LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLV, Issue 13938, 21 December 1908, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

Ax English mail, via Suez, arrived from. Sydney yesterday morning by the Manuka. The s.s. Foreric, from San Francisco, also brought an English and American' mail. Personal items and other interesting news from our London , correspondent . will be found elsewhere in this issue. The pressure on the time of the Prime Minister (Sir Josepu Ward) during his present visit to Auckland will probably.make it impossible for him to receive the deputation from the Chamber of Commerce and the Railways League (in regard to the duplication of the Parnell tunnel), until he is again in the cit'\ In speaking on the subject to a Heraxd reporter last night, Sir Joseph said that presumin ■ the request for the duplication of the tunnel were agreed to it would require an appropriation by Parliament as the Government had no money at present approapriated for duplication purposes. ■ ;thing would, therefore, he said, be lost by the deputation being deferred to his next visit. The provisions of the Pure Food and Drugs Act are now in force, and although no prosecutions have yet taken place in Auckland, the Health authorities are giving due attention to the administration of the. Act by the taking of samples of various drugs and articles of food from time to time. The manufacturers and merchants who have consulted the Health Department on the subject have expressed themselves well satisfied with the regulations, which they recognise will protect them from the unfair competition of inferior articles which occasionally find their way on to the market. During the Maori election for the South Island, it is stated that the Prime Minister, in the interests of Mr. Parata, sent a telegram, about 300 words in length, to some of the native settlements, extolling the merits of the ex-member, who has been • a consistent supporter of the Government. In it was set forth the statement that the ex-member had given every attention to Maori matters, including the landless, the old age pensions, the provisions of medical attendance, and the provision that Maoris could obtain loans under the Loans to Settlers Act. The telegrams v were .-. in the native language.

■■•••' *-■• .. ,- '■•'..-. v. ' . ■■• ■ ... .. . " '"• ;\i:.:'::.'i The good work amongst, the Maori* that ; : ■■■■-/! has resulted from the formation of the Te Aute Students* Association, which was • responsible for the existence of what it , known as the Young Maori party, is about ?'"■"':; to -receive a vigorous impetus by the-'-establishment of a similar association in ">. '"■■■ the Auckland district. The inauguration .'I of the "Northern Maori : ' Secondary Schools Association" is the object of fa conference that will be held in Auckland ' next week, consisting chiefly of past pupilg of St. Stephen's School lor Boys and the Victoria School for Girls (both at Parnell} and the Three Kings College. The objects of the proposed association are th« amelioration of the condition of the Maori race, physically, socially, and intellectually, and the scientific study * of the race. The Auckland dig. - " tvict contains 68 of the 100 native schools' ~ '< l in the Dominion, and as three important secondary schools are 'located here, it is ; :J considered that there is a strong case for the establishment of the proposed association. The conference will be held on the last three days of the present month. The fact that the erection of up-to-date - abattoirs at Auckland has excited attention as far away as Adelaide has already been "chronicled. It is still more interesting, however, to learn that inquiries con- : cerning the details of the abattoirs, have come even from England. A request for 1 information on the subject has been re-IS;?f ceived by Dr. Purdy, district health . officer, from Newcastle-on-Tyne, as well as from Lismore, in New South Wales; In each case the inquirers have been supplied with copies of the Herald containing a description of the building, as well as the report of the recent official opening of the abattoirs. The same information has also been sent to Dr. Porter, health officer at Johannesburg. The abattoirs, which have been stated by Mr. Gilruth, Chief Government Veterinarian, to be perhaps the best in the world,-are." thus already acquiring a very widespread repula- ! tion. [ In reply to an inquiry last evening con« j cerning the Native Land Commission th« I Prime Minister stated that only a few I weeks' extension of time would probably be I required to enable the Commission to coin* plete its investigations. Further legisla- . tion would, he said, be required to giv» effect to the recommendations of the Com . mission, but the necessary preliminary step! for the opening of the lands recommended , for disposal for settlement would be pushed on as quickly as possible during the t-ecess. The monument which the Government has"; l\}. decided to erect in honour of the l&te Premier (Mr. Seddon), above his grave at Wellington, is being supplied from Auckland. The work in connection with the preparation of the memorial, which will be pro- - bably the highest of its kind in New Zealand, has been proceeding for some time „.*'- vi past in the yard of the New Zealand Granite ', Company in Stanley-street. The monu- ; ment, which will reach to a height of nearly 60ft, consists for the most part of Caro*.-,v'i'-jV mandel granite, the exception being . the , four panels, which are of a granite supplied : by the Government from the South Island. A prominent feature of the statue will be *$? the figures of four lions, one on each corner at the foot of the column. These are being" . carved out of Coromandel granite, which is ■ proving itself a very suitable stone for the. ; ', purpose of such monuments. The virions '.: ~ ;f "I parts of the statue, which will be assembled , at the last resting place of the late statesman on Observatory Hill, will be shipped to I Wellington in two or three weeks* thus. '" : The New Zealand: Dairy Association's,,- ~ <■<■. Limited, payment on the 21st inst. for butter- supplied daring "November totals £21,799 4s lid. As showing^theH ; , •; marked increase it may be mentioned •-.'•-, :' i that this total is £3938 0s 9d more than V;: was paid at the corresponding time last year. , * The'ladies, and gentlemen comprising the chorus of Mr. J. C. Williamson's MusicalComedy Company gave a 'conceit on the Manuka, from Sydney, on Saturday nigh'.. I in aid of the Shipwrecked Sailors' Orphans / [ and Widows' Fund. The sum of £12.8s . j was realised and handed to the captain. ! Mr. Walter Everard who is well known intheatrical circles, presided at the function. A concert in aid of the same fund was also ' held in the social hall of the s.s. Mokoia, - *^ I*'-1*'-(which arrived from- Southern and East, Coast ports) on Saturday night. The en- ~ tertainment was presided over by Mr. A.. G. Blackie. ' . ! There is still a great dearth of domestic labour of a suitable class in Auckland, and the local registry office, as well as the 1 ..-; j Government female labour bureau, i* constantly receiving applications for girls ; , who are able to efficiently , discharge, household duties. Over 200 applications a month have been received by the Labour . Bureau, and the other offices are also experiencing a steady demand. Capable set-* -c:y. vants have no difficulty in ; earning £1 -»' week and their board, and many of the employers who are unable to get suite* are offering -as much as 22s 6d ' and 25s a * ,\- ; 'f_ •week. Miss Morrison, who is in charge of; vV'-' the Government Bureau, states that she has received applications from quite & large number of ladies, who are ready, t« r - pay young girls, inexperienced but willing *. _' / to learn, from 12s to 15s a week, and *» instruct them in the various branches of domestic work, including cooking... "There is no necessity," she states,^' tet- \ any girl of anything like fair capabilities to remain out of employment for an hour or even half an hour." . ~- A further sum of £68 towards the fighting fund of the Auckland Provincial Nolicense Council was received or. Saturday. making a total of £927. It is expect** that the balance of the £1000 leauiwd wOl be available to-day. The future prospects of Tauranga. BXt spoken of in most hopeful terms by » .; Auckland resident who recently visited W district. The carrying, by 190 to 60 vote*, of the proposal to borrow £12,000 for tf» purpose of providing the town with an efficient water supply is cited as a tangible mark of confidence in the future of the district. The supply will be by gravitation, and the water will be brought about M , miles. A drainage system will probably - follow the water supply, whilst a gasworks scheme is already under way. Three.sawmills are likely to be erected near the town, and the establishment of a fruit cannery W« s also been mooted. A number of Remuera ladies entertained the inmates of the Costley »**.;■ Epsom, with " high tea" on Saturday. fj» . inmates were regaled with a bounty spread of Christmas cheer, fruit, cakes, m» strawberries and cream. The ladies waited on the old folk, who spent a very enjoyaDW time. Subsequently the visitors >&">: ■ concert in the infirmary ward. "• ferent wards of the institute were decorate* in honour of the occasion. The victim of Saturday's «*£[£s A Mr. Arnold Gilmour, is still ma P«^ to state at the Auckland Hospital. Ib % & very little change in his condition. _ Saturday afternoon an operation wa».P« formed on him. r , ;• The Prime Minister, on gggj on the subject of the new Cabinet mente bv a representative of the M**^ last evening, had Vi? f ?Z of tb« beyond the statement that the nam^o^ new Ministers would probably be anfl°« before the end of the month*

The members of the Royal Commission vhich the Government has decided to set up'to inquire into the question of the increase of the duty on Oregon pine timber, - will, the Prime Minister stated in answer - to an inquiry last evening, probably be appointed before the end of the year. The -' names of the two Commissoners to be appointed, one for each island, under the \V; Arbitration Amendment Act of last year, ' would also, he said, be announced about - the same time. This Act comes into force - on January 1. A fast trip was registered by the Union ~!* Company's steamer Manuka, which arriv- ■■'■ ed from Sydney yesterday. The steamer left Sydney at four p.m. on Wednesday * last, and reached port at six a.m. yester- ''- day thus covering the distance (1281 miles) in the quick time of three days and 14 U' hours. Stanley Harris Tirrell, contractor, of Hamilton, who has riled his petition in bankruptcy, has supplied a statement to the official assignee in which he attributes his V" present position to losses on two contracts (one at Epsom and one at Hamilton) and to being summoned for a debt of £24. His - liabilities amount to £1332 and his assets to £908, leaving a deficit of £424. Messrs. ■. Stowardson, Woodhead, and Co., who have 'also supplied a statement to the assignee, how liabilities amounting to £511 5s 2d '.and assets totalling £108 lis, thus leaving a deficit of £402 14s 2d. The Agricultural Department has now had under its close observation in the I North Island for the last eighteen months, and in the South Island for the last six r months, the development of a system of co-operative experimentation with farmers, under which small quantities of fertilisers . and different varieties of seeds are, by the co-operation of the Department and the „ farmer, experimented with, and the results carefully noted for future use. In both the North and South Islands, where the respective officers who have the supervision of this work are Messrs. Baylies and Mc- ; pherson, the response that has been met with from the farmers has been of a very gratifying nature. N A good catch of fish was landed from the Tongariro River on the fly on Wednesday , night (writes a Tokaanu correspondent). Eleven fish in all were secured, the respective weights being 111b. llilb. 1241b. 121b, lSjdb, ; 13ilb, 14jlb, 71b. 91b. 10*11), and 101b, an average of 10i~o. for 2£ hours fishing. Excellent sport is reported from Taupo. A rainbow trout weighing 191b lloz was . s caught by Mr. J. Mcßae on Saturday morning, while Messrs. Duncan and Parker (two Napier anglers) secured 10 trout, weighing 851b, in less than an hour. Mr. Woodhead *."' also secured two, weighing 14£lb and 141b respectively. i The following is a list of books recently added to the Auckland Public Library : — " Life and Letters of A. Ainger," " Memoirs of the late Dr. Baruardo," "The Home Workshop" (Bbkelee). "Picnic Party ~'*in Wildest Africa" (Bulpett). " Cruise of ; I the Port Kingston" (Hall Caine), Sea ! Kings of Britain" (Callender), " Solomon's ' Temple : History and Structure" (Calde- > % cott), "Letters of Dean Hole," "Practical Hints on Modelling" (Ganz), " Romance of Empire" (Gibbs), "Dictionary of Christ and the Gospels" (Hastings), "Practical Shipbuilding, Diagrams and lllustrations" (Holms), "Under the Syrian : - Sun" (Inchbold), "Language of Flowers" (Ingram), "Thirteen Colonies of North America". (Jeffery), " Babylonian and Ori- ':■: ental Excavations, and Early Bible His- \ tory" (Kittel), " Egypt and Western Asia W' in Light of Recent Discoveries" (King and Hall), "Under the Sun: 'Impressions of Indian Cities" (Landon), "Through Ja- _ maica with a Kodak" (Leader), " Lower Niger and Its Tribes" (Leonard)-, " New- : Ideas in India" (Morrison), "Astronomy I of the Bible" (Maunder), Short History ."•-- of Our Own Times" (McCarthy), "Evolution of Forces" (Le Bon), "Radioactive : Substances" (Makower), " Civil Engineerfi'J ing": (Rankine), "Applied Mechanics" (Rankine), " Power Gas Producers" (Robeon), " Carthage and Tunis" (Sladen), " In Wildest Africa" (Schillings), " TemJJV. perature, Secular Cooling, and Contraction of the Earth, Etc." (See), Modern Lawn Tennis" (Vaile), "Letters of Queen Victoria, 1837-1861," " Empires and Emperors" (Vay de Vaya), " Minor Maladies" (Williams), "Elder Faiths of Ireland, PreChristian Traditions" (Wood-Martin), "The Young Mechanic" (Horsley), "In the Grip of the Hawk," The Boy - Engineers." Also the following: Sir .W. Besant's "Medieval London" (two vols.), Brockmann's "Celluloid: Its Material and - Manufacture," "Paper-making," "Massage and Electricity," Sir Erskine May's " Parliamentary Practice" (eleventh edition), "Essays" (by the late Marquis of {Salisbury).