lease may be terminated by giving two months'notioir r