PERSONS, PLEBS AND FLUTES

NZ Truth, Issue 818, 16 July 1921, Page 1

PERSONS, PLEBS AND FLUTES

The new president of the New Zealand Workers' Union, one of the few industrial bodies m tliese island-s with some vitality m it, is Charlie Baldwin, a stalwart shearer, who first saw the light m Aussie, but has been battling for his class m Maoriland for a-quar-ter, of a century. Baldwin does not posture m the limelight,, but has a good, solid record behind him, and is a level-headed industrialist who avoids extremes and keeps his head. He is a well-known figure m Canterbury, where his reputation is of the best.

Ben Davidson, who succeeds Pat O'RourKe a^ head pea of the Miners' Federation, is a man with great ideas, but hitherto has not had much pnance to show any ability save m the way of criticism. He is supposed to belong to the school qf Marxian Formulists, or Infalliblists, who have reduped L<ar bor tactics to a science, but never get the chance, to put them into operationDavidson is a great' reader, but whether as a man of actiqn he will improve on past presidents flf the Mlnr ers 1 federation,' remains tp be seerj;

A wonrterful achievement i\as been accqmplished fay Qeor.ge James Perkins, "ex- champion spuller. of Britain. Three years ago he lajd the keel qj- a steam launch m a corrugated building; at Jesmond, himself erecting the shed. Without any help, whatsoever, he has now completed the boat which was launched recently. The launch is capable of carrying nne hundred people, ie fifty feet overa. 1 !! by nine feet one inch aft and four feet six inches amidships. She is built entirely of larch and oak. Aft there is a cabin twelve feet by nine' feet and capable of seating thirty-five people. George worked secretly* making his own moulds and building his own* plant, and when his big job was finished and his friends saw his little steamer they confessed that he knocked Nonh kite high. George was not anticipating another delude but merely wanted somethingto fill m his spare time with; During the job he hammered m 20,000 .copper nails and used a hundred yards of copper bolting-. There's not an iron* nail m the whole ship.

: : , : : it Superintendent Dwyer, whose retirement from the police force wap announoedi a few days ago, states that one of the most interesting cases of his career was that m which the imr print of a large, naked foot figured. Through the agency' of this foot-print a gang of criminals was brought to justice. At the timp. the finger-rprint system was not m vogue, e.ven m the Old Dart, so the use of a focit-prnif as a means of identifieatiQtt was something absolutely new. The story of the foot-print episode is as follow^: In 1887, at Okmaru, a gang' of criminals visited the district, and broke into several places, leaving no clue save a foot-sprint on a clean blottjr>g pad m one of the buijdings brqken intq. JBntj'ance to these premises had. been ef? feotedj:hr.o i ugh a skylight," and. qne qf the burglars evi(Jen|ly mQistpnfld the gpleg Qt \\\s fp£t $h the roof, then Bttip^ed ■ qjn i§ .ft' d.ujt«lg,den upper

shelf, and finally on to a" blotting pad. The outline left on the pad could not have been clearer. Superintendent (then Sergeant) Dwyer got busy and made an excellent copy of the clue. "When some suspects were arrested a few days later their foot- prints- were promptly "taken." The foot of one suspect made a perfect copy of the blotting pad? sample, and as a result the man pleaded guilty, and he and the vest of the gang were imprisoned. Later 'the owner of the foot-print was hanged m Sydney for the murder of a constable. It is not to be wondered at after this that Superintendent Dwyer is a strong advocate of the fin-ger-print system.

A minister who is the beau ideal m the matter of parsonical nomenclature, is the Rev. W, E. Drinkwater, formerly chaplain of Huntly School, Marton. Mr-. Drinkwater,' who for some time past has been Vicar ofiFullford, near Stqke-qn-Trent, England, has been apppinted Rector of Checkley m the Lichfield. district. A minister with a namo like that must go. aheac) m his profession. ' .

pharlie Redman, a wellr- known. Noo Zee irik-^jinger, whp has pushed m copy for spverfil paper's since .his "return from the Blood Gorge, has set-tled-down on the "Waimate Witness," m which paper he has a proprietary interest. Dad Redman (Mr- F. T.). a welbknpwn Mastertan resident, is with his son m the venture, they having 1 taken over the "Witness." if "Spot" makes as good a plute press proprietor as he proved himself a humble pen-pusher, he should do well.

Bishop J. W. Dwyer, who is at trie present time being featured m the heaviest type of the "day- lies" m the cabled accounts of the action' in which he is defendant, and Bridget Mary Partridge (formerly i Sister Ligouri) defendant, is 1 the son of a former Inspector of State Schools m Australia. His family has put up a record for Australia m the fact that it boasts of two brothers, both Australian-born, who have been created bishopsBishop Joseph Dwyer (defendant m the case referred to), who has worn the mitre for three years as" Bishop of Wagga, and Bishop Patrick Dwyer, m charge of the Maitland district. The former, is an ardent naturalist, and hag contributed several important volumes to the natural history of Australia. Incidentally, it might be mentioned that the f 'd.ayT:lje£" again- display their ighpranpe m refer-yins" to the case m which he is. defendant, as the' "Escaped Nu.n Sensation." To refer to Sistev Ligouri as the "Escaped Nun" is ricMculous. as no professed sister m any R.C. Convent can escape, for the simple reason that, they &vq all at liberty to leave the institutions to which they are ataohed at any time if they so desire. While there, they are bound to observe the rules of convent life, but }f such life is irksome to them the?© is no necessity to escape at dead of night through a back window, for there is always the d.Qp,r through which they may gq h,g,ak. te the world at thejr awn voHtion,