LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 865, 11 July 1910, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The s s. Victoria arrived in Auckland vesta-day at 1.15 p.m. with English and Australian mails aboard. The Wellington a.ud southern portion of the mails will arrive by Main Trunk express this afternoon.

A board consisting of Lieut.-Coloncl ■V Bauchop. C.JI.G. (Officer Commanding the DiMricli, iMnjor J. E. Hume, H.M.Z.A., and Captain It. 0. Chesney, DA.A.G., has boon appointed to test in practical work Bolccted candidates for positions as adjutants and stall in the Wellington district, under the new defence scheme. Tho tests will bo carried out at the Garrison Hall during the forthcomir.g week. As previously stated in lnis Dominion, th-.< number of"applicants is far in excess of tho number n.-qunod— •IGG over C 6, and the work of reducing tliA number for the final selection has been a task of some difficulty, occupying much timo and investigation.

Differences of opinion in tho matter of school stationery have- apparently become suHidei)lly acute beUy:eu tiie headmaster of Wellington South fecliooi (.Mr. G. Flux), and Ins wmuiiith-u, as to have culminated in a crisis; tho smaller issue concerning the stationery liiiu iiicolve«l Un> lurgor issue of authority—shall tho headmaster's, or the committee's, authority, as a matter of principle, prevail in such a minor matter as the methods of purchasing stationery? Unable to come to terms, the commitfoe ha.s resigned in a body, its resignation being received at the Education Board office on Saturday morning. When the collier Poherna was berthing at Taraiwki Street Wharf at 3 a.m. on' Saturday she humped the wharf, carrying away a stringer and damaging the plankiirr. Th« Pohnua's bow was damaged, and she will not get away for Greymouth for some dn.vs. She is at present, undergoing repairs at Jervois Quay breastworks. At the Diocesan- Conference of tho Church of England Society on Saturday evening, Archdeacon harper briefly outlined his views on giiiubi.ng and allied questions. Hflrsc-raem.a; lie considered in itself a Rood and wliolesomo spurt, but ho maintained that the number of our race meetings miglit with advantage be reduced by seventyfive per cent. The totalisator he utterly condemned, on the ground that n had enormously increased the gambling evil It had made hotting so respectable a pursuit that many people, including women and girls, now habitually invested money on llio totalisalor who would not dream of approaching a "bookie." On the ground that it would tend still further to elevate tlie machine in tho public estimation, ami so encourage a further lncrenso in "ambliii" the Archdeacon said he was strenuously opposed to a proposal that totalisator" takings should be heavily taxed and the proceeds applied in chanty. Assisted immigrants arrived from Errand bv the Taimri on Saturday to the" number of forty-four-thirty-oi;c women, four men, and mno children. Relatives in New Zealand nominated thirty-five of these, while mno _ wero approved by the High Commissioner. \mong the number are two farmers, cMitMii domestics, and seven .wives who are rejoining their husbands in tho Dominion. Tho University team ot tiPgtv footballers, due to arrive here from 'Sydney this week, are to stay at the Grand Hotel during their visit to Wellington. On Saturday, evening Sir Joseph Ward was presented with a l»-<\<' <■ olublioi.se by the Wellington Arts Club The W. a memento or the opening of the club by Sir Joseph, in silver, and a very handsome piece of arts craftsmanship «'«s made by Mr. Gradv, who is also a member of tho club " The winter sketch exhibition of the club is now being held, and will be open to Hie friends of members on voting days. On Wednesday next thorn will a muscal "At Home," open to members and invited friends. On the arrival of tho steamer Manmirika at this port on Snturdny afternoon, a Chinaman was arrested, on warrant from Greymouth, charged with perjury.

.Many residents of Banks Pen&insula round aboui Akaroa considered Lbill the formation of a llaiibit Hoard on the Peninsula was unnecessary, raid Uiat there was no need to erect a rabbit-proof fence. Residents in Port lie IT and Purau tell a very ditfoicnt story (says the "Akaroa Mail"). Mr. I>'. 11. 11. Gardiner, of Puiail, stawd that tlicre hail been a marked cUcreaMj in rabbits since tho feiico had been jnit iij). fie paid so union a head for c-'.-ery rabbit siiot on bis property, and the average went up to 4u per annum, in the last two years tow bad been seen, and only five were shot on hib property last year. Ee considered that tho rabbits wanted clucking. In L'an Levy also it was slated that rnbb.ts wore much on the decrease, and few were even seen there, while before the fence was eiccied men out shooting oi'tcji bagged four at a time.

Lecturing on behalf of the Captain Cook .Deiiiorial l'und in Christcliuich, on I'Yid.iy night, Mr. 11. M;iNab devoted .special attention to Ship's Cove ajid iiotua/a Island (from ,1 striking ouiinunuc on which Cock declared liiitish sovereignty over the South Island). Mr. .vi' Nab said that in crossing the Straits recently lie got a line vitw oJ the island, and the paint chosen as the situ ol the memorial impressed him as an eminently suitable one. He also remarked on the fat:t that in those prosteam navigation days, Cook had, with remarkable ■ foresight, predicted that Queen Charlotte Sound would become the basa for future Antarctic expeditions. It was a tribute to his foresight that, in spit-e of the great changes in marine navigation, the base of Antarctic operations was at Lyttelton, which was, comparatively speaking, only a few miles away from the Sound.

A resolution was unanimously passed at a meeting of members of the j\i asterton Congregational Church on Friday evening, supporting the Wellington Anti-Gambling League in the protest against the legaliKid bookmaker which is to be made by deputation to the Prime Minister on July IS.

The licensee of a hotel at Timaru was recently victimised by a stranger. He telephoned to tne hotelkcep;. , :- trora several places, and, using tne name of a weil-taiown country resident, said lie was Bunding his luotlwr to the hotel, if the licsusee would keep him for a few days and lend him a few sliillings it would be all right. The hotelkeeper was completely taken in, and when the •man arrived treated him royally. The impersonator repeated his impudent telephone tricks for two or *hreo days, using tho names of well-known people, and bespeaking good treatment for himself. The imposture was not discovered for two or three days, -until the man used the name of the statiomnaster at T'omuka, and t-okl the licensee to lend the visitor £20, and it would be quite safe. Inquiries were made, and the fraud was quickly exposed, and the stranger arrested.

Mr. Flatman, Mayor of Geraldino, who recently spent some time in the North Island, amused his council tho other night by telling them of one loco] body in the North—a River Board, —which 'was brought into existence simply to save its district from being included in that of another board, which has to strike rates. There was no need to do anything, therefore it struck no rate, and all tho business transacted at its meetings was to "confirm the minutes." Another local body, he said, was in the happy position of receiving £22,000 a year from gold duty.

During tho hearing of a charge against a man at Lawrence for taking into a No-License district a greater amount of liquor than is allowed without giving notice, it was mentioned by Sergeant Higguis (reports the "Tuapeka Times") that it was commonly believed that two bottles of spirits could bo taken in provided tho cork of 0110 be drawn. He pointed out that tne Act provided for the bringing in of a nuart without notice, and this amounted to a bottle and a half. His Worship said it would be a good thing if this erroneous impression wero removed.