SOUTH DUNEDIN AND AMALGAMATION.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 13180, 13 January 1905, Page 4

SOUTH DUNEDIN AND AMALGAMATION.

The futility of any attempt at this stage of the proceedings to burke the stops that are being taken to secure an expression of the opinion of the electors of South Dunedin on the question of amalgamation with the city should be obvious. It is quite an open matter whethor it is necessary that the petition of the electors praying that a poll may be taken should be brought before a meeting of the Borough Council, and there is certainly no doubt whatever that, if the prescribed number of electors have signed the petition, the Council has 110 right to stand in the way of a poll. The terms of the law are absolutely clear: "'lliepoll . . . sliall be taken within ISO days after the presentation to any such Council of a request in writing that a pojl bo taken, signed by not less than 10 per centum of the electors of such borough." And, because it is really impossible that any 'obstruction can be oflectively offered to the movement in favour of the taking of » poll on the amalgamation | issue, we hesitate to believe that any of the councillors of South Dunedin deliberately absented themselves from the special meeting that was rolled for, last Wednesday evening for the purpose of receiving the petition. It is perfectly clear that the poll must be taken, and if the South Dunedin Council is to keep faith with the City Council— as all honourable persons in the borough must desire it to do—it must so arrange that the poll shall be taken before the 31st inst. If there are those among the members of tho suburban Council who consider that the borough will not be benefited by amalgamation their proper course unquestionably is to exercise their influence with the electors to secure the rejection by them of the amalgamation proposal. la the event of their opposition to union with tho city being crowned with success at the'-poll, it would then be necessary for the South Dunedin Council to take a rote of the electors of the borough on the question of the widening of Hillside road under the terms of the Empowering Act that was passed last session, and if the result should be a declaration against the application of the Act to the object which its promoters had in view the people of South Dunedin would then, under the provisions of the compact that was entered into between their Council and the City Council, have to remain satisfied with a single -iine of tramway along Hillside road. We'are inclined to think that tliejr wiil prefer amalgamation, and that tliey- will express their preference very emphatically when the opportunity , is presented to them.

The Kolomahaim loft Wellington last night with the southern portion of the inward San Francisco mail. The Dunedin 1.-ortion of the mail will reach here to-night, possibly by the first express, ,

The electric car.'tfafoc on tho CaVetshain section wis commenced at noon yesterday/ and very. many passengers took ad\'aii(ago of the opportunityto travel via the moro expeditious route. The ears ascend and descend the hill' at the Southern Cemetery easily alid comfortably, and tlife curves arc taken smoothly. The traffic was continued during tho afternoon,: the cars running to David street, Cavcrsham,.and the fares are Id to tlio railway bridgo at Glen road, and 2d to David street.. An interlocking station has been provided at tho loop near the' bridge, worked tin something of the lines of the tablet system, so that all possibility of a collision between cars is obviated.

An extra gang of men commenced work on tho excavations in connection witji the electric tramway lino works at St. Clair yesterday morning, and rapid progress is being made with the operations. The crossing at the .Victoria street terminus of the horso car lines Ims been cut off, and the western line of rails is being torn up as the excavation works advanoe, so that each line is heiiig worked separately from new points at Forbnry corner. Very shortly only the one horso car line will be available, and the service will have to be maintained on tile one set of rails for a time. After tho Forbnry road track is completed, the St. Hilda loop, connecting tho Anderson's Bay and Ocean Beach lines, will be commenced.

A message was received yesterday by Colonel Robin from Lieutenant Pickering, R.N.R., recruiting officer for the Naval Reserve, regretting his inability to arrive in Duncdin till next week, when ho will meet applicants for enrolment, at the Garrison Hall from 9.30 a.m. till 12.30 p.m. In the meantime, applicants may interview the captain of H.M.S. Flirebe at Port Chalmers, a boat leaving the wlinrf every morning at 9. o'clock for the vessel.

William M'Donnld, with a couple of' ■aliases, who has been wanted by the police since the month of August last for having failed to pay fines amounting lo £8 for breaches of a prohibition order, was arrested yesterday by Sergeant Higgitis on tho arrival of one of the trains from tho south, and lodged in gaol. Tho total value of the live-roomed house and furniture and effects destroyed by fire at St. Hilda on Thursday morning is estimated nt £315. Tho insurances were: — House, £100 in the Victoria office, and furniture, £125 in the New Zealand office. Tho loss on tho house is set down at £50 over insurance, and Mr Hollander's loss on furniture, etc., is £40. Mrs Hollander was ironing up till 11.30 p.m. the previous evening, and at that hour retired to rest, but at 1.30 a.m. was awakened by a noise as of something falling. On rising t-o ascertain tho cause, she discovered the kitchen in flames, ami with all haste she rcscuod her threo children, and made her escape. Tho fire spread very rapidly, and gavo no opportunity to save ,ui ' thing, and when tho St. Kilda I'iro Brigaue arrived on the scene a few minutes afterwards the building was threo parts destroyed. Mr Hollander, who is employed by the St. Kilda Borough Council in connection with the night sanitary servieo, was away from home at tho time of the fire, the origin of which is unknown.

At present there is an unusually largo gathering of farmers and station-holders in town, and the stock and station agency firms aro experiencing a busy season. Tho influx from tho country is no doubt largely duo to tho wool sales and tho prospect of higher prices. A very hearty and largely-attended meeting of seamen and tho friends of tho Sailors' Mission was held on Wednesday evening at the Tort Chalmers Sailors' Rest. Tea was served at 6.30, after which short addresses were given by the friends present, including Messis William M'Konzie, A. K. Kalconer, Andrew Thomson, Irvine, Mirarns, Mesdames Hall, Porteous, lnglis, ctc.

The Rcecss Committee of tho New Zealand University meets at Auckland 011 the 24th inst. to make known tho results of the matriculation nml junior scholarship examinations.

About a fortnight back a person professing to be a photographic artist hired a room in one of Mr J. Cameron's shops in George street, Port Chalmers, and intimated his intention of taking likenesses at a remarkably cheap rate. lio appears to liavo induced some. 40 or 50 boys to deposit their hoarded shillings with liiin, and promised in return to supply them with a number of copies of photographs. Sinco 'luesday last, however, lie lias been missing, and his anxious young clients are vainly looking for the works of art they were to have been supplied with.

A well-known member of Parliament has been devoting some time to measuring the spneo ocoupied in Hansard by the. various members of the House of Representatives, or, in other words, the length of their speeches. The Right- lion. Mr Seddon is easily first with 3965 inches. He is followed by Sir ,'!. G. Ward with 2318 inches. Then come in order:—Mr Massey, 2039iu; Mr T. 15. Taylor, J.2l'sin; Mr T. Mackonzie, 1266 m; Mr James Allen, 1137 in; Mr Duthie, 964 in; Mr Herries, 895 in; Hon. Mr liall-Jones, 858 in; Sir W. R. Russell, 837 in; Mr HI, 797 in; Mr Hogg, 729 in; Hon. Mr M'Gotoi, 721 in; Hon. Mr Carroll, 637 in; Hon. C. 11. Mills, 563 in; Mr Laurenson, 540 in. The space occupied by the three Duucdin members is as follows:— Mr Bedford, 507 in; Mr Millar, 411 in; Mr Arnold, 221iu. Mr Hardy did not speak at all, and Air J. W. Thomson took up only liin of Hansard. "The total space taken up by the members of the Ministerial party was 22,2i)5in, by the Opposition 11,277 m, and by tho Independents (including the Maori representatives) 4805 in. Very strong complaints are made (says the Lyttelton Times) by passengers by the Mceraki, from Melbourne, concerning the failure of tho railway authorities to meet the boat at the Bluff. The Moeraki inado a fast run across from Jtaobart, and was in harbour shortly after daylight on Tuesday. The formal medical examination was conducted in very leisurely fashion, and it was midday before the - passengers reached Inveicaigili. The first train from the Bluff leaves at 8 tun., and, as the through oxpress leaves Jnvc'rcargill at the same time, it was quite impossible for the Moeraki's passengers to come on to Duncdin by the early train.' More serious still, the English mail, Whioh, with ordinary oare, might liavo been delivered to tho public in Christclmrch on Wednesday morning, was not available until Thursday morning—practically 24 hours late. Neither the Postal Department nor the Railway Department made any attempt to hasten the forwarding of tho mails.

There is a prospect of a ljoom in Australian sugar in 1605-1906 (says the Melbourne Age), it is alleged that the word lias boon passed round among commercial men largely affected by fluctuations in sugar production that after 1905 thiiro will not be a ton bt sugar imported into the Commonwealth, owing to tho expansion of tho Queensland and New South Wales industries, notwithstanding the anti-kanaka legislation. The cffect on tho Fcddral Customs will be serious in this case, 'l'lio duty on imported sugar is £6 a Ion; tho excise on Australian-grown sugar £i a ton, or £1 a ton when the bonus of £2 per ton on "\vliito grown" sufjar is deducted. Stati! treasurer's should, therefore, feel the pinch before t lib expiratibn of tho Braddbh olau?e.

Mr W. 11. Sliaw, a well-known resident of the (Jlebe (says the Sydney • Morning Herald),, aroused the enthusiasm of ah audience which filled Ihe ftlebo Town Hail on a recent night by taking part in a con-cert-which had been' arranged lo celebrate his one-hundredth birthday.' Mr Shaw, who in one, of the old type of colonists, is still llale and hearty. He selected for his son " Rose of Allandale," and his rendering was marked by distinct enunciation and fidelity to the melody. At the close he ttas accorded ijiiito'an ovation, and he responded by singing a' second song, During the evening, on .bfihillf of- the Ideal Benevolent Society, which institution his family have from time to time hided, ho was the recipient o[ several presentations, '

A surprising disclosure has been mad* ia connection with tho cases of two irtchi who were charged !at OamArii with leaving their 1 vehicles unattended in the public street,, which were colled oh at tlm court yesterday afternooli, and withdrawn at tho request of tho polieo. .It transpires (says the Mail). that the by-laws dealing with offences of this kind were made, and confirmed on August- 12, 1880, which is shown by tho minute book of tho Borough Council arid tho book of by-laws itself. This is a contravention of the act of 1876, section 340 of which,gives the power to make a by-law by "special ardor," while section 82 provides that a "special order" must bo adopted at a speoial meeting and confirmed at another meeting held not less than four weeks subsequently. This'means that the by-laws have boon inoperative throughout,. and any, persons fiiied or imprisoned for alleged breaches have boon illegally penalised. It would be interesting to know to what extent the authorities arc responsiblo for conviolions under those worthless bylaws.

The case of Mrs Chadwick is attracting immense interest in tho United States, where it is considered to eclipse tho famous Ilumbert swindle. The forged notes bearing Mr Carnegie's signature put afloat by this woman amounted to nearly four millions sterling. She has now been identified as Elizabeth Bigley, horn at Woodstock. When 22 years old she was charged with forgery, but acquitted on the ground o£ insanity. She -was ,then, as later, accused of hypnotising her victims. She is 45 years of age, or more, but has some pretension to beauty and plenty of-expedients. Sho is now under arrest, awaiting trial, while some of her victims are in a sorry plight.

• Inquiries are now being niiido by an engineer representing the Indian Government as to the suitability of New South Wales hardwood sleepers for Indian railways. The representative of the Indiau\ Government hns made exhaustive investigation into the matter, and the Government has placed him in possession of all available data.. Tho durability of New South Wales hardwoods has been demonstrated sufficiently to warrant a large trial order which has been placed, and there is every prol>ability of another extensive market being opened for this natural product of the State.

Messrs Jaiues Samson and Co. will hold a saio of furniture, etc., at their rooms at 1 o'clock to-morrow.

Messrs Donald Reid and Co. will hold a sale of sheep, cattle, and implements at Novell's Flat on Thursday, 2lith inst. Messrs Dalgety and Co. will hold a sale of Aldernev cnttlc nt Bnnisidc on Wednesday, 18th inst. On Friday, 20th inst.. they will se'li sheep at Bnlchithn. A notice to creditors in the estate ot tho late Margaret Millar, of En-churn, appears in our advertising columns. A list of persons who have been licensed as auctioneers for the currcnt year will be found in another column.

Particulars regarding tho polling booths in connection with Die election of three mcmbera of the Drainage Board are advertised in this issue.

Three experienced winclimen and one driver arc required for a dredge in the Argentine. An address by Sir T. S. Culling to ths electors of the Dmiedin drainage and sewerage district appears in onr advertising columns. Particulars of the railway arrangements in connection with the Gore raccs will bo found in our advertising columns. Notice is given in another column lliul the partnership hitherto existing between Messrs Adolf Ahlfeld. Wilhelm Ahlfeld. and Pan! Frederich linhlenberg has been dissolved by mutual consent, Mr Wilhelm Ahlfeld retiring from the firm.

Picnic Baskets.—\Ve have a special lot of picnic baskets, which are to he sold at extremely low pricci— from Is to 63 Gd each.—Mollisons, Limited.—Advt.

Specialty.—Ladies' hair dressed for weddings, photos, etc.; also shampooing, massageing. manicure, etc.—Hendy's Hnirdressing Rooms, 104 Princes street.—Advt.

For "all-gone" feelings, "life-not-worth living " stale of mind, and general " altogether miserableness." Loasby's Wahoo is tlie on( thin;: that will nut you right.—Advt. Messrs G. and T. Young, 88-Princes street, are now opening out a- new shipment of silverware ex g.s. Maori. Inspection is cordiallv invited.

WllO is Petkr Dick'/—The most reliable Watchmaker and Jeweller, opposite Coffee Palace, Moray place, fluuedin. Charges strictly moderate.—Advt.