LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1517, 13 August 1912, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

9 A visit of inspection was paid. to the steamer Maori yesterday morning by the lion. L\ At. 13. I'isher, who was accompanied by several officials of tlio I'nion Steam Sliip Company ami by Jlr. W. 1. I'ourig, secretary of tho Seamen sLmon. Complaint had been mado to the Minister by Mr. Young as to (bo nature of the accommodation provided for stokers aboard tho Maori. It was represented by Mr. Young Hint as the firemen are quarto red ill tho l>o\vs of tho vessel, with the only exit right forward, they would almost certainly bo caught in a death-trap ill the event of an end-on collision. J. ho Minister and party inspected tho quarters, and Mr. loung suggested that means of ingress and egress sliould bo prodded by a passage to tho forehold and thence by way of oji enclosed laddor to the deck. Mr. L'isher promised to take tlio matter into consideration. Discussing tlio recent fire on Lambton Quay a well-known architect, who 13 cieditcd with having fairly modern ideas on the subjcct of building, states that anyone who erects a large building in the heart of tho city-or anywhere else for that matter, where there is a definable firo risk—and provides the same with wooden floors throughout is taking a very grave risk needlessly. It is now incumbent oil people building premises ioij separate oecupancy to provide that the first lloor shall be of reinforced concrete, biit even that judicious provision did not extend to buildings solely occupied by the one firm. Why tho distinction is not quite clear. If the machine-room oi Whitcombe and Tombs had been provided with a concrete floor a foot thick, leinforced with railway iron, with similar provision above, the fire would not invaded and destroyed tho whole buildin"- and probably without a wooden floor as" a conductor, a department containing steel machinery set on concrete bases, would have given very little encouragement to anv outbraek. Our informant states that whilst some of the city bylaws . press rather hardly on people who build, here is an essential method of combatting fire waste which is not provided for. What was probably the largest meeting on record of the Wellington branch of tho Institute of Journalists was held in The Dominion offices yesterday, the branch chairman, Mr. F. J. Baric, presiding. The meeting was called to consider the action of the committee in circulating certain proposals of interest to journalists, and a resolution was passed heartily thanking it for the steps it had taken. The proposals axe to be considered in detail at a later meeting, and in tho meantime the feeling cf country journalists is being ascertained. A number of other resolutions wero passed. A man who attempted to board a car near tho Opera House last night met with an accident by falling on to the roadway. Ho received a slight cut on tho head. •

Perils of window cleaning were before the I'etono Borough Council for a minute . Dr two last night, when a "suggestion" ] From a resident of the borough came up. I'he suggestion was to compel all owners 1 sf two or more storied buildings to place a J small iron hook outside all windows, so J that the oleauer may attach a piece ol rope to secure himself when out on tho ] sill. The letter was minuted as "re- 1 :eived." 1 At a meeting of the Victoria College Dobating Society, held at tho College on . Saturday evening, the question of whether New Zealand's interests would be served by a federation with Australia or not, was debated. A motion supporting tho proposal was introduced by Messrs. Seaton and Stevenson, and opposed by Messrs. Sievwriglit and Mason. A number of members took part in the discus- : siofl, which followed. Tho majority of speakers seemed to consider that tho more urgent problem for New Zealand was tho consolidation of her relations with tlie Mother Country—tlie strengthening of tho ] hies binding the Empire. It was further pointed out that while Australia and New Zealand had many problems in , common, yet there were lingo problems which were peculiar to Australia alone. . The motion was; finally lost. Mr. H. H. Ostler, who acted as judge, placed the five best speakers.in tho following order: -(1) Mr. G. G. G. Watson, (2) Mr. P. W. Burbidge, (3) Mr. Stevenson. (4) Mr. HallJones, "(5) Mr. W. J. M'Eldowney. The chairman announced that an oratorical contest for women would take plaoe on August 2-1. A vote of thanks to Mr. Ostler concluded the meeting. Superintendent Tait, of the Municipal Fire Brigade, in refering to a statement which has been made regarding his expressed surprise that tho outbreak of fire in Whitcombe and Tombs's premises last week was not observed by some of the people resident ill the houses immediately above and behind tho destroyed building, states that his remark was only natural, ns several houses overlook tho roof of Whitcombe's building at very close range. As a matter of fact tho smoke -was observed by a membei of Parliament residing at the Grand Hotel at .7.20 a.m., and from the Queen's Wharf at 7.30 a.m., yet no alarm was given the brigade. until 7.42 a.m. It would have been madness to attempt to fight the fire from Boulcott Terraco (as has also been suggested), for the simple reason that there was only a 3-irich main there, and that was a branch of the big 21-inch main on Lambton Quay. The People's Picture -Palace Company, wliicli has erected a fine hall in Old Customhouse Quay, has secured a convenient entrance from Manners Street by purchasing Messrs. Doherty and Lieber's premises, at present in occupation as a fancy goods shop. This will give the. new theatre an entrance 15ft. 9in. in breadth. The price p<uid for the land is said to have been ,£250 per foot. ■ Tho Archbishop of Canterbury announced oa July 3 in the Upper House of tho Convocation of Canterbury that he had received an invitation from the Primate and Bishops of tho Church of New Zealand to attend their first Church Congress, to be held in Auckland in February, 1915, to mark the centenary of the introduction of Christianity into the islands of New Zealand. Though 110 had been unable to accede to the request and to stav away from England for so long a "time, he passed oil another invita-(-ion—thnt one of the provincial bishops sliould attend. The last mooting of the Wellington Industrial Association of the present financial year is to be held this evening when the matter of the trouble between the Education Department and the Association over the Victoria Street property will onco more come under renew. Westport fishermen (states an exchange) are petitioning the* Minister for Marino for permission to kill seals off Capo Foulwind. Tho seals are of. no commercial value, but prey on fish, making a scarcity where otherwise there should be an abundance. Thfe resolutions of the Council of tho Auckland University Collego regarding proposed changes in its constitution have come under the notice of tho Minister for Education (the Hon. James Allen). The Bill introduced by Mr. Myers (Auckland East) on behalf of the oouncil proposes to increase the council by. adding a direct representative of the Professorial Board, and also proposes to regulate the payment of fees. The Government Bill proposes a moro extensivo alteration in the constitution of the council. Mr. Allen states that tho measure is intended to bring the control of tho Auckland College into conformity' with that of other colleges, and is also", in his opinion, a considerable advance on tho existing law. Ho added that tho objections raised by tho council are under consideration. The desirableness or otherwiso of the San Francisco mail steamers calling at Auckland was briefly discussed at the meeting of the' Auckland Chamber of Commerce on Friday, when a letter was , read from the Auckland Harbour Board ! asking tho cha'mber to co-operate with the board with a view to making Auckland a port of call. One member stated that the Government was already paying a subsidy of .£20,000 for the Vancouver service, and the 'Frisco service would practically mean a duplication of that service. It was mentioned by another speaker that the Spreckcls boats were very speedy, one of them having put up the fast passage of IS! days from 'Frisco to Sydney. He- thought that every effort should bo mado to have Auckland selected as a port of call. The letter was referred to tho Shipping Committee. Tho Nazol Inhnlor is a single contrivance bv which "NAZOL." is avaporated and inlialed so that it circulates freely "N\ZOL" taken in this way cures cold in ~l.ho Head, Jnflucnw, and Throat Trqublttf .very quickly*