LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 423, 4 February 1909, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

■•.,' T he Mokoia, which left Sydney for Wellingtoirqn- Monday. ;has;on board an Australian mail, which /isdue here on-Friday;afternoon.' staff of the City Council, Cay's Bay to-morroWv ; ■ For ■'■failing'; a- juror at the waf fined" 40r- yesterday < Cha # •-Hoddor' . The people of Dannevirlse Hare decided that tbe, time has' como when that.ithriving town stiouldbe provided with raimioipal baths, and :SaSis s^^oy^h^r^ration in _ V;Mr.;A;,M : Gow. is to make a further, ■fS -Jo.. salvage the raihray iron trom the wrecked;barqua Woollahra.' The operations from the scow Itona, which has, ktely been fitted with ,an oil engine. . > : . . ■ '■ . : '~.:. ;.^Sentences:,■ aggregating; 61 yea/s ' were l≤,? ■■ 18^ nKm . 8 -'».* tlle Su P re «<e Court ■yesterday.:,; Two. ot the accused- were- ordered to:,beimprisoned/for one year: two tor two years;.four for five' years,; and five for-seven years. /In addition to the sentences imposed on them, two of the.prisoners wert declared to be habitual criminals. ■ ~; ^ Upoiv-examihatioii of : four ' new' : :: rnihvav' coqclies.at: ketone, 'on Monday morning, it was .found, that the pressure; gauges • nection,with : the gas installation had boon Sunday. The noHcl investigated ihe diWored ?h a t : two boys, each under -soVen. years of age, dd.-tho throwing, stones at tie glasses duriiig Sunday, while /the coaches were in the : Petono railway-yard.

Prospect ng is lookmg up. tecontly (says the Star , 1 a party of prospectors arrived at Orepuki from tho North ■island, heavily-.laden, with provisions and material to , last a considerable time.' ' ] n their commissariat is 12001b. .weight of flour none,up nv hermetically-sealed tins, each con•aimni >l bsv By ;tbis tbo w,,01 ° "»ay ■■ bV umged. ,llie party, so wo understand, intend taking all tlibir stuff, per medium of the wagon, to Mussel Beach , , and, making this abase, prospect the country to the west and fl -l"J ;'i °° me ?f tho party arc not Unfamiliar with the. locality, and having made such exteiißivo propatations for a lengthened stav they are evidently sanguine as to the results ' Wβ.;W|sh. the. party good luck. Undoubtedly t»« wntfy, out west in parte,-rich. in jninerale.. ... '■ " . : .

t Carting bricks for Wainni-o-mhta in theso dog days" of summer .does not appear to constitute a cWrful page in the lite of a horse. A poor beast, badly used up.in.the effort, dropped in tho strept ' near the. To Aro Railway Station yosterday, drawing the usual "what's up" crowd', ; and, the usual what s up" policeman. ~;':.,'...■';' The Town Hall, Public Libraries, , and' the Lighting Offices- in Harris Street,, will bo closed to-morrow on account -M the annual memo of the-staff being held'at Day's Bay. It is announced that the Public Baths ■ will remain open as usual, arid the libraries will reopen:at 7 p,m. : -\\ ■■.'■ '.-.. : . .:'... „ It,is requested, in' an order from District Headquarters, that ■officers-'--.-commanding' companies forward, urgently, a l list' showing the numbers of mombers in.their companies that intend taking part, in the '1909' Easter manoeuvres (April 9 to 12.inclusive);" This information is necessary in order-that pro-" vision may be made for : railway ■: and- ■" field- : transport, etc. The, camps "will probably be heldin.the vicinity, of; Woodville. ." • ' ... : A circular from District ■ Defence. Department, notifies that entries 'for the Dominion.Rifle Association -Meeting, tobe.held at Trentham;in March next, close on Friday,- February 12. The■■ regulations laid down must "be- strictly, adhered to: Entries must be forwarded to : the secretary, Lieutenant J. , Roacbe,- care;of Friendly; Societies, liambton Quay,; Wellington. ■ Railway .passes and copies of the programme,' in which entry forms ,are ■ enclosed, may'Vβ': obtained from the secretary..' ,'. ;-"' .. .. r ... : , ..■-.-.

..Good Progress:is being made by the Public .Works , Department with the improvement of the Ciilverden-Hanmer Road. There are about sixty men, employed on ■' the work of regra.ding:the Upper Waiau cutting. ,?Af the summit, the road is. to ■ be lowered twenty-six teet, and the workmen have removed about hfteen.,feet. The decking of .the bridge over, the Hanmer hae' been .completed, and a; handrailjor pedestrians is'.being erected..' The constru'ctionof a: bridge over the Perceval is also.being pushed on, and thirty-three of' the: forty-two.: piles, required have ,been driven,;; The:'fLytteltbn.Times"..states that' the superstructure , of the bridge will; soon be begun. v.;v ■--;,. •:'-..- -~ ;..;■.;.;../,: : .';,■

,: It, is. understwd that a' further incident has oropped up in connection with the Dune- . dm North "election, -which, while 1 it- cannot m any,-.way .".affect: Mr.' Thomson's , -'position'' as-the member for .Dunedin North,, should oertainly-be made:the:subject of-official'in-quiry. It.will.\be remembered . : (says' the ;-, Otago Daily Times") that: during the hearlngpf 'the. petition .it transpired that a voter's permiV.iri- favour of; Arthur '-, Campbell Pryde,. had' been disallowed by , the returning. officer on the ground ;'that it-Had been ! used in the..Mataura electorate -at -the. second , : ballot, whereas- it was.; hot ,'compe,tent• ■ for-,a" voter to -use .his : permit in::an electorate where no second'ballot .was being . held. -Mr;,': Pryde...now. , avers that; on' the date of the. second ballot he was in'.Timaru, and. has ,not'-been'in"Mataura 'toy over 12 months. , '.,: Mr. Pryde can. only come .to .the conclusion that someone voted : in-his name arid, does; not think it ! right, to -allow :-the matter-to .remain as it .is..- No doubt something more wdl.behe'ardof'this sinister, proceeding'. ■■' ■■'-. ; ■-.;• ' ■■■'.'■'■. ■■•■:.■-.•.■■■■ .-:....:■- -■.-■■'

■;. There seems, to be. general 'dissatisfaction among .-the co-operative labourers employed on .railway construction. .The ,Gore "Standard, •. states that the - co-operativo labourers 95 \W formation.works of ' the' Riversdale- ; Haikaia railway, wore very. mucK dissatisfied; _.on Thursday, last .(pay day), :as:; the earnings O for. .the month :wero very: much lower than; was 'expected..'-. Feeling ran -very nigh, and the navvies-, gave voice. to'their! feelings : ma v very decided.' manner, -the general; complaint: being that the;"'■ measurements, were not correct, and that more rial had; been ■ excavated' than- had :beon given credit .for. The: men. are-under the; irnpres-- , sioiv that; the administrators' are' squeezing them,, and.-tkis, is/taken for,' a; polite; hint that-they are not wanted.' The.highest;wage earned; by any: of the gangs. is' Bs.,'6d.'per day, and,tho-lowest -3s.- 6d;",-A -"Standard"; reporter-'. saVtho '"assistant.'-;'engineer ': .in Marga, r and: -he : ; stated:. that .complaints : of kind; were no,neiv^thirig.' : The price , iwas a fair,.one, and if the men had worked "well they would .have earned a fair-wage; There are 50 men employed on.at the ;-,-\Vailcnia ..end, of ..the - -line,, -and "on i 1 . 000 !" 1 ' pf'theMpw pay earned'about 20 have signified. their intention of leaving: -.-/Screams of womenMna neighbouring houseresident at: about four o clock-on; Saturday morning.' Shortly after-: wards :oneof them came knocking at his door crying: that, a nan'was^-fighting, with-;her' mother m-the ; :yard.>. A' telephone v message wasimmediately sent to the,police station, ana a:couple of; constables 'were;promptly' oil scene. .'.By.that.'timo, however, tho'ihtruder had- decamped, rand 'subsequent inquiry , (states- .the -v "Southland Times") has .so. : , far failed to elicit any.- information wnion, mas-;lead to -his identification ■'' The circumstances of thocaseare stated to-have' ,been ; .these. -.-.'The -house"-where, the: assault took place ,is occupied 'by • a man , whbse work makes it uecesßary. for absent'from home during the njght. >. .Until he arrives home at an early hour in the morning, his mi&. with their.. baby not .'yet; a forfoight 'old,; and ■'■ his mother-m-law', are alone, in the house.., Some time .before; four o'clock on Satiirdav mornI? g, -i ■^ m - was::awakened by .a-.noise inthe kitenen.;; Going out, as she thought, to meet her husbpnd,,sho■ saw a.'strango man yingpn-the sofa;-'.-.ln:niuch alarm she roused her mother,; and tho- intruder, who had' evidently entered -by- the window,: followed the frightened, women a as'- they retired. inte the Pfssage. ; . AVhen thp v youngerwoman made an' attempt to kayo; by the. door: in order to call assistance, he barred the way, and, .when she ; porsisted-in trying.te escape, ho handleilW somowhat roughly, the assault being the more t; serious "in ; view, of .the faotj already mentioned, that her .baby was only .some-ten or * ff^\ ve . 4ays old. ■■■■,' Both : . women were. panic-' stricken, but.when the cowardly.visitor'turned his attention to tho older woman, the younger One was.-able; tb ;ppeii the' : door,.'and. in, the goneral confusion both'were thrown into 1 the There jtheir .screams aroused . the neighbour, arid while the woman •: was being knocked' about by the night, prowler, the other brought tho police upon the scene. ;. .i The attempt to; carry out the new- : by-law of the Christchurch City; Council in respect .of theatre seats led.to. some amusihj* scenes' on Monday night, according to the ' 'Lyttelton Times.! , ' The manager of Mr. : William-' son's "Red Mill". Company;had, decided>to' do, every thing; in his' power,. to observeV the regulation,.and tickets.were given'to all who entered,- corresponding with numbered: seatswhich they wore supposed to occupy.; 'In the gallery .and:round 4he ticket box.'there were .conitisod.- scenes, 'and : sometimes -approaches to a free/fight, but the worst trouble was .experienced in the stalls. The first lots of: patrons,..many. - of ; : .whom. were.; ladies, plumped; down into • seats, irrespective -of ush'ersi.and the:coupons of,the later comers : were .practically useless. /..Mi. Williamson's representatives ;.were in. the stalls, and they and Mr. Young/ the City Council's inspector,' endeavoured, to set matters right. The only power the inspector had was to ask people to moves, :'and. to}-take their names if they refused,,with a view to'future prosecution. -'As nearjy, all the.seats were : occupied .-by: the wr(>ri"g persons the taking of names was prac-' tically impossible, and Mr. Yoiing met with fsome- trying-experiences.■■" Old ladies' spoke scathingly of.mterfering persons, the jilve-. nilo portion of the audience jeered; aud finally both Mr.' Young: and Mr. Thrqp, the .chief, inspecter, ..declared ; that it was impossible to carry tho by-Jaw into'effect, and at 7.38 p.m. gavo; Mr., Williamson's representatives perinission to let people take any seat "available." Coupons .-.were still.distributed, .'but : . patrons ■■ wore allowed to choose their own seats. A number of gallery patrons who had secured poor seats, on seeing the crowd stop into those good ones that had not previously been taken, left tlio theatre and had their money refunded. .There wore heated remarks at tho door, but most of the "arguments" were amicably-sottled. Many people who were outside left in disgust .when they heard of the troubles of others,;and the.back 'stalls which could have, been easily filled, wero empty.. . •'..,,,. ■'-.'.. '."■'■.".- ■ ,-.,..■■■'.:-. , : . ; ■•, ■, Thoro are more ways thanone of bleadin" tea; but .there s only one honest and right way" and that is to blend for quality. Many-teas aro blended for value—that is, teas of certain prices; are lumped- together in order to -ake certain of profit, Crescent Blend Tea is blended for .quality,-:irrespective of the prices of the teas required to make the blend; It is a scientifio; combination of the strong robust teas of DorJoeling nt>d the fine delicate kii of Ctylen, Xwo enillinßa per lb, itpm all storeß,-'-4dTt. ,:

. May Hallett j who"wasremanded at the Coiirt on Tuesday on a charge of false pretences, was bailed out yesterday afternoon.. -.'■ A meeting of creditors in the bankruptcy estate of William C. Murray, basket-maker, of Wellington, will be held before the Official Assignee,at .11 a.m. to-day.' ~..:.:. . The Tire.Brigade Committee.of:the .City ; Council made a trip to Kilbirnie last evening" to'confer.with the volunteer brigado of thasdistrict. The result of the .conference will be, embodied in areport to be laid before the .council at,;, its next meeting. ■.-.- .. .-' .•: .-• ■. -.; .' An election of officers of the Working lien's Club for the ensuing year, took.:.place/' ; last, night and, resulted, as .follows;—-President,-Mr., T. Carmichael; committee,' Messrs. J/ Appley; Mace, J. Andrews, and Captain Fisk;. secretary and treasurer, Mr. 11. Carmichael;; auditors, Messrs; J. Dykes and H. Bolton.■';.: . The racing dinghy is a 'tricky .craft': to handle even in a light. breeze* and this -fact; .was. again demonstrated during the course of a Thorndon Dinghy Club race yesterday,even-. J ing. One of the boats, the Rona, was cutting along with : her sailing-master (A. vßoweU), sitting to.leeward and admiring the seascape, .when a sudden puff struck the little boat and ■ swamped her.. ■' ■■'■ ■:■'.'; ... V .. ,- --:• . Every year four'scholarships at the Otago University are offered, by'the Mines Department to the students at'the various schools of mines in;the Dominion. The onjy'student who.sat for the examination in December : last was Charles Milne, of the Waihi School of Mines, and he has,now, been awarded-,one! of the scholarships, which:will entitle him to an, annual_ payment :of£SO: for. three years ■ and: free;;tuition ; 'at .the university-for that •'.-' ;;,:■■■■:'^'::'■'■'.:■ ■ ■: ■: .-:;.•;

:".. The Railway. Department/advises New Plymouth mail train is often delayed/because intending passengers arrive at the sWtion with their;luggage only. a^minute or:two. before, the:;time : tabled;hour. 1 of : departure. .. To overcome this trouble 'it notified .that passengers , luggage ./will not .be received .for. conveyance v after,the times'.providedin the .by-laws,> viz.,' for checked luggage 'fifteen minutes; ,and : for. /unchecked -luggage ". ten minutes,'before train's are due to-leave. :'/ 3t: will be advisable for travellers to observe this warning, unless they wish to' see. their port manteaux, hat-boxes, and trunks left behind.

; Between forty: and fifty men are encamped 'at;'the" : little'.l»^raislup.: t at'..Sbloinon , s- ; -. v Knob" , (above' the,Wainurreservqir),- .where the preliminary.work; in, connection- with the- 'new storage.: dam. is .proceeding steadily:- ■ Work far Has. consisted of building : a- big sluice ;.td ,take..the waters of the. ■strea.m; when■•'it' becomes necessary .to trench on to tho - . bed to lay the foundations-of. the big ; ferro-concrete dam./.Having.finished ;this,;.a.section l of; the meii ,have .beeii engaged.';,.in,Vbuilding .the frame-work- towers- Irom'. which' the, ■ steel wires for the-, '/flying fox";, (which : will carry the concrete to the required-.spot) will be sus-. pended..'.:As: it '.will• be necessary :■ to" shift these .erections' ailong/the. sides of tlie hiU,.'a Toad has.had to. be':mada;for their.niariipula!f ion.-.. This work is all .but completed. :ln;the meantirile: the machinery: and donkey boiler ,areVbeing:taken_outv/.and erected'in position, and atramwayjs.beihg constructed'from the gate/of the -reseryoir.reserve ,tb/Solomon's Knob for the; conveyance of all material;/: ;It ..will not be; long now/biefore a start is "made with the. excavation^' for thei ■foundation's, whiph':are}bf;>;spebial ; characte'r;',as,6n thetop of .tlie;"foiindatioii: 'walls proper .a< large area'.stretchin'g. ; aoross;the:gully has to'-be floored .with concrete. ;^ ; : : - '■-■ : v;_s.; - .;