THE EXECUTIVE BUSY

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2219, 4 August 1914, Page 6

THE EXECUTIVE BUSY

''" MEETINGSTTESTERDAY. STATEMENT BY PRIME MINISTER

-" " THE LOCAL POSITION * • NO NEED FOR INSECURITY. /.. , "As far as I am ablq to judge there is no need for any feeling of insecurity or want of confidence'on the paTt of tho pooplo of New Zealand In sajmg that, I must admit that if tho Empire is involved m wai the pooplo of Now Zea- \ ~ > land, like other British v , ,u idtizens, will be called upon w.J: lA<? makesaenfices, t but I , l| ' ' i feel' certain 'they are' quito prepared to do so.'' The foregoing brief statement was taado by the Prime .Minister when he was interviewed by a Dominion reporter ',lo>b evening. Mr Massey is in receipt of confidential- cablograms'from the.'lmpenal Government, but stated that ho was not in a position to .deal in detail with tho situation that exists furthei 'than'is dona in the pioclamations which Were issued last evening, relating to tho Naval Reserve, tho transfer of tho Now Zealand naval forces to tho control of tho Imponal Government ftnd the censorship regulations The House of Representatives will meet as usual to-day at 2 30 p m , and tho Piimo Minister intimated that he would probably make a statement to * members regarding tho situation created ,by the war ' , »., It is also proposed to bring up te'da? the Banking Amendment Bill, which provides for a Government guarantee of , l >' onnlc notes ' * While the present l gravo situation > -boktimies the Executive will meet daily Yesterday two meotings wore held, the first in the forenoon at Parliament __ ' Buildings and tho second in the aftor- """ noon at, Gov eminent, Buildings The business dealt with included considcra- * tion of the important proclamations \ which were issued in a Garotte Extraordinary last evening A meeting of Cabinet was also held during the dav. There has been a good deal of discussion in the Parliamentary lobbies , about the disorganisation of New Zealand trade that must be caused if England goes to war, and in particular suggestions have' been advanced as to the Sosirahilitv of providing f largely int frroased mid, storage for butter and cheese. There are grounds for believing:, however, that the Government does not consider that nnv Mich provision will be necessary, but looks confidently to the trade routes being kept open ( whatever turn events - may take in 'Europe " ,' ' ' V '

Etinio llinister. received a tele-' t gra'ni.' frp.ni.;.FeatherstonV.last.. evening ; in/which'the Wairarapa Automobile As:i jsociation ibffers .t0!;,,, place : thirty-five Lraot6'M&fs:at : 'tlhei:/disposal of the De-'fencg'Department-nf-necessary;-- It -is 'i?»dded-:thaVshouldtbe>need arise-fully v be provided., • .The ! 'messa l ge:was'eigiied by Mr. Elgar ': (president), and•,Mr.; >Vilson (secretary) :''of. the ; f; ;■■,'; >•■ ■'.-.' ;

THE/aOYAL fIRAWAS; ;; The folibwihg telegram ■'• was, received .' by. ,th'e -Prime- .Minister,, last . evening'' from leading l ' members r of the ; Arawa tribe at -Rotorjia;: ?"We,; H of the; Arawas, as our forefathers before" us; offer., our eervicesto our King -and , country iii > whatever clime and whenever you see fit to' call iis; our fervent'-prayer -is, ~ ■— 'God message is signed by, Kaharuhga, Kiharoaj Rangiteaorere;;Taiapua, Te Awakotuku, To 'Kiti, and'.Tukutalii. ' ..'''.'.. , ; :" ~'; WAR^AND'%OCiJL: POLITICS. ' The war "in Various, aspects .was -the ■ sole, topio- of tAnriyef^atibnvin,-tho Par»'i]iamentary't irAjifiis yesterday,.! and 'local. - politics.i l ha,Ve;.::been.;;coinpletely; ;b_vershadowed. It. by alKthat.the: terrible.jeyent's i.in Eiiropo, apart' from their' possible extension aiid> .develop-ment'-wiir. absolutely" cha'ngeJthe' char1, ' acter extent the ordinary programme, witin)e' vdepart- ; "ed from^is'uncertaihtr-everi-Ministers of ' ttho Crown appear to bo undecided,upon the-"point^-but'-the'-genefaliopinion is' {irat':whilo's'6rfre.busine.3S.inay;b.9. .quietly • proceeded with, contentious matter will to a great .extent W laid aside. 'Party " "feeling 'will'na'turally; "evapora'te'.in'.f ace of the emergency,by which the Emph'e ..'.js.fa.ced, '.and,',it jis takeii',.for. granted ',th'ai•meiribers;.qf .all'■ partiesiWill'unite heartily in i; taking Sclrraeaiures for the common ■ good , as- .developments'pmay frdm'tune.td.tima dictate. ;,Th'e. prevailing; tibfe in the lobbies .is ono ;qf; Mioyants confidence,* but .th"ere : is very.ilittle traco '***«—- of tho jingoistio .spffitT.? '•*?}■?}■'*■:' - • " r NO OCCASION,FOR ALARM; ; '.The; Prime' Minister -.was /interviewed , :I bf;a group, of' T reporters.sbpn after : the ' " l';xccutiv6 ; : meetiiig,; held,'iii 'the- "foreIjio'oh, 'hadTcpncluacu,'but stKtc.d that he' i "had Jittle nfove 'tp.s.aK.than;tha'ti.he;,Go- • vernment vwas' going: on the .precautionary measures.' Certain; proclamations, he mentioned, would be issued later.' As .to ' the' expeditionary force, Mr,, Massey .said that no reply bad yet beeii received froin the Impernl ■ Goyernmcnt,. i-hut, tho..message,-from New Zealand had :been .'acknowledged, and an official 'replv '.would comb later.The matter, ho pointed but, had itot yet reached the stage of an offer.. The position.at.presentv'was. that, if .'necessary, the Government would ask Parliament for-the requisite authority. ._ In that event Volunteers would be invited only from'the Te'rfif orialf Force.:,. '.'.-. Finally, the^.Erimo..Minister' stated. that'there was"ho "occasion for serious alarm. .Everything was being; done that ' was'": necessary in; the circuni- , "■'s'iances.\v«J''-V,V'.:''.', '•■.','i-yA -' ' ■'.'; '.-'■-,

,:'-- The -Hon.-.; JasirAilen ■-. .(Alinis'ter :• of j -''iFihanMoand-llefeiice),. whenho was", in- ,( 'v!terviewed'last.evening,-: spoke with quiet \ :* if 'co'isdeh'ce v '6'f -the financial.' po'sition.v and' f ■'; declared: himself ."decidedly; of 5 ' that/there was no,cause for uneasiness, -i so.far as', this 'country'was' 'concerned.' c ■ /.There was, .he remarked,. a loan to bo .] renewed,in'D.ecember, but it was hoped 1 Li;that:the;trouble would all bo .over... bei's?fore "that time.■ •: {In', any ;case, : "the!; no- s '■■,';/cessar'y pr6vision..wo'uld:bb.made.»M;, 1 s :-7'"Th6 loan 1 nieiftiqned'by the-Minister is 1 • : ' : thq' unconverted.'pbrtion; ; .of^the;'Ward' ] -5 five million loan')'' ah' amount-' of I -»£ 3,200,000.' ' :';:..:•' '":'.. :":"',":;' . i .;'■:.' -..Questioned as.io .the.necessity of rai» ■ ' ~ing a further loan to satisfy the,prdi u ; ] ' ; ary requirements of, the country in tho '.'! •way of public works and soforth.'Mr ! '•' 'All'od remarked: ",' "I don't ± think wo; ' "'have anything'''to .'be.' frigh'tehe'd:"abb'ut.'' : 'J .. ,We have plenty, of money to ..go on with, , ' for some time* >I'don't anticipato any: : financial tro'ubieV public. works will bo carried on as usual, b° fw as t can - ■' / Tlia confidence that obtained, Mt Allen went on to state, was exemplified In the fact that no exceptional hastewas being' made to pass the.BankiiigAmo'ndmcnt'Bill (providing for_a State : guarantee'of bank notes). 'lb would come lip in the ordinary way. t. ~'.'. : Regarding State advances, the Minis- ' .: tor said that he had not. given; any,in-■■'.''Btriictions.-to restrict advances: to;:set-.. tiers, workers,' or .local authorities,. and if the Advances Board had slowed down ". it had not reported tho fact to him. ■; '"We shall go-! along: in quiet confi■4denco," 'added'the Minister, :' 'meeting. ■■"'all "that it" is .necessary ;td"meet;-md' como out all"righ't-in'^he-end.--•.- -I think .that the-,ieso,urps.s r -ii,.tua^<imjnn»jit3j|a l .

themselves arc ,quite enough to keep us 'going for the time, and to seo us through.,*!■-don't"'think that wo were rover'stronger financially than wo arc V- ■•''"' " ',' -,'' ,- Asked'whctker the late developments would bo .likely to delay the proscntation'of tho' Financial Statement, Mr. Allen replied in tho negative. He saw no reason, -lie said, why tlio Statement sbould-hot-bo'laid before the Homo this week, as. announced: '':i;v!\bIEFENCE MATTERS. ■;'. The- Minister imeutioned that it had been decided to call out the Naval Reserve. Tlie New Zealand section of this force is small, but there are-other naval reservists in the country, and tho total number of men available is not de'finitely known.', --.'. >. \ . _ , "Replying to ■'.'another'-, question, Mr. Allen indicated .that -no call would bo' made meantime upon tho Territorials to porform .any special duties. It _vas possible ho remarked, that, they might :be asked to expedite'their drills., ..-'•■•••.•■ PUBLIC WORKS VOTE., "I am preparing Uhe- Public Works Estimates, for this year as if there were' no war," said the HoriVW. Fraser, to a Dominion reporter yesterday. "Then, if it. happens- that tho war- ends rapidly, and we are-able to raise money, we shall have the-authority of Parliament to spend it., . "If. v money is not, available, -of course,' ibe money, voted -will not bo spent." .-• ■ < ', IMPERIAL CENSORSHIP. , A strict censorship is being established throughout the British Empire in regard 'to telegrams and wireless messages.—. Messages, in. code, or cypher will not be accepted for transmission; Messages must be written in plain English or French... Registered addresses are prohibited'. ; . : ; ,

..THE-EXPEDITIONARY, FORCE ;':■ MISUSER SAID.■-' '■■ '■' In -.the -Press.' Association report of the Hon.;W.' Eraser's speech at'Takapauon Saturday afternoon,'appears the followingrpassage:.—!,'Tho'y could not send . men ~'to ''i the 4 rent, from herer-tbat'.'was'-nonsense:"-' 'Mr. : Fraser informed .a ; reporter yesterday: was not- made, by him without, comment or qualification.' What he;did:.say was that, it 'would bo nonsense/^'.-;send .men from .hero;' to •Eurppe,', : -becausp it/wpuld be impractic--ablo'.,..;.Canada;.had offered, troops,' but Ganadayw'as'jn a very different position, being,.only ."six days from Europe, while. ' wc'/.'w'ere 'about-- 50 days.,.- :It, was quite, possible; however, that an: expeditionary' forcejfroni-New.; Zealand -might be used somewhere -'in'(.the Pacific or in this' Hemispherfi. for-Imperial purposes. He addedvthat-the New. Zealand-Govern-ment'would, be prepared to do whatever ,th;e';:Ho'm'e'lGovernme'nt might; ask ■• them to do for the A advantage of the Em■pireX A 3 )r- 1-"' - ,-. -■•-

One ofiithe .best attended parades of "B" Company, sth (Wellington) Regi-.meht,'took-place in the Drill..Hall last night.';' 'During the evening' the platoon commanders.-: (although ho official announcement' was.rnade) made the Territorials; acquainted with ~the fact that if Britain- .Wijs . drawn into, the European .war volunteers would called'for. from the;,Territorials.to:fbrm' anf-expedition-a'ry- force'.''"Tie probable• destination of' the.force,jvould not be Europe, as was anticipatdfl;''' but.;_lndia,! ;where they Would relieve regiments of 'English :regularsH deal of •enthusiasm was manifested by. the'; Territorials in. this "announcement/ ■ '

/Volunteers have been called for from the Sth'rEegiment. to; guard the magazines at r 'Mirainar,'-and'also io guard the. wireless station. . At last night's parade the names of. a number of volunteers for' the latter*.duty were taken.

THE GARRISON, ARTILLERY Reference to the war was made at the' paradoof : the'No. 9 Company Garrison Artillery i'-Territorialß in .; the Buckle Street Drillshed last 'evening.' Addressing.l-' the 'company, '• Colonel ' Courtney said that if England became involved in the war, and the.'New Zealand forces, wero mobilised, tho coast defence troops would be first called upon., He; added that the position of the German Pacific ;squadrpn at the present time was known to the local Defence authorities. The ships were concentrating upon the GerChina "Station, and the Defence authorities would be kept informed of their movements as far as possible. In the event, of .the Garrison' Artillery troops out. they: would he 'notified, by., advertisement in v the- newspapers, . arid/ notices would also ■be posted at clmrches; post offices and other public buildings,' In reference to the' proposed expeditionary force, Colonel Courtney said that on' the last occasion when, New Zealand sent away such a,force, the Artillery 'were not treated ";very, : well, inasmuch- as .'not many of : their; number were selected fbr-i the''foreign; service.' ;-.'ThiS. experience ,would' necessarily >' be repeated if an 'exnbditiohary force had to be sent away in the present, instance, 1 because on nccbuiit,of..their being highly trained in special'duties the Garrison Artillery .troops' would' have, to bo retained to .man. the New. Zealand forts.' .•,-■' 'Nq'.'O.Company is detailed for duty at Fort Bailance'. .',....

■:^ : .'; N;Z'-' NAVAL FORCES ■,' ". !' UNDER ADMIRALTY CONTROL. •■■A" proclamation published in a, Gazette Extraordinary, last right, declares! that, H.M.S. ■ Philomel, and ' tho whole of the New Zealand Naval Forces J'shall on the making'of this pToclamationV pass ..under the control and bo at the disposition- of the, Government of ■Groat-'Britain, and; shall remain under such control : and disposition for. one calendar month from tho date of thia proclamation;" In the NavalDofence Act, 1913, it is enacted that .whon in tho opinion of the" Governor it is expedient in the interests of .Great Britain so to do, the Governor may by proclamation ■ declare that the ships acquired .under that Act, for'naval; defence forces, and the 'New Zealand naval forces, shall pass and -remain- under tho control, and De at the disposition, of the Government of Great .Britain for such time as h© may fix by proclamation. ■ ':■■ Another proclamation orders all Re-serve-'Navaf Volunteers to report themselves, forthwith to the .Registrar of the Royal Naval Reserve at tho Marine Department;' "Wellington. ■ . . As soon as the above order had been made 1 known, .dozans of seamen on various vessels in port yesterday reported themselves for duty. They, came 'from'■■' coastal and oversea steamersSeveral officers who are at present in ' the;.New'Zealand mercantile marine will i'ba : epjiipslled to', leave their ships : and ] report: for 7 duty in the Navy ab soon as possibKj-'All day yesterday the-offices of 'th«; Royal Naval Registrar for Now Zealand G. G. .Smith), were besieged by Royal Naval Reserve men who were reporting for duty. In addition to members of the Reserve report- : ing 'themselves personally, dozens of letters'a'M' telegrams have been received .; themselves for serViC9i\'„;.; lt .; ' ; ; AT THE GATE OF THE PORT [' THE' EXAMINATION SERVICE IN \ , ..'.....: "WELLINGTON.- ~ , The, .examination ground for the Port .. of Wellington is Wovser Bay, where j> the "examining vessels have, been sta- : tioned. It-is their duty to signal I. .pyery- am 8 r » *o matter of

what nationality, and'she is expected to | anchor immediately' if requested to do so. Under tho regulations governing the "closing" of tho port it is notified ! that when tho ports are "closed" (or, I in other words, when the military authorities assume control, as has been done at present) threo red vertical balls will be exhibited by day and threo red vortical lights by .night in some conspicuous position in or near the approach of each of the specified ports, and the same signals, together witli special flags, will bo carried by the vessels charged with the duty of examining ships which desire to enter. Upon the;display-of such signals vessels desiring admission must proceed either to the examination anchorago, marked on tho Admiralty charts, and anchor there, or keep to: sea. :, Instruction's -have been given to avoid directing moyablo searchlights during practice on to vessels under way, but mariners are warned that-great care should be taken to keop a sharp look-out for the signals '■ indicated above when the searchlights are observed to.be working. ' It is further notified that when tho signals mentioned are displayed, "tho .port or locality should be. approached with great caution, as'it may be apprehended that obstructions may exist. The examining vessels are charged with the' duty of examining all ships entering and of allotting the positions in which they shall anchor. Vessels entering' are further warned to keep : a sharp look-out for the : examining vessel, and "to be ready to 'bring-to' at once'when hailed by her or warned by the'firing of a gun or sound rocket. ■ Masters are further notified that they must strictly obey all instructions given to : them by the examining, steamer. Whilst-at anchor in . the examination ;anchorage,, masters are warned that they must not. lower anyiboats (except 'to avoid accident), communicate with the shore,'",work cables,.move the ship, or permit any one' to leave the,ship without'permission from the examination" steamer. - In case of fog, .masters of vessels are enjoined to -use the utmost'care, and the examination anchorage itself should be approached with the greatest caution. - - _ The regulations applying to New Zealand ports also apply .to all ports throughout/the British Empire.'

German warships in the. "^pacific. reported to have gone to ■:<\: - EIAO-CHAU,. ' ■:■ oh r Saturday a cable message was •published from Sydney ■ stating that news'had: been received .stating that the'* German war fleet, composed,of tho flagship, two! ■'■: cruisers ■ and ,a' supply ship,' .which ■ had been'' cruising in. the Pacific, were.expected to have at Apia, Samoa, on Thursday last. The message concluded by saying that probably, recent events have altered the programme.'■ It is five days, to-day sinoe 'tup .Heevwas dub at Apia, and;during tho past two or three days speculation ba& been■ rife. as 'to- what has become of.it. The.vessels have not been reported,'and no further news has heen 'received locally 'concerning their movements. • ■ .• ■ j '. ' Piscussing" the subject with an officer of one of the.oversea- steamers now in port a poiiraioN reporter was told that itwas more than likely that'the German fleet had beon ordered ur> to KiaqChau, a 'German- Protectorate in tho ' Chinese province of; Shantung: Tho officer in question has seen extensive' 'service in the East, and he said that, for' some considerable time the Japan-

«V nave had. .ttieir eyes on this particular province in.China. It was occupied by the Germans in November, 1897, and formally ceSed',:to.,.thorh.-6n ; a.99 years' lease by China'in January, 1898.' The protectorate is administered under th'e. : German Navy.,. Department by. a It. is a wealthy . piece, of land— "one 1 of the best spots in the. East." , D , Tho opinion was held that if' Britain and ' Germany go to war Japan' would make an effortr-to get hold of this particular province at tbo first' available opportunity. Therefore, it was considered that the German fleet in the East had (been orderedi to concentrate, and as it is only about 14 days' steam' for' fullpowered vessels from-Samoa to Shantung, tho opinion was held that that is the reason why. nothing more had been heard of the German fleet in the

Pacific...' ■■'•. .- .. From other reliable. sources_ it was ■learned that there, is no coal in atook at, Samoa, and the .opinion was held that the German fleet had cleared out to the East for coal on receipt of news that thore was a likelihood of war btting declared. V , ''.'. ', •'■ ;. German merchant shfps in ■'■■■[:. : -/.'/' pacific';; MOVMENTS OF TRADERS. ■!By, Telegraph—Press Association.) Cnristotiuroh, August 8. , The Linden (3188tons)j the Limeberg (5819 tone), and *heUlm/(4706 tone), in Pacific waters, are nil owned by the • German-Australian Steamship Company. The Linden was the first steamer'of the recently-inaugurated "German service from Continental ports to New' Zealand, and : arrived at the - Bluff in ■ June last. After .visiting, -Lyttelton and Auckland she .went across to Newcastle to load coal for Java., The. Limeberg- and Ulm •were both loading coal.. at Newcastle for Eastern ports. ... At the present time, several German ■steamers, are on their way. to New Zealand, ports! : The German-Außtralian steamer AVismar (4686. tons), Captain Schroder, left Hamburg on June 25, and is due'at the Bluff-about August 10. The Hansa lino ..steamer Stolzenfels (5553. tons), running under qharter to the U.S; and A. Line, is at present in Sydney on her way from New York to' New Zealand ports. The Wildenfels (5512 tons), also under charter to-the U.S. and A. Line, left New York on June 29 . for ' Melbourhe,_ Sydney, and New Zealand ports, and is due at Melbourne; about August 18.

GERMAN COLONIES POSSESSIONS IN THE PACIFIC DBnNUTIVE GARRISONS ■ Germany's possessions' in the Paciflo have a total area of 06,000 square miles, or more than, double, the size of the North Island of New Zealand. ■ llhe most extensive of the territories is German New Guinea, which has an area of 70,000 square miles, and the Bisr marck Archipelago ranks next with 20,000 square miles, The total white population in the Paeifio colonies ifl 1984, atfd the native population is estimated at 634,000. ■ The German uoleny of Samoa eomprises just on a thousand square miles in the two 'slands of Savaii and Upolu, and has a wjhite population, of 557, and a native popnlation of 34,679. Samoa is about 1880 miles distant from Auckland. ''■'■.■ '-.' Tho Germait overseas possessions' m the Pacific, with their area and tho dates;-of -acquisition are as follow:— IN THE PAOIiIC. , .: Area. Sq. miles. German N. Guinea ,(1885) 70,000 Bismarck Archipelago (1885) ... 20,000 Caroline Islands (1899) — Pelow Islands (1890) .'-. 560 Marianne Islands- (1899) -'50 Solomon Islands (ISS6) . 4,200 Marshall Islands (18S6) ...' 150 Samoa • _UW> ,'■■'■ 'WUijQ.

In the group outside Samoa there is & total white population of 1427 per-: sons, and a native population estimated at 600,000. The German overseas possessions elsewhere in the world, with their date of acquisition, area, and vvibite and native populations, are as follow: —

IN AFRICA. Area, White Native sn. miles. • Pop. Pop. Togo (1884) 33,700 308 1,031,978 Kamerun (1884) ... 191,130 1,871 2,648,720 S.W. Africa ' - (1884-90) 822,450 14,830 79,566 East Africa (1885-90) 384,180 5,336 7,645,770 931,460 22,'450 11,406,024 IN ASIA..

Kiauchau (1897) ... 200 Not av'ble. 168,900 These colonies and ; possessions exported to Germany in 1912 goods to the value of £2,645,000. and imported from Germany £2,865,000. Their exports to. Great Britain in tho same year were £590.988, and- the imports from Britain totalled £695,421. Wireless stations have been erected at Apia, Samoa, and Nauru (or Pleasant Island), one of the Marshall Islands. ■ Two other stations are planned, and may possibly have been already erected, one at Rabaul, in German New Guinea, and one on Yap, in the Caroline Islands. A garrison of about 2700' men is maintained at Kiauchau, in CSjina, and apart from tyhis there is a special colonial force distributed in the otb«r possessions. It numbers about 340 officers, 2250 German non-commissioned officers, and men, and-3830 native .'soldiers. .Of these; about 150 officers and/2000 other ranks,; all German,.are in. South-West Africa. .-.' '.-. ■ ■■ - . ,.■ -.-

GERMAN RESERVISTS

ANXIOUS TO JOIN THE COLOURS,

Mr. Eberhardt Focke, German ViceConsul for Wellington, stated yesterday, that he had not been officially notified of the outbreak of hostilities m Europe. That notification would probably, bo sent to /the Consul-General m Sydney. .Mr. Focke states that he, has ; been visited by dozens of Germans, anxious to servo llheir.country, who-, as reservists wash to. know what they are to do, but lacking definite" instructions- the - Yice-Con-sul has been uuablo to advise them." ' Not long ago a .voung German, who was Wellington, wentto the Fatherland to-be married; .which .event. is just about' to' be, consummated.-' Ho h'as cabled' to his-friends :here to.use their endeavours to get torn out of-Ger-rnany before he'is detained.for service, hut'in t!he face'of circumstances that is impossible, and being a German on German soil he will in all probability have to go to,the front. .

FRENCH RESIDENTS IN NEtW■ t , ZEALAND; j • ■ ———■-,■" •'''■' t CALLED TO THE COLOURS. d (By Teleifraph-Press Association.) o Auckland,. August 3. ' s The decision of the French; Govern- » ment to effect a. general mobilisation of > its forces has been communicated to « the Consul for France in ,New ,ZeaJand, M.' Rigoreau. A summons will lie is- £ sued'to aliTronch subjects,' including J reservists, to report to the Consul or " Tub wrents in Wellington, Christchurch, t and. Dunediii, and to_be; PW«dJo < sail for Fr/ance at the earliest opportunity. Numerous inamnes . were re-. c ceived bv frhe French Consul to-day as J to whether the services of French j*si- j dents in-the; DomiwoTi would he re- ' quired: Arrangements have not yet .been completed for the conveyance of returnm<t soldiers. ' .- ~ < ■ Similar advice was-received. r£ the, Austrian Gor-snl;'''Mr..L»n(rpriith, that a . general mobilisation of .Austrian . forces ordered., hetwpon the. a (res of 1 20 rikl SO.' Austrian subjects hayo alrendv 'to -the' snmmon;nssiy>d a' week info', when a partial moh'lisataon w,is ordwed. ■ They, are.. resident m 'AuMrl-nd. New Plymouth. Chriswhurtin and Hokitikov arid ..irTFihfrements have I been made for part-v to '.'sail ' 'fnr'-fMripy rip-st. 'Monday, and it is cxrMed that about mn will henrjn ] thoir ionmey on that dov. Anyone ] liable for soTvice who'nep->ct-s the pre- ~ sent summons will bn treated as a de- .j sorter, .and will forfeit'any n™™*rtv 1i» . may possess in the' Austro-Huntramn { Emnire, or the right to inherit any. pro- , perty. ',-/ ■, ';-;. ''. '.". .'-.'", ■ ORDERED TO THE COLOURS. Auokland, August 3._ The Austrian Consul has been adyis- ' ed from Vienna that a general mobilisa- ■ tion has been ordered. All subjects,of the Emperor living in New Zealand and liable to serve in the Austrian army, in- ■ eluding all reservists, must leave for Austria by the first opportunity. A mau' liable for service who does not respond' is deprived for>all time or the right to inherit any property in Aus-tria-Hungary, vhis property, if he. possesses any, in that'country wiU, be forfeited, and he will he liable to be otherwise dealt with according to military law. . ■• , food prices in war demand for abolition of the , flour tax. ■;; At a meeting of the New Zealand Land Values League last night a discussion took place in regard to the speculation in foodstuffs as a result of the war tension--in Europe.'' ■ Mr. .Geo. Warren pointed out that the .price of flour was already going up in New Zealand. It was possible for ■ well-to-do people to lay in a good Btock of flour, while that commodity was still comparatively cheap, but it was quite impossible for the workers to do so. The very fact that the_ wealthy purchased in bigger quantities, than usual in itself tended 'to 6end up the price. The worker was thus doubly-hit (l)by the rise in the world's price, and (2) bv the local rise due to the prudential action of his more fortunate neighbours. On.top of all this was the flour tax of £1 per ton, which with' dealers' profits added meant that flour was, because of the tax,- quite 30s. per ton higher than it ought to be. In time of war, therefore, a flour tax—a tax on the people's bread—was specially ini iquitous and he moved: ' , ' "That in view of the war rise in the > price of flour, and the prospect of still > further rises, this League strongly ■ urges that the flour tax of £1 per ton \ bo forthwith abolished; and that copies : of this resolution bo forwarded to tho i Prime Minister, the Loadar of the Op- > position, and the Labour members of i Parliament." ' , Mr. D. Maodonald, in seconding the resolution, stated that i potatoes and • other foodstuffs wore,, likely to rise in i price in sympathy with flour; and he , contended that all food tax*& should bo 1 'swept, away, i The resolution was fcarfied uiiamV - mously. I KEEP COOL! WAR AND THE MONEY MARKET. REMARKS BY. MR. HAROLD 0 BEAUCHAMP. 0 ' —t— .. # . * Giving his personal opinion on the 0 position as affecting the pauk rate and 0 the local financial situation with re--0 spect to the war, Mr. Harold Beau--0 champ, chairman of the Bank of New 0 Zealand, stated that never before in his - memoi'v had the hank rate been' as high o_lj»s 10 jjcr cent. yst,, #w the,,

Bank of England to conserve its gold! deposit, and to effect that tho more securely tho Bank Act would be suspended to-day (Tuesda'yl. He could, of course, only speak for the Bank of New Zealand, but he was oonfident tho banks doing business hero and in other countries would do all they possibly could to assist their clients and respective Governments. It had been suggested that on the declaration of war involving England, all overdrafts would be called up. Bo would like to dismiss that idea' at the outset. Up to the present there had been no meeting or conference of the banks to consider the position,' but to his mind the act of calling up overdrafts now would bo sheer madnesß, and would be followed by a catastrophic slump in the values of securities held by the banks and would precipitate a financial crisis of unparalleled rpagnitude. It was only necessary to. refer to the last published banking returns and the latest balance-sheets of the banks themselves to show how strong they were at present in respect to'all kinds of liquid reserves both in Australasia and London.

The produce, of Australia and New Zealand for tlio last season had been turned into money, and the particularly, large amount of money held by the banks was indicative of tho splendid prices Australasian producers had received for their primary products'. • In the ordinary courso this balance would bo .available for transfer from London' to the colonies, but he -. took it that business would bo conducted on such conservative lines that there would be no large transfers within the' near future. Moreover there, would be such remunerative rates. offering for money in. London'that many banksi would be tempted to make.the most of them. Whether England were involved or not, Mr.' Beauchamp said he would strongly advise the people of New Zea- 1 land to keep quite cool at tho present juncture. No good; purpose could be served by showing appreheasion. The feeling in England at the.moment had already been commented upon most i favourably in America,; and he thought that the people of the Dominion, coming from the same stock, could be trusted-to show the same fine spirit of self-restraint in a timo, of . great anxiety. ■) ' ■■■■ ■ '

DEaARATION OF WAR .IS IT NECESSARY? ' PRACTICE IN RECENT CASES IS A' DECLARATION OF WAR' ;■: LEGALLY 'NECESSARY f . From actual practice' if.'is .clear tiat a declaration is hot'regarded as essential'. Until recently the last solemn declaration was in-1657, after this a less formal mode of, declaration was some-times-used; often none at all, or-the declaration was made after war had begun. It has been calculated that between 1700 and 1870 not-more than 10 declarations were issued, and that in over. 100 cases, apart from wars with' savage nations, no declarations were made at -all; : but.. curiously enough within recent times,' there has been a' return to :earlier. practice. ■Before the Franco-Prussian war a claration was. handed to the - Prussian Government by the French diplomatic agent at Berlin, and in 1877 a formal declaration was made by a. dispatch

handed to tie Turkish..agent at-St. Petersburg. ..''•.• Before the Spanish-American war tie Spanish' Government communicated a Note to the United States Minister at Madrid declaring that relations between tho two Governments wero broken off and that no further , communications would be received. . This was on. April 21?,' 1898. Thereupon; the' American Minister demanded his passports. The , Spanish Ambassador demanded his the previous day.. The Spanish vessels were captured by Americans as early as the 22nd." It | was therefore a'legitimate interpretation of the situation created by the' Spanish Note for America to regard war as having com-' menced on the 21st. , . ■ The Russo-Japanese War of 1904 beI gan when tho Japanese Minister preI sented a Note l on February 6 to-the Russian Government declaring the termination of negotiations and the right reserved by his Government to take independent action and announcing at the same time his intention to take his departure. Hostilities broke out on tho Bth, and a formal Japanese declaration was issued on the 10th. Russia com-, plained of Japan's precipitate action, maintaining that; tho breaking off of diplomatic relations'did not imply the opening of. hostilities,; hut Japan, was able to show that no formal declaration was necessary and that Russia failed to put a proper interpretation.'on bar ■Note. , !

PRAYERS FOR PEACE '; BISHOP. AVERILL'S APPEAL. ; (By Teiegra.p]i— Press Association.) .: Auokland,, August 3. The churches of Auckland united yesterday in prayers for peace, Speojal hymns were sung/ and in at least one church the evening service closed with the singing of the "National Anthem." From pulpits, references were madfc to the gravity of the situation. A stirring address.was delivered by Dr. A. W. Averill, Anglican Bishop of Auokland, at St. Alban's Church. _ -■ "We are face, to face," he said, "with tho possibility of a great Europeau war, and news which has reached ts to-day of Ih'e declaration of waT between Ger-. many and Russia is all the moro disquieting, for no sane man would _ possibly'dare to predict the'end or issue of saoh a, war. Perhaps the saddest part of it all is that many of us must feel that the present war seems to have no real justification. It humbles and shames us-to think; that such a war could he possible in the twentieth eeii•fcufy, and thai our hoasted civilisation has so failed to bring about higher and nobler methods of settling 'international differences. If we are bound in honour to fight we shall do our duty as we. have always tried to, do it in the past. God grant that, our Empire may be saved from having to ; enter into the conflict. This'is at-ime for prayermore than for talking; for humiliation rather than jingoism ;• the searching of heartß more than of foolish boasting."

OVERSEA STEAMERS

LOADING OPERATIONS POSTPONED.

It is ttftted on good authority that the loading of several werseas oargo steamen now in New Zealand waters has he»n postponed in eonieotience of the disturbed condition of affairs in jOniapt. Several vesiols are at Australian ports at tjie present time loading early wool which generally U shipped to Knulish and Continental ports, via Snoa. If nhe dispatch of these vessels is not delayed, it is extremely improbable that they will follow the routo mentioned.' They are more likely to proceed Homo Via Cape Horn, which, from Anstralia, would take them.a long way out of their course. . ~

TELEGRAPH NOTICE

E : ty-

Berne advises that the European lines, are interrupted between Euiden and Berlin. The Eastern Extension Cable Company advise that until further notice telegrams in. code for British North Borneo -cannot bo accepted, unless ad't(P >he;Aov.ar»,9JU