LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2309, 17 November 1914, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The postal authorities advise that tho s.s. .Manuka,, from Sydney, is bringing Australian mails only.

■His Worship the Mayor (Mr J. P. Luke) presided at a meeting of the War Relief Committee hold yesterday morning in the Town Hall. Several cases, more or less necessitous, were dealt with. The majority of tho cases inquired into wero the result of unemployment that might or might not have been caused through the war, but _in each caee the best was done to provide work for the workless. As far as he could gather. Mr. Luke said that work appeared to be about normal in the factories, and the conditions wero improving on the waterside with the arrival of the season's clip of wool. > Tho sittings of the Court of Appeal wore yesterday adjourned until 10 a.m. on Friday nest, when,reserved decisions will probably be delivered.'

The net result of the recent Laoour Day celebrations in Wellington wac £180. One-half of that amount will go to tiie Mayor's Patriotic Distress Fund, and the other half goes to tho Trades Hall Building Fund. It is hoped 1 that tho now hall will he commenced early in tlie now year.

Cablo advice has been received from one of the leading banks in Now York to tho- effect that the official Belgium Relief Fund has reached the sum of 500,000 dollars. This is altogether apart from huge contributions of" provisions that have been mad© by the Rockefeller Foundation Fund and otter large in-, dividual fiub^nbctfi,

Prisoners found guilty at the criminal sessions of tlio Supremo Court will be brought up for sentenco at 2 o'clock, next Friday afternoon.

The cause of the frequent breakage ui the big water main that is laid along \yollingtou Terrace at. a point opposite St. Andrew's Church —the third break took place on Saturday—is said to be cracks, in the pipe caused by the steam roller jx couple of months ago. There is a good deaf of made ground at tho'spot, and when the road .was rrmotallod lately the steam roller's height caused a depression on an insufficiently supported pipe. The main in question ie the one which conveya a steady flow of water direct from the Wainui Hill to tho Belt Road plantation. . . .<■ .

Last week Major O'Sullivau, of the Defence Stores, received a sample of tho British Army now nosebags (for horses), ihss, the Director of Stores states, is precisely similar to the nosebag which has been in use in New Zealand since the year 1900.

Hjs Worship- the Mayor (Mr. J. P. Luke) acknowledges £13 Iβ. 9d. in the following further donations to the Belgian Children's Relief Fund:—Fifth Standard Club, Ncwtown School, prooeeds of bazaar, £13j and the Neahauranga School, Is. 9d.

A correspondent from Otaki forwards to The Dojimosf a circular from the London Scottish Old Comrades' Association, in which Mrs. G. A. Malcolm, mfe of Liout.-Cokmel G. A. Malcolm, commander of tho London Scottish, appeals to the friends of the London Scottish Regiment- to help her- keep them supplied with comforts while on active service at the front. The London Scbttish was the first Territorial .regiment to go to the fighting line, and has therefore earned the highest honour ever paid to a Territorial battalion. Friends desiring to contribute may forward donations, care "Mrs. G. A. Malcolm'B Fund," London Scottish Old Comrades' Association, 58 Buckingham Gate, London, S.W.

The matter of semiring to New Zealand an adequate supply of phosphates has several times been discussed by; agricultural bodies, and yesterday it was touched o'n at the Wellington Central Chamber of Commerce, where Mr. A. Eeigh Hunt moved:—"That this Chamber strongly urges upon the Government the importance or securing for New Zealand , a permanent supply of phosphates from some of the islands iu. the Pacific, which will doubtless shortly' come under the control of the Imperial The motion was carried. '•

After discussing the question of Newi Zealand cargo on interned vessels, the' Wellington \Central Chamber of Com-; moree resolved" yesterday:—"That the! New Zealand Government should be asked to undertake to issue instructional to their-agents in the various neutral' and British ports where tho ships of the: enemy are interned-to forward all goods' consigned to Now Zealand, the News Zealand Government undertaking to ac-l count for all charges, and to hand over, the goods on payment of such charges."

.The following' extract from a, letter from a New Zealander now domiciled in Sydney to a friend in Wellington is interesting: "New Zealand has lately at-* tracted a lot of attention here. Your getting in first -with the offer of assistance to Britain, then the expeditionwith which you got your men away to Samoa, and their taking possession of German Samoa have helped to keep you. in tho limelight. I am continually being asked about Massey. Ho has somehow, appealed to tlte imagination of Aus-, 1 tralians, and if he ever visits the Com-i monwealth he will get a great recepi tion." ,

Several members of the Wellington' .Central Chamber of,, Commerce visited the Manawatu Show, which was held this month. The president of the Chamber (Mr. C. M. Luke) said that those • who had accepted the invitation to make the journey to Palmerston North had been very greatly impressed with the vast development-of the Manawatu district. The president said also that the Wellington visitors had "very much admired the remarkably fine exhibits ief stock, machinery, and other, things. ! Altogether, it seemed that a visit to the Manawatu Show was reckoned, well worth while. .. , '

Having set up branches in all the centres in the Dominion, the executive of the Moderate League has decided to hold meetings in all the principal towns with a view to appointing local committees/to further the objects of the league as far as possible'. On Thursday next a meeting of those in favour of the league's programme will be held at Petone, at which the Mayor, Mr. J. W. MacEwan, will preside, supported by members of the Central Executive. On. November 27 a Dominion Conference of delegates representing branches throughout New Zealand is to.be held, at which! remits from branch and local committees will be considered. Many suggestions for the amendment of legislation will be dealt with, and the general policy of the league in connection with the forthcoming elections and its subsequent activities will bo decided upon.-

Mr. T.. Ryan, the Honorary Education Commissioner from South Australift, returned to Wellington on Saturday morning. During the eight days he has been away from Wellington, through tho courtesy of the Hon. J. Allen, he was accompanied by Mr. Dβ Castro (Chief Clerk of the Education Department) on a visit of inspection to the Industrial School at Levin, ithe Auckland education institutions, and the Native and other. , schools between Auckland and Rotonia. Through the courtesy of tho commanding officer of tlie Avondalo xamp he was able to spend some time with tho men of the MaoriContingent, and.formed a,very Viigk opinion of the work he saw. He was particularly struck with the excellent work at tlie Boys' Industrial Schobl at Levin, and is emphatic in eaying it is without a rival in the Southern Hemisphere. Mr. Ryan left for Cliristchurch on Saturday evening, and will return to Wellington in a few days, finally sailing for Australia about November 23.

The most convenient time for business men to hold afternoon meetings was a question discussed awhile by tho Central Chamber of Commerco yesterday. In the past the Chamber met at 3 p.m. A small majority considered that now too early, and in futniTO the meetings will commence at 3.30 p.m.

Mr. William M'Kay has been elected as councillor for the Puhaoii Riding of tho Feathorston County. He polled 42 rotes against 29 votes secured by'hie opponent, Mr. S. Gf Broadbent.

A fivo-legged lamb may be seen running about Mr. 0. A. Hendereon'e farm at Otahuti (says the "Western Star.") The extra member grew out of 'the right shoulder, and appeared, to be growing at the same rate as the rest of the body of the lamb. . ■ A party of workmen stone crushing in the river bed near Eltham on Thursday (the "Argus" relates) gaffed an eel. An examination showed that the fish had in its stomach a trout and a qnnaii. Later in the day the workmen oauglit another eel in about the saino epbt, and, strangely enough, it also was found to have dined on trout and min&h. How these birds become a prey to the eek is one of those puzzles which ■will interest students of natural his•ifory. .-..., At a meeting of the Hataitai Ratepayers' Association held last evening the following resolution "was carried :— "That this association is in complete ■accord with the efforts of those .citizens who are working for the improvement of Oriental Bay, while still preserving the condition of the bay and the sloping beach for the benefit of the children who frequent it, and that a committee consisting of Messrs. Hunt, Tolan, Bear, Edwards, Kershaw, and Nimmo he empowered to co-operate te urge the scheme on the City Council." Shortly after leaving Monte Video on the voyage te London the New Zealand Shipping Company's steamer Turakina fell, in with H.M.S. Monmouth and Glasgow, two of: the. British, warships the.former of which is believed te 6e lost-as-the result of the engagement with the Scharnhorst, Gneisenau, . and 'Nurnberg ofE the Chilean coast. ; The 'Monmouth came close up te the liner, and dropping a boat her first lieutenant iind the paymaster went on board, and during half an hour's visit inade themselves very pleasant whilst seeking any information which may have been useful. They. informed the Turakina's .officers that they'had been hunting for the Cap Trafalgar, a German • armed merchantman, off the Horn, ,and were then on the look-out for the German cruiser Karlsruhe'. The Monmouth and Glasgow kept with the Turakina until they were off ]?ernambuco, when they parted company. The Glasgow kept .well off on the horizon the whole time the three vessels were in company, in order te cover as wide a visual range as possible. The Turakina's officers were heartily sorry to learn of the warship's fate on arrival at Hobart. .'/•'■