Untitled

Otago Witness, Issue 3757, 16 March 1926, Page 3

Strong feeling is being aroused in the Pukekohe district over the large number of Hindus who are settling there. A deputation from the White New Zealand League plai id its views on the matter before Mr E. D. M'Lennan, th*- member for the district, and stated that although the Gove. ment of New Zealand placed high protective tariffs against British and other goods in order f o encourage production in the country, yet it allowed innumerable Asiatics to enter and compete with Europeans (reports the Auckland Star). The pioneers made Pukekohe, and it was really a sacrilege to allow Asiatics to desecrate the ground upon which they, the pioneers, ha* laboured so long to bring into good farming land. The large increase of Asiatics was presenting an alarming danger to the social and commercial conditions of the country. Mr M‘Lennan, in reply, said the league d his entire support, and he would take the earliest opportunity of placing the matter before Parliament, the Cabinet, and the Prime Minister. Mr M'Lennan expressed the opinion that it was t’ splendid land on Pukekohe Hill, and the fine climate of Pukekohe. suitable for intensive cultivation, that attracted Asiatics to Pukekohe. He agreed that the conditions under which the Hindus lived made it almost impossible for a white man to ccmpete with them. Some of the “shacks” they were living in on Pukekohe Hill .were ii disgrace. In conclusion, Mr M'Lennan promised le deputation his whole-hearted support of the movement, which should be a national one.

Wellington was sending thousands of pounds out of the country for the purchase of bitumen, yet Auckland came to Wellington to purchase a prepares tar, remarked Mr S. G. Nathan at a meeting of the Wellington Highways Board (says the Evening Post). Was that right or reasonable? The tar, he considered, should be quite good enough for the undermix; it was very different material fFom that available three or so years ago, and he would like to know whether any experiments had been carried out with it recently. Auckland was able to build roads with this material which were every bit as good as Wellington roads. The Mayor (Mr C. B. Norwood) said that he had motored over Auckland roads a good deal, and had not noticed them. Mr Nathan pressed his point; the tar, he said, could be purchased at probably merely one-third the price of bitumen, rnd should be inquired into seriously. The City Engineer replied that, '■ from tar being cheaper, it was actually c~ ssiderably dearer, costing Is 3d per gallon, as against 7|d to 9d. and it was not such good material. Already there had been enough experimenting with tar macadam in Wellington to show that bitumen was alto* her superior.

A partv of fishermen landed a mako shark at Kapiti Island, Wellington, on Saturday morning. The capture w'as made in an unusual way. The party was fishing for sebnapper, when the mako took the hockey by 2 goals to 1. bait, but instead of making out to sea it dashed towards the shore. In the shallow water one of the party rushed out with a sheath knife, wounding it sufficiently to take the fight out of it. A rope was> then fastened to the shark, and it was pulled ashore. It measured 10ft 6in, and its girth was 4ft 9in, while it weighed 4951 b. As far as is known this is the first mako captured round the Wellington const.

The old problem about a hen and a-half laying an egg and a-half in a day and a-half hade fair to be eclipsed in the Compensation Court (says the Marlborough Express), when a sheep farmer said he estimated that certain country would carry half ewe to the acre. Learned counsel commented that half a ewe to the acre was equivalent to an acre to half a ewe, and the Bench gravely nodded its agreement to this profundity of mathematics. Counsel then went on to claim that half a ewe to the acre for 12 months as equivalent to a ewe to the aero for six months, and his Honor observed that that world he a good idea, as, according to counsel, the country would carry a ewe to the acre for six months and could be spelled for the remaining six months of the year. Counsel revolved the problem for some time, but finally abandoned the subject with the weighty observance that in any case half a ewe to th* acre was—well, half a owe to the acre!

The Catholic Church authorities, in keeping pace with the advancement of Wanganui (reports our correspondent), have purchased a portion of a large estate at Aramoho for the erection of an up-to-date college.

Mr John Mosley,* of Stirling, who has gained fame in various parts of the Dominion through his ability in water divining, is also able to locate the precious metals with the aid of his divining twigs (says the Dalclutha Free Press). He has but recently roturned from an expedition into the wilds of western Otago, whither he went on a mission for a mining syndicate. Needless to say, Mr Mosley is very reticent as to the exact locality, but he brought back concrete evidence of the success of his mission in the shape of a small bottle nearly full of rough waterworn gold that evidently had not travelled far from the main lode or “mother reef/’ which he also located after some rough travelling in difficult country. The result will be an important mining development More long.

The Railway Department is calling for tenders for motor buses for use in various parts of New Zealand. It is officially explained that the buses are needed to replace the mixed trains on branch lines so that the department will be able to confine t.ie train services to goods, and therefore will not have to maintain the tracks to such a high standard, while the operating costs will also bo reduced. The motor buses will not use the rails, but will be road-running vehicles! These buses are being purchased immediately to run at Christchurch, Oamaru, and Dunedin. Special legislation was passed last year to enable the Otago Land Board to sell to the Dunedin City Corporation any land jn the Waipori watershed which th > corporation desired to purchase for water storage and other incidental purposes. At Wednesday’s meeting of the board an application was received to purchase a large area comprising the surrounding section, together with the old Waipori commonage, with an approximate area of 4900 acres. The board recommended that the land be sold at the price of 15a per acre.

The present system in Auckland of enrolling people for juries was criticised by Mr J. J. Sullivan at the meeting of the Auckland District Law Society Friday last (reports the Star). Mr Sullivan said that a matter he deemed to be of great importance was the present jury system, and he hoped that this matter would be brought before the incoming council. Under the Juries Act, 1908, all males between the ages of 21 and 60, and resident within a radius of 10 miles of Auckland, should be placed on the roll of jurors. The roll should bo subsequently submittcJ to a magistrate, and then forwarded in its complete form to the Supreme Court for use. There were, of course, specified qualifications and disqualifications and also certain exemptions. But the point Mr Sullivan was making was that the roll of jurors, as it reached the magistrate, may not contain all the qualified and eligible people to sit on the jury. “I have substantial reasons for making this statement, but 1 do not attribute any ulterior motive to anybody,’’ said Mr Sullivan. “But if, through any reason whatever, eligible and qualified persons that should be on the jury roll are not there, then the society should investigate the matter and find out the reason why. This point was previously raised in 1915, when Mr Kettle was magistrate here. It was then mad' public in hie court that the Police Department at the time deemed it advisable to strike many persons off the jury roll whom it deemed ineligible.’’ Mr Sullhr.i submitted that this was contrary to the spirit of the Act. This, in his opinion, was a matter entirely for the magistrate and not for the police. He then move -“That the incoming council investigate this matter, and see that the jury roll is compiled in accordance with the Act.”—The motion was carried. One does not often hear of New Zealand being well known in the Old Country, but Sir John MacFarland, Chancellor of Melbourne; University, has evidently gained the impression that it is. He recently returned to Melbourne from a visit to England, and stated to the Argus that New Zealand was better known to t’ j general public than Australia, both in regard to ' migration and to products.

The members of the Dunedin .Technical School Board have received notification from the Auditor-general that they have been surcharged in respect of an expenditure in 1923 of £ll in excess of the limit of unauthorised expenditure sanctioned by the Education Act.

A record tourist season is reported by the Dunedin Tourist Office. An official on Wednesday stated that four times the number of tours in the Lakes district had been arranged by the office in comparison with the previous year’s bookings. Consequent on the fine weather more people are now visiting Queenstown! and bookings are being made already for the Easter holidays. Greater numbers are also going to Te Anau. the new accommodation being welcomed Queenstown still retains its great popularity, cheap trips obtainable there being an undoubted attraction. Five farmers who hold land on a lower level applied for the unselected run at Wilden, conditional on the residen. J clause being waived, and subject to their right to increase the number of holders to eight, if they should so desire. After consideration the board decided not to agree to the waiving of the residential clause. The application was therefore declined. A man holding three runs within comparatively recent times applied to the Otago Land Board on Wednesday to transfer his holdings, but the application was declined as the board considered that the suggested transferror was one who trafficked in land.

.The blackberry bush L a curse to the country, but the blackberry berry is a very pleasant fruit, particularly if one goes to enough trouble, spends enough time, and endures enough scratching, bloodletting, and clothes ruination to gather it from tlhe bush, instead ot walking to the first greengrocer’s and buying twice the quantity for half the day’s expenses. Anyone who has tracked down the blackberry several miles along a hot roadwa> front the railway station will admit that it is simpler and quicker to buy the fruit at o much per pound; but he goes out again, for no fruiterer sells the fresh air, the sunburn, the “painful pleasure” of healthy tired bodies that are the sidelines of the blackberrying industry pursued on native heath. Those vho go out expec'ing to get a full load of berries with little exertion, may be disappointed; but persistence bring? its reward, even among a multitude of pickers. Last week (reports the Welling ton Evening Post) the Railway Department ran a blackberrying train as far as Kaitoke at excursion fares, and a large number ot people took advantage of the special opportunity.

“Long experience has convinced me,’ said Mr J. H. Howell, in the course of an address on “Technical Education” at Wellington, “ that in many case 8 it is*a waste of the finances of the State and a waste of the energies both of the teacher and of the growing boy to allow students under tho ape of 15, or even 16, to attend evening school.” The facilities for education, he thought, should be made available not later than 6 o’clock in the afternoon, and such day-time education should be continued up to the age of 18 for all those who had not reached a satisfactory standard. When the time of greatest stress for the adolescent was past the student from lb to 25 could with much advantage to himself as well as to the country, devote himself to the elevating pursuit of such knowledge and skill as would enable him to find greater pleasure in his daily occupation.

A Wellington message states that the Wellington Returned Soldiers’ Association gnve a welcome to the new Comandant of the Forces. Major-general Young, at which reference was made to tho Prime Minister’s interest in soldiers. While Mr Coates was a Cabinet Minister, said one speaker, he was told that a Digger who had died was to receive a pauper’s funeral. “No Digger,” replied Mr Coates, “will receive t pauper’s funeral while I have money to psy for it.” And, amid applause, the speaker added, “The Digger did not have a pauper’s funeral.”

Christchurch’s claim to being the premier English city of the dominions has been supported by the Cathedral, the most histcric building in the city, for the stonework was found to be crackin" shortly after reports arrived of the *umbling of the stone in Westminster Abbey. St. Paul’s, of course, set the fashion (reports the Sun). It has been found that the balustrades of the south and west balc< lies of ..e tower need repair, because of the coping-stones having cracked longitudinally. One balcony at present i 9 laced with wire supports in order to make it per'-°tly The reason for the cracking is not known, but it is possible that the stone was not cut correctly. stone-worker exp’ that it is possible to cut stone wrongly just as it is possible to split wood the ’-rong way. However, the reason for the cracking is only a surmise. For some time past workmen have been engaged in maki n* preparations for the installation of a new organ, these necessitating a certain amount of stone-cutting, and now th i work oi repairing the tower is being gone on with One of the chief difficulties of a hard job will be tl -> hoisting of stone to the tower to replace that which is cracked. At the conclusion of the Harbour Boards’ Conference last week, a high tribute was paid to th'- splendid work of Mr W. J. Bardsley (secretary of the Otago Harbour Board), who had done such excellent preparatory work in connection with the conference Eulogistic reference was also made to the courtesy received by the visiting deleft .tes at the hands of the local board, and a hearty vote of thanks was tendered to Mr G. 0. Godfrey (Under-secretary of Marine), whose attendance at the conference had been of great assistance to the deliberations of the members. At the concluding session of the Harbour Board’s Conference last week, Mr J. Vigor Brown (Napier) eulogised the manner in which ihe chairman (Mr J. Loudon) had controlled the conference. In Mr Brown’s opinion no conference could have been carried out more efficiently, smoothly, and with greater despatch than the one ju«t ended, and he considered that this was due entirely to the capable way in which the chairman had handled the proceeding*. On Mr Brown’s motion, a hearty vote of thanks, which was carried with musical honours, was accorded Mr Loudon.

It is generally .nticipated that the Easter holidays will prove the busiest period that Dunedin will h«-ve experienced since the Exhibition opened, and the number ot visitors is expected to break all previous records. Inquiries made at most of the city hotels show that accommodation is at a premium, and private accommodation is also being booked by hundreds who are eager to he in Dunedin for the closing days of the Exhibition.

depuration from the Returned Soldiers' Association, consisting of Messrs A. C. Laing, J. M. White, and W. F. Forrester, waited on the Otago [.and Board at its meeting on Thursday, and. asked for better roading facilities for the new settlers at Wilden. They suggested a route which would save three miles cartage each wav. The Commissioner of Crown Lands (Mr RS. Galbraith) promised that the whole matter would he carefully gone into by the board He pointed out that -he members of the board had every sympathy with the request, and would do everything possible to meet the wishes of the deputation.

Some old Maori tracks across a farm property at Waitomo came under notice in the Auckland Supreme Court recently. It was explained by counsel that the King Country was, in its early days, intersect* I by tracks used by the Maoris in their journeyings. When tho Government surveyors plotted out subdivisions of the Native blocks they were instructed to reserve these tracks, and this was done in regard to all sections which they traversed. When proper roads were formed or dedicated in the district the custom cf track reservation fell into disuse. In many cases the tracks existed, as regards recent years, onlv on the plans, so that the settlers whose lands crossed enjoyed the use of them for grazing purposes, practically free of cost.

At last night's meeting. of the Otago Harbour Poard the Chairman (Mr J. Loudon) said he had been asked by the delegates to the Dominion’s Harbour Conference, held recently in Dunedin, ' j convey -to the members of the Otago Harbour Board the most sincere thanks of the delegates for the manner in which they had been treated during their stay in Dunedin.