LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1921, 2 December 1913, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Yesterday boiup; St. Andrew'?'. Dtt v, all the Government offices were closed.'

A speedy method of conveying coal to ilio distant .suburbs is now * being employed in Wellington. Yesterday two oi the St Tile coal carts filled with bugged coal wen) backed up against the tramway freight ear, and the coal was transferred to the our, This new method of utilising the tramway son ic,s for the carriage 0? enal may in time lead to a new branch of the service. Hitherto the work of the freight car has been pretty well restricted to the carriage of parcels, luggage, and small goods, but these have not- paid their way, and probably an experiment will ho made to 11 so the ear for moro bulky goods. On Wednesday night, at Ha'.vera, a strike sympathiser was anathematising iho "cookies." and stated that- ho would [rive ten shillings to the hospital if a "eockio" would do likewise. To Ins surprise, ho was at once taken up. The amount was collected by an amused .spectator, and was forwarded to the Hospital Board with an explanatory note. ) Hie. successful tenderer for the erection of the Government, workshop 011 Hill Street, adjoining the olil Parliament Buildings, is Mr. W. H. P. Bennett. The contract price is between £2000 and £3000. Owing to the industrial troublo Mr. Dennett,lias not yet, been ablo to malco a start with the work. The workshop is to replace one hitherto situated adjacent- to the Government Printing Office. The extension of the latter building has made it necessary to remove the workshop to a new site. Jt is used princioaUy as'a woodworking shop in which offico fittings used in the various Government offices in Wellington are made and repaired. A meeting of the Wellington Licensing Committee, held yesterday, was attended by Messrs. W. G. Jiiddell, S.M, (presiding), It. Fletcher, G. Tiller, G. •J. I'etheriek, and W. J. Melycr. Tiie following transfers of licenses were approved, Superintendent Ellison offering no objection:—Princess Theatro Hotel, T, Palmer to P. T. Podersen; Masonic Hotel. J. Sullivan to L. P. O'Brien; Commercial Hotel, 31. H. Robertson to A. A. E. HardcasHc. Mr, A. A. Wyllo appeared in support of the- application in each case. For the destruction of flies a New Zpalander has invented a novel method of utilising sunny windows for tho trapping and killing of the insects, A small tm frame to fit in tho framo of the window is made and it carries a littlo tray that fits close up to tho glass. The tray is tilled with kerosene, the fumes of which rise under the heat of the sun. Flies walking on the. glass become overcome by the fumes of the kerosene and fall into the trap, where they aro drowned. Tho State schools under the Wellington Education Hoard will close 011 llmrsday, December 18, i'or tho niklMimmcr vacation. Tlmy will mpen 011 Monday, February 2.

The family of Mr. J. Miller, of Iva< kulii, had a marvellous cscape oitThurs-, any last. At half-past six o'clock that \ evening, during a severe thunderstorm, a flash of lighimiic: camo down tlio chimney into the kitchen. Mrs. Miller and lier two step-sons were ill the room at tho time. - 'lhe lightning scarred the cheek of one of tlio boys from ear to olun, and knocked tlio other unconscious. It turned Mrs. Miller violently round and flashed out of tho door, kill', ins: a pig which was standing in front of tho house. To-night at 8 o'clock in the Town Hall the. jubiico celebrations of St. John's Church will tuko tiic form of a conversazione and social reunion. Interesting addresses and music in which some of the best-known local singers will take part will 'oo submitted. Many former members of St. John's are expected to be present, and a very peasant evening is anticipated. On several occasions what has bisn termed "tho human dislike to fresh air" has been referred t.<r at tlio cost of living inquiry at tho Industrial Court in Sydney. A land agent, in giving evidcncs, declared that ho had seen ventilators plastered over and fireplaces covered up, "Fi-csh air would kill some people," he said, to the amusement of the Court, Another witness he'd the same view. He was a municipal officer, with a largt. practical experience, and lie said it was not uncommon to see all the doors and of a dwelling closed tight to the outside air. He did not know why. but such was the case. "Fresh air will not hurt anybody," ho added disgustedly. Air. Holm (for tho Employers' Federation) considered the workers wct'o great offenders against hygiene in this respect. To Mr. Connington (for tlio Trades and Labour Council), who disagreed with him, he remarked with an air of finality, "ion cannot show .mo an open window or door in a workinc-class suburb." A protest of Lieutenant-Colonel S. H, Dantra, late of the Indian military service, against the action of the Customs authorities fin declining allow him to settle in Tasmania with his family, has been received _by the Commonwealth External Affairs Department. Tho letter points out that, while lie, a subject of the. King, is refused admission, yet a foreigner with no other qualification's but a vrhito skin, is allowed to settle in any of tho Commonwealth. Tiio Department insists that Colonel Dantra is a Eurasian, and that tile law 1 is that coloured persons must be excluded. _ Yesterday Detectives Cameron and j Haiiey arrested a man, who will appear j at tho Magistrate's Court this mornj iug to answer a charge of theft of two overcoats, valued at £-1, the property of Henry Welch. Tho theft is alleged to have taken place on November 123.

An Auckland resident, Mr. J. J. o',Sullivan, has invented a mechanical contrivance for the purpose of giving adequate warning of tlio approach of trains at level crossings- Many systems and contrivances Imvo been patented in different pans of the world to cope with the level-erasing danger, most of tiiem ciectrical, but either because tliey were too expensive or two complicated, there is 110 record of their having been adopted. In England mid tho United States men arc- still employed to open and shut levcl-crossin;.; gates. Mr. O'Sullivau claims that liis imcntiou is entirely automatic in its operation, and it. may briefly be do. scribed as follows: —At cash side of the crossing, at ft distance that mny bo considered necessary, is a small upright lever. These levers are connected by means of a wire with a signal post nfc (lie crossing, Tho signal post, besides bearing n danger-arm, is equipped with an electric alarm gong, When the engine, approaching the crossing, reaches the lever it depresses it. This immediately hoists the signifi-arm to the horizontal danger position, and the alarm I-el I starts >o clang out lis warning, whi."ii continues until the tram has passed the crossing and come into contact with tin* other lever. This lever, on ?>emg depressed by the engine, sets the signal-arm at safety again ami the bed ceases. A train cnmiwi i'rom the opposite direction repeats this operation ill a similar way. The inventor states thai lie intends to interview the Minister of Jl-iilws wgsrrtinp the invention on tho latter'ii return to Wellington.

A young Maori witness, in a case at the recent siUina of tho Magistrate's "-"urt at Port Awaiuii. m response to tin- preliminary <inestim> from tlm lipilell: "What arc yoii?" replied, per medium of tho interpreter: "1 am sometimes a gentleman and soinc-timcß I do sonic- work," a statement that for some seconds caused much amusement and completely broke up the serenity of ilie Court. Sir George Ilcid c-flVred some advice last week at a lunchcon in Sydney as lo i'ic value- of sell-criticism, "If you want to succeed in iifo," he said, "you should not trust entirely to your Newspaper critics or your political adversaries. You should be a perpetual critic of yourself, watching what you say and haw you say it. 1 have often followed tho plan o.f bringing myself up in judgment before myself, and giving myseif a great reckoning. Tiiis" plan has many advantages. You are sure of a friendly critic to begin with, ftiul thatsort of mental introspection is one of the finest helps which any mr.n in public life couid have. Of course," he went on, amidst- laughter, "candidates at Parliamentary elections, who are seeking tho suffrages of unknown quantities, cannot be expected to practise any such introspection. It is quite enough for them to show up faithfully and fully the defects of the other fellow."

A recent copy of tho "Jewish Chronicle" (London) has been forwarded to a Wellington resident showing the manner m which, any objectionable mutter is dealt v»'ith in the kingdom of tiio Tsar. Tile copy ill question contained as a supplement two pages of a previous issue of the "chronicle" in which had been reprinted from the New York an open letter to the. Tsar, with the recent shocking persecution of Jews as tho outcome, oi the Beillis case. Tins copy had been sent to a Russian subscriber who hari received tho same with the whole of tho article completely blacked out. _ A copy has been received of No. C, Vol. 2, of "The Palroerstonian," tho , organ of the Pahnerston North High School. Compiled and edited by the pupils attending tho school, this littlo publication is a model one of its hind, and as a, rword of school events and activities is all-embracing. As might ho expected, a largo number of pages .are devoted to chronicling the results of various school games and matches, hut perhaps tho best part of tho issno is contained in the* Form and House Notes. Here- are set out many matters of interest to tho school, and as tho writers oft-times wield a gently ironical pen, perusal of the notes makes entertaining leading. Typographically tho issue is of the best, n feature being tho blocks of the various school hockey and football teanis. Compulsory registration, n cussed term 'of late, was tho subject of some consideration at the meeting of the P-otone Borough Council last night. On this occasion, however, reference was not being made to unionism, but rather to the canine inhabitants of the distriot. Notwithstanding an effort to have them reduced by half, the license fees are ttt remain; the same during tho current year, "working" docs to ho admitted to registration at half price.