LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1564, 7 October 1912, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

T.S.S. Mnheno, with an English and Australian mail, reached Auckland at 5.30 p.m. yesterday. Tho Wellington portion of the mail will come south by tho Main Trunk express to-day. The deal between the Wellington Steam Ferry Company and the Eastbourne Borough Council is not yet completed. Tor the past three weeks the matter of settling some rather delicate but vital points has been in the hands of the solicitors of the parties concerned, and so far they have not been ablo to arrive at a conclusion satisfactory to both sides. An arc lamp at the corner of Courtenay Place and .Cambridge Terrace was blown down between 8 and 9 o'clock Inst night. Thcro were a few people in the vicinity nt tho time, but fortunately no one was struck.

Another daylight parade of six hours' duration (tho third since the commencement of tho current training season) was held by tho various units of the Wellington Coast Defence Command on Saturday afternoon. The Fifth Regiment mustered a parade of 450 odd, rank and file, and spent tho afternoon at Miramar, where company drill of a fairly advanced kind (skirmishing tactics, etc.), were carried out. After a steady afternoon's work the men were dismissed for "Spell-o" and tea, just before six', and after this welcome rest come more drill, the regiment being finally dismissed about 8 p.m. The threo company units of the Garrison Artillery Division'were at their respective stations—Fort Kelburno (Xgahauranga), Fort Ballance (Mnhanga Bay), and Fort Dorset (Seatoun)—and put in the afternoon at fort manoeuvring and gun-drill. ]) Battery (tho Wellington Mountain Artillery Corps) was also on parade.

Says tho "Enilwny Officers' Advocate":— The Appeal Board proposed under the Public .Service Act now before the House of Representatives is framed on much licttcr lines than the Railway Appeal Board. If tho clauses relating to it pass through Parliament in their present form, officers of the different services which arc to come under tho Bill will have tho opportunity to appeal against any decision of the Public Service Commissioner concerning promotion, salary or punishment. The power to be given the tward is much greater than that held by the Railway Board, as it is provided that tho decision of the board is to bo final. Mr. ,T. C. Cooper, managing director of the Wellington Farmers' Jleat Company, states that the Slaughtermen's Awards in connection with the various meat freezing companies expires in December, January, and February, arid already demands aro being made for increased pay and shorter hours. It is considered probable (says our Jfasterton correspondent) that there will bo trouble during the flush of the veason. The whaling season has been as profitless in Tonga as in New Zealand. The Tongnn correspondent of the Auckland "Herald" states that very little success has so far attended the efforts of Mr. Albert Cook and his crew this season, only two whales having been secured. The farm at Woking Park, Surrey, set apart by the Hon. Kupert Guinness, M.1 , ., with the object of imparting to prospective British emigrants some practical knowledge of farming methods as practised in Canada has proved so popular and successful that Mr. Guinness has decided to rebuild and remodel the farm and equip it in every possible way on the lines of Canadian farms. Since tho formation of tho scheme a few months ago (writes a , London correspondent under date of August 23) nearly 100 men have passed through the farm, aud, while the majority have gone to Canada, several are now in New Zealand and Australia. Xlr. Guinness and his wife—bettor remembered in New Zealand as Lady Gwendolen Onslow —are now in Canada, and it is the intention to start a similar farm on the Canadian side to work in conjunction with the farm at Woking, so that, men will get longer training uiider actual Canadian conditions.

On Saturday afternoon Cno Carl StelJin was arrested on a charge, of betting in Barrett's Hotel. Ho was taken before the Court, and was remanded till Wednesday. Tho question of underpaid Baptist ministers is exciting Rome discussion in South Australia. The liev. 1\ C. Spurr, of Melbourne, was careful to point out that there was no connection between the Baptists' economy in the matter of stipends and (heir liberality in tho use of water. "Indeed, as Mr. Spurr shows," says the Jlolbourne "Herald," "wealthy England's richly endoned State Church sweats its curates with a whole-hearted intensity. Tho financial position of the clergy has always been shocking. Why the parson is sweated is not easy'to say. It is a curious tiling that many poor parsons are fond of telling the worker that he should look to the spirit which the churches foster, rather than to wages boards or arbitration courts for better pay. Looking at clerical salaries, the artisan nnd the clerk shake their heads. The bolder of them think there should bo ecclesiastical wages boards. Why should n butchering company be forbidden to sweat slaughtermen, and the churches be allowed to sweat clergymen? The hymen inside tho churches must see to the matter, or the laymen outside the churches may toll thorn bluntly that the wives and children of the clergy are to be protected from tho sweater, just as are tho wives and children of ordinary citizens." Bad shooting and lack of. enthusiasm for work on the rifle range are indicated by the report on the Commonwealth military forces, which was issued recently by Major F. B. Heritage, Commandant of tho School of Musketry at Randwick. Of the 17,081 men on the Australian strength, only !)7 per cent, fired through the set course for recruits, Queensland having the most disappointing figures, with 29 per cent.; while Victoria was a poor best with 49. Of the "tiained men" 40 per cent, were fully exercised, New South Wales showing the highest average—s6 per cent., while only i§ per cent, of the Tasmanians fired through, and 30 per cent, failed to do any target work at all. In West Australia 17 per cent, of the men were not exercised. New South Wales soldiers gained the best results; but thej were poor, as only 7(1 per cent, succeeded in qualifying. In Queensland the figure of merit was b'i, in Victoria 50, in South Australia 64, in West Australia 44, and in Tasmania 42. Out of 17,081 men, only 54 per cent, qualified in Australia, which is distinctly bad.