HAS THE PETITION GONE ASTRAY?

Evening Post, Volume LXXXVIII, Issue 23, 27 July 1914, Page 8

HAS THE PETITION GONE ASTRAY?

TO TIIB EDITOR. Sir,—Could you inform your readers what has happened, to Canon Garland's Bible-in-Schools petition to the, petition the number of signatures to which increased every time it was mentioned at a Bible League meeting? The people of New Zealand —and particularly, those ■ who signed the said petition—are' entitled to know why it has not been presented to Parliament, particularly in view of disquieting rumours , at. present, rife anenfc it. Is it a fact that the pcti-' tion cannot be presented to Parliament, by reason of being utterly, invalid in form? Did the league, in drawing up the petition, not know of the requirements of the law ns to the form of a: petition, or / i«' it. a fact that tho said 1 petition wa^'intended, not for presentation to Parliament, but merely for advertising and propagandist purposes? Hoping you will be able to supply tho dc-; sired information, —I am, etc., QUIS, .

24th July, 1914. [Representative men in the Bible-in-Schools Party say there was no such peti-. tion as that described by our correspondent. No large petition was secured for presentation to Parliament, but there was a collection of signatures of those people who wore in favour of the Bible-in-Schools movement and the objects,of the league. In Parliament,the position is that petitions signed by something over 1000 people have been, presented- in Favour of the Bill, and petitions signed by about 60,000 people have been presented agaimi the Bill.l

A woman named Matilda Wilde was admitted to the Hospital last evening suffering from a slight concussion of the brain. She stepped of a car while it was still in motion, and bumped her head on the wood blocks. The accident occurred on Lambton-quay. The woman, who was employed at Young's Private Hotel, had regained consciowness this morning, and will soon be able to leave the Hospital.

':' With a noon temperature of 90 in the shade, shop assistants in New York welcomed the announcement that the I chief great department stores' would not open on Saturdays during July and August, thus giving the employees a, two days' rest each week. YVanamakers, who employ 12,000 and have already adopted the plan, say their experience shows that the trade temporarily lost by closing on Saturdays is more than compensated by the increased efficiency of the refreshed employee's in the five working days. It is estimated that 50,000 New York shop and warehouse assistants now benefit under the scheme, to which new adherents are announced each year. The Gisbqrne School Committee decided to resign as a, protest against the Education Board's refusal to grant rental received from the caretaker's cottage (states a Press Association telegram).

Mr. R. J. Davis, who is welhknown in the Porirua District, advertises -that he has acquired the Porirua Private Hotel, where visitors from the city and elsewhere will obtain best of attention, '.A' first-class table is kept, aud afternoon or morning tea can'be obtained at any time (Sundays included).