LOCAL AND GENERAL

Evening Post, Volume 91, Issue 91, 15 October 1923, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Telephones or roads? That was a question raised by the Postmaster-General (the Hon. J. G. Coates) in the course of an address at Patea. Mr. Coates said he personally believed that telephone connection should come even before roads ; It was a wonderful comfort, especially to women, and rendered a sense of security. It was the policy to give assistance to those people who were game enough to go "out back." The same thins; applied to the rural mail service. This service was increasing every year, and it was hoped to extend it still further. In future years the rural mail service would become one of the most popular services in the country.

"This is a very prevalent offence, and is. in no way trivial," said Chief Detective Kemp at 'the Magistrate's Court to-day, when a young man named Albert Francis Kennedy appeared on a charge of stealing a hat valued at SI 15s, the property of James Foley. The complainant, said the Chief Detective, was present at a dance with the defendant; who, during the evening, committed the offence mentioned. "Thefts from hotels, churches particularly churches and boarding-houses are becoming very prevalent," concluded the officer, who desired a remand for sentence until Friday, to enable inquiries to be made regarding the accused's antecedents. The remand was granted, bail being fixed at £25.

Iv a statement issued to the Press on Saturday afternoon, the Minister of Education (the Hon. C. j. Parr) stated that for the purpose of comparing, in the different education districts, typical cases of grading, and, with the further purpose of judging ■ and reporting upon the quality of instruction given in the various districts, the chief inspector of schools Would, for the ensuing twelve months, spend at least one half of his working time in the field. Senior inspectors would temporarily exchange districts, as from Ist March next year, for a period of three months, and the chief inspector would arrange, in two or three suitable cases, for an exchange of territory between the inspectors of adjacent districts. He would report what districts he suggested for this purpose.

The competition for the Riddiford Cup, the trophy for the cadet supremacy of the secondary schools of the Dominion, will be completed shortly, and the final result should be known early next month.' The selection will be made by officers appointed by the headquarters staff from the following teams:—Southern Command, A Coy., 9th Cadet Battalion, Nelson College Cadets; Northern Command, Seddon Memorial College Cadets, Auckland Technical College Calets; Central Command, Scots College Cadets, Wellington. Judging will be conducted on the main lines as in the competition for the Campbell Statuette some months ago, and will commence towards the end of this month. Last year the Riddiford Cup was won by the Nelson Coljege Cadets, the Scots College Cadets being second, and the Hamilton High School Cadets third.

At a meeting of the directors of the New Zealand and South Seas Exhibition Company, held at Dmiedin last week, the question of scope was gone into exhaustively. All the directors present gave expression to their views, and it was unanimously decided to recommend the shareholders to hold an international exhibition, and not an Imperial one. The directors' reasons for making such a. recommendation will be drawn up for submission to the shareholders, and the public generally. The ciuestidu of site was also discussed.. and it was decided to obtain expert opinions on . certain sites which are considered to be worthy of consideration as a result of the inspection made by the directors a, few days ago (states the "Otago Daily Times"). The directors are anxious to secure expert advice with reference to tiie question of cost, and it is considered that the course adopted will cause a postponement of only a few days in making a recommendation to the shareholders on the subject.

Tlio sixth anniversary of the battle of Bellevue Spur fell on' Saturday. This was one of the battles for I'asschendaele Ridge, in which the New Zealand infaiitry fought a gallant fight, but were beaten by bad weather. Bellevue Spur was ah ugly V-shaped hill, rising 200 it above a flooded creek. Its slopes ran 1000 yds back in to Passchendaele village. The point of the V—about 200 yds wide ~™ss defended by massed machine-guns m concrete emplacements, behind two lines of wire. this was the position allotted to the New Zealahders. In heavy rain, which had been falling for some time, the New Zealand Division was sent into the centre of the line, and moved forward to the attack on 12th October. Gallantly they struggled forward through the mud. Owing to the mild it bad been impossible to bring up guns to send o/er even an ordinary bombardment, and there was practically no opposition to the. German maohine-'gun-nfers, who swept the front with a terrible machine-gun barrage. The density of this fire, coupled with the uncut wire, proved nn insuperable obstacle to the attack, which eventually was broken oft. Very heavy casualties were .suffered by the iN'ew Zealanders, particularjy by the Canterbury aiid Otago battalions, in view of 'the weather and its consequences the task v.-ns mi impossible one, and the failure did not tarnish the reputation of the division.

From a privata letter just received from Berlin by a Dunedin resident, the " Otago Daily Times" has been permitted to make the following interesting extract:—"There is not much new to report on conditions here. The mark is still falling, falling, falling—23,ooo,ooo to the £ sterling yesterday and 29,000,----000 to-day. Enormous additional taxation has been imposed by the new Government on a people already heavily taxed. Prices even to the " Auslander ' are now from 50 to 100 per cent, higher than a few weeks ago. and still they are. to us, wonderfully cheap, because we had previously a considerable margin in our favour. Meat, tea, and coffee are dearer here in our money, than in dear little old New Zealand. Fruit is very plentiful and very cheap, but I now think the country is ' down and out' for many a long year. Banks are issuing their cheques in place of notes to fnv S^nm nSri the d'mand> and cheques tor <ff1,000,000 marks are now common. V\e changed one yesterday .to buy a common article costing 8,000 000 marks."

That the Post and Telegraph Department will show an excess of revenue over expenditure to the extent of £450 - 000 for the year ended 31st March next, was the opinion expressed by the Post-master-General (the Hon. J G Coates) at Patea. Dealing with the economies and retrenchments that hud taken place, Mr. Coafces said that three years ago the Department showed a deficit of £1300 on the year's working, and this the secretary considered a blot on the history of the Department, which had never be"* fore made a loss. The next year, after further retrenchments, the service was able to pull itself together and show an excess of revenue over expenditure. Last year the Department earned revenue amounting to something like three-quar-ters of a million over the expenditure. The position enabled them to reduce the postage by a quarter, and this year they were able to get back to the old penny postage. The policy of the Department was that all profit they could make above the Cost of interest and sinking fund on the capital invested should be handed back to the people. Very great credit was .due to the~Secretary, Mr. A. T. Markman, and the people owed him a debt of trratitude. ."Generally speaking," said Mr. Coates, "postal finance is buoyant and encouraging. A close watch will have to be kept on the business, but the position is satisfactory. 1 only wish the railway finance was as buoyant."

It was a pity that a. teacher who had made good in oiie school had to remove elsewhere to secure promotion, remarked Mr. H. R, Searle, chairman of the Hataitai School Committee on Saturday evening, when residents and parents gathered at the school to bid farewell to the headmaster, Mr. B. Kean, who is shortly moving on promotion to the Blenheim school, and it appeared that the present grading system might very well be amended to make such moves unnecessary. Mr. Searle remarked upon the splendid progress achieved by scholars, individually and collectively, during the three years of Mr. Kean's headmastership, and upon the high esteem in which he was held by Hataitai residents.^ Members of the school committee had been impressed by the manner in which all departments Of school activities had been organised and carried oh to the betterment erf the physical, mental, and moral -Welfare of the children* and all concerned were sorry indeed that Mr. Kean was going away, though at the same timn he Was to be congratulated on his promotion. On behalf of the committee, he presented Mr. Kean with a framed photograph of the committee; assuring him of the good wishes of all members for his arid Mrs. Kean's future prosperity and happiness. Mrs. D. Ardel, speaking O n behalf of the parents and residents, expressed the regret that was felt in the district that the school would no longer have the benefit of Mr. Kean's services; and as a token of Hataitai's appreciation and goodwill, presented him With a cheque from the residents. The teaching staff said Mr. A. Kirk, very sincerefy regretted the break with Mr. Kean for school conditions had been almost ideal during his headmastership, and the moral tone and consequent real progress of the school had been excellent. In reply, Mr. Kean thanked the speakers tor their good wishes, and thanked the teaching. staff for the manner in which they had loyally co-operated in all school activities. Personally, he greatly regretted his transfer from Hataitai, but it was necessary to accept promotion when offered. .Following tne presentations, musical items) cards and dancing were the order, and generally a very happy evening was spent