LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Wanganui Chronicle, Issue 12889, 16 July 1913, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Arbour Day will be oberved to-day •hv the schools within the Wanganui Education Beard's district.

A final reminder is given that the Kaitoke cltinte takes place to-night. A brake will leave the post office at 7.15.

A concert in aid of the piano fund will be given at the Moston school on Friday, the 18th inst. A drag will leave the post office at 7.25 p.m.

During the month of June .34 building permits, representing a value of £21,797/ were issued by the Borough Comici1. Eleven drainage connections snd 16 water connections were made for the ner.iod.

The Borough Council sued a number of ratepayers at the Court yesterday morning for water rates, gas rates, and rt'thei dues. Judgment for plaintiff was given in many of the cases, while others were adjourned.

TJie Borough Engineer, in his monthly report to the Borough Council la.st night remarked that it -was of interest to note that the rainfall at the hoadworks of the town water supply for the month of June was only 2.3S inches, the lowoat on record. The supply, however, he adds, continues satisfactory, the dam having bteen reported <as -overflowing throughout the month.

We wish Lo draw;., special ■ attention to-the meeting to-night at tbe old Council Chambers at Wanganui East, of nil friends and sympathisers with the Boy Scouts. T.hev are in a little difficulty, and we should be sorry to know they wore disbanded and their little bit of gear sold. Good work has been done among .the boys and is still being done, but the Wanganui East troop will receiv? its quietus if it cannot foot tho bill for £10 before, .the week is over. Already two or three friends have kindly promised-a. donation towards clearing: the debt. Any; f ur,th.er assistance will be gratefully acknowledged by either Major McNiaught, or the R«v. D. Gal-cle-r.

Dr Valintine, chief health officer, gives public notice prohibiting Maoris or halfcaste Maoris to be brought by means of the railway from any place situated with the Auckland, Wellington, nr Hawke's Bay health districts to" any plaeo in New Zealand unless such nat.ve produce a certificate from " a public vaccinator permitting them to gravel. A further notice is published any person or company in the North Island carrying passengers tor Jure in any public conveyance by land or sea to allow any Maori or halfcaste to travel upon such conveyancewithout a certificate. A penalty of ;" is provided for in case of disobedience of the order. All Maoris are prohibited from leaving their places of icsidenco without a certificate showing that they have been successfully vaccinated.

Reporting on the Westmere reservoir to the Borough Council last night, the engineer (Mr N. C. Stavcley) stated that the walls of the first section are now completed except for openings left to facilitate working, and the roof columns -are- in course of erection. Four hundred yards of concrete were deposited during the month. It has' been found necessary to wash very thoroughly most of the gravel on the ground, ami the consequent loss was considerable. The staff has been reduced somewhat, and now numbers 30. I have reostimated th« cost of completing tho reservoir, and in view of the loss of gravel referred to above, and for other reasons, I find that the actual cost of the work will amount to £5400. Ten per cent, added for contingencies makes the amount £59-10. There should also be .provided,,in .thi s loan the cost of the Venttin meter authorised by tho Council say £3(50. making the amount of the loan £6300. I shall be glad to receive instructions :ns to prir-ooriinrrs with the second section, as if it is to !->" delavod until the loan is authorised the staff must be further reduced.

Dr. Grogg, one of the public vaccinotors appointed for "W'ansra^"' by +>>o "üblic Health Department, had a busy iimo yesterday, having vaccinated 90 .jo.rsrms. Ho commenced at 6 a.m., and among those treated were a number of cnildren attended by their mothers the m<m omrJloyrd " O ii- Messrs H;iii''i,i-k and Co.'s boats, Messrs H. 1 Jonps i«nd Son's and A. D. Wills' staffs, and a couple of pohecmen. Drunks and other oHendors of the l.an- are rem." -,\,>,\ + n nse the police carefully, for their arms w! feel sore for several days. A sUrt will bo made by Drs. Gregg- and Wall nt tho. Land Office at 10 30 a.m to duy with, vaccinating: all the natives • n 11« town. Dr T. W. McKenzib. of Wellington, arrived in Wanganui bv'tho ma,il train yesterday afternoon, and hp and the-local health inspector spent a busy time r-xaminin? and vaccinating iho. natives who reside along the riVo* bank. Over thirty wene vaocinafd I v p. good number of the natives various forms of skin disease were observed, though no traces of the enMo-Tnie were detected. The district health insnector. Mr Pargeter, waited on the Proiough Council last night and asked that assistance be given him in con^ nection with1 the epidemic. Ho y.aid that ho was Gainer up the river to-<ln-v. ami .ti.sknd that the Boi-ongh Oonncil's in.>iv>otoT of nuisances, Mr Ocrilvie. I>p fMitlmrisvod to help him with tno work. Iho ic-qticst was granted nn<\ the, borou2ii engineer was instructed to make arrangements.

The latest addition to the telephone exchange is No. 937,; Messrs Gum and. Wilson, general furnishers, Duncan fet., Wanganui East. Marton Borough Council has agreed to support Te Awamiitu Council s ; proposition a-e protecting level-.railway.

crossings. At about 1.45 p.m. yesterday a chimney in C. L. Duigan and Co.'s ofhees in RioVway St. was discovered to be on fire,"and an alarm v^ given. "There was little damage done. Mr vT R- Scott, secretary of tug South Island Dairying Association, .intimates that he has received orders from a West of England firm to buy two hundred tons of cheese, tho October to April output inclusive, at sixpence per pound fo.b. and that three other firms are already offering the same price to several factories. In reply to a cablegram sent Home, Mr Scott has received advice that the market is firm with, an upward tendency. Canadian supplies are short and likely to be so until tho end of the season.

The' Borough Council has decided to j supply the new His Majesty's Theatre with 'electric power for lighting and lift purposes. When this was brought up at the Council meeting last evening,' C'r. Harkness "considered that if the new theatre was supplied they -would probably have to meet demands from other theatres and also from private houses, etc. The Tramways Engineer and Manager (Mr F. P. Talboys) stated that they liad a spare lamount of power that they could use for such pur- j poses, and the discussion dropped. Following her eulogistic references at the social on Friday evening last to the services rendered to the community by Messrs George- Hutchison and Gillx>rb Carson, Mrs D. G. Poison (not Mrs W. Pokor) strongly urged the members of the Wnnganui .Women's Branch of the New Zealand Political Reform League to exert all the influence in their power to exalt the standard of public life. It schould be their aim, she said, in accordance Avith the principles of tlieii party, to seek to .promote the best interests of every section of the community. With «»• ...view to preventing a recurrence of the denailing of tramcars at the. Guyton St. crossing, the Borough Council last night adopted the following report made by the tramway manager : "At. present lam having the install lowered to (about 2inch ilkwer than the raits, and thia will tp a great extent minimise the danger of loose grave! getting on the line. In my opinion it would be an everlasting expense to asphalt the approaches, as this portion of the lino is put down ou madeup ground, and it necessarily follows thai/, the line will have to be packed up occasionally. I would suggest that the Council asphalt the footpaths across the lines at both approaches. It is my intention to havo these points fenced' off and cattle-stons nut in." Some complaint has been made of the danger of the,ropeway between tbecoal 'wharfii.and.th6 gas.works-iiot being'.bridgY ed,''aiid'''sqme^time.;--a'go;:th©--'JRail^ay._..l)e7 p'ai'tment. sent, an requests ihg.the Borough Council to bridge tho spans. The matter was .refer red *t<y the gas works manager- to '■.'. confer with, the district engineer.. Ih . a report .to the Council last night, Mr Stone said :— "Thorn is no doubt tliat if the spans are bridged over it would be much safer for the railway men working under the ropeway while coal is be.me; discharged from the wharf. I would recommend that the railway people be requested to carry out the work, they having all the tool.; and apparatus for preparing the material and should be «blo to do tbe work more cheaply than we could do it. Moreover, the spans are over the railway premises where the engines are continually passing." The Borough Council has experienced considerable trouble with the wire hawser Tiscd for hauling coal over the' ropekvay from the coial wharf to tho gas works. About a couplo of months ago the conveying gear was nut. out of operation by the breaking of the rope while the- Ihumata was being = unloaded-, and at last night's meeting of the Council the fer& works miarbager reported as follows: "I regret having tx> report that the new carrying rope recently put up on the ropeway is showing very serious signs of wear. I would ask your permission to at once cable to our Homo agent instructing him to procure a suitable rope and forward the same as early as possible. The second rope giving out so quickly is disappointing, and 1 hope we shall get something that will give more satisfaction. We have to rely on the present method of delivering our coal into coal stores. Our consumption having increased so much and tho cargoes being so large, it would bo practically impossible to deliver a cai*go over a few hundred tons into the coal stores with carts.''