DOMINION ITEMS

Greymouth Evening Star, 20 February 1937, Page 2

DOMINION ITEMS

[PER PRESS ASSOCIATION.] CHINESE AND OPIUM. WELLINGTON, February 20. Two Chinese were fined £75 and £25 respectively, with costs, on charges following an opium raid at Haining Street, last evening. MOTOR-CYCLIST INJURED CHRISTCHURCH, February 19. Severe injuries were suffered today by a Greendale resident, Henry A. Kay, when a motor-cycle he was riding collided with a lorry near Darfield. He suffered fractures of the left thigh and leg, right leg, and right ribs. His condition this evening was critical. TRADE COMMISSIONER ’AUCKLAND, February 19. A farewell luncheon to Mr. C. M. Croft, who will leave New Zealand soon, after nearly 14 years as Canadian Trade Commissioner, and Mrs. Croft, was given by members of the consular corps in Auckland. The act-ing-dean of the corps (Mr. A. M. Ferguson) presided. - A greenstone tiki was presented to Mr. Croft by Mr. Ferguson, on behalf of the consular corps. Mr. Ferguson referred to Mr. Croft’s long association with New Zealand, to his successful work in the Dominion, and to the esteem in which he is held. ALLIANCE OF LABOUR. WELLINGTON, February 19. The dispute in the New Zealand Alliance of Labour was the subject of a statement to-day by Mr A. Cook, secretary of the New Zealand Workers Union, who replied to the statement made on February 16 by Mr F. P. Walsh; president of the Seamen’s Union. Mr Cook denied that a secret meeting had been held during the 1936 annual conference of the Alliance of Labour. He contended that the vote to select Mr F. G. Young was never submitted to the rank and file membership of trade unions and Mr Young did not represent the real alliance of labour, but the breakaway section of it.

UJS.A. WARSHIPS. AUCKLAND, February 19. Two United States destroyers, the Preston and the Smith, are due at Auckland from San Francisco, ,via Honolulu and Pago Pago, on Friday. They will probably remain in port until March 4, when they .will sail for Sydney, The destroyers, both of which are of 1500 tons displacement, are commanded respectively by Commander Swain and Lieutenant-Com-mander Grosskopf. They left the Mare Island Naval Depot at San Francisco late last month. Three cruisers and four destroyers of the Royal Australian Navy are to visit New Zealand after the American destroyers. They are due at Wellington on April 1, and will be in port here from April 17 to April 21. FARM LABOUR COST. DANNEVIRKE, February 19. Many replies have beep received by the Southern Hawke’s Bay Farmers’ Union in answer to a questionnaire sent to farmers. Tho replies indicated, said the president, that rather than pay the extra ordinary wages they had been asked to pay for labour, and also because they were unable to obtain efficient labour, farmers had put their wives and children into the milking sheds. Dairying members of the union admitted that this was so, and said that it was an extremely serious point. The president said that in the Spring, when farmers really required additional labour, the union’s office- had been inundated with applications for labour which could not be supplied.