LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 873, 20 July 1910, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Arbor Day (to-day) will bo observed as a holiday in tie Government, offices and State schools. It is not expected that any tree-planting of an extensive character will bo carried out. Parties from certain of "the city, schools, anting upon the invitation of the City Council, will be supplied with plants by the Superintendent of Eeseryes, whoso staff will also assist in supervising the work of the children, but in a number of the schools no plans of any kind have been- made.

Owing to to-day being a Government holiday, the Magistrate's Court will sit at 9 a.m./instead of 10 a.m., the usual hour.

The annual report of the Labour Department throws some light on the 'vexed question of whether the effect of the Arbitration Act has been to mako the minimum wage fixed by the Court tho maximum. Out of 2119 employees working under awards in certain trades in Auckland 782 arc receiving tho minimum wage, and 1337 (or 63 per cent.) more than the minimum. In Wellington 97S employees out of 1513 (or G4 per cent.) are rrcoiving over tho minimum; in Christchurch 1-198 out of 2367 (or 63 per cent.), and in Dunedin 776 out of 1375 (or 56;} per cent.).

■ Peter Matiu, labourer, of Pain Paid, who pleaded guilty before justices of the peace at Hastings to n charge of cattle-stealing, will come before the Chief Justice for sentence, at 10 o'clock this morning.

Shampooing, Clipping, Hairdrossing, Manicuring, Face llassago, Treatment of Fallin" Hair, and Dandruff. Coiiibiji R3 made up. Natural Hair-pads. Mrs. Kolleston (over Carroll's), 4 Willis etreet. TUouo 1599,-Advt.

Fifteen thousand miles in 62 days without a stop is tlie performance credited to the "Union S.S. Company's cargo steamer Waitomata, which arrived at Vancouver from Glasgow on May 26. This gave her an average speed throughout the long voyage of Hi knots an hour. At Tacoma she loaded 3,000,000 feet of timber for Sa.ii Francisco, at which 'port she was to ship 10U0 mules for Fiji. Tho animals had beeai purchased by the Colonial Sugar Company for use on their plantations. The Shepherds' Arms Hotel, Tinakori Road, one of the relics of Wellington's youth, is being demolished to make way for a new modern structure, more iu keeping with tho times. To erect a_ hotel in' such a position fifty years ago indicates considerable enterprise, for Tinakori Road was not much removed from a state of Nature in 1860, and the now barren hills were fairly well wooded. The hotel caught its name through being a house of call for | the shepherds of Karori, Makara, and even those employed at the Hutt and Paremata. Such was its popularity that the coaches plying between Wellington and the Hutt left the straight road to pick up passengers, at the Shepherds Arms. The late Mr. Charles Gillespie, who, with his parents, arrived in the ■ship Berman in 1842, was proprietor of the hotel for over thirty years.

A report prepared by tho Lands Department on drainage operations in Hauraki Plains has been laid on thr table of the House of Representatives. Tho district surveyor in .charge of thework (Mr. J. B. Thompson) estimates that twelve thousand acres will be available for settlement during the current- financial year. The expenditure for the year ended March 31 was £22,235, including £15,703 spent on drainage works. Tenders are about to be called for the cutting of the Puhanga ea-nal as an overflow only. • The Court of Appeal has fixed to-day for the hearing of the case of Morland f. Hales ,aud others. This is a land agency matter connected with the sale 1 of the Birchhill Estate, Marlborough. To-morrow, the Full Court is to deal with the question as to duties under the Stamp Act in a transfer, Deans to Deans. On Monday next"the Appeal Court will take tho Auckland patent caau, Wado v. Hartley. Other appeal casua yet to be heard are those of the King v. John Morris Schapiro (relating to tho bookkeeping of the defendant, who is-a-bankrupt), the King v. Charlie Grbich (Auckland), and the Manukau Water Supply Board v. the AttorneyGeneral. The last-named case is of interest to local bodies, as it is concerned with the powers of the appellant body in connection with the providing of buildings for carrying out its functions. '

Judgment in tho case of O'Connor v. Oroua County Council, a claim on a bridge-building contract, will be delivered to-day by the Chief Justice.

' Messrs. Jonos and, Co., wool, coal, and waste produot dealers, of Clyde Quay, have arranged to erect a substantial two-story brick building on their property adjoining the Zealandia Hotel. Plans have been prepared by Mr. W. Michie, architect, of a building which will show 6UOO square feet of space (on the two floors). There will be two cart entrances, with woodblocked ways on the ground lioor, and between them a serviceable suite of oiiices will be provided. The building, which will have a frontage of 60ft. to Clydo Quay, by a depth of 50ft., stands on that, section, of land that was formerly the south-east corner of Grainger Street, a thoroughfare that was swept away in the Harbour Board's reclamation work in that quarter. The contract for the erection of the new building has been let to Mr. A. Harbottle.

A number of settlers from the King Country, introduced by Mr. _\\. 1.. Jennings, M.P., waited on the Hon. J. A. Millar (Minister' for Railways) in Wellington yesterday, and asked that improvements should be effected at le Kuiti Station. Mr. J. Brodie, Mayor of Tβ Kuiti, acted.as spokesman. The Minister, in reply, said Te Kuiti was showing greater development than any other township in the North Island, and the Department recognised the necessity for improvements at tho station. As soon as possible the station building would bn removed to the other side of'the line, a-nd the necessary yard accommodation made.. The deputation also asked that a passenger carriage be attached to the goods train leaving Frankton for the south early in the morning. The' Minister promised .to see what he could do, but the difficulty would be that this would make the train a "mixed" one, and explosives could not bn carried on it. On of Mr. Wilkie, chairman of the Ohakune Town Board, Mr. Jennings ask<*d that facilities should be given- to the Ohakune pponie to connect with the train leaving Taumarumii at 7.50 a.m. The Minister promised to consider the matter.

The Town Hall at Island Bay was comfortably filled last evening, when tho lately-formed Island Bay Batepayers' Association held its first "social." A lengthy v programme of musical items and recitations was received with marked approval, encores boing so numerous during the first half that they had to be prohibited during the latter part of the evening. During an interval, Mr. H. A. Mpckay, who presided, took the opportunity to press the claims of the association on the attention of the meeting. Mr. J. E. Fitzgerald, who wa-s present, congratulated local residents on the formation of the association, and assured them that their reasonable requests would always receive fair consideration when they deputationised tho City Council.

The quarterly meeting of the Teachers' Superannuation' Board was held yesterday, the Minister for Education (the Hon. G. Fowlds) presiding. Mr. Hayes, Registrar of Friendly Societies, who was appointed to theboard, vice Colonel 11- J. Collins, took his seat for the first time, and was welcomed by the . Minister. Among other things, the board granted _ retiring allowances to twelve contributors; an annuity was granted to the widow of a deceased contributor, with allowances of ss. per week each to four young children; a'refund of contributions by a deceased member was ordered to be paid to the personal representatives; and refunds of contributions wore also granted to members of the fund who had left the service. The usual statement of membership and finance were presented to tko board ajid adopted. '

"China, and its National Ideals" was. the subject of a most interesting lecture which was given at the Y.M.C.A. hit evening by Mr. Yung Liang Hwang , (Consul for China). The lecture was the third of the "Tourist Series" at present being given at the Y.M.C.A., and was attended by a very large and thoroughly appreciative audience/ The Consul first treated his audience, to an interesting description of the Chinese nation and the national customs, and weut on to analyso what he described as the keynote 'to Chinese national ideals, his remarks on this subject being punctuated by frequent applause. A hearty vote of thanks was accorded tlio lecturer at the close.

A. very interesting lecturo was delivered by Professor Hunter at the Y.M.C.iV. rooms last night, before the Wellington Nursing Division. The subject was': "The Senses, Their Mechanism and Mode of Operation."

At tlio Academic d'lnfcripfcions et Brilos Lettres, Paris, M. Jullian, Professor at the College de France, exhibited a ljal.t.lo containing wine over 1500 years old. It has been discovered in the Gallo-Roman cemetery, of Saint Smirim, near Bordeaux, whore <\xcavations have been Eoiug on.