LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1087, 28 March 1911, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Reserved judgment in the case of the Polico v. M. J. Donnelly, formerly licensee of t;ic New Zealander Hotel, an appeal from a decision given by Mr. W. 0. Riddel], S.M., ivlio convicted defendant of having sold liquor (purchased before 10 p.m.) after hours, will be delivered this morning by Mr. Justice Cooper. The City Council has concluded an agreement with the owners of the property on the corner of Old Custom House and Willis Streets to (alee over a tenfoot strip required for purposes of street widening, l-'ailing .til agreement of this nature between the parties tlio land would have had to bo taken under the provisions of the Public Works Act. A memorial has been prepared, for presentation to the Government, asking it to take over the land and vest it in the City Council. The Wellington Homing Pigeon Society (lew their young-bird race from Waitotara on Wednesday last, which resulted as follows:—Mr. liolton's No. 383 (1330 yards per minute), 1; Mr. Elliott's No. 2 (1337 yards), 2; Mr. Bailev's No. 125 (1331 yards), 3; Mr. J. H. Clark's No. 201 (1333 yards 2 feet), 4; Mr. Miller's No. 307 (1333 yards}, 5; Mr. Griffiths'* No. 191 (1331 yards), 6. A race from Wainawa on the same dat? resulted: Mr. A. Clark's No. 48, II; Mr. J. H. Clark's No. 40, 2; Mr. Haynes's No. 71, 3: Mr. Williams's No. 185, 1; Mr. Griffiths'* No. 323. 5. On A pril 8 there is to be unveiled at Kaikohe (north of Auckland) a monument erected by the Natives to the memory of Mr. Hone Heke, formerly M.P. for the Northern Maori District. The memorial takes the form of a handsome pillar sculptured out of Aberdeen red granite. The unveiling ceremony is to be performed b» the Acting-Prime Minister (the Hon. Jns. Carroll). Dr. Buck, M.r., leaves for the north to-dnv to bo present at the function, which wifl be attended by a large concourje of Natives. To«;ards the end of last year the Wellington Tobacconists' Association decided to draw up a tariff of retail prices, to be charged by all members of the association. The list of prices has been prepared, and will be issued as soon as the association has concluded an agrcsmont with the Warehousemen's Association, the co-onera-fion of this body being accessary in order that the fullest possible observation of tlio tariff may bo secured. Under the neu tariff slight increases are made in a few of the wares retailed by tobacconists, but the aim of the association, according to its president (.Mr. J. B. Speed), is not so much to raiso prices as to establish them upon a basis of uniformity.

The election of a councillor for the Miraiuar Borough will take placc to-day, from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. The candidates are Messrs. John M'C'ale, Hector M'Lcod, and Stanley .Stone. The polling places are the Council's Office, King's Chambers, Wellington; the Kiosk, Worser Bay; and Robertshaw's Store, Miramar. Two calls to small fires were received at the Fire Brigade Station last night. The first was at 8.25 p.m. to 182 Sydney Street, a soven-roomed dwelling occupied by Mr. Frederick V. Ward, and owned by Mr. Hawthorne. 'Slight damage was done to tho bathroom before the (lames wore suppressed. The contents were not insured. At 9.12 p.m., the brigade was summoned to (U Pipitea Street, where slight damage was done to the side wall of the washhouse.

A point urged on the Minister for Marine by a deputation of waterside workers yesterday was that the Government. should ascertain whether something could not he done to onsure the strength and efficiency of the loading gear on Home and foreign ships calling at Wellington. The Minister hnd previously explained that such inspection could only he carried out on New Zealand coastal boats.. / on this occasion, however, his niisirer was that last year Parliament, had parsed a Shipping Act, which had been sent Home for the Royal Assent. It was being held back pending the' Imperial Conference. The Prime Minister (Sir Joseph AYard) had full information regarding it, and the representatives at the Conference were to ascertain how far the right of New Zealand and .Australia extended in regard to legislating for shipping on their coasts. Yesterday morning, at tho Town Hall, the Mayor (Mr. T. M. Wilford), at the request of Mrs. T. G. M'Carthy and Mrs. Rylaiuls, wound up the .watch which is to decide, by tho time at which it runs down, the winner of the gold watch given in connection with the Mother Mary Joseph Aubert's iubilec. The watch on being wound up, at 10.30 a.m., was set at that hour, and sealed up in an < envelope. The envelope will be opened by the Mayor at 9.30 a.m. on Thursday morning, and tho person whose ticket bears the time nearest that at which the timepiece has run down will become tho winner of the gold watch. The Mayor (Mr. T. M. Wilford) has written to the secretary of the General Labourers' Union (.Mr. M. J. Reardon) suggesting Monday evening next e.s a date for the resumption of the conference between the City Council and representatives of tho corporation labourers. From appearances, the new Children's Hospital will very shortly take material shape. Construction of the foundations is already well advanced, and as a few courses of a number of the walls have already been laid, the ground plan and horizontal dimensions of the projected building can already bo discerned. Towards tho south-west corner of tho building a roomy pit has been excavated for tho reception of 'a furnace and boiler. Over a dozen workmen, carpenters, bricklayers, and labourers, are busily engaged upon the works. The site being'level, a'nd composed of clcan, firm clay, rapid progress is being made. Now 'that the old wooden structures that formerly 'occupied the site have been cleared awav, it can be seen that the new hospital' will be admirably placed. Standing high, it will overlook tho other buildings in the Hospital grounds, and will lie open to an uninterrupted play of sunlight. The "sunrooms," which arc n prominent featuro in the design of the ncv; Children's Hospital, promise, in every way, to deserve the name.