LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LIX, Issue 18198, 18 September 1922, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

The Main Trunk express which left Auckland for Wellington last evening was an exceptionally heavy train, consisting of 17 carriages and two vans. There were eight second-class carriages, six first-class, and three sleepers. Apart from ono sleeping car, which was nearly empty, there were- few vacant seats on tho train.

A patient at the Auckland Hospital, Miss Charlotte Gleeson, aged 75, residing at Arthur Street, Ponsonby, died suddenly about mid-day on Saturday. About a fortnight ago, Miss Gleeson was visiting her sister at Ren dell Place, Eden Terrace, when she fell while walking in the street, breaking her left arm and sustaining abrasions to her face. She was admitted to the hospital for treatment to her arm, and she made satisfactory progress. On Saturday, however, while in a chair, she suddenly fell forward, dead. An inquest was held before the coroner, Mr. J. E. Wilson, S.M., later in the day. The verdict was that death was duo to senile decay.

A recent remark by the Chief Justice, Sir Robert Stout, deploring the lack of truth on the part of witnesses in New Zealand Courts, was commented upon by Chancellor Holbrook at a Ronan Catholic ceremony in the M 'mt Eden district yesterday. Ee stated >,Hat this scant respect for the truth was due to the secular system of education in New Zealand, which Sir Robert Stout himself had lauded and supported for 50 years, and of which he was now simply reaping tho harvest. No amount of secular knowledge could teach man's duty to his God and his neighbour, and, realising this, the Rotary Club and Young Citizens' League were endeavouring to supply the lack by teaching boys good citizenship when they left the schools. This was all very well, but it was beginning at the wrong end. The Roman Catholic Church had " the root of the matter " in its teaching of moral and religious principles from the dawn of reason in the child.

The Professorial Board of tho Auckland University College will meet on Monday, October 2, to select tho Auckland candidate for the Rhodes scholarship. Applicants must be in attendance at the meeting, and must send in their applications to the chairman of the Professorial Bua-id not later than Sep«enber 30.

A further trial of speed between th-. two great racehorses, Gloaming and Beauford, took place on Saturday in the Hill Stakes, a mile race, at the Rosehill meeting. On the previous Saturday when the pair met in the Chelmsford Stakes on even terms Beauford won. But when Beauford was penalised 71b. Gloaming succeeded in turning the tables. Gloaming has now won 44 races under tho colours of the New Zealand sportsman, Mr. G. D. Greenwood, and the prize money amounts to nearly £29,000.

A Silvcrdale resident paid a compliment to the Postal Department's telephono line gang at a meeting on Friday evening. He said that, judging from their work in another district he knew of, tho subscribers to the proposed Silverdalo telephone exchange could rest assured that within a fortnight of tho gang's appearance at Silverdale they would have tho lines erected and the telephone working.

" Whv have you failed to register?" inquired Mr. E. Page. S.M., of a 17-year-old defendant, who was charged at the Fctone Police Court with failing to register as required by the Defence Act. " Oh," rejoined the defaulter, " I reckoned that there was a man paid to hunt up u» chaps."

A portrait in oils of Thomas Cans, an early Canterbury surveyor and politician, painted by Samuel Butler, author of " Erewhon," has been presented to tho Canterbury Museum by the Canterbury Society of Arts. It hung on the walls of tho Art Gallery for some years. It has Butler's signature, "&. Butler," over the date. 1868. Butler, whoso surprising versatility added talents for painting and music to his literary genius, has painted a handsome, pleasant, intellectual face, with dark eyes, a ruddy complexion and n square-cut beard. Mr. Cass was a prominent member of tho Canterbury Provincial Council.

Considerable amusement was caused at a meeting of the Manawatu Rugby Union when a letter was received from the Stamp Duties officer, stating that, an error had occurred in the union's statement of the tax on 800 grandstand tickets. Tin's ahou'd he £3 6s Bd, not £3 6s 6d as shown. The letter concluded with the request that the 2d should be forwarded.

A report regarding women drinkers at Picton was received at a meeting of tho Wairau Licensing Committee last week. A police report stated that the hotels at Picton were allowing women to frequent their houses for the purpose of drinking, and that tbera was a regular coterie of women who appeared to spend a good deal of timo going from hotel to hotel. The result was that even those who d'd not drink to that state of excess known as drunkenness were wasting their time and n;glccting their children. The chairman of the committee, Mr. F. K. Hunt, S.M., said that the committee lookad with great disfavour on tho encouragement of women about* hotels, and lhat it would pay tho closest attention to the police report on the hotels in question at the next annual meeting.

Th« vagaries of Wellington weather came under semi-jocular discussion in the Arbitration Court on Friday morning. An incident was mentioned in which waterside workers in the city declined to engage on a certain day for work at the Patent Slip, though they were officially assured that there was a beautiful sunny sky at Evans Bay. Was it possible, it was asked, that the men were not convinced by the assurance ? "Possibly," suggested the president, Mr. Justice Eraser, "they trusted you (addressing the manager of the Patent Slip), but mistrusted tho climate." Local variations of weather within short distances were mentioned. "Yes," drily observed Mr. M. J. Reardon, "I have seen it verywet in Wellington, and yet a beautiful day at Trentham"—a sporting allusion that everybody understood.

In the selection of a jury for the purpose of trying a prisoner at Gisborne the other day, tho right of challenge by defending counsel was freely exercised, while the Crown Prosecutor had also ordered many* of the men to "stand down." Eleven jurors had been selected, and the name of tho twelfth and last had been called. He came forward and entered the box, his seat being at tho end of the row. He was challenged by the Crown Prosecutor, and, with a look of relief, began to leave the box, when counsel for the defence objected. "The juror had taken his seat, Your Honor," said prisoner's counsel. The juror confirmed the lawyer's objection as to the lateness of the challenge, stating that he had taken his seat all right before the Crown Prosecutor had spoken. His Honor said he would discharge tho jury and have it re-empanelled. The jurymen then rose and filed out of the box into the Court. Prisoner's counsel said: "Will Your Honor take a note of my objection that the jury was proporly empanelled, and that wo are entitled to trial by that jury 1 ?" His Honor: "I have discharged tho jury. It does not exist now. I will add that, relying upon my senso of observation, I do not think that the juror had taken his seat. He says, however, that he had. In the circumstances I discharged the jury and ordered ifc to bo re-empanelled."-