LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LX, Issue 18354, 21 March 1923, Page 8

LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

There has been no slackening of the interest of overseas travellers, particularly those from Australia, in the various tourist resorts of the North Island. Numerous inquiries are made at the Tourist Departs ment's Bureau in regard to Rotorua, the Waitomo Caves, and the Wanganui River, and itineraries have been arranged for a number of tours. The officials of the department have been very busy during the past few weeks, and although the summer season is waning there is no lack of inquiries. Te Aroha also has attracted a goodly number of visitors, while the inquiries in regard to Russell and its deepsea fishing have been very numerous. For the resorts nearer Auckland, such as the Waitakere Ranges and the seaside places, there has been a steady flow of inquiries, mainly from Auckland residents.

It is proposed that Auckland's wharves should have their names prominently displayed at the entrances. A recommendation to this effect was made to the Harbour Board yesterday by its traffic manager, who said the name-boards should be of such a nature as to be readily seen at night. The chairman, Mr. H. R. Mackenzie, said the name-boards would be of assistance to strangers. The matter was referred to the board in committee.

A rapid growth has been noted in connection with the Matamata telephone service in the last few years. There are now 250 subscribers connected with the Matamata exchange, and 50 applications for additional connections have been received.

The tramway service on both lines in Hobson Street was delayed for about half-an-hour between five and six o'clock yesterday afternoon. The delay was the result of the line being blocked by a heavily-laden four-horse lorry, one wheel of which became caught in the soft ground where excavation work had recently been carried out. A considerable number of cars had collected before the lorry got clear.

A request that the Manukau County Council support a petition for a new railway station at Puhinui Road crossing, was received by the council yesterday. The crossing is between Papatoetoe and Wiri, nearer the latter station. The council decided to accede to the request.

The official declaration of the result of last week's poll for the election of the Auckland Licensing Committee, published to-day, shows that no fewer than 342 votes were rejected as informal. An examination of the informal papers mad by the returning officer, Mr. F. Evans. shows that in the majority of cases six of the ten names on the paper were left uncancelled. The instructions printed on the paper, state that not more than five names should be left uncancelled.

The suggestion that the commercial travellers of Auckland should lend their assistance to the movement for the relief of the children affected by the recent fire at the Takapuna Orphanage, which was made by a correspondent yesterday, was anticipated by the executive of the Commercial Travellers' Association. At a meeting on Monday, the question of making a collection of clothing for the orphans was discussed, and it was decided to call a . special meeting of the general committee for ne*t Saturday evening, for the purpose of making the nccessarv arrangements. Any contributions in* aid of the object will be thankfully received.

The case of a taxi-driver who had been called upon to show cause why his license should not be cancelled was disposed of by the Auckland Harbour Board yesterday. Action had been taken by the traffic manager on account of various offences against the by-laws. The board decided to caution the taxi-driver and to inform him that the orders of the board's officials must be respected, and that if any further adverse report is received his license will be cancelled.

A serious reflection upon Association footballers is contained in the annual report of the Swifts Club, Wellington. The particular remarks referred to are brief, but pointed: —"It is regrettable that during the past few years there seems to have been steadily growing a spirit of semi-professionalifm among higher grade clubs. In Wellington there obviously are large numbers of Soccer players available, but the clubs which for the moment happen to be at the head of the tables seem to attract most newcomers. This perhaps is only natural, but it is submitted advisedly that the old idea of sportsmanship is miffing. ' Pot-hunt-ing ' is rampant, and to attract new players is almost an impossibility unless certain advantages are guaranteed, ' and one of the most sought-after advantages is the non-necessity of paying subscriptions. It is contended that if a game is worth playing at all it is worth the expenditure of a sum of money to provide the means of enjovjng the game."

A further stage in connection with the scheme of Mr. A. Bishop to sluice and wash gum in the upper reaches of the Manukau Harbour was reached yesterday by the Auckland Harbour Board. It was decided that, subject to conditions to be laid down by its solicitors, the board was favourable to the granting of a license to Mr. Bishop for the working of specified beaches at a royalty of 10 per cent, for a period of five years.

A Waimauku contractor, Norman Kemp, and an indentor of Auckland, J. W. Strasburger, have been adjudicated bankrupts on creditors' petitions. The first meeting of creditors of the former bankrupt will be held next Wednesday. The creditors in the second estate will meet next Tuesday.

The Auckland creameries, cheese and butter factories' employees' dispute was considered by a conciliation council yesterday. The conciliation commissioner, Mr. P. Hally, presided. No agreement was reached as regards hours, wages, overtime, and holidays. The commissioner will give a reserved decision on a question raised by the Engineers' Union in connection with this dispute. The matters not arranged will be referred to the Arbitration Court.

The bad state of Ranfurley Road, Manurewa, was the subject of a deputation of residents to the Manukau County Council yesterday. The matter was referred to the chairman, Mr. \. D. Bell, the engineer, Mr. W. J. Lopdell, and the riding member, Mr. J. M. J")avies,, to confer with regard to the metailing of 58 chains, about half the length of the road, as early as possible.

A little act of generosity met with courteous recognition from the Bench during the hearing of a case at the Police Court yesterday. After a young French sailor from the cruiser Jules Michelet had been discharged on informations arising out of the Aliens Registration Act, the French interpreter was asked to name his fee for two appearances in Court. With a characteristic French shrug of the shoulders and a modest smile, the interpreter intimated that if the charge devolved upon the sailor to pay he would prefer to forego his fee. You are very generous to your countryman," remarked Mr. J. W. Poynton, S.M., "and he should be very grateful for your action."

"Fully 100 Chinamen in Wellington are living on the proceds of pakapoo; they toil not, neither do they spin." So said Chief-Detective Kemp in the Magistrate's Court, when four labourers pleaded guilty before Mr F. K. Hunt, S.M., to charges of being found in a common gaming house.

In recent years settlers on the Pahiatua Track have noticed a steady decline in the number of wild pigs seen in that locality. A fanner on the top of the range states, however, that this year the pigs were very plentiful and shooting parties seemed good bags.