LOCAL AND GENERAL

Star (Christchurch), Issue 12570, 6 March 1919, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

To-day’s river report states tit at all tho rivers arc clear, ' The Fire Brigades’ Conference at Invereargiil was concluded yesterday, says a Press Association message. Superintendent IV. Keith, Hastings, was elected president for tho ensuing year. A public meeting will he held in the Grand Picture Theatre on Sunday next at 8.15 p.m., under the auspices of the Methodist Social Service Union. Tho -Mayor of Kaiapoi will preside, and tho Hon ,1. T. Paul, president of tho New Zealand Labour Party, will ho the chief speaker. Subject: "The Relations between Labour and tho Churches.” Labour men are specially invited to this citizens' meeting. At yesterday's meeting of the Lyttelton Harbour Hoard, Dr Thacker stated that he had been' approached by residents of Chartoris Hay to ask the hoard to carry out the dredging of the channel leading to the jetty so ns to enable the passenger launches to negotiate tho passage up to the lauding more safely. The matter was referred to the Harbours Improvement Committee to report. At Rnngiorn yesterday a deputation, headed by the Mayor, waited upon Mr IV. M'Gruer, and requested him to allow himself to be nominated for the office or Mayor at tho coming election. Air M’Grncr stated that his feelings wore in tho direction of complying, hut owing to there being a possibility_ of important private husti.oss claiming his attention during the ensuing two years, he could not give . definite reply to tho deputation miti 1 Tuosdav morning. Mr E. Dixon, of Ha worn, ex-vice-president of the Methodist Conference, at yesterday’s session made an appeal to tho Church to help returned soldiers spiritually and materially. "You should discover the employers wl;o are engaging women labour instead of soldiers,” he said, “ and show them up. You should get . into the business life of tho soldiers,' get them hack into the work they had before or into other positions, and in that way you will get into their hearts.” What was claimed to be a record was established yesterday • in emptying and filling the tepid bath for the swimming championships';- The valves were opened at 4.15 p.m., and the bath was emptied hv 5.15. An immediate start was made with the refilling, and with the' assistance of a fire hose the bath was filled by 8-15 p.m.., a matter of throe hours. Tin's was a good performance, considering that tho capacity oj tho hath is 125,000 gallons. A Press Association message states that intimation has been received in Wellington to the effect that the Wellington Municipal Fire Brigade has been expelled from the Fire Brigades’ Association because it altered the designs on the association’s service modal. It is stated here that the local brigade resigned from the association in October last because there was nothing to ho gained by continuing its membership. Members state that it is difficult to see how the brigade could be expelled from a body to which it did not belong. It is admitted' that a new service medal has been struck. Tho policy of the Repatriation Department in Wellington of charging 5 per cent interest to the returned soldier who wishes to borrow an amount in excess of £SO when seeking assistance, was strongly criticised by Air IV. E- Leadley, at last night's meeting of tho District Repatriation Board. Mr Leadley said that a.soldier should be able to borrow money.from the Government without interest other than tho incidental expenses of the loan. The Government, ho claimed, had settled upon the rate of interest without first considering the moral claim which tho soldier had upon the State. The Government hud first considered whether tho loans which they had decided to grant to soldiers would ; he a paying proposition. This attitude Air Leadley' strongly denounced. " Has the Government, ’ he said, “considered what the returned soldier has done to save this country? Does it realise that if tho enemy had been victorious the fate of New Zealand would have been the same as that of Belgium and Rumania P If those soldiers who stood in the barges which bore them to Anznc Bay had first asked ‘ls it going to pay ?’ not a single man would have ever landed.” Yet this was the attitude, he said, of the Government' towards those soldiers who had saved this country. He claimed that by charging 5 per cent interest the Government had tied a mill-stone round the neck of the returned soldier and had left him to wage an unequal contest with tho man who had never been away. Other members, speaking on the same subject, claimed that if the soldier borrowed the full amount of £350 the interest would not bo 5 per cent, as the first £SO was free of interest. Air Hobbs claimed that 4i per cent was tho interest that would ho charged. Air Leadley replied that 2 per cent was the maximum price that should he imposed, just sufficient to pay tho incidental expenses of tho loan. Hundreds of Christchurch citizens have been cured by Dr Fellow’s Pile Cones when every ether known remedy has failed. Price 3s 6d box, from chemists, or direct. Loasby and Co., chemists (opp ? Ballantyne’s), X IVe aim to portray character in our photographs, and wo succeed I See the display in our show cases. Steffano Webb, 252, High Street. X Ladies know them .to have no equal. Martin’s Apiol and Steel Pills. Sold by all Chemists and Stores throughout Australasia. X