LOCAL AND GENERAL

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2540, 14 August 1915, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

'A large English mail, via Brindisi, is duo at Wellington by. the Manuka freu Sydney on Monday, 'fho ve-ssel is bringing tlio Wellington and southern portion of the mail only. The Riverina, which is due at Auckland from Sydney on Monday afternoon, is bringing tho northern portion of the mails.

The Defence Minister stated _ yesterday that lie feared he had given to various peoplo wrong information about tlie price of machinc-guns. Ho liad been saying that these machine-guns cost £300. In actual fact, lie was informed, the cost prior to tlio outbreak of war was £237, landed in Now Zealand. Ho did not quite know what tlio cost would bo now. but lie liad cabled for tlio information.

It is expected that the streets'will be well lined to-day, when the Sixth Reinforcements will march through tile City. Tho column will leave Government Buildings at 2.30 p.m., proceed along Lambton Quay, up Willis Street, along Ingestre Street, returning down Cuba Street and along Jervois Quay. Tho "Sixth" have gained quito a reputation for their soldierly bearing and general efficiency, and it is expected tho \Ye - lington people will greet them with fitting enthusiasm. No trace has been found of tho missing man, George Aisplet, who left his homo at Petone on Wednesday evening last. Inquiries made by tlio Hutt and Petone police wore unsuccessful, and search parties, after scouring a, portion of tho Hutt Valloy and koro koro on Thursday and yesterday reported last evening that no sign of Asplet could bo found. Tho search will be continued to-<lay and to-morrow. A good deal of reconstruction work is being (lono at present on tlio Qucoii s Wharf.

The linal touch that brings perfection is to bo found on tho "KING" Car. Tho latest model is now awaiting your inspectiou at tho Dominion 'Motor. Vehicles Garage, Go G'ourtcnay Place, and 44-16 Tory Street. If you cannot call, writo for a cnUlosm, of Ellis for n tlemeaslrxt-

Hitherto .all matters in. connection with aliens in the Dominion have been in the hands of tho "Minister of Internal Affairs. It has now been arranged that tho Hon. Dr. M'Nab shall take over this work.

It is expected that the report of tho Trent-ham Camp Commission will bo presented 011 Monday. Tho report and tho evidence will bo a- volume of considerable size. A huge mass of evidence was accumulated. Tho hearing of evidence extended, over about a month, and more than -100 witnosses were examined.

His Worship the Mayor lias received £2 from Mr. J. Burnett, late chief engineer of the llaihvay Department, towards the Machine-sun Fund.

Tho Napier Borough Council has decided to call for tenders for two gas engines, each of '100 horse-power. At present the plant is greatly overloaded, leaving no reserve power.

Au enjoyable service was held in thoSalvation Army hall at Trentlmm Camp last evening. The Wellington Silver Band motorod out and plaved several marches and selections which wero much appreciated by tho men. Several short addresses were interspersed, and at tho close all present joined in singing "God Be With You." "A man named George "William Groves was brought down from Carterton yesterday, being remanded from there to Wellington on a c'hargo of obtaining money by false pretences by means of r. valueless cheque.

'Among tho Sixth Reinforcements, who will parade in Wellington to-day, followers of Rugby may.recognise many familiar faces. The winter sport lias mauy representatives who have changed tho jersey for tho khaki, and among the better-known players who will mardh 111 tl» ranks this afternoon are: E. Robert's (Wellington), Taylor (Taraiiaki), F. "Wilson (Auckland), Weston (Auckland), S. Cameron (Taraiiaki), Ross (Auckland), G. Murray (Wellington and Auckland), and French (Auckland). Most of these men were New Zealand representatives. The Executive of the. National Reserve havo been interesting themselves in the purchasing of binoculars for the officers going to the front. Tlio Wellington 'South section of tho resorvo havo taken the initiative and havo presented four pairs. Tho members of this section of the Teservo has also pledged themselves to purchase a maoliine-gun for presentation to one of tho Expeditionary Forces.

One of the difficulties experienced by tho forces fighting in Turkey is a lack of firewood. Letters and photographs iudicate that there is very little timber on the country occupied by tho colonial forces. 1 'Firewood is scarce here," Privato A. B. Mossman, 4th Waikato Mounted Rifles, states in a recent letter. "I do not know -what we should do if we had not bos-wood to start fires with." Economical habits are being impressed on tho soldiers by such difficulties as these, for, not only is tho wood'of'the boxes in which stores aro delivered converted to many purposes, but cardboard boxes are evidently carefully treasured for their value as stationery.

A request for extra inspectors for Auckland district is to be mado to tho Education Department by. the Auckland Education Board.

The quarterly meeting of the Public Service Superannuation Fund Board was held on Thursday, tho Hon. G. W.' Russell, Minister of Internal Affairs, presiding. ' Allowances on retirement by reason of age or length of service were granted to 1-4 contributors, aggregating £1415 13s. per annum; six contributors, retired as medically unfit for duty, were granted allowances for a total of .-C23U Bs. per annum; seven widow's; a,nd;;/four|teen : children were granted the''statutory'allowances, totalling £256 per annum. A liability of £3756 was assumed by tho fund for compensation accrued on account of contributors who were retired under.: section 35 of tho Act. Consideration of proposod amendments of tho Act was postponed for an adjourned meeting of the board, to be held at ail early date.

When the English play "The Man Who Stayed at Homo" was played in New York under the title of "Tho Whito Feather," it was found expedient by the management to modify tho contempt in which tho German spy is held in tho English version owing to tho German dement in the play-going public of that city. In England the spy in the employ of tho enemy is regarded as the serpent which stings the hand that feeds him, i,s he is usually a person . that has fattened on the broadmindedness of. the British, but ill "Tho Whito Feather" tho final scene witnesses the hero (Brent) shaking tho hand of the GerWn spy (Carl Sandersoil) and sentimentalising on his bravery prior to the spy being led out to face the rifles of a squad of British "Tommies."

Tlie Officer Commanding the Sisth Reinforcements acknowledges receipt of the following gifts Mr.' H. J. -Thompson, one set chessmen; Mr. Dick Laurensen, ono set chess men; Mr. H. S. 11. Ribband,- 4 copies patriotic 6ongi Mrs. W. G. Reid, sets of draughts and dominos'; Mr. H. Tobin, ono set doihinos; Mr. 0. W. Palmer, parcel periodicals, games, etc.

Recently a horse belonging to a, man named George Fuller died, and _Full«r interred the animal on the outskirts of a school children's playground on the Town Bolt. Tho burial had not been complete, liowover, and as a result the City Couijcil were informed of this breach of tho by-laws. The corporation authorities requested Fuller to remove tho animal, but as this was not done the corporation carried out the work itself and prosecuted Fuller. _ These facts were explained in the Magistrate's Court yesterday by Mr. E. M. Becchey, Fuller being fined £2, with costs 75., for a breach of tho by-laiv in question.

"Writing to his mother (Mrs. P. T. Moore) from Zeitoun Camp ou June 26, Trooper Francis Mooro says: "It is rotten to havo to stay.in camp waiting for my log to heal. Somo of our fellows left for tile front yesterday, but I was not allowed to go. The heat hero is awful, 125 in tho shade yesterday. Tho Dardanelles is liko the New Zealand climate. lam trying hard to get hack there. . . Before I was hit with shrapnel I had a narrow shave. A party of us went out in advanco of our trenches before daylight to take up sniping positions, when we suddenly ' discovered hundreds of Turks within 30 yards. They tried to cut us off. We bolted for our trenches, but lost somo of our number. The Turks do not troublo the Suez Canal now. They are afraid of bur gunboats. I could havo taken a trip homo when I was wounded, but I do not want to return to New ZealwHl till the war ends. Then we shall all ] la ve a glorious home-coming. The English ladies here are very good to us. They provide us with plenty of cigarottos, motor trips, and lots of entertainments."

Since April 1 building permits to tbo value of £50,751 have been issued by the Hastings Borough Council.

Tourist traffic is very quiet in New Zealand just now. Tliis is the slack season, and somo of our most attractive resorts aro closed. The season generally begins in October,- and' from then on tTiero is an influx of tourists. So far there is no indication as to how the coining tourist season will compare witli previous years,' but preparation is being made to cope witn visitors from abroad, and it is confidently hoped that tho season will be a very satisfactory one..

Country visitors who are in the City this morning should not fail to visit tho Groat "Winter Salo at Kirkcaldia and Stains, Ltd. To-day is tbo last day—this remarkable event ceases at 1 p.m. Be sure and come;..a pleasant and profitable tiiuo is _ assured j;ou. Como early I liii'kcnldip nud Stains, Lttl.—Advt,

Consequent upon the great amount of work thrown upon the Ba6o Rccords branch of the Now Zealand Expeditionary Forces, it lias been found necessary to considerably enlarge tlie staff, and' rearrange tlio distribution of duties. Captain E. N. Fraser, N.Z.S.C., lias been appointed to take charge of the branch generally, while Captain E. Vine retains cliarge of tlie casualty soctioiu The Records Office will remain in tho present building in Brandon Strcot.

A Cliristclrarcli • soldier, in a letter, jokingly asserts that the transport vessel on which ho .was being taken to the front had 110 possible chance of any luck. Somebody, apparently, arranged •that it should be associated witli fatal thoroughness with the figuro thirtcon. It left New Zealand 011 tho thirteenth of a certain mouth, took thirleon days to get to a certain port, lost thirteen horses 011 tho voyage, and one man died who was sleeping in bunk No. 13.

Up to the present the Napier Park Racing Club has mado donations amounting to £889 towards tho various patriotic funds. '

At a .meeting of the Executive of the' Patriotic Society last night the president (Mr. H. G. Hill), referring to tho formation of a National Cabinet, said that he was sure that everyone would be pleased that it had taken place, and that tho Empire, in . every component part, was standing shoulder to shoulder 111 this struggle. (Applause.) The following notice of motion by; Councillor Forsyth will come up for consideration at the meeting of the Petone Borough Council to be hold on Monday evening:—"That the engineer be asked to prepare an estimate of tho cost of installing an electric light supply to Iloro Koro for the purpose of street lighting and domestic supply, and that a similar estimato bo prepared for installing a gas Gupply in the same locality, together with all particulars."

it is understood tluit advice Las bosn received that portion of the steel for the' Pipitea Wharf piling is now oil its "way to New Zealaud.

The fact that many of the peaks in our Southern Alps bear German names attention to by & correspondent in The Dominion* a few days ago, and tho Tourist Department is now considering whether it win or will not tako -any; action in tho matter.

At the meeting of the Petone Borough Council to be held on Monday, the fol'01"n6 notice of motion by Councillor M Kenzie will come uv> for consideration : ' 'That half-pay be allowed to permanent council employees who have or may enlist for active service with the Aew Zealand Expeditionary Forces, such sum to be credited to the employee's account, and l paid over to Mm on his return, or in the event of his losing his life, the amount to the credit of his account at the time of death be paid over to his legal representative. Tho amount, however, to be granted to • any such employee not to exceed the difference between the amount of pay received from the Government and the wage he was earning at tho time of enlistment. Should the employee be a married man, then ho may by raving the necessary order arrange for the council's grant or a portion thereof to bo paid to his wife."

"Altogether we havo a great deal to congratulate ourselves upon that we'are so little affected by the stress, of war and tho changed conditions," said the Mayor of Wellington yesterday in refcrcnco to the question of employment in this City. Ever since the war began Mr. Luke has been very closely in touch- with the great majority of men and women who havo been affected by hostilities in the course of earning their daily bread, and to many of these he has rendered assistance. The position at present, hp flays, is very satisfactory, all things considered. The strong, ablebodied man seems'- to»bo provided for pretty well, and not many of that class of worker aro idle. The men in difficulties over employment aro mostly men of insufficient physique to do pick and shovel work. A certain number of men formerly employed in canvassing, find that their living has vanished with tho coming of tho par. These men and clerks do not find work so readily as men of more robust physique, and they aro feeling tho pinch the most. The man of brawn, says the Mayor, is combatting tho situation best, but altogether tho .position is one that tho City may bo very thankful for. The rates duo to the Wellington City Corporation for the current year are coming in- earlier than the rates of other years havo done. The financial year of' the City commences on April 1, but the money received by way of rates does not usually begin to come to hand before tho end of September, as a considerable amount of. time is absorbed in making necessary arrangements, in clerical work, and in sending out tho notices to the ratepayers. For the current year, however, we aro quito sis weeks ahead of other years, and this has been made possible through extra pressure being put upon the staff of the City Treasury Department. The staif responded loyally to tho call, the moneyis rolling in, works are being pushed on, and so unemployment is being kept down. In a little more than a week from now a large number of recruits is to be taken into T'rontham Camp, and in preparation for the rccoption of the men much work is in progress at the big twining ground. A good deal of the work has to bo done by carpenters, and of these artisans there is a shortage. The Mayor appealed through the Press the other day for carpenters to go to Trentham,"and he informed a Dominion* representative yesterday that tho rosult liad been to increase tho number of men available by about a dozen. However, still more are needed at onco, and Mr. Luke hopes that any contractors who can' spare carpenters will allow them to go to Trentham and assist in the expedition of the urgent work in hand there. ' I hope, ho said yesterday, "that all who have it in their power to help Trill assist to put the camp in order beforo the recruits arrive. It is essential that everything should be dono to enable tho men to occupy their quarters as soon as they, co in. and it-is only right that their accommodation: should be quito ready for them. If private employers of car' pent-ers allow some of their men to assist at Trentham, they will reaHy be expediting tho training of our troops, and ao taking a patriotic view of the necessities of the times.

A peculiar accident occurred on the •ibeach at Oriental Bay on Thursday, when , a woman was sitting on the sea shore watching her little boj'j '• a 6 c d about six, throwing stones into tho watcir . The little chap camo close to his mother at length, and bringing, his hand sharply back in tlio -action of throwing, broke one. of tho glasses of his mother's, spectacles. Some of tlio glass entered the mother's eye, cutting ;tha pupil severely, and'in spite of the tfact that she was given expoi'fc atten-> lion immediately it is feared that sbo may loso the sight of the eye.

Great, progress is being made with the now tramiino over the Constable Street hill. A considerable amount of work has been done in' widening tho toad, cutting and filling, making concrete walls, .and erecting fences. It is expected that a commencement will be made with the laying of the rails, shortly, and it is hoped to havo the line open for traffio by Christmas time. The only delay that is .likely to arise is in the obtaining of material from England.

■ It is still a matter of doubt as to Whether the Annual Conference of tlio Harbours Association, of New Zealand will take place this year. The executive of the association will meet in Wellington next Wednesday to dpcido the question. Thoso forming the executive; and who are expected to attend tlio meeting, aro: Messrs. C. E. Daniell (Wellington Board's chairman), H. D. Heather (Auckjand chairman), M. J. Miller (Lyttelton chaiiman), J. M. Dickson, M.P. (Oiago chairman), A. E. Jull (Napior chairman), J. B. Connett (New Plymouth chairman), F. J. Rollestbn (Timaru chairman), C. TV. Jones (Wellington member), and J. W. M'Ewan (Wellington member). Mr. A. (t. Burnett, of Wellington, is tho secretary of the association. , Outward mails from the General Post Office to the New Zealand troops at the. Dardanelles continue to be very heavy. Newspapers to the niumber of about 120,000 per month are dispatched, and the parcels mails for the front havo increased in bulk of late. The postage on parcels has been, reduced recently, but papers still require a penny stamp. This extra halfpenny on the postage of the newspapers > represents about £3500 per year. . ' \ . The Wellington City Council is doing all it can to absorb in essential works labour of a suitable character. City undertakings which give employment of tho kind at present required aro being pushed on with as much dispatch as the money at the disjwsal of the corporation authorities will permit.

: It is estimated that about 700 Rugby players from Wellington and Petono have enlisted for active service'since the outbreak of' war. This must comprise about half the Rugby men of military ane. : Efforts have been made to compile a list of the names of those_ who have gone to the front or have enlisted, but nothing in" any way complete has yet been achieved, and there are several difficulties in the way. If the attempt is rovived it might simplify matters if the compilers aim at bringing the list, up-to-date, as on the anniversary of the war. That would overcome at least one difficulty.

Before the war -Wellington wis interested in a big improvement) scheme wliicli entailed the concentration of the railway, tramway, and ferry services in one portion of the City. The new rail- ■ way etation was to be built In the vicinity of Bunny Street,- tho trams were to'work chiefly from that base, and tho Lyttelton Ferry Wharf was to bo close handy. The only portion of the scheme which is now in progress is the making ofthe now berth for the ferry steamers. This work is the extension and alteration of the wool jetty. ' Tho extension will add 100 feet ; to the length of tho wharf, and 34 feet to the width, giving a total width of 70 feet. ■ On the western side a berth 472 feet .. long-will, bo pro- ' vided, ;-so;. that : a-> vessel , 400,. feet long ! will bo able to berth very comfortably. , Tha .Wahine, the largest vessel in tho ferry service, is 375 feet long. A large •shelter shed will bo built on the wharf • to'provide cover for passengers disembarking and about to embark. Luggage 1 rooms and office accommodation, also, are being provided. The work is to be completed by March 31,1916.

That chairmen of education • boards 6hould receive a fixed honorarium was the opinion expressed by several members of the Auckland Education Board yesterday. Mr. E. C. Banks considered that chairmen of education boards should be paid £300 per. year. It was not right that a man should give half his time to the work of an education board for nothing.- Mr. Banks said that he intended to bring tho matter forward'at the next meeting of tho Council of Education;