LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIX, Issue 15169, 7 December 1912, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS

A serious accident, with a lucky escape from broken bones, befel Rodden Wilson, the 10-year-old son of Mr. John Wilson, of Manukau Road, Parnell, yesterday afternoon. The little chap was playing on the edge of the cliff at Campbell Point, accompanied by another little boy, when lie fell into the sea, striking his head violently before he reached the water. He ■was picked up by a man in a, boat, and taken at once. to the hospital. Though he was bleeding profusely from the ear and nose when admitted, Dr. Grant states that the injuries to his head are not as serious as was first thought. The fall was a long one, and the little sufferer is to be heartily congratulated on his good fortune in not being dashed to pieces. At an early hour this morning there was no change in the boy's condition.

A fire, caused by a lighted - gas jet, broke out 'about 6.30 yesterday evening in the premises occupied by Mr. N. Cohen, jeweller and pawnbroker, 456, Queenstreet. The flames had not gained much hold when the brigade arrived, and the outbreak was quickly extinguished. In a-quar-ter of an hour from the time of outbreak, everything was safe. The fire originated in the bathroom, one wall of which and part-of the ceiling was destroyed. ruining a quantity of clothing and filling the entire place with smoke, little damage was done. • i-

The increasing price of copper is likely to become a serious matter in commercial circles. Within the last few months the price of the metal has risen with marked steadiness, and a comparison of the prices last April and those ruling to-day shows an increase of no lees than 10 per cent. It is in electrolytic copper, the variety of the metal used for electrical work, that the demand has become very great, and the price to-day is £82 10s a ton. • This is a rise of about £10 in six months. Letters have been received by engineering firms in Auckland during this week stating that the Home prices of all motor generators and electrical fittings have been increased by 10 per cent. For towns and boroughs going in for electrical installations this means a serious' increase in' the cost of plants. It is recognised all over the world that a substitute for copper is, necessary; : and lately 1 aluminium has been used with, success in electrical work. The contract for the plant to be installed in. connection with the Lake Coleridge power ' scheme in Canterbury provides for • the use .of aluminium mains, in place of the usual copper mains. > -

■ An application has been made to the Labour Department by the Auckland Slaughtermen's Industrial Union of Workers for the cancellation of their .registration under the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act. The first notice setting forth the union's' intention will be publicly gazetted this week. Should no,objection be raised, the severance, as applied for, will eventuate in six weeks. ■

V ' /" ■ ■ ! The Greater Auckland' question has' been occupying a ' prominent position lately, and keen interest is being manifested in the movement in the suburban districts. Nearly all the local bodies have now expressed views on the subject, . and the ratepayers of Parnell are to take a: poll on Monday to decide as to 'whether the borough will amalgamate with the city. In the course of, an interview yesterday the Mayor of Auckland (Mr. C. J. Parr) said: —"I am told that many misstatements are being made as to the effect union with the city would have on Parnell. I mant to make the tiling quite clear. Any controversy as to which: body has the higher rates cannot affect the question, because the city is prepared to take Parnell in at the latter's present rating. Under no circumstances will the present total of Parnell's rates be increased by union. It is, therefore, idle to bring the -rate question forward as an argument against Greater Auckland. "

The advantages of conciliation in the settlement of industrial disputes has been once more demonstrated. After a patient hearing by a Conciliation Council an agreement mutually satisfactory to the parties concerned has been arrived at in the Auckland and suburban local, bodies' • general labourers' dispute. The agreement is to be ratified as an award under the Arbitration Act. The proceedings were conducted throughout in the most friendly spirit, and as a result the workers will benefit by an all-round increase in wages. Stringent preference clauses have been agreed upon and clauses are provided which will tend greatly to diminish the possibility of a strike.

The prompt action of a motorman averted a serious accident in Queen-street yesterday afternoon. A man alighted: from a Grey Lynn tramcar at Victoria-street. He crossed in front of the car; which remained stationary, and stood on the other track with his back towards a car that was approaching at a high rate of speed from the direction of the wharf. Motorman Buckby, on the Grey Lynn car, with commendable presence ot mind, leaned over the apron of his car, and dragged the man from his perilous situation just before the other car flashed by. The motorman's action was warmly applauded by a number of spectators who witnessed the incident.

The Federal-Shire steamers. Nairnshire and Kent, which are due at Auckland on December 11 and December 16 respectively from Liverpool, are each bringing a number of saloon and third-class passengers for all parte of New Zealand. i Oil board the Nairnshire there are four saloon and 49 third-claw passengers, the latter class being booked as follows :—-Auckland, 20 Wellington, 10; Lyttelton, (sevenj. Dimeduj throe ; Bluff, eight; ; and Wanganui; on// These on the Kent are booked -as foil lows :—Auckland, 14; >1 Ellington, ;•■ 33• Dunedin..eight; Lyttelton, five; Napier! five; Gjflborne, fiyej New Plymouth; o»e. ;

The'- supplement which is issued " I day's Herald will be found to among ; other interesting features/ "?KpSra Machine and the Man" by Tohunga," another of. the " Wonders of the Micros*gK scope" series by G. A. Rawson. ■ tio's column of "Local Gossip" appears' a» frail usual, while other articles are "A Rnatoflwl Mont S. Michel" by H.C.8., the Streets " by E.G.0., "The KingConn.'lßl try in New Zealand" by Mrs. E/M. ; !-]j)inj!;|K] lop, and "The Old Home" by Bessie tfia*tJfßj j Watty. : The photographic illustrations 00^.1^1" prise a fine bird's-eye map of a portion of ||S| the routes taken by the allied armies) ;iaf*si 1 their march upon the Ottoman Empire/ ;. ,: 1 The Auckland Prohibition League sends i" 1 the following record of offences and de- * | faults, arising from drink as dealt with at - 1 the Police Court, ; and reported in the daily ill I press during the month of November:•*.- If I Drunkenness 44, first offenders 64'; -/di#js|fff | derly while drurak, 1; drunk whilel in ■ ■'■% I charge of horse and cart, 1; breaches of '.'" < prohibition orders, 26; procuring liquor for ■'! 1 prohibited persons, 2; prohibition orders I issued, 20; selling liquor without a license 1 \ $ 1 indecency, 2; obscene language, '.:'■{: sault, 3; assaulting the police, 2; MbeJtWlf 6; idle and disorderly, 7; separation ■• '■ orders, 2 (both against the husband). -1 . Total t [ offences, 184, by 150 persons, 16 of wham • were women. One man was seat tolloto ■ 5 Roa and two women to Pakatoa. '■ The fines ' totalled. £123 15s 6d. At the-- Supine | I Court drink was the principal cause?of ; five I divorce cases, three > husbands. and ■two' w wives were the offenders. * ,-': : V~ im The workers in the flax industry, S fiuenced by the fact that tho price' .of ' S hemp has been steadily rising, are shortly \ S to ask the employers for a rise ia Wi ■ An award arranged some■••• 18 . monUi^jjio : ; ?» is still current, but the workers argue tfiat • ' .'■ they have been content to wort at*',th' ' ! minimum wages as long as prices i»'ereJ'■ : low, but now that the market is,'-ggSt^l ■[>■ they want something better. A confer§^^|i ' between . the parties will shortly be < 1 •■. '■ '''■'■■■■"■ '■ .'■ >. Dairying is rapidly developing in the ' j • South Island. Only a year ago the Waitaki , I Dairy Company was. started in'the thtfv- i'l .' ing district of Oamaru (Otago), wftli J2/Q','".■{s 1 customers; to-day it has 285.' Another '' sign of its expanding business is the : fact' that it has now commenced operations i -If > Dunedin. •: A fully-equipped , ■■ has > been fitted with modern mack;^eiv v ,a;j,A i| > is capable of turning out 400 tons of Her M " per annum. - ■■'■': ';*i,. ' % 1 ■ - ■'■" - ■' • 4skm An incident! that might have resoled % . seriously to the driver, and . HttlHH§DraiH } one of the locomotives-drawing the^^|s r i giora Friendly Society's excursion' train ■>' 1 to Cass on Thursday, occurred in thVfey;;^ i 5 tunnel between Otarama and ■ Staircase,, ,v j Gully t (telegraphs our Christchurchv cor- ', 3 respondent). ;' At one . of';■ tie^sharp;|gjM(«^ ': iif the tunnel, when , the train, two-thirds of the way through, it gradually f slowed, down and finally stopped. V4t|f|l ,1 then commenced to run backwards put of e the tunnel, and on reaching the q^'n;'-«i^|M 1 the driver and fireman of■•• the W^tt|'l|| a engine were .found lying on the fobtp)&||il|h s in a state of collapse from the'effectg^fe^,'t the smoke and sulphur fumes. They.T^h.WJ 0 recovered speedily in the open mivlt^SS i- ever, and were able, before long to r<»P^Sg e their duties, but they felt the, effectsSplj •f the mishap for some time. It :i<>^&k----e that a hand-brake on one of the carr3a^«| a had been screwed on hard and wa*!mi||| e hot with the friction. This had7ciif|S d the stoppage. The occurrence upsei T ftsMp y of the excursionists, who were uhde||^^M s impression that some of the carriag«w v s broken away and were beyond cont&V;!ssf if' "' . ''■-...- .-' - ''.•'"''iSvraKHal 1 A great deal of the pats i ; shippxp;'ftp||l ..;■ New. Zealand'during.the;lasfe few •liic.u^ l y|fjj j( (writes our London correspondent) wjmrn t t riving here in an almost rotten condiW|Mi| n -This is due, of- course,, to 4.he ,^ a : season - v in New. Zealand • last : Bummfe«|'^^p

' '■'" ' ' '-■ ' ;; ' '■''' '■ "•' ■■■ ' ■>"''- ; Sw« The.:display.of. New Zealand .goods. at the Winchester Home Industries itjEi^M^ tion (writes our London corres)>pnd^^«! afforded a useful object-lesson; tij^fl«ii^w| shire residents of the commerciali ; fflafe dustrial progress of the Dominion, ,Ei^ffl^ year an industries exhibition is_heldjj| this ancient Cathedral City. On.iM|jf||p§! , casion a new departure was made, aiidpK||/£j Oversea Dominions were invited Ut' ; jMffif& part/-. : New . Zealand, Canada, f and South Africa, responded to £ vitation, and their displays helped .towards the great success which : a s§%mlM i the exhibition. The outstanding fef^|S i of the New Zealand-exhibit were ■'■ ties ;'of wood .'which the■ countr :^ ; y*^^K i tinned vegetables, fruits, .^|sj|ji • grasses . and cereals, ' fibre for [ sands, and Maori carvings. ■; Tlte'st«d« i was attractively decorated, and theij^^ • scenic photographs were greatly MMta\y% ■•'.'■'-fdß •: Much excitement was caused,; . township of Glenrowan (Vic.) ..*b(j*ti*g«| - o'clock on the night of November. 2lJ'^f^m .' the, noise of rushing waters. The i voir, recently completed as the ASn^^fJ| 3 tion of the waterworks scheme;;^''SgSlj i: This reservoir was excavated at thfc f9V;?K|fes t the'ranges, close to the ''MwMM^^^ i estimated to contain 5,500,005 gagp» t water when full. Heavy r^n^-MS»| a ally filled: 1 the -; reservoir, though the W - wash was net reached, and it is J 8 that the pressure of water on the^J*"* 1 ' i embankment proved too great ;t^^,*^ ' ~'■> . sisted. v A gap of Bft wide wjtfsade in ;' the south-east corner of the «iißßJto? Dt »- . 8; and th« water roared throu^^ l « , J| , l ;||;. * great volume until about 4&&mi0!?$ ■■;' > t had escaped. By good fortune-th^ break - occurred at the side where there-is ; * 3 natural fall to the- gully, running|**fs} j '■•; the properties of Messrs. ■H. f 1 - , F." Bain; and the ,• water escaped.sntfcout e doing harm. - V'"'' ' '{'\\ \ a : . ; '"<•< i'S A

During a debate in the West Australian • Legislative Assembly last week- •on Jf »<$J year's - Estimates, strong ;' exception w» ■ taken by certain Labour members to too w vote for Government Housed Macy thought that Lieutenant-Governors should ■■ be appointed to Australia, and one wont so far as ; to say that imported Governors | were foreigners. The honorary. Minister, •.-,;,* ■Mr. W. C. Angwin, said he could not Bee ;- •why a Governor, coming from the Bntis Isles should be termed a foreigner.,; In Js»o opinion.it would be much better to have a Governor who had never mixed in local politics. He did not think, howevfer, that the: appointment, of a local mah wouW;| tend to break the tie with the Empire, be- £ cause it was impossible to separate Australia from the Empire. He thought,! at the same time, that no one in Ausk4l»J who was eligible for the position of Gover-| ' nor should be debarred from occupying! the ■ position. He had nO ; doubtfMj&| British Governor appointed by > the Wi was a. means of giving those who provideffil the money for Australia greater confidenc|f| for lending that money. For many yearfj to come London would be the puwe-« nothing should destroy the confidence". of : the in that city in Australia. He ; pointed that the Government of New South WaleM had their loan affected by their ' attitude in regard to the Governor-Ge^lP^ Probably the lowest depth of >$||| . reached when a man will rob the pcor-bQXv| A theft. of this kind was 'committed Erskinville; New tfouth W«Jea,.'on' ; SisdM| : week, when the, poor-box of the ;fi^^l Catholic ghurch was robbed of :^|§i";j,M s -, ~.. ,;«.,;aJ