LOCAL AND GENERAL

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXI, 9 June 1927, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

It. is understood that the. West land Power Company, to develop hydro-elec-tric power in North Westland from the Xurnara water-races, is now bring registered. Definite operations by the company may therefore be expected shortly.

In connection with the suggested establishment of a fernery in one of the Citv reserves, referred to in last night's "Mail," it mnv be stated that this matter has been before the Nelson .Horticultural firwietv for some time past, and will be discussed at the annual meeting to be fin-11l shortly.

Famous Friday specials at '"Hie Auckland." Special advt. page ? has all particulars.*

Week-end specials in wool repp frocks Maids and Small Women's, from 65/regular value SO'-. McKay's.* Famous Friday specials lib "The Auckland.' R«i<3 about, them in special advt. page 7.*

The question was rooon'tly asked of n high railway official whether motor-car accidents turned tho people from service cars to the railways, and the reply was that every car accident, impressed the people more or less with the comparative perils of the road. Of tho 27,000,000 carried last year, the railways did not kill one.

At the civic reception last evening the memberrf of the Canadian Soccer team were each presented with it "Sunny Nelson ftooklet" by Mr E. R. Neale, on behalf of the Provincial .Progress League.

The receipt of six chips of strawberries at thu Auckland city markets on Saturday morning created considerable interest among dealers. Tho strawberries, which were grown by Mr J. A. Mack,ay at his gardens in Takapuria, v, ire perfect specimens of the Captain Cook variety, and of good size. They were quickly sold, 3s 8d a, chip being the price paid. Tf Cue weather remains favourable Mr Mackay hopes to be able to forward additional small supplies to the markets. Berries were gathered from the same beds last winter. It is a unique occurrence for plants to bear out of season two years in succession.

At yesterday's meeting of the Harbour Board the Harbourmaster reported on his investigation into the deposit of offensive matter upon the foreshore.. "J find that tho nuisance has abated to some! extent'meanwhile, though I do'not anticipate it will bo for long, and stringent measures will have to be taken against persons so offending, and who persist in casting offensive matter anywhere upon the foreshore after repeated warnings have been issued. Notice. boards are now being prepared and will be erected in suitable places as soon as they come to hand." The ready-made clothing industry in New Zealand gives employment to 6833 peisons, ■an increase of 3 per cent, over the previous year, and the amount distributed in salaries and wages was £844,383. The average wage has been rising. It was £ll7 in the previous year, and now stands at £124. Materials valued at £1,346,685 were worked up, and the "added value" due to manufacturing brought the total value of output to £2,515,280. The ready-made suit, New Zealand in its origin, is rapidly growing in favour. Output details show that the total in suits, 359,787 two year's ago, was nearly 200,000 last year. The shirt business is also growing quickly, but' there is a big drop in the manufacture of hats and caps. From 69,634 dozen in 1023-4, last year's production fell to 41,738 dozen. This was a percentage decline of 40, while the imports of hats and caps in tho same period have increased by 16 per cent. France, the home of fashion, provided New £ealander.s with apparel valued at £152,194, despite a 40 per cent, duty, while .the United Kingdom sent us clothing worth £1,686,200. Germany contributed £77.566, and another substantial client of the Dominion was the United States, which sent made-up clothing valued at £93,578.

"The plain truth of a sorry business is that there is not enough skilled industry in the bucolic Dominion to absorb all the eager and intelligent lads who really want to learn a good trade and become first-class artisans—able to make things," says the Auckland "Star." ''All the white-collar professions and the Public Service are densely overloaded ; all the lanes and corridors leading fo these cool billets are filled With a jostling mob of applicants. There, are more persons ''mployed in State and local government service than there are in all of the. country's secondary industries. It is a disgrace to the politicians—and in this, Tory, Liberal, and Labour are full brothers—-that the field of opportunity for boys in industrial employment is not only narrow, but is fenced about with restrictions. To begin with, there is a lamentable lack of publie information as to the. scope for industrial apprentices. Next, time and experience have proveu that tho Government's revised legislation on behalf of apprentices is defective and hopelessly inadequate for the employment, needs of the Dominion's youth. Further, the, inability of boys to secure the opportunity to learn a skilled trade demands a thorough revision of political Labour's industrial laws and restrictions as to the employment of apprentices. No country which allows thousands of its bovs to bejin serious life with odd jobs will ever make much progress. It is past time for Parliament to devise better laws and more industrial opportunities for the training of lads in skilled trades."

The annua] expenditure by New Zealanders on ready-made clothing runs into considerablv over' six million sterling, and the industry is one of the most flourishing factory activities in the country. It is heavily protected, for the duty on ready-made apparel from foreign countries is 40 per cent., while British readymades have to bear a Customs charge of 25 per cent. Gradually the New Zealand manufacturers aro gaining ground, and last year they came within reasonable distance of securing half the total of this big business, the position being as follows: Imported apparel and ready-made clothing, £2.997,041. Value of New Zealand clothing output, £2,515.280. As the values given are those, of invoices in one instance, nnd that of factory cost in the other, it will be seen that the six-million estimate of expenditure on .ready-made clothing is a. conservative, one.

Paderewski has not changed in appearance since lie was in Wellington before, some 20 years ago, says "The. Post." The same fine features, the wavy hair, now streaked with grey, the black piercing eye, the moustache, and the small imperial and still characteristic features. His manner is grave and dignified, due to the stress of troublous times and the responsibility of state an 1 national affairs; he speaks more deliberately than before, but. he is as impressive and as magnetic in personality as ever. Tn mariner he is charmingly oolite. Interviewed on the Mararna yesterday morning amidst the distractions of farewells to friends whom the pianist and his charming wife had made on the voyage, Paderewski replied briefly but court conslv to a few quest ions, arid with a shake of the head and a smile, politely declined In make an appointment I'm an interview later in ihe day. "Bui no, it is impossible." lie apologised. "I am joins' to my hold, and T must practise. I have not nraclised for five days, it was so stnrmv."

The proposal by the Meat Producers' Board fo impose a levy of one farthing per pound on all beef slaughtered and to pay a bonus on all beef exported similar to the Paterson plan operating in Australia, was expounded at a meeting of the Mastcrl.on A. and I'. Association. hv Mr William I'errv. a member of ifie Meat Hoard. Consideration of the matter was deferred. —Press Association.

A corre.spomde.rit writes: The correct weight of two fat sheep killed at Tapawera on Easier Monday was 103;jlbs. S. Wadsworth estimated' 103',. not 102 J, as previously reported.

The matron and trustees of St. Andrews Orphanage wish to thank the following for gifts of various kinds for the use of the institution:- Mrs Keith, Dean Askew, Messrs C. C. Seolt. Hurst, and Gould's omnibus service.

New arrivals in Ladies Wool Cardigans in attractive colouring at special prices for thin week-end. From 25/- at McKay's.*

Infants Cream Wool .Shawls in good qualities, from 19'6 at McKay's. 1

It is confidently predicted by the We.stporl "Times" that the Canadian soccer team will have one of the hardest games of the tour when it meets Buller on Saturday. "ft should be only a matter of not more than one goal each way," remarks our contemporary. Minor damage (o the centreboard necessitated the scow Huanift (Auckland) putting in to Port Nelson yesterday to effect repaics. Sho was "bound from Uisbarno to Orevmoulh.

The year ended March 31 was a satisfactory one generally with llaxmillers, apart from the consideration that in many districts the 1925-26 season was unusually wet. and the output of a number of mills was retarded as a consequence. According to the "Abstract of Statistics" for May, the depression which affected the industry in 1921, 1922 and 1923 has given way to a more satisfactory state of affairs, as a result of higher prices on the London market. During 1923 "high-points" were quoted in the vicinity of £3O per in 1924 round about £44, though in 1926 they dropped to approximately £36, while the latest quotations show a further decline. Only 22 per cent, of the hemp and tow exported in 1926 went to the United Kingdom. The United States took 31 per cent of the total quantity, and Australia 25 per'cent. After many vicissitudes and strango adventures, the steamer Admiral Codringfon has again changed hands, and, now owned by a Scottish firm, has been renamed Balgowan. Built for a Greek buyer, the steamer was purchased in 1919'by the Poverty Bay Meat Company for £318,000, a venture that caused a mild sensation in New Zealand at the time. Facetiously known as "The Fanners' Ship," or ' Lysnar's Baby," the steamer lay at Auckland for threo months after her arrival, while her holds were insulated. It is a happy memory for Auckland wateraiders, as, in addition to good pay, they were supplied on one occasion with a whopping big cheese and plenty of butter. Sad to relate, (he Admiral Codrington eventually became a nightmare to her owners, and I hero was a sigh of relief when she was disposed of. The last exploit of the steamer was tn drift ashore while lying idle in the Clyde.

The Government publicity offices established throughout New Zealand are performing a very useful work, not only from the point of view of tourists, but also in the interests of the travelling public. Those accustomed to using the Government services are able at the depots to secure information as to points of interest, and the fares on the railways and on private services. Tourists are very appreciative of the work of the publicity officers, who spare no pains in supplying them witli particulars concerning the Dominion's wealth of scenic attractions. There are at present ten booking bureaux of this* nature in New Zealand and it is understood the Department proposes to establish another one at Napier. The Nelson office in Hardy street lias done most valuable work since it was opened. Picking operations on the Auckland oyster beds, Russell, Kaipara Manukau, jiauraki Gulf, Rangiloto,, Co'romandel and Great Barrier are now in full swing, and 40 expert pickers are busily employed. Picking provides continuous work every year from practically .Tunc to October, the rate of remuneration is 7s 6d a sack, and in a good spot pickers can gather three sacks a title. The operations necessitate earlv and late work, and often a start is made at daybreak. The majority of the pickers arc employed this year at the Bay of Islands, where oyster culture on a large scale has been carried out since the last picking season. Some people have not the slightest dimculty m losing an 'umbrella, but apparently there are exceptions to that everyday happening. It was a Dominion road resident who told the story which was against himself (says the Auckland ''Star"). His umbrefla had become dilapidated, so much so that the ribs showed through the covering, and on the earnest advice of his wife he decided to get rid of it. While on his way to the city he dropped tin umbrella from the side of a community bus, but a passing motorist saw it fail, and when the bus stopped a bit further along the road it was duly returned to the owner. Next day, after a lew surreptitious glances about, he dropped the umbrella near a street corner, and went on to work with a self satisfied feeling. "You owe rnc sixpence," said his wifa when he returned that evening. "The baker's boy said he saw you drop your umbrella, and he brought it. round to the house."

Madame Paderewski, who wa-s i-'e Baroness do Rosen before her marriage to the great pianist, who arrived at Wellington yesterday, is a woman of charming personality. She and her distinguished husband politely bade au revoir to a "Post" interviewer ami took their last farewells-of their fellow-pas-sengers. An hour later Paderewski was comfortably settled down at his hotel, busily preparing for his opening concert 'this evening. Eight or ten. hours at his piano yesterday, he said, would compensate in part for the practice he had lost en voyage. It is not generally known that Paderewski —the correct pronunciation of the, name, by the way. is Padorevski, with the slightest sound of the v—was knighted by' King George in 1925 in recognition of his work on behalf of Lord Haig's fund for disabled soldiers. Although, he is a Knight of the Grand Cross of the British Empire, however, he does not use his title ; his personality and his artistry are far above it. As pianist, composer, statesman, in his phenomenal intellect, and . again through his commanding and magnetic personality, Paderewski is indeed a remarkable man.

"An inquiry undertaken under the auspices of (lie Health Department was one by Dr. Stecnson, into the nature of rheumatoid arthritis and allied rheumatic conditions," said the DirectorGeneral of Health. "Rheumatoid arthritis is a particularly distressing 'disease and one with which wp have a fair experience in New Zealand, and it was thought highly desirable that we should make some special detailed investigation in this country. Dr. Steenson so far has been carrying oui extremely laborious complement fixation tests ns elaborated by certain workers in .America, and his investigations serve to prove that Hie claim? of those workers with regard to the diagnosis and treatment of rheumatoid arthritis by the aid of serological tests cannot be maintained. So far the flndin.es have been more or less of a negative nature." In Marsdcn Hall tomorrow at 7.30 n in. the children of the Cathedral Sun day school are giving a concert in; order to defray a del,l of £25 still owing on the removal of the- school building. Dramatic sketches, musical items, etc.. will be given.

The Nelson Harmonic Society will giv? its first concert of the present.'season on Thursday next. 16th dune, when the concert edition of Verdi's ever popular opera, "11 Trovnlnre." will be rendered. Full attendances are requested for Ihe rehearsals to-night and Tuesday evening. The Workers' Conn. Ladies Guild is holding a popular euchre tournament- on Friday night, Emms' Motors are advertising a revised service for the com.ng season. Their mid-day car and also weekly lorry service will provp a great benefit both to the local residents and tourists, giving »s it does a surer means of transport between thes* dlko*

Dr. Tillyard'ft lecture on Friday night, at the School of Music, will be illustrated by about fifty lantern slides. The first half will sketch his recent tour through America and Europe, mentioning the well-known laboratories and men ho saw en route, with references to their work. The second part will deal with one of the bost mndern problems or developments in each of the four sections, geology, botany, biology and medicine. In each of these Dr. TillvarJ had the opportunity of studying, first hand, the work that is being now carried out on the problems.

Several members of the Canadian soccer team visited the Boys' College to-day and were shown over the institution by the acting-principal, Mr J. (1. McKay. Mr Adam, manager of the team gave a brief address to the pupils. Henry Joseph Marris, an ex-manager of the Christchurch branch of Schneidcmari and Sons, Ltd., was charged in the Christchurch Magistrates' Court to-day with the theft oi 255, the property of the firm. The case was dismissed after the hearing of lengthy evidence. It was alleged by the prosecution that one receipt had been altered. The Magistrate said evidently there had been carelessness somewhere, but the evidence was insufficient to prove theft. —Cress Association.

Mr Alexander Saddler, of Tomaire, reports to the Taumaruniii Bod and Gun Club that at the end of the fishing season he landed au Atlantic salmon trout- in the Wanganui river. The fish measured six inches and he returned it to the water. Saddler is an experienced fisherman.—Pi-ess Association.