LOCAL AND GENERAL

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2612, 6 November 1915, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

The postal authorities advise that tho b.h. Manuka, which is due on Monday from Sydney, is bringing Australian mails, and also an English mail, via Suez.

A good many rumours have been going about of late concerning that enterprising gentleman, Captain M'Laglan, who distinguished himself here as a swordsman, bayonet fighter, and jn-jitsu expert. On inquiry from the Minister of Defonco we icarn that CapM'Laglan is at present engaged in Auckland instructing the police in ju-jitsu.

His Excellency the Governor lias received a telegram from the Secretary of State for War (Lord Kitchener) that tl>o Now Zealand Hospital Ship lUaheno left Southampton on October 30, en route for New Zealand. Tlio vessel is duo in Wellington on December 20. Tho Defence Minister said yesterday that the Maheno would bring from England a number of men, "cot cases," who are unfit to travel by transport or liner, and would perhaps pick up other similar cases at Malta and Egypt. Mr. Allen said that ho had arranged with the High Commissioner to have other men who were discharged from hospital, but who were still not likely to be able to fight again, sent back to Now Zealand by the direct steamers as passengers. These men would come in small detachments. Hitherto tho practice had been to send them out by the P. and 0. and Orient steamers with tho Australians, and to tranship them at Australian ports, but this plan, had been found to bo unsatisfactory.

A tragedy happoned on board tho Moeraki on the ran up from Lyttelton oil AVcdnestlay night. A passenger named Miss Anderson was found weeping by the stewardess .it about 9 p.m. on Wednesday, and she was given a cup of tea and other comforts. Later on Miss Anderson was found to be missing, and on investigation being made it was seen that a box, which had been handy, bad been used as a stop to the porthole, and it is surmised that Miss Anderson managed to get through the porthole and over tho side of the vessel.

The details of the schome by which the Government is to buy a large quantity of cheese to the order of the Impel ial Board of Trade have now been completed. Tho amount required is 15,000 tons, which, at tho price agreed upon, 73<1. per lb., will cost approximately one million, sterling, is about one-third of New Zealand's annual production of cheese, and the Government has therefore requisitioned one-third of, the output of every cheese factory 111 the Dominion. The price is not very high, but neither is it low, and it should be remembered also that with the Government shippers trade for6pot cash so soon as the cheeso is in the grading store, and tho cash payment is not subject to deduction for comniission or exchange. By consigning cheese to London shippers might possibly get a bigger price, but they certainly could not rely on gotting a bigger return. When the purchase scheme was first mooted, early in September meetings of cheese manufacturing company representatives were held at Hawera and Invercargill, and both of these meetings carried a resolution inviting the Government to commandeer 20 per cent, of the output at 7d. per lb. Now the Government are commandeering onethird at 7-Jd.

In order to ensure and facilitate the shipment of Christmas gift goods for tho Now Zealand soldiers at the front, those concerned are requested to see that such goods to be forwarded l by the next outgoing transports arrive at No. 3 shed, King's Wharf, Wellington, not later than noon on Friday next, November 12. ,

Mr. Harold Gregson referring to the extraordinary growth of the "movies" in America, states that a remarkable development has taken place within tho last year or two as far as the musical arrangements in the picture theatres are concerned. Consequent upon the never-ending trouble with orchestral players, nearly every picture theatre of any pretension in the United States lias dispensed l with 1 the orchestra in favour of the orchestral organ, a remarkably fine instrument, that is played exactly in the manner of the grand organ, but its tone does not resemble the organ as we know it in New Zealand. Its tone combines that of an orchestra and military hand, and attached to it are keys that give drum, triangle, . chimes, glockenspiel, and other' effects. The organ in the Auditorium at Los Angeles —a remarkably fine theatre—cost 50,000 dollars, and is a splendid instrument. It is usual in the larger theatres to'have a good organist to play occasional solos between the showing of the pictures, and an nnder-organist to play during the showing of tlio_ pictures. The resuit of the installation of these instruments is that just as many people go to hear the music as to see the pictures. Mr. Gregson visited Universal City, the city created by •' the hig film-making firms outside Los Angeles, and was amazed at the magnitude of the operations conducted there.

In order to facilitate public convenience, the Telegraph Department has arranged for all public business connected with the Telephone Exchange to bo conducted at tlio Tolegraph counter, G.P.0., for the future.

In the Supreme Court in Chambers .yesterday, His Honour Mr. Justice Chapman dealt with a preliminary matter connected with the case of Walter Dinnie, formerly Commissioner of Police v. His Majesty the King, . a petition claiming damages for wrongful dismissal. Mr. E. G., Jellicoe, on behalf of the petitioner, applied for hearing by a jury, and the application was opposed by the Crown, represented by Mr., V. R. Meredith, of the Crown Law Office. His Honour reserved! decision.

Reports which carno to haud (says a Ohristchurch exchange) indicate that the hailstorm which passed over parts of South Canterbury on Tuesday was more serious in its' results than was at first supposed. The storm was confined to a comparatively small area, but it completely destroyed a number of young wheat and turnip crops, besides ruining several orchards. The wheat crops were battered out qf all recognition, and the young turnips completely disappeared.

With the object of providing that teachers who have enlisted' for service at-the front should not bo overlooked when new appointments are being considered, tho following recommendation was submitted at the meeting of the Auckland Education Board, by the acting senior inspector, Mr. C. W. Garrard:—"That, iu cases where soldier teachers who have not been eeon by inspectors sineo tho 1914 grading list was completed apply for positions, the appointment to such position shall be determined by tho grading list of 1914, provided that, should tlio name of a soldior teacher not be the highest of those who apply, tho appointment to 6uch position shall 'then be determined by tho grading list of 115." Mr. J. D. M'Keirae gave notico of motion for tlio next meeting of the board that Mr. Garrard's recommendation ho adopted.

Iluddart, Parker and Co. have given £500 to the Now Zealand Wounded Solfliers' Fund. Iu tli© absence of any national scliemo, Mr. C. W. Jones, New Zealand manager for the company, lias decidcd that the money bo divided equally among tlio fivo districts—Auckland, Wellington, Canterbury, Southland, and Otago.

Tho fast coming summer season turns one's mind to the pleasant . thrills and joys of motoring, and to the car of tho season—the Chevrolet. The sturdy and sweet-running Chevrolet cars aro attract ing the admiration of tho Motorists who know. The Dominion Motor Vehicles, Ltd., 65 Courtenay Place, aro willing to demonstrate to you, so why not make an up. jwiatmaat at once ?—Adrti .

Sunday School room which tho parishioners of St. Anno's, Northland, have been building in their spare time, and which is now completion, will oe not only a convenience to the parish, but of servico to the suburb, v 0 i 1? 11 '" c ' lool °f the school opens on •Northland Hoad, and there are dressing rooms on cadi side •' of the nisin entrance. Tho hall is '10ft. x 25ft., and is to bavo a platform built out later on. Below the main hall is a supper room and kitchen, fitted with gas cooker and gas boiler, for providing hot water, sink, and cupboards, which win do well-stocked with crockery. Tlio sanitary arrangements aro ill accordance fful the City by-laws, so that the, hall will fie available for ooncerts and other public functions.

In connection with the will of the la to Tjieut. I'. M. Grace, killed in action with the Maori Contingent at tlio i)araanellos, tho question has been raised as to whether the application for probate should bo me.de to the Supremo Court or to tho Native Land Court. His Honour Mr. Justice Chapman yesterday reserved decision on tho point.

Fireworks wero responsible for at least one accident yesterday. At 7 p.m. Hoy Weeber, an eight-year-old boy, residing with his parents at Island' Bay, was admitted t-o the Hospital suffering from injuries to both eyes. The injuries ivero caused by an explosion of fireworks. The condition of the boy was reported as satisfactory last night. The immediate future of New Zealand so Jar as it lies in our agricultural producton was referred to in hopeful terms by the Prime Minister, speaking at the Manawatu Show on Thursday. He congratulated the country on the outlook, and, oscept for'the war, congratulated tlie farmers on the prices ruling. Crops, pastures, and stock were looking splendid, ho said. Last season up to September 30 we exported £29,500,000 worth of produce, and he prodieted that this season we : ' would oxport a great deal more.

The plight of the Belgians has led to a good many adults mal.ing sacrifices to brighten the lot of our Allies, but it has remained for some of the children, by giving their all, to show what sacrifice can be made for a deserving cause. A little maiden residing at Hukapapa, Dulee Gardner, writes as under: —"Herewith I enclose a one pound note, being tho collections' 1 - of my money-box since Juno last, and which I" wish to give to the Belgian Relief Fund."

Sympathy for the relatives of tha nurses ans men lost ill the ill-fated transport Marquette is expressed in the following cablegram received by the Defence Minister from Major-General Godley and Lieut.-Colonol Rhodes: —"Officers and men of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force join with us in asking you to convey to the relatives of the nurses and non-commissioned officers and men of our No. 1 Stationary Hospital who perished in the Marqip:tte, our sheerest sympathy with thteai in their bereavement."

The Eighth Reinforcements will parado 111 Wellington as usual on Saturday uext, and will leave for Lyttelton that afternoon, They will breakfast on the transports at Lyttelton on Sunday morning, and will journey by train to Christchurch, there.to attend a church l>arado. The troops will be on parade all the time they are in Christchurch, and on duty all the time they are ashore. There will be no leave. It is possibly that the Ninth Reinforcements will visit Auckland before leaving New Zealand, hut' whether this is finally decided ujxm or not will, says the Defence Minister, depend _ very largely 011 the result of this experiment in Christchurch.

The "New York Herald/' referring to tho tone of certain English newspapers in regard to the war, says : — Lord Kitchener knows that, the section of the Press that is howling for conscription and assailing the "high command" of the army for not performing the impossible, is the same section that at tho beginning of the war impeded recruiting by clamouring .for "business as usual." He is conscious that it is the same section of the Press that lias given consolation to Germany and inspired the belief in Berlin that Britain finally will consent to a shameful peace; he knows that it is the same section cf the Press which in the unceiworod articles of its • nilitary experts information to t-he enemy that cost thousands of British and French'lives after tho battle of the Maine, and it is the same section of the Press that now, when Russia is staggering from the blows of an opponent who has prepared for war for 40 years, is attempting to undermine the confidence of the Russian people and army in the good faith, and determination of the armies and peoplo of 'Great Britain, France, and Italy.

For the past two days the Wellington Waterside Workers'. Union has been taking a ballot of members to ascertain the feeling with regard to the proposal to revert * from the present places of engagement to the use of the "donkey room" as before the 1913 strilvo. The votes recorded were not numerous, the voting being 195 for the "donkey room" and 77 for the present places. This shows a majority of 118 votes in favour of reversion to the prostrike system.

Another route march will be undertaken. to-morrow in furtherance of Captain Simsoii's idea for getting men "fit" for any calls that may come. The party will leave Boulcott Street at 9.30 a.m. and proceed through Brooklyn, Happy Valley, and Island Bay. The repulsive-looking, hearse-like van wed for the conveyance of prisoners is universally, known as tne "Black Maria." The term originated in America (says an exchange). When that oountry was filling with immigrants from England, a negress named Maria Lee kept a sailors' boardmghouse in Boston. She was a woman of Amazonian strength, and; according to the author of "More Anecdotes of Bench ana Bar," helped the authorities to keep the peace. Frequently the constables invoked her aid, and the saying, Send for Black Maria," came to mean lake him t<i prison." The sailors returning to England, frequently used the phrase, and so in course of time the name of Maria Lee, shortened and altered to Black Maria, became the name ot the prison van, and remains so to this day. ■■

Dr. Muira, Secretary of tho Bureau of Commerco of Japan, has sent a letter of thanks to the Mayor of Wellington (Mr. J. P. Luke) for tho hospitality afforded the Japanese Trade Mission when in Wellington. In tlio course of his letter, Dr. Muira refers to his "lucky travels m your country," and states that the courtesy oxtended the mission was greatly appreciated by the leading business men of Japan. H e adds: "They are deeply .gratified for such friendly treatment as has .been favoured to me, and: earnestly desired, future developments of tho trades between both countries."

.At a meeting of , the Clutha branch of the Farmers' Union, Mr. J. 3 a Y e notice of motion: lliat the platform of the Farmers' unioii be remodelled so as to adopt a protective policy instead of a freetrado policy. Briefly (says the "Leader") Ills reasons were for the encouragement of local industry and the increase of population. He had something more to say about tho "encumbrance" advertiser, and also gave Jiis opinion that factories were the oest places in which maimed men who had suffered in fighting for King and country would find employment in the coining days of peace. Seeing _ that tho virile male population was being so sadly depleted now by tho war, something should be done to keep Up steady employment. in tho future, wbioli would be an aid towards increa& ing tho birth rate.

Two and a half yeare ago a Norwegian, aged 17} years, arrived .at . Bluff in a, vessel on which lie was employed, and had_ to he romoved to tho Southland Hospital oiling to an injury received at tho hands of one of the crew, a German. _ The captain of the Ehip, which remained in New Zealand fox- several months, made inquiries regarding the whereabouts of the young man who left the hospital and clandestinely went into the country, having made up his mind to abandon the seafaring life. During the two years and a half ho has resided in Southland he has made good progress with the English language, and, being of sturdy build, followed the occupation of a ploughman. The young Norwegian was so satisfied with tho conditions of life in New Zealand that he had no desire to return to his native country.' He is strongly pro-British, and the other week applied to the Defence Department for an enlistment form, which he filled in and, passing tho medical test, left on Monday morning with Southland's quota of the Ninth Reinforcements to do duty for the Allies in Gallipoli or wherever no is sent.

. A f rom the Magistrate's Court, including the Magistrate, solemnly went out to a place in Kaikorai on Tuesday afternoon to dig up a dead dog (says the Otao;o Daily Times"). The identity of the animal which had been buried there formed an important linkin the chain of evidence in a case of alleged sheep-worrying, and there was no wa-y satisfactory to establish what sort of a. dog it was except by disturbing its remains. Accordingly, armed with spades and other implements, the party _ set out, and went to work systematically in the neighbourhood of where the animal was thought to have been laid _to rest. They mined and sapped diligontly for some time without -striking the dog, but finally a pick gratod against a jaw-bone, and tho .Quest was over. They uncovered the remains-, which were mostly skeleton, and had a good long look at them. Having the points of the deceased animal, tho dog-diggers reinterred the bones of contention, came back to town and went on with the taking of evidence.

A special memorial service for the Purees and other members of the No 1 New Zealand Stationary Hospital, whose lives were lost thruogh the torpedoing of the steamer Marquette, will be conducted by Adiutant Bladin at tho Salvation Army Citadel, in Vivian Street, to-morrow evening at 7 o'clock. Prior to the indoor service the band will play the "Dead March" in "Saul" through Cuba and Vivi'an Streets, and the procession .will be headed by the Red Cross flag and flags of the Allies and a number of nurses. Snecial seats will be reserved in the Citadel' for nurses, returned troopers, and members of the reinforcements.