LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLVII, Issue 14500, 14 October 1910, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

The cargo of dairy produce shipped at Auckland by the '.Tongariro, .which leaves for London to-day, via Wellington, consists of 11,350 boxes butter and 56 boxes cheese. This makes a total of 26,363 boxes butter exported for the current season, compared with 21,720 boxers for the corresponding period last year. . The prospects still continue bright, and it is anticipated that during the next 'fortnight a much greater quantity than that shipped by the Tongariro will be coming forward for export. • A cable message was received yesterday by Mr. J. J. Walklate, general manager of the Electric Tramways Company, from the secretary of the company in London, stating that the annual meeting of the company will be held in London on October 31. The message also stated the directors have recommended the payment of a dividend at the rate of 6 per cent, per annum on the ordinary shares for the six months ended the 30th of June last; that £7500 be set aside for depreciation, that £6000 be added to the reserve, and that £6073 be carried forward. The Lascar question was discussed at the last- meeting of the board of the Auck-" land Typographical Union, and the following resolution was unanimously agreed to : —" That this board, on behalf of the Auckland Typographical Union, cordially approves of the attitude taken up by the New Zealand Seamen's Union in regard to coloured labour on vessels entering the intercolonial trade, and hopes that the steps being 'taken by the white seamen of New Zealand and Australia in reference to. this matter will secure the desired object." Though the Hon. Wi Pere is many degrees removed from a stripling, the blood of the Maori warrior still throbs in his veins, and he is still found, as one of Gilbert's opera heroes phases it: "Longing for the rattle of the complicated battle." Moreover, Mr. Pere has something approaching contempt for the pusillanimous war preparations of his pakeha brethren. He would like to see all the able-bodied people in the country trained for the fray, women as well as men, with no arbitrary limit of age. " Are you going to confine the sport of war to these few?" he asked his fellow-members of the Legislative Council when discussing the Deience Bill, the, " few " being young men from 18 to 25 years of age. "N0.," he continued, "let us give everyone a chance. You can have ail those from 18 to 25, but let me train those not provided for in the Defence Bill, and I'll back my lot against youis." Mr. Pere added that his most ardent wish was that New Zealand should have to face a foe whilst he was still active and able to shoulder a rifle. "I want," he concluded, " to show you that I am as good in practice as in theory." Four prisoners will come up for sentence at the Supreme Court on . Monday morning. The following are the cases — Charles John Leslie, breaking and entering and theft, at Auckland, three charges; Tunua Pahihi, breaking and entering and theft, at Whangarei ; Davis Roy, offence against a girl under 14 years, at Kaitaia; and James Wells, assault on a girl, aged nine, at Thames. A serious accident was averted yesterday morning, by the prompt action of Motorman Boyle, who was driving car No. 27 down New North Road. A .little girl named Mary Gowan, five or years of age, while crossing the road near the Eden.Terrace Police station, was in danger of being run over, but the motorman promptly applied the emergency brake. The car struck the little girl, and she received a nasty bruise and a cut on the forehead, and was attended by Dr. Roberton. The Rev. Monsignor Gillan has received from Bishop Cleary the following reply to a cable sent to him on his consecration day : — " Please accept my cordial thanks for the beautiful message of congratulation and goodwill, which you sent to me on behalf of the diocese of Auckland. It reached me on my consecration day, and no more welcome or happily worded message of felicitation could Jiave greeted me on such an occasion. Kindly do me the favour of conveying to all the kind hearte of clergy and laity, whose wishes were interpreted by that gracious greeting, my deep sense of their goodness and the assurance of my affectionate regard." The first free kindergarten school •in Auckland which is being established in Freeman's Bay, under the auspices of the Auckland Kindergarten Association, is now in the occupation of a merry troup of some 50 juvenile pupils, of ages ranging from three to five. The work of the school has been hitherto conducted temporarily in the. pavilion in Victoria Park, but on Monday last the director, Miss Gibson, transferred her charges to the handsome new building, which has been presented to the association by Sir John Logan and Lady Campbell. The building, which stands on a section adjoining Victoria Park, granted by the Harbour Board for the purpose, will be formally opened next Wednesday, afternoon by the Mayor of Auckland (Mr. L. J. Bagnall), who is also president of the association. It is hoped that Sir • John and Lady Campbell will be amongst those present on that occasion. In the Hokianga district the, Lands Department has, under the supervision of Mr. R. R. Menzies, over 100 men at work pni road and bridge formation on the Karae Block, of 30,000 acres (says our Dargaville correspondent). Operations are to be carried on throughout the summer, and it is expected that by the end of January close on 11 miles of road will be formed, which will connect Broadwood with Kohukohu, a distance of 16 miles, whilst the extension in a northerly direction will open up the country to Mangonui. It is estimated that this opening up of the country will bring six square miles of pastoral" territory Into communication with the butter factory at Motukaraka. The Tokerau Land Board is prepared to lease sections ranging from 124 to 886 acres, under the renewable tenure, but if i the freehold were available large competition would ensue for the various lots. ."'.'.■■

Complaint is rife, amongst Austrians in the Kaipara electorate that they are un-j able to secure letters of naturalisation, although in all cases in which applications have been made the terms of residence have been complied with, and attestations of characters certified to by leading justices of the peace, who are personally acquainted with the applicant*. . Over 50 requests have recently been refused or deferred (writes our Dargaville correspondent), and the Minister for Internal Affairs has notified that a longer residence in the Dominion than that laid down by statute is necessary before the aliens can be clothed with full British prerogatives. In one case, where application was made in April, 1909, much correspondence ensued, and it was only a month ago that the request was granted. Yesterday, as on Labour Day, the morning was showery, and was followed by a windy afternoon. The dust in the afternoon, in some of the traffic streets running in the direction of the wind, was something to be remembered, and the fact may be taken as a striking commentary on, street-making in Auckland. . In few places are the streets made of materia! so friable that it has the double distinction of being mud in the morning and dust in the afternoon. This lightning change capacity may be curious in its way, but the notoriety is an undesirable one. There is more than a grain of truth in the following remarks by a recent correspondent of the Herald : — Our bad roads are traceable to the fact that they cannot consolidate sufficiently to become waterproof, to throw off drainage from the crown laterally. The'tram : way lines or frame precludes any possibility of the crown fulfilling its part of tightening the whole, formation, -as does the- keystone that of the arch, and the sluicing of torrents of water facilitates the abrasion of all surfaces, kept in constant attrition by the continuous passing rt the huge cars along their surface, so as to rencjer the parts amalgamating or ' macadamising' being an absolute impossibility. Thus one of two chronic state:: — mud or dust." Commenting on the removal of the naval base from Sydney to Auckland, the New Zealand Time© says:—"This is the honour and glory of which the northern city has been dreaming for years, and there is besides a 6mall sum of £330,000 a year to spend. There is more in the expenditure, for the sum named is the amount at present expended, but when Auckland comes into what ther citizens fondly believe to be her \ own, the expenditure will be considerably larger, since the squadron will then be on : the new footing. and will be a very much larger squadron, stronger and more up-to-date in every way. There is even more behind. We see strong; fortifications rising up at the naval base. It is,.of course,:clear that the. base cannot be left unprotected, thus will the Dominion be compelled to provide for the defence of Auckland, and there will be a case -for a substantial contribution from the Imperial Government. In addition, there are the smaller advantages, Admiralty House arid the contingent establishments. On the whole Auckland will have no reason for dissatisfaction. If we know our friends of the North- at all, we fancy they will not seek for any cause of discontent. We may even venture the opinion that they will manifest a" fair amount of pleasure." The Dominion, says : "So far as Wellington is concerned it -is quite prepared to congratulate Auckland on what the northern city evidently regards as a momentous event in its history. We trust that our northern friends will do well out of the laundry work and provisioning in connection with the vessels-." A debate on armaments versus disarma ment will take place this evening at the Y.M.C.A. Lecture Hall. The debate is the result of a challenge sent by the Auckland Peace Association 'to the Y.M.C.A. Literary Society. The challengers .affirm " That in the interests of the peace of the world it is advisable that the British Empire should reduce its armaments;" the Y.M.C.A. team will be defending the Empire's policy of armament. As the subject affects the question of compulsory military training, and the naval programme of the Empire, it should evoke a good deal of interest. The chairman is Mr. F. G. Ewington, and the adjudicator Judge Button. The debate will be conducted under the rules of the Auckland Literary Societies' Union, arid the public are invited to be present. The Ohinemuri No-License League has passed the following resolution :—" That, in view of the strong statements of Dr. Findlay (Minister for Justice), showing the overwhelming testimony to the benefits of no-license, as given by the other police inspectors in no-license areas in New Zealand, we deem it unnecessary to make any further refutations of the. serious reflections made by Inspector Kiely,. late of Ohinemuri, upon the operations of the nolicense reform in the Ohinemuri electorate, beyond uttering our vigorous protest and contradicting . most, strenuously the statements as made by him." The. following resolution has also been expressed by the league :—" While we disagree with some of the clauses of the new Licensing Amendment Bill now before Parliament, yet we accept the main principle of the Bill as a step in.tho right direction, and hope to see the Bill.placed upon the Statute Book in the near future." •'"•?. November 9, which has been a public holiday for so many years, firstly as the Prince of Wales' Birthday, and, secondly as King's Birthday/will, in future, cease to have any significance, unless some hew provision is made for including it in the already long list of holidays. As a popular picnic practically the first of the season— demise will be widely regretted. Had a little foresight been observed when the choice of Dominion Day was made, the latter day could well have } been allowed to fall on November 9, but even now it should not be too late, as a correspondent : suggests, to transfer Labour Day to that date. The school children will miss their familiar November holiday this year, the Auckland Education Board having decided that all schools must remain open on the 9th prox. The Arbitration Court has issued an amendment to the award in the Auckland ironmouldirig industry' for the promotion of the creature-comfort of the workers. Clothed in the stately form and circumstantial wording, proper to an award, it is provided that the employers shall supply "boiling water at dinner time for the workmen, and that the duty of boiling the water shall devolve upon the youngest apprentice in each department. The special Jewish services in observance of the Day of Atonement, which were commenced in the Auckland Synagogue, on Wednesday evening, were continued yesterday, when a continuous service was conducted by Rabbi Goldstein, assisted by Mr. S. J. Nathan. There was a crowded congregation throughout the service. The Day of Atonement is .the most- sacred day of the year to members of the Jewish faith, and their places of business were accordingly closed yesterday. The flaxmill at Taupiri, which is held on lease by Mr. Baigent, was totally destroyed by fire on Tuesday . morning (writes our Huntly correspondent). The cause of the fire lias not been ascertained, nor is it known whether the buildings *"»d machinery are covered by insurance.