LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 435, 18 February 1909, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The postal authorities advise that the "Tymcrio," which loft San Francisco on February 14 for Auckland, has on board a large Americau mail, and is duo in Auckland about March 12. _ Tho annual conference of the Now Zealand Underwriters' Association is to'bo hold in Kornot's Buildings to-day. : The annual picnic of'the employees of;the Railway Department 'will take place at Tronthato on Saturday, February 20: A young man, a carpenter by trade, -was arrestod by Detective Lewis yesterday.on a charge of stealing a pair of boots from a'case of cargo on the Queen's Wharf. Our Feilding correspondent states that tho No-License party at Feilding has decided ,to givo its support to the following at the coming Licensing Committco elections:—Messrs. G Bartholomow, E. H. Crabb, J. Darragh, 11. Toley, and thoßev. Geo. Budd. In choosing this committed for thoir endorsement, tho party loaders state that they have no rovolu-; tionary intentions. They recognise that;tho committee is bound to admiliistor tho law as it stands, and not as they think it ought to 'stand. But,"at the same titno, there are expected to lie occasions when tho committco will be asked to use its discretion. It is not proposed to walw tiny alteration in tho hour of closiua of the liotala.

Dotectivo Williams arrested a young man at Pahiatua yesterday oil ft cliargo of forging a school certificate with a view to obtaining employment in the Civil Service^

. Mr. Chapman, representing . the Typographical Union, has been visiting Westport, Hoof ton, Greymouth, and Hokitika, and has succeeded in enrolling a number of new members. The newly-formed union has_.applied for registration under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act.

No unseemly haste is to be observed in connection with tho election of a Native representative of tho Northern Maori electorate vice Mr. Hone Hoke, deceased. It is not customary to make any move until after a dead member of Parliament has been interred, and in this case tho obsequies are of a somewhat protracted charaoter. The formal notification of tho vacancy and the olection will probably appear in next week's "Gazette." • .

The new book telephono lists, issued by authority of tho Post and Telegraph Department, havo been distributed in Wellington. . They are a considerable improvement on anything' of. the kind ; that has been provided in tho past, anil as a convenient guido to subscribers are much superior to the sheet telephono lists which, if used withany frequoncy. so . soon reach a state of dilapidation. Tbe_ publication is a credit to all concerned in its production.

Passongers by tho Athenic, due from London early on Sunday morning, number 678 (0 saloon, 73 second class, and 596 third class). Included are 296 assisted immigrants,: of whom 63 are children, and 168 nominated passengors, .whose relatives have guaranteed their employment. Tho assisted immigrants include 40 farmers, 31 farm labourers, and 49 domestic servants for various ports. • On© man brings £1000, and enjoys an income" of £420 a yoar. Sevoral bring £250, "one £300, and others amounts ranging downwards'ito £25. '

Sights in Many Lands" was the title of a lecturo delivered'by the Rev..J. J.-Cocker last.: night ,at jthe. Webb. Street - Primitive Methodist scho'olrooin. A number of people attended, and wore entertained with an interesting address, describing. Egypt and the. Holy Land. The ..lecturer .spoke, in , a vivid style of his'travels through Egypt and his stay in •' Jerusalem. The. ancient city of the Jews ho described as overflowing with relics, most of them of very doubtful character. A number of lantern views lent additional interest to the lecture.

' The administration, of anaesthetics' Was 'a: question that engaged the attention'of'the Board at yesterday's meeting. 'Mr. Luke said; that he thought that, in the interests of safety, they should make a rule that there should always bo" two doctors present when anaostlietics wore administered. Mr. Kirk said that he did not think' that there was any real heed for the rule since the doctor always took every but it would be just as well that there should be such a regulation so that the public , might be sure, that there was no danger. _ Other niombers agredd with this,, and a passed incorporating a direction to tho medical'superintendent of the hospital. . • ■

Goat-shooting has not yet become fashionable' as a sport. '-'Why, it is difficult to' irhagine after inspecting the fine show of heads (scoured by the Tyrolean guide, Steifan, -in South Wairarapa) in tho hall-way of the Tourist Department's office in Panama Streot.- No two heads , are nearly alike, and, without exception, thoy all have points that commend themselves to tho lover of perfection in an animal. The Wairara'pa provijd a congenial home for red deer, but its goate, to 1 judge from the Tourist Department s'exhibit, aro unsurpassed in the world. The wall show . is relieved by an . occasional "tusker." Ho is given a prominent position as Now Zealand's only wild animal. t , A permanent body henceforth will,, be the. Labour Representation ' . Committee. •. At a meeting held last evening, and presided over by lir. A. Parlane, rules were drawn up with this intent, which will be submitted to the unions for approval, A balance-sheet for the recent Parliamentary election campaign was submittod, which showod a small credit balanco after payment of all expenses. Eight members i wore nominated _ as a Labour "ticket" for the i City Council elections in : April. A resolution of condolence was passed for the relatives of those lost in tho Penguin disaster. y

A party of fishermen, named Jenkins, Ooutts, . and another, had a rather thrilling experience on Sunday-last at Waihi Beach, .When* returning to tho shoro a large breaker; got hold of their-boat,- with the result .that it. became overturned. .The:three.men were under tho boat for: a short period. One . <>f, them, Ooutts, f»ot under the seat, , and had difficulty in freeing himself, but, fortunately, got clear, and the three showed their .heads abovo water, : and landed on shore little the worse for their experience. There was a big crowd on shore, most of them soon divesting themselves of their clothing to render assistance.—Auckland: "Star."

: Yet another patent fire alarm was introduced to public notice at a demonstration given at tile office, of our evoning contemporary yesterday morning.. This., was the Reichel Automatic Firo Alarm, invented by, Mr/ L. 'X l . Ileichel, chief electrician ■:to thePublic Works Department. The inventor has applied tho principle of thermo-electricity, which means the sotting up of a current or eleotricity. by .tho application of heat. to : apair, of thermo-couples, 'loading by ivires to a galvanometer which, on the establishment of a current of electricity, acts on a necdlo that, moving under tho .influence of tho current, forms a circuit and rings an. alarm bell. The apparatus can bo set to act at any. gireii'> temperature. Mr. Reichel demonstrated how sensitive his alarm could be tnfido by merely placing his , hand, on one ,of tho rosettes of tho thermo-couples,- and in two or -three seconds tho'bell, rang, out an alarm.