LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 570, 27 July 1909, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The postal authorities adv]»o that an American mail, which left 'Frisco on' a July 1, is duo in Wellington, cs Manapouri, tomorrow. . Tho Warrimoo, which left Sydney on Saturday, for Wellington ; has on board an Australian mail, which is duo here to-morrow morning. . ■ ' The Minister for Railways etntcs that ho has no knowledge of any proposal to tinue the additiona-1 train .service which now connects Wanganui and Marton with tho Main Trunk line. ' ; 'Tlio proposed changes in connection with tho Stamps Department have not-yet ken considered by the Wellington District Law Society. It is understood that the alterations, if made, would not greatly affect local practitioners. ' ■ . Efforts arc being mado to inducei the Hon. It. M'Kenzie (Minister for Public Works) to visit Waikanao this week, for the purposo . of inspecting the damage which has been dono tnrough tho encroachment of the river,; , Mails, which left Wellington on June 18, per s.s. Manuka, and connected, at Sydney with the Brihdisi mails per H.M.S. China, arrived in London on the night of July 24, ono day early. ■ Towards tho end of tho week, the Hon. J. A. Millar (Minister for Labour) will receive a deputation of European laundry proprietors; who will urge certain amendments of the Factories A?t. ' Particulars of the suggested amendments (which relate to Chinese competition) have previously been published. : For the twelve months ended March 31 consumers of electric light increased in numbor from 3633 to 4136, being a record increase in electric lighting in Wellington in one year. "This must be consjdered an extremely satisfactory business," comments Mr. Stuart Richardson, City Electrical Engineer, in'lris annual lighting report. Says a young Now Zealander, writing from Venice to a friend in Wellington:—-'Very little Now Zealand hews, excipt letters, gets mo here. Now Zealand is a very small place when you look tho map squarely in the face. People hero have never heard of it. We will want,a lot of introductions inHeaven, wo New Zealanders." A convent and school at Scatoiin - have been established by tho Sisters of Mercy. The building, which has a commanding situation near the tunnel, was formerly used as a private boarding school by Madame HamilWn, whose day pupils havo been taken over by the Sisters. There are four Skters in residence, with Sister Mary Cecilia in charge. . .'• ' According to tho Hon. J. A. Millar (Minister for Railways), there is no likelihood of the power of veto being given to the ■Railway Api>eal Board. If that'were, done, ho sta,tes, the board would have paramount control of the administration of the , railways! That was a condition of affairs which Parliament had stoutly refused to allow to arise. Parliament was always quite prepared to study the interests of the employees to the fullest possible extent, tho interests of the public, who were the employers, 'had also to be concidered. , We have received, by the English mail just to hand A a postcard addressed to tho "Chief New Zealand paper," by A. Fefrar, 38 Grimstcad Koad, Deptford. Park, London. Our 'correspondent describes himself as a young married man, and he desires to enter into correspondence with any citizens who, may caro to communicate with him. Wo should imagine that he wishes to know sqrnethirig about the condition of things in this country. Possibly some ■ .of our readers may feel inclined to oblige him. ; "-., The 'railway '• men at Paekakariki, . who comprise a majority of the residents, recently asked the Government .to erect a social hall fox,their use. It was pointed/out that there was a precedoiit for such diture., in- that tho Government had'erected; a building of the kind at-Cress Creek.; Thu Hon. ■. J.i. A., Millar ''(Minister for Railways) has ,now replied that the Government cannot, see its way to accodo to tlio request.: Itis now probablo that;'an.- endeavour, , will be mado to raise a portion of, the money, the' Government to be asked to give the balance in tho way of. a subsidy. vAbout forty: delegates from all parts 'of the archdioceso attended the quarterly: meot.ing.of tlio St. Vincent de Paul Socicty;,on'Sunday. .The meeting \vas one of the largest and most successful yet held. Reports ,receivwl from the various districts, oii '' work among the poor and unemployed showed that tho quiet, philanthropic usefulness ■ of'.,this' society is on an, increasing scale. The Seaimen's conforenco of. the society in this city, 'whoso members visit ships arid provide fortnightly concerts in the Sailors' Rest, is now tho; strongest branch, of .its kiud in Australasia;. . :. '•' -..'.'. ' ' . ..■•.'' , : ;,' ' . ... 'During the course of his reply to tho deputation which recently waited upon him with reference to. mining water-rights, the Hon. R., M'Kenzie. (Minister for Public Works) .mentioned that the Govoruinent had in haud a' largo irrigation scheme in Cch-' tral Otago. Questioned on the subjeot a Dominion reporter, Mr. M'Kcnsiio, stated yesterday that the scheme was not sufficiently advanced to enable hWto"mako tho details public yet.■'-. It was proposed, ho addod, to pump water by electric power instsad of constructing head races and. reservoirs; . The purposes of tho scheme could nlso bo extended to assist mining in the district. ■ -■■ , ' '. ', ';. ■Mr. If. A. Wright, M.P., recently, 'wrote to the Hon. G. Fowlds, Acting-Minister for Defence, asking'if 'tlio military reserve, at Point Halswell bo planted with trees, with tho.objcot of beautifyiiig , Wellington v liarbour. I" the course of iiis reply, the Minister stated: "A; few years ago sbnio ,300 trees wero planted'at Fort Uallance, but; owing to tho strong and incessant! 'winds'only a. few unsightly ones grew, and tho' samething. would happen at Point Halswoll. Tho officer commanding tbo Forco, to whom the matter was forwarded, states that in ease of an infantry attack on tlio forte the trees would give cover .to tlio attacking forces. Under tho' circumstances' 1 regret that it would not bo advisable, to carry out your suggestion." ; . ' . ' . ' . The Gas .Committee- of tho City Council devoted about two hours yesterday morning, to' consideration of the position of .alfairis between tho council and. tho Gas Company 'in;.regard" to the carrying of tho company's inain.'from',Constable Street .to'.. tlio' ue\v Miramar gasometer. Mr. William Ferguson, 'representative, of tho Gas Company, was in attendance for a time, but left after a' short conversation with the Mayor. Consequently, there was no representative of tbo company present during yesterday's proceedings. When the committee rose,, tho Miiyqr announced that ho could say absolutely nothing for publication. It is understood, however, that as a result of yesterday's meeting tbo committee is drafting an important letter, which is to be forwarded to the company to-day. It is possiblo that' some light may bo thrown on tho negotiations to-day. '. :. . Recently the chairman of tho Raglan County Council wrote to tho "Hon. D. Buddo expi'essing , satisfaction at the continuance : of the system of valuation rolls being supplied to local bodies by the Valuation Department. In reply, tlio Minister stated, inter i alia: "There■ has been unfortunately an inclination , .on."-the' part of somo loedl autlioritics to join hands with tbo ratepayers who felt' tfiomeelvos aggrieved, on tlio ground ~that'' 'an objection to tho valuation, was merely a direct chargo against tho Government of maladministration. Nothing could bo further from tho truth. You may rest assured that the Valuation. Department is as distinct from tho .'Land Tax Dopartment as it is possible to be.'.Eaolr has its own particular function to perform,V , and they carried out entirely apart from any considerations .of mutual admintape. ; Many local bodies who" have approached mo consider .that any proposal to alter .the-present' system would be unsatisfactory. The systom.l am carrying out at present provides for a substantial'-margin, between the. actual selling values and tho capital values fixed for rating purposes and tho Unimproved values fixed for laud tax. I havo reason to think, from letters I have received, that tho present system is ns satisfactory as : it. is possible .for any system of valuation to be. There seems, however, to bo , some confusion with regard to tho designation of laud as uaiaiprovcd." .. •■ ■ ■:• ■> ■■• - ■ . ■~

i Ono of tho cars running on tlio Brooklyn tram section met with an accident on Sunday evening, through ono of tho axles being fractured when the car was in Willis Street, ', ' . ■, ', ■-. _ Of tho 400 sections which the Government intends to throw open under the Improved I arm .Settlement Act thoso in tho Willing--ton district, which total 100, will bo Veady "■' /or selection early in Septembw.. The'/ balance will, it is expected, be opened some few. weeks later. . ■ . : -.-... l . ' " "Wire-pulling" was remarked '", upon' in connection with tho •.consideration; of'an official's resignation at tho meeting of tho Petono, jiorough Council last evening. Councillor Piper :"Pcrr,onal canvass on the part , -' of applicants should be a disqualification. ,, ! A councillor; "I have had forty-three already." (Laughter.) ■ v, At a well-attended meeting of tho Wei. lington Ministers' Association, held hi tho V.if.C.A. rooms yesterday, the Rev. W. Douglas, M.A.. read a paper, which was well received, on The Miraculous, Element in ■Scripture." The-Her. J. Kennedy Elliott, president of tho association; was in. the chair. ■ . . In-continuation'of this winterV series of municipal -"Library Lecture*, , '" the Very Ilftv. Dr. Kennedy, rector of St. Patrick's College, will .occupy the platform of the' ■ Concert Hall next .Monday evening, to •;■ describe the structure and h»fc;t« of the hrmey bee. The Itctnrc will l«' iihutraU/1. , with photomicrographs, which will be di&played by nitans of the ckctrie hnlem. H.M.S. Knconnter will kare Wellicgloa on July 30 for Port Vqgum, wfcwe &bf Kill remain, from Angrist Ito Aogiint 3. Her furt'ier itiner&rf f.i aa i'JWri:—¥c*i Chalmers, arrive Atigiut 4, (Vxaxt Aogcst 7; Lyttcfton, Augu»t 6-16; Stlton, Acgcrt 20-25: Wellington (coaling), Angaji 23-23; Auckland, August 30. The- crniVjr win ssr for Australia at>oat the middle ef S^pfetsW. Substantial progress is b«RZ made yiSS tho construction of the ntsr izncrCbfs.TtiA wharf at Clyde Quay, abont hitf the vAin length being practically «a;;i!«t*j, „?£" sinking of the haizr.vs of th« pjfes «2i k» commenced next veev'sej, vtsAhe; permitting, the s-harf shesM be exitfeUA >*s3 within contract time. A&Jtit #.> e«2 ant at present eir.ploj-oJ. The tender ef Messrs. J. W. VZ&U& tad Co. for tbe iupjSy <6f SiC fcczhizk jaUh '£«..- use by t«» Guy Caatdl L» less «£gs«3. Two hundred of the f-r*k» vi 3 «»t £!'>> I£fc 4d., and the balarw sfl! ccai £Ij2 2j- Si, the difference- m-ptUx Is.&z zfss,z££z.£ te tie size of tbe pek-s. Tee fcU cot:r;« prk*s is thus £278 15;. The BiSEaejifai tewJerer* were:—S. Brown, Ltd., £315: RkharrfKn and Blair, £-305 16s. £d.; Sanders Brc:-, £239.: 19s. 10d. ; ._.-'. At the Mount Cook Police Court yesterday morning, before Mr. Horace Baker, J.i\, Thomas Gardiner and William Egan, charged with insobriety, were each. hnecl 205., in default seven days' imprisonment. :'■ John P. C'ojie, charged, with being .'drunk and disorderly, was lined 205,, in default ! seven days' imprisonment. Michael. Sbana-> han, charged with drunkenness, was fined . 10s;,' in default 4S hours. One first offender, . similarly charged, was fined 10s., ia;default {■ 43 hours' imprisonment, and two f others : : were fined 55., ;in 24 hours. One ; first offender was convicted and discharged. Interviewed by Mr. Hogan, M.P..' re-: garding the. registration of Native l leases,.. the Hon. i. Carroll, Acting-Prime Minister, explained that tlio delays r frequently '■ occurred in private dealings with the Natives,' > The latter were generally, content to lease; ' ■ land on. getting a ; Court order, and many 5 Europeans were satisfied to take a ■ leftßO' .- when the Court order was granted. This order, honevor; was'•' insulßcieiit for finalic- i ing .purposes, though niany people imagined they could go ahead, whereas' it was'neces-: • sary to have tile leases properly registered. . Very frequbntly the land had to', bo re-sur-veyed, "niid ;otier forinaiities gone throuyh :to comply with the, Act, all of which added - to tho delay that somctiiiies occurred between tlie granting of ; the Court order and . -registration of tlio: lease;' ,;..'.•.' ', '<\y '■(Two of.tlie- nncient'spears formerly'Vus'e'd'-' ' by thcMaoris for killing iiative'pigeons haro': been added to tho collection at the Do-' minion. Museum. These spears wero too. loiw and' slender. to.Jje used except 'whea •.■.'' worked in guide lines fixea on tlio tree on which the pigeons fed. Planted in ambush in,or under this tree, the. Maori .fowler would wait .patiently untili a bird perched upon- a favourite branch,:;:,aud l then it, would', bo ''transfixed"- vritih tho bone barb fastened to" tho cud: of the spoar. .Largo, numbers of pigeons.wero killed in this way and pfeserved for.future uso. ; ' Nowadays; . tho bird is hunted with the moro,destructive: gun; and'is becouiing scarce.in consequence. -, Tho Wo spears in the museum are 22 feet■.-.' or: 23 feet; long, and about- ;fan inch in diameter at the thickest part. Tho -spears l were cut from tho centre of a;tree trunk by : an ingenious process. ■"' -V' ■■'.•. ; ,; : : ; At the invitation of 'Mr. 'H. , M'Leod, !, j Scoutinasteri, tho Tuatara Scouts of Miramar , wore visited last evening by Colonel A.. W.; (iJobin, C.8., Chief of the General Staff,' who•;; gave a short and intcrcstihe address to , tho ', boys onrtho' chief objects of their existence ■ as'a detachment of tho lkdeii-Powcli.Scout?. ; In tlio course of bis romarks, Colonel Eobmv 'pointed'• out that, tho originator of. tn«" nlovcmont, Lieutcniuit-General ' II.; , S. 5,,-■.-:.■ B:ideii-Po-,vell,' had' expressly stated that ', military muvements of any kind i were to .W\ attompted by seout patrols. The objects. Ui ■ bu niniod at wore tho cultivation 1 of thf. powers of observation, training in tho mat-•■. ■; ter of giving attention to tho "littlo tbingi that matter," mastering useful hints which : would bu of service, not only to scouts , ill ; tho ficldi' but to inen in their business and- . out-of-cjoor avocations,. swimming, first-aid ' ■ to the -injured, and so on." The address was ~ most attentively listened , to| and, at the. conclusion, tho ; boys gave i.thrco"' hearty ■'■ cheers for their visitor.; ; ; : \ i Two points were raised in connection with . tho trial' of Mr. Fisher's patent', lifeboat' as ruquiring ; consideration. '1 lib first was .tho'. possibility ;of thu boat, from its shape, turn-: ing round'•'■in tho water uiidor tho weight t ' of tJiose who'-'might be clinging on to it.. Mr. Wisher has already explained 'how Mils,'.-. risk will bo oVcicomo, by tho "fins" attached to tho sides of tlio boat, The second-y-. and more serious objection was the, of propelling, tho boat. Mr.-;Ficli6r informs :» us that ho had alreiuly gono;into that'qiies-,-.-.' .tiwi, and that bo has no\f... perfocted his •; plans in this respect. The upat :l can! ;bo' ; propelled cither by an oil; engino, ; which however ho does not eonsidei tlio best' ' moans, as: it would occupy spino of ; tho spaeo required for passengers. - Instead of thisj it could bo propelled by the passengers themselves,, by nicvne of. an- ingenious crank i working a propeller; or it l could progress ; under sail,, he having, designed a special mast and sail for that'purposo, which can bo worked from within the boat. 1 pro- ' bablo that Mr. lusher will, 1 givp a further- ' exhibition tov demonstrate ■•': thoßO iinproyo- " ments,.at:.no. distant date,'.!•;.■.. ■' >V :' "■ .„ In tlicro have been frequent'.-'in-" quiries from English and ,foreign museums for specimens of tlio largest kind' of: nioa, ■ and fairly completo skc]c|tonß found in Now ; ; Zealand:have always realised big prices. , Tiie.V value of moa skeletons for tllb futuro. bow-"'.;.. over, is likely to l>e uiuehjdc^rociatecl ; oy t'he i '■■:'' faot | that a well-known oolkctoi , in Eiiglan'd,has procluced an bxceilcnt -cast of; a, '■ full-. dinoViiis, of which loplicas hro offered;; at:.tho' rato of £50 a-piece.'Judging from aphotograph of the east'; which-", has reached': MK A. Hamilton, Director of tno.Domiiiion; • Museum,' tho reproductiKHi lifis Jboon; very ; well: made, n.nd : ,for all practical : purposee/: ; ' slio-uld bo as useful. as ':' Mie loriginol. ..'. •Very: ■: -.. few. of the .skeletons fouiid : m tlio past Imvo; ;; ■ any claim to completciieo?/; , , Probably: - tno.- .- most comploto are, in, tlieir- order' of valuei .'. one in York Musouin (found in Otago), ono, ' in: tbo British Museum' near; Baver-. iton), arid one; in the Otago ; Miisoumi;: Nearly.:-. ; nil .fcho,, others are moro.w4ossi.mado: upot.: : ' boiiTO found, in , the fiamo*deposit as , -raiej.v! skeleton,, but not c;ipi.blo ! of;: idolitific4tion'•':.• ■us actual parts of it. : For tlioVstudyof -'.the.' : skeleton it.is, of 'Course;• (if ;t tlib highest jfui-; ■ ;'■. portaiice to, know that all-tbo Wiesijielong;;. to the, same original fra-moWprk. .;:;,.. v:;.,'::,/; o : -'. ! We' havo' to ndvleo that ivo hftve tnfceri tip', ) : the sole ngency. forjNew Kettlaßd for the Bufgon'' .'::■■ and Ball Sheep Shearing Machines. quotations -V.v'for ■ installations.'://'■• Anderiione,.\i.' Limited, 10 Bank: phiumbertr '-!r v - -.';?■•■ •.". -;V;: : v.';-.- 9139;:),