LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1065, 2 March 1911, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

When inspected yesterday llio hugo central brick storehouse of tho Vacuum Oil Company oil tho Ifutt l?ond was still the abiding placo of a mnss of loose par Hi and yellow mud which had streamoil throiifjli I lie smashed roof on Sunday morning. Through tho northernmost shed a streamlet of pun? water trickled steadily, and Iho walls were besmirched with th; marks of I lie yellow (lood which had streamed in under I lie edge of the galvanised iron roof along tho gutters. The work of cleaning up is proceeding and thanks to I lie fine weather good progress is being made. Tlio road in front of the stores is passable now that, llio bulk of the mml has been scooped away, and another day or (wo of sunny weather will see it finite hard and dry. Above the store', where tho t rouble 'began, a gang of men who li.ivo bren busy clearing I lie sodden spoil from Hie eld roadway, which traverses the hillside about len or twelve feet above Ihe conerele wall Mini forms I lie Imok of I lie stores ami another In) h;ive been engaged in removing the balance of ihe earth from Ihe roof. .All Ihe <.pnjj is b:>ioj; (akeo away io dreys nod depmiird on Ihe beach lo help lo reclaim Hie harbour near I'ipilea I'oiol.

A inri'lim; nl' vili/.l'lts nl Miislot (nil lms hppii compiled by III" Miiyiir Inr l-'riiln.v ovenitu: to mnsiiii'i- a limpo'iil to fittinjjjy recrjiiiffl lh<! pfl'orts ut llio A. utul J'. Association in providing such n splendid showground sw jgark lov the toivjx.

A special ease stated by the consent of the parties concerning certain Native lands at Okahnknra will be heard in Banco on Saturday by his Honour the Chief Jus,ice (.Sir liobcrt Stout). The parties are l'atena JCerehi and Kcepa l'uataata, of 'J'okaanu, plaintiffs, on their own behalf and on behalf of other Native owners of part of the Okaliukura Iiloel;, Taupo, known as Okahukura No. 811, No. 2, and 2S Natives and the Chief Judge of the Native Land Court, defendants. The matter concerns the title to tho block, which comprises f<2,7GO acres of land.

Some time ago the General Labourers' Union, on behalf of labourers employed by the City Council, laid before the latter body a series of proposals as the suggested, basis of a new working agreement. Tlio council was nslced to appoint delegates to meet representatives of the union and to name a date for a conference. So fnr nothing lias been done in the matter, and it seems unlikely that the council will consent to move until some definite stage has been readied in (he trannv.iv negotiations now proceeding.

lhat the roster submitted by the Tramways Union to the City Council is an intricate and complicated document may be gathered from the fact that corporation officials have for days been at work mastering its intricacies and testing its details. Moreover, the task seems likely to engage their energies for some little time ahead. It was impossible yesterday to extract any definite statement as to the dato when the conference will next resume, but a fortnight has been mentioned as a probable period of delay.

The existing shortage of rolling stock on the corporation tramwnvs will not be accentuated by the opcning'of the Wadestown route a few months hence, as upon this Hue box cars only will be employed. Of box cars the Tramways Department has rather more than it requires at present. Being small, they are poor revenue producers, and for that reason are not in favour for use upon the principal citv line;.

Messrs. Turnbull and Jones liavo contracted to supply the City Council with twenty-four transformers for the Electric Lighting Department, for the sum of <£279. The only other tender submitted was that of Messrs, P. B. Baillie and Co., .£312 Cs.

It will be a year at least before the land at Lyall Bay set aside for corporation yards, and tramway workshons can bo actually applied to these uses. Before the necessary buildings can !>e erected a tram track will have to be laid and levelling operations carried out. A start will be made shortly with this part of the work.

The foreign element in the passengers from Sydney yesterday by the Jloeraki was represented by on? German. He passed the education test, and was allowed to land.

11l view of the decision of the Presbyterian General Assembly that the. Social Service Association in the principal centres should be responsible for the care of Presbyterian orphans and neglccted children within defined boundaries, the Presbyterian Social Service Association in C'hristchurch has resolved to take final steps towards securing an orphanage in Christchurch. Owing largely to the visit of llr. Rule to the northern and western parts of the South Island during the last month a sum of .£915 is in sight for the building. It has been resolved to make c.n appeal to the Presbyterians of the city and country with a view to raising this amount to tho required sum of £2500.

The attention of investors is directed to the abridged prospectus of the Ilunua Colliery Company, Ltd., published tliis morning. Judging from the figures adduced by_Sir. Hayes, F.S.Sc., the wellknown Wellington mining engineer, the area is well worth consideration as a field for investment. It is placed most advantageously, only a six-iuilo branch railway_ being required to connect with tha' Main Trunk at Papakura, 19 miles from Auckland, Mr. Hayes says that no shaft sinking or long and expensive, tunnelling will be necessary,- and drainage, for many years to come, will bo by gravitation. In regard to quantitv, Jio estimates that in the area of which-the-company is granted a lease, and by the inclusion of areas adjoining over which options have been acquired, the total output of the mine should reach eight or ten .million tons, or about 150 years' working at a yearly output of 75;000 tons per annum. This is calculated on a sixfoot seam, whereas borings prove from Gft. Gin. to Bft., an average of Tft. 4in. Ihe coal taken from outcrops in the creek bods was analysed at tho Government Laboratory at Wellington, and Mr. Hayes says the analysis is identical with the best quality of I-Caitangata coal (Ihe favourite of the south), and is suitable alike tor household or steam purposes. It can, ■n p a J' os v a . vs > be placcd on tfagons at Papakura at 7s. Gd. per ton, and at an average selling price of 12s. per ton would yield an estimated profit of .£11,250, or 30 P" cent, on a capital called up to ~35,000. Tho provisional directors are Messrs. Sidney ICirkcaldie, Gerald Fitzgerald, C.L., and Harry Walter Willans. J.lie headquarters of the company will be in Wellington. Copies of the full prospectus, with report and map, are obtainable on application.