LOCAL AND GENERAL

Wanganui Herald, Volume LIII, Issue 160812, 20 November 1920, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

The Government of New South Wale* has announced that if the trawler sea* men refuse to take the trawlers to sea all hands throughout the industry will be paid off. y A Sydney cable states that the Treasurer has announced that the damage caused by the fire at the State timber, yards on Saturday last amounted to .£60,000. One and a half million people passed the open grave of the unknown warrior - in Westminster Abbey. The last were a party of ex-service cripples, who were wheeled in chairs. The grave was to have been filled up last night. We have received a copy of Stone’s Wellington, Hawke’s Bay, and Taranaki Directory for 1920-21, and, as usual, it contains a large volume of useful information. The present edition has been added to and improved, and the work in its present form is a very handy and complete work of reference. The Miners’ Federation of New South Wales has decided, owing to the Victorian Government’s refusal to comply with the award of the tribunal concerning the Victorian brown coalmine, that steps be taken to prevent coal entering Victoria, and that stop-work meeting* b'i held on the 24th to explain the position to the miners. The annual “box opening” in connection with the Queen’s Park branch of the Young Helpers’ League (Dr. Barnardo’s Homes) took place in the school yesterday afternoon. The staff were delighted with the excellent response, the •amount totalling £35 10s. Special mention must be made of the splendid effort of Edwin Bobertson, this youthful collector handing in the very substantial sum of £24> 10s. John McCormack, the singer, has arrived in London. He is still lame a* the result of an accident aboard the Naldera. He refused to discuss his refusal to sing the National Anthem, and stated that he would not be forced to sing it by anyone,! though he had sung it elsewhere, Mr McCormack added: “I was not welcome in Australia, so I came away,” At a meeting of the Dunedin Head- ' masters’ Association last evening the ■following motion was carried:—“ That this association most emphatically protests against the new regulations in so far as they affect the present mala fourth assistants in the large schools, and also against the want of confidence shown in taking away from a headmaster the right of placing his staff where he considers their services will be most beneficial to the school.”

Alfred Stephen Archer, an undertaker, who held a Government contract for military funerals, was charged at Dunedin with obtaining money under false pretences, three separate charges, and was committed for trial at the eil> ting of the Supreme Court in FebruaryThe accused was further charged with obtaining £0 17s 6d from Madeline Esther Martin, and also £lO from Jana Best by means of a false pretence. The Crown Prosecutor explained that the charge arose out of the death of a seaman named Morris from influenza. Accused reserved his defence, and was committed for trial.

The American meat markets dte demoralised for the pastoral regions west of the Missouri river, deprived of adequate financial facilities, are liquidating, and doing it with a vengeance (writes the American correspondent of the Press). The most of the farmers* cattle have been hurriedly sent to the Chicago and other meat-selling centres, and tne result has been that the markets have fallen almost to zero. Values have gone down with a crash, most of the stuff selling far below cost of production. In some instances cattle have sold for as low as 10 dollars each. The sheep market is similarly demoralised, attributed to the heavy importations from New Zealand to New York, and a “narcotised wool 'trade.” A Cnicago review says; “The whole world appears to be full of wool, ensuring lower prices when the market comes to life,”

The question of salaries of teachers was discussed by the Board of Managers of the Seddon Memorial Technical College, Auckland, this week'’. The director, Mr George George, reported that applications have been called in Australia and New Zealand for the position of chief instructor in physics and electrical engineering, but he could not recommend “any of the applicants for appointment. It was decided to inform the Minister for Education and the \ Education Department that, owing to V the inadequacy of the salaries, the \ Board cannot get suitable teachers. On f the subject of the proposed increases to .• Technical School teachers, Mr George ' said the teachers had been dealt with in ah; unfair manner. The average increase proposed was £iQ a year, the highst being J7O and the lowest £3O, This, he said, was not nearly commensurate with the increase in the cost of living. Carpenters and other workers got bonuses, but the Government would not face the music itself. The Board decided to ask the Department to furnish it with a copy of the grading marks on which the salaries are based.

Last week, between 8 p.m. and midnight, the principal streets of Christchurch were patrolled by representatives of the women’s branch of the Social Hygiene Society and the Society for the Protection of Women and Children. The idea was that of assisting young girls and any young women who in the discretion of the patrols needed guidance. All tbs week until midnight the rooms of the Social Hygiene Society have been open, and Cie results of the work accomplished are said to have amply justified the action taken.' The patrols went out in pairs, and the work was voluntary. To a representative jzl the Sun a member- of the stated that three groups of girls between 14 and 16 year, found wandering aimlessly about the streets were persuaded that home was a better place than the streets, and they were accompanied on tho way by the patrols. In another case two young girls were discovered without lodging for the night. Both girls shared tho hospitality of a member of the committee in charge of the patrol work. A young woman with an infant six weeks old was accompanied to the rooms and provided with accommodation. Children between the ages of 10 and 13 were found playing about the railway station at 9 pjm. in another instance, and girls loitering about the station after n p.m. were escorted to their homes after missing the last car to the suburbs. The explained io the reporter that s <me of the girls when first approached adopted a defiant attitude, but the wise counsel given in every case earned tho gratitude of those assisted - \

. The Arbitration Court completed its sitting this morning. It ia to ext at Palmerston North next week. A London cable states that the fund for the testimonial to Mr W, M. Hughes (Federal Premier) has closed with a total of £12,000. . Delay has occurred in connection with the work to be done on the Eubi Seddon at the slip at Wellington, and she will Jtow not be launched till next Tuesday. Jr Advice was received by a local retailer «this morning that another line of soft Igoods had advanced in price in consequence of the recommendation for the payment of the 9s bonus. The intimation referred to came from Petone and was to the effect that all woollen goods Lad been advanced per cent. The compensation case Connell v. Bremner was mentioned at the Arbitration Court this morning when Mr O’Eegan, for the plaintiff applied for an adjournment till next sitting. The application was not opposed by Mr TreadvWell for the defendant and was granted by the Court.

The price of bacon has advanced locally by 2d per lb. Supplies are still very scarce and the position is not expected to improve until early in the year. Hams are still quoted at the same price but it is questionable whether the supply will be equal to the demand for the Christmas trade. Mr Blair Mason who has been appointed consulting engineer to the Harbour Board will arrive in Wanganui on Monday in order to commence bis in-, vestigations for a comprehensive report to the Board on harbour construction matters. Mr Mason is to be asked to report upon any method which he conld suggest with a view to expediting the work. It will be interesting to know that Mr Blair Mason has been appointed to advise the Whakatane Harbour Board in a big scheme for port development, involving nearly a million pounds. The population of the district concerned is about 3000.

There is evidently very substantial ground for Believing that prices in certain lines of commodities will come down with a clatter before many weeks have passed. Local retailers, particularly in groceries, are exercising the greatest caution at the present time &s to how they place their orders, and ijnly essential lines are in request, and fthis no doubt accounts for commercial . / travellers stumping the country from Vpne end to the other and reporting to heads of their firms “that there is very little doing. 55 ’ In conversation with a reporter to-day a retailer stated that the representatives of the firms referred to are trying to make a “welter” o° it on the last lap, and then he: knowingly shook his head. He concluded by stating that the public would notice a considerable difference as soon as the Christmas trade was over. The prospective wheat yield continues to exercise attention among farmers and others. It was stated the other day from. Timaru that semi-official statistics, collected per medium of cards from glowers, indicated an area of 214,000 acres,. as against an actual area of

142,000 acres last season. If was suggested that this area might be increased to 250,000 acres, on account of cards not being sent to a number of farmers. Trade opinion here, however,, is that the official figures will probably be near the mark. The estimate included the area sown and proposed to be sown, and shortly 'after the collecting of the cards the double floods washed out some areas and prevented others being sown. This, it is contended, will fully offset any under-estimate caused hy the non-filling in of cards. It is stated that the area sowji in the lower part of mid and throughout South Canterbury is very satisfactory, but the North Canterbury district area will be lower than expected'.

“There have been very substantial reductions made in me price of boots since September,” said Mr Eobert Hannah to a representative of the' Post recently, “and there will be further reductions made yet; but that will to a certain extent depend upon wages. If they do not advance then bootwear will be cheaper yet.” Mr Hannah has been fifty years in the trade, and he is manufacturer, importer, ajid retailer. “We are daily receiving cable advices from London of reductions in prices of English-made footwear.” Mr Hannah produced cablegrams to that effect. "There has, too,” he went on, “been a fall in Australian prices. We are doing nothing with America because of the adverse rate of excha.nge. The manufacturers in the Commonwealth are most anxious to do business with us, and they are an important factor in our irknpbrt trade. New Zealand cannot yet itnrn out sufficient boots to be independent of importing; and besides certain \| lines are made in Australia, which-are 'Bn good demand in New Zealand, but are not made here. Their prices have been much more favourable than English prices; but the latter are, as I said, coming down. Times in the shoe manufacturing trade at Home are evidently dull. lam advised that in Staffordshire, where hands have not been put, off, factories are working short hours. Stocks everywhere are heavy and must first be disposed of. There is Ho telling where prices will go.” The slump in wool values was the principal subject exercising commercial circles in Christchurch on Tuesday. The drop was so heavy that it caused some apprehension as to the effect generally in commercial and financial circles, but a calm survey of the sale rather tones down the ugliness of the figures. As a sale it cannot be claimed that it reflected actual values at the present time. There were enough buyers present to assimilate five times the catalogue with little concern, but their policy was obviously one of “waiting,” with the probability that, had any particular buyer operated freely, he would have had competition to contend with. As a matter of fact, brokers sold quite an amount of the passed-ip catalogue at IJd to 2d per lb more than the price bid at auction, most of the sales being to local buyers, but occasional lots to outside representatives. It might do a coincidence, but, nevertheless, it is a fact remembered by all in the trade that, just as the opening sales of the season commence, the most gloomy ao l counts of the prospective market comes from the Old Country. It need not be suggested that there is any “bearing” influence pt work, but the effect has been rather to repress competition. However, the fact that sales have taken place 15 to 20 per cent, in advance of the auction offers would seem to suggest that Monday’s prices about touched bedrock. It is known that several of the very full bench of buyers possess large purchasing powers, and it is believed that, get into touch ■with their principals as to the position herb, their limits will be advanced sufficiently to allow them v to abandon their “sit tight” attitude, particularly in reStud to the better grades of wool.— -—atimes.