LOCAL AND GENERAL

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2742, 10 April 1916, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

The Huddart-Parker steamer Riverina, which is expected to arrive at Wellington from Sydney between 9 and 10 o'clock this morning, is bringing an English, via Suez, and an Australian mail.

The Petone police are investigating a case in which James Marley, a nightwatchman, employed by the Borough Council, is alleged to have been assaulted last week by two men. From a statement mado> by the watchman, it seems that the latter was inspecting the lamps botween Ryan Street and the railway crossiug, on tho eveuing in question. He thee noticed that a lamp had been extinguished. Hurrying to tlie next lamp, lie found the two men attempting to extinguish that also. Crossing the drain, he asked the men what right they had to touch the lamps, and after a few words had ed between them, one man kicked him below the.thigh. A woman (who evidently was with the men) then stepped in, and the watchman caught the other man by the throat. The first man then dealt him a blow on the ear, and the man he had taken hold of punched him on the mouth. He added that he refraiued from striking out in case he I'.it the woman. The watchman is sure ho could identify his assailants, as he took particular notico of them.

The boxing from part of the new concrete wall on 1 the Oriental Bay water-front having been removed, a ■good idea can now be obtained of what Wellington's most popular parade will be like when the wall is completed. The continuation was commenced a few weeks ago from the Fitzgerald's Point end of the bay, and is connected with the vertical wall that extends from the Municipal Baths to the point. The new wall has a slight inward incline up to about four feet from the .top, when there is a stout ledge extending seaward about two feet, wliich is calculated to catch the top of waves in rough weather and prevent them from driving over the top and across "tho footway. Tho wall has been built for about 100 yards, and, seeing that the Corporation has entered into a new financial year, the residents hope that the work will be allowed to progress gradually to its completion. With the Wall-building, the boulders are being cleared from the beach, and used as hllmg'behindr.tho.-wa11.., Already the beach, at'low water presents a much rooro pleasant sight than it did a few months ago. k

No men of military age will be permitted to play Hug by Union football in Auckland if a recommendation from a meeting of delegates from clubs affiliated with the union is agreed mi at T f lO annual meeting on 5. Ihe delegates unanimously decided at i recent meeting that it he a recommendation to the annual meeting of the union that no player exceeding 20 years of ago in April of this year shall play in the union's competitions. In the course of the discussion on the-pro-posal, it was suggested that players over 20 years of age who .had been rejected by the military authorities on account of physical defeots might be allowed to play, but the meeting was not in favour ' f tho suggestion, and 'it was decided to recommend the adoption of a hard and fast rule, N otherwise it was feared there would bo numerous applications for "exemptions."

Something of a"' record in quick work was established at the Ohristcliurch .Recruiting Office on Wednesday (says a southern paper). Three brothers,came ill shortly after midday, and first one and then another enlisted, after thinking it over. They said the third'brother could not enlist, because they had a lisli cart and a horse which he would have to look after. However, after a short consultation, they rushed out, and in about 10 minutes back again, and the third brother signed on. They did not vouch any information on tho subject of tho cart and horse, but they had evidently disposed of them They Were soon under tho medical examiner, all three passed, and all three put in an appearance at the barracks at night, and left for camp That is surely a day's record for ono family.

Just on three months ago a private, ,ifter being wounded at Gallipoli and a fow months in bed with malarial fever, reached home, and is now at Rotorua. A few days ago (says ail exchange) his parents received a parcel from the front which was labelled as containing "the deceased soldier's property." Included in the parcel Were several articles which had belonged to the pvivate, and several which had not. The soldier was never previously officially reported killed, although at the front' his death was surmised, because, in passing a mortally-stricken man, ho placed his coat on tho form, where it was subsequently found. Before the official notification of tho supposed death was sent out to the world, the soldier was himself found wounded and sent to the hospital. A strange part of the story, however, is the fact that the ooat sent to the parcntS-never did belong to the private; it was the coat of a mounted man, and -the returned man belonged to tho infantry. . Tho American magnetic survey yacht Carnegie, which reached Lyttoiton on Saturday week, after completing a successful cruise of 17,000 miles round the South Pole ice-cap, will be placed in tho graving v dock to-dayj in order that her hull may be inspected and to effect any repairs that may be necessary prior to departure on the northern cruise, en route to New York. As the vessel's hull is covered with special sheathing as a precaution t against magnetic influence, her presence in the dock will be of interest to the shipping fraternity. In tho meantime, Commander J. P. Ault and his staff of investigators are busily engaged compiling their records of the southern results, preparatory to the data bein>r dispatched to the Carnegie Institute's headquarters. > J The Wellington Professional Orchestra \s to give its first concert in His Majesty's Theatre on Sunday evening wext. . ° Tho facial expression of Wellington Housewives is very delighful since No Rubbing Laundry Help has come to wash nil garments perfectly clean without rubbing. "So say all of us." Wellington Grocers.—Advt.

■Winter-is here. You can get what you desire in overcoats from 325. 6d, to 905.; Raincoats, 15s, to BOs. At Geo. Fowlds. i.td.. Manners Street—Advt.

Mr. A. J. Merton, of Christ-church, has received a cablegram stating that his eldest son, J. L. C. Merton, who left New Zealand as adjutant of the Seventh Reinforcements, has been promoted ,to a captaincy in the Sccond Battalion of the Canterbury Infantry Regiment. Mr. W. F. G. Whiteman, wireless station, Chatham;'lslands, writes:— 'On December 27, 1910, a Maori named Ririmu A\ iki to Oi delivered into my hands a slip of paper which he claimed' to liavo_ found in a brandy bottle on the Mairangi. beach, north coast of Chatham Island, oh Sunday, December 26. The slip of paper bore on one side' postmarks of Petone and Wellington," and on the other side the following inscription : 'Cast into the eea on Thursday, September 10, 1915, by Privates H. A. Forster and F. Goode, guards of Somes Island Internment Camp.' \ln accordance with Government regulations relating to articles found on the beaches, I handed the 'find' over to the Collector of Customs here, who has, I believe, forwarded it to the Customs Department in New Zealand. I wrote to Privates Forster and Goode, asking them whether tho bottle was really launched from Somes Island or whether they were outside tho harbour when they threw it in. In reply, both assured mo tliat the bottlo was thrown into the sea from the south-east side of Somes Island. They also stated that the tide was on the ebb, and the wind was slight and from the north." To-day the' Court of Apneal will deliver judgment in the cases Scurr v. Stout, Olsen v. Bal, and Rex v. Haynes. annual Teachers Convention of we Wellington Sunday School Union will be held at Mastertnn during Easter, a. good programme has been prepared, aild provision made for the entertainment of the sixty or seventy delegates expected. Papers are to be given by lour State school teachers, and by three well-known Sunday school workers, tjie Jlasterton Y.M.C.A. will entertain the male delegates to tea on Easter Ulonday. Wellington delegates will tiavel to Mastertuii oil Good Friday aiid return on Easter Mondav.

Thanks to Saturday's heavy down* iwur, the water in tlio Morton dam has gauied considerably since Friday events'® report, which was published in inn Dominion on Saturday morning, lhe reading at 5 p iu. on Friday showed that the water waa then 18ft. sin. below the spillway. When tiie dam was visited by the caretaker yesterday forenoon the level of the water was fouud to be only 12rt. oin. beloiv the spillway, showing a rise of sis feet. Thanks to the heavy rain, the streams running into tho dam were (lowing freely, and tho water in the dam was rising steadily all the time, assisted by the fact that on Sunday tho draw-oif is never so heavy as on a week-day. Though this is a very satisfactory report there is still the need for economy on the part of everyone.

A new instance—one of many—of the consideration and kindness shown to Australians and 1 New Zealanders by, their compatriots in England, is related by a correspondent who writes to an exchango from Dundee: "I may tell you there was a military .funeral here one day lately—nn Australian lad. He died in one of tho war hospitals, and hadUio friends in this country. Mr. ' — 1 j - the undertaker, who had charge <jf the funeral, had the remains of tho lad brought home to his own house, to \ let the lad's people know he was not forgotten, though in a strange place. A notice was put in tlie papors asking any Australians to attend the funeral should they be in town, and a wealthy, gentleman, just here on holiday, hearing of tho dead lad's condition, came nnd took a father's place at the funeral.After all was over this gentleman undertook to write to the lad's people, describing their boy's burial. My wordl you should have seen the interest taken in the funeral, and the piles of flowers sent in from everywhere to bedeck tho last resting-place of one who was not, until too late, alas! found to be so lonely! Rudder was his name, but I don't remember what part of Australia he came from.''

"Some may take it that the working classes in Englafld are not heart ana soul in the war, but they, are, and they bave done very fino work, and are still doing it," remarked Mr.' Frederic Coleman on Saturday evening when tho subject of labour troubles cropped up. Ernest Devoin, who is charged with having shot at and seriously injured Louisa W : hite in the Nairn Street Reserve -a fortnight ago, and' then attempted his own life, was removed on. Saturday from the Wellington Hospital to the Terrace Gaol. Miss White is still in a serious condition. The lower par-t 'of her body is paralysed.-

For twenty-eight years Mr. David Zanders, now of Sydney, lias been wondering why a tou of coal he ordered when living in Tiraaru, New Zealand, on May T.O, 1888, was '•never delivered. He has just solved the puzzle (says the Sydney "Sun" of March 28). Alien he ordered the coal, he did so by addressing a post-card to Mr. Ralph, coal merchant, Timara. The post-card, did noli reach its destination. It waS found the other day secreted behind the private letter boxes in tho Timaru Post Office, wheia it .had lain since tho day it was posted. All effort was made to deliver it to the coal merchant to whom it was addressed, but he had long since departed for a land where the postman's whistle is' never heard. The poslal authorities then discovered that, the sender, Mr. Zanders, had gone to live in Melbourne, where his coal order followed him in duo course. By that time, however, Tie had changed, his place of abodo to Sydney, and hero his long-lost post-card found him. As the card was in tho possession of the postal authorities from tho time it waa posted in Timaru until the day it was delivered in Sydney, this probably constitutes a- record in-its way.