LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 821, 21 May 1910, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Tho postal authorities advise that tho Mahono, which left Sydney for Auckland at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, has on board an Australian and English mail for Wellington and tho eonthern offices, which should arrive in Wellington by tho Main Trunk train on Monday afternoon next. Some of the cargo discharged from the b.irquo Marjory Glon (from Liverpool) lias been found to be slightly damaged by 6alfc water, and consignees' signatures are being taken to an. averago bond. Word was received by tho Prime Minister on Thursday afternoon to tho effect that a second case of bubonic plague had occurred at Auckland. As in tho first case, tho patient was a laundry employee. Sir Joseph was furthor informed that there was no cause for anxiety. In reply to an inquiry by a reporter last night, tho Hon. D. Buddo, Minister for Public Health, stated that there were no details whioi ho could make public. Mdlle. Bel Sorel, the prima donna of Williamson's Grand Opera Company, discovered, on opening her trunks on Thursday, that the hasps of one had been forced, and several valuable art-icles-of stage wearing apparel had been stolen. It is impossible te say where tho trunk was tampered with, as it had not been opened since leaving Sydney. New regulations relating to the conditions of employment in the railway service are gazetted. Captain Trotter, master of tholndraloma, expressed the opinion, on his recent trip to Wellington, that another light is badly required on the East Coast between Napier and Cape Palliser. Ho considers that a light at Castlepoint or Flat Point would be of great assistance to mariners especially in thick weather. In the course of an interesting lecture on aewonomy recently, the Rev. P. W. Fairclough, of Dunedin, said that, biologists and geologists claim that lifo has been uninterrupted on. the earth for ai least a hundred million years, and that in that time thoro has been no cosmic calamity which would- requiTO life to start afresh. Still, there is at least ono suggestion of considerable knock from a collision. Coon Mountain, in. Arizona, is a circular hill 150 ft. high. In tho centre is what was thought to be a crater three-quarters of a milo wide and 650 ft. deep. The country is limestone, and tho strata about tho hole are much smashed. Thoro is no trace of volcanic material. Geologists say the hole and the hill were made by the plumb fall of a tremendous meteorite—a small planetoid, in fact. The Smithsonian Institute has put down a number of bores, some very deep, but they have not found the big shot. Strange to say, however, several large masses of meteoric iron have beeoi found in that neighbourhood, and all tho largest aerolites known belong to that iride of the earth, from Greenland to Mexico. Ancient trees grow on tho hill, and tho thing happened thousands of years ago. No doubt it caused a considerable earthquake. Was it the head of a comet, or only a stray wanderer ?

Speaking to a reporter last night, tho Prime Minister (Sir Joseph Ward) expressed himself as very gratified at the splendid way ui which the whole of the arrangemeuta in regard to tho public ceremonials in connection with the memorial services yesterday were' carried out. He also mentioned that telegrams to hand showed that the services held in all other parts of the Dominion had also passed off very successfully. The services aro fully reported in another part of this iaue.

It will be recalled that some months ago Lieutenant-Colonel Rhodes, M.P., offered to give £200 a year towards tho establishment of a Chair of Military Science a* Canterbury College With the object of seeing whether the Government would supplement the offer, a deputation from the Board of Governors of the college recently waited on the Prime Minister. Sir Joseph replied that the question, would require to bo held in abeyance until the defence scheme is perfected.

Tho Arbitration Court will sit in Wellington on .Mor.day, June 13, at 10 a.m. The business will compriso the cooks' and waiters' dispute, an appeal from refusal to register the Rangitikoi and Waimarino Timber Workers' Union, and the compensation claim, Whiloy v. M'Loan Bros. No sittings will bo held on this occasion in the country centres.

Tho Registrar-General's report on the vital statistics of tho principal towns of New Zealand during the month of April, 1910, ahows tho following death rates per 1000 of population at each of the four centres (excluding suburban boroughs) :—Auckland, 1.02; Wellington 0.71; Christchureh, 0.93; Dunedin, 1.54. The inclusion of the snburban boroughs tends to lower the rate at each of the four centres, tho results being as follow:—Auckland, 0.84; Wellington, 0.68; Christchurch, 0.93; Dunedin, 1.28. It will thus be seen that, including tho suburbs, tho rate at Dunedin. is the highest, and at Wellington the lowest. Tho rates for April, 1909, including wore: —Auckland, 0.81; Wellington, 0.71; Christchurch, 0.77; Dunedin, 0.77. The total births in the above places amounted to 620, against 602 in March—an increase of 18. The deaths in April were 257 —an increase of 22 on the number in March. Of the total deaths, males contributed 144, females 113. Seventy-three of the deaths were of children under five years of age, boing 28.40 per cent, of the whole number; 62 of these were under one year of age. There wero 101 doaths of persons of 65 years and upwards:

"Refined mineral oils" are admitted free under the New Zealand tariff, and the Minister for Customs has now decided that in order to come under this description oil must not exceed in specific gravity .S7O at 60deg. F., and must in addition conform to tho following test: —When ten volumes of oil are shaken with four volumes of sulphuric acid of specific gravity 1.73 in a stoppered glass vessel fortwo minutes and allowed to settle, the oil shall not impart to the sulphuric acid a colour darker than that produced by dissolving .10 gram of Bismarck brown in 1000 cubic centimeters of water. It is stated in tho Gazette that this test will easily admit all the kerosenes and clear burning- oik and benzines, etc., as at present, but will stop the light spindle oils, which wero never intended to be free.

Two criminal cases will occupy tho Supreme Court to-day. James Cnmmings and John Fennessy stand charged with assault and robbery, and Edward Wilfred Kelly and Alexander Driscoll will bo tried upon a charge of assault with intent to rob. On Monday morning, the Chief Justice will pass sentence on Joseph Paul Davis and Martin Haines (found guilty of arson in connection with the Rutland Hotel fire), and on Edward John Falkiner (fonnd guilty of thefts in connection with piano transactions). Bomarking on the freedom of tho Wellington tramway system from accident, Mr. J. O'Shea stated at the Brakes Commission in Dunedin that Inst year tho Wellington. Corporation took ovor its own instiraneo throughout, and with tho amount of money saved last-, year the council was starting with a fund of £7000 to meet accidents. That fund was being made up of amounts that woro previously paid away in insuranco premiums. Shampooing Clipping, Hairdressini;, Manicuring, Face Massago, .Treatment of Falling Hair, and Dandruff. Combings made UP- Natural Ilair-padg. Mrs. Eolleston (over Carroll's), U Willis Street. 'Phono 1509,—Advt,

Tho term holidays for tho public schools begin on May 30. \

Tho Wellington Education Board has determined that Empire- Day, May 24, shall not this year be observed as a holiday by the schools under its control.

It is generally understood in Gioymouth (says our local correspondent) that Mr. J. H. Henry, editor of the "Petroleum World," and an authority on oil fields, will visit tho Kotuku district at an early dato, but 1 learn that long before Mr. Henry can reach this part of tho Dominion, operations williiavo been commenced at liotuku on a considerably larger scale than are being performed at present. , Tho Mayor of Stratford (Mr. J. Masters) is convening a meeting to bo held noxt week for the purpose of forming a Chamber of Commerce in that town. At the Water Police Court at Sydney last week an officer of the fingerprint branch of the Criminal Investigation Department was cross-examined rather closely by the attorney defending the accused, against whom the officer had given evidence, "I take it," the lawyer said, "that a number of men have been convicted by this system of detection by finger-print identification, and in a number of other cases the system has failed." "Oh, no," the officer replied, "there is only one case on record in this State where a man whose finger-prints had been identified escaped punishment for tho crime alleged against him. He was the luckiest man in the world. My opinion, expressed at tho time, was backed up by the authorities all over the world." "Then," said the legal ojio, "would you go 6o fax as to say you are infallible?" The witness was modest. "I say this system is infallible," he replied. But the attorney was apparently not cottvinced. "You may be right," ho said. "Time will show. This is a young country, and as yet we have no one who can prove yon wrong." • An Order-in-Councii exempting Adams Terrace and portion of Aro Street, in the City of Wellington, from the provisions of Section 117 or tho Public Works Act, 1908; is gazetted. Tht» Government Is advertising in England for three veterinary surgeons, with a view of strengthening the meat inspection department of the Dominion. The annual' meeting of the Boards of Examiners under the Mining Act and the Coal-mines Act was held in Wellington on Thursday. The members present were:—Messrs. H. A. Gordon (Auckland), H. B. Hornibrook (Core- - mandel), T. Gilmonr (Waihi), J. Bishop (manager of tho State Coal-mines), J. Dixon (manager of the Westport Coal Company's mines), and B. Sutherland (Reef ton).