GENERAL NEWS.

Press, Volume LV, Issue 16428, 23 January 1919, Page 6

GENERAL NEWS.

A very large English, American, and Expeditionary Force mail, per the Moana from San Francisco, will arrive in Christchurch to-day. There will be an ordinary mail of 400 bags and 116 bags of parcels mail from America. Two deliveries will be made in the central area, but in other parts oi\ly one delivery will be made, commencing at noon, which will enable the whole mail to bo disposed of to-day.

The Hon. W. H. Herries, Minister of ltailwuys, telegraphed as follows from Tauranga yesterday to Mr J. McCombs. M.P.: "Representations contained in your telegram about restoration of pre-war Sunday train service on the Lyttolton-Christchurch lino will receive attention."

It was stated in the House during the recent sitting of l'drliament that in issuing the Public Works loan it might be found necessary to pay 5J per cent, interest. Word has been •received in Duncdin that it is not the intention,of the Government to issue a loan at per cent.; the only loan to be placed on the market will be a war loan, with interest at 4J per cent., freo of New Zealand income tax.

Our Wellington correspondent telegraphs that the scheme adopted after much toil and troublo by the Wellington City Council for municipal control of the milk supply of the city, is now working, and there seems to ho a prospect of the scheme going very well. The experiment is the most ambitious venture of the kind that any municipality has ever iriod in any part of the world. Some citics have made arrangements to socure pure milk for special purposes, such as feeding of infants, but no other municipality has tried to dispense milk to the healthy population.

_ A draft of two hundred soldiers arrived at Lyttelton by the ferry steamer Mararoii yesterday morning. Tho draft landed at Auckland from the Rualiiue, and were conveyed to Wellington by special train. The Mararoa did not berth until 11 a.m., and on arrival at Christehurch tho Canterbury men, of whom there wore 88, were met by members of the Automobile Association, and conveve,d to their homos. Lieutenant had charge of the Canterbury draft. The Otago men, under Lieutenant Jardin, numbering 118, left for thoir homes by the midday express. The percentage of men who had lost limbs was much higher than in jprevious drafts, but the artificial substitutes wero pronounced by the men to bo very satisfactory.

The purchase by the Now Zealand Government from tho Imperial authorities?. of motor vehicles no longer noeded for war purposes, a suggestion which Mr E. P. Leo, M.P. for Oamaru, recently submitted to Cabinot, was mentioned by Mr A. F. Wright at yostorday's meeting of the executive of the Canterbury Progress League. Mr Xeo's idea was that these vehicles would bo admirably adapted for the requirements of local bodies. Mr Wright expressed the opinion that if a number of those vehicles could be obtained they could bo used as feeders for the railways. Taking South Westland as an example, Mr Wright pointed out that there was a good road for 100 miles southward of the present railway terminus, and all the rivers, with the exception of threes were bridged. Some very fine dairying country would bo tapped if motor vehicles were used as feeders to tho railway.

An enquiry was opened yesterday morning by Mr S. E. McCarthy, S.M., sitting as Commissioner into the cause of the fatal tramway accident in June

last at New Brighton, by which Conductor W. D. Owerg lost his life. Mr Thomas appeared for ex-Conductor P. Winter, all the other parties , having been notified not to attend, as the enquiry would be adjourned. The Commissioner read his warrant authorising the Commission and setting forth its scope, after which the enquiry was adjourned until 10 a.m. on Monday. A number of witnesses have been sub-

poenaed in connexion with the enquiry, at which Mr Dougall will represent the Tramway Board, and Mr Johnston will appear for Motorman E. Talleyshort, while the Public W T orks Department will be represented by an officer from Wellington. It is probable that after a short sitting on Monday, the Commission will be further adjourned:

Many Masterton people were much interested in a liquor case which came before the Magistrate's Court last week. The main point was whether a publican was allowed to supply three bottles of beer to one person (without an order) for consumption in a no-license district. The police quoted a ruling of the Chief Justice that certain sections of the Act of 1914 were more stringent than those of the 1908 Act, and that it was imperative that an order should be given for any quantitv of such liquor. Counsel for the defendant submitted that Sir Robert Stout had overlooked the fact tliat the whole of the section of the Act applied to carriers and agents, and not to purchasers. Hie ob\ ious purpose of the section was to prevent indiscriminate sly-grcrnn" Counsel held, and he had the opTnitTii of Mr C. P. Skerrett, K.C.. to back up his contention, that Section 8 of the Act did not applv generally, and entitled a person to take a gallon of beer and a quart of spirits into a no-1 license district in any one dav without supplying an order. The Magistrate reserved his decision. ■

Yesterday's river report was as under—Waimakariri North, discoloured- Waimakariri South, discoloured; Rakaia. dirty; Rangitata, dirty, flooded; Waitaki, flooded; Opihi, clear. An Auckland telegram states that the city streets improvement loan proposal was carried at yesterday's poll bv a substantial majority. The poll provides for raising £165,000. The suburban districts rejected proposals affecting their areas. The voting was remarkably light in all cases.

A meeting of the committee of the Press Company's Employees' Sick Fund was held yesterday at 5.30 p.m. An apology was. received for the absence of the president, Mr P. Selig. Sixteen new mcjtnbers were elected. The secretary reported that calls upon members during the past few months had been heavier than usual, on account of the influenza epidemic, but that matters had now returned to normal.

In connexion with a shop-lifting case at the Magistrate's Court yesterday, Chief-Detective Mcllveney producer two large black bags which, he said, two of the accused women had been wearing under their clothes when they were apprehended, so that they had evidently gone out with the intention of stealing. "Perhaps they were to take home goods that were bought," suggested Mr Alpers. "Possibly, like men. they objected to carrying parcels."

Two horses attached to a lorry belonging to Mr J. Brightling, bolted from the Christchurch railway yards at about midday yesterday and dashed down Colombo street towards Sydenham. Efforts were made to check their mad flight, but caused the animals to swerve, and the outfit dashed into the verandah posts of Mrs Barshan's bookshop. The verandah collapsed, and a window of the shop was smashed. A man who was under the verandah at *tlie time of the accident fortunately escaped unhurt.

It is understood that two of the New Zealand Shipping Company's vessels —the Remuera and the Ruapehu— which are due to arrive in the Dominion shortly, are likely to be commandeered by the Imperial Government and sent to India to transport troops which have been serving in Mesopotamia to England. Under these circumstances (says tho "Otago Daily Times") the shipping company is notifying passengers who have booked passages to England by these vossols that thoir tickets may bo cancelled, and is declining to issue any more tickets in the meantime.

In a case in which a man was charged at the Magistrate's Court yesterday with being drunk while in charge of a motor-cycle, the evidence went to show that the accused was so drunk that he did not know which way another cycle was going. "I only know of one worse case, and that was one in which' Mr Thomas was interested," said the Magistrate, Mr T. A. B. Bailey. "That was a case in which a man did not know which way he was going himself." "I hope, your Worship will explain that 1 was interested as counsel," said Mr Thomas amidst laughter. In fining the accused £5, his Worship expressed his intention of inflicting a fine of £10 on tho next man who came before him on a similar charge.

The season of the year has arrived when the Seventh Day Adventists of South New Zealand, following their annual custom of this body, are holding their conference and camp-meeting. The time»is devoted to a variety of meetings. The business session usually occupies the morning hours, the afternoon and evening meetings being of a devotional character. At these meetings the adherents of tho body gather from all parts of. the Dominion. The site selected this year for the camp is situated at St. Albans, at the terminus of the Cranford street car line, in English Park. Hero are pitched about, forty living tents, also preaching, dining, boon tent. etc. Pastors. W. Pascoe and G. Stewart, president and vice-president of tho North New Zealand Conference, will bo in attendance, and they will be asgisted in the speaking by Pastor H. Letts, South New Zealand president, auc * ™?elist s A. McCoy, H. Chesson, and T. Whittle.

At yesterday's meeting of tho North Canterbury executive of tho Farmers' Union, Sir Q. W. Lill referred to the present tillage of coal, which, he said, was a very serious thing for farmers, tor if there was no coal there would be no thrashing from tho stook, and that would mean a difference of about Gd a bushe] off tho prico. Mr Lill remarked on Ins unsuccessful efforts to get coal, and said ho could not manage to got a decent bag, even for household purposes. Tho Government, ho understood was commandeering all the coal that was being secured. They might just as well stop tho railways," and all stop at homo and work to get the threshing done. Ho moved to tho effect that the union write to the Hons. W. T>. S. Mac Donald and A. M. Myers, stating that farmers viewed with alarm the seriousness of the position, and that tho Government be urged to allow a fair portion of the coal arriving to go into "the country districts for threshing purposes. Mr G. Sheat spoke of the difficulty machine owners were in. If they could not get coal, all the crops would havo to be stacked, and he certainlv thought that the Government should be urged to relievo the position as far as possible. The motion was carried unanimously.

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The wear and toar on table-waro is a problem that is continually cropping up in the household. There ib no advantage in buying chean table-ware, for it i* dearest in the" end. Silver ware and electro-plate of proved quality is always a feature of our stocks. Watson's, Jewelers, Limited, 695 Colombo street, Christchurch. l

Santa Claus writes: —"Wash your clothes clean with 'No Rubbing' Laundry Help and pure 'Golden Rule' Soap, then the flu won't bother you anv." 4

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TO OWNERS OF TRIUMPH ' MOTOR-CYCLES. We are prepared to make liberal allowances on Triumph motor-cycles taken in part payment for latest model "Triumph," "8.5.A.," or "Excelsior" motor-cycles. Adams, Ltd , High street. 6 TO OWNERS OF 13.5.A. MOTORCYCLES. The same offer holds good to owners of "8.5.A." motor-cycles. We can give delivery of the new "Triumphs" in February, "8.5.A." in a week -or two, or "Excelsior" at once. Adams, Ltd., High street. 6 TO'OWNERS OF EXCELSIOR MOTOR-CYCLES. Excelsior owners also included. Prices of nc7/ model inotor-cycles are: Triumph (4 h.p. 3-spoed), £125; B.S.A. (4i h.p., 3-speed), £110; Excelesior (7-9 h.p., 3-spe*Kl), £110. Lamp and liorn included. Adams, Ltd., High street. 8