WELLINGTON NOTES.

Press, Volume LX, Issue 11502, 7 February 1903, Page 8

WELLINGTON NOTES.

THE aA-»ENT-S<RS' DISPUTE.

PRdiSEiRYATION OF NATIVE BUSH.

POPULATION OF THE COLONY.

(SPECIAI, TO "THE PRESS.") WELLINGTON, February 6. Reporting on tho deputation that waited upon the Premier from the Trades Council on Wednesday obi the subject of the paMers' award, Mr W. H. Westbrook. presadert, said that the Premier had failed to see the real point that the deputation w-sft-ed to -i-us'.rate .the fact that the Judge of the ArbitratJon Court hod amended an* award without giving the Union ie£pi notice so that it could' show cause why the award should not be amended. They had goft nothing out of the Premier as to the case itself. All they had got was a Beam-promise tt> make such alteira-fkm-)i-s ( would piweat a aimilar case in the future.

A c<>rrespondent writing to the Tourist Department from the Southern Lakes District says that had the laws relating to the (preservation of native bush haw in force been imposed ten or twelve years back tho colony, Doth for conanerei-Jl and scenic reasons, would have been considerably the gainer. Ho unges that iiteps be taken to conserve tiiie supply of t-xxrt in Lukes Haiweta, Wa-iaka, and Wakatipu, also tho different varieties of native birds found in the bush' in the locality. If nuniben. of the birds were col-eoted and placed upon Manuka Isl-tad he bolievcd they would tSuriv©. bo interesting to visitors, and in time tho is-and could be used as an aviary for stroking other parts of the colony. Steps should also be token to stop the sniping at deer which occasionally goes on, and which is having the effect of driving the deer too far back for legitimate sportsmen to gat at.

The estimated population of the'colony on December 31st, 1902, 863,360. The male population was estimated at 455,385, the number of females at 407,975. The foregoing figures include the population of the Cook and other Pacific Islands annexed in 1901, of which the total population is given as 12,292. Excluding Maoris the population •of the colony "during 1902 increased by. 20,268. Three lots of human bones were discovered at Karaka Bay yesterday by a builder whilst excavating in front of his house. There is a tradition t-iat the locality was used as a Maori burial ground in the early days. Upon the discovery being reported fo the police they stated that many similar finds had been made on the Miramar Peninsula, and that the coroner and the police had long since ceased to take notice of them. The number of Chinese in the colony on December 31st was estimated to be 12792, of whom 31 were females.

The -\mrisfc v Depar*menii. has received advice from the balneologist at Rotorua. Dr. Wolhmann, that the experiment of emjp_oya'ng hydra/uilio power to raise mineral waters for the baths has succeeded beyond expectations. The new Aix baths will be brought into operation on Monday.