LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 11843, 21 December 1901, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

We beg to announce to our subscribers and advertisers that the Herald will not : be published on Wednesday'next (Christmas Day), ( More captures of Boers are reported. Kruger's obstinacy ia said to be increasing: : daily. , The Johannesburg Exchange has been opened. Mr. Asquith eulogises Lord Kitchener as a great and patient general. The intense feeling which has been created in England by the pro-Boer party, culminated ill a serious and fatal riot in Birmingham, where the party attempted to hold a ; public meeting , in the Town Hall, at which Mr. Lloyd George, the •< little pushful Welsh lawyer, who has suddenly sprung into , prominence, was to be the principal speaker. A large number of loyalists gained admittance to the building and broke up the meeting, Mr. George having to seek safety in flight, disguised as a policeman. . Outside, an enormous and indignant throng had assembled, and after passing resolutions in support of the policy of the Government they proceeded to smash the windows of the Town' Hall. In the rioting which ensued one person was killed and 27 injured. . According to the X endon Standard's • Brussels correspondent; the capture of Commandant Kruitzinger is regarded in Boer circles as the greatest loss the Boers have sustained since the surrender of Cronje. The Privy Council has decided that there can be no appeal against the action of the military, authorities in districts where martial law has been proclaimed, j Mr. J. Redmond, M.P., has been presented with the freedom of the city of Dublin. . He declares that Ireland is now equipped 'or the final flight with England, and that the mere menacing and dangerous the;, Irish agitacion is made the more the American masses will help. Although the Lane! League: is Ino doubt endeavouring to create serious trouble in Ireland, Mr. Wyndham, the Irish Secreefforts 8 D ° fc a^ac k much importance to it! Rev : *** has requested that special prayers•be offered tothe din m . aU tlle /Anglican Churches of South Africa" 00tmeC ' ion »* - tbe in

______ An English mail, which left London 'ox* November 15, will arrive from " Sydney by the Zealandia, 1 which ,is I expected to reach' i m Auckland • late to-morrow night, . j l„ m t.n. n |Li fplpf 4- <■ If X * ri lf,r f * Our usual Saturday Supplement contain* I this week a large amount 'of interesting matter suitable for the Christmas season. If 3" . ~ The lavish and beautiful illustrations in! ' - this week's special number of the Auck-- * ' ~ ■>' land Weekly News have been greatly admired. As they include some of the finest views that have yet appeared of the match ' }l less scenic glories of . New Zealand, :,the. number is an unrivalled one for posting to friends at Home by the San Francisco mail, leaving Auckland to-day. The' mail closes ' for newspapers at half-past eleven. ■' The long vacation at the Supreme Court offices commenced yesterday, and extends till January 31 next, during which period the offices close daily at one p.m. "From the' 24th inst. to January 3 next, both dayseinclusive, the offices will be closed altogether for the Christmas and Now Year holidays. His Honor held a sitting in, chambers yesterday. Among- the - motions heard was one in re Tobias Tobias v. Kate Tobias, divorce application to dispense with co-respondent, and'for leave jto • serve writ outside the colony. The,' application was granted. - - A point worth , noting by those who have* ' business before the Arbitration Court was explained by the president yesterday at' some length. Mr, Hall, representative of the masters, was saying that the masters objected to- the clause providing that thai "pay of an incompetent workman should he fixed by the secretary of the union ■ and the employer. The employers " considered they should fix the rate of pay themselves. The president . said if • that were - conceded the Court might just as well go back to ■ Wellington. This was a point ; upon ; which there appeared to be a good deal! of misconception. The Court had ' a duty imposed upon it by statute,_ namely, to fix ; the ■ minimum wage to be paid to a conipeUnfe workman, and the masters wsve* asking, the Court to give them the"" full uncontrolled power to pay. a lowei Wage to any . men . they consider incompetent. If that was to be the case, any employer ~ might -' say:! " All my men are incompetent lam only : - going to pay them lOd per hour." ' What was the use of the Court sitting at all - is' : •; they left such, a -loophole.',as: that? Mr. v.'.': Brown pointed out that' the employerwas • really the final judge, as he need not em-" ploy an incompetent man who could : not get a certificate permitting; hint to work : for "the pay the master considered he was , - worth. His Honor raid there were incompetent men about, and the law required that then rate of pay should be fixed by some machinery. It was ? perfect farce to say the power of fixing that rate should be left in the hands of the employer,', for, as he had; pointed out, if shut were so there was no use fo» the Court. - The • Court had to provide some machinery.; and it provided that the wages should be fixed by the employer and. the secretary of the union, and if ,they could not agree then the . question was referred to an independent person, the chairman of the Concilia- " tion Board. This was not • a new . principle.It had i been;; settled- first ■by Mr. : : Justice Williams, , then by Mr. Justice Edwards, Mr. Justice Martin, and lastly by himself : : ; (Mr Justice Cooper). After hearing this explanation of;the,point, the masters ac-. cepted the clause. . The Auckland . Electric Tramways Com"'' pany will start work on the reconstruction of their Ponsonby depot early in the Newear. A piece of ; land opposite the depot has been secured for a short term, arid on this a temporary building will -be run up to provide stabling, etc., while the depot is being reconstructed. The whole of the ' city work is well forward, and as the balance of the material is expected to coma to hand in good time, there is every prospect of electric trams running through the city .in six months' time. ' The inquest on the body of Charles John Marshall was held at- Waihi yesterday, a verdict being' returned ' tha/ Mari m ®t with his death on December rid, -. ' .1901, as the lesult of . wounds received through an explosion caused through driv- • - ing a moil into a hole containing gelignite* while working lin a winze in the Waihi '. ' mine on December 3. - ,'. ■" v-. : . ;• In\ connection : with the recent Trocadero. fire, •in Wellington, Messrs. ' Jolly and Co.- : V'. inform us . that their auction-room and : r offices, situated in the Trocadero building,. were not - totally destroyed, as published.' Every other part of- Mi. : Duthie's propertv was totally destroyed, but the . fire brigade I managed to; ; save , Jolly's . premises,, which ■ were on the ground floor, and the contents, Dion Were dam aged,. and were insured for El2O only, consisted really of important > eocuments, which • were not destroyed. The firm is still carrying on business 'in the same premises, and wish a£>to correct the news published. During the heavy thunderstorm orf Thursday morning last, Captain Sellars, of the scow Ranger, was struck by lightning, one of his arms being paralysed for a day., . • tt ß **?? B - w ?^- ;cau Snt- in.'the* storm"-' "\viierr - oft Whangarei, and: had an exciting experi- ' : 1 Safely ° m ° iOUr3 ' but ; got tljrouli ' y ... The Rev. A. H. Collins has resigned the ' pastorate of the Ponsonby Baptist Church ' where he has officiated for the past' nine . years. Foi seven years Mr. Collins was secretary of the New Zealandßaptist . Union, and last year he was elected pre* • %, L • sident of the union, vacating the position ' month ago, after the jubilee 'celebrations.. For about three years Mr. Collins has been ' chairman of the Auckland Conciliation ■ Board. A meeting of.the; One-tree Hill Domain -; '■ Board was held yesterday afternoon. There were present: Mr. H. B. Morton ; (in the chair), Sir G. Maurice O'Rorke Dr. J. Logan Campbell, Messrs. : Robert' Hall, and Baglej.. The report of the Planting ' Committee detailed the work of the part ! year, including the addition of. about- 50 ' : oaks to .the avenue ■-following the main * It' the enlargement and improvement of the plantation at the: north-eastern portion of the domain,": and the planting *f a' number of native toe. The old plantations had .been carefully examined and unsuit- 'I' ■ able trees removed. ■ A • lodge had been erected, and caretaker appointed. Refer- i ence was made in the report to Dr. Cam bed s gift of Cornwall Park, and the open- 1 ing of the golf course, and the committee ; expressed the hope that during the ensuih^ yeai they would be able to . make a. startwith' the road to the summit, as v liown in ! » the design for laying out the domain pre-v • I pared by Mr. Louch 'in 1883. . - • A well-attended meeting of shareholders • of the Auckland Co-operative Terminating -■ 1 Building Society was held at St. James' Hall last night,' Mr. Richard Walton occu- , ; V: : § pying the chair, when the 4 following ap- : « propriations were disposed of: First §i group, by sale,- £400, premium £90; second group, by ballot, numbers drawn,, . -t 280, 272, 273; third group, by ballot, f numbers drawn, 385, 385; fourth group, by ' - ballot, numbers drawn, 103, 104. The , " !• scrutineers appointed to conduct the draw- - ?)_ ings were Messrs. Wright and Taylor. V.v, ''ifp -- : ■ ; : ■ | ' v S :