INTERCOLONIAL BREVITIES

Evening Post, Volume LIX, Issue 11, 13 January 1900, Page 3 (Supplement)

INTERCOLONIAL BREVITIES

— I—*1 — * Recent report* from Western Queensland stated that the country was in a terrible condition from drought. The Queensland Commissioner of Police says the Gatton tragedy has not been allowed to drop out of sight, and certain suspects are still being watched. A committee is to be appointed to decido on the divisions of the colony of New South Wales for the purpose of the elections for tho Federal Parliament. Tiro residents of Gatton (Q.) propose > to erect a monument to tho memory of Michael, Norah, and Ellen Murphy, who were murdered there on Boxing Day, 1898. The Victorian Government telegraphed the other day to the War Office asking if they could supply the Victorian forces with 0000 Lee-Enfield magazine rifles at once, in substitution of a similar number of Martini-Enfield rifles which were recently ordered. An extensive fire at Ballarat on the 28th ultimo caused damage amounting to £8000. Some premises of Snow and Co. , drapers and general furnishers, and of Messrs. Lederman, Ince, and Hammond, adjoining, Avere damaged. F. Furlong, of the Fire Brigade, was struck on the head with a brick and seriously injured. A committee of persons of aotuarial experience is to be appointed to make a full investigation into tho state of the Public Accounts of New South Wales. Mr. Russell French, of the Bank of New South Wales, and Mr. T. A. Dlbbs, of the Commercial Bau|c of Sydney, have been appointed as Commissioners, and a third has still to be selected. With reference to the vacant see of 'Ballarat, the Melbourne correspondent of the Sydney Daily Telegraph says :— "The overwhelming desire locally is to select a Bishop from amongst the Australian priesthood, or those already at the head of sees, in preference to sending to England. It is stated that if Bishop Julius (of Christchurch) or Bishop Stretch would accept the see, either would receive an overwhelming welcome." According to the health returns published in the Victorian Government Gazette there were more deaths from influenza in Melbourne and suburbs last year than in any preceding year since 1891. Up to the end of November 298 sucoumbed to this epidemic, which was especially fatal to elderly people, the great majority of them who died being over 60 years of age. Although many children and young men and women under 30 years of age were attacked by influenza, very few of them died. The Premier of New South Wales recently forwarded a telegram to Sir Julian ■ Salomons informing him that it was currently reported in Sydney that large orders for produce for use in South Africa were being given to the other colonies, , but that none were being received by New South Wales. Mr. Lyne asked if , the Agent-General could arrange prompt- ■ ly for similar orders to be given to this colony. Speaking generally, the Premier , said that he believed that the business , arrangements in Londoni of the other colonies were far in advance of those of i New South Wales, and he intended to make an investigation into ,the whole r matter. As the result of a speech delivered i some time ago by Bishop Gibney, in [ which he accused the Victorian inspectors of schools of unfairness, the latter addressed a minute to the Inspector-Gcne-i nil, asking to be relieved of the examination of Roman Catholic schools in future if tho imputation weie not withdrawn. Hitherto the inspectors, at the request of the Roman Catholic authorities, ha\ i examined the Roman Catholic schools,. in order that the public should be satisi fled that a standard of efficiency is maintained equal to that of the State schools. i The Inspector-General is said to sympathise with his colleagues. The Minister i of Education in the- meantime has asked the inspectors to continue to inspect > the schools in question. A striking, illustration of the effect of a technical flaw has just been supplied i by the Melbourne Law , t Courts\ The i directors of a certain company had made a call of a shilling a share. Some shareholders did not pay the call, whereupon the directors notified them that their holdings would be liable to forfeiture unless the calls were paid on a cei,.iin day o£ a place named. The shares were afterwards forfeited. The right of the directors to act in this way was fully admitted, but the shareholders won a case in the Courts, and have to be reinstated on the company's share register. It all turned upon the form of notice* sent to these shareholders, which, while naming a date on which, if the call were unpaid, the shares would be liable to forfeiture, did not actually demand the money on that date. The Adelaide Advertiser's «arly forecast of this season's wheat harvest in South Australia states that the area reaped for wheat will probably be only slightly greater than that of last season, as, although a greater acreage was planted, a higher percentage than usual was cut for hay. It is estimated that nibout 1,800,000 acrejj have been reserved for wheat, and the yield from this is set down at 10,500,000 bushels, of about six bushels to the acre. Of this quantity .6,800,000 bushels will be required for local consumption and for seed, leaving 6,700,000 bushels, or 187,500 tons, for export. Last year the surplus for export amounted to 166,000 tons, and the average yield was ,just under five bushels per acre. The sample of whpat this year, so far as can be Judged from that already published, is exceptionally good for milling purposes. A deputation from the Victorian Silk Culture of Rural Industries Association , waited on the Minister of Agriculture on ' ..^u December, and impressed on him the importance that the poultry industry would 06 to the colony if it were properly encouraged and .developed. It was urged that the Agricultural Department should appoint experts to visit country districts and lecture on tho breeding and rearing of poultry, with the view of inducing the farmers and others to «'n'bark in. this industry in the hope of establishing a large export trade in eggs and poultry. Mr. Graham replied |;hat he sympathised with the objeot the deputation had in view. Poultry-keeping as a branch of agriculture had been much neglected, farmers being, as a rule, in the dark as regards the value of poultryrearing. He had prepared a scheme for aiding this industry, and he was certain it would when put into operation result in the farmers being educated on poul-try-keeping, and would tend materially to build up an export trade. The Early Closing Act which came into operation in New South Wales on the Ist instant provides that all shops in the metropolitan districts tincluding Newcastle, shall close on four days a week at 6 p.m., on one day at 10 p.m., and on one day at 1 p.m. The general rule followed will be Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday close at 6 p.m. ; Friday, 10 p.m. ; Saturday, 1 E.m. Some will, however, give tho halfoliday on Wednesday, and keep open on Saturdays till 10 p.m. Domestic servants employed by .shopkeepers are not included in the operation' of the Act. There are a large number of exemptions, such as chemists, undertakers, hairdressers, hotels, and eating-houses, but it is provided that employees in many of these shall not be worked more than 60 hours per week, and shall each have a holiday. Certain municipalities outside the metropolitan area are classed as "shopping districts," and the same hours will apply, while power is given to constitute new districts when desirable.