LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2433, 12 April 1915, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The Riverina, from Sydney, arrives at Auckland to-day, bringing an Australian mail only. The Wellington portion should arrive here by to-morrow morning's Main Trunk express.

One of the orders issued respecting the annual camp of the Fifth (Wellington) Regiment- reads: "You are hereby warned that Section 59, Part ,VII, of the Defence Act, 1909, prohibits the taking of liquor into camp. Anyono found doing so is liable to a fine of £20, and will bo. prosecuted in accordRnoo with the abovo Act."

; The effect of the war on the religious life of the community was referred to by the Rev. A. M; Johnson in lis sermon at St. Paul's Anglican Pro-Cathed-ral yesterday morning. Mr. Johnson said, that the Easter'which had just passed had been a memorable one in the history of the parish. There were 430 communicants on Easter day, which was a record for St.' Paul's, and he believed that similar increases had been experienced in other ■Wellington Daris'hes. ' There were unmistakable indications of a revival of religion in Britain, Prance, and Russia since the outbreak of the war, and he believed that a similar revival was jus}; beplrning to make itself felt in New Zealand.

The wide popularity of the -Lackland tepid saltwater baths is snuw.ii by the fact that since they were opened on Dccomber 7, no less a sum ihan £'1155 was received in ordinary fees up till the end of March. About £20 has' been received,from swimming carnivals and school children, making a total of nearly £1200 for the four nionohs. Commenting on these figures, the Mayor of Auckland remarked that the attendance during the winter mouths would prcbably be even larger than in trie summer, for the tempcratur© of the v ei could be iai6ed to any degree required uud lie could see no reason why the revenue from the baths sjiou'' 'i,ot approach £4000 per annum. As the capital outlay had been only £10,000, this result would probably.constitute a record among the world's successful municipal enterprises.

Reference to the necessity for opening up the Urewera country was made by Mr. Robert Burns, president of the Auckland Chamber of Commerce, at Friday's meeting of the council. Sir. Burns said he had noticed leading articles in the Prose calling upon the people of' Auckland to wake up and insist upon the Government opening up the Native land in the Urewera. Tho area involved was 056,000 acres, some of which would be of undoubted value if opened up. It seemed a crying shame that 1000 square milos of country should be left practically unused. It might be advisable to wait .''on the Minister of Lands on the subject >viien he was next in Auckland. Mr. E. Anderson, vicepresident, supported Mr. Burns's remarks, and it was decided to communicate with the Rotorua, Whakatane, Opotiki,, and Gisborne Chambers on tho matter.

Who is the oldest living resddont in New Zealand f The Auckland "Star" puts forward a candidate for tho honour—a sister of the late Mr. T. C. Williams. She is 94 years of ago, and has been a permanent resident of New Zealand for DO years, having arrived in the Dominion with her -parents when she was four years old. This is a fine record, but a little short of one in Otago. Mr. T. H. Haskell, of St. Clair, is well over 95 years old, and quite totive both mentally and physically.

Mr. Motosaku Tsuchiya, the Japanese journalist, took tho opportunity whilo in Dunedin of calling on the Rev. W. Gray Dixon at his residence in Roslyn, Mr. Gray Dixon having at one time been the teacher of the English language and literature in an engineering college in Japan, and a cousin of Mr. Tsuchiya having beeu one of his pupils. Mr. Tsuchiya speaks "witn great relish of his visit to ILr. ..Gray Dispn. "Mr. Gray Dixon," he says, "lias kept the names of the pupils he taught, and I think I checked off about one-third of them, and could toll their present abodes and professions. A great many of them 1 know personally. Among his pupils were the famous Professor Shiiuoso, inventor of the Shimose gunpowder, several profossors in the Tokyo Imperial "University, and the president of tho Kyushu University. Another one of his pupils, Oteko, is the chief engineer in tho Government woollen mills, which are the largest in Japan."

The two petro'-olectric motor-chassis which the City Council ordered for use on buses in connection with the tramway service have now arrived, and will he fitted with the bodies (already built) at Boca as possible.

A number of important questions relating to the conduct of the recent general elections in the Taumarunui, Hawke's Bay, and Bay of Islands electorates will come before a. ' full bench of the • Supreme Court for determination this morning. This is a sequel to the Taumarimui and Hawko's Bay election petition cases, partly heard towards the end of February at Te Kuiti and Napier respectively. The Court will consist of their Honours Mr. Justice Cooper, Mr. Jus--tice Chapman, Mr. Justico Hosking, and Mr. Justice Stringer. When tho judgment of the Court lias been given a date will be fixed for the addresses oF counsel on the 'whole case in which they are concerned. Liberty is reserved tor both parties to apply to tho Court for leave to call further evidence on matters arising out of tho examination or the counterfoils of the voting papers. Similar leave to either party is granted to apply for a scrutiny or a recount. The Dannevirko Borough Council on Friday evening supported the Runanga Borough Council in its protest against the advance in .the prices of foodstuffs and callin? upon the Government to regulate tho prices of common necessities. Mr. W. Ferguson, C.E., of Wellington, is unable to accept an invitation by the Ashburton County Council to report upon the question of converting the Rangitata railway and stock bridgo into a railway and traffic bridge. The following resolution ha-s been adopted by the Executive of the New Zealand Alliance: —"The Executive of the Now Zealand Alliance has read with the utmost pride and satisfaction that' His Majesty the King, recognising that the liquor traffic is a greater peril to the Empire than all its other enemies, hai resolved both to abstain personally from the use of alcoho'ic liquors and to prohibit their use in the Royal Household during the war; and that His R<>yal example ie being widely followed I hy Cabinet Ministers, military leaders, Judqes, and many others in positions of influence in the Mother Country. Tho Alliance Exeoutivo respectfully commends this illustrious oxample to those in authority and nil other loyal subjects of tho King in Now Zealand." The Wellington Patriots Society, which has been extremely active during the past month or two. is aetata to tbe fore with a carnival idea for Empire Bay (June 3). There was a proposal that a carnival should be. inaugurated hv the Citizens' Carnival Sacietv, but that notion was dropped, and the Patriotic Societv has taken it up. A' .strenuous effort is to be made to make the carnival sufficientlv attractive to draw, people from other centres and the whole of tho district. Given fine weather the committee of the Patriotic Society should find nn difficulty in getting an army of willing assistants to • help them, and all, tradesmen and shopkeepers are to be asked to co-operate in makina tho carnival a oredit to th&e 'Empire City. ,' . . Here is an instance (says the Greymouth correspondent of an exchange) of the grit which characterises the West, Coast pioneers. At the age of 90 years, Mr. James Seymour, after fulfilling a buslifelling contract in the vicinity of Nelson, has returned to Reefton and commenced prospecting for a lead of gold at Liverpool (Davis Creek), within ' view of the town. Single-handed, he has driven a tunnel over 100 ft., and in a further few feet of driving expects to. intercept the lead of auriferous wash. Mr. Seymour- left the Home Country at a'very early age—so long back, indeed, that his first glimpse of a railway train was on making a trip to tbe seaside from Heefton to Greymouth.

Mr. W. .0. Ellis, of Carterton.; 8 member of the Overseas Club, which now numbers over 120,000, was recentlyi successful' in collecting £8 lis.. 6d. towards providing our troops in the fighting line with tobacco. Tha money was remitted to headquarters, and Mr. Ellis lias just received an ao> kuowledgment from the honorary secretary and organiser of the club, who expresses much appreciation of the help given. Acknowledgment of the receipt of parcels at the front will come in due course. . Whilst turning the rather sharp corner of Riverbank and Victoria Streets, Lower Hutt. two iuotor-<mrs collided yesterday afternoon.. Both vehicles were damaged somewhat, particularly the smaller of the two, but no ono was injured. • A lecture on Psychology" was delivered by Professor T. A. Hunter in Everybody's Theatre last night. Dr. Hunter explained how it .comes about that the mind of a crowd is not merely the average mind of the individuals composing it, and also he explained how the mind of such an aggregation of men as can be called a mob differs in character from the mind of a crowd. He showed how the miild of a crowd, like the mind of an individual, may be influenced by suggestion convoyed in various ways, or bj custom, and also he discussed a varietj of effects likely to follow from suggestion or custom controlled or directed; by persons' of certain classes or characters.' Dr.' Hunter made the lecture a very interesting one.' When applying for 30s. costs against a man who had been found helplessly drunk, and had been in gaol at Napier for twelve days, Sergeant Cummings said: "The tariff'at the gaol has been wised." In the past prisoners kept at the gaol for medical treatment have been charged Is. 6d. a day, but recently the amount was raised to hal£-a-crown. "Harloy Street* London, W.," roughly inscribed on a board is a.sufficient guide to the initiated to the Trentbam Camp Hospital and the quarters of tha local army medical' corps._ _ If not immediately' discoverable, visitors might chance upon "Park Lane," which.leads naturally into Harley Street. The hospital proper is merely a large marquee, witn single beds, instead of stretchers or straw shakes-down. It does net ovoU boast a wooden- floor, which does not matter very much,'as long as the weather holds fair, but which would make things cheerless and uncomfortable when heavy rains occur. As the Defence Department is on th© cvb of accepting tenders for the- corrugated iron hutments, it is suggested that the first one erected should be set_ aside as a hospital, pending the erection of a permanent ono for the camp. It is only the extraordinarily fine nealtb record of the camp that has made a tent possible at hospital quarters for a permanent camp of 4000 men.