LOCAL AND GENERAL

Evening Post, Volume CIII, Issue 89, 17 April 1922, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL

The executive of tile Post and Telegraph Officers' Association will meet in' Wellington on Wednesday morning, to discuss the position arising but of the refusal of the' Government to allow the associatior to affiliate with the Alliance of Labour.

The St. John Ambulance field day demonstration was held in Alexandra Park, Auckland, on Saturday afternoon. The men's competition for the Gaze Cup resulted:—Masterton, 90 points, 1; Auckland, 80 points, 2.

Joy-riding in other people's motorcars—leaving the car stranded miles and miles away from where they have been taken—is not unknown in. Wellington, but the practice lias extended to yachts. The owner of a 35-ft cutter, usually moored in Evans Bay, had the mortification on Saturday, when he went to the vessel intending to sail her, to find her gone. He was informed that the yacht had been appropriated by a party intending to cruise in the Marlborough Sounds. No permission to take her had been asked for or given. The owner is still wondering if the law affords the same protection to a man whose yacht or motor-car is " borrowed," as it does to the victims of horse thefts.

A party of deerstalkers who returned to Nelson a few days ago, after spending eight days at Tophouse, repori good sport in that district, though the heads obtained are only fair,' the best being a ten-pointer. One of *he party complained that indiscriminate shooting of deer had been going on, as no fewer than eight does and fawns, shot within the last few days, were found in the vicinity of the river-bed. It is understood that the matter has been reported to the Acclimatisation Society. It was also stated that paradise ducks were seen in great numßers, while grey docks were fairly plentiful. Numerous quail were also seen.

" I like to give credit where it is due," the Hon. C. J. Parr told the Canterbury Education Board on Thursday, "and I am pleased with.that job at Phillipstown. I haven't seen'rfny better work for the money in New Zealand. You are to be complimented on getting a building of that size for the money." Mr. A. Peverill remarked that it was a good building, " money or no money." "My point is," rejoined the Minister, " that my money has been well expended, and that is what I want to compliment the board on. I am satisfied—l don't want to make odious comparisons, but it has been built at 25 to 30 per cent, less than a similar building in. the Wellington district would have coct. You have got one or two good men here —and the personal factor counts a great deal."

Discussing the coming shooting season, •which opens or Ist, May next, Mt. F. H. Ostler, the newly-elected president of the Auckland Acclimatisation Society, said that it was generally anticipated that, although there were a great numbei of ducks in evidence, the wet season would result in the birds being spread over a large area, and that the bags were more likely to be made in the swamps than in the lakes. It seemed to have been an exceedingly good season for quail as large convoys were to be seen' everywhere, while pheasants should be pleantiful, the society having, turned out nearly 1000 of. these birds in the district this year, and these, lidded to those liberate? in previous seasons, should provide good sport. He mentioned thnt sportsmen should be reminded^ that they /cannot shoot imported c: native game without first taking out a Hoense. He was of opinion that the time hud lu-i-ived when every person who took advantage of the facilities for shooting in the country should contribute soi;"e small amount toward the propagation and protection of game. The cost of ths license, he "said, was within the means al all, even of boys, and no true Buovt?should object to paying this small contribution.

Complaining that he had been as.saulted by some unknown person, a man named John Vnevy, a visitor from Madlorton, was admitted to the Public Hospital ;it 10.15 o'clock on Saturday night .Buffering from cuts in tho head, and injuries to ilia head. According to his story, the assault took place in Water-loo-quay, and the police at jiresent have inquiries jn fliiud. Vnevy's condition is not serious, and he is reported to-day to be progressing favourably.

.Resolutions passed by the recent, conference of the Executive Council of the New Zealand Bank Officers' Guild do not appear to have been received by the hanks as favourably «s was expected. Further consideration is being given by the executive to the various points at issue, and the pnM journal's comment thereon is: "W,e are the last 'to wish that anything should be said or done -which would imperil the good rektion.shios that now happily.exist; between the guild and the banks, but there are times when jnstice and duty compel one to spealc what ,one feels to be right, even if the saying is unpleasant to the one side and unappreciated .by the other."

Mere man is only too conscious of his inability to accurately describe articles of ladies' attire. Even the police, who are nroverbially particular in all matters, find the feat difficult. Before opening a charge of theft in the Dunedin Police ,Courfc Detective Palmer asked permission to amend the details. The lady's jacket, .said the detective, was not really silk, only trimmed with silk; while the stockings were cashmere, and not silk, as set ,out in the charge. "The error is quite .pardonable," remarked the Magistrate (Mr. Bartholomew), and the details were accordingly amended.

An inquesi will be held tq-moi-row jnorning regarding the death of a married woman named Mrs. Lindsay, who expired suddenly last evening in a house in Wingfield-street. Mrs. Lindsay had been to church and had returned to the house with her friends. She was just leaving for her home 'in Adelaideroad when she complained of a pain in her head and immediately collapsed. .She expired shortly afterwards. It is understood that Mrs. Lindsay is a re,cent arrival from Auckland.

An unusual experience befel a Mount Albert resident,in Auckland city on Thursday. When transacting business in a bank he found a cheque for over £70 lying on the floor. He took it to the firm which had issued it, and, without any questions being asked, and, although he had had no previous dealings with the firm, was handed the full amount in cash. He then explained how the cheque came into his possession. Inquiries were made in the office, and he was informed that the cheque had been lost by the person to whom it had been issued ; the firm had been notified, and payment had been stopped at the bank, instructions, however, had not .been given to the office staff (says the HerThe finder was cordially thanked.

The finish has come to an experiment which was undertaken a while ago by the Otago Acclimatisation Society. , It sent to India for males and females of. the game bird of Upper India- Known as the chikor. Twenty-four were ordered. Half the number perished on the voyage. The survivors did not fare well after landing. One by one they died off, in spite of all the care bestowed by Mr. R. Conn, who undertook personal custody and attention in the society's interest. the summer just departed (states the Dunedin Star) only one bird was left, a lovely cock, and he was prosperin,!;, and was intended to be mated -with .ebikor hens that were imported to Auckland ; but a few days ago a ferret got into the roost, and that was the end of it. If Otago is to have the chikor they will have to be reiatroduced.

Pour lectures constitute the first volume of the Cawthron Lectures, published by the institute bearing that name. The subjects are: "The Aims and' Ideals .of the Cawthron Institute," by Professor Easterfield, director of the institute; "Biology in Relation to Agriculture," by Professor Benham, University of Otago; and "Distribution of the Vegetation and Flora of New Zealand," by l)r. Cockayne, P.L.S., I.R.S. The lectures are delivered in simple language, and present scientific subjects in a fashion easily assimilable by the general and non-scien-tific reader. The value of the Cawthron Institute's research work is clearly shown in the three and introductory remarks thereto, to be of aesthetic as well •as economic value. The copy under review is received from the director of the institute, Professor Easterfield.

A strange phenomenon was seen not far from the sloping lands adjacent to Shoal Bay, Devonport, on Wedneaday. The tide was an unsually high one, and for some reason hundreds of young eels swam near the edge of the water, swimming above land that as a rule is not covered by the tide. After high water, when the tide commenced to recede, they did not want to go out with it, and scores of them commenced to wriggle about in the coarse sea grass, and make their way inland for fully six or seven yards. Whether they were after food or whether they had completely lost their bearings it would be hard to tell (says the Auckland Star). Stories have been told how eels will travel overland for over a mile to get from one stretch of water to another, and the young eels on Wednesday proved that they were good land travellers. Had they not been discovered and killed by a iarge> number of seagulls, it would have been interesting to find out how far they would have really travelled, and what their object was. The seagulls attacked them at the head, and it was only after they" had despatched them in this way that they commenced" in a leisurely way to devour them. The eels were about three or four inches in length.

Sandhills and swamps share between them the distinction of providing a greater number ofgenuine Maori articles than any other source/ though' there are districts in New Zealand in which limestone caves have been prolific. There can be no doubt that swamps head the list so far as all-round variety of finds is concerned, for in them are preserved objects such as eel-traps and baskets, canoes, and wooden implements and weapons which would, under almost any other circumstances, have crumbled to dust within the lifetime of the Maoris who hid them. It is remarkable that South Island swamps have yielded little or nothing of the harvest that has come from those in the North. Of unusual interest (states the Otago Daily Times) is a small,, collection of curios, found in draining the great Piako swamp, and generously presented to' the Otago University Museum by Mr. W." Stuart on behalf of the men of No. 1 Priestman dredge, Tahuna, near Morrinsville. The articles are as follow:—Two small eeltraps,l beautifully plaited from _ some native vine; a stone adze of fair size and good finish; a wooden implement pointed at each end and triangular in cross' section; and a sturdy two-edged club. The last named is of especial interest, 33 it belongs to a type not hitherto recorded in New Zealand, and is apparently mpre closely related to a type of club from the Solomon Islands than to any other. It is shorter than the ordinary iaiaha, and the blade has a greater expansion. This part of the weapon has a pronounced mid rib, while from its expanded end springs a. blunt point. At the grip of the club there is a strong-marked ridge,, below which is a stout, short point, provided, no doubt, for in-fighting. The ancestral paddle form, is obvious on the whole form of the weapon.

As a result -of colliding with a bank at Oriental Bay yesterday aftataoan, a. motor-cyclist, named Albert F- Gardner, who lives at 180, Vivian-street, is at present in hospital, suffering from ai bad cut in the head. He is reported! to-day to be progressing favourably.

"Ex-V.A.D.," writing to The Post "as one who saw something of the sufferings of our men who served overseas for the protection of others," protests against people being allowed to benefit by the misfortunes ot soldiers who have gone on the land. Her protest is provoked by a conversation she overheard on a suburba-n tramcar when two persons were discussing the .difficulties that were causing loss to soldier-settlers, and one of the men was gleefully exulting at the prospect of "picking up a cheap farm ■for his young son."

It is stated that the dairying industry is developing at a very satisfactory rate in the Poverty Bay district. The exports this season show over 100 per cent, increase. The output for exports tins year totalled 558 tons, approximately, as against.2s7 for last season. The remarkable increase is attributed to the fact that the number of suppliers to the various, factories has been largely increased, and that a good season had been experienced.

At a mission in Wangaratta (Victoria) the preacher d,ealt with present-day evils. He condemned mixed marriages, excessive drinking and gambling, which, he said, were gaining a. very strong holdl over the young people of Australia. Referring to gambling, he said lie knew wh.er.e ycung men had even made beta in church. He instanced a certain priest who, when preaching, had. the habit of taking a pinch of snuff, and would change it from the thumb and first finger of the one hand to the other hand, performing this several times before inhaling the snuff. Young men, standing about the doors- of the church would make bets as to which hand he had the snuff in, and the bet would be decided when the preacher inhaled it. He appealed to them to' give over the gambling evil.

Punctual departure by a passenger steamer is much appreciated by the passengers travelling by the vessel, if they »re o;i board when the vessel leaves. Those who are on the shore when, the gangway in let go do not view tlj.e situation with the same appreciation. ■■ The Ulimaroa was timed to leave Auckland for Sydney at 5 p.m. .on Thursday, and she was ready at that time. The gangway was taken ashore about three minutes past five, .and when the lines were Jet go the fresh westerly wind blew the seamer away from the wharf. Ac the spring i was being . thrown oft a man with his wife and a greyhound arrived hurriedly on the wharf to see the -vessel ' 10ft away and backing out. The woman was out pi breath and the man was out xpf temper. His remarks showed that he thought that smartness of the departure pf a steamer could be overdone, espeeialjy when the luggage was on the ship. Another cpupje (states the New Zealand Herald) just caught the vessel. The woman bad missed her husband in the town, and at five minutes before sailing time she was at the gangway, but the husband was then missing. He arrived at the steamer with just sufficient time to get on board before the gangway was •pulled on shore.

An interesting story was told to an Otago Daily Times reporter by Mi. J. jU'Alevy, chief steward on the A. and A. Line steamer City of Hankow., which was at Dunedin recently. Mr. M'Alevy, v/ho was taken prisoner by Captain yon Muller. of the raider Emden. when he was serving ma simflSi capacity on the Clan Matheson in September, 1914, said that just previous to th<J- time the Clan Matheson was sunk the German cruiser had captured two Italian, one Greek, and six British steamers. The Italian sj/eamers were released on account of Italy's neutrality at that time, but the Greek steamer' Pontoporrus was seized as she was carrying contraband. Five of the British steamers were sunk by the Emden, but the Kabinga was saved, as the captain had his wife pn board, and Captain Muller would not sink the ship, as there was a lady on the vessel. Hi jsaid to her: "This ship, is my property, to do what I like with, and I now present her to you as a gift to be henceforth your own private property. As far as the former owners are concerned the ship is at the bottom, of the sea." ~-He gave her ? letter to that effect, so that she could prove her light to claim the ship as her own property, and he also had notices posted in four different parts of the Kabinga. The sequel to the incident was when Captain Mullei was a prisoner in England in 1918, when the wife of the Kabinga's captain claimed the ship as her own private property presented to her by the German captain. The Bucknall Line, which owned the vessel, contested the claim, and the case was taken to the Admiralty Court. Captain Muller was called as a witness, and, upon his substantiating the lady s claim,-, the Kabinga was awarded to her. llio former owners subsequently bought it rom her for £50,000. It is mterestmg to note that on his capture Captain yon Muller had his sword returned to him by the British in recognition of his chivalry. He is believed to be the only German officer who was thus honoured in the late war. Miss Ella Shields has consented to take charge of the " sing," whichi is. as usual, to be held m the Town Hall on Wednesday this week between 12*30 and 130 p.m. ' Associated with Miss Shields will be Mr. Eddie Cahill, as accompanist, and Mr. George Brooke as soloist. These three artists are 'from Mr. • Harry MusgroveV company now appearing in the Opera House, and the Community Singing Committee are very grateful to Mr. Miller for allowing them to come forward in such a public-spirited manner. That this " sing " will be a. success is undoubted by the committee, who are anticipating such a number of people being present that they have engaged the big Town Hall for Wednesday. Everyone who has an hour or part of an hour to spare is very heartily invited.