LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 13497, 25 May 1907, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

The question of the possible effects d the application of labour laws and regulations to the dairying industry was informally discussed at a meeting of dairy fac- > tory representatives, held last night under the auspices of the National Dairy Association. Reference was made to.the movement started by the Canterbury dairy, workers, and the need for taking action to counteract this movement was urged. No resolution, however, was passed on the subject. Some of the speakers said that i labour restrictions and increased wages would probably have the effect of killing the industry. The New Zealand Railway Officers' Institute'met in conference in Wellington latently, and during the week's sitting a large number of questions affecting the welfare of officers of the railway service were discussed.: The members comprising the conference subsequently waited upon the Minister for Railways {the JfcLon.. VI. Hall-Jones) and urged ■ upon • him the dc«, sirableness of granting a universal eighthour day to stationmastcrs and members I of the clerical division, together with an amendment of the Classification Act, in the | direction of more adequate remuneration I for the services performed by the staff lis a whole. The Minister gave the deputaj tion a sympathetic hearing, and promised j to give the requests every consideration, ( During Inst, year the, Wellington Fire I Brigade received 230 calls to fires, real or supposed, an increase of 73 upon the calls |of the previous year. Of the total num- - I ber 34 proved to be false alarms (of which , 12 were maliciously given), 22 were chim- ' ney fires, 46 rubbish and goi;se fires, and 128 were actual fires. In his annual report i Superintendent Hugo has this note to the | City Council:—" I would call your atten- , j tion to the. large number of gorse fires, some of which were of considerable extent and dangerously close to neighbouring pro- • perty. There is a large quantity of gorse within the city boundaries, and it should be eradicated." Referring to the fact that some of the buildings in Wellington are - over 100 ft high, Captain Hugo points outthat, at its conference in 1902, the Municipal Association passed the following resolution"That the height oi any building hereafter erected shall not exceed 90ft in streets 99ft or more in width, and in- 1 streets, lanes, or right-of-way less thra 99ft in width such buildings shall not exceed 66ft, the height in all cases to he . measured from the average level of the , ' footpath to the top of the parapet." "This resolution has never, been brought into force. '-'■■ If in a great number of the leading cities of the world it was necessary to restrict the ; ', ,: height of buildings, here in Wellington," Captain Hugo says, "looking to the frej quent warnings conveyed by the earthi quakes experienced, it r. more necessary to impose a limit." No fresh cases of septicaemia have been s f reported. Notices were served upon the. owner or owners of Bradford ? Buildings, Queen-street, yesterday in accordance with the terms of the Mayor's resolution passed by the City Council at its meeting on Thursday, that the cellar be • cleaned out and the floors and staircase be taken up,, all scrim removed, and the building thoroughly disinfected. Notices to quit have also been-served on the tenants of. - Bradford Buildings. It is reported, (says a Palinerston North Press Association telegram) that -Mr. E. J. Riddiford has purchased Mr. Godfrey Pharazyn's Taonui property, of 1100 acres, at £45 per acre. The price paid shows a rise of £20 per acre in four years, Mr. Pharazyn having paid £20 per acre at that ■ time. At the conclusion of the races at Tak*puna last evening a large brake, drawn by four horses, was about to leave the course when the two leaders suddenly became startled, and making a plunge forward broke , the harness and got free. They then bolted in the direction of the gate, and in doing ■ ■ so one of them collided with a cab, knocking the driver from his scat and hurling him into the air. Fortunately the man escaped injur}'. The other animal also came in contact with several vehicles. Both of them were finally secured after galloping some distance along the main road. i^s;f A parade of the whole of the Auckland . volunteers and defence cadets will take pl»C* on Sunday afternoon at the Domain Cricket Ground. The various bands will also take part and play selections, A collection will be taken up in aid of Sergeant-Major Morgan, caretaker of the Pentose line rang* who was injured while carrying out hi* duties two years ago. Though not now incapacitated, he still feels the chats of the injury.

To-dav's HE*"' o consists of 18 pages. The' special articles in the Supplement con- ■ + 25 He Forgets who He Is," by To- ' *st . .'Where the White Man Treads: f fig™ Histor y" M) iW. 8., J°2. "The Volcanoes of New Zea•i l£ Legends and History," by Malcolm L .« J Week-end on Milford! Beach," "■" £*W L- la S^ n ' "A Day at Monte ir A« '" by Zeala; and " Takapuna in May, ? E«ly». There arc all the usual features, Eluding" Gossip," by Mercutio? rlnrous illustrations, ladies' page, and Sand draughts columns, London Chat, News. The stones, " Sirocco, * Katelleredith," and " Neither Storehouse ' /r Barn," are continued. : Mr Gow, who is making inquiries about trade' prospects in Canada, was in Toronto 5 week {wires our Wellington correspon7n» He continues to write hopefully Sat his mission. One of the Canadians Vth whom he came in contact has come out £ Wellington with his family, and .s pre- . plring to start a business with Canadiangoods- , In connection with the discovery of foU nterfeit coins and a plant for the ■. SS acturing of them at Wellington our ' • Correspondent in that city states that the ■ , 2s were occupied by Henry Peacock • engraver, who is under arrest for a SS offence. The find consisted of five or six plaster of Paris moulds for Iking spurious half-crowns and halffnvSns, a small crucible for melting Ita! an apparatus connected, with /the Z supply for heating the 'crucible, some half-crowns and half-soverigns m course of manufacture, and a number of finished articles Both the half-crowns and the half-sovereigns were made of the same ma- ' terial An electric batery : and certain ■ liquids were also found on the premises. - The Minister for Marine has decided to wo Waiheke Island closed, for oyster ' firing this season. In order, however, That supplies to a reasonable extent may be available it has been . arranged to throw i open a portion of Ponui Island for oyster- | picking, and a, regulation to this effect will be gazetted almost immediately. ..

Satisfaction has been expressed at Otahuhu regarding the statement that Mr. W. F Massey- M.H.R., had made successful representations to the Minister for Customs . respecting the importation of Australian chaff as fodder,, and that steps have been token to collect the duties leviable. Farmers hold that with the high prices current " for land, wages, seed and manure they have plenty to contend against without being handicapped by unfair competition. - Nineteen persons ended their holiday ■ yesterday in the lock-up, ; and, after hav- • in" slept in the police cells last evening, should have every reason to remember Empire Day of 1907. :At least 12 of these drank too often the toast, " The Day We Celebrate," with the consequence that they V were arretted for drunkenness, vßesides these there were • two persons in for theft, one for assault and doing actual bodily •' harm, one for common assault, one , for using obscene language, one for inciting a - prisoner to resist arrest, and one for wife desertion.' All will appear at the Police Court this morning. For the first time in the history of education in Australia we are about to receive, writes Professor David, of Sydney University, a visit from one of the most distinguished authorities on education in the United States, Dr. David Starr Jordan, the well-known principal of Stanford ' University, California. Dr. Jordan has Wen. president of that , great 'university,. ' . " Mich Uai* -nearly. 2000. ;studente„.since the yew-" 1891, and' it goes without saying that he is well up to date in"'the latest ideas on education evolved, by the most progressive of modern peoples. Dr. Jordan is.a ■■■■■■■ strong advocate for the higher education of women, as will appear from the follow-ing:-—"The highest product of social evolution is the growth,of: the civilised home, : the home that only. a wise, cultivated, and high-minded woman can make. To furnish 1 such women is one of the , worthiest functions of higher education. , To be wise and at, the same time "womanly, is to wield a tremendous ~ influence, :'■ which . may be felt - fur good in the lives of generations to-, come. 'It is not forms of government by which men are made and unmade. It is the character and influence of their mothers and their wives. The higher education of women means more for. the future

' ;';■ . than all conceivable >~ legislative preforms. And its influence does not stop with the 'home, It means higher standards 1 of man--1 hood, greater thoroughness of training, and the coming of better men. Therefore, let as. educate our girls as well as our .boys. A. generous education; should be the birth-

light of every daughter of the Republic :as well as of every eon. Even if the four K's, 'kirche, kinder, kuchen, and kleider/ are to occupy woman's life, as the Emperor William would .have us believe, the college education is not too serious a preparation for the profession of ■• directing them. A -wise son is one who has had a • wise mother, and to give alertness, intel- , h'gence, and wisdom is the chief function of a college education." Professor Jordan,; .who will visit Wellington in three or four weeks' time, is to be guaranteed a fee of £50 by the City Council for lectures to be delivered in Wellington. V- ' A' case of assault heard at Masterton last Monday presented rather unusual features. The informant was a blind man,; well on in year*, and the defendant was his father, an old age pensioner, something .over-80. From the evidence it appeared that the latter was a pretty hardy sort, and evidently much more capable of taking his own part in a.fisticuff encounter than plenty of younger men. -The informant, in his evidence, said the actual :;; conflict was commenced by his father in- ... viting his (informant's) son, aged .nearly t IS,, to "put up his dukes." 'The schedule and prize list for the Waihi Poultry, Pigeon, Canary, and Dog Society's annual show, to be held in the Drill Hall on Friday and Saturday, June 28 and 29. has been issued. In the section for birds 1 tin- classes total 247, while, if the whole of the classes fixed for dogs claim representatives, 65 different breeds will figure on the benches. In addition to the prizes given | by the society, a large number of valuable ' > trophies and money prizes have been do- ;: nated for the various sections, and as entries have been promised from several out-sid-J districts, everything points to a • highly successful exhibition. An arrest was made yesterday morning a the Thames in connection with the recent robbery of jewellery and money from ■ -the Gladstone boardinghouse, Kenny-street, Waihi. The fire brigade received a call shortly after five o'clock last evening, and on arming ~t the locality (Khyber Pats) had °nly to put out a fire in a chimney. A Suez mail, which left London on April j*Wi will arrive from Sydney by the Hip;' «era to-morrow. . ■. r\ ■■ f',i '; , : ■ - • ■■" ■• .. ■:■.';-; J he North New Zealand Coursing Club will ope« their meeting at Middiemorc, Otahuhu, ro-day. A social train will leave Auckland al naif-past on.? p.m.