IN OTHER CENTRES.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 282, 22 August 1908, Page 6

IN OTHER CENTRES.

(by TELEGRArn-SPECIA.iI CORRESPONDENTS.)

AUCKLAND. Auckland, August 21. Tho Town Hall Committee, in accordanco with tho agreement previously arrived at whereby it was decided that tho lowest tenders for tho new Town Hall should bo acccpted if tho poll of tho ratepayers affirmed the building of tho hall, cabled to Messrs. J. J. and E. J. Clarke, architects, of Melbourne, to send a member of tho firm over to arrango all preliminary details. A reply has been received to the_ effect that a member of tho firm will arrive in Auckland by the Wimmera on Sunday. The Town Hall Committee has also resolved to sell tho buildings on tho Town Hall site by auction for removal, and tho tenants havo all recoived notice. Tho contractors aro making tho necessary preparations, and 'in tho courso of a week or so the preliminary work of demolition of tho buildings to make room for tho new Town Hall will commence in earnest. Railway Matters. , At a well-attended meeting of tho committee of the Auckland Railways League, it was resolved to send the chairman (Mr. Gerald Peacocke) and other members of tho Council, Mr. Andrew Bell, Sir. Tlios. Coats, Mr. Fred Clarke (of Kaiwaka), Mr. E. Harding (of Dargaville), and others,. to accompany settlers from tho branch leagues north of Auckland and from tho East Coast as far as Gisborne, to Wellington for tho purpose of interviewing the Minister for Public Works on railway matters. The special. object is' to urge tho Minister to push on with greater rapidity the construction of tho Main Trunk railway north of Auckland, and tho AucklandGisborne railway, now that the Main Trunk railway south of Auckland is practically completed. Mr. Poacocko has also been authorised to arrange with Mr. Hall-Jones as to the function to be organised .by tho Railways League on the official opening of the Auckland-Wellington railway. The deputation will wait on tho about tlie end of tho month. • "Sleepy Hollow." "Nelson is one . of , the most conservative places you could possibly get into," declared Mr. Arthur llosser at a 1 meeting of. tho Auckland Trades and Labour Council; "It has been well.named 'sleepyjiollow.' :Napier is another." This unflattering opinion from a Labour point of view of two of tho Dominion's seaport . tow;ns was advanced, by Mr. Rossor in support of his viow that tho annual Trades and Labour Conference should bo held in different centres each year, so as to strengthen trades unionism in weak places. One or two speakers supported Mr. Rossor, but others pointed to tno manifest advantages of continuing to hold tho Conference in tho capital city, notably' the fact that tho Conference was held while Parliament was sitting, and was visited by many members of Parliament, who were consequently kept in touch with tho doings of that body.

Tramways. . ' . , Tho Secretary of tho Takapuna Tramways and Ferry Co., Ltd. (Mr. H. Gfilfillan, jun,), has received a telegram from the UnderSecretary of Public Works stating that tho Order in Council for the tramways construction had been signed by the Governor. As the plans and specifications connected with this work are already prepared, its active prosecution will bo shortly undertaken. . CHRISTCHURCH. • August 21. The "Press," dealing with Mr v Hall-Jones's reply to Mr. Laiirenson regarding its report on tho conditions under which tho unemployed woro sent to work on tho Midland Railway, says it has rarely seen a more outrageous example of the Ministerial policy of blinking at unpleasant facts. If, as Mr. Hall-Jones declared,; all tho necessary inquiry had been made linto the matter, ho has either been grossly deceived by some of the departmental officials as to tho actual, position of affairs, or ho was wilfully mating light of circumstances which reflect no credit on departmental management, and involved those who suffered through, acute misery that might and should have been avoided. It is, perhaps, easy for any one surrounded by all the comforts of a well-built and well-fur-' nished house in a city to sneer at-the sufferings of a man camped in a damp tent, pitched on snow in a temperature that rarely rose above freezing point, with no adequate moans of securing warmth. Of - courso, as Mr. Hall-Jones says, men employed at Broken River in midwinter "must necessarily, endure some hardships," but there is . positively no excuse for the departmental bungling which led-to a number of men being bundled off to .tho works in t freezing weather without any preparation being mado for their reception, so that there were not even tents on the gt-ound in which they could take shelter, and they had to be huddled together in the most 'squalid condition of overcrowdedness in a comfortless shed. Fortunately tho publication of the articlo, which tho Minister says cannot-. be regarded as a statement of fact, had tho effect of causing tho Government to look into the matter, and tho dispatch of further batches of unemployed was suspended - until some preparation had bcen ; made at Broken River for their reception. 'Mr. Hall-Jones omitted to explain why, if everything was dono by his department on such perfect lines as. he claims, this delay was considered necessary after the article appeared. The White Owl. The merits and demerits of,the white, owl as a means of destroying small birds which have been' discussed by a number of local bodies of late have been under consideration at the meetings of the Canterbury A. and P. Association Committee and tho Acclimatisation Society. At the former meeting a member said that tho small birds' nuisance had become a very acute question . with the farmers. He thought the matter was eminently ono for the Association to tako up, aiid if some of tho small owls that had been imported into Otago wero imported here the farmers would no doubt subscribe towards tho expense. It had become almost an impossibility to grow fruit, and possibly the importation , of -small owls would do away with this. difficulty. It was de-. cided to make inquiries of the Otago Ast sociation as to tho benefits that had been derived- from the importation of owls. At the meeting of _tho Acclimatisation Society a letter was recoived from the Selwyn County Council inquiring if the. Association could supply it with any information. regarding the utility of wliito owls for destroying smallbirds. Tho Chairman (Dr. Moorhouso) explained that the white species ■ would not do any damage to ■ tho Nat-ivo birds, as it did not dwell in tho forests, but, was' found I chiefly in the vicinity of homesteads. It

did a vast amount of. good in . keeping down rats, mice, and small birds, tho lastnamed, being captured at . night while they wore asleep. It was , decided that the Society favoured the . importation of; white owls (but no other species) for' the -purposo specified. , An Amusing Incident. "Driven from homo; two hearts that boat as one." This inscription, together with a blood-red representation of a heart (incurably enlarged, judging by appearances) was to bo seen on a sheet of calico attached to tho back axlo of a four-wheeler bowling through tho streets of tho city. Tho public wondered what it all meant, and it was not till tho landau drew up in front of a photographer's premises, and a newlywedded couple stepped out,' that any explanation was forthcoming. Tho inevitable crowd quickly collected, and tho coachman must have wondered why tho carriago was tho cynosure of tho assembled multitude. The photographic ordeal over,. tho bridal couplo stopped into the vohiclo, their demeanour still indicating that they knew nothing of the heartless joke that had been played upon them. Then the carriago was driven awny through tho main streets, the festive sign still iluitcmu in tho breeze.