NOTES OF THE DAY

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2423, 31 March 1915, Page 4

NOTES OF THE DAY

The discharge of over three thousand tons of general cargo from tho llotui'iia in thirty hours is a remarkable piece of work on which Captain Momio and those under him have been deservedly congratulated. It has been one of the boasts of the war that no army has ever before been so well fed as that under Sir John French. Whatever the privations the men have had to undergo in the trenches they have at least been sure of regular supplies of good, wholesome food. New Zealand is now taking its part in the work of feeding the army in France, and so far as Wellington is concerned the appeal for all possible dispatch in t-lie handling of the food ships has not fallen on deaf cars. The work has been done with a will, and a new record in handling cargo has been established for the "Dominion. If all concerned in sending forward the food supplies from New Zealand approach the task in the same spirit as was shown on tho Wellington wharves, Tommy Atkins in the trenches in the strenuous days ahead will not be going hungry because of laxity at this end.

A matter to which the Government. might well give attention, if it has not already done so, is the provision made by local bodies for those members of their staffs enlisting in the Expeditionary Forces. The Education Board yesterday received notice that the State had agreed to pay the superannuation contributions of teachers absent on military service. This is a satisfactory announcement that will meet with general approval. The position with respect to the employees of local bodies, however, peeds clearing up. A message from Gisborne this morning states that the local Harbour Board has been advised that a grant of half-pay during his period on active service, voted by it to one of its staff, is illegal. The resolution making this allowance has therefore been rescinded. No doubt other local bodies are in tie runic position, and if an amendment in the law is required to enable some allowance to be made the matter demands consideration. A recommendation from the Government as to the course to pursue in these eases would be welcomed by most local bodies, particularly if accompanied bv a promise that any necessary enabling legislation would he introduced. Such action, moreover, would tend to bring about a desirable uniformity in the treatment of men enlisting from the staffs of public bodies.

What proportion of those persons using the Wellington Hospital deliberately sponge on the public i No one desires to see every unfortunate person disSharged from the Hospital ruthlessly hounded down for the feo of two guineas a- week, but in view of the class of people who make use of the Hospital something is radically wrong when payment is made by only one patient in eight. From the discussion at the Hospital Board meeting that appears to be the present position. It is difficult to believe that of tho four thousand patients admitted annually only fivo hundred'are in a position to pay the fees. It would be interesting to know what steps a-re token to collect the sums due. When the tariff was increased eighteen months ago Mn. M'Laren complained that there was no established principle that certain people would not be forced to pay. The boot would seem to be on tho other foot. Is there any established principlo. that anybody will he forced to pay? A healthy step to reform would bo to prosecute a few of those patients who, while notoriously able to pay the fees, are so lacking J n self-respect as to decamp without doing so.

'Wellington City will have cause Lo remember the munificence of the late T. CI. JlAc.-uiTnr for many a lung clay. In their two annual allocations, the trustees set up under the will have distributed grants ranging iip to JJSOO apiece to between twenty-live and thirty local institutions. They have now annouueed that a sum of £6000 will be available for a convalescent home for vhildren. This handsome grant is the largest yet made by the board. With 1 lie (Jovernmenl subsidy it will "liable the Hospital Board to erect and equip a building with accommodation fr twenty inmates, ami usefully extend the work of Ihe pre>*•lll. Children's Hospital wiMi which lli« uiime ul JiuoH W'Aim is

associated. As the years go on the new Wilding will bo but one among many monuments to the foresight and public spirit of a citizen who lias set a magnificent example to his wealthy fellow citizens. The estate is one that should steadily increase in value, and eventually the portion of the income available for public purposes will be greatly increased. There is no other city in Australasia which has received so generous a gift from any single citizen. Thaxks Ix> the initiative of Mn. Luke, the threatened increases in the City milk bill have been averted, and the heart-to-heart talk between the farmers and the vendors brought about by him has resulted in a reasonable compromise. By the agreement entered into by the parties ill October last, milk was to be sold by the farmers at eightpcnce per gallon during March and April, and at tcnpcncc from May 1 to August 31. The recent circular issued by the Dairy Fanners' Association announced an immediate rise to tenpence, with other rises to be notified later. The Mayor's conference has ended in an agreement to sell at tenpence from April to July inclusive. with a decrease to ninepence in August. Th? householders under this arrangement will be supplied at the same price as last year—fivepence a quart from the beginning of April until the end of August. The result is decidedly satisfactory, and the Mayor is entitWl to credit for his prompt and su--cessfi.il attack on this phase of the cost of living problem.