LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 832, 30 July 1910, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

A quartermaster on a direct passenger liner from Loudon to New Zealand »as a pretty trying time when the boat is berthed at the wharf, after a voyage I rem the Homeland. Yesterday, after the New Zealand Shipping Company's Uimutaka had been brought alongside, the quartermaster, who was stationed at the loot of the gangway for the purpose of keeping back eager persons, welcoming friends and relatives from going, on board, was literally besieged tiy people trying to get. on before all the passengers were off. One young lad approached him and said ho must gel aboard, and on being refused he "aid ho would speak to the officer about it. this drew forth the remark, "Well, shout to him from the wharf that you have a wife and family on board, and you haven't seen them since you left London; he might let you go aboard then, but I can't." By the Rimutaka arrived two Dandio Dinmnnt dogs, consigned to bis Excellency the Governor. The animals will undergo the customary detention in quarantine. In view of the possibility of tho opening up of tho Transandine mail service across South America, the following distances which have been furnished ft) Parliament-may he interesting:—From Wellington to Valparaiso is. nflSo nautical miles, from Buenos Ayres to Plymouth 6041 nautical miles, and from Valparaiso to Buenos Ayres 894 English miles. With reference to the representations made by the deputation to the general manager from the executive regarding special leave for members retiring on superannuation, and instancing the cases of Messrs. J. Tulloch and S. Jones, who wero not granted leave, the Department states (says the "Railway Review") that at tho time these men wore retired, service . prior to the strike was not taken into account for the purpose of granting leave. Since their retirement, however, the practice of counting strike service has been sanctioned, but it cannot be applied retrospectively. At the meeting of tho Land Board yesterday, tho Commissioner submitted a schedule of selectors who were not residing on their holdings, and it was resolved to call upon them to show cause why their interests should not be declared forfeited. Father Bernard Vaughan, opening a bazaar last mouth at barnot, reierred to tne lact that if was Ascot Week, an,d said tmit personally he was in iavour of alt sport, not excluding racing. Everything that made tor national character ougnt to be supported and encouraged by .buglishmen. All who were interested in the upkeep of English-bred horses ougUt to ieel indebted to King George lor tlie interest he was showing in wnat was so intimately the livelihood of quite ''an important section of the community, for not only were they concerned about the stamina and strength of the racehorse, which could only be tested on the course, but they wero still more interested 'in tho stable men and stable boys, whose occupation would be gone if these racing stables and breeding grounds were closed. Besides, it was of quite the utmost, importance that the countenance and presence of Royalty should be given to their national races. If the sport were shorn of Royal support they might vory easily' deteriorate not only in the quality of breeds of their horses, but iu what would be far more detrimental to the nation, in the quality of sport itself. Racing might degenerate into a mere pastime foithe brethren of the. betting-ring. There were dangers no doubt attending the ->astime, but Englishmen should learn .to become the architects, not the mere creatures of circumstances.

The "St. Petcrsburgskaya Gazeta," recently printed a remarkable correspondence betweeu Count Leo Tolstoy and.M. Ivuchin, leader of the Vegetarian Colony at Vladivostock. IJ. ICuchin's conscience was troubled by the question whether a convinced vegetarian could honestly wear leathern boots. Count Tolstoy instructed his friend 11. Bulgakoff to send the' following .reply:—"Leo Nikolaievitch asks me to reply that the real Christian religion lays down no fixed rules for life, but only indicates that . direction of life and activity in which every man should strive to go, according to his strength, and in aspiring to the ideal. So K is with vegetarianism. The first step is to abstain from eating killed animals, l'lii'ther steps are indicated by every man's conscience, once he wishes, or is impelled to, advance past the first step. Among our friends and fellow-thinkers there are men who abstain only from' meat, and there are others who also make no use of leather. Instead of leathern boots they use in winter 'valenki' (long boots of felt), and in summer birch-bark shoos, wooden sandals, or boots with tarpaulin upners and soles of rubber or linoleum. They make these boots themselves. The manufacture of vegetarian boots on a large scale is an affair of the near future."

A new scheme for the providing of employment ends to men nss'st.d bv the Labour Department is to be ini'Ugura'ed (says the Auckland Star). It :'s proposed to provide each applicant with a card (which he can keep in his po°wsicn), ."hawing his name, age, cal'in-r, name of last and also providing columns (somewhat on the lines of a seaman's certificate of discharge book), in which an employer, by the use of letters, could indicate the character and cnhdnct of -the man in his employ. The Und?r-Fec-retary for Labour thinks this .scheme specially suitable in connection with men fent to Government 00-op?rat:ve works. It has been found that some men rn.-ile a practice of going from one Government job to another.

A young man who was arrested at Mangawi-ka for the alleged theft of a bicycle, the property of Messrs. Rankin and Co., will appear in answer to the charge at the Magistrate's Court this morning.