LOCAL AND GENERAL

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2684, 2 February 1916, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Tho Telegraph Office advises that the Pacific Cable Board announces tho resumption of the acceptance of week-end traffic, and requests that messages be lodged as early in the week as possible. A Gazette Extraordinary issued last night, prohibits (without the consent of the Minister of Customs) the export from New Zealand of tallow, except to the United Kingdom. Since the outbreak of war, 245 past and present students at the Auckland University College have enlisted for active service. Tho roll of honour contains the names of 22 men who have been killed ill action and an equal number who have been wounded. There are at present serving with the Expeditionary Forces 180 men. The remaining 21 who have enlisted are waiting to be called up. Freaks amongst animals and birds are fairly frequent, but it is not often that a freak is met with in fish, especially mature fish. A few days ago an anglet secured from the Waiwakaiho a 2J11). brown trout with two tails, each tail being .perfectly developed. —"Taranaki Daily News." . - Ovor 20 children suffering from_ adenoids were operated upon at the Napier Hospital on Monday (says the "Hawke's Bay Herald"). ■ It wa.s'shown recently in how_ short a time a tree can be converted into a newspaper. At 7.35 a.m. three trees wore felled in an adjacent forest, stripped and takem to a local paper factory. By N 9.34 the first sheet- of paper issued from the machines. Tho printing works of the nearest newspaper- were four kilometres distant. The paper was carried there in a motor-car at full speed, the presses wero set to "work and at 10 a.m. exactly the newspaper was ready printed.' The whole process thus took only two hours and twenty-five niiuutc3. —English exchange. Tliirtv-nino applications were received by the Petone Borough Council for the position of caretaker's assistant at the Recreation Grouiids. Mr. T. Lendbetter has been appointed to the position.

Madame Boeufve has had a letter from her husband. His Excellency ( M. Boeufve, French Minister to Ecuador, in which he relates details of his arrival at Quito, the capital city of the country As soon as he had presented his official letters from President roinenro to the President of Ecuador, ho was waited upon by two ot President Plaza and the TJnder-Secre-tary for Foreign Affairs, who conducted him in a carriage of state to the President. The streets were lined with troops, and he was given a guard-of honour "both at his hotel and beiore the President's Palnce. At this vcccptioii M. Boeufve made a speech in French, to which- President Plaza replied :n Spanish, after which they chatted for half an hour with the aid- of an interpreter, in the person of the Under-Sec-retary for Foreign Affairs. • In the evening he "was serenaded by the milltar.v bands, who began in both cases with "The Marseillaise." The impression is conveyed that Ecuador is thoroughly sympathetic with the Allies in the present international disruption.. About three-quarters of the population are Indians, and readers may judge as to Quito's isolation, when it is stated that.there are only three trains a week between the port Guayaquil, and the capital.

"As the chairman says we have extra taxation," remarked Dr. A. IC. Newman, at the annual meeting of tlie Wellington Trust and Loan Company last evening. "But," he asked, are we going to carry on a war without it? We are still paving our dividends as usual, but if victory is delayed some considerable time we will be thankful if ■we get dividends at all." The committee of tlie British Commercial and Industrial Patriotic Exhibition met'last evening, Mr. L. T. Watkins (the chairman) presiding. The proposed design for an exhibition souvenir was approved and the arrangements ih'adc with Messrs. Gordou and Gotch were confirmed. It was announced that a sum of £109 would be received from exhibitors for floor space. It was agreed that tlio advertising committee should consist of the joint managers and the secretary. A special riiceting of the committee will be held oil Thursday afternoon at 3 o clockto arrange a programme of displays, lectures, and' picture entertainments. Mr. T. W. Leslie was appointed to the position of stage manager in - coimection with the exhibition. It was decided to invite, through the newspapers, offers to caterers to provido tea and other light refreshments to be dispensed in the corridors during the afternoons and evenings. Ut was resolved to send a circular letter to the headmasters of schools and to Ixlucrttioii boards, pointing out the valuable educational effects the exhibition would have on the minds of the children. The Prime Minister (the Right Hon. W. F. Massey) will ho invited to perform the opening ceremony on Saturday February 19, and the Mayor of Wellington (Mr. J. P- Luke) will bo asked to preside. Interested auditors of "Ma Mie Rosette," at the Grand Opera House last evening, were the Franco-Tahitiau recruits,"who wore there in force at the invitation of Mr. John Farrell. manager of the Royal Comic Opera Company. A pleasing compliment was paid to the visitors at the close of the performance' bj' the whole of the company singing "The Marseillaise," the whole of the Island visitors joining lustily in tho singing of their national hymn. "Tho ! Marseillaise" was followed by "God Save tlie King," which was heartily ; sung by all present. Sergeant Danjas afterwards expressed to Mr. Farrell tho great pleasure the performance had given his men. He stated that most of the nativos had never been out of the group in their lives, and consequently had never witnessed so admirable a | production before. It was an experience the.v would remember for tho rest of their iives.

'File gate receipts at the Municipal Zoo for the month of January constitute a' recoYil. During tlie month the sum of £143 lis. 6d. was taken, representing the admission of 11,45' i adults, 'fliu receipts for January of la-st year totalled £114 Ms. A Dimedin paper states that Jlr. S. Boreham has been instructed by tho secretary of the S'cv Zealand Agricultural and Pastoral Union of Workers io have a case prepared for hearing before the Conciliation Commissioner. Tim dispute refers chiefly to threshing mill hands. At the invitation of tho lteserv" - Committee of the City Council, tin, Frauco-Tahitian recruits, now in Wellington, are to participate in the pleasures of surf-bathing at Lyall Bay this afternoon, and are to be convoyed there by special car leaving the (j.P.O. r.t '2.30 p.m. The Tahitians are ."-.aid to be skilled surfers. f

It was remarked by the ehairawn (Sir. J. P. Maxwell) at tho animal meeting of the Wellington Trust and Loan Company last evening that mortgage companies seemed to have a good case to lay before the Government with the object of obtaining some equitable variation of the present system <.f taxing these companies. 'Hie implication of the progressive tax of 2s. Sil. in tho £ to a. company such as this, about 00 per cent, of the investors in which wore small investors, drawing dividends of under £40 u year, appeared to be inequitable. It was also inconsistent because a small company of very small investors earning very high dividends might pay the lowest rate of income tax, while a larger company of similarly very small investors earning low dividends might have to pay tlie highest progressive tax of 2s. Sd. in the £.