IN' OTHER: CENTRES.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 178, 23 April 1908, Page 4

IN' OTHER : CENTRES.

(BY' TELSGUAPJI —SPECIAL CORRESPONDENTS.) AUCKLAND. April 22. A projected fishing expedition in tho harbour was, brought to an abrupt conclusion on Monday. Two men put oPE from the breastwork in a dinghy, and when just off tho Railway "Wharf tho small craft was st-nick by a sudden squall, and capsized. Tho occupants, who wore thrown into the water, woro rescued by the s.s. Ivotiti, ■ which wns going out at tho time, with a load of excursionists. Tho steamer put back and landed tho men, who, beyond a thorough wetting, were none tho worse for their immersion. About Vegetables. Through the past summer the cost of living in Auckland has more closely approximated that of Wellington than was tho caso . previously. Until this year, for instance, vegetables were not luxuries. Latterly, however, ovcii tlieso humble hut useful adjuncts' of the dinner table have been costly enough to make the careful housokeopor pause before buying them. It is good news, therefore, to learn that from this time on cabbages, carrots, turnips, and parsnips will bo fairly plentiful and obtainable at reasonable rates. It appears that owing to tho rains coming so late those classes of vegetable have hitherto been scarcer than Usual. Up to a month or six weeks ago vegetables were almost unprocurable. Cauliflowers and other kinds, which should havo been in earlier, have been practically lost owing to the fly and tho drought, and they will consequently be scarce and doar. Tho pumpkin crop, a great relieving vegetable in the winter, suffered from the severe drought, and then, owing to tho extreme prices obtainable, dealers rushed them in and cleared stocks.- Tliey, too, will therefore bo scarcer. The price "■ of potatoes is reasonable now,.and there.- has .been, a. drop to from £7 to £8 per ton in them during the last two months. . •' ' ' . . . A Dangerous Practice. . •. A. newspaper correspondent calls attention to 'a; dangerous practice in connection With our. railway' system,: namely—tho ; way in, which the-: blocks are changed, instancing tho procedure at Ellerslio station. Ho says: In the caso of stopping trains, it is safe enough, but when tho Kotorua'oxprcss goes through at a high speed, certainly 30 miles an hour, ; the transfer of the block • from' the hand of the engine-driver to that' of the porter on tho platform, is-fraught with the greatest danger to tho porter. If either tho driver or the porter should retain his hold on tho block the'fraction of a second too long, tho latter imist be dragged round and possibly thrown beneath the wheels. At least one such, fatal accident has occurred, and it is only a matter of time before there must bo another if tho practice be continued. If the railways; were, owned by a; private company the Government would long ago havo insisted that a mechanical arrangement should be substituted for the' method now employed. Storay Weathor. The rough. : weather of Monday lafet ..was felt severely along 'tlio Manukau, p.nd many of the yachting parties down the harbour experienced an exciting time. In the morning the s.s. Woka left for Orua Bay loaded with; a full number of excursionists attending tho annual picmc of the Onchunga Cycling Totiriing Club. Under.ordinary..circumstances,the vessel should lnavo reached Onchunga' "about : 7 p.m. on the return trip, but did not berth until shortly before midiiight, the gale and oca considerably interfering with her progress; Tho delay caused much uneasiness amonjjst relatives of those on board, and an anxious crowd awaited tho arrival of the i steamer. In addition to being wot, innny of tho oxcursionists, had considerable, distances to.walk to get home..

, , . CHRISTCHURCH. . ; ■ April 22. f A North Canterbury pastoralist, Mr. 6. 13.. Starkey,-Sd ; » >t»ifr<wr escape' near Kaiapoi Inst evening. While ho was motoring from ChristchurcTito Aipberloy,something . went wrong with : tho car, and upon'Mi'. Starkey striking a, match to, examine the defect, tho petrol caught fire, and.blcW the car to picces. Mr. Starkey escaped unhurt.' ' Election Campalsn. Tho first shot in tlio flection campaign in Canterbury,, ..has been... fired at Fairlio. Mr.;. Robert' Guthrie,', who •' broke ' -the silence that" has' lain for many months '.over politics; in • this province, is described as an old resident of- the -Mackwizio- country, . and the lessee of a small grazing, run at Burke's Pass. .politically, lie describes himself as a Progressive Liberal, .and lie intends to contest, the Geraldino seat "against 'allcomers." "Ho. seems,, however,'' .the '.'Press," "to bo 'progressive'' only in patches. • His attitude towards the.-" large landowners . is almost. ferocious. - He has advocated the' increase of the. graduated land .tax so-that the present': maximum should be tho minimum to start with," and ho apparently wants the"'Government to. tako all the largo estates at the valuation- under tho Act of last session; but he regards tho Political Labour League's demand ■■ for - periodical revaluation and revaluation on tlio death of a lessee; or the- transfer of vliis• interest as 'grossly unfair! and .'confiscation:'." Sauco for the freehold goose is evidently not sauce for tho leasehold, ga-iider,-and whether confiscation is a blessing or a, crimo appears to depend entirely ,upoii the -tonuro under which the victim holds'his'land; 51 r. Gnthrio spoko'of himself as having.spent thirty-two years .in tho brickblockij; : f '■ Tliis no doubt accounted for'a great part of his first address being'devoted to the Mackonzio country, and tho manner in which the largo runs should be subdivided. Ho ,would hot displaco any bona fide squatters, but un-fortunately,-in the whole of the Mackonzio country, thero are, in Mr. Guthrie's opinion, but three just men. One of "these had declared, aftor goin* round . the world, .that ho preferred the' Mackenzie country and his own station to any place he had" seen. 'It. would bo a calamity,' said' Mr. Guthrie, 'to displaco a man' who felt like tliat about his 'home.' Wo can assure him that lovo of home is not confined to his part of Canterbury, and that numbers of the men whom lie would dispossess of their property 'feel like that' about their homes.' Is that sentiment. only, admirablo when displayed by the candidate's friends?" Whits Cross League. Mr. It. H. W. Bligh, lecturer of the White Cross League,- has reached Christchurch from tho Smith. . Aftor he lias completed his work in the city ho. will go to centres in the country. 110 will afterwards go through tlio Noi'th Island, as far as the North Cape, and will loavo for Australia. - .Ho generally visits Now Zealand every sixth, year,' but it is only two years since his previous visit. ■ Ho has eighteen months at his disposal in Now Zealand, and six of them have been taken up with tho work between- tho Bluff 1 and Christchurch. Thero -he has addressed almost every school. Ho found that only three primary schools woro not thrown open to him. The Minister for Education; who is a deep sympathiser with the White ! Cross League, is one of the financial guarantors. When Mr. .Bligh was at Pareora East 1 recently ho noticed that there wero no' facilities in the way of a savings bank to encourage the employees at tho freozing works to savo . their earnings. He, therefore, wroto to the- Secretary of the_ General Post Office, with the result that instructions have now been given for a money ordor oflico and savings bank to be opened at the Post Office in the towiw ship,'ami Mr.' Bligh litis requested tho Rev. J. Chappie to assist in oneournging tho men - to, make use. 'of this convenience. Drinking Among young Men. Tho ltev.i AV. A. Sinclair, speaking at a Band of Hope demonstration, assorted that drinking was on tho incioaso amongst the young .moil.. Ho said:—"As a mombor of tho Dunedin Liconsing Committeo • I visited hotel in that city, and I found that the. great' majority of those in tho, bars wero young meu. I believe that we can trace a very distinct increase in the drinking amongst young men ' since tlio South , African war. Just beforo I left n,.,oJi|liJ-,'tJiqt J„

' had died threo or four'days'previously.-Both father and mother were drunk, and noundertaker would Jjury the child because tho parents wero in debt to erer.v undertaker in tho town. Another time in Dunedin a doctor was called to sec a child that • was ill. _Hc found the mother drunk, and tho baby in her arms was drunk, too. Jts bottle was half full of whisky." I DUNEDIN. • A P ril 2!i ' . J here is a probability of sea cominunicatiou with tlio Catliu's Estuary being reopened. In past years the Ratlin's and Owaka rivers were important timber ports, but. of late they have been deserted, the pcccssible timber being cut out. Now, however, the Southern Shipping' Company has taken'soundings of the bar, and the steamer Ivotaro will malto a trial trip shortly in the hope of opening a trade. Mr. J. Bonnet, M.p. The Gore " Standard " is rosponsiblo' for the'report that Mr. ,J. Bcmict, M.P. for Tuapcka, is in a very grave. sl-nto of health, and.it is improbable ■ that ho will tako an aetivo part in politics again. A Wedding. Hector Burk, tho champion middle distance runner, was married to-day at St. Josoph s Church to .Miss Annio Wilkins, of Dunedin. Musterers' Union, The Musterers 1 Union, which met at Cromwell on April 18, instructed Mr. Stevo Boreham to represent the Union at any conference of labour unions that may take placo in any part of the Doriiinion having for its. ' objocfc the federation of tho 'Agricultural anil Pastoral Workers' Unions throughout the' country.. It was also resolved that the Minister for Labour bo asked to appoint an experienced mail to see that tho provisions of tho Musterers' award as to dry accommodation on tho liills be carricd into eifect. Gapital Value. v Th'e capital value of the borough of NorthEast Valley has increased by no less a sum than £20,Q()0 during tho past twelve'months. Benevolent Institution. Tho Benevolent Institution trustees 'today resolved to appoint a femalo inspector. Australian Grapes. * ' Tho Augtralia.u grapes which arrived yesterday fetched from 7d. to 7gdJ per lb. The Leader of tho Opposition. It is understood that-Mr.' Massey, Leader of tho Opposition, who ■ reached Dunedin last night, has come on a political mission with special reforenco to a; constituency not very far from .Dunedin, but lie is not inclined to' talk, aboi\t \it, and has resolved to deliver no public address, on'this visit, which is only to.extend over n couple of days; but' ho states that lie'may'return to Otagb ; later oh, and speak on political matters.-;