LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2248, 7 September 1914, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The weekly English and Australian mails arrived at Auckland by the Maheno at 10 o'clock yesterday morning. The southern portion of tie mails will arrive here by tho Main Trunk train this afternoon. The Commission recently set up to regulate the prices of foodstuffs and other commodities in common use is still sitting in Wellington, and will remain here for some days. It is probable tliat the members will go to Christchurch before the end of the week. At present they are considering the prices of wheat, flour, and bread. The Prime Minister informed a reporter yesterday ttat tlie'Houso would probably be asked to deal with the Estimates on Tuesday night. He added that he did not think it would be necessary to introduce any emergenoy legislation, with the exception of a few amendments to remedy defect 6 in tho Acts already passed. None of these amendments would be serious or important. Mr. H. F. von Haast writes:—"You report Mr. Allen as saying on Friday night: 'As to the site ' (of the new museum) he believed the members of the board set up under tho Act of last year wore not decided about it.' This gives the impression that tho board has considered the matter. The board', however, has not yet been convened, and obviously at tho present time the question of forts, barracks, and camps must take precedence of museums and art galleries. ,. While the Union Company's training steamer Aparima (which will arrive at Wellington from Calcutta this morning) was at Singapore she was boarded by a representative of tlie Eastern Extension Tolograph Company, who informed the ship's officers that the port required the Aparima's wireless apparatus for use- on shore during the war. The whole of the steamer's- outfit was accordingly dismantled, carried ashore, and re-erected on a suitablo sito. Tho Aparitna's operator was also commandeered to take charge of the station. An almost total eclipse of the moon took place about one o'clock on Saturday'morning, and was plainly visible in Wellington, the conditions for observing it beinc esoeotionally. favourable.

On August 6 last, by proclamation, banknotes in New Zealand were made legal tender until September 6. By a proclamation published in a Gazette Extraordinary on Friday, banknotes are declared to be legal tender until October 7. A fire was started in the Artillery Supply Stores, Buckle Street, yesterday afternoon by tho upsetting of a kerosene lamp used by one of the artillerymen to heat water for shaving. Tho outbreak occurred a few minutes before 4 o'clock, and was extinguished by tho Oity Fire Brigade after a small amount of damage had been done. Nineteen bales of straw, an ambulauco stretcher, and several overcoats wero destroyed, but tho building was not damaged. "Are you guilty or not guilty?" was the loudly reiterated query of the Court orderly in the ear of a greyhaired offender for insobriety, of threescore years, in the Magistrate's Court on Saturday. In vain, the orderly changed from one ear to tho other, his vocal force increasing the while: the old man failed to comprehend. Perhaps he understood that somothing was required of hinij and during a cessation of vocal hostilities, he uttered one sentence —the only words ho uttered in the Court: "I came out of my rooms last night, and was locked out," ho said, "and then I came down here." Evidently this .was his own dim recollection of "tho night before." "He's a first offender," said Inspector Heudroy. "Oh —convicted and discharged," said the Magistrate. Tho orderly reopened the wordy bombardment,-with tho fresh intimation, but was oven loss successful fhan before. Ho' resorted to signs, used .the only one possible, and pointed to the door. Accused left the dock with alacrity. . It is.the duty of thirty-sevonunnatur-alised Germans who are on the parole list at the local police headquarters, to report themselves there once" in every twenty-four hours. The sub-sta-tions also have shorter lists of thoso on parole. This condition of liberty is being readily, complied with by those permitted to take advantage of it. Writing from Noumea (New Caledonia) on July 23,, to Mr. Maurice Casey, of a sister who is a resident says: "We are having anxious times. Happily your New Zealand volunteers oarno and reassured xis ; as we were expecting tho Germans daily. The French here are in raptures over your boys; they look so healthy and well fit for the task they have undertaken. This war has paralysed everything hore. Wo would be without food had it not boen for the arrival of the Australian fleet." "There is no Teason for alarm about supplies of wheat," was tho opinion expressed by Mr. P. Virtue, of the Northern 'Holler Milling Co., in the course of a talk with an Auckland reporter. The outlook, Mr. Virtue considered, was decidedly a bright ono, notwithstanding the cabled announcement that flour had risen to £10 10s. a ton in Sydney (a rise of 10s.). He saw no cause for abandoning tho optimistic view he had taken when the war broke out. Tho stocks of wheat and flour, both hero and in the Commonwealth, wore ample, and the Australian harvest was due at Christmas. The New Zealand harvest came in February, and all the indications were of the best. . '■ A letter received in Auckland from one of the men engaged in guarding the wireless station in Aw-anui gives some interesting particulars of the work which is being done there. The writer describes the countrv surrounding the station as an exceedingly bleak and cheerless stretch, of swamp-land, the township of Awa-nui being three miles away. AH -the supplies have to bo ordered by wire, and it takes two days for the articles to reach the camp. For the first five days tho detachment was under the command of Lieutenant Chivers, ond then '-tlio force was strengthened by 50 men from Whangarei, under Captain Proctor. With the advent of the new arrivals, the men were immediately set to work digging trenches in the , clayey soil. When not engaged in this manner, sentry duty is to be done, but whether on eentry-go or not, the men invariably sleep beside their. loaded rifles. So far. there, have been four akrme, a shot being the warning signal each time. A sauad of Maoris, who were included-in the detachment, show very great keenness; No chances are taken, and any delay in giving the password is promptly rewarded with a shot. "One of thri wireless, men who was dilatory in this respect," says the letter, "nad a bullet nkced sufficiently close to frighten st least six months' growth out , of him." The New Zealand Flaxmillors' 'Association has, says our Palmerston North correspondent, received an intimation that as an outcome of its.recent interviews with the Premier and the shipping companies a Shipping Companies' Freights and Charges Committee will hold an inquiry next _ Wednesday and take evidenco concerning freights, and cargo space. When marching back towards tho Awapuni camp on Friday, a squad of infantry was ■ run into by a: motor-car, which, apparently, tried to.avoid a collision with another car. Three or four men were bumped, fortunately without any serious Tesult. A meeting under the auspices of t!he Social-Demooratio Party was held in Everybody's Theatre last night, when Mr. J. Hudson, a delegate from Maitlond, New South Wales, explained the position with regard to the Maitland miners' look-out. Other speakers were Mr. P. Webb, M.P., and Mr. B. Somple. .