A MARE'S NEST.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 8596, 11 September 1889, Page 2

A MARE'S NEST.

The Evening Post published a paragraph tonight in which it was stated that tke Defence Miciater m excess of generosity provided some recently promoted staff officers with the uniforms suited to their ranks, these uniforms being, of course, staff pattern and obtained from England at a cost to the colony, it is said, of £900. I may say that rumours to the above effect have been floating about for at least a fortnight, and some days ago I took occasion to look into the matter, with the result that I discovered the whole affair to be much exaggerated, and hardly worth mentioning. Now that a definite charge has been made it becomes necessary to refute it. The facts are as follow :- bhortly beforo Iheir services were dispensed with, half a dozeu officers of the permanent force had ordered new uniforms, and i-oon representing the matter to the head of tbe" Defence department, it was oo.isici, r«d that it would be a hardship to thcoy clHc.is to compel them to retain articles that were quite useless to them as civilians, and the uniforms were therefore taken back to the Stores department at a total cost of £186. Since this transaction took place several of the uniforms have been issued to officers who have been promoted to fill the positions vacated by the officers dispensed with, but who receive no extra pay, and other uniforms have been issued to others and paid for in the ordinary course. There are still in the store several of these returned uniforms to the value of £00, so that the Evening Post has discovered a mare's nest. EMPLOYMENT OF FEMALES. A deputation consisting of Messrs Feldwick, Walker, Duncan, Turnbull, Major Steward, and Hon. B. Richardson waited on the Premier and urged him to afford facilities for the passage of the Employment of Females and Others Bill introduced by Mr Turnbull. The objec; of the bill is to enable employers c f steam power to grant their employes a half-holiday on Saturdays, whilst shopkeepers may give the halfholiday to their employes in the middle of the week. The former find it inconvenient and expensive to have to stop work in the middle of the week, as that involves the necessity of getting up steam twice a week; whilst shopkeepers, in view of the fact that in all smaller towns Saturday is market day, cannot spare their assistants from business on that day. Mr TurnbulPs bill merely provides that different days in the week may be taken for the weekly half holiday for various classes of workers. After some discussion the Premier promised to obtain the opinion of the Cabinet as to whether the bill should be taken up as a Government measure and passed this session, and the deputation withdrew. THE MARINE DEPARTMENT. From the annual report of the Marine department it appeals that the sum of £13,460 was received by the department for light dues Of PbJL amount Posfc and Telegraph contributed MSSS in respect of dues remitted on the San Francisco. New Zealand Shipping Company. and Shaw, Savill, and Albion Company's steamerp, and in respect of coasting vessels, ±3717. There were 50 casualties oil the coast during the year, as against 54 casualties in the previous year. There were 14 wrecks during the year, as against 19 wrecks during the previous year. The number of lives lost during the year, in consequence of these accidents, was 31, against 33 in the previous year. AUDITING ACCOUNTS OF LOCAL BODIES. From a return laid on tbe table of the House to-day it appears that the total cost of auditing the accounts of local bodies was £1816. The additional cost to the Audit department of undertaking such audit was £1981. Three inspectors and one clerk were employed in this work. Seven provincial auditors and one clerk were dispensed with when the work was undertaken by the Audit department, and the amount of salaries saved amounted to £22 269 The sum of £1835 was paid by way of compensation to such provincial auditors, and £250 per annum to one officer (J. Ollivier, Christchurch) as retiring allowance. The net result to the Treasury by the transfer of local audit to Audit department is a credit of £347 11s 6d per annum.