LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume II, Issue 287, 8 November 1912, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

; The s.s. Moana, with ’Frisco mail aboard, arrived at Wellington at t } a.tn. this morning. The Hawke’s | Bay portion of this mail will reach } here this evening. i It was decided at last night’: ! met ting of the Hastings Borougl 1 Council to offer a reward of £2 fo: : information that will lead to the i conviction of persons damaging borough property. In view of the New Zealand and 1 Australian Lawn Tennis Chainpion- ! ships being held at Hastings at ! Christmas, the Borough Council decided last night to asphalt the foot- ; path in Whitehead road from Nelson ! street to the Courts and also from } Fitzrov avenue.

The teacher was examining the ? j class in geography. Turning to one •i:small boy. she said: “Now, you have ;! the north in front of you. the west ; } on your left, and the east on your ; I right. What have you behind?” ■| “Please, miss, a patch on my pants. ■' I told mother you’d see it.” i An interesting statement is current ! with regard to the Wairoa harboui ’ works. It is said that such a [marked improvement has been shown |in the harboui' as the result of re- ; cent operations that land values are j rising rapidly and the Government I valuer is “holding off” his valua- ! tion pending further developments. ! Two new sleeping-cars for the } Auckland-Wellington Main Trunk ' expresses have just been completed ;at the Petone railway workshops.

I and one of them made its first jourpney to Auckland on Saturday last. i Although only minor alterations I have been effected, the new cars I are decidely better than those forirnrlv built. I ' ; The- portrait i f the late Mr. Joe Willi:’im-. was displayed at the meet ing of the Hawke’s Bay A and PSociety this morning, and Mr. J. H. Coleman sta'.-ted a very interesting discussion upon the- merits cf the picture. He declared that the por trait was nothing short of a libel or the Into Mr. Williams, and that the society should never have obtained it. Later on in the discussion hr jocularly moved that if the societ.) decided io keep the portrait i: should have its face turned to th. wall.- -Mr. <4. P. Donnelly supported Mi'. Coleman in his criticism, but nothing defiinite has been done witn regard to the offending likeness. The comparatively large nunibtr of New Zealand journalists engaged on the staffs of Australian dailies was noticed by Mr. Robert McNab during his recent tour. In the course of an interview on Saturday he informed a “Southland Times” reporter that he had met New Zealand pressmen in all the large centres he visited. “It is not only that they are there on the largest circulating papers in Australia.” he said, "but the majority of them seem to held highly responsible ~ positions, and are apparently very much respected.” At last night's meeting of the Hastings Borough Council, C'r. George asked why the contract for the lighting of the street gas lamps had been terminated before electric lamps weie erected in their place. Forty electric lamps had been placed in various parts of the borough, but in the other portions, pedestrians had to grope in the darkness. —The Mayoi' replied that the council, if the contiact had been allowed to continue, would have had to pay for j the. whole of the gas lamps, al- ' though only about forty would be in}' use. The electric lamps were being j ( erected as speedily as possible. | The midday express from A tick-. • land to Wellington does not give indication of becoming an over-popu- ' lar institution. The greatest number ' cf passengers to have left Auckland! on. any one train since the inaugura-1 1 t ion of the sei vice was 34. Wednes-j day’s departure list showed the j 1 smallest total yet recorded. 22 people only travelling by the train. The ! sleeping car had not a single occu- * pant ; the first-class smoker was ’ monopolised by one passenger, and the first-class non-smoker contained I j four people. The three second-class j carriages carried, in all, seventeen I people. —"Star.” ! j

: Tlie New Zealand Shipping Com-' 1 I pany has modified its policy of giv- • j ing Maori names to all its vessels. 'Quite recently it has made several | purchases from other companies, and I tlie vessels been given tlie j names of Irish counties —Westmeath. Roscommon, and Limbriek. The I Westmeath (which was formerly the' Everton Grange.) sustained some damage by grounding in the Morse) as she was leaving for New Zealand. ( The old Arawa. of the Shaw-Savill. j line, is now likely to make her fifth ;, change of name since, she was in the 1 ( New Zealand service. She has been the Coron. then Arawa again. the Lake Megantic, and the Port Henderson. As she has been sold by the British and African Steam Navigation Company to the Italians, she will probably be called something else. The sale price was about £20.00(1.

: The t hristchuteh Press” learns [that the taking ot evidence in Eng,;land by the Emipre Trade Cc-mniis-ision is to conclude about the 23rd i inst. It is possible, however, that I after evidence has been taken [abroad, light may have been thrown: on matters as to which further evi- • dence could be taken with advantage after the return of the Commission to England. It has. we un|der.«tand. been practically decided [that after Australia and New Zealland have been finished —about June ( 123 next —members will return to . I their businesses for the remainder ’of 1913. and in the following yea(Canada. Newfoundland and South i Africa will be visited. The new ■ i chairman, the Rt. Hon. Arnold Mor- , dev .is rapidly mastering the work I of the position, and proving an able successor to Lord Inchcape, who re-' is.gned owing to the death of a part- ; Iner. as that event prevented him < ‘fiom leaving England. =

The Bluff Hill Bowling Club c>pem ts season to-morrow afternoon at 1.30, when members of other clubs ire invited to be present. A meeting of householders will bf leld in the Twyfurd school at *• >.m. on Monday next for the pur lose of electing a temporary com nitlce and to discuss the >f the school district. The second test of the pumping ilant in connection with the Hastings high pressure water supplj .lid not disclose the efficiemi guaranteed, and the council has written to the contractors, the British General Electrical Company. Sydney, stating that it. was intend d to make use of the [mmps until .hey weir replaced. A reply is expected by next Tuesday week, md in all probability the Baler wil! .hen be available. It has been pointed out to us that in a statement, made with regard to the employment of waterside workers on the s.s. Nerehana is quite incorrect. It is said that .'Son mei: lined up for selection and only is were chosen, anti as a matter of fact there were less, than 109 men ready to take work, and more than half of these were waiting for the arrival of the Union Company’s boat. It is also said that only two lighters were available to work the boat, ano we have it on the authority of the Lighter Company that eight, lighters were at work, and 2300 tors ot cargo were shifted in five days. The Nerehana left at midnight last night up to .schedule time .therefore no delav was occasioned.