LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVI, 3 June 1927, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Charles Markland, aged 58 years, manager of the Sentinel Fire Alarm Company, was admitted to hospital at Dunedin yesterday with a fractured left leg and bruises to his head, caused through his falling downstairs at the Rainbow Private Hotel.

On a charge of breaking and entering at Opumake, Norman O'. Andrews appeared on remand before Mr. A. O'Brien, J.P., at the Opunake Court yetsterday and was further remanded to June 17. Bail was allowed as before, self in one surety of £IOO and two sureties of £IOO each.

Tlhe new 20-passenger bus, which the Egniont Tourist Motors, Ltd., has added to its beet, arrived in Hawera, at live o’clock this morning and four hours later commenced its first run in the passenger service. It left for Stratford at nine o’clock with a full load for the Presbyterian Bible Class rally today.

With but one dissentient the New Zealand Rugby League Council decided to-night to refuse the application of L. Brown and B. Davidson, of the City Club, for transfers to the Wigan Club, stated ail Auckland message. ‘ The fear was expressed that to grant the applications would open an avenue for a general exodus of the Dominion’s leading players ‘to England and would convert New Zealand into a clearing house for Australian players desiring to go home. The decision of the Government to extend the scheme, instituted some weeks ago, of the co-operative contract system for the relief of the unemployed, was announced at Wellington, by a deputation which discussed the problem wifh the Prime Minister and, the Minister of Labour. The deputation consisted of Mr. E’. L. Hills, representing the Christchurch unemployed. It was stated that all the 2000 men for whom the previous arrangement made provision had been absorbed. An intimation was given that money raised locally for relief works would he subsidised £1 for £1 by the Government in addition to local body subsidies on the same money. - /

The Philomel, once a fighting ship of the Royal Navy, now lies peacefully at the Devonport (Auckland) dock wharf. Compared with the slim and graceful Diomede, a few yards away, she looks almost ludicrously, impotent, but this old ship, whose fighting days are past, is still playing an important part in the life of the navy. Every year now she turns out about 60 boys, between the ages of 17 and 18, to represent New Zealand in the task of keeping the Empire supreme at sea. As a training ship, the Philomel serves a highly useful purpose. She is well suited for the part and in her young New Zealanders who choose the navy for their profession find their first floating home. She never goes to sea now-, but she is still afloat, and the old vessel seems steeped in the tradition of the silent service. Boys always leave the Philomel with something approaching regret.

One of the London evening papers says that .Tune 27 i® being -strong'y tipped as the end of the world by some experts in disaster, because on that date the earth will probably get a flick from the tail of the Pons-Winnecke comet , which' happens to he passing our way about that time, says the “Manchester Guard ion.” Jealousy again—you see—Fleet Street flatter® itself that it will get out of the humiliating necessity of coming north to see our eclipse on the 29th. The thing Hs absurd, of course —in the cosmic table of precedence comets are very small beer compared with total eclipses, amid the Pons-Winnecke comet had better tuck its tail out of the way at once. Excitement waxed high at a meeting of ex-soldiers in the Town Hall at Auckland last evening, when a rival body to the Returned Soldiers’ Association was formed to agitate for the distribution of the canteen funds among ex-service men and dependants of fallen soldiers, and for an exhaustive inquiry into administration of patrioticfunds. About 150 men and a number of women were in attendance'. Practically none of the speakers was accorded a free hearing, the speeches being constantly interrupted. The motion that a league he formed was carried by a fair majority on a show of hands, and it was also decided to admit the South African veterans to the new body.— Press ASsn.

Mr W. Herbert, the secretary of the Dunedin Alliance of Labour, has been requested by the national executive of the alliance to ask the officers of the various Otago unions to keep a list of men who are unemployed, also a record of how long they have been unemployed, and what work they are prepared to undertake. Mr'Herbert states that during the whole of his ten yqgrrs’ experience as an official of the industrial labour movement, he has ’ not seen things so bad as regards unemployment. His organisation has a scheme afoot to organise co-operative parties of workers to perform work for the Government or public bodies that are prepared to give them contracts at the current rates allowed by the Public Worts Department. The annual meeting of delegates of the Otago area to the convention of the New Zealand Alliance was held at Dunedin yesterday. The programme of work for the present national prohibition campaign was discussed, ' and the general secretary (Mr Edmond) gave an outline of the political situation as it affects the two issue ballot and the triennial poll. The following motion was carried unanimously: "That this meeting of the Otago delegates to the annual convention of the New Zealand Alliance respectfully requests Parliament to provide a ballot paper on the liquor question containing only the two issues of national prohibition and continuance, so that the will of the people may be ascertained in a truly democratic manner. This meeting records its emphatic opposition to any proposal that would increase the period of ti ne between the polls, and urges Parliament to preserve to the electors their present rights exercised through the triennial poll." In the evening an address on "The World Outlook" was given by Mr Malton Murray, the editor of the "Vanguard."