LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Evening Post, Volume LXXXI, Issue 40, 17 February 1911, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The Postal authorities advise that the s..s. Victoria, which sailed from Sydney at 3 .p.m. on Wednesday for Auckland', has on board an Australian mail, also the English mail via Suez. The Wellington portion should reach here by Main Trunk express on Monday next. The fifth wool sale of the season will b© held in Wellington at 2 o'clock on Friday, 3rd March. _ Tlie Public Library and the City Council offices were closed to-day on account of ihe Corporation, officers' picnic at Day's Bay. lie library will re-open at 7 o'clock this evening. Mention, was made at the Supreme Court to-day of the case James Flowers v. the Wellington Wharf Labourers' Union, a claim for £175 damages, mandamus, and injunction. The case was to have been heard to-day, but it was put further down the list. To date, 440 entries have been re- [ ceived for the tenth annual meeting of : the Dominion Riflo Association at Trenham on 3rd March. Entries have yefc to I come from Invercargill, Oamaru, Nelson, Taranaki, and Wanganui, as well as additions from Auckland and Dunedin. It is expected that between 550 and 600 competitors will be on the ground. Cold water has been thrown by the Trades and Labour Council on the proposal of Messrs. Lumsden and Jones, of the Wellington Gas Works, to raise funds for the Wellington Hospital by a voluntary tax by workers on their wages of one penny per week. The matter was brought before the meeting of the council last night by a delegate, and after discussion the delegates resolved to condemn it. Apropos of an article which appeared in Tuesday's Post dealing with the charting of the New Zealand coast, "Ancient Mariner" writes agreeing with the contention that a resurvey is an absolute necessity. He states that to look at the present .charts one would imagine that New Zealand had only recently been discovered. Our correspondent suggests that the work should be taken in hand by one of the warships of the Australasian Squadron. "New Zealand," he concludes, "is the worst and most lamentably surveyed region in the world.'* "This is tlie first time in ten years that a proposal to raise a loan has been carried unanimously," said the ActingMayor of the Borough of Onslow (My. Lynneberg) at the meeting of the council last night, when a motion was put that the ratepayers of Khandallah. be approached for authority to raise a loan for the erection, of a hall at Khandallah. The idea is to raise the sum of £1350 to build a hall, for general, social, and public purposes, with, seating accommodation | lor 400 people. If the proposal is carried, the Khandallah ward will be con- [ stituted a special rating area. A little excitement was caused at Thorndon Raths last evening, when a small boy, unable to swim, by some means got. into the deeper part of the enclosure. Two lads went to his assistance, but could do nothing, being repulled underneath the surface bj the excited boy By this time, however, news had reached the caretaker (Mr. J. Calnan) who promptly c]ived in and saved tho boy from his dangerous plight. This is the second lime this week that the caretaker's assistance has been required. On Wednesday morning he pulled out, just in time, a man who had got into difficulties. Tne Public Health Department recently drafted regulations under the Sale of Food and Drugs Act, 1908, having particular referenco to drags which have boen the subject of discussion by various pharmaceutical associations in New Zealand. Yesterclnjr ti conference was held attended by Drs. Frengley, M'Laurin, and Makgill, for the Government departments, and Messrs. F. Castle, J. A. Haslett, L. M'Kenzie, A. Hobson, G. Bagley, members of the Pharmacy Board, and the board's legal adviser, 'jfR. Nielsen, when the regulations and ttieir probable effect were discussed in detail. As a result of tho conference between the department and the board it is probable that a satisfactory agreement regarding j.ihe regulations to be made the subject of j an Order-in-Council will be arrived at. Kac suits .for business or best wear, mado to measuie from selected New Zealand worsteds, at £5 15s the suit. Style and lit guaranteed.- Kivkcaldie and Ktaine, Ltd.— Adv£.

Speaking to a Post reporter this morning, Air. A. A. Lucas, of the Nelson Mail proprietary, referred to a telegram in last night's paper stating that there was only two days' reserve supply in the Nelson waterworks. This, he explained, >vas incorrect. There conld be no possibility of a water famine, as there was ■•an abundance of good pure water from a stream which had never failed for forty years. There was a weir which emptied in two days, and a slight inconvenience might be caused to people, but Nelson could never be afraid of running short. It was reported to the Miramar Borough Council last evening that during the four weeks ending 11th February, 188 feet of the sea wall on the MarineParade had been constructed, leaving 146 feet to be completed. The work could only be carried on under favourable circumstances. The estimate for tho work was £20 per chain, but the actual cost for the distance completed, including all charges, was about £18 per chain. During the next four weekß the wall will be completed, and the laying of the 12-inch storm water drain on Broadway proceeded with. The men will then be required for the completion of Broadway, which will be done out of the street improvement loan. A return of tramway revenue for th-e four weeks ending 2nd February wae presented to last night's meeting of the Miramar Borough Council. On the Miramar line the amount paid for car mileage was £129 17s, and the receipts £128, leaving a loss of £i 17s. The receipts on the Se-atoun line amounted to £192 3s, the mileage being £110 Bs, leaving a gain of £81 15s. The net gain on both lines was £79 18s. For the same period last year the loss on the Miramar line was £1 10s, and the gain on the Seatoun line was £21 12s Ad, making a net gain on both lines of £'aO 2s 3d. A second return for the two weeks ended 2nd February revealed a gain of £45 4s 2d on the Seatoun line, rs compared with a gain of £6 5s 5d for the corresponding fortnight of 1910. The gain on the Miramar line was £6 Bs, as compared with a loss of £8 12s 6d for the same period of 1910. Since the enforcement of the rule requiring defendants in the S.M. Court to give a week's notice of intention to deiend. there have been innumerable cases in which notice has not been given at all, or where it has not been given within the proper time, and defendants have asked the Bench time and time again for I special indulgence. The Act makes some provision, for this, but is by no means definite as to what circumstances excuse j failure to file the notice of a defence within the pre&cribed limits. While making a plea on behalf of a client at the Wanganui Court, counsel suggested (says •the Herald) that a notice of intention to defend should be attached to every summons issued, expressing the opinion that this would bring the matter into sufficient prominence, and that it would be a convenience to country "defendants, who now had to come to the court to obtain the forms*. Ihe Bench pointed out that the Justice Depaitment was the proper body to receive such a suggestion. According to the current number of ! the Labour Journal the demand for j able-bodied men in the Wellington district has been good during the month of January, and competent navvies and builders' labourers ha-ve experienced no difficulty in obtaining work. Indeed, hands have been advertised for locally at 11s per day, whilst on the books of the department there have been openings availa&te for all hands capable ot dome luboureis' work, m both the town and country districts. The assistanceafforded to applicants by the department has been chiefly that of giving comsession rail and steamer passes to enable them to reach places where employment had been, previously obtained. Farm hands continue to be in strong demand from all parts of the Wellington district, and the shortage of men and boys is so great that farmers are willing to engage hands who have had no previous , experience at the work. Married couples for farms are also in request, and some good openings are available. The credentials of the delegates from the Wharf Labourers' Union to the Wellington Trades and Labour Council were not accepted by the council at last week's meeting, owing to the election being disputed by Mr. D. M'Laren. The matter, after a protracted meeting, v/as then referred back to the union. At last night's meeting of the council a letter was received from the union stating that the council's notification was being considered by it, but no decision had yet been arrived at. By 15 vot-es to 12, the council last night referred tha letter back to the union for further explanation. The wharf labourers' delegates did not vote. The chairman's ruling was then asked as to the position of the sitting delegates of the union in question, and Mr. E. J. Carey ruled that the original six delegates of the Wharf Labourers' Union, who had represented the union tor some months past, were still the delegates from that union, and were entitled to sit as its representatives *on the council and take part in its deliberations. The chairman based his ruling on these grounds — (1) "that the election of delegates to supersede the sitting delegates had been disputed," and that the union had not yet settled the question at issue ; (2) that the Wharf Labourers' Union could not be disfranchised and unrepresented on the council because of the disputed election, and therefore its sitting delegates were entitled to represent it until definitely superseded by other delegates. This ruling was challenged, but was upheld by 24 votes to 11. Finally notice of motion was given to deal with the chairman's ruling at next meeting. Mr. M. P. Cameron, who lias been appointed by the Minister of Customs to enquire into the alleged falling-oil' in tho engineering and iron-foundry trades, has arrived in Christchurch, having completed his investigations in Southland, Otago, and South Canterbury. Mr. Cameron's mission is the outcome of the deputation, consisting of representatives of the employers and employees in the engineering trade, which waited on the Minister in Nowmber last, and. which biought under his notice the slackness in the trade. The Minister promised that an enquiry would be made during the recess, and upon that enquiry Mr. Cameron is at present engaged. So far, he has met with every assistance from those engaged in the trade, but he finds that his investigations in Chnslchuvch will take him longer than he anticipated, and, as he has still to visit the West Coast and tho North Island manufacturing centres, he does not think it likely that his leport will be completed by the end of March, and consequently ib will be necessary for him to ask for an extension of lime. The information he is collecting is given him on the "understanding that it is to be considered strictly confidential. H-e is obtaining figures relating to the output of the different foundries and works. Hence he was not in a position to give a representative of The Press, who saw him, any details regarding his investigation, nor any deductions that he had arrived at. From what Mr. Cameron has seen of the Christchurch foundries and implement works, he has been much impressed by the fine quality of the mechanical work produced. Some of the work done in Chrislchurch, he stated, is not attempted in Wellington. He recognises, however, that in Chrislchurch more attention is naturally paid to this class of work, seeing that the foundries and works cater so largely for the refluiremonts of the funning community..

Mr. W. F. Massey {Leader of the Opposition), and Mr. F. W. Lang, M.P. for Manukau, have been invited to visit Jvawhia and Raglan. They will probably go there in the course of a< week or two. Mr. Massey has also promised to attend a banquet to be given in his honour by the settlers at Puhoi, in the Auckland district. The Secretary for Labour has issued the following instruction to local inspectors : — "As probably you are aware, a Stone Quarries Act was passed last year, making provision for registration and inspection of stone quarries by the Mines Department. A clause that was inserted in the Bill to the effect that, excepting so far as it was inconsistent ' to the same, the Factories Act should also apply to stone quarries, was struck out, and we must therefore cease to register and inspect stone quarries under the Factories Act." Sub-Inspector Wright, formerly chief clerk in the Police Department, who was temporarily placed in charge of the Thames sub-police district, has been, notified that lie has been appointed to the position which he has been hold-v ing there for some months. Sub-In-spector B. Sheehan, of Auckland, who has been appointed to Wellington, will take up his duties in this city at tho end of the present month, replacing bubInspector Norwood, who is to take charge at Palmerston North. Constable Ouinn, of Addingfcon, and Constable Bird, of Culverden, have been promoted to 'the rank of sergeant. The former is to be transferred to Ghristchurch and " the latter to Auckland. Another illustration of the risk incurred by any person who pells a railway ticket marked "not transferable" was " afforded at the Magistrate's Court, today, when a young man admitted to Mr. W. G. Riddell, S.M., (hat on the 30th January, between Wellington and Paral>araumu, _he sold the return half of a railway ticket Auckland to Wellington, which had; been used for part of the ~ journey for which the ticket was issued. Defendant had bought a second-class return ticket at Auckland, and came to Wellington on it. As he decided to remain here, he had no further use for the return half and sold it privately for 15s. Tho magistrate imposed a fine of ss, with 7s costs, default being twenty-four hours' detention. Referring to the slow passages mado by the Maheno on the AucklandSydney run, Sir James Mills said to an Auckland Star reporter that the Maheno was built to maintain a speed of 16 knots per hour. While on the Vancouver run she kept up a satisfactory time-table, and the fact that she is now making such long trips between Sydney and Auckland is a matter* for Gome concern. The reason ascribed for this unsatisfactory state of affairs is that the boat is unpopular with firemen, and the best class of men is not procurable. In order to attract more suitable men some alterations and improvements are being made to the firemen's quarters, and it is hoped that this will lead to satisfactory result*, j Tho death is announced by our - Chrisichurcli correspondent of Mr. William Sey, who had been suffering from a heart trouble for a considerable time. He was born in May, 1852, at Glenfondlin, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, and served an apprenticeship as a painter and decora-tor with th-e well-knbvn firm of Farquhar and Gill, Aberdeen. He came to Canterbury in 1880, married in the following year, and started business. He was specially interested in the Canterbury Industrial Association, of which he was a vice-president, and he, together with Mm. Sey, helped largely to bring about the success of the Industrial Exhibition held in 1895 under the association's .auspic.es. He was also an 1 active member of the Canterbury Society of Arts, and was a member of the 1 council of that body. He was elected a. member of the Canterbury Caledonian. Society in 1883. a director In 1890, and [ a vice-president in 1896. He was also a member of the Canterbury Masonic ' Lodge, and was Worshipful Master, his term of office expiring to-morrow. Mention is made in the Wangaaui Herald of an amusing incidont which took place on a recent down trip of one of the up-river steamers. >Wken steaming towards one of the worst rapids on the river, tho captain deemed it advisable to turn the boat and bring her down the rapid, as ift often done, stern first. The operation of turning was not quite successful, and the steamer was driven broadside on, with stern and bow touching the bank on either side of the river. Amongst the interested spectators of the manoeuvring of the vessel were two American engineers, who were "doing" the sights of New Zealand. One of them, more curiously inclined than the other, politely asked the cap-tain what was tho idea of putting the vessel broadside on. The skipper equal to the occasion, and remarked' that the object was to dam the water up_ sufficiently to allow of the vessel's getting over the rapids without touching, and, suiting the action to tho word, the steamer vitas turned on her course and proceeded on her journey. "Guess the skipper knows how to handle craft on this bit of a crick (creek)," was the retort of the astonished visitor to the other highly-amused passengers who had overheard the conversation. Inspector O'Donovan was accorded an enthusiastic send-off when leaving Palmerston North yesterday to take charge of the Southland police district. In presenting him with an address on behalf of the citizens, the Mayor (Mr. J. A. Nash) said that in Inspector O'Donovan they had a capable and efficient officer, who had ever been ready in helping to maintain the peace and order of the town. During the trying time of the Powelka scare, the council had the utmost confidence in the inspector, ami he had proved himself -worthy of that confidence. He referred to the many services the inspector had rendered outside of his departmental duties, especially to people in need and suffering. He wished Mr. and Mrs. O'Donovan "God-speed," and trusted the inspector would, ere long, rise still higher in his department. Several of the leading citizens spoke of the very capable and conscientious manner in which Inspector O'Donovan had carried out his duties. Inspector O'Donovan said that the gathering was the best reward a police officer could receive — the goodwill of the people amongst whom he had served. He expressed his appreciation of the assistance and good advice ho had always received from the Mayor, more especially during the troublesome times of tho Powelka scare. Inspector O'Donovan and Mrs. O'Donovan and family left fot the South yesterday evening. When you check your baggage through us you have only to pack and unpack it. We pick it up at your door, check it, and you find it waiting at your hotel at other end. Checking is free; cartage only is charged. N.S. Express Co., Ltd.— Advt. A striking illustration of the "entente coi'diale" and its effects on tho social and economic policies of nations is now being brought forward before tho dwellers in this Dominion by the presence in New Zealand waters of the French cruiser Kersaint. This joint goodwill between two nations is not only a triumph of diplomacy, but is also a compliment to the reason and humanity of the twentieth century, and at any rate wo know without doubt tuat tho spirit of ''mutual consideration" is horo in the city ot Wellington, i where C. Smith, Ltd., Cuba-street, have determined upon a final clearing of items in tho Dress Department during tins week, each Hem has been carefully gone through, and prices iv many cases cut down less than half. If this is not a forcible expression of "entente covdtale," we don't know what ie.—Advt.