NEWS OF THE DAY

Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 104, 29 October 1931, Page 12

NEWS OF THE DAY

Yesterday in the House. Unmistakable signs of the session's rapidly approaching end appeared in tho House yestorday when members— and urgency—facilitated the passago of no fewer than six Government Bills and reduced the> Order Paper to a skeleton of its former state..This acceleration followed an intimation by the Prime Minister that from to-morrow tho House would sit from 2.30 p.m. until midnight dally, the arrangement to include Saturdays and Mondays. Mr.' Forties's estimate of -the end of tho session fixed the closing date at Saturday, 7th November, and there is now every indication that his forecast will be borne out. The Bills .passed last night were the Stamp Duties Amendment, providing for the taxation of steamer ticket* and lottery tickets, the Air Navigation Bill, the Land Transfer (Hawkes Bay) BID, the Earthquake Relief Funds Bill, the Native Land Bill, and the Native Purposes Bill. The two last-named. measures ■ contained, lio fewer than 676 .clauses, concerned mainly with tho compression, consolidation, and clarification of ; numerous, existing Statute* The committal of the Building Construction Bill was deferred. Tho House iosb just before midnight. ' , • ; ' Alsatian Dogs. * Tho question of iprohibitiug .the importation of Alsatian dogs into New Zealand was recently raised by the Now Zealand Farmers' Union. In a reply which was read to the Dominion executive of tho union yestorday afternoou the Minister of Agriculture stated that no sufficient ■ icasona for prohibiting tho importation of Alsatian dogs had been adduced, but the position was being carefully watched, and the executive would be advised of any developments. Flight of Mutton Birds. . ! "Mutton birds in millions" was the terse way in which a Bluff resident lately described tho visit of a huge flight of titis to tho waters outside the harbour one day recently. Tho flock came from the north in a stream that seemed for a long time unending. After much circling the loaders settled on the sea out past the heads and were thero joined by the later arrivals, till the waters were covered by a vast array of feathered fishers. Afterwards the birds rose in a whirring cloud and it was hopod they would enter the harbour, as ou previous occasions, but instead they headed off as if to return in the direction from which they had como. Then suddenly tho loaders swung away ■ and tho long procession disappeared in the, south-west. Ferry Steamer Rangatira. An application lnado by tho Mayor (Mr. K. S. Black) for tho new ferry ■tcamer Kangatira to bo brought to Dunedin from' Port Chalmers for inspectiou by the public has been granted by the Union Steam-Ship Company, statos tho Otago "Daily Times." Tho vessel will steam to Dunedin on Saturday, and will bo open to tho public from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. A small charge will bo made for admiision, tho proceeds to be devoted to the Mayor's Unemployment Belief Fund. It is cx> peetcd that a large number of citizens will tako full advantage of tho opportunity to inspect such a modern and well-appointed ship. Tho Rangatira will also be open for inspection-on Sunday from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., a small charge being made. The money collected from this source will bo handed over to the Plunket Society. The Port Chalmers residents will be given every opportunity to inspect the Eangatira on Friday afternoon, this privilege being granted by tho Union Company as tho result Of representations made by tho Mayor (Mr. J. Watson). A-charge will b6 made, and tho proceeds will bo devoted to the Port Chalmers Unemployment Relief Fund. '

Snipping and Cargo Returns. Tho shipping at' the port for the month of September was 10,118 not tons loss than August, said Mr. H. D. Bennett, acting-cliairman, at last uight's mooting of the "Wollijigton Harbour Board. Tho total cargo handled showed an increase ovor August of 28,885 tons. Exports increased by 3805 tons, principally in butter, cheese, and frozen moiit. Oils in bulk pumped ashore and ovorsido increased by ovor 19,000 tons, and timber imports by 2,400,000 superficial feet. Mr. Bennott added that a complete summary and nn analysis of the yoiir's trade would bo presented at the November meeting of tho board. Marama's Summer Running. Tho Union Company's intercolonial liucr Marama, which has boon laid up at Port Chalmers since July because oi slackness in trade, is shortly to resume izi tho Sydncy-Wollington and the Sydnoy-Aucklaud service, us in tho summer months more passengers travel and trado generally improves. The Murama is at presont undergoing survey, and will come from Port Chalmers to Wellington, and will sail from Wellington on ISth.Novomber for Sydney. Two intercolonial liners will then conduct tho service. Tho Maunganui has been calling between two ports while she has been on the Now Zealand coast, arriving at Wellington and sailing from Auckland, or vice versa. S.P.O.A. Activities. The cases attended to from Ist October, 1930, to 30u September, 1931, by tho Wellington Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals are given in detail in the annual report of the society, presented at the annual meeting yestorday afternoon. Some of tho cases are:- Dogs ill-treated 27, dogs destroyed 25, cats destroyed 25, cattlo underfed 22, horses destroyed 15, working lamo horses 11, and other cases brought the total up to 192. Fines totalling £53 5s 6d wero imposed by the Court! in cases in which animals werq ill-treated. Examinations. . . Preparation for university and scholarship examinations is now at its height. The first are those of tho University of Now Zealand commencing on Monday, 2nd November,, and continuing until Wednesday the 18th. These will be followed by tho junior and senior scholarships of primary and secondary schools, and senior freo plaeo examinations.' Tho university entrance scholarship tests will bo held early in December, finishing in tho third week. All local examinations arc to bo held in tho Winter Show Building, John street, which has been partitioned off into compartments with a capacity of approximately 100 candidates each. Examinations have already commenced in Australia, and one daily paper in Sydney has published full answers to all tests from geometry to Latin. Howell Sports Endowment. When tho late principal of tho Wellington Technical College, Mr. J. 11. Howell, was presented with a purse of money at tho recent function at; tho Town Hall ho intimated that he would donato tho money to the college as tho nucleus of a recreation fund. At Tuesday's meeting of the Technical College Board of Governors the chairman, Mr. W. 11. Bennett, said that the fund now amounted to £75 14s. Mr. Howell, he said, rather objected to having his name associated with that of tho fund, but ho thought tho board would have to disagreo with him thcro. Mr. Howell had stated in a letter that Mrs. Howoll was associated with him in tho gift, and that if a namo was mentioned tho initials should bo left out. Tho board decided that the fund should bo known as tho Howell Sports Endowment Fund. Messrs. W. H. Bennott and T. Forsyth wore appointed as trustees to administer the fund. Convictions for Cruelty. That convictions for cruelty to animals should be easier to impose than is at' present the case was the opinion expressed by a speaker at tho annual meeting of the Society for{ the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals yesterday. Thre were many cases, it was stated, of passive cruelty to, animals. Tho president, Mr. 6. Mitchell, said that the necessity of the society, could not be judged by the number of convictions obtained. When fewer convictions wore secured it could be taken v aa indication of growing kindness to' animals. When no convictions at all wero needed the work of the society would be accomplished." In 'any' ease, said Mr. Mitchell, magistrates are less inclined to look leniently on cases of cruelty to animals than was once the case. Liberation of Orouse. . Considerable interest attaches to tho question whether the grouse sent to New Zealand seven, years ago by. Lady Liverpool, and liberated by Mr. J. Ciillen,. honorary warden of National Park, are still in existence, and if they, have increased or diminished in numbers (states,, the "New- Zealand Horald"). There wero 20! birds, and they were set free in tho vicinity, of the Haunted Whare and tho Whakapdpanui Bridge. "Before liberating the birds," said Mr. Cullcn on Saturday, "I kept thorn in my cottago for a'few daysj and somo of them came back afterwards quito close to where I lived, having become fairly tame during tho period of their captivity. Tho area in which the birds wore first lot loose was ono whero trampoi'i do not go very often, and that may account for so few roports having come in recently of tho birds having been scon." The last occasion on which Mr. Cullcn had heard of the presonco of tho birds in the neighbourhood of the area in which they were liberated was about a year ago, when two of tho staff of tho Chateau reported that they had scow somo grouse ono evening by the Haunted Whare. Not long afterwards a few moro were-re-ported to have been by the track alongside the Whakapapa. Tho birds wander about a great deal, and as there is an area of about 4000 acres of scattered heather there, it is conceivable that they may exist in largo numbers.'