Interprovincial

New Zealand Tablet, 4 November 1915, Page 29

Interprovincial

. The Legion of Honor has been conferred on Lieut. Lloyd Findlay, aged 20, a son of Sir John Findlay, for great gallantry at the battle of Hulluch on September 13. Another of Sir John's sons, Lieut. Wilfred Findlay, has been promoted to the rank of captain.

' The Customs returns for the month of October show that the net Customs have been <£24,380 6s lOd, primage duty (a new tax introduced in consequence of the war) <£lo3B 14s 7d, and beer duty £1544 12s‘lld. The gold exported was 15,8040 z, valued at £64,733. For October, 1914, the net Customs were £27,214, and the beer duty £3387 7s sd. No gold was exported during this month.

The monthly meeting of the Ashburton branch of the Farmers’ Union was held on Saturday afternoon, Mr. J. R. Simpson presiding. On the motion of Mr. W .T. Lill, it was decided That, in view of the approaching harvest, this meeting is strongly of opinion that the Government should at once remove the embargo on wheat exports, as it is now clear that there is a large supply of milling wheat in the Dominion, and should the surplus be carried over info the next year it will act as a great incubus on the marketing of the forthcoming crop.’

The revenue of the Postal Department for the September quarter shows a net increase of £IB,OOO. A Wellington Association telegram states that, although the new rates came into force only last week, the quarter’s postage showed an increase of over £14,000, and telegrams of £3OOO. There was a decrease in the number of press telegrams, but an increase in revenue. There was a marked increase in money order commission and in the number of postal notes issued.

The shearing season, which has just commenced in Auckland province, has shown that the number of men called away to the war is causing a shortage of labor (says the Herald,). There are not only insufficient shearers available to meet all demands, but sheep farmers are experiencing difficulty in obtaining men to do the less skilled work required in and about the shearing sheds. The manager of a large firm of stock and station agents stated that the new season’s wool was already coming in, but that many farmers were complaining that they were being handicapped by their inability to obtain sufficient shearers and shed hands.

The report of the General Committee of the Dunedin City Council contains the following recommendation for the consideration of the council at the next meeting: —That, with respect to the letter from the New Zealand Catholic Federation regarding censorship of picture films, in view of the fact that so many of the patrons of picture entertainments are female and young children,, steps be taken to advise the Government that the council is of opinion the Government should take action to ensure that the strictest possible censorship be exercised to prevent the screening of any pictures of an undesirable or immoral nature.

The farmers of the Ashburton district do not see eye to eye with Mr. Ashmead Bartlett in his view of the Gallipoli campaign. Indeed, they feel so strongly in the matter that they do not wish to hear Mr. Bartlett’s dectures on the subject until after the war is over. At a meeting of the Ashburton branch of the Farmers’ Union on Saturday last Mr. W. T. Lill mentioned the famous correspondent’s recent criticisms of the Dardanelles operations, and said that they did not want anyone coming to New Zealand pouring cold water ,on what was being done. Eventually it was resolved unanimously, that the branch inform the Prim© Minister that it was of opinion that the farmers would not welcome Mr. Bartlett’s proposed lecturing tour until after the Avar, ; c » , ‘