GENERAL NEWS

Evening Post, Volume XCII, Issue 8, 10 July 1916, Page 2

GENERAL NEWS

At the Ashburton Magistrate's Court last week, states the Ashburton Guardian, when the cases against Territorials for failing to attend the annual training camp were being heard, the name of Alfred Pauling was called, an*, in. response, a young man, wearing the rod badge signifying that he was honourably discharged from the New Zealand Expeditionary Forces, limped into Court and pleaded not guilty. He was a. returned soldier:. Immediately the case was called the charge was withdrawn, but Mr. Cassidy, who appeared for defendant, asked that he receive costs. Defendant had been to Gallipoli, was wounded, and came back to "New Zealand, where he was honourably discharged. He had received a summons, and had been brought to Court at great inconvenience. The Magistrate (Mr V. G. Day, S.M.) said that defendant should have written to-the Defence.authorities. Defendant said a friend.of his had come into Asiiburton and had seen Lieutenant Grut, who promised to communicate with the authorities at .Timarii. Mr Cassidy said that if the Defence authorities could not keep the books properly they should have to pay for it. The Magistrate said that if Pauling made application he would recommend that a day's wages be paid. .

The arrival of the steamer Wallsend, 500 tons, at Poet Waikato, on-- Wednesday, to load timber for Sydney, was welcomed with considerable interest among those who are endeavouring to develop the service by water of the Waikato. The steamer has been chartered by the United Timber Company, wHbse sawmill is situated at Mercer. The Wallsend entered Port Waikato at midday, drawing 14ft 6in, and negotiated the bar without difficulty, foDowing the course recently marked by beacons by the Marine Department, as the result of the visit by the Minister for Marino (the Hon. R, M'Nab). The cargo for the steamer had been oonveyed from Mercer twenty-fiv« miles in pontoons. The United Timber Company proposes to maintain a monthly service, and it is probable that on the next trip the steamer will bring a cargo to discharge at Port Waikato. Commenting on the new service, Mr. A. G. C. Glass, chairman of the Waikato River Board, remarked that the Wallsend was the first steamer to enter the river' port since the days of the Maori wars. He, added- that the steamer's passage "oi the bar proved that the board's works had not, as some people feared, been in any way detrimental .to the port.

Unanimous endorsement was given last week to the proposals by the Mayor of Auckland for the training of returned soldiers in agriculture by.the committee to which his report was referred from the executive of the Auckland Patriotic Association.. The latter was represented by thlp chairman, Mr. J. H. Gunson, Messrs. A. S. Bankart and V. J. Lar : ncr, and associated with them in reviewing the. proposals were Messrs. H. M. Skeet'(Commissionerof Crown Lands), A. S. .Thompson, president, and S. W. Luxford, a past president of the Auckland Agricultural and Pastoral Association, and A. A. Boss, provincial president of the Farmers' Union. The principal feature of Mr. Gunson's proposals (says the New Zealand Herald) is that special farms should be established for the training of soldiers before they undertake the cultivation of individual sections. He suggested : (1) An area of 60,000 acres in the North Island in a district like the Urewera Country for instruction in Etock and pastoral farming; (2) an area of 10,000 acres' in the South Island for instruction in scientific modern close system agriculture; and (3) an area of 5000 acres in the North Island for- fruit/ bee, and poultry farming. Mr Gunson also proposed that contiguous areas should he reserved for subsequent settlement. The proposals were fully discussed by the joint committee oa Friday. The following motion, proposed by Mr. Luxford and seconded by Mr. Thompson, was unanimously carried : "That the Mayor's report regarding agricultural farms for returned soldiers be forwarded to the Government, with. the recommendation that earnest consideration and prompt effect be given thereto."

The industrial development of Australia was urged by Mr. Tudor, Minister for Customs, in an address before members of • tha Queensland Chamber .of Manufactures last week. The Minister said that, independently of. party politics, all Australian citizens were of one mind as to the necessifcv of finding for our gallant soldiers on their return suitable remunerative employment rather than be forced to the necessity of paying pensions. , One thing in particular stood out as a result of the war, Australia must be made more self-contained She must not be so dependent, on other nations. It was important and essential that we should use to vastly greater extent the raw materials we produced—for the manufacture of iron, for instance,, we had the essential materials.

A subject discussed at the/conference of the Amalgamated Society of Engineers in Christchurch was the status of aged members of the society drawing superannuation allowance in regard to the oldage pension in the Dominion. It appeal's that the society, as well as being a trades union, is a benefit society, and each member, after forty years of paying in, is entitled to the superannuation benefits cf the body In New Zealand, however, the allowance he obtains is calculated by the Old-Age Pensions Department,, and a proportionate amount is deducted from the old-age pension due to him. In some cases the whole pension of ten shillings per week is deducted, and so the aged -engineer does not receive any assistance. It was decided to send a deputation to the Minister in charge of the Old-Age Pension Department, asking for legislation to amend this injustice

Wireless weather forecasts, which were discontinued at the commencement of the war, says the Secretary of the Marine Department, have been resumed during the year, and are sent out through the radio stations at Awanui, Wellington, and Awarua on the usual reporting nights, and at other times when deemed necessary A daily wireless weather report was authorised from the Chatham Islands, and commenced on the Bth April, 1915; it has been maintained without a single break. Part of this message is also transmitted by cable to the Commonwealth Weather Bureau for research purposes. Forecasts are also occasionally transmitted to the Chatham Islands, for which a small charge is made by the Post Office, but usually the Wellington forecast suffices. Macquarie Island radio station was closed on the 14th October, 1915. Since it was opened by Sir Douglas Mawson it has done very good work indeed, and is one of the most notable researches in meteorology of the day. Since Sir Douglas Mawson sold the establishment to-: the 'Australian Government the New' Zealand Government has contributed £500 per annum towards its upkeep, mainly for research into antarctic conditions, and to link up with the Imperial Antarctic Expedition still: in the South. It has also proved a valuable aid to forecasting in dealing with westerly, storm .areas. Some valuable records from the is'lancC'were lost in the s.s. Endeavour, but there is, much scope for research work upon the records which remain The records were not entirely lost, for they had been partly transmitted by wireless before the originals were removed. •