Untitled

Otago Daily Times, Issue 18515, 28 March 1922, Page 4

There is a considerable amount of labouring work available on the railway public works at Beaumont, but we are informed that only one returned soldier has recently made application for work there. The annual ram and ewe fair, held under the auspices of the Otago Agricultural and Pastoral Society, will take place at Burnside saleyards to-day, commencing at 10.30 a.m. Sheep from the leading registered flocks in the South Inland will be offered for sale. Two minutes will be allowed for the sale of stud rams, and one minute and a-half for each lot of flock rams. Sheep will be sold in the order of the catalogue, commencing with stud rams. The committee that was set up by a public meeting in connection with the Russiah end European Relief Funds hae appointed a large executive, which will meet on Thursday to consider proposals for raising money. A recent Student Service Bulletin, pub lished under the European Relief Scheme of the World’s Student Christian Federation, contains some terrible facta about the dire needs of large masses of students in Russia. Many of the universities are open, end there are students, but practically every one of them is half-starved. Some live on leaves and bark. The conditions at the University of Kazan, which is functioning with 4000 students, were recently summed up by Sir Philip Gibbs, and may be taken as typical. He was enormously impressed by the students’ keenness on study, in the midst of hideous suffering and difficulty. The university lectures are held after 10 o’clock at night, as all the students except the medicals get no rations, and have to work for food night and day. “They do not get much of it, however hard they work,” Sir Philip added, “for one of the girl students told me she could study pretty well on a pound of bread a day and occasional herrings, which the Government provided ‘sometimes’ for the medical department of the university.” A campaign for aid for these unfortunates on whom, nevertheless, the whole reconstruction of Russia largely depends, was conducted in the American universities last autumn, and realised a sum of about 210,000 dollars. Mr Giffard Sherman Reado, a wealthy resident at Rotorua, Now Zealand, has (says the Daily Chronicle of February 10) given to the Admiralty his Holbrook estate, near Ipswich, for the benefit of Greenwich Hospital. Holbrook estate comprises about 1000 acres of land and various buildings, and is of the estimated value of about £30,000 Mr Headed reason for making Greenwich Hospital the object of his benefaction is to show his appreciation of the splendid services rendered by the Navy to the Empire at all times, particularly in tire late wav. A correspondent, residing at Littleboume, writes to us in appreciation of the efficiency and intelligence of the postal officials, as illustrated in the prompt delivery of a letter addressed os follows (even the number of the dwelling being incorrectly given) : “No. 2 A. C. L., Sil Kerk St., Littleton, Dunden.” “It is a surprising fact, but one which the casual observer cannot help noting, that the general workman in England is not working half as hard as those of other countries I passed through on the Continent. One Italian worker does as much as two English labourers.” These remarks were made to a New Zealand Times reporter by Mr John Prouse,, who returned from abroad on Tuesday last. The unemployment doles paid by the English Government, he said, sometimes amounted to more than the actual wages the recipients might receive for the support of themselves and their wives and families. The result was that the workers were encouraged to adopt slothful tactics. The Germans, ho remarked, by way of comparison, had started out to face their post-war difficulties in an entirely different spirit. Germany was a hive of industry, and everyone was working at his utmost capacity. A male passenger by the Tahiti, named MKnee, refused to take the oath of allegiance when tile vessel arrived from San Francisco yesterday morning (says a Wellington Press Association message), and consequently he was not permitted to land. M‘Kneo is proceeding through to Sydney. The City Fire Brigade was called out at 7.14 last evening to the premises of Penrose and Co., at the corner of George and St. Andrew streets. It was found that a false alarm had been given by the automatic installation.

i Mr W. R Bundle. S.M., held a brief L sitting of the Juvenile Court yesterday afternoon, and admonished and discharged a boy for riding a motor bicycle at a pace dangerous to members of the public. In reply to a question at a meeting of the Dunedin Returned Soldiers’ Association last night, the secretary (Mr A. C. Laing) stated that he had canvassed the town thoroughly 1 and there was no work going. With the ’ president he had seen the Hon. J. G. i Coates to find out if there was any prospect !. of the Government finding work that would absorb up to 200 men, but the Minister had not been able to say. The Minister ; had stated that they could take on men , at Roxburgh, and he had written to the secretary there for information as to the conditions. Mr Laing added that he had been told that some of the men were making 4s 2d a day, but a member of the association stated later that some of them ; were making 27s 6d > A very interesting figure in the Bene- • volent Institute Hospital at Caversham is , Frank Doherty, a veteran who saw service right through the Crimea campaign and 1 afterwards in the Indian Mutiny. Though ■ over 90 years of age, he is still very much alive to what is going on. He learned with much regret recently of the death at 1 South Dunedin of the only other Crimean veteran of whose existence he knew. He is . now wondering if in this part of the world ! there is any other survivor of those historic campaigns. On the face of it it seems hardly likely, but if there is the publicity 1 now given to the matter wiß doubtless lead to the old campaigners getting into touch with each other. Speaking at the unveiling of a memorial board of honour to members of the Pensions Department who enlisted and those who made the supreme sacrifice (says a Wellington Press Association message), Sir Heaton Rhodes spoke of the Administration’s pensions’ legislation. While it was difficult to satisfy everyone, the Government had done its best to administer the Pensions Acts not only justly, but sympathetically. It had attempted to meet the wishes oV the Returned Soldiers’ Association when that body requested the setting ,up of an Appeal Board, but it now appeared that the board was not giving gene- - rad satisfaction. When the Prime Minister returned from England a deputation waited upon him and requested him to appoint a commission to inquire into the general ■working of the pensions scheme and scale of pensions, and Mr Massey promised to give the matter sympathetic consideration. On the suggestion of Mr Massey, it had been decided to set up a commission, and he (Sir R. Heaton Rhodes) was now in consultation with the officers of hie department as to the form the commission should take. An arrest, after a violent struggle, was made in the garden of Mr Warren Fisher’s residence, Garden road, Fendalton, Christchurch, shortly after midnight by Constable E. Porteous, who found a bioyde outside Mr Fisher’s house. He entered the gate, and as soon as he flashed his pocket lamp he discovered a man, who, on being asked his business, immediately grappled with the constable. After a strenuous fight the constable overpowered the man. and with the assistance of his son, who had been tele phoned for, conveyed him to the police station, where he was charged with being an incorrigible rogue. The extortionate prices charged for rooms in Auckland were commented upon by a Salvation Army officer, wjio has had a good deal to do with assisting immigrants, when conversing with a Star representative- “ There are some people, you know, who are not paying more than 25s to 30b for the whole house, and yet they charge almost as much for one room. Well, up to 25s at least,” he remarked. “It is simply ridicullous. People cannot pay these prices. And as for children, they will not have them near.” He believed there wae a great lack of sympathy, among women. He had had several cases of real distress, including a young mother just out of hospital with her baby, and had experienced the very greatest difficulty in finding rooms for them. In these instances the husbands had work in the city, and it was absolutely essential to .find shelter of some kind! for them. “Of particular interest to associations,” states the annual report of the Wellington Boxing Association, “is the new rule providing for North end South Island; championships, with the winners competing at the Now Zealand championships. At the conference a scheme of finance was adopted which should prove satisfactory. It is worthy of note that these island championships may not be held in any of the main centres, while the New Zealand meeting must bo held in one of the main centres. It was recommended that the next meeting be held at Auckland, while a vote of the North Island associations decided to hold the North Island championships at Palmerston North.” In the matter of thrashing, who is the employer—the thrashing mill owner or the farmer? This was the poiht that Mr G. W. Leadley put before the meeting of the North Canterbury Executive of the Farmers’ Union. It arose out of the provision in the award that, if the driver and thefeeder agree that on account of the nature of the crop an extra man is required, such extra man shall be employed by the employer. In active practice the extra man has been provided at the cost of the farmer. Mr Leadley contended that “the empfioyer” is the machine owner. Mr G. Sheat aaid that the machine owners’ interpretation was that “the employer” was the man who employed the machine owner and his men. The executive decided that Mr Leadley should represent the union in asking the Court of Arbitration, for an interpretation of the provision of the award. Seven of one family in two polo teams is the unique record put up by the Kay family of Parawera, Kihikihi, in the provincial polo tournament held at Te Awamutu. The teams (says on exchange) are the Te Awamutu A and B, and it is sinificant that the captain of the A team has a son in the B team. Had it not been for the death of the late Sergeant Archie Kay at the front, it would have been possible to put in two teams composed who/ily of Kays. Mr Orakau Kay, though at present indisposed, could also have filled the gap had it been really necessary, as the veteran is still as keen as ever. The cost ot living for an average work-ing-class family in England showed a fall of seven points in December, according to a calculation by the Labour Gazette. The level at the end of the year was 92 per cent, above that in force at the outbreok' of war. The January 1 figure is the lowest recorded since March, 1918. The decline in December is attributed mainly to reductions in the prices of some of the principal articles of food, including bread, flour, moat, butter, and eggs. The percentage of unemployed among members of trade unions was 16.5 at the beginning of the year.