LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Wanganui Herald, Volume LIII, Issue 16023, 24 February 1920, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The petition against the return of Robert Masters as mom her of Parliament for Stratton! has been fixed Tor charing at Stratford at in.lt) a.ui. on loth March.

It is notified in last night's Gazette that the Government, guarantees iliO shippers a net return of Id. per lb. on all fresh fruit exported from New Zealand during the present seat-on.

The Government has reason to believe that presently immigrants of desirable classes will bo reaching Now 1 Zealand at tho rate of not fewer than--1000 ]>or month.

As an example of the manner issf which the Americans have got to the windward of us In trade, the, Dunedin £tar points out that the average six* scatcr motor car, such as is usually imported into the Dominion, is cosiihg on. an average £loi 'more than usual, owing to the increase in exchange. A peculiar position has arisen in con' nect-ion with the wool supplies to N'evr Zealand woollen mills (says the Christchurch “Star”). Notice has been sent out to tho companies concerned that they will not be permitted to have any excess of wool over their average consumption for the last few years, except on the direct certificate of tho Government.

A correspondent of a ’Wellington paper, writing upon the proposed increase in the charge of haircutting, suggests that people should let their hair grow. He says; How picturesque we would all look with locks flowing gracefully over collars and down our backs, and how blank the hairdressers* would look. For the matter of that let our beards grow also, and thon-w«' can dispcnce with ties. A representative, meeting at N'gatea, In the centre of the Hauraki Plains, last week unanimously decided for Mr, Blair Mason’s scheme for a deep water harbour. The district scheme has now received the strongest support from Thames to Matamata, and an empower ing Bill will be presented at next session of Parliament. The scheme will place Thames on a footing with Timam and New Plymouth us a port.

Tbe Glasgow Bulletin, under tint heading ‘ ‘A Fortunate Misfortune” says (writes our Loudon correspondents “Mr P. M. MTvay. a New Zealand Scot, had the misfortune to Jose one of his hands while engaged as a carpenter and builder. With grit, he set about repairing Cue damage and with such success that the Govern ment of New Zealand adopted his artificial arm. Since he brought his clever invention to this country it has been taken up by tho Ministry of Pensions.

Just prior to the departure. of iim Manuka from Wellington lor Svdncy on Thursday last Plainclothes Constable Trieklebank arrested a man » named Alexander Gordon babian on a charge of failing to provide lor ino maintenance of his wife at Napier habian was accompanied by his three children when arrested at the He was brought belore Mr W. G.-but-del. S.M.. at the Magistrate’s Court and was, on the application of ChiclDetective Ward, remanded to appear at Napier on 24th insl.

A speaker at the meeting of dairy farmers in Levin recently, slated that it. was anticipated by the authorities at Home that butter would reach unheard of prices next season, and as much as 6s per lh had been mentioned. Personally, the speaker said he did not anticipate that figure being reached. bull it had to be (remembered that tlicro were many Millions of people in kairope who had to he fed in countries where production had been reduced to minimum owing' to the war. Their reqwiiemculs had to be met, hence the call on the resources of all producing countries at the present time.

The effects of the coal situation arc very noticeable in Westport, where a state of inactivity prevails. 'Hie Westport Times, commenting upon the state of affairs, says; At ten o’clock the other morning'there was a good tide, briliant weather, and not a steamer in sight. Tho wharves looked spie and span, rcadv to receive. H) or 12 5000ton steamers. A well-equipped railway system was at- hand to deal with iOOO tons of coal a day. Ihe district abounds in coal- they make roads with it at Charleston, in the Haller Gorge one can obtain a. sack of coal for the mere asking. The Westport Coal Company and the Stockton Company could supply almost, the whole of the Dominion s needs in coni.” But somebody won’t work—there is something radically wrong when such a. tine coal port a# this is idle.

When a student enters a teachers’ training college the nearest relative has to enter into a. bond that, after leaving the college, the student will remain in "the leaching service for a period of years. In the case of ■women 1 ,iC period is three years, and of men live, years. The Auckland Education Board, recently announced that marriage of a. woman teacher was a ground tor waiving the conditions of the bond, but it appears that this is not the ease. At. Wednesday’s meeting of the Wellington Education' Board a letter was received from the Assistant-Director of Education stating that the _ Department had found it necessary to inform the A next land Board that its action was Quito illegal, and that the Department coulrt not recognise any such exemption. order to counteract the wrong impresp sion which might be held by a nuinbef of Training College students and them guarantors, as the result °fthe- pu > ieation of the Auckland Board s decision, it would be necessary for each ideation Board to inform students and them guarantors that marriage on the part, of a student would not be m'ogmsod as a ground for exemptmn rom obligations of the bond. be pointed out that thcDepartmemt • decision does not prevent students from being rnarned added the letter, “but, that it holds the guar antor liable for the refund of nmneys which have been paid by the Govern ment and for which the student m not returning to the State in teaching sexvice the stipulated equivalent.

RabbitskLns arc rabbitekins now-a-liajs. At the sale in Dunedin last week, prime winter doeskins fetched np to 21a Id per lb, and buckskins ap to 15s per o. It lakes only about sis skins to make a pound. Business premises as well as dwellings arc snort in Wanganui. A witness in a case tbe Magistrate’s Court A-'this morning complained that he had made numerous attempts to preraises, but had failed to do so. ® rm Joses A; 10 per week throagh pidering and bad fruit daring the sea-•'on-i stated an auctioneer, in evidence at tee Auckland Supreme Court recently. Mr Reed, K.C., remarked that was one of tne things the public did not realise. An Extraordinary Gazette proclaims January 10th of this year as the date ot the termination of the war with Germany, and directs that for the purposes of all Acts passed since August, J9i4, and referring to the termination of the war, it shall be deemed to have ended on the date named.—P.A. Mir B. 0 Neill, secretary of the N.Z. Amateur Swimming Association, received a cable from Mr Hill, secretary of the Australian Swimming Union, to the effect that the New Zealand tour of Norman Itess, the American champion swimmer, has been abandoned, the shipping position making it impossible. Dr Zoebel, of Te Kuiti, whose art collection is well known in the district, claims to have discovered a Holbein amongst his pictures. The picture recently fell from the wall, and a break in the frame revealed an old piece of paper with the name Holbein written on it. The picture was bought in London five years ago, and bears a close resemblance io the work of the great artist. A Christchurch Press Association message states that Professor Macmillan Brown has donated £IOOO to the Canterbury Board of Governors for the establishment of a bursary or bursaries m connection with Hra Women Students’ Hostel gift. It is donated by Professor Brown as a memorial to bis late wife, and will lie known a« the Helen Macmillan Brown Bursaries. The fact that ten men arc living under normal conditions in a room 12 x 16 x 6—eating and sleeping in the same compartment—has been noted by the health inspector representing the interests of local watersiders (Mr W. J. Rogers) while visiting ships in port. Mr Rogers says that the sanitary conditions on the coastal boats have improved, and the men's quarters generally are clean and sanitary. A train from Glenbope yesterday collided with a hawker's caravan on the tonibimd railway bridge over the Motucka liver at Tapawera. Tho driver of the caravan, named Waterhouse. a returned soldier, jumped off tad saved himself by clinging to tho Vide of the bridge. One horse was filled and the other injured. The Hravan was wrecked and carried a •considerable distance by tho locomotive.— P.A. A railway shunter named A. E. Bosley was the victim of an accident which resulted fatally at Marton Junction last, evening. He was attempting to couple two trucks when ho was knocked down, sustaining two fractures of the right leg. while his left leg was badly lacerated. The injured man was motored through to the Wanganui Hospital, where he died this morning. Mr Easley, who was A 5 years of age, was a returned soldier, telonging to the Hawera district.

At the Palmerston North Supreme Court, C. W. Dale, employed at the Lake Mou-e. Waikaremoana, sued John Gillespie. Palmerston North, for f £IOOO damages for alleged libel, contained in a letter to the Minister of the Tourist and Health Departments, complaining of the loss of a rug, implicating Dale. The jury returned a / verdict for plaintiff and assessed the damages at £27-5. Counsel for the defendant opposed the entering of judgment on a point of law to be considered on Tuesday. —.A. An escape from the local prison was reported this morning, one of the inmates, Oscar Strangebye, succeeding in eluding observation and scaling the wall. A vigorous search is being prosecuted by the police. The escapee was under remand on a charge of breaking and entering and theft at Wanganui. He was arrested at Auckland some time ago on similar charges and was there sentenced to two years 1 imprisonment and was declared an habitual criminal. From Auckland he was sent on to Wanganui to stand bis trial for the above offence. In reply to representations made by the Taihape Returned Soldiers’ Association regarding a released German internee starting business at ALangaweka in opposition to a returned soldier, the following letter has been received by the secretary of tie Association from the Minister of Internal Affairs: “I am in receipt of you! letter of the 6th instant, regarding released German internees. Germans interned were, not neces-

sarilv dangerous in times of peace. It would not be practicable to deport- all such Germans, many of whom are married to English women; nor would it be consistent with the terms of peace with Germany that the Government should prevent the Germans who remain from carrying on trade.” When the s.s. Maheno was being cleared for departure from the wharf on Friday afternoon (says the Auckland Sum Detective Gourley had his suspicions aroused by the bulkiness of the luncheon-bags of some watersider-s who had been engaged loading thr ship. He invited a couple of the men to show him the contents of their bags and the inspection led to a discovery that led the detective to suspect that ship’s scores were being taken home. In each of two of the bags inspected was ten pounds of grapes, while in another were four sheep’s tongues, an ox tongue and 2lb. ox cheek, presumably taken from the fresh stores that had just been put on the Maheno. As a consequence three men came before Mr J. E. Wilson, S.M., on Saturday morning on charges of the theft of ship’s stores, and were remanded til! Friday, bail being allowed in each case in one surety of £56. The following are the texts of the letters received by the Mayor from Marshal Foch and General Birdwood; From Marshal Foch: “You have been good enough to forward me a copy or the address voted by the Municipal Council of Wanganui. I appreciate tie sentiment which has dictated its terms, and express to you and your colleagues mv sincere thanks. Please accept the assurance of my highest consideration.” From General Birdwood: ‘T have just received the illuminated copy of the resolution in whicn the citizens of I\ anganni expressed their gratitude to the soldiers and sailors of tfae Allied Forces for their services during the Great War, and write to thank you for your kind thoughts in sending me this. I am sure vour spontaneous expression of appreciation will be greatly valued by the troops concerned, especially the members of the New Zealand Forces, my close association with whom I shall al-l-wavs regard as a very great honour.”

A London cable states hhat tho Uni- , versi ty monopoly of administrative posts > ia disappearing from British industries. c William Stanley Miller, who estab- ’ listed the new Pi'cton-Bhiff motor record, was fined £lO and costs at the Dunedin Police Court yesterday for driving at a ; / dangerous speed. According to a news- ; paper account, produced by the police, [ the defendant was averaging a speed of • forty miles per hour.—Press Association. Two prominent specialists in tropical i diseases, sent out from London by the - London Society of Tropical Diseases, ) have arrived at Apia, reports the Samoa - j Times. The two doctors, Dr. O’Connor 3 j and Dr. Ridsdale, who are accompanied ; I by two assistants, will make their headj quarters at Funafuti for the next two | years. From Funafuti they will visit ' other parte of the South Seas. A daring jewellery theft occurred yes- . terday in a Queen. Street, Auckland, , jeweller’s shop. A well-dressed Maori i entered a shop and asked to see certain i articles. Subsequently the jeweller missed a gold watch and opal ring. The missing ring was discovered in a pawnbroker's shop, together with an opal necklace valued at £65, the loss <>f , which had not been reported. The police have arrested a Maori who is alleged to be tie offender .—P.A. At the Taranaki Rifle Association meeting on Saturday, the championship belt was won by D. Roots, of Hawera, with a score of 306. J. S. Wilson, of ’ Wanganui, was 11th with a score of 272. The teams’ match was won by Ha- . wera with a total of 206. Opaki, with f 200, was second, and Wanganui, 191, 1 third. Owing to the lateness of the hour, this match was reduced to 10 shots at 600 yards. In the Patca match, J. _! Wilson and W. Hudson, of Wanganui, each won £1 with a score of 64. L The secretary of the Garison Band desires to acknowledge the receipt of , £4O 15s 6d from Mr G. DO, hon. seere- . i tary of the Swankers' Club, being nett . proceeds from the concert given in His Majesty’s Theatre last Sunday evening. . The Band wishes to express, their keen , appreciation of the efforts of Mr D’O L and the Swankers’ Club, which resulted . in such a successful result. The Band also tender their heartiest thanks to all those artists who gave such splendid assistance at the concert.

At a meeting of the Wanganui branch of the N.Z. Labour Party, the question arising over the deportation of Moses Baritz was discussed, and the following resolution was carried unanimously; “That this branch, views with alarm the enforcing of the Undesirable Immigrants Exclusion Bill in the instance of Moses Baritz, fearing that under certain adjudicators even trade union organisers would be expelled, and that we call on all trade unionists to carefully guard their rights in this direction.” How to make money without working. A man bought a dairy farm near Palmerston North just one year ago at ,£l4O an acre. He has now sold it (says the Manawatu Times) at £lßo—a £4O per acre increase in a year. Better still, a local speculator bought a Kairanga block one morning last week, and before sundown had sold it at a clear profit of £ 1200. These are not isolated cases, I similar instances occur almost daily. I However, there are still a few people | working for a living—perhaps they prc- | fer it—there's no accounting for tastes. | Says the Lyttelton Times: Experi- ; mc-nts in profit-sharing and co-partner- | ship are not so numerous in .New Ze-a----j land as they might te, and the decision of the shareholders of the Kaiapoi ! Woollen Company in this direction ! should arouse much interest among the workers and employers. The company has taken power to issue employees’ benefit shares, and also to distribute bonuses, in addition to which deposits I will be accepted from the employees' savings with interest at the rate of 7 per cent. This, as the chairman of the company pointed out, should Ire an incentive to thrift, and if the whole scheme should turn out as well as the promoters expect it may point the way towards industrial rest in the country. The small quantity of cement which, arrived here by the Ngatoro at the beginning of this week was eagerly snapped up by anxious purchasers. “We could do with 1200 tous in Wanganui, and that would satisfy the present demand,” remarked a hardware merchant, who is local agent for one of the cement works, to a “Herald” representative this

jiiv/i . oj.-o oarxu uiicio m: iictu leoiiivcu word from his principals to the effect that they hoped prospects would be soon brighter. They had received fair supplies of coal, and with the settlement of the ‘-go-slow” policy, matters should improve. There was, he pointed out,, a scarcity of small coastal vessels engaged in trade along this coast, and this added further difficulties in the way of obtaining supplies. A belief that is ■ widely held is that the high prices which are now current will not continue for very long, and that they will soon return to normal. This belief is not held by business men, and one, speaking to a newspaper representative this referring to his own industry, expressed the opinion that it would Ire many years before there was any decline in prices for building materials. The demand far exceeded the supply, and when materials were procured on tho overseas markets many transport fiifficulties had to be overcome before the goods could !>e landed. It was becoming increasingly hard to procure materials and got them here. The exchange note in America was another great obstacle, sml added greatly to prices of materials from that country. That he cruelly tortured a dog by catcinng it with a fish-hook was the charge proved against an elderly- man named John Harding, who appeared before Air J. E. Wilson, S.M., in the Auckland Police Court on Wednesday last. The evidence was to the effect that Harding set a line of formidablelooking fish-hooks, unbaited, described as medium-sized schnapper hooks, at the foot of his garden in Howe Street, with the result that a terrier pup was caught. He released it by cutting the string, the hook remaining embedded in the animal’s mouth. About four hours later a little girl got a butcher to cut out the hook. Harding stated that' he and his family had suffered for many months past owing to dogs getting under his house and fighting there. Although he put up the hooks he had no intention of torturing any dog. The Magistrate said the accused had done an abominably cruel thing, and imposed a fine of £K) and £1 17s 6d costs.