NEW ZEALAND NEWS.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 477, 8 April 1909, Page 7

NEW ZEALAND NEWS.

(BY TEIECKAI'H—MESS ASSOCIATION.) » ALLECED BREACH OF AWARD. AN INTERESTING POINT. Auckland, April 7. At tlio Magistrate's Court to-day It. 0. Clark and Co. were proceeded against for paying less than award rates to two carpon- . tors, Tom Nicholl and James Stewart. Mr. , •• Hood stated that he found six men at work on a building at defendants' pipe works, at llobsonvilie.. Of these, six, Nicholl and Stewart were lieing paid 7s. Cd. instead of 10s. Bd. ]x>r day. James Stewart stated that , lie was engaged as' labourer, and assisted carpenters generally. Ho did some sawing and hammering in nails. Mr. Hood: 'J'liat is essentially carpenter's ' . work. • ' ' . . Mr. Kettle, S.M.: Oh, I don't know. A ' : man might hammer nails into a wall to hang pictures on and not'be n carpenter. (Laughter.) Mr. Prondergast. for llio defendant company, submitted that the latter were not ' parties to the award, and were not bound ■by it. The company manufactured pipes, and were not engaged in the industry 'to . which tho award related. The inspector argued that the fact that the defendant firm did any cariKMitering at all made, tliom partakers in the industry. • Mr. Kettle: Do you mean to say if I put up a fowl-house I should come under tho , . award for the time being?— Yes. j The Magistrate reserved his decision till • to-morrow, pending tho production of certain legal authorities by Mr. Hood. THE CIFT DREADNOUGHT. A SUGGESTION. ! Christchurch, April 6. ! Tho following resolution was passed at a mooting of tho Council of tho Chamber of Commerce, held this afternoon:—"Tho Council of tho Chamber of Commerce, conveys to Sir Joseph Ward its appreciation of the spirit prompting his action in connection with tho ott'or of a Dreadnought as a gift from the colony to Great Britain, and in connection therewith would suggest that the cost of tho interest on the saiuo should bo provided b.v surcharging European Continental importations te the Dominion to tho extent necessary." REFORM IN HOSPITAL ELECTIONS. Waimate, April 7. Mr. G. Laurcnson, M.P., addressed a largo meeting hero last evening, tho address being given under tho auspices of tho Hospital Kcform xVssociation. Mr. Laurcueou spoko on tho question of extended franchise. 7u tho courso of his remarks, ho prophesied that within two years a Bill giving tho direct voto to pcoplo in tho election of Hospital Boards would bo passed. ' Resolutions were carried condemning tho present nominative system of appointing members. FOUND JUST IN TIME. Now Plymouth, April 7. A womjn named Munro disappeared on Monday night from the houso where sho was living shortly after having given birth to twins, ono of whom died. Search parties found tho woman alivo on tho banks of a stream late this afternoon chid only in a night-dress. Slio was removed in a low condition to tho Now Plymouth Hospital.' A NEW A. AND P. SOCIETY. PaMatua, April 7. An Agricultural and Pastoral Association was formed hero last It was stated at tho meeting that nearly a quarter of a million sheep passed through l'ahiatua saleyard last year, and this was in excess of tho number which passed through cither Mastcrton or Palmerstoii North yards during the samo, period. CONSTITUTION OF HARBOUR BOARDS. ChTlstchurch, April ". At a meeting of tho Lyttelton Harbour Board to-day, Mr. T. E. Taylor, M.1 , .,' moved:—"That the board urges tho Government to abolish the present antiquated, ' method of nominating members of harbour '' boards possessed by various local bodies, and to give the Parliamentary electors of tho colony tho power to appoint all members of the harbour boards of tho colony." Tho motion was rejected in favour of the following amendment •.—'-'That the quostiin of tho method of electing members of harbour ' boards is outsido the province of the board, being more or less of a political nature and that tho board therefore prefers leaving the matter in tho hands of the people to deal with through their representatives in Parliament, that being tho proper constitutional procedure." , THE HOLIDAY QUESTION. Auckland, April 7. The City Council has found that owing to tho different awards some men have holidays which others do not get, and considerable confusion is therefore created. For instance, the carters have Anniversary Day, but tho destructor hands do not, and so tho destructor hands wero idlo that day, Tho total cost to tho city of that holiday was 1 £100 without return. To-night the council ; decided to forward a remit to tho Municipal '■ Conforenco that municipalities should bo exempt from awards own>g to tho difficulty of wo'rking under so many. SOLDIERING. ■ .■ Nolcon, April 7. At a public meeting it was decided.to form '. a braiicn of the National Defence League in . •. Nelson. A resolution urging the necessity' for universal military training was adopted, and .ordered to bo sent to the Minister for Defence and tho local members. AN ALLECED BRIBE. Dunctfln, April 7. At the Police Court to-day, Michael O'Donnell was committed for trial on a second charge of wilfully attempting to defeat tho ends of justice by offering a bribo. to Charles Abernotliy. Evidence by Abernethy was to the effect that accused offered him £25 if he would get his daughter, who wns a witliess in a caso against accused's son, not to identify the latter. : . BAND CONTEST. i Invoroarglll, April 7. The Invorcargill Band Contest Committee have- decided to offer £300 in prize money, divided as follows:—Selection, first £100 j second, £50; third, £20; fourth, £15; fifth, £10; sixth, £5. Quickstep, first, £50; second, ' £15; third, £10; fourth, £5. Soles, £50, - with specials. Indications already point' to! a most successful contest. Tho committed decided to have one test selection and ono' "own ehoice" selection, instead of two test selections. ' ' IS SPRAYING FRUIT DANGEROUS? HaGtinss, April 6. In view of the illness of a man, which is alleged to bo due to eating fruit retaining poisonous spray, tho Fruitgrowers' Company has forwarded a sample of tho samo parcel of fruit : to the 'Government Analyst, who states that the pears contained neither arsenic nor copper, Tho sample was not sufficiently largo to permit of tests for other poisons." THE OTACO COMPANIES. tut TiaitcKAi'ii— riticss association.) Dlineditl, April 6. The following figures, which represent tho number of men required lr>. luim; companies in lOtago up to normal strength, show tho seriousness of the position into which volunteering has fallen, in this provinco:—Officers, 22; non-commissioned officers, 65; men, 703. EXTENSIVE TIMARU FIRE. Timaru, April 7. At 11.15 to-night a fire broke out'in iht Canterbury Farmers' stores, whoro business has boon carried on since the big fire last year. Tho large block is doomed, and is now. a mass of (lames from bare-1<) roof. The. stock is all of an inflammable nature, NEWS IN BRIEF. Chrlstcliurch, April 6, Calhorino Colbnvn, proprietress of a restaurant, was fined £15 and costs for slv i, grog-selling. She supplied a constable with, a glass of beer in her restaurant, charging a shilliHK_. Subsequently tho police found a .jar half full of beer on the premises.