LOCAL AND GENERAL

Evening Star, Issue 19857, 4 May 1928, Page 10

LOCAL AND GENERAL

The executive of the New Zealand Farmers’ Union met at Wellington yesterday. Mr J. W. Pow, the secretary, said that two months ago lie approached the brandies in order to secure signatures to a. petition to Parliament against the retention of daylight saving. He had, received a number of replies against the Act. and the petition would be presented.

“If the statute governing the crossing of railway lines by road vehicles were carried out in its entirety there would be fewer motor car fatalities and fewer cars damaged. The statute is ... very strict one, and I know that no one ever carries it out in its entirety.” These remarks were made by Mr Mosley, S.M., in the Police Court, Christchurch, in telling Frederick Black that he had clearly been guilty of a breach of the statute. Black was fined 10s and costs, the magistrate stating that he would take into account that defendant did something to stop the car on the Factory road crossing at Belfast.

Urging that all known factors indicated the advisability of adopting the coastal route for the railway between Gisborne and Wairoa and advocating an early start with the construction of the work on that route, a. large deputation waited on the Hon. K.'S. Williams (Minister of Public Works) at Gisborne. In his reply Mr Williams briefly reviewed the various aspects which he, as Minister, had to take into consideration, and assured the deputation that the points would lie carefully gone into. Outstanding a.uong all the arguments was the question of the initial capital outlay on. the respective routes and the revenue which might reasonably be expected in proportion to the .cost and running expenses. The Minister’s remarks were reassuring regarding the possibility of Gisborne being sidetracked by the construction of a line from Hawke’s >ay to the Bay of Plenty by an inland route,

The decision was come lo at the last meeting of the Mineral Contents of Pastures Committee of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research to commence operations immediately upon the mineral deficiency problems of the King Country, Waikato, and Rotorua districte in the North Island, and ho Nelson district in the South Island. The'work will be under the direction of Mr R. C. Aston, chief chemist to 10 Department of Agriculture. Mr R. E. Grimmott, of the same department, will deal with the work in the North Island areas, while Mr T. Rigg, assistant director of the Cawthrou Institute, will have charge of the work in the Nelson territory. The undertaking involves detailed analyses of soils of , <stnres, together will) carefully-controlled stock-feeding experiments. Investigations of a preliminary nature are necessary, as the problem is exceedingly complex. These arc being carried out with the assistance of the Empire Marketing Board’s annual grant of £2.500 for two years, which is subsidised bv the New Zealand Government.

The difficult task of assessing, in face of contradictory medical evidence, the degree of physical disability resulting from an accidental fracture of the spine came before tbo Arbitration Court at Auckland. A labourer, John Francis M’Grath, claimed compensation from the corporation ol the city of Auckland in respect of injury sustained while working for the tramways department. The points generally admitted were that the plaintiff injured his back while lifting a heavy slab of concrete in February, 1.927. In July, w hil© engsjzicd in siniihn* heavy work, bis back was again affected, and as ie result of an X-ray examination it was revealed that two spinous processes, which anchored certain muscles of the back, had been fractured. The medical witnesses agreed that, the case was iprecedented in their experience, and reference to recognised authorities was of little assistance. Compensation for temporary incapacity was awarded at the full rate from the date of the last payment to date and tor anothei three months, and in respect of permanent disability the court awarded compensation at the rate of 10s per week for the remainder of the period of liability. The plaintiff was awarded costs (£lO 10s) and medical witnesses’ expenses. A party of twenty-seven boys selected bv the Central Committee in London of the Church of England Migration Committee for farm work m all parts of the dominion arrived at Auckland by the Hororata yesterday. They are considered to be a fine lot of boys, and most of them will go to dairy farmers in the Waikato and King Country. Eightyfour nominated immigrants, including a family of eleven children, also arrived Press Association.