LOCAL AND GENERAL

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2448, 29 April 1915, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

The Court of Appeal has adjourned till June 23. A soheme is on foot- for establishing co-operative meat freezing works for North" Tsranaki. Several meetings of farmors have been held and tlie project appears to bo meeting with support. Writing to a friend in Wellington, Tinder date April 19, the Eight Hon. Andrew Fisher, Prime Minister of the Commonwealth, says; "Witt regard to the Premiers' Conference, to>;which you refer with the comment that it might be desirable to arrange for some more efficient news exchange with New Zealand, it is unlikely that Mr. Massey will be able to bo present at tho Conference, while, so far as the Commonwea'th Government is concerned, its representatives can no_iv only attend as visitors at the invitation of the Premiers of the States. I had hoped that the Conference might have been made more important by the attendance of Mr. Massey and representatives of the Commonwealth as members of the Conference, which would then have been quite Australasian in character. I quite agree with you that one of the most desirable reforms in the relation of the Dominion and the Commonwealth is the establishment of an improved news exchange. So far as I am concerned, I sha'l be glad to assist in that direction."

"This is the sort of thing we are up against in this frozen meat export business," said the Prime Minister to a reporter yesterday. ''Information has reached me to-day that the Indrabarali arrived in London on February 6, and completed her discharge, on March 20. The vessel took over six weeks to discharge! Under ordinary circumstances, with the appliances available at an English port, the work would have been done in six days. Tho consequenco is that the Indrabarali goe3 back.a month in her sailing time from here, and the same thing seems to he happening all round."

In calling attention to Lord Curzon's statement in the House of Lords to the offeci that the late" Lord Roberts had conducted family prayers for his household _ for over 50 years, the "Church Family Newspaper" adds: "Other notable, examples of unostentatious piety have just come to light. We learn on unimpeachable , authority that ' Lord Fisher, First Sea Lord at the Admiralty, makes 'a habit of going to a cer--1 tain church practically every day for prayer and meditation before commencing his responsible duties. Wo understand also that Lord Kitchener follows out a similar rule whenever he'is in London. These remarkable examples prove how great men value and appreciate the means of grace provided for them, and they _ are calculated to give the nation an''increased confidence in the men upon whom so .much depends." A concert in aid of tho Petono Wesley Young Men's .Institute was held in the Street. Chapel la6t evening, The following contributed to the programme Misses N. Foster, V. Lewis, Knight, and S: Udy, and Messrs. Watson, Swaysland, Frances, and Dewlinrst, Medhurst, Bryant, Armstrong, M'Callum, and Burridgc. A foature of tho programme was a- glee contributed" by the Wesley young men, in which an appropriate reference to Mr. J. W. M'Ewan's return to the Mayoralty and Harbour Board was nxpres'sed, the words being written by Mr. A. E, Wrighti .

The first meeting of the new executive of tlie New Zealand Alliance was held yesterday. The Rev. W. J. Comria was reappointed chairman of the executive, ana Mr. \V. J. Brown hon. treasurer. Tho time for regular meetings waa iix'ed and preliminary stops were taken for various phases of tho next campaign. The Levin School' Committee being much purturbed over the falling-off in tho attondanco at the District High 1 School, together with the fact that parents throughout the district continue to express considerable dissatisfaction with the rural course, at its last meeting passed a resolution Urging upon the Education Board the neod of . speedy and careful inquiry into the' whole position with a- vi6w to remedying whatever may be found to contribute to the unpopularity of the high school. A feature of school committee elections yesterday in and wound Auckland was the almost complete lack of interest shown by the householders. Only in a few cases, states a Press Association message, were elections necessary, and jii a number of instances insufficient nominations : were received. In the case of one important suburban, school only one man was found willing to act as committeeman.