NEWS OF THE DAY

New Zealand Times, Volume XLIII, Issue 10063, 30 August 1918, Page 4

NEWS OF THE DAY

An Order-in-Council gazetted yesterday prohibits the importation of goods from the Regal Post-card Supply Company, of Sydney, New South Wales.

Some 586 acres of Crown lands have been set apart in the Auckland Land District for soldier-settlement, and some 150 acres of settlement land in the Wellington Land District.

The monthly meeting of the Wellington District Land Board was commenced yesterday. The board sat all day in committee to deal with applications for land from returned - soldiers. The usual .monthly business will be proceeded with when the board, resumes to-day.

In what are generally considered exclusively German waters, a British submarine recently spent ton hours on the bottom while tho Huns fished for her. One of the crew, a very young and modest seaman, described the whole incident as follows: “We just had a hand of cards, and I finished up by winning our commander’s last halfdollar. Ho was stone-broke when wo reached our mother-ship.”

As many soldiers are returning from the front each year disabled, the necessity for providing for these men has become very marked. It has been suggested by the National Service League that four memorial workshops be at once started in Now Zealand, as a national tribute to tho brave fallen. The National Efficiency Board should take tho matter in hand, and make provision for the employment of returned men.

A well sot-up man who had passed the prime of life, and who answered to tho name of Frederick James Blanford Bennett, had a charge of theft preferred against him at. the Magistrate’s Court yesterday. The charge was that between July 6th or 13th, 1918, tho defendant received tho sum of £9l 15s from one Thomas Martin requiring him to account for and pay tho amount to Messrs Climie, Coates and Company, registered patent agents of Christchurch. Bennett fraudulently omitted to pay the money and thereby committed theft. A remand was granted till Friday when Chief-Detective Boddam said be probably would apply for a further remand.

One of tho methods used by the Turkish Government to make the population firmly believe jhat wheat was arriving there from flie Ukraine is described in the following message:—■ Several ships left Constantinople by day and proceeded during the night to a port on .the Black Sea, where stores of wheat were held for the Turkish army. This wheat was taken aboard and the ships returned to Constantinople, where it was brought ashore. It whs announced that this was a grain shipment tom the Ultraino. The authorities added, however, that the army was short of wheat. During the night the grain was returned to the Black Sea port from which it had come.

The frantic efforts of Germany in her endeavours to conclude an honourable peace with tho Allies has reduced her to the necessity of spreading propaganda, tho absurdity of which :s often only too prominent. The efforts of Germany to cripple British industry and consequently hamper the output of munitions and' foodstuffs have met for the most part with dire results; happier, however, has been that work when it has been restricted to tho soldiers of the Allies at the front, for it has given these soldiers something to send to their friends. Mr W. H. Green, of Scatoun, has received from his son, Gunner Green, a cartoon supposed to show the losses by death the Allies have suffered during the Somme engagements this year. In tho foreground of the cartoon there are countless crosses, presumably over the graves of tho fallen; the background wears a more cheerful aspect, for the sun —the emblem of peace—is rising, casting its pleasing rays on tho field of battle.

r 'Can I have three weeks to pay the fine?” asked a defendant of Mr F. V. Frazer. S.M., yesterday. “You have only been fined £1 and three weeks is a long time. Are you married?” “No, but 1 have hurt my hand and am living on my compensation.” - The time asked for was granted, the defendant being ordered to report himself daily to the police.

At a meeting of discharged and disabled soldiers at Yarmouth, the chairman of the local branch of the federation said a hero of Mons recently applied to a timber merchant for work. The merchant said he would be pleased to employ him, and, having asked him what his pension was,, offered him Its a week. The man ultimately accepted a “light” job—moving pianos and mangles— at 16s a week, and after two months asked for a little more, and was refused.

“The defendant is only a boy, and he has been sleeping out at night. He says he has friends at'Hawera, from where he came to Wellington. In order that some inquiries may be made concerning him 1 ask for a week’s remand.” Bo said Senior-Sergeant Willis when Clarence Nelson John Bovey, a youth 18 years of age, was charged before Mr F. V. Frazer, S.M., with being an idle and disorderly person in that he had insufficient lawful means of support.

Yesterday was “moving day” at the old Trades Hall in Cuba street. Tables, chairs, and other paraphernalia suffered the indignity of being bundlecT info expresses, and Labour secretaries proceeded to the new premises in Vivian street to “put their house in order.” The new Trades Hall, lately the residence of Dr Martin, is commodious and well fitted up and will fulfil its functions admirably until such time as the Trades and Labour Council is in a position to erect the new buildings. The now order of things will result, probably, in a certain amount of inconvenience at first, but it is hoped that trades unionists will fall in with the scheme for the good of the movement generally.

According to the “Bhenisch AVestfaelische Zeirung,” flame-throwing owes it s origin to a certain Major It., who, during the manoeuvres in peace-times was ordered to defend a fort at all costs. As the attack was making good progress, it occurred to him to sound the fire-alarm, and a stream of water was directed upon the assailants, who retreated. In his report he stated that ho had sprayed the attackers with “burning petrol.” 'The Kaiser, who saw the report, asked if the suggestion was practicable. He was ■ answered that it was. Major. il., with the assistance of an .expert • engineer, was then ordered to experiment, and, after various trials, they succeeded in mixing certain oils which gave a satisfactory result.

Mr F. M. Cutlack, an official correspondent with the Australian' forces, relates this little incident, which occurred in the middle of a fierce ma-chine-gun fight at ' Sailly-le-Sac: "We had in the company an oldish man, the father of fourteen children, and we put him on the kitchen as an extra cook; “At' the-height of the machine-gun duel he arrived in the firing line with a load of mutton stew, which ho had cooked and brought tip himself. It -was a magnificent stew, made of fresh mutton, and the battalion commander recommended him for a Military Medal. V*hen presented with the'medal the other day the cook pulled put of his pocket a photograph of his family, and said to the general, ‘These are the people who will be proud of it, sir.’ ”

The war has' caused' the belligerents of Europe thfHoss of not les s than 7.120,000 potential lives, because of the decrease -in births resulting from the war, says Sir Bernard Mallet, Regis-trar-General of Great Britain. ' Great Britain, he asserted, ha s lost in these potential lives 650.000 children. He believes that other belligerents bave suffered in this respect more than has Great Britain. * Sir Bernard estimated that every day of the war means a loss, of 7000 potential live s of children to the United Kingdom, France, Italy, and the Central Powers. Dealing with the decline in the birth rate, he says the births registered in England and Wales in 1913 numbered 881,800. In 1915 they fell to 814,614, in 1916 there was a fall to 780,252,* and in 1917 to' 660,346; a decline' of 24 per cent, as compared with 1913.

The arrest, trial, conviction, and sentence of a young man in Syracuse, State of Now York, for idling in war time has peculiar interest as marking the first ijjronounced and clear-cut case of the kind under the “anti-loafing’ law in the Stafe named. He had committed no offence in an ordinary sense, lie was not a vagrant, for he had money. The new statute, however, had made him an'offender, subject to penal correction,* in that he was performing no useful labour at a. time when the industries of the country, as well ns the army and navy, were in great need of man-power. The young man said he had never worked, did not find it necessary to work; in fact, would not work. But he will work, nevertheless. since he was sentenced to six months’ hard labour in the county penitentiary. This possession of “visible means of support” (comments an American writer) formerly excused this type of idler. He could fritter Ins time away, while the penniless loafer was constantly liable to arrest for vagrancy. * r ar is a leveller m more senses than one.

Tho shag has a firm friend in Mr E Stead, the naturalist and angler, who did not hesitate at the recent Acclimatisation Conference in _ Christchurch to express lus pleasure m what most anglers would hold to ho a most unholy alliance. Shags, says Mr Stead, prefer eels to trout from a gastrononucal (standpoint, and', "as they are more easily caught, destroy more eels than trout. The damage that cels do to trout is well known. Shags congregate only where eels are plentiful or where tho trout are numerous, and consequently undersized. providing, ot course, that they are not after whitebait or other feed. They thus prevent overcrowding, and by the thinning out they do effect much more good than harm,' as trout, where very numerous, may reach old age without exceeding a pound in weight, whilo they are under these conditions poorly fed and afford no sport. A keen observer, Mr Stead likes to see the shag where he is fishing. He looks on him as a brother fisherman, and takes notice of his catch. As shags must rise to tho surface to swallow their prey, this is an easy matter, and he decidedly states that only small and weakling fish fall easy prey to shags. For years liis society has bought no shags’ head on his recommendation, with , the best of results. .. ..

A New Zealand hospital ship, on her way back to the Dominion, has been officially reported. from a port of call cn route, “all well.” .

The Union Company advise that the B.M.S. Moana is duo at Wellington to-morrow from San Francisco via Papeete and Rarotonga. The vessel is bringing passengers, mails, and a considerable amount of cargo.

The awards won in the recent scholars’ examination of the Sunday School Union will he presented by the Mayor this evening in St. John’s Hall at 7.30. The Lower Hutt scholars will receive their awards on September oth.

Writing from Palestine in June, Lieu, tenant Frank Moore, of Johnsonville, says:—-“The alleged beautiful valley of _ the -lordan is a hell of aplace for poisonous snakes. Two of our men lost their lives from bites. The vipers had twined around these men’s legs while they slept. The Australians. grab the reptiles by the head and tail when their quarters are invaded, hut I would hot handle one for ten pounds.

Action was taken in the Magistrate’s Court yesterday by Abraham Levy McDuff, builder, of Hataitai, against Albert William Organ, agent, of Wellington, to recover £55 on a promissory note, together with interest amounting to £5 4s lOd. After hearing the evidence, Mr W. G. Riddell, S.M., said that it had not been proved to his satisfaction how the amount of the promissory note-,had been made up; and the plaintiff would be nonsuited. Mr T. H. Gill appeared for the plaintiff, and Mr H. F. O’Leary for the defendant.

The Minister for Internal Affairs.ro. cently asked the secretary of the Pub-’ lie Service Superannuation Board to prepare a report on the relation of the widows and children or other dependents of contributors to the superanimation fund wlio had died on active service with the Expeditionary Forces. Up till August 12th, the following results have been shown:—The total amount payable annually to widows is .£882; and to children, £781; a total of £1663. The total amount of the contributions received on account of the deceased contributors, including the aihounts, paid by the" Goverment, is £2638 Bs, or just sufficient to provide the benefits for one year and seven months.

Complaint is made that coupons re. presenting certain values in. money have been taken from letters coming back from the front through the deadletter office. A Wellington lady, whose brother Was killed at the front some time back, told a “New ‘Zealand Times” reporter that several letters she had written to him in which shohad enclosed these coupons had been returned to her after her brother’s death, hut without the coupons. In cases hooks of coupons have been lost or stolen in this way. The “Times’s” informant states that this has been the experience of some of her friends. An odd ease could be put down as acci- ' dental, but the continued disappearance of the coupons shows that something is seriously amiss.

Sensational particulars have been brought to light about the efforts of Bolo’s Italian accomplices, acting on behalf of the ex-Khedive of Egypt, to buy Italian newspapers in 1915. They, were revealed in the course of the evidence of a priesti named Preziosi in?-a. recent libel action. It appears, acording to the “Messaggero,” of Borne, and the “Secolo,” of Milan, that AustroGerman agents offered to buy those two newspapers for £320,000, hut the offers were indignantlv refused. A simultaneous attempt lo finance a new journal failed, owing to the excessive demands off a journalist, who demanded £120,000 in cash down instead of instalments. Signor Naldi, the editor of the Roine “Tempo,” founded a few months ago., denies the story,of this offer, which the “Messaggero,” however, confirms, adding that Senator Annaratone was chosen to control the Pro-German journalistic truer.

There recently died at ChristchurcH Mr Henry Suter one of the notable scientists of the. Dominion, and author of the “Manual on New Zealand Mollusca.” At the time of his death the late Mr Suter was/engaged describing and identifying fossils for the Geological Survey Department. Later _Dr Thompson (director of the Dominion Museum) visited Christchurch, in order to go over the geological survey and museum specimens and hooks in Mr Suter’s possession when he died. Mr Suter had valuable scientific collections and had directed the Publio Trustee, who is his executor, that his collections should not be sold without the consent of his two sons, and ’ to the latter he had left a note instructing them to offer his collection of mollusca and other natural history objecta to the Dominion Museum;* The collections have been housed -temporarily in the Canterburv Museum, and the question of their purchase is awaiting proposals from Mr E. Speight (curator to the Canterbury Museum) and Professor Chilton (Professor of Biology at Canterbury College), who are acting as trustees for. Messrs Sifter brothers, to whom the collections nave been left by their father.

It is a well-known characteristic ol crowds that when a constable is arresting a law-breaker the sympathy of tho crowd is invariably with tho person being arrested. Crowds are not wholly devoid of the instincts of fair play/ however, and an extreme case such as was witnessed in Lambton quay the other day shows that tho sympathies of the crowd can swiftly turn to the guardian of law and order. A huge and aggressive specimen of a bully stood on the footpath looking for trouble. He bad had a touch of it already judging by a cut above on© of his eyes, from which the blood poured profusely, Along came a rather small size in policemen. The bully looked pleased with himself. Hero was easy prey., The policeman told him to move on. The 6ft Sin of aggressive brawn roared back a warning to the police, man to leave him alone. In a moment tho constable closed with tho bully, and the two fell to the ground, tho bigger man being underneath. Tho watching crowd roared its approval, as the bully hollowed, cursed, and struggled, but all in vain. Two more policemen arrived a minute later, and tho big man simply bawled for mercy. Tho crowd gloated over his downfall, and as for tho little policeman, ho was the hero of the hour.