GENERAL NEWS.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XXIX, Issue XXV, 20 December 1902, Page 1578

GENERAL NEWS.

Mr K. H. J. Beeves has received intimation of bis re-appoiutiueiit to the Legislative Council. Mr George Jones has received intimation that His Excellency the Governor has been advised to re-appoint bim to the Legislative Council.

The Northern Rolling Milling Company, Limited, of Auckland, have advanced the price of flour 15/ per ton.

In consequence of the increased cost of the necessaries of life board-inghouse-keepers and restaurant proprietors in Wellington are raising the tariff. One establishment of thirteen boarders vacated their quarters as a protest against higher charges.

The Wellington Trades Council has decided to wait on the Minister for Health to urge the necessity of amending the Health Act in the direction of compensating men compelled to abstain front work through the existence of infectious diseases in their households; also to have the Act amended to compel the leeal bodies to ereet suitable hospitals for infectious diseases.

It is the intention of His Excellency "the Governor to visit the Cook Islands shortly. A warship will be placed at bis disposal for that purpose. At Lord Raufur’y's request the Commissioner of Trade and Customs (tiie Hon. C. 11. Mills) will accompany him .to the group, where the Minister will seize the opportunity of ascertaining the wants of the islanders ami their wishes in respect to trade relations with New Zealand.

At the Dunedin Benevoient Trustees’ meeting last w eek attention was drawn to the number of Chinese on the books and in the weekly lists, there being no less than six this week. It was suggested that as the Government had received £lOO poll tax application should be made to have them sent baek to their own country. It was decided to approach the Chinese Society to see if it would contribute one-third of the cost of sending home twenty Chinese in the institution.

The Dunedin Education Board are at loggerheads with the City Health Officer. They characterise as arbitrary his request that selvclars absent should only return to school on production of a certificate that tiveir absence was not due to an infectious cause. The board declined'to be eoereed into taking measures which they considered beyond the power of the officer. To his threat that he will apply to the Governor the board state that they will assist him in this request with interest.

Mr Keith Imeas. the young English scientist who was lately up in the Auckland district, sounding and dredging the Lakes, has for the past two months been prosecuting his re. searches in the cold lakes district of Otago, and has sueeeded in fixing the greatest depths of Wakatjjju and Mauapouri. It was always claimed fur the former lake that it was the deeper, but this turns Put to be wrong, its depth toeing 1242 feet, aS against Manapotiri’s 145 M. This sounding was obtained ia the middle arm. Some very good takes of trout have, been taken at Atiamuri and Galatea lately; nearly all the list were three and four-pounders. At Wajotapu, the fish take the bait readily; this may be due to the scarcity of natural food. There is • large party of anglers at Okere Falls (near I-ake Rotoiti), and some heavy fish have been taken. At Atiamuri (Waikato River), Mr A. Morton, tm enthusiastic angler, caught four good trout, one <rf twelve and one of nino pounds.

Lieutenant Kirkham, of the City Rifles, sustained iujurieis ia the St. Clair baths on Saturday, whieli on Sunday proved fatal Ko. 1 battalion is in camp on Forbury Hill, and Lieut. Kirkham and other officers went for a swim in the baths. He took a dive, and as he did not rise others dragged him ashore, when it was found he had sustained serious injury to the skull, either by striking the bottom or a ledge of roek. He was removed to the hospital, where he is at the time of telegraphing unconscious, with little hope for his recovery. Lieutenant Kirkham is a son of an Anglican clergyman, who was some years ago stationed at Roslyn, but he is not known to have relatives in the colonies now.

One of the few recorded eruptions in ancient times at Rotorua, in Maori tradition, is one that occurred at Ruapeka Bay, Ohiuemutu, nine or ten generations ago. This eruption caused subsidence at Muruika, the little peninsula where the Maori church stands, A number of natives were killed by the falling stones and mud. These people were killed outside of the pa. near Taumataherea, and not one of the occupants of the pa was injured. This is accounted for by the Maoris by the fact that it was through some powerful karakia or incantation made by a tohni>ga, who was a descendant of the celebrated Ngatoroirangi. the priest who came from Hawaiiki in ti»e Arawa canoe.

It is rumoured in connection with the recount of the Hawera election that the deputy-returning officers k; charge of at least two booth i committed serious errors in dealing with ballot-papers. At Otakeho, it is said, the wrong corners of the papers were turned down, leaving the voters’ numbers exposed, and this led to the whole of the votes (13« in all) being disallowed. At Okaiawa, it is alleged that a deputy-returning officer dH. not put his stamp on the corner turned down, but imprinted it in the centre of the paper. The blunders do not affeet the result of the election. The Otakeho mistake took Mr McGuire’s majority of 1G at that booth away, and increased Mr Major’s majority on the total by that many.

The Athenic struck on a shoal when leaving Wellington on Thursday, and floated off six hours later. A remarkable, though officially correet, statement is made that the place where the Athenic touched has not been surveyed since 1849. In the great earthquake in 1855 the harbour shoaled to the extent of nearly five feet, and it is believed that submarine disturbances since that period are responsible for the formation of sand banks. This is the first instance on record of a big steamer grounding on the eastern side of the entrance to the harbour, though some years ago the Arawa and a Tyser steamer took the ground on the western side, near the Steeple Rock, remaining fast for five minutes only, and subsequentlybacking off without sustaining any injury. Divers are now examining the Athenic's bottom. So far they have discovered nothing wrong.

His Excellency the Governor invites offers of sites suitable for the proposed Veterans’ Home, within

easy of Auckland, preferences be given U» a fiUr with good coffin niuriieation with the electric trsn service. His Enecileucy intimate* that it is desirable that the site chosen should toe in ■ healthy locality and freehold, and invites thus# having sites for disposal to send terms and dull particulars to Colonel Davies, at the Auckland Brigade Office. The committee are now prepared to build, and unless some satisfactory site is available adjacent to Auckland they will have to look elsewhere. « . the , re l ueMt of the PrUeess of Wales the committee of the Officers’ fund has given a sum amounting to rather more than £35« to the proposed Veterans' Home. This sum is the unused balance of the amount sent by New Zealand at the commencement of the Boer war. THE PRICE OF BREAD. The present scarcity of wheat is greatly troubling the master bakers as well as the consumers. On Thursday the Wellington master bakers held a special meeting to consider the matter, when it was proposed that the price of the 21b loaf should be increased from 3jd to 4d. The general tone of the debate was in favour of the proposal. One baker in a large way of business objected to the suggestion, urging that the time was not opportune. As it was deemed advisable that there should be unanimity of action it was decided to postpone further consideration of the matter for a month. The bakers declare that previous to this latest rise in flour they were losing money on the present price of bread, and that now they must raise the price. Had they known at their meeting last night that another £1 had been added to the price of flour they would most certainly have decided on the increase.