LOCAL AND GENERAL

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2336, 18 December 1914, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

In the paet Wellingtonians and visitors to the City have had to_ pay double fares on the trams on Christmas Day. This year Sunday rates are to obtain, which means that on all afternoon rune ordinary changes will be made. Tho City Council has been advised that a collection of birds captured by the New Zealand troops at Samoa has been forwarded and presented to the Wellington Zoo. "It'e very strange ■ that the three brothers could not settle this thing," said Hie Honour the Chief Justice in the Supreme Court yesterday morning, after delivering reserved- judgment in a ease in which the plaintiff and the two 'defendants were brothers. The whole dispute, as Hie Honour pointed out, was over a piece of land worth £10, and the costs would run into hundrede of pounds. "They (the three brothers) ought to have a medal presented to them by the Law Society," was His Honour s concluding comment on tho case. .

The Wellington Hospital and Charitable Aid Board yesterday decided to inatruct their architect to order, on behalf of the board, from Messrs. James Slater and Co., London, appliances to the amount of £430 175., for the proposed new kitchen at the Hospital. It was also decided that a "Salamanca" cooking range to cook for 400 persons should be made locally.

Alterations in two of the city taxioab stands are to be made. The stand at Dixon Street is to be altered to the middle of the street, and set back suffioiently far from the street alignment to give plenty of room for vehicles to turn from one street into the other. The necessary alterations are to bo made in the taxi stand at the Publio Trust Office, Lambton Quay, to permit the ocoupiers of the new building at Lambton Quay to gain access through such stand.

From inquiries instituted yesterday it was ascertained that the rise in pri','e ; of bread in Wellington will probably date from January 1. Local bakers state that even if they could procure flour at the price fixed by tho Food Commission (£l3 10s. per ton f.o.b in the south) there is no margan of. profit in selling the 21b. loaf at 4Jd. It could be done if all the broad were sold over tEe counter, but a careful computation of the coet of distribution with the aid of horse-drawn carts works out at a shade under Id. per loaf, owing to the wide area ovor which deliveries have to bo made. As to whether the Government importation of wheat from Canada will make any difference depends entirely on.what price tho grain will bo sold at to the millers. If, as rumoured, the price will approximate 6s. per bushel, there would bo every probability of the price of the 2lb. loaf being raised to sd. ■ '

The Roßeneath and Oriental Bay Municipal Association is to be informed by the City Council, in reply to their request for a tram service on Sunday mornings (to enable residents in the district to reach town in time for church) that such request cannot bo acceded to owing to tho expense involved, but that it will be possible to arrange to run a car on the Oriental Bay lino after completion of a Seatoun trip, and that such car could leave the Bay at about 10.15 a.m. If, after a trial, this arrangement wae found satisfactory it could, bo continued.

•Recently there has been a desire expressed to change tho names of Grass Street and Hay Street, Oriental Bay. The City Council resolved last evening: "That the Roseneatli and Oriontal Bay Municipal Association should be informed that they must first obtain the consent of the owners of property in Grass and Hay Streets to any change of name, before the council will consider Dhe question." .

Mr. B. M. Wilson, General Manager, of the Tourist Department, has been advised that the ToAnau to Milford Track is this season in excellent order, and that a largo number oftravellers have alroady booked for "the finest walk in the world." The .new suspension, bridge over the Arthur River has etood the ivinter -well, and the fitting of the. boats on Lake Ada -with auxiliary enginos will make an appreciable difference to the time and comfort of travellers. The bookings of the Department at Mount Cook and Waltomo Caves and the Milford Track are well in advance of last 'season.

The Wellington South _ Progressive Society is to be informed in reply to a request that tepid swimming baths should be constructed at Wellington South, that tho matter will be considered next year, and that at tlie prosent time tho council has no monoy available for such work.

Two prisoners will appear for sentence in the Supreme Court this morning before His Honour the Chief Justice (Sir Robert Stout). They are Robert Parker, breaking, entering, and thett at Napier, snd Frank Lawson,' breaking, entering, and thett at Fetono. The portion of the Town Hall immediately below the organ is to be made Rro-reßisting, and with some automatic fijQ «!«)».

It was reported to yesterday's meeting of the Hospital and Charitable Aid Board that during the month ended Daceinbor 7 the Health Inspector had investigated forty cases of infectious diseaees, as under (1913 figures are given in parentheses):—Scarlet fever, 13 cases (33); chicken-pox, 18 (14)! diphtheria. 3 (3); entericr fever, 0 (1); tuberculosis, 6 (8); blood poisoning 0 (1). Total, 40 (60).

The following notloe appears in thW week's "Gazette": —"lt is hereby di-* reeled that all foreign residents of New /joaland who hove not been naturalised within this Dominion, and who are subjects of any of the Sovereigns with whom His Majesty the King is now at war, are required to forthwith. report themselves at the nearest police' sta--j' al r tllore re g! st er their names' and such other particulars as may be : required. Such persons are hereby for-' bidden to travel more than twenty miles from their homes without first receiving: a permit from the polioo so to do."

• On account of Boxing Day falling on, a baturday tho request "of the corpora-' tion employees for a half-day holiday i on Thursday, December 24, has beeai granted, but it is to be understood that: those employees responsible for the! cleanliness of the streets and rhe col-! lection of refuse do not participate, and the time is to be made up to them.

Yesterday afternoon the drawing of the art union for -the beautiful suppertable cloth worked by Mrs. P. Isaacs, of The Terraco, for the:benefit of the Belgian Fund, took place in the Mayor's room in the presence of a. number of interested ladies and the requisite police constable.' In all 1238 Is. tiokets were sold, sp that the amount realised for the fund was £61 Bs., a cheque for which was handed to the Mayor yesterday by Mr. Isaacs. The winning ticket proved to be . No. 158, which is held by Mrs. Easterfield, wife of Professor Easterfield, of Victoria College. Mrs. Isaacs, 'who executed the delicate work within three weeks, wishes to thank all who asseisted in making the_ art union so decided a success, in particular Mrs. Lachman (who sold 149 tickets), the Dresden Piano Company, and Edward Anderson and Co., of Willis Street.

When.tho Tramway Committee reported to the City Council last eveningthat, as a matter of urgency, they had; authorised the City Engineer to construct a siding at Coiirtenay Place to; enable extraordinary and holiday traffic at this pointto be efficiently dealt! ■with, the council confirmed the committee'e .action.

One thing that had been noted in; London, said Mr. C. A. Ewen, general! manager of the Commercial Union As-! surance Company, who ha 6 just return-! Ed from England, was the remarkable] decrease hi crime since the outbreak I of the war The records of the Courts | proved that there had been a striking diminution in all classes of crime since England went to war, and the fact had been quoted as one to prove howj deeply all classes were affected, or ( rather influenced, by the national' situation.

A member of the crev of the steamer Maori, named Bert Cornfoot met with a serious accident on board that vessel while it was berthed at the Queen's Wharf yesterday morning. Cornfoot fell from the upper deck, fracturing i both feet. He was removed to the Hospital after first aid had been ren-J dered. i \

Bishop Averill, in the couree of an address in Auckland upon "The Responsibilities of Empire," said that British conception of the need for progress and of the responsibility involved Jr world-empire had not kept pace with the expansion of the Empire. The averago Briton had shut his eyes to the,' warning uttered by the lato Lord Salis-j bury and Lord Boborts, and bed foa-j tered an illusion of security by scarce-; ly veiled contempt fcfr the foreigner and; by neglect to keep in/touch with mod-! em history. The present position of. the German Empire was largely the outcome of the inspiration of history, the obsession of the idea that Germany, was destined to exercise ■world-domin-ion. But Germany had scorned theideal that tho kingdom and the nation, that would not eerve God should perish—that "righteousness exalteth. a na-', tion"— and that the only true founda,] tions of Empire were justice, freedom, honour, and truth. "England at last seems to he awakening to a sense of responsibility," said the Bishop, "but I doubt if New Zealand is. England is giving of her best to this crusade, ana if New Zealand gave in* the same, proportion as England is doing of her dons. New Zealand would have to give 50,000. Belgium's blood has been shedj for us; France's blood has been shed, for us; Russia's blood has been shedfor us. What is.our sacrifice compared' with theirs P And we are tie objective! of Germany." • \

The date for which nominations will -J be received by the Labour Department for the position of employers' member, of the Arbitration Court has been ex-, tended from January 11 to January 27, owing to the intervention of the Christ, i mas and New Year holidays. ;

Advice was received at police head-i quarters yesterday from Pongaroa that' a "swagger" named Illingworth, : who) had been arrested on a charge of ■ vagi rancy, committed suicide by himself while imprisoned in the police cell. An inquest is to be held. \

The Belgian "Sorap of Paper" oalen-j dar for 1015 is a neat little calendar,' which is to bo sold in the streets or Wellington to-day by the ladies of the , Vivian Street Baptist Clrareh in aid of \ the Great Britain and Belgium Distress," Fund. Tho calendar is illuminated, with the colours of gallant little Bel-] fiium, and underneath the red, white,/ and blue tag appears Viscount Bryce'aj dictum on "scraps of paper"— "Thaj faith of treaties is the only solid foun-' 1 dation on which a temple of peace can\ bo built up." The movement, which is/ under the patronage of His Excellency, the Governor, deserves the cordial sup-J port of tho public. \

Grass fires have caused serious; trouble in Miramar on several recenfc occasions, and valuable property has/ thereby been endangered. A few nights • ago the captain of the Borough" Fire Brigade caught two boys in tho act of; starting a firo, and the matter was re*' ported to the Borough Council. At? last night's meeting of the counoil it, was decided to insert notices in the) newspapers, warning parents of their, responsibility in eroh cases. The mat-' ter of dealing with the two boys men-} tioned above was also considered, anoV, the Mayor (Mr. F. Townsend) was given! power to take such action as he con-) eidered necessary after he had conferred; with the captain of the brigade. \

In the city engineer's scheme-for ttoti reorganisation of the staff of his de- ; partment (which tho City Council has; adopted), Mr. J. M. Morlce, assistant city engineer, ia to retain his present", position, and also act as superintending engineer of water eupply and sewer* age works, and take sub-charge of all; work in connection with these two branches, and to generally direct the* waterworks and drainage overseers in all operations. Mr. A. J. Paterson isto be superintending engineer for etreeti and general works, to generally direct the operations of the overseers in,charge of streot improvements, main/ tenance and repairs. '

Yesterday morning tho unusual spec-, taelo of a young girl about 18 vears of «go masquerading in male attiro was witnessed at Petone. Calling at a hairdresser's saloon, slio expressed a desiro to have her hair cut. Upon the barber, who guessed that something was wrong, refusing, she stated she would cut it off herself. Upon trying another saloon she was shorn of ho rtresses,' and took the 8.40 train to Wellington; The girl is a stranger to 'Wellington, and no-; thing is known of her.

The Pongaroa sohool children have shown, their sympathy with the needy Belgians by forwarding. as a. donation to the Belgium Fund £20 16s. Bd., a sum whicb was collected in the district for the annual school concert and prizes. A sleeping-car of new design for use on the North Island-Main Trunk line has just been built in the Petone shops. It is of the same size over all as tho ordinary express coach for the New Zealand railways, but a saving in space is made by the absorption into the covered part of the car of tho space, usually taken up by the.end platforms. The carriage will have to be entered always from the platform of an adjoining one. This has made possible greater comfort in the accommodation for passengers. Instead of four four-berth and two two-berth cabins, this car has five two-berth and two*four-berth cabins, and the two-berth cabins, which in tho teld-style coach .are too narrow to allow full-grown persons to take easy postures when sitting up in the daytime, are quite a foot wider and of a very_ comfortable size. The oarriage is lit throughout by electrio light, for which the current is supplied from a dynamo driven from an axle of one of the bogies, and storage batteries will suffice to keep the oarriage lighted for 50 or 60. hours after the dynamo stops, if necessary. Several other minor improvements make generally for greater comfort or greater oleanliness, where such ■Improvements were most desirable. : Inquiry was made of the Prime 'Minister yesterday as to the pVice at ' which he proposed to sell -the wheat '■ coming from Canada to the order of the : New 'Zealand Government. "Needless to say we/don't want to make any profit on the wheat imported/' said Mr. Massey. "Probably it will be sold by us at a slight jjjse. There is this to be considered,' however: if we sell it at below cost, this, will prevent any private individuals from importing wheat, and as there is a shortage we do not wish to discourage importation. There is our difficulty." The secretary of the Aged Merchant Seamen's Instituti<J&, London, writes making an appeal on behalf of the aged seamon at present destitute in England. He points out that at the present critical moment, when our. national supremacy is more than ever dependent upon our armed forces bn land and sea, there is one important unit, of our Empire, who, by the .very' uriobtrusivenees of his services, is liable to be overlooked, viz.-, the merchant sailor. To him we turn in peace and war for the very necessaries-of life, yet there are hundreds of these worthy seamen in bitter distress—old, blind, and crippled, who cannot obtain employment, and whose case is hopeless in the'extreme. For nearly half a century the Royal Alfred Institution has provided a home or pension for aged and destitute British merchant seamen. An appeal is made for assistance, and contributions can be eent to the Royal Alfred Aged Merchant Seamen's Institute, 58 Fenchurch Street, London, E.G. Colonel Robin informed the Mayor yesterday that the number of recruits offering for service at the front is very satisfactory indeed. The City Council has granted the free use of tho Concert Hall on Monday, December 21, to the Workers' Educational Association (Wellington branoh) for the purpose of holding their inaugural meeting. A meeting of supporters of the Reform Party in Dunedin and Port Chalmers was held last night, says a Press Association telegram, when it was decided unanimously to form a branch of the Neiw Zealand_ Political Reform League. A committee of 20 wae appointed to go into various matters connected with the movement and report to a general meeting to be held not later than the third Wednesday in January. ■;'._... .The City Council: hits consented to 'the holding of performances in the City theatres on Christmas Day, subject to the programmes being approved by the Town Clerk. ■ .... • • "There is no one in England who has done so much to speed up recruiting in • that country as the Kaiser has by ordering the bombardment'of the English coast," remarked Councillor E. 'Tregear at the City Council meeting last evening. Last evening the City Council approved a proposal to make certain increases in the salaries of the staffs of the Town Clerk's, City Treasurer's, Citj Solicitor's, City Engineer's and Tramway and Lighting Departments'. A man was arrested . by Deteofcive Bailey yesterday afternoon on i chiirge of receiving stolen property to the .amount of £25. Hβ will appear in . Court this morning. Owing to the festive season making its appeofl-amee, the Wellington City Council will not meet again till January 25. . x The new steel pipes which span the iWainui Stream on reinforoed concrete piles at the location'in the valley where a great deal of erosion has imperilled their stability, ares, now ready to be connected up so as to become a section of the principal water-main from the reservoirs in that district. It is not the'present intention of the City Engineer (Mr. W. H. Morton) to proceed with that work, as it would mean supplying the City from the Karori dams for two or three days', besides which the present mains at the spot concerned are not likely.to be affected during the summer montljs, when the stream is comparatively low. Unless anything untoward takes place the work of con° ncoting up the big main with the new section of pipes will not be attempted before the end of March next. : The Wellington dog tax/for 1915 has been fixed at 10s. per dog. Regulations made by Order-in-Coun. cil, relating to the avoidance or suspension of the registration of any patents or trade marks, the proprietors of which are subjects of any. State'at war with. His Majesty, aTe published in the Gazette. The offices of the City Corporation will be closed for the Christmas and New Year holidays from December 24 until January 3. .. ■ '■ Tenders were dealt with by the City Council as follow last evening:— Water meters, certain tests have to be made; Town_ Belt lease,' none accepted; excavation Newtown car eheds, Kennedy , , l £ ewe > accepted; cable, Richardson, M'Cabe and Co., accepted. In order to make the ceiling of the lown Hall portico secure against future earthquakes, the whole of the plaster has been removed. -It is being replaced with strong stamped steel, .which cannot very well crack or give way without the whole structure is damaged.