LOCAL AND GENERAL

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2533, 6 August 1915, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

The Postal authorities advise.that the s.s. Wimmora, which is duo to-day from Hobart, is bringing Australian mails only. A Trentham soldier complained to tlie Royal Commission last Saturday that he had to spend some of his time digging pits and drains, instead of learning drill and musketry. According to Captain Simpson, who had experienco of tho big English camp on Salisbury Plain, men who volunteer for active service do not relish tho necessary delay in camp and some of the fatigue duties incidental to camp training. '"Their ono idea," said Captain Simpson, m giving ovidenco yesterday, "is that a soldier's job is to get a gun and go and shoot somebody." As fatigue work is objectionable to men preparing for activo service, and particularly objectionable to colonials, ho thought the authorities might accept a suggestion to have most of tlie fatigue work done by volunteers who could not go to tlio front. This would allow the soldiers to spend moro of their already brief training period in drilling and so forth, An interesting statement was made at the conference of fruitgrowers yesterday, showing the value of advertising. It had' regard to tho apple crop of Canada. AVhen war broke out there was a good supply of fruit available, and the growers were so concerned 'at tho prospect of a heavy loss through curtailed markets that tho Canadian Government took the matter up. They prepared a booklet of fruit recipes, and then advertised extensively in various newspapers. Tlie result was that applications were received for 60,000 of the booklets, and the whole of the apple crop was consumed in Canada itself. The clerical staff of tho Timam Railway Station is putting up a good- recruiting record (says the Timaru "Post"). During the past four months 11 of its members out of 22 have volunteered for tlie front, and others are debarred from joining their ranks by the age limit. Three members (Messrs. H. H. Greer, S. Pepper, and N. L. Forsyth) will leave with the August reinforcements. Losing 50 per cent, of tho staff, whoso places must be filled by more or less inexperienced men, presents a somewhat difficult problem for those in authority to solve.. During tho patriotic ceremony at Gisborne on Wednesday offers of machine-guns were made by Messrs. R. J. Reynolds, K. S. Williams, and Captain Tucker, and a collection taken up among the crowd, in aid of the Machine Gun Fund, realised £92.—Press Association. Tho conference of tho Fruitgrowers' Federation yesterday unanimously decided to offer its congratulations to Mr. R. P. Hudson, past president of the Federation, upon his. successfu] return to the House of Representatives as member for Motueka. Speaking 011 the subjcct, Mr. F. S. Pope, Secretary of Agriculture, said that already, in his official position, lie had felt a great benefit in. having Mr. Hudson, a practical fruitgrower, as a member of Parliament. • , During tho declaration day ceremony at Masterton flags were sold in aid of the Wounded Soldiers' Fund, the sum rof £3700 being realised. A collection for the same fund at Woodville yielded over £20. "This contract the National Dairy Association has with the two shipping companies, the Sliaw-Savill Company and tho New Zealand Shipping Company, is clear. No rebate has been made to a living soul," said Mr. J. G. Harkuess, secretary of tho association, when addressing the Fruitgrowers' Conference yesterday. Tlie latest idea_ in vaudeville in America arc Charlto Chaplin competitions for amateur imitators only. The idea has caught on, and the fun created is said to be better than that caused by the famous film comedian. Tlie contests usually take place after the screening of a picture in which Chaplin appears. • New regulations under tho Mining Act, 1908, are gazetted. A conference of delegates from the branches of the New Zealand Moderate League is being held iu Wellington today. A deputation will wait on the Prime Minister no-morrow to place the league's programme of licensing reforms beforo him, and to ask that,a Royal Commission be appointed to inquire into tho whole question, with a view to making recommendations to Parliament for future legislation. The tender of Messrs. Jackson and Co. was accepted by tho City Council last night for painting the tramway offices, Thorndon. All the members of tho Maori Contingent suffering from tho epidemic of measles introduced to tho Narrow Neck Camp liavo. now been removed to the isolation quarters at Point Chevalier, erected two years ago to cope with tho smallpox outbreak at that time. On Sunday last' another Native developed tho disease, and was admitted to tho hospital. _ _ _ 1 Speaking at the Acclimatistaion Societies' Conference, Mr. W. Pollard said that tho Legislature would never pass a-law imposing a gun liceuso in rabbitinfested districts. Unfortunately most districts were troubled with rabbits except, perhaps, some isolated districts in tlio north. 111 his province (Marlborough) they were greatly troubled, and at certain times, 011 wet days, for instance, he sent six or eight men out rabbiting. Captain Whitney stated that licenses could bo issued at a. nominal rate to rabbit-killers, and even districts could bo exempted. Mr. Pollard pointed out that there wero plenty of men shooting-rabbits who were not professional rabbit shooters. Tlie Finauco Committee recommended to the City -ouncil last night that owing to tho increased duties of the Sanitary Department, an additional inspector "should be .appointed. There was a general discussion cu the matter bo-' fore it was decided to refer it to tlio Finance Committee to obtain the views ol tho City Engineer. The opinion was oxpressed that if tho extra inspector was necessary he should bo appointed. . The City Council decided la6t night that tho lamps required to make Wake-.' field Park and the Kilbimie Recreation Reserve suitable for tho purpose of drilling the National Reserve should ho erected, the cost incurred to be charged against tho District Fund Account. At the nest conferenco of tho Municipal Association of New Zealand the following remit from the Wellington City Council will be considered: "That Parliament be asked to alter tho method of olecting the Hospital and Charitable Aid Boards, and that in future each contributing local body shall have the right to appoint a member or members according to their contributing valuo." Consideration was given, in committee, at tlio meeting of the City Council last night-, to the request made that the Town Hall should be granted free of charge for the purposo of a meeting to protest against the sentence passed on Alice Parkinson, at Napier, for shooting n young man. Tho council decided that it could not acccdc to tlio request. Owing to the war local motorists are finding it difficult to obtain necessary supplies. However, they will fiml that the Dominion's finest Garage have stocks which 110 doubt will help them. This Garagi—the D.M.V.—is situated in TonStreet, just oft the Courtenay Place woodblocking. Tyros in stock include American ana English sizes. Hours, 7 a.m. to midnight; " lo 10 a.m., 6 to 11 p.m. Sundays.—Adrt, 1

The Gazette of last night contains o proclamation taking land at Chatham Islands for a wireless station. At tlie conference of Acclimatisation' Societies on Wednesday, Mr. W. P. Kirkwood (Stratford) iii appealing for better protection of the birds in proclaimed sanctuaries, said that it was all very wall to proclaim an area of bush country a sanctuary, but it was another matter to make it one. He instanced cases where people had stood outsido the borders of sanctuaries, but had shot into them, and what they had shot had been retrieved. He was also very much afraid that there were those who; invaded sanctuaries in search of sport. In that regard he did not think that societies were afforded sufficient aid from the police, ivho should be given the full power of rangers. In his district they wore afforded nest to 110 help from the police in tlio carrying out of the game Jaws. Commissioner J. Cullen, who was a delegate, stated that the police had full powers to seo that those laws were obeyed, and other deleKates from the south testified to thn ready aid given by the police. Commissioner Cullen promised that a further instruction would be issued to tho police in regard to the matter. The Tramwaymen's Union recently requested the City Council, in view of the increases granted to the general labourers and drivers, to increase tie wages of trackmcu, assistant permanent-way repairers, and car cleaners. The council last night decided to give a minimum wage of £2 16s. to married men in the lower grades.