SOUTHLAND NEWS NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 3201, 21 July 1915, Page 38

SOUTHLAND NEWS NOTES.

(From Our Own Correspondent.) - INVERCARGILL, July 17. The action of the innholders and coal lease-owners at Ohai in seeking to get a railway built under the Local Railways Act has had tho effect of forcing tho hand of the. Wairio Railway Company, which, though it intended to make an extension, proposed to do that at a time to suit itself, or at any rate did not intend to do it at once. r iho company is now approaching the various parties interested, offering to extend its line as soon as the necessary Order-in-Council can be procured. An application for an Ordcr-iu-Council came before the Wallace County Council on Friday, and was discussed, and further consideration postponed for a month. I understand that both the Wairio Railway Company and the Nightcaps Coal Company are protesting against tho building in this district of a third railway line, to be run as a Government railway, to the great hurt not only of these two companies, but likewise to the hurt Bf all the other railway and coal companies in the South Islandj which have to build and operate their lines themselves without any of the advantages attaching to a Government line. The principle that people wanting lines to open up coalfields must build them themselves has always been recognised. The proposed Ohau line is essentially a coal line, and that its promoters should, under the Local Railways Act, secure such advantages over other coal producers is, tho existing railway companies insist, most iniquitous. At the Orange Lodge annual gathering on Monday evening last Mr W. G. Mchaffey said that a war tax was the most equitable burden of the war. Voluntary contributions had been many and generous; but he had been told that some of tho wealthiest citizens of Invercargill had not contributed a penny, and, that being so, they were as much pro-German as our bitterest enemies, and it was a pity that they lived among us. Mr Frank Mcnzi.es, town clerk of Mataura. and formerly of the Invercargill municipal staff, is at present absent from duty on sick leave. At the Wyncdham-Ploughing Match on Wednesday the first prize in senior doublefurrows, Class A. was won by George Todd, and Class B by S. Clark, jun. A petition is now being got up praying for a reduction of the sentence of seven years’ imprisonment recently imposed on Louis .Fosbonder for manslaughter by causing the death of William Jackson on the North road through a motor collision. Tho Invercargill Corporation is offering to subsidise the Athenaeum to the extent of £250 a year if the reading room is made free. The Rev. R. Mackie, of Winton. has been

protesting against the gambling -which is being- resorted to in the various schemes for augmenting the patriotic funds. He is not the first to protest. At St. John’s,. Wellington, three weeks ago the Rev. Dr Gibb protested very strongly against the saturnalia of gambling and excitement which pervaded the city. That illustration, ho said, was not greatly overdrawn which likened it to getting up a dance on a grave to raise money to buy a tombstone. A list compiled by the Southland News gives the Southland casualties on tho Gallipoli Peninsula as 2000, of whom 50 were killed, 114 wounded, 33 missing, and three deaths from illness. Mr G. Sherburd', who has been stationmaster at Wyndham for the past two years, has now been transferred to Invercargill. During his residence in Wyndham, Mr Sherburd has been not only a popular stationmastcr, but has taken a good share of tho public work of the place, especially as secretary of the local Competitions Society, in which capacity the value of his services were recognised at a farewell function, when Mr Sherburd was presentee* with a ease of pipes and a travelling bag. The Southland Carnival Queen election, ■' which is being inaugurated for the purpose of raising funds for wounded and the dependents of fallen soldiers, is attracting very considerable attention. The towns having Borough Councils or Town Boards are each electing one or more princesses, and the country districts one or more, and from these the representative princess will be elected by the greatest number of votes, and of these representative princesses the one who receives most votes becomes Southland’s queen. Miss M‘Queen-, daughter qf •; Mr John M‘Qucen. manager of the Southland Frozen Meat Co., has been nominated as Country Queen; but for the position of Invercargill Queen several princesses have been nominated, there being seven positions Tho Sports Princess, nominated by Otautau. is Mrs W. T. Hazlett: the travellers’ candidate, nominated by Riverton, M'ss Minnie Mills; the Municipal and Public Princess, Nurse O’Shea: Railway and Shipping candidate, nominated by Bluff. I Miss Hamilton; the Lakes Princess, nominated by Lumsden, Miss Nellie Johnson: the Army and Navy Princess, to be nominated by Winton. and also tho Retailors’ j Princess, Miss Milne, Mataura. Several ; vct’- handsome donations have already been I made to the funds both in cash and kind. I and these have enabled the Organisation I Committee to promote an art union, with ..prizes totalling- £SOOO. and it is anticipated | that tho total funds which will ho aocumu- , latcd by tho Southland Carnival Queen I movement will aggregate £30.000. Among ! the gifts are houses—one valued at £IOOO, a second at £BSO. and a third at £750. in addition to cash gifts—£ 7 oo and £50 — j and motor oars, valued at £4OO. £325. and I £2OO respectively, a lady’s seal fur cloak i valued at £lO5. and a five-ace block of ] land at Edondale, valued at £350.