LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1804, 17 July 1913, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

> "It is intended to make a commence- ! nijont with the central railway station at i Wellington as soon as the plans are com- . pleted and funds are available," said the Minister for Railways (Ihe Hon. W. H. Herrics) .in tho House of Representatives yesterday. "Tho preparation of plans for • a work of this kind js one of considerable • magnitude, and tho greatest possible care . lias to 1)0 exercised to provide a scheme that will bo sufficient to mket all tho requirements of the business for many • years to come. It is my intention to ask the llouso for power to raiso a special ! loan, to be spread over a term of years, for this and other large works in other cities and towns." The question as to how to most profitably expend tho Carnival money is now a little nearer solution. The Citizens' Association Carnival Committee held a meeting last evening, when many schemes wero under review, and it was finally resolved to confine further consideration to three schemes, viz.; The Pirie Street Reserve; improvements to the Town Belt, Nairn Street: and tho construction of a road somewhere on the harbour side of the hills surrounding the city. The committee, together with the City Engineer, the' City Forester, and tho superintendent of City Deserves, will visit the above sites and make V general inspection on Wednesday. Juno 23, with the object of determining as to how the money is to be finally allocated. The Minister for Railways anticipates, he told Jllr. T. K. Sidey, M.P., in the House of Representatives yesterday, that motor-carriages will be in service on some of the suburban railways of the Dominion within tho next twelve months. Motorcars for experimental purposes, the Minister added, had already been ordered, and would probably liavo arrived in the Dominion ere this, but for tho fact that later experiments in connection with the type of car that had been decided on indicated that certain improvements could be made. The patentees had been requested to attach these improvements to thi ,cars already on order. A suggestion that tho Government should offer a bonus for the discovery of one or ,iuore oyster-beds in close proximity to the shores of New Zealand is to receive the consideration of Cabinet. According to Mr. J. G. Wilson, president of tho Farmers' Union, the supply of wool in the wojld is not sufficient to meet tho demand, and it is possible that there will be nil increased demand for wool if the Americans put it on the free list. .This change'in the American policy of Protection, said Mr. Wilson at the Union Conference,. was very significant. The high tariff on wool had made clotlilcs so costly to the worker that they had demanded that the tariff should be reduced so as to cheapen the raw product. The requirements of the population of the States had grown far beyond the native wool produced, and tho result had been, large importations at prohibitive rates. Theso had had to be passed on to tho consumer, thus increasing the cost of living. If tho cheapening of clothes was the result, and tho people bought more in consequence, it wculd have a hardening effect on prices. Mr. W. A. Yeitch, M.P., was informed by tho Minister for Railways in the House of Representatives yesterday that a suggestion that people with families. should bo gTanted reductions in railway fares would bo considered when the new General Manager arrived from England. Tho Minister slated that it was his intention to go fully into the question of tariff charges with the General Manager. Mr. Veitc'h's suggestion was that tlio fares of children should bo reduced in tho following scalo:—Under three years of age, free; between three and seven, quarter fare; between seven and thirteen, naif-fare. At a meeting of the executive of the New Zealand Civil Servico Association, it was decided that tile forthcoming conferenco of delegates should be further postponed until about three weeks after the Public Service' Commissioner publishes his classification of the Service, so as to give time fo;- officers to consider it before instruct-' ing their delegates. Invitations have been issued by the Mayor and councillors of Petone and Messrs. Thomas Ballinger and Co. to th'e official opening of the new electric chiming clock, erected over the Borough Council's offices in Petone. The clock, which was manufactured by Gent and Co., of Leicester, England, and installed by Ballinger and Co., is tho first one of its kind in New Zealand. It is fitted with the familiar "Westminster" chimes of a particularly pleasing tone. The new clock will cbime tho quarter hours, and strike the hours. "It is not the intention of the Government to proceed at present with the erection of a portion of the Dominion Museum,".tho Prime Minister stated in re- . ply to a. question in tho House of Representatives yesterday. "The Government will later on propose the appointment of a Committee of the House to consider tho question whether the Parliamentary Library building and tho grounds attached thereto aro not moro suitable than the site- of the present Museum." Round about Parliament Buildings are places where members wash their handA, and for tho purpose the Government supplies tablets of very inferior chjsap soap, of American manufacture. Mr. J. V. Brown, of Napier, discovered this recently, although tho brand of soap has not been changed for several years, and asked the Government to buy soap of English or New Zealand manufacture. The reply he got to his question was that the soaps were of English or New Zealand manufacture. Mr. Brown thereupon produced a cake of soap in the House yesterday, and read tho brand, which the name of. the place of origin. Now York. "Where did you get that?" a member asked. "Will you put it-back?" asked another. It is, alleged that some of the soap is taken away by peoplo who do not ask questions about it. Perhaps this is the reason why. the soap is inferior, and why American soap is purchased. Mr. D. H. Guthrie, M.P., has given notice to ask the Minister for Railways in the House of Representatives whether he will, at as early a date as possible, provide better facilities for the public at tho Feilding railway station by such an extension of the present platform, southwards, as will enable two trains to be drawn up to the platform, and also to alldw of shunting and other such operations being carried on without necessitating the blockage of tho main business thoroughfare of the town fKiinbolton Road) or else converting the present station into an island-platform station. Tho Minister for Education stated in reply to a question in tho House of Representatives yesterday that the matter of increasing tho salaries of tho lower paid school teachers is under 'consideration, but that it is doubtful if any legislation can bo introduced during tho present session.