LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LI, Issue 15560, 18 March 1914, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS

The St. Patrick's Day celebrations, to have been carried out yesterday by the Irish people in Auckland, were abandoned owing to the heavy rain experienced in the morning. Mass was celebrated in St. Patrick's Cathedral at 9.30 a.m., when the church was filled to the doors. The celebration concluded, it was announced that the procession of children and the sports meeting at the Domain had been postponed until Saturday. By the kindness of the proprietors of the Globe, King George, Princess and Queen's Theatres the disappointment of the children was allayed to some extent, for the theatres were thrown open to them free of charge The usual St. Patrick's Day concert was held in the Town Hall in the evening.

The first meeting of the newly-consti-tuted Lake Takapuna Board of Control takes place this afternoon at the Lands Office. The members are Messrs. H. M. Skeet, Commissioner of Crown Lands (chairman), W. Handley (Devonport), W. Wallace (Birkenhead), E. W. Alison (Takapuna), and A. E. Greenslade (North cote).

The forthcoming deer-shooting season has every promise of being a success, there being an abundance of animals in good condition. The season for red deer lasts for a month, from March 25 to April 25, in the Rotorua, Whakatane, Wairoa, Mahia, and Hawke's Bay districts. In the Nelson and Marlborough districts the season extends from the end of February to the end of April, in Waitaki (North Otago) from April 1 to May 20, and in Southland from April 1 to April 30. Fallow deer in the Wanganui district may be shot between April 1 and May 15.

The following further subscriptions to the fund for the purchase of a motorambulance for the Auckland Hospital have been received by the organiser of the fund (Captain E. J. Thomas):Otahuhu Trotting Club, £5; Mrs. S. McLachlan, ■£5; staff of Messrs. Sargood, Son, and Ewen, £3 17s; Mrs. C. Mayer, £3 3s; South British Insurance Co., £2 2s; Smith and Caughey Mutual Aid Society. £1 Is; Mrs. J. M. Dargaville, £1 Is; Mr. G, R. Bloomfield, £1 Is; Mr. R. Laidlaw, £1 Is; Mr. L. Arnoldson, £1 Is; Mr. F. William's, £1 Is; Mr. Gaw, 10s 6d; Miss F. Heath, 10s; "Well-wisher," 10s. The fund now stands at £253 7s 3d, which is over half the total sum of £500 required.

In a letter sent to the Prime Minister from the Local Bodies' Association on Monday, it was inferred that the Tram ways and Gas Companies had refused in some cases to pay rates on their tracks and mains. This, it was explained yesterday, was not the case. The Tramways Company and the Gas Company, it was stated, have paid all rates according to demand, but they do not recognise having to pay rates on the unimproved value. Neither company has ever raised any objection to being placed on the rolls of the various local bodies, but it has been held by the Crown law officers that the companies do not come within the definition of " occupiers" within the meaning of the Rating Act of 1908. When the deputation from the association waited on the Prime Minister recently in regard to the matter the above facts were explained to him by the president, Mr. M. J. Coyle. The negotiations for the purchase of the Orakei Block by the Government from .the'- natives are proceeding satisfactorily. There are still three" freehold interests to purchase, two interests belonging to individuals and one to a hapu. It is expected that the negotiations with the remaining owners will take some time to complete! . The increases of pay which are to be given to members of the police force after April 1 have met with the approval of all divisions- Representatives of all classes yesterday expressed their-, appreciation of the substantial rise in pay. In connection with the determination of the Government to make such an equitable revision it was pointed out that lately there has been much discontent in the ranks at the lowness of pay compared with other walks of life, and in consequence many New Zealand-born constables had resigned from the force. The records show .that for a period of about 20 years constables commenced at 7s per day. It may be mentioned, however, that from 1895 to 1897 the rate was reduced from 7s per day to 6s 8d per day. In October, 1907, the rate was increased to 7s 6d per day and in 1911 to 8s per day. In the higher grades there have been several additional revisions. In April last year there was a revision of the salaries of the detective force, and in 1906 the rates for inspectors and sergeants were increased. A highly interesting communication regarding the Stefangson expedition to the" Arctic has been received by Mr. H. F. Ayson, from Mr. Jenness. of Lower Hutt, anthropologist, of 'this expedition. The letter is headed " Point Barrow, Alaska, October 21, 1913. "it i 8 the first authentic information to reach New Zealand on the subject, and reads: "It has been a very bad year for ice conditions up here. Almost every vessel has been caught. We had three vessels—The Karluk, Alaska, and Mary Fash, the last two being auxiliary schooners. I was on the Karluk when she became jammed in about longitude 145deg., about August 11. The Alaska and Mary Fash were closer inshore and reached Collinson Point near to the Alaskan and Canadian boundary. Tee prevented them from going and wintering there. After the Karluk became jammed in the ice, she drifted westward for about a month. We remained stationary for a week. It appeared as if we would spend,the Test of the winter in this place, so one day (October 20) three of us with two Esquimaux left the ship with tents, sledges and dog teams, to go ashore and hunt caribou. We got to a small island where we had to stay a week because the strong wind opened up great .-.racks in the ice. The same wind carried off the Karluk. From here we made west, coming finally to an Esquimaux settlement. No one knows what has become of the Karluk. We are having a better outfit made here for travelling east to the Mary Fash and the Alaska. I am going only as far as Cape Halkett and there stay with an Esquimaux family all the winter and early spring. In the spring a sledge will come and take me along to the others. As soon as the ice sets them free they will proceed to Victor's Land where we should have been this winter."

It would be better if the Church, instead of erecting so many churches, erected or controlled educational institutions or hospitals, declared the Rev. G. M. Johnston rector, of St. John's Church, Parramatta (N.S.W., last week. This, the preacher said, would be doing much practical good, and would do something to fill the many empty benches often seen in the churches. "lam prepared to be called a Radical for this suggestion, but it is exactly how, I feel on the matter."-

The most important events of the past 33? week are fully illustrated in the Auckland Weekly News, on sale to-day. %: Several striking pictures of last Satur- '%>§ day's big yachting race on the Waitemata : :W£ show the start of the boats, their pro- • 1 gress, the winning vessel, and incidental -' t pictures. Milford Beach has again been "'*■ brought prominently under public notice, J through an allegation of immodesty on the H part of bathers who frequent it. A pace ? of snapshots secured last week-end show's f clearly the urgent need for proper V> dressing sheds. A splendid double paje l depicts the beauties of the native bush ? around Mamaku and the work of the timber-getters in that district. Another full page is composed of snapshots of animals and birds in the Onehunga Zoo. Special interest is attached to these, as there is a possibility of the Zoo. being removed, owing to a new bylaw passed by the Onehunga Borough Council. The magnitude of the Panama-Pacific Exposi. tion iss indicated in two views of the buildings and grounds., taken from an aeroplane. In connection with these appears a, remarkable picture of a biplane looping-the-loop above the Exposition. Several very beautiful studies of Scotch farm life and scenery also appear. Amongst many other illustrations are those of the baby show at the Exhibition, the first test cricket match between Australia and New Zealand, senior cadets who took part in the Wellington Citizens' Carnival, the Cambridge Show, the recent eruption in Japan, the funeral of Lord Strathcona, Japanese Army manoeuvres, shipping fruit on the Cook Islands, a fatal aeroplane accident, the damaged Velasquez "Venus and Cupid," the Prime Minister at Picton, the first Commonwealth submarine, a remarkable motor mishap, and the lost training-ship Wellesley. Numerous,portraits also appear. A reform is being introduced by the Public Service Commissioners regarding the care of Departmental property. In most of the Departments at present there are no satisfactory records kept of such Government property as office furniture and appliances, and under regulations drafted by the commissioners it is proposed that some systematic records shall be prepared and kept up to date in future. A conference of heads of Departments and the commissioners has been held in Wellington to discuss the draft regulations, and a committee has been appointed to submit proposals for bringing the scheme into effect. Eats, it has always been stated, desert a sinking ship. But the rats on the steamer Devon, which was wrecked at the entrance to Wellington Harbour in August last, had no time to do that. Only the fore-part of the vessel (says a Wellington paper) now remains sticking up out of the water. It •is swarming with great black and grey rats, as ! large" as small cats, and much more fierce. Some time ago, when more of the Devon was above water than is now, the man who. was left on board found it impossible to sleep. s At present tugboats do not like to | approach too near for fear of some of the j hungry vermin transferring themselves to better quarters. It is difficult to say how the rats manage to exist at ah*, unless they feed on one another. A fire occurred shortly after ten o'clock last evening ir a six-roomed house, situated in King Street, Archh.il], and owned and occupied by Mr. Pavish. The fire originated from a ijas jet in a bedroom, the interior and contents of which were scorched by the flames, while the con tents, of the adjoining diningrdbm were damaged by smoku. The fire brigade promptly suppressed the' outbreak. .' The ; damage is not extensive. A lamentable aspect of Maori life ,in New Zealand at the present time, says the Wairarapa Age, is the desire fot amusement and this encouragement given to indolence. A few years ago the-na-tives of the Wairarapa cropped their lands and grew sufficient quantities of potatoes, maize, melons, and pumpkins to maintain them during the greater portion of the year. To'day these natives, or a large portion of them, are content to ride about in motor-cars, attend picture shows,and race meetings, and squander. the remnant ._. of their estate in riotous living. They. , ; have no ambition, no desire, to cultivate their land, no thought for the future 'of - their race. Under such conditions, it? is ; ; . easy to prophesy what the future will be.. '.., In a very few y<iars the native popula- 7 '■■..-', tion will become a charge upon the s i State. It is th« dujy of the Govern- , ment, while it offers every facility for the; - profitable occupation of native • lands, -to. see that the natives are hot permitted-to • fritter away their estate, and that' ; they recognise their responsibilities as citizens of the Dominion. In a plantation within a short distanceof Nukualofa there is a remarkable freak of nature in the shape of a cocoa palm about 2ft in. height, bearing a 'cluster "of 20 nuts (writes our Tongan correspondent). There is no trunk to the tree, the perfectly formed, tiny nuts, growing from a central stalk in the midst of the halfdozen leaves that constitute the first year's growth of the palm. The oldest inhabitant is strangely exercised over the circumstance, no other similar case ever having, come under his notice. '■ ' The Fiji Chamber of Commerce is reported to be very gratified by the favours able comment on the Fiji Court in the Auckland Exhibition. At its annual meeting the chamber recorded its opinion *ha»t the cost of Fiji's representation, would prove to be money well spent on '-»-; behalf of the colony, advertising, in a. ... measure, the resources of the country. f A life-size greenstone statue is to be p erected in Victoria Park, Greymouth, to J§ Tuburu, the original native owner of the ; ; site of the town, and the father of Tainui : *&% and Taiapuri, the great chiefs from whom the Tainuis and Tarapuhis of to-day are descended. This statue is to be erected as a nuirk of regard for their ancestor by the present native owners 6f Greymouth, the Tainuis and Tarapuhis. A huge block of greenstone has been located, and in * week or two a representative party will vieit the West Coast and make arrangements for excavating it and sending it to Wellington for carving. The statue will probably be the only one of its class-in the world. The party who have the arrangements in hand, and who will visit the West Coast for the purpose, are Captain J. H. W. and Mrs, Uru (principal chieftainess of the Tainuis), and Mr. Philip Tauparu, of Taupo (a descendant of Tarapuhi). There was a scene of great religious fer- | vour in Wesley Church, Melbourne, last | week, when the thanksgiving fund, to be | raised to mark the centenary of Methodism 1 in Australia, was inaugurated. It was on | August 10, 1815, that the first Methodist ■ I minister arrived in Australia. There are | now in Australia and the Pacific Islands, M which are under the New South Wales J Conference, 995 Methodist ministers and M 621,374 attendants at Methodist places of g worship. To mark the centurv's progress *m it is intended to raise a large thanksgiving *S| fund for church work. At the meet 'C stirring speeches, fervent prayers, and S rousing singing raised a crowded" audience to a state of great enthusiasm, and when contributions were called for written pro^ s #3 mises totalling £7217 17s lid were handed V to the chairman, * ■ - "MKI • - nn ■ m