LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LV, Issue 16852, 17 May 1918, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS

■ ~o No agreement has been reached in the dis pute regarding wages and conditions o work between the Auckland Electric Tram ways Company and its employees. Th | conference between the respective partie was continued yesterday,, and will be re sumed to-day. The wind on the coast is reported to b< freshening from the south-east, and t< have raised a considerable sea. Some o the smaller vessels are being delayed. Thi Elsie is bar-bound at Waipu, and the Apanui is weather-bound at Russell. Th< Manaia was delayed over half an hour or the trip from Whangarei last night, and did not berth until 7.15 p.m., consequently missing the connection with the Mail Trunk express." The congestion in Queen Street, betweei 5 and 6 o'clock in the evening, owing t< the apparently inadequate tram service was referred to at last night's meeting o the City Council by Mr. A. J. Entrican who suggested that the matter should b< referred to the Public Services Committee for investigation and report. He addec that the congestion had become more acute since many of the shops that had previously ..closed at six o'clock hac adopted 5.30 p.m. as the closing time. II was a fearful scramble to get into a car. and the majority of people had to pay ar extra penny and ride down Queen Street to the terminus, in order to get home ir reasonable time. He suggested that some arrangement might be made to star* suburban cars at other points of the city, such as Wellesley Street. The Mayor said that Mr. J. J. Walklate, the general manager of the Electric Tramways Company, was to attend the next meeting of the committee, and the matter would then be fully discussed. Owners of motor-cars are asked to place their cars at the disposal of the Ministering Committee of the Auckland Women's Patriotic League to-day, for the purpose of entertaining those returned troops who have to go South, but who have a day's leave off the transport now in harbour. The cars are to assemble at the General Post Office at 9 a.m. and at 2.30 p.m. The runs will be of about two hours' duration. The handicap imposed on the Albany district by the proximity of National Endowment lands was mentioned by a deputation which waited on the Minister for Lands yesterday, and it was requested that the reservation be lifted and settlers allowed to take up the freehold. The Minister agreed that the tenure which led up to the acquisition of the freehold offered the most encouragement to settlers, but he said he had no power to touch National Endowments. He suggested that it might be possible to lift the reservation, sell for cash, and invest the money in other National Endowments, but he was not altogether in favour of this, as it would lead to endless trouble. He promised to go into this question. The new ward at the military annexe was occupied for the first time a few nights ago, when a number of patients from a hospital ship were received. The ward, which is on the south side of the building, contains 24 beds, and is fitted out with well-appointed kitchen, dressingroom, etc. The new massage-room recently opened at the annexe is proving a most valuable addition, there being at present about one hundred soldiers undergoing treatment. The department is fitted with up-to-date appliances, and a staff of seven nurses is kept constantly employed. The massage-room at the General Hospital is now used solely by civilian patients. The To Awamutu Chamber of Commerce asked the Minister for Public Works a little while ago as to the probability of the Arapuni hydro-electrical scheme being undertaken directly after the war. Sir William Fraser has now replied stating that no definite, or even approximate, date for the utilising of the supply from Arapuni can be fixed at the present time. He adds that action taken in the' meantime by the town to supply its own needs from si local water-power . system would be

sound economically, because such an installation would prove useful as a " standby," and for supplying the peak load. The Minister holds out very little hope of the main scheme being developed during the next three or four years. The chamber has decided to thank the Minister for his clear statement of the position, but to express regret that the development of the Arapuni project is so uncertain. At the same time it was decided to take action in the direction of having one of the streams in the locality utilised for generating the town electrical supply, members feeling this was the only course left open, pending the national undertaking, at Arapuni Tbeing carried into effect. A resolution passed at a meeting of the Auckland Automobile Association and forwarded to the City Council, suggesting that the whole subject of road formation, improvement and maintenance in the city be immediately investigated by expert engineers with local knowledge, was discussed at last night's meeting of the City Council. It was decided to inform the association that the council was doing the ■ best possible work on the roads with the means at its disposal. To help to meet the food shortage in England, the New Zealand Convalescent Hospital at Hornchurch is attempting to make itself as self-supporting as possible. An officer who returned yesterday said that 50 acres of the grounds were under cultivation, and potatoes and vegetables were grown in great quantities. The patients had recently planted 60,000 cabbage plants. A poultry farm was also being run in connection with the institution. The breeding of rabbits was also an important feature of the food department. Belgian hares had been crossed with rabbits, and a fine large animal had been the result. The officer commanding rabbits is an important person," said the officer, " and be has been able to add considerably to the food supply." The whole of the work is carried out by the patients as part of their convalescent treatment. It has been decided to invite representatives of trade unions to attend the forthcoming provincial conference of the Farmers' Union. This decision was arrived at at a meeting of the executive yesterday. The Minister for Lands was asked by Mr. A. Harris, M.P., at Albany yesterday, to keep the headquarters of the Northland land district at Auckland. It was stated that if the offices were established in some Northern town a request would probably come for the removal of the headquarters of the remainder of the district to Hamilton, with the result that attemata County would be placed at a disadvantage. This request, which was made on behalf of the Waitemata County Council, was supported by the settlers present. The Minister said this would be considered together with other matters pertaining to the new board. Several minor additions and » provements have been carried out at the General Hospital lately, the most important being the enlargement of the dining hall at the nurses' home, which now accommodates 190 nurses. Another improvement is the renovation of the main entrance, and the renewing of the double flight of concrete steps to the first floor. In the passing of 30 years, the feet of hundreds of thousands of visitors had worn these stops so thin that the edges were cracking away, no repair work having been carried out until lately. The need for additional school accommodation at Albany was brought under the notice of the Hon. D. H. Guthrie yester- ' day, when he was passing through the district. Mr. W. Hooton stated that the school was built to accommodate 25 pupils, but the attendance had steadily grown until the roll call was 50, with an average attendance of 48. There were two teachers,' and one had to take classes outside in the open or in the porch, but this was only 1 possible in dry weather. The Minister' promised to place the reouest before the Minister for Education, the Hon. J. A. I Hanan.

the hotels will again be out of bonndi to-day for soldiers in uniform. Anjorde to that effect has been issued by th« O.C.D. in connection with the landing o: the • troops from the transport whicl brought back a draft of sick anc wounded men yesterday. So well was i similar order observed by all concerned en the occasion of the arrival of the hospital ship earlier in the week that the military authorities stated that not s single soldier was found in a public bai that day. They also expressed appreciation of the co-operation in the matter received from the hotelkeepers. The City Fire Brigade was called ou' twice yesterday. The first call was a' 5.50 p.m. to the premises of Messrs. A. B Wright, forwarding agents, Commerci Street. A box of rubbish had caught fire but the brigade easily put it out. Nc damage was done. The second call was tc a wooden two-storey residence in East Street, at 8.43 p.m. Some wood had beer put in the oven to dry, and had caught fire, making a great deaJ of smoke. The blaze was extinguished by the brigade before any damage had been done. Allegations to the effect that there has been victimisation of some of its mem bers have been made by the Auckland Bootmakers' Union. For some time pasl the men have been endeavouring to bring about a conference with the employers, in order that the subject might be thrashed out. The local representative of the Labour Department, Mr. Hollows, interested himself in the matter. As a result, the secretary of the union, Mr. C. A. Watts, last night received notification from him to the effect that the Mayor, Mr. J. H. Gunson, was willing to preside over such a conference. It is therefore expected that the conference will sit at the Town Hall this morning. Support of the steps the New Zealand Educational Institute is taking in regard to promoting educational reform in New Zealand, to enable the Dominion to cope with after-war problems, was sought in a communication received from the institute by the provincial executive of the Farmers' Union at a meeting of the latter body yesterday. It was suggested that the executive should pass a resolution urging that nothing should be done that encroached upon the present national system of education. Several speakers said they did not think the national system was in any danger, and the executive should avoid anything that savoured of sectarianism, seeing that among its members were representatives of all denominations. Other speakers were of opinion that the resolution was in such general terms that it could not do any harm. They said that, apart from the question of encroaching upon the national system of education, the executive should support the institute in its endeavours to secure educational reform. Eventually a resolution was carried urging the Government to foster the educational system, and also to aim at making provision for the proper equipping of the r.sincr generation to compete successfully in the growing requirements of modern development in all spheres of life. The resolution also urged that no financial consideration should be allowed to hamper such an important national duty.

A small, but enthusiastic, meeting in the Cambridge Borough Council Chamber was addressed on Wednesday by Mr. W. H. Hemingway, Auckland, on the subject of the need for good roads. He outlined the Victorian State scheme, and explained 'ts workings. The meeting passed a resolution urging the Cambridge Chamber of Commerce to form a branch of the Auckland Good Roads Association. The alleged sale of diseased poultry in the oity was suggested to the City Council by the Society for the Protection of Women and Children and Prevention of Cruelty to Animals as a reason for a request for better inspection of poultry offered for sale. Referring to the letter received from the society at last night's council meeting, the Mayor said the matter was receiving attention from the sanitary inspector, and everything possible was being done to safeguard the health of the community. An acknowledgment of the efforts of the Farmers' Union executive in connection with settling soldiers on the land was contained in a letter received by the executive yesterday from the Auckland Returned Soldiers' Association. The executive has circularised the whole of the provincial branches, asking that everything possible be, done to assist returned soldiers to settle on the land. An instance of how their hospitals assist the work of missionaries in India, was quoted last night by the Rev. F. O. Long at the Church Missionary Society's meeting at St. Mary's parish hall. The natives in the hills surrounding the city in which his mission hospital was situated used frequently to shoot each other, and the injured men would come in to the missionaries and their doctor to be " patched up." They always begged the doctor to cure them quickly as they wanted to go [back to the hills to shoot some other native. This gave the missionary an opportunity of explaining to the patients that they were not made to shoot their brother natives and to give them their first lesson in Christianity. The farmers of the- Auckland provincial district have contributed over £1000 towards the relief of sufferers in the recent King Country bush fires. In acknowledging the receipt of amounts, the secretary of the Relief Committee states that the executive's donation was the finest that had been received from any separate organisation. The Wairarapa train which left Wellington on Monday afternoon was delayed for two hours in the second tunnel after leaving the summit of the Rimutakas. A K waggon, which was in the fore-part of the train, sprung from the rails when the train was in the middle of the tunnel, and it was necessary to send the front engine on to Cross Creek to brine workmen and jack back to the tunnel. The experience of the passengers was most unpleasant.

In a case in which the police yesterday asked Mr. F. V. Frazer, S.M., to issue a prohibition order against a man, SubInspector Wohlmnn said that in three weeks the subject of the application had Bpent over £80, and it was solely in his own interests that the police wished to have him prohibited. The licensee and housekeeper of the hotel at which he stayed had done their best to keep the man straight. The man vigorously protested against the issue of an order, and said he had just returned after three years' war service, and he thought he had a right to indulge for a while. Mr. Frazer said it had been said that we were treating soldiers like children, but it was better to let people think that than have soldiers injuring their health. The men returning were in ill-health, and must be treated as invalids. Finally, the soldier said he was going to take the pledge that night, and the magistrate held the case over till this morning. The boycotting of German goods was mentioned at the meeting of the provincial executive of the Fanners' Union yesterday. Mr. J. S. Fisher said the question had been discussed at Cambridge, and it was suggested that the provincial executive should prepare a document, the signatories of which should agree not to buy German goods for at least fifty years after the war. Mr Fisher suggested that the executive express an opinion upon the matter. The chairman, Mr. J. Boddie, said the question should be deferred for the conference to discuss. Mr. J. S. Montgomery said he considered it should be deferred until after the war. At present no one could say what was going to happen. Calm consideration should be given to trade questions after the war. Mr. E. Somerville stated that until Germany -was beaten to her knees she would insist on the right of free trade. Mr. J. E. Makgill said what the people in New Zealand should do was to develop their own material resources. By doing this, they would assist the Empire when the day of settlement came. He drew attention to what the British Producers' Association was doing to organise industries forothe trade fight that was bound to come after the war. Mr. R. D. DuxiQeld said Mr. Fisher had not suggested legislative action, but only the encouragement of sentiment. The discussion ceased without any definite action being taken. I