LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LVII, Issue 17450, 21 April 1920, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

The English and American mails brought by the Moana from San Francisco reached Wellington early yesterday morning. The Auckland portion will arrive here this morning and will be delivered to-day. An Australian mail is also • due at Auckland to-day by the Riverina from Sydney. This will be districted during the day.

Very little business was done at the hide sales yesterday, the majority of the lots catalogued being passed in. Several outside buyers were in attendance, but they were disinclined to operate except at prices much below those that were quoted prior to last week's sales. This is attributable to the uncertainty of the world market for hides. The American market is unsettled, and there was another fall in prices recently in Australia. Although there were practically no sales yesterday, it is possible that the lots offered will be disposed of to-day, as buyers have the option of dealing privately for the offerings for a period of 24 hours after they -are passed in.

Two accident cases were admitted to the Auckland Hospital yesterday. Mr. Albert Smitt, 36 years of age, who resides in Nelson Street, was admitted last evening suffering from a broken collarbone, the result of being knocked down by a motor-car. Mr. Smitt was crossing Hobson Street and was avoiding a tramear when he was struck by the motorcar. The second case 'was that of a waterside worker, Mr. Charles Lewis Morris, 60 years of age, a resident of Green Lane, who was knocked down by a cart on the Queen's Wharf about 6 p.m. yesterday and received injuries to his left leg through a wheel passing over it.

The possibility of the proposed increase in tramway fares, if authorised, more than meeting the increased expenditure was raised by a delegate at last night's conference of local bodies. He asked whether there would bo any distribution of the surplus among the local bodies in that event. The Mayor. Mr. J. H. Gunson, explained that this would not be possible. It was quite possible that there would be a surplus, but it must go into the tramway revenue. It would be employed in improving and extending the service, in which case outside local bodies x»ould benefit more than the city.

A motion deprecating the action of the City Council in granting its own members free passes on the trams after having refused this concession to disabled returned soldiers was passed by the executive of the Auckland Returned Soldiers' Association last evening. The president. Mr. George Eliott, said it seemed absolutely unjust that members of the City Council, who really held positions of trust, should vote themselves a concession which seriously incapacitated men bad been de-ued. Other members endorsed this opinion. Information is being gathered as to the practice followed in other centres.

The chairman of the Board of Trade, Mr* W. G. McDonald, and Mr. J. W. Collins, secretary to the board, who arrived in Auckland yesterday morning, had long conferences during the day with the local anti-profiteering tribunal. Mr. M. M. McCallum, chairman of the tribunal, stated last evening that a number of cases were considered, and a course of action decided upon. Several prosecutions were under consideration, some of the matters being more serious than the recent Wellington case, in which a grocer was fined £100. A further conference would be held to-day, at which the Crown"prosecutor would be present.

During the sittings of the Arbitration Court in Auckland, which concluded yesterday, amendments to 68 existing awards granting additional bonuses to workers were made and filed with the clerk of awards. The bonuses, which are payable as from January 1, 1920. are at the* rate of a penny an hour in respect to male workers paid by the hour, 4s a week in the case of weekly wages, and 2s a week in respect to female workers and youths.

The annual meetings of householders for the election of school committees in the Auckland education district will be held on" Monday, May 3. Under an amendment of the Act nominations will close a week before the date of the meetings, namely, on Monday next. In the event of the exact number of candidate* being nominated no election will be necessary. Hitherto the practice has been to accept nominations before and on the evening of the householders' meetings.

Thq Auckland Land Board met yesterday, the commissioner, Mr. H. M. Skeet> presiding. The schedule of applications contained 217 cases, including 37 transfers and sub-leases. 21 new applications, 63 applications for financial assistance to discharged soldiers, and 61 advances to soldier settlers.

Referring to the appointment of Lord Jellicoe as next Governor-General in New Zealand, the Prime Minister, Mr. W. F. Massey, stated in Wellington on Saturday that the selection of this great sailor was a compliment to New Zealand and was certain to be very popular. "It ia quite certain," said Mr. Massey. "that both Lord and Lady Jellicoe will get on well with the people of New Zealand, who showed their regard for our future Gov-ernor-General during the visit of the Admiral aboard the battle-cruiser New Zealand last year. In addition to meeting Lord Jellicoe during that visit, I saw him on very many occasions during the sittings of the War Cabinet in Britain, and I was able to appreciate what his stay in the Dominion will mean to this country." Mr. Massey stated that the date of the arrival of Lord Jellicoe in New Zealand was not yet known. Information on that point was likely to be available soon.

Wax matches are practically unobtainable in Christchurch. Local grocers and tobacconists have exhausted their supplies, and cannot replenish them. At present there is no prospect of adequate supplies coming forward. A manufacturing firm in Wellington, the only one in New Zealand, is rationing clients. A grocer explains the shortage by stating that much of the ingredients of wax matches comes from Germany, and as that supply has been stopped a shortage is the result. Australian firms have made •an effort to supply the ingredient, but as they hardly can meet the demand in the Commonwealth very little is coming to New Zealand.

After having made two unsuccessful attempts to secure from the Minister permission for the soldiers at the Queen Mary Hospital, Hanmer Springs, to visit Christchurch during the stay of the Prince of Wales, Mr. W. E] Lead'.ey, secretary of the Christchurch Returned Soldiers' Association, has received a telegram from General Richardson, to the effect that the Minister has now approved of patients at the FTa-nmer Hospital being brought to Christchuflvh for the Prince's visit, if arrangements can be made for their billeting for one night. The association is now making the necessary arrangements for billeting.

Some months ago on the occasion of a great native gathering at Gisborne a party of ethnologists of the staff of the Dominion Museum went to the gathering to collect information about Maori history and lore, to get cinema records of ceremonies and to get also dictaphone records of' old Maori chants and songs. The same party has gone to Rotorua to the Maori camp there for the purpose of collecting more of the same information. The Gisborne expedition was a great, success from the point of view of the value of the information collected, and much is hoped from the present further ttudy of the subject.