LOCAL AND GENERAL

Evening Star, Issue 16091, 17 April 1916, Page 1

LOCAL AND GENERAL

"All law is founded on common sense," ( remarked Mr F. V. Frazer, S.M., during the hearing of a civil action at the Auckland Magistrate's Court the other day. , Ho added that while such a statement '. might sound like heresy to those who ' believed " the law is an ass," still a man never went far wrong if he took a com- '. mon-sense view of a case. , The deputation that waited on the Prime Minister and the Minister of Defence on ; Wednesday to urge the institution of wet canteens with the military camps and the earlier closing of licensed houses does not appear to have had the support of any great weight of public opinion (writes our Wellington correspondent). Wet canteens , are so strongly opposed by the military authorities, ;rom the Minister downward l ;, that the deputation were only wasting their breath in mentioning them again. Mr Allen has recollections of wet canteens in his old volunteering days which forbid him considering their revival now, and . Colonel Gibbon attributes the good behaviour of the men in camp largely to the absence of facilities for obtaining drink. , There may be arguments on the other , side which might commend themselves even to temperance people, but there would not be the slightest chance of their prevailing against the settled Ministerial mind. The early closing of the licensed houses is a more open question, and the Ministers themselves seem to have some doubt on the subject. The behaviour of the soldiers while in town has so vastly . improved during the last few months that the need for early closing has become less apparent from a military point of viow; but the same cannot be said for tho civilian population, and many people outside the. ranks of the Prohibitionists would like to see the bar trade very considerably cur- , tailed during the course of the war. As a mers expedient for saving much wasted money it is worthy of some consideration, but if the problem were dealt with from this standpoint the extravagance induced by theatres and picture shows and oven by tea shops would have to be also reviewed. A man named Michael Shannon appeared in the Police Court at Auckland on Tuesday charged with deserting from the Ninth Reinforcements of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force. Sub-inspector MTlveney said the charge was brought under the Imperial Army Act. Shannon was handed over to the military authorities. InNew South Wales the Railway Commissioners have laid it down that where a man enlisted who has been in the service six months or over the difference between his military and civilian pay is made up by the department. An ejectment order was granted against a Birmingham woman recentlv on the ground that she did not cultivate her Garden, one-eighth of an acre in extent. The Chairman of the Bench said it was a most serious matter in these times to leave a_ garden uncultivated. Adelaide has discovered a citizen who i doesn't know how to describe himself; and his perplexity is not surprising when the facts are seen. This "Australian" is a German Jew who married a Frenchwoman. The man took out naturalisation papers on his arrival in the State. Shortly after the war broke <«ut he lost his position on account of racial feeling, and was unable to obtain work. "Why do you not approach tho Jewish community?" he was asked. The reply given was that the Jews would have nothing to do with him because he had a Christian wife. Ho was a naturalised British subject, and therefore could get no heln from the German element. Tho French wife's friends had ostracised her because she had married a German Jew. " I am neither British, German, Jewish, nor Christian in that case, so what am I?" asked the man of complicated nationality a nr' religion, and could not be satisfactorily answered. The Railway Department announces an extra express train from Dunedin to Lvttelton during the Easter holidays from Wednesday next until tbe Wednesday after Easter. This train, which lias a dining car attached, leaves Dunedin at 10.45 a.m., j and runs on to the wharf at Lyttelton alongsido the steamer, arriving there ahead of the usual second express. Passengers from Dunedin are advised to avail themselves of this train. The ordinary 8 a.m. expresswill not take excursion passengers for staup to Oamaru (inclusive). An attractive booklet showing the train arrangements for Easter holidays, and other information, has been issued by the Rail- j way Department, and may be obtained by ! intending passengers on application at anv railway station. " New Zealand has the lowest infantile mortality in the world," said Dr Mi-rams at the meeting of the Plunket Society in Petone a few davs ago. He attributed this to the education of the public along the lines upon which the society were working. Mr J. W. M'Ewan quoted figures to "show that Dunedin, which was the home of the Plunket Society, had reduced, during the last few years, its infantile death rate from 8 per cent, to 3.8 per cent., a. result almost wholly due to the activities of the society. The Full Court at Sydney last week declared Alderman Bridge, recentlv declared elected for Denison Ward, ousted on the ground of personation. In delivering the judgment of the Court Mr Justice Ferguson said that from the affidavits there were 13 cases of personation, but it was not suggested—except as to one. out of the 13 cases—that any person was improperly allowed to vote,'in the sen<e that the presiding officer made a mistake, or was guilty of any default or breach of duty. ''A more serious possibility," added His Honor, "which suggests itself as a result of the success of this application is the stimulus it may give on some future occasion to widespread corruption on the part of unscrupulous candidates, or their supporters, encouraged by the apiwrent impunity with which personation can be practised on the scale disclosed in this case. The man who employed personators to vote for his candidate would get the benefit of their votes in the first instance, and then, if it became necessary for him to impeach the election lie would know exactly where to find the evidence to establish his case. Wo think, however, that these are matters for the consideration—and the very earnest consideration—of the Legislature, and the authorities charged with the execution of the criminal law, rather than of the Court," It was impossible to say which candidate the majority preferred, and it, followed that the constituency had not had a fair and free opportunity of electing him. On Thursday evening an en lovable con cert was held in the Leith. Valley School Hall, "he programme consisted mainly of items by the Sunday school children, w'-jo acquitted themselves very well, and reflected credit on Mts and Miss Ashton and Miss Henderson, who have been holding re'hea reals for some time in their spare moments Mr Mewhinney was chairman. Supper was handed round after the concert, and a few games were played by the • young people in the latter part of the evening.