LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LVII, Issue 17361, 7 January 1920, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

Business on the Auckland Stock Exchange will be resumed to-day.' The share market was closed on December 19, and the members of the Exchange have thus had a vacation, of eighteen days. Work in the principal mines at Waihi has been resumed with fairly large i.taffs, but the industry will not be in full swing for a few days. With the development wort to be carried out during the current year in both the Waihi and Grand Junction mines there will be room for considerable numbers .of workers over and above those employed prior to the vacation.

The close of the holiday season has brought about no slackening in the activities of the leal branch of the Tourist Department, and the officer in charge and his assistants have been working long ov< rtime for many nights past. A large numoer of tourists arrived in Auckland by the Mnheno on Sunday, and the office has since been thronged with people urgently

inquiring as to where to go and how to get there. Practically every holiday resort is fully booked, but the majority of the travellers are making the various famous tours of the Dominion, including tho Wanganui River and South Island coach and motor fr.ps. • Several parties have arranged to visit the Cold Lakeß and Milford Sound. Summer sports and pastimes in New Zealand are beautifully illustrated on a double-pace of to-day's issue of the Auckland Weekly News, the views being of a very pleasing character, and quite appropriate to the holiday season of the year. Bright sets of snapshots ar 0 published in connection with the recent victory gala at Lyall Bay, Wellington, and the victory " mardi gras " at Napier, and they form a splendid pictorial record of two very picturesque ©vents. A page is devoted to the summer racing carnival at Ellerslie, and other .holiday scenes are reproduced. The issue also contains a splendid portrait of Sir Ross Smith, whoso historic flight from England to Australia has thrilled the world. A photograph of his machine is also reproduced, together with the portraits of his companions on the perilous journey. The recent New Zealand lawn tennis championships at Wellington are dealt with pictoriallv ! .id a number of other interesting I subjects i » illustrated. No meeting of the City Council will be he'd until January 22. As a preparation for the commencement of the year's work tho Mtyor, Mr. J. H. unison, is making arrangements that a tour of the municipal operations in progress in various parts of the citv shall be made by councillors next week. All the street works will be visited, and particular attention will be given to the concrete losdways constructed last year, including Anzac Avenue and Svmonds Street. The trip will also be extended to the Nihotupu waterworks and the council's other in-1 terests in that direction. Complaint was made by a correspondent I in Monday's issue of the Hehai.D that j the municipal baths of Auckland were 1 closed for three days at Christmas and j three days at New Year. The answer of j

the city authorities is that the statement

is incorrect. Sunday hours, from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m., were observed at the baths on Christmas Day and Boxing Day, New Year's Day and January 2, Mid on tho Saturday in each holiday week, an extension to twelve o'clock was made. The experience of the authorities is that on holidav afternoons, when most people have betaken themselves to outlying resorts, there is little demand for bathing accommodation within tho city.

The staff of the permits and passports office has had a very strenuous time throughout the holiday season, and particularly so during the past two Jays. The arrival of the Maheno on Sunday, and tho collection of the permit® of her 400 passengers and issue of receipts, involved a great deal of work, while the departure of the Maheno for Sydney this week, of the Makura next week, and the issue of passports to intending travellers to America by the Niagara, have resulted in a rush of business that has kept every member of the staff busy throughout the day.

A decided drop in fruit prices has taken placo in Auckland sinco the holidays, and following the great rush of business of tho last two weeks sales are somewhat dull. 1 Peaches sold yesterday at from 6s to 10s per case, wholesale, and plums from 3s 6d to 7s. Strawberries brought only half the prico they fetched last wtek, selling yesterday at lOd and Is 2}d a chip. The berries are now going off in quality, as well as in quantity, on account of the dry weather, but, even so, the season has lasted out much better than was expected. The dry weather has affected the carlv apples, which are rather smaller this season than usual. There is good demand for Red Astraciians, the earliest on the local market, which are selling at from 8s i to 15s per case, whereas the American annles are very much dearer, ranging between 25s and 30«. It is stated to be rather early as yet to determine whether bights and fruit diseases are likely to b e bad this season, hut nectarines and Reaches ha/o been badly attacked by the cur'ed-leaf.

The Pacilo Cable Board advises that the delay on ordinary traffic from the United Kinj;uom is now only five hours, and on traffic to the United Kingdom three hours. American traffic is still subject to a delay of 16 hours.

A grass fire on the railway line near the Remuera station resulted in a call to the Remuera and Parnell Firo Brigades at 11.23 a.m. yesterday.

No news was received yesterday of Mr. Fred De Lisle, who left Auckland for the Great Barrier in a launch on Christmas morning, and has not been heard of since. A telegram has been sent to the district constable on Great Barrier acquainting him with the particulars and askiig him to ascertain if the launch has been seen there.

Timber prices have been advanced this week, but tho scarcity oi material 's even, more serious than the high price. From present indications it will be a long time before aufficiet t houses are built to meet the urgent requirements of the growing population of Auckland. At the present moment the mills are short of supplies, and can only supply a fraction of the orders in hand. But the temporary nature of a local shortage is nothing compared with the serious pos.tion of tho industry in general.

The decisioi, of the Thames Valley Agricultural and Pastoral Society to hold its show in November in future years instead of in March has given much satisfaction in Morrinsville district, as the clashing of dates would have detrimentally affected both the Morrinsville and Te Aroha fixtures. Arrangements for holding the Morrinsville show on March 10 are proceeding satisfactorily.

An exceptionally busy period was spent by the staff at the MorrinsvilJo railway station during the holidays. The bookings exceeded 5000, which is a record for the station.

"Smoking and drinking is greatly on the increase among girls and women,' said ft lady de legate to th 0 Educational Institute conference in Wellington. "1 believe that this is partly due to the fact that many girls in the upper cluses of our primary schools are not influenced by a womanly woman," ftie concluded. The statement brought to his feet a male delegate, who said ho did not think the charge should go forth that the workingclass girls, the girls trained in the primary schools, were doing the smoking. it was the girls whoso parents were very wealthy and were able t> send them to col'-jges taught by women. "Th statement should rot go dowr,," he said, "That the girls trained by men in the public schools axe the sinners in this respect,"' * '