LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXVI, Issue 17569, 13 May 1919, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The Plunket Nurse will be.at the room kindly lent by^ Mrs. Fox, Castl-e----cli , this afternoon (Tuesday) at 2.15.

In connection with the Anzac Day celebrations at Westport, trouble has apparently occurred over the conduct of certain returned men on parade. According to ndvices received in Ohristehurch. the executive of the Westport Association, in consequence, resigned as a protest.

Tt km Hated on goo dauthority in Wellington on Thursday that the Japanese Tn-ininsr Snuadron will : not visit New Zealand. The Squadron,-which »fooently It ft Fremantle for Colombo, was expected to nrrivein New Zealand in June, but the visit has since been cancelled, v

Tho linion. Company advises that a new cargo stf araer of 5050 tons has been purchased by it in ■England. The name of the vessel is not given, but it is stated, that she belongs to the Standard Line. She will leave EMfnnd thi« month ond will b» engaged in the interrolonin* tv?id<\ Her first port of coil in the Dominion has not been fixed yet.

Mr Basil Worsfold is publishing a s>ook, through Mr Murray,' which xs of immediate concern to these days oF unrest. It is entitled "The War and Social Reform/ and is a courageous endeavour to trace the influence of the war as a reforming agency; with a special reference to matters primarily affecting the wage-earnmg classes.

A private letter received in Wanganui yesterday confirmed the statement that' the Harbour Board's dredge 'Kaione" sailed from England for Wanganui on March 27th, not March 13th as formerly stated. The dredge has a crew of 26 on board. A local shipping authority expressed the opinion last night that the Kaione should now be about the Red Sea, but some definite information in regard io her progress would be acceptable.

"The worst feature of this great home-service army is that it hardly knows the returned soldier. It hasn't fought with him (remarks "John Bealand" in an open letter to General Richardson in "Quick March"). It knows only the man who stayed at home. It neither knows or trusts the poor old Digger, and so when a job or promotion is going begging, the faithful man who stayed at home is remembered and the man with the service chevrons is forgotten."

4l consider that the great troubles of the day—the great labour troubles — arise from two things: One is the inability of * man to think independently, to think for himself, m> that he is led h-j the nose by any demagogue who las a fluent tongue;; and, also, the crowing desire for pleasure or the wrong kind. We want to do -nothing nowadays but that which will give an money to go to the pictures or the comic opera, enable us to wear fur coats and silk -stockings, or do something that is reafly not a very higi" ftim after all. We are in danger of cultivating the very spirit that has ruined Germany, and we must watch against it by training our children to jiim at higher idea's. That is what 1 lope to do with them here. '— Miss N. Johnson, principal of the Queen Margaret. .Presbyterian College for Girls, speaking at the opening of the College at Wellington last Thursday.

The Returned Soldiers' Assooiation Dominion Conference will be held at Chribtrhurcb, commencing on May 26th, and will last for about a week. D^le^vites frdm all +<he branches of the Association in New- Zealand are expected to bo present. The proposal that the returned soldiers should form a political party will be among the matters di.scns.sed. Remits from the WanQianui Association are as under: That the time has now arrived v. hen the N.Z. K.S.A. should declare for direct political action, and that any alteration necessary for that purpose to the constitution of the Association be made c'ccordinp!y; that the Association sup-, port* the proposal that the R.S.A. should be entitled to two more representatives on the Repatriation Committees; that this Association asks that legislation ha passed to jrive wider powers' to disburse the various funds now in the hands of the various patriotic bodies, so that they may be made available for the assistance of fit men ;is well a.q sick and wounded; that Hie Association direct the attention of the i Government to the delay that arises in | dealing ■with applications for loans for 1 r.Tircha«t» of houses and land, pointing out that the necessity of obtaining n three months' option frequently lends to the lapse of a. possible advantageous deal, and that the Government be askod to talre stops to remwly this serious, defect, in tho administration of the Land Department.

The following men who returned ay the Xiii Orti. arrived yesterday, and vere officially welcomed*: 232503 Rflm. G. Bailey (M.M.), (Mrs K. Bailey, "Wanganui), 2/1205 Gnr. A. Calder (3. CaJder, Wangnnui), 23/147 N Corpl. vi. C. Sprigner (Airs L. Springer, ' 6 Jveitii Street, Waugruiui).

A remit to be discussed at the Welington provincial confercnce^of the Farmers' Union is as follows :— "That the New Zealand Farmers' Union as represented by this provin* cial conference cordially approves of the Labour Party's suggestion of. a round table conference to consider labour conditions, and is prepared tc send delegates to such a conference." Rice, which has hitherto figured prominently in the housewife's list of useful if not essential articles of diet, is likely to become less familiar on the bill-of-fare, for merchants have been' advised of i; world shortage of this cereal (states an exchange). The shortage is caused by the Governments of the big rice-growing countries forbidding its export, the whole of the output being required1 for home consumption. This will naturally have the effect at raising tho price of other commodities, Such as starch.

"The Willing Helpers" during the last few years have assisted various patriotic and local efforts. They haf<9 occasionally held social gathering!, mostly at. the home of Mr James ComrFe, Bell Street. Last Saturday evening' another reunion was held there, the object of which was to assist ft very deserving case,—the Stevens' 'family, of Springvale, whose breadwinner is lying in the loea.l hospital, par*. lysed. The circumstances of this cv»; have already been reported in oiir columns, and are still fresh in ' the minds of many of our readers. Wa lelieve that effortg are being made to assist the family into a position ljeyond the reach of want.

Some advice to orcliaidisits is given, l,y the Wellington district fruit inspector in his report for last month to the department. He tays:—"The apples now coining forward show $ marked im» 4 l»rovement on the earlier varieties, otilv :i few small lines being condemned. Some growers still persist in forwarding fruit in a mixed condition, resisting in the whole lino being condemn|W^ whereas, with a little care and attention ! on fcheijr part, such lines may he ■ passed. A£any lines now'.submifcte-l have, however, *bec«i kept' too long Ivy the orbhardist and show signs o".' withering. Pears, in many instances, exhibit the same mistake, and overripeness at the tirffe of marketing niust> be realised by the consignors."

One of the most interesting aspects ct the'shipping trad.? has been the increased number of Bailing vessels arriving in the Dominion from the West Coast of the. United States of America, bringing cargoes of case' oil and quantities of general cargo, says the annual report of tho Wellington Chamber of Commerce. "Some of these, vessels have made extremely smart trips, and have shown that the day iyf the sailing vessel is by no means over. The present position regarding this class of shipping is the difficulty in ob;----taining back loading to the United States of America, particularly in view of the falling off in the demand for; 1-emp. During the past three'months some vessels have left New Zealand \tortn with part cargo only at low rates ol freight, and, in other cases, in ballast, return cargoes being unobtainable.