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New Zealand Graphic, Volume XLV, Issue 21, 23 November 1910, Page 4

Qneea-street "Narrows.'’ When an application came before the Auckland City Council last week from the architect of Messrs Smeeton and Co.’s new premises, in Lower Queen-street, for permission to erect "balconettes” on the building, a report was read from the city engineer objecting to the granting of this right, as the buildings on that part of Queen-street would already be outside the street alignment. Mr. C. J- Parr, who has been away from Auckland, expressed some surprise at this statement, and asked for information. The Mayor (Mr. L. J. Bagnall) said that the Government surveyor (Mr. Langmuir), who made the standard survey, had reported that all the buildings in the lower end of Queen-street, from the Waitemata Hotel corner to above Swan-son-street, were encroaching on the street. At the Waitemata corner the encroachment was some ten feet, and ran out to nothing about the Bank of New Zealand. Mr. Parr asked what was going to be done in the matter? The Mayor said that was their difficulty. They had sent the matter on to the city solicitor, and were hoping he would give them a lead in the matter. The Works Committee was considering the question, which was a most difficult one, but at present he could not say what was the best course to pursue. Instantaneous Death. A young man named George Bolton, 19 years of age, whose parents resided at Waitekauri, was killed at Waikino on Fridav. Bolton was engaged carting metal for Gordon Bros., from a quarry. When going down hill he accidentally slipped off the front of the cart, falling face downwards, one wheel of the eart going over his neck. Dr. Craig, who was called, said death was instantaneous. A Bid for Fame. The member for Auckland Central, Mr. A. E. Glover, is nothing if not original. He is always startling the House with something new and unexpected, and this evening he fairly took the House of Representatives by storm with his latest proposal. The House had been discussing matters associated with nomenclature. Several members objected that on various railway stations the name of the town or hamlet was not conspicuous enough. As a matter of fact to the ordinary train traveller, alleged one member, nearly every small station in New Zealand bore tire name of a certain brand of schnapps. This led to a further discussion upon the question of the naming of towns. At this stage Mr. Glover rose up from a seat he had taken on the front Ministerial benches, and informed the House that he had a boon to ask. Taking the House into his confidence he informed members that near by Auckland city there was a picturesque town which bore an ill-fitting name. He referred to Otahu'bu. Mr. Wilford: ‘‘How do you pronounce it?” Mr. Glover: "Pronunciation is difficult, it is called O-ta-hu-hu,” and the member for Auckland Central mouthed the word syllable by syllable distastefully, "and so before I die,” continued Mr. Glover, "I hope to see the town that is now called Otahuhu emblazoned with the name of Glover. It is the desire of my heart to see that name famous, and so I ask members, in the kindness of their hearts, to agree to change the difficult Otahuhu to the more easily pronounced Glover.” “The Hon. T. Mackenzie was about to speak,” interrupted the Speaker, as though he had not heard Mr. Glover's little outburst, and the Minister called upon thereupon proceeded to talk of other matters. The Wellington “Evening Post” tonight devotes an interesting little leaderette to the representative for Auckland Central. Under the heading “A Glover for an Otahuhu,” it says Mr. A. E. Glover has one outstanding

merit, he has raised larger ereps «* laughter than any other member wh« has sown things, which Americans call “smile-seed.” Mr. Glover does not add pages to the Statute Book, but he flourishes various comic euts of his <ma invention. He is the humorist who floridly pleaded for a change of the capital back to Auckland. He is the one who used pretty rhetoric on behalf of the mottled kauri bedstead on which a royal duke once reposed. He is the genial preacher who declared that unless bookmakers were allowed to practice on the racecourse the butchers, bakers and landlords would suffer. In return for the fun which Mr. Glover furnishes on drab days for a weary and* dreary assembly he desires to have his name immortalised. He wishes to have his name substituted for Otahuhu. If McXab was substituted for Maori music in the south, why not a Glover for an Otahuhu in the north? New Zealand may smile at genial Mr. Glover’s very serious request, but it is said by those who know that no man is more firmly seated in the House. It is stated that no political cordite, dynamite, gelignite, or blasting powder could shift him from Auckland Central. He is not a walking cyclopedia of national politics, but he is credited with marvellous canvassing abilities.” — Angry Chinese. An exciting incident occurred on board the steamer Strathclyde at Lyttelton t-ho other night owing to the Chinese crew resenting the visit of Cuetoms Officers to their quarters. When the officers went into the erew’s quarters, one Chinaman was in bunk, and had an opium smoking pipe and a tray on which was a small quantity of the drug beside him. The pipe and tray were seized by one of the Customs officers, who took therm to the chief officer's room, where they were locked up. Meantime, the Chinese had got worked up into a very excited condition, and matters looked very ugly for one of the Customs officers, who was surrounded by a jabbering and gesticulating mob. He deemed it wise to beat a hasty retreat, and one of the Chinese' who attempted to bar him received a Wow from the officer’s fist which sent him staggering. The officer then rushed out of the forecastle and gained the bridge, deck, pursued by the whole crowd of Chinese, who seized lumps of coal and started to pelt both the Customs men. One was struck on the back by a large piece of coal, and the other "fell into a net under the gangway. Both officers eventually regained the wharf. A Big Work in Progress* Although it is only a very few months since the Waihi Goldmining Company commenced the construction of the big hydro-electric works at Hora Hora, still great progress has been made, especially with the excavation work necessary for the enormous intake canaL In this work a channel at least 30ft. deep, nearly a hundred feet wide, and about ten chains long has been made, but the canal has yet to be deepened another 20ft. at one end, and a ent five chains long and fifty feet deep made at its head. About ninety men are now! employed on the work, and numbers more are wanted. The intake canal completely cuts offl the M aotu-road, so the Company have deviated the road, and have built a new bridge 85ft. long over the Pokaewhenua stream. The building of the approaches to the bridge and the formation works on the deviation of the road have just been completed, and the road opened for traffic. The construction of the works also necessitates the building of another bridge over the Waikato River in place of the one that now spans the narrow channel in which the river runs at the lower end of the rapids. The settlers who use the present bridge are taking advantage of the situation, and are moving to get the Government to subsidise the re-erection of the bridge at’ a more convenient site three miles lower down. The Waihi Company is willing to subsidise the cost of the bridge, for it will save them building at the rapids, and the settlers have already arranged for a loan to meet the demand for their share of the cost. When the bridge is erected on the now site, it will shorten the journey of several of the settlen to Ti-rau or Cambridge by several miles, and prove a great boon to stock drovers. After the excavation work in connection with the canal has been

concrete walls have to be built, and to do this 2,000 tons of cement will Lave to be carted from Tirau to the fapids before next winter sets in. Thermal Springs. The Thermal Springs Bill provides for Restrictions on the alienation of native land having thermal or mineral water jthereon. It stipulates that where any Native land in the North Island has situated thereon, or contiguous thereto, any thermal or mineral spring, river, stream, lake, pool, geyser, or other thermal or fnineral water, no alienation of that land ishall, without the precedent consent of She Governor-in-Council, be confirmed by a. Maori Land Board. Such consent may lie granted or refused by the Governor-in-Council as he thinks fit. It also provides that the town of Rotorua and adjacent lands shall be Crown lands. This land is described in a schedule (being iiative land of which most of the undivided interests have been already acquired by way of purchase by the Crown). It is declared to be Crown land instead of taative land, and is vested absolutely in His Majesty the King accordingly, subject, however, to all valid leases affecting the same at the commencement of this !A.ct. With respect to the extent of the (Undivided interests in the said land, Svhich have not been already acquired by the Crown, His Majesty shall hold the Said land in trust for the owners of those interests respectively, and all revenues derived by the Crown from leases of the Said land shall, until and unless those interests are purchased or otherwise acquired by the Crown, be. apportioned those interests respectively. The Five Million Loan. Sir Joseph Ward brought on an interesting little debate in the House pf Representatives last week. He explained at the outset that the recent (£5,000,000 loan was made up thus: Advances to settlers, £1,500,000; advances ito workers, £500,000; naval defence loan (Dreadnought loan) £1,250,000; and to public works and loans, £ 1,750,000. When he made iris announcement tin Friday he had not all- the information i>y him, hence his present correction. The Prime Minister mentioned that he had cabled to the High Commissioner, (complaining of a premature leakage of information about the loan negotiations, (The reply was that the leakage was quite unavoidable in underwriting. Sir ijoseph added that he had not desired to Snake any statement about the loan till Tuesday,’ when the arrangements would have been completed. The loan had been successfully negotiated at £93 10/ for five millions, the largest sum ever Raised by New Zealand at one time. He bad fixed the amount himself. Sir Joseph Ward, in answer to Mr. Massey, said that the rate paid for underwriting the loan was one per cent, the ordinary rate. The Gambling Evil. The debate on the second reading of the Gaming Bill was resumed in the Legislative C< s"? C Geor S ge McLean said he thought the totalisator permits should be left as at preBent. The reduction of racing days would nrobably mean that 100 clubs would go out ofexistenee. He condemned the clause inserted in the Lower House, instructing the commissioners to give preference to chibs holding one days racing onlj a yeai in the matter of the issue of totalisator permits. He ventured to say that in no counUy in ;the world was racing so clean as in New The Hon. C. M. Luke, the Hon. O Samuel nnd the Hon. W. C. F. Carncross also spoke bn the bill. , . , - ~ The Attorney-General, in reply, said it .would fie something savouring ot cant: to Attempt to deny that the two outstanding evils threatening the demoralisation of New Zealand ito-day were drink and gambling, and that the chief cause ot gambling was horseracing. “It I had iny way, ’ said Ir. Jrimllay, “I would go a long way m the direction of abolishing it altogether. It ,was his belief that the time would come when the people at large would make their Voices heard in this matter in no uncertain Way. The bill was the first step towards that goal. One day the evil would surely be eradicated, root and branch. He had bnly one term to apply to the arguments brought forward by the apologists for rnclog clubs. Tihe section of the law dealing hritli racing clubs had been administered by fche clubs most abominably. They had fended, as they had begun, in hypocrisy. □Tie intent of the law was expressed in Jinords so plain that any man could see what fcras meant, and it was merely playing with Mrords to use it as the clubs had done. Ine Blubs eaid it forced them to license bookbiakers, but he held that In 80 per of the cases they could have refused licenses bad they wished to do so. At the Very iirst the clubs’ attitude was one of deliberate felMtruction. The next scene in this miserfeme business was that any blackguard who liked to offer a club £2O, even if he had fenly come out of gaol the night before, could get a license with ease. Was that the way to deal with the thing? No; it was a deli*

berate attempt from start to finish to thwart the Intent of the section, and if the clubs had managed to bring discredit upon it they had also brought discredit upon themselves. Before the clubs now asked for further consideration for their so-called sport they should have seen to it that they carried out the law dealing with it. As for the proposed commission, the Government was not going to give it or any body the right to increase an evil which they were seeking to reduce. He did not think amendments made by the House in the bill were in all respects wise, and he intended to ask the Council to change some of the provisions inserted there. The second reading was agreed to. Public Works Statement. The Public Works Statement presented to Parliament on Tuesday provides appropriations totalling £3,000,000, which is a considerable increase on 21 millions actually expended last year. This year’s vote for roading amounts to £712,000, of which £234,520 is for back blacks roads, £lOO,OOO for loans to local bodies account, £15,935 national endowment account, and £30,000 for road maintenance. Railways in the Northern Peninsula are to receive over £200.000 in all, of which £lOO,OOO goes to the North Auckland main line, and £65,000 to the extension of the Kawakawa line. The expenditure of this large sum will certainly do a great deal toward •promoting settlement and opening up valuable land in this district. Other northern appropriations are: Kaihu railway £l5OO, Kaikohe £40,000, HuntlyAwaroa £20,000, East Coast £llO,OOO, Stratford-Ongarue £lOO,OOO, Mt. Egmont £15,000. The vote for water power and irrigation totals £300,000. A start is to be made with the Lake Coleridge scheme, which may cost anything from £290,000 to £700,000, and it is proposed to spend this year £150,000 on this work. A further sum of £40,000 is set apart for the Kaituna or Huka Falls' scheme, and a similar sum for the Hutt River scheme. Presbyterian Assembly. The General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church of New Zealand continued in session at Auckland till Thursday afternoon. A number of matters affecting the general well-being and future extension of the church received consideration, but most attention in this connection centred on the question of deciding in favour of a books of praise, opinion being divided between the “New Church Praise” and the “Hymnary.” A majority approved the former, but it was decided to obtain the opinions of Presbyteries and Sessions before taking decisive action. The only public question discussed was that of Bible reading in schools, and the controversy resolved itself into a contest lietween the Nelson and the New South Wales system. A committee was set up to make inquiry and report to next Assembly, which is to be held at Dunedin.