LOCAL AND GENERAL

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3104, 7 June 1917, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL

The value of tho grazing industry of th« Dominion of the sending of its products to the soldiers now fighting th° cause of civilisation was emphasised by Mr. .T. G. Harkiiess. chairman of the conference of North Auckland dairy factory representatives. The herds of Europe, he pointed out, had been depleted for immediate food purposes, and soldiers who had acquired the taste for beef and mutton while in tho armies would require those products to be supplied li> lliem in times of peace. For these reasons he anticipated a. good market for New Zealand's output for years to come.

Cabinet decided yesterday lo concede some pari of I lie demand of (lie Christchurch deputation winch waited upon tho Minister of Railways lust week, making ti request for Mm restoration of lato evening trains for the convenience of waterside workers who might be required to star in Ly Helton lo work cargo, but who under the present restricted ecrvico are unable to do ho because there ore no late trains by which fliey may travel to their homes in Christchurch. The. Minister promised the deputation that he would give the Department authority to nut on a (rain on any night when the Minister of Munitions requisitioned for one on the ground that the men \ma required lo work cargo for an oversea vessel. The further concession which lias just been trranled is that I.Tainsjuay now be rainisitioned and run Tor vessels other than overseas steamers. Ycslerdav morning Doleclive-SergeaJtl Cox, Detective Carney, and Constable Black arrested George Dyhrberg. dealer, of Tennyson Street, on a. charge of assisting Albert Vance Steward, of Cornbill Street, in the conduct of a. common gaming house. They further charged Dylirberg with betting in a. public place, \ccnsrd npneared veslerdar afternoon before Mr. L. 0. Reid, S.M., and was remanded fill 2.15 n.m. to-morrow Ho wan allowed Kail in the sum of ,£IOO, with one surety of JCIOO.

The Mastcrton agent of the Lahour Department, in his annual report, states that all branches of tho building trade throughout the Wairarapa continue to show considerable activity, but tho scarcity of skilled labour has proved a great drawback to the completion of contracts. In connection with tho building trade, bricklayers, plumbers, and painters available have proved insufficient to cope with the work offering.

The Coroner, Mr. W. G. Kiddell, S.M., on Tuesday night opened an inquest at Porirua concerning the death o£ ono James At'Ciill, supposed to bo a returned soldier. M'Clill, it appears, was taken from Wellington to the Porirua Mental Hospital, and died of meningitis very shortly after admission. • Tho inquest was adjourned, r.nd will prooably b° i'csumed to-morrow or on Saturday.

Since tlm last distant meeting at which widely-divergent views on potato-planting at Mirajnar were voiced little lias been done to further the proposal to increase l>v communal effort the local food supply. The Mayor (Mr. ,T. P. Luke) has, however, had an interview with flu> Hon. W. D. f>. MacdonaM, Minister of Agriculture, on the subject, and at a meeting of tho •committee convened for tomorrow evening, he will inform the committee, of the Minister's view on the subject. He has already promised the assistance of Departmental officers to assist potato-growers either on a large or small scale. In the meantime the- season advances.

At the silting of the Hutf. Licensing Committee yesterday the wholesale liccn-e of A. Y. Lees, Lower Hutt, was renewed.

A resolution was passed at last year's conference of delegates of North -Auckland dn.iry factories that the Government dairy division should be asked to arrange for the appointment, of instructors for the dairy industry at the earliest possile date. A letter dealing with the matter, from Mr. D. Cuddie, director of the dairy division, was read at this week'B conference, in which it was stated that there was no doubt that the present position of tho dairy industry required that additional instructors should ho appointed to pay special attention to the farm end of tho business, for much of the milk and cream being received at the factories was- found to be.faulty, through lack of knowledge or carelessness on Iho part of a section of the producers. While the dairy division could at present cope very well with the instruction in factories, at regards the manufacture ol butter and cheese, the number of instructors was altogethei\too small to allow much time to bo devoted to assisting farmers with their part of the work. Owing to the scarcity of men. there'was little chance of tho Government entertaining the proposal In increase the number of instructors until tho war was over.

Since the beginning of thp year 125 school boys and girls have joined the Wellington Branch of the Navy League, 'the Palmer Prize Fund now amounts to .€M 12s. Bd. Messrs. 0. B. Morison, E, L«e, Manton, D. Fimllay, E. Hadfield, M. Luckie; A. Biss. T. S. -Weston, and dm Her. 3.'."Hunt have promised to give short Icotures to school children when called upon by the League.

Four games were played in t.lio war fund billiard diner tournament at Alcock's showrooms last ovening, tho result being: A group—W. Isaac heat K. Mason, H. IT. Porter teat 6. Bradley. B group—N. Groves beat G. Groves and F. Kelt beat A'. Groves. All four games were closely contested, Porter perhaps sliowing tho best form in A group and N. Groves in B group. The last-named was unlucky, and with ordinary luck should have won. Although his opponent Kell played consistently he was rather favoured by the run of the balls. Four games" will he played this evening. At a sitting of the Conciliation Council at Gisborne (says the "Times") the Commissioner (Jfr. T. Harle Giles), when referring to carpenters', apprentices, said that he did not think the facilities. for training apprentices were satisfactory. Ho considered that there was not sufficient encouragement given by the Government to young fellows to learn their trades. Something would have Jo be done in that direction. The State paid for the training of teachers,: paid their salaries while they were being trained, yet apprentices for skilled trades were' not given any assistance. The time was coming when greater assistance would have to be given, to apprentices; the young fellows would have to be trained or else tho trades would die out. It was stated that there Imd been a carpentering class at the Technical School, but it had not been supported and liad lapsed. One of the employers said that he had offered to give 6ome of his time nt tho shop in the evening to teach his annrentices, but it was not taken up:— "Too many picture shows in Gisborne," remarked another employer.

•'At the last meeting of t'ho Thorndon branch of tlie Amalgamated' Society of. Railway Servants the following motions were carried:—(l) "This branch considers that, owing- to tho contiiiu«d increase in the cost of living, the Executive Council should be urged to at once' take steps to obtain an increase of 2s. per day for railwaymen. That a deputation wait on Parliament at an early date, to place this matter before members, and also to point out- how utterly unjust it is for reponsible members of flie Government to "tell workers that it is time for all to make sacrifices, when, one class is allowed to take 55 per cent, war profits." (2) "This branch protests against the action of the Department in balloting for men who have been called up under the Military Service Act. Tho method adopted, in our. opinion, is most unfair, owing to tho Department tagging some classes of men who have actually been drawn in the vailwav ballot. We urge the Executive Council to take steps to see that no member is sent into camp ahead of another' who.has been drawn before him."

A largo party of officials, prominent citizens, and their wives will bo entertained at the kinemacolour pictures of "The Wonderland of New Zealand" .at the Town Hall on Monday night, at the special invitation of the general manager of the Government Tourist Department. To-night there is to be a. citizens' meeting in the Town Hall, presided over by His Worship the Mayor. There are several speakers to . resolutions having reference to the G o'clock closing of hotel bars as ». war officiencv measure. The details of tho meeting will bo found in our advertising columns. The three Russian musicians, theCherniavskvs, after a season in Australia, intend returning to New Zealand for three weeks in August, en route to America. The Astronomical Section of the Philosophical Society met last evening. Mr. W. S. La Trobe, who presided, delivered an opening address on "The Encouragement of I'ure Science in Education."' Professor 11. 11. T. Somerville read a paper on the plaihspherc. and exhibited an excellent instrument which he himself had contrived. Dr. C. E. Adams contributed notes of observations of the recent cornel.