LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1454, 31 May 1912, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

A ratepayer who recently incurred a 1 i.il:.illf y to Jis corporation to the extent wis a grievance against that bodv wiln ro.-pcct lo its business methods. i short time ago he had to.havi a trifling JO.j ilono at tno corporation works, and ho cost was 4,1. on the completion of thu work, the ratepayer tendered tho Id., .nit was liiiormeii by the workman cancirned tiiat an account would be sent. In duo course die account arrived through the post, and was paid. What the ratepayer asks is, If it costs id., nil envelope, and a debit note to collect id., how much does the, city lose in a year on these small accounts for the want of a little system? Tho Royal Commissions on tho Cost of Living, Education, and the Civil Service are ali to meet this morning at the old Parliamentary Buildings, It is understood tiiat to-days proceedings will, in tho case ol each commission, bo of a preliminary character. Probably none of the commissions will examine any witnesses before Monday next at tho earliest.

On Monday, Juno .1 (King's Birthday), tho Post Office will be open in all its branches (except the Money-order Department), from i) a.m. to 10 a.m. Mails by steamers sailing on that day will close at 8 a.m. The only dispatches of mails by trains will be for tho Wnirarapa, Manawatu, iiangitikei, Wanganui, and Tarar.aki districts, which will close at ti.3o a.m., and those for Jlawke's Bay am! Auckland districts will close at S a.in. There will be no day clearances of tho city and suburban receivers. Thcro will not 1)3 any deliveries through (he city and suburbs by tho letter-carrier.*. On Saturday afternoon, .Tunc 1, the letter-carriers will make n full delivery in the city and suburbs, closing at tho Chief Post Office at 1 .JO p.m.; also a deliverv from the Drillshed, Maginity Street, will bo made from 5.30 p.m. to !U0 p.m. Tho delivery counter at tho Parcels Department, Drillshed, will bo open from S.ISII p.m. to 9.30 n.iii. oil Saturday, June 1, also the public counter at tho Chief Post OQice from 8.80 p.m. to 0.30 p.m. for tho delivery of r.niclcs addressed to the post ofiico only.

It is too early to sneak positively regarding the shooting season. From present reports, Californian quail are numerous in some parts of the district, but pheasants, although on tho increase, have to bo worked for. Hares are fairly Humorous in the protected portion of the district, but in the portion where they are designated vermin, am! allowed lo be shot all the year round they are getting scarce, and action is being asked for to have them again protected during .the close season.—Acclimatisation Society's Annual Report.

A special meeting of delegates from all bodies interested ill the furtherance of the prohibition campaign, was hold last evening, Mr. R. G. Denton presiding. Tho remits to tho Alliance annual convention were discussed at length, and a strong opinion oxpifcssod that the measures for the safeguarding of the ballot arc at present quite inadequate. The following delegates wore dec ted to represent the Wellington organisations at tho convention, beginning on -.Tune 2G at Wellington: —.Messrs. Denton, Hciyer, Kennedy, Pearson, I'etheriek, I'ervman, Hoare, Potter, Price, and Mrs. Miller.

A document which may become very interesting as time passes is now on vi.nv at Castle's Pharmacy, Cuba Street. The Wellington Zoological Society thought that if Captain Amundsen could be induced to give somo memento of his great discovery, it would be thankfully received and carefully preserved by tho city. A deputation of the society therefore drew up an informal agreement, to which the captain, having previously promised to present one of his dogs to our city Zoo, attaeiicd his autograph, and expressed a desire to do all in his power to promote the local institution. Later on this document: will be placed in the public museum at Newtown.

A man is to appear in the Magistrate's Court this morning, charged with the thel't of two bicycles. He is stated to have taken thein from outside business premises, where they had been left while their owners were inside. Ono of the bicvcles is said to belong to Mr. D. 'Wade, of 'Otaki, and the other to Mr. Robert Clark, of Kliandallah.

Speaking at the Town Hall last night Sir Josenfi AA'ard said that he had not made up his mind as to the part he would piav in public life in the immediate future. From the point of vie* of a nublie man, his only responsibility was to his constituents. He did not suggest, he added, that lie would come back as leader of a party or head ot a Goveminent. That was not the idea passing thi'oei'h his mind. In a short time lie would make up his mind and deliver a s'reccli somewhere in order to let people know what he intended to do m regard to public life. The ex-Prnue Minister denied that he had ever been engaged in an intrigue.. in connection with tho politics of this country, in ms life, and stated that he was not going to bo now. It wasonlv natural, he remarked that, at tne end of'a long reign of one party hi power, there should be many men looking forward tn obtaining Ministerial rank. Unless these men were prepared to Pvac-ti-e self-abnegation, tnev would not only add to the difficulties of Parliament, but would- add to the difficulties of tho country which they were anxious to serve. The regulations governing the Government Printing Office, with the classification of officers (mid their salaries) appear in this week's Gazette.

Wednesday, .1 nlv 17 (Arbor Dnv) is gazetted a 'public holiday. "In order " slates a paragraph in this weeks Gazette, "(hat the moveiueiu may he made as successful as possible, the Government hopes thai the .Mayors of various niimieipalilies and chairmen ol loeal bodies will place the matter prominently before lhe people of the Dominion, and do all thev can to encourage the planting of publir' resolves and other available hinds, both public and pirate, with trees suited to the locality."

.Tin' Deputy Regi-trar of' Industrial t'nions I Mr. V. W. Rowley) notifies in this weel.'s Gazette that, pursuant to on application. In' intend' to >;iiki-I the registration of the Wellington i,iien...'i| Victuallers' A --mint ion I iidii-t rial t'nion of lan plovers.

Mouev-orders anil postal correspondence are. by" Gazette, forbidden to be sent to Duvid Ross, Box 101, Wellington, or Ross aad Biadsliaw, oi th« same address,

.That the still small voice of conscience is .-.till alive in the loud is testified by two notices in the Gazelle this week. The sum of 13?. from the Railway Department, and Bs. (in stamps) from the Customs Department is acknowledged as "conscience money" by the Hecretnry to the Treasury.

With reference to the work of improving Oriental liay on a certain scheme laid down by ;he city engineer same years ago, Hie re.-iileiifs consider that this work should be pieeeedetl with a little more briskly, and a deputation from the Hay is lo n-It the City Council lo do .so at" its mi-cling to-night.

As it re,lilt of representations made bv Mr. L. Newman, M.I 1 ., Hie Minister Jor Education has sanctioned the c-Jnblish-liienl of a district high school t\l llnnlervilli-. No grants for buildings are lo be made al pre.,cut, and jji-uvi.-ion is to he mad" locally for the accommodation of eln-s.es in <!ome.-,iic science, physics. and woodwork.

Sir .'nines Carroll made a naive confession in at, Hie Town Jiull last evening. Recalling tin- fact that in his early days in Parliament, when lie rcpre-st-nlid a Native coiiitituencv, he had supported lilt! AI hin-ori Government, lie stated tliat he had done so became lie believetl in giving every -eetion of file people "a .show," partieulaj'ly if tli<-y luip'.ened to lie "on deck!" I'eonle 11ou 111 recognise as a principle thai, every Government was dc-erving of support ami existence lor it period of tlire:- year*. "I hope.'." concluded ilie ex-Native Minister, "Unit that principle may (..(ill bp observed."