LOCAL AND GENERAL

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 51, 23 November 1917, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

The now scale of separation allowances for the wives and children cf soldiers will reduce tho claims upon tho patriotic societies. This point was montioned at yesterday's meeting of the executive of the Wellington War Funds Association. Tho chairman said that after January 1, when the wife would receive 3s. a. day and each child Is. a day, the position of tho family that had been living on an income of less than £200 a year would to very good indeed.

Diphtheria is etill with us, and it behoves every parent to see thata child complaining of sore throat is immediately examined. At tho monthly meoting'of tho Wellington Hospital Board yestorday lT was reported that during the month ended November 13, 38 cases of diphtheria hud been reported, as against 40 during tho previous month. Of that number 28 cases had occurred, in Wellington city_ over a widespread area. The districts where the oases occurred were shown at the meeting by means of coloured pins stuck in the oxact localities on a plan of the city. This snowed the districts to.be affected as follow: Newtown, 6 cases; Mount Victoria, 4; Te Aro flat, 6; Kelburn, 1; Maranui, 3; Kilbirnie, 1; Ber. hamnore, 3; Morninston, 1; Vogeltown, 2; Brooklyn, 1; Thorndon, 1. Only nine cases of scarlet fever were reported for the month. j A farthing a pieco for nails I , Who would have thought that common ordinary everyday four-inch wire-nails wild over be sold at four a penny? Yet such is the price they aro now being indented at for use in Wellington. Tho price of ordinary wiro building nails was, before the war, 12s. per cwt. (and builders know that the prices of nails aro all graded on tho standard prico of the four-inch article). To-day the quotation is 60s. per cwt., which, on being worked out, makes the price of ench nail one farthing.' AVhen the Blackball Coal Company's collier Ngakuta was alongside a steamer loading mails for Greymouth yesferday morning, ono sling containing several bags struck the railing of the steamer and collapsed. The bags fell between the two steamers into the water, but wero all quickly recovered. Tho bags were'reopened at the Post Office, and the letters .were dried, an operation which took about three hours.

Five members of tho executive of the Wellington War Relief Association are retiring in accordance with the rules, and their places have to bo filled at the annual meeting of the association, which is to bo held in the Town Hall Concert Chamber on Tuesday/ December 11. Nominations will close on November 30. The retiring members arc eligible for re-election. The Arbitration Court has delivered its reserved judgment in the case in which Ab Mine, a Chinaman, claimed compensation from George Bevan,. of Otaki fanner, for an injury to bia right ore The plaintiff alleged that he received the injury while he was engaged in trimming a hedge for the defendant. At tho hearing several, defenros wore raised. but the Court overruled all but the plea of insufficient notice of the accident. In its judgment the Court held that the notice was sufficient, and that tho plaintiff was entitled to 28 weeks' compensation at the rate of £1 4s per week, plus 50 per cent, of full compensation for the remainder of the neriod of liability, with costs. At the hearing Mr. P. J. O'Bcpran .ipnoarecl for the plaintiff r.nd Mr. C. H. well for the defendant. f Sitting in Chambers yesterday morn, in" the Chief Justice (Sir Robert Stout) heard an interesting argument about the guardianship of three small children The case was brought by .way of an orginating summons by Bridget Wiltshire (the mother of the accused), who asked that sho bo given custody of them. The children wore inmates of the Wellington Receiving Homo, and the defendants cited were therefore L. B Bradstock and A. B. Cox, who are in' charge of the borne Mr. H. F. O'Leary appeared for the plaintitt and Mr. P." S. K. Macassev, of the Crown Law Office, for +ho defendants. After Mr. O'Leary had been beard, Mr. Macassey contended that tho guardian of the school for the time beiuo; was, the guardian of the infants, and that the Court had no jurisdiction to remove him or to appoint another guardian. The right of transferring guardianship, he submitted, was vested in the. Gov-ernor-General, and the children could he discharged from the home only by him. His Honour observed that tho question was an important ono, and reserved bis deoision.

Tho number of medical men at present practising in tho Wairarapa. is fourteen, which reproscnte ono to every 2'2'lS of the population.

At last evening's meeting of tho Miramar Borough.Council tho following resolution forwarded by tbo Uniteci Fire Brigades' Association was endorsed :—"That in view of tiio splendid response of tho fire brigades of tbo Dominion to tiio call of the Empire, and tho present bcrions shortago of ■men, tho National Efficiency Board be requested to classify fire; brigado work as an essontial industry, and to exemption to present 'members ut tbo Second Division."

It was resolved pt yesterday's meeting of tlio Wellington Hospital and Charitable Aid Board that the bequest of the lute Mr. Allan Maguire of £500 bo invested in Post Office'war bonds.

Twenty-two eases of, infectious disease, of which fourteen were diphtheria, were registered in tho Wairarapa during the month of October.

Messrs. J. H. Betlrane and Co. hold a property auction at their rooms on Wednesday afternoon, when they sold a residential property, No. 34 Mahora Street, Kilbirnio, for £410, the purchaser being Miss Emma M. Asquith.

A suggestion that a grant should bo mado to tho 2nd Battalion of tho New Zealand Hide Brigado for the purchase of comforts during tho coming European winter wag before the Wellington War Funds Association yesterday, Tho matter had previously been considered by the Advisory Board. A letter from tho front stated that money tv.is required to supplement the regimental funds for Hie purchase of vegetables and otlior foodstuffs. Tho men would make fixed contributions from their pay and the additional funds would bo wed by way of subsidy. Tho Rifle Eripnde could not address its appeal to a particular district, since its battalions had not got a. provincial basis. The Advisory Board had decided that a grsnt of £250 should bo made', and bad fixed tho share of the Wellington Association at £34. The chairman of the association (Mr. L. O. H. Tripp)' stated that the money could not be paid f;.om tbo funds of the association, sinco the rules required that the expenditure should be for invalided and necessitous soldiers, but he and Mr. P. W. Wanton would see that the money was raised by epecial subscription.

A request from the Auckland War Relief Association for assistance in the purchase and maintenance of a motorcar for the use of soldiers at tho Waikato Sanatorium was before tho Wellington War Funds Association yesterday. The executive of the association decided to refer tho request to tho Rod Cross Association.

A notice in this week's Gazette prohibits tho importation'of preparations purporting to he remedies for tho drink and drug habits. Preparations are mentioned specifically, and tho notice places a general'ban on "any preparation purporting: to bo a remedy for drunkenness, akoholio habit, opium habit, tobacco habit, cocaine habit, or other drug habits."

During the last two days 1729 inchee of rain have been Tegistered fit So way, Masterton.

The Miramar Borough Engineer (Mr. Fox) reported to the council last evening that a new award for general labourers had come into force. The ratff of pay had boon raised to Is. 4Jd. per hour. For some time the council had been paying Is. 4d. per hour to casuals and Is. 3Jd. to nermanents. The engineer recommended the council to pay all employees the same wage, with special privileges such as payment for holidays and the guarantee of work in wet weather for permanerits as at prosent. This would moan an increase of about £100 per year respecting the whole staff. The engineer's recommendation was adopted.

Mr. W. G. Riddcll, S.M., held an in. quest yesterday afternoon touching the death of John Lane, an elderly man, who died suddenly at his residence in Howe's Lano on Tuesday. The verdict, based on tho medical evidence, was to the effect that death was duo to heart-trouble, aggravated by tuberculosis: At the inquest Sergeant FitzPatrick, of Taranaki Street station, represented the police-.

Private P. O'Connor, who stands 7ft. 6in. high, and weighs 20s_t. 101b., is said to be the tallest man in the British Army (remarks.the "Sydney Daily Telegraph"). He returned to Sydney from (active service for the second time a few days ago. A special hammock had to'be constructed for him, and bis walking-stick would serve us a tentpole. His hand can stretch to two octaves on the piano. He lias a twin brother the same height as himself wlio is a blacksmith in Canada. Though he was placed as a guardsman at the High Commissioner's office in London for eighteen weeks to advertise Australia, bo is in reality an Irishman from Limerick. With pride he shows the marks of wounds received in Afghanistan, but is reticent of the part he has played in this war, though he has twico seen service.

A strong appenl to the Church to assist in tho uplift of the masses was made by Mr. L. M. Isitfc. M.P., in a recent speech in Iho south. "Whenever you pe'ople hear the word , politician you sneer," ho said. "Now, just for a"little while you are going to hear a politician discuss parsons." Continuing, Mr. Isitt &aid that the Chuych was nearly as politic as politicians. Every Sunday in cities of tho Old Country clergymen took short cuts to ' their churches through tho slums. Lot one of them start to tell his congregation the truth of what ho saw thero and lio would be discreetly silenced. Labour, knowing tin's, turned resentfully away from the door of the Church .Tilings were not ae bad in the Dominion, hut even hero thero wore "numbers of pennle struggling with the direst -poverty. Was the Church doing its duty by them? I.W.W. and mad extremists should not blind Christians to the recognition that the masses had a claim on the Church. "It is as much the duty of the Church to oppose things that mean the moral degradation of the people as it is its business to preach tho gospel," <jooTtired Mr. Tsitt. "Sometimes in the House of Parliament wo fight Christ s battles. It is a lone fight, for it is seldom, wo have tho support of wlujt should be our chief supporter—Christ s Church. In nil economic mictions tho Church should stand by. Labour when. it believes Labour to be in the riaht, and to refute its clnims when Labour is known to bo in ih'o wrong." l

The police are prosecuting activo inquiries into the origin of the several (ires that , , have occurred of Into (says a Christchurch paper), particularly in view of the suspicious circumstances surrounding the outbreak on Monday nipht at' Colter's Hotel,, which, whilo presenting many suspicious features, was bappily quickly extinguished, practically no damage being dono. Tho owners of various hotels and other large institutions ia the city—including the polico—received anonymous communications on 'luesday informing them that their promises were about to bo burned, and bidding them "Ilcwaro" in large letters. Theso fanatical documents were signed "A Pi'iend," and although little notice was talton of tbem—they were evidontly tho pro-, duction of an hysterical mind or a very deluded practical joker—still extra procautions woro taken by tho police, and a pickot of two or three constables was to be seen in the vicinity of most of the large hotels and boardinghousos,