LOCAL AND GENERAL

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3001, 12 February 1917, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

H.M.S. New Zealand sent the following Christmas message to tho New Zealand Expeditionary Jj'orco in the field: "Best of luck to all New Zealanders from all on board H.M.S. New Zealand." General Godley sent the following reply:—"Now Zealand Expeditionary Forco send hearty thanks for your card and cheery message. Wo wish all on board tho best of luck in the Now Year." On Saturday afternoon the officers of tho garrison troops carried out field exercises on tho Miraniar Peninsula under tho direction of Major J. L; Sleeman, Director of Military Training. The exercises consisted of attack and defence problems without troops, as applied to that particular portion of the coast dofenco area. There was a very good attendance of officers, and a most instructive afternoon's work was done. On Saturday next tho Coast Defence Commander (Colonel G. F. C. Campbell) will call out tho garrison troops, in order that the officers may havo tho opportunity of x>uttiiig into actual practice the lessons 'which havo been learned during the scries of staff tours which havo been carried out during tho summer. All branches of tho Territorials, including tho Senior Cadets, will bo on parade, ... Tho annual meeting of tho Wellington Choral Union is to bo held towards the end of tho month. The committee has decided to include Wallaco's opera. "Montana" iu the programme for the coming season, and probably this will be tho first work to bo put into rehearsal. This opera was snug onco before by tho Royal Choral Society, when Miss Helen "Gard'nor sang the musio bl iJie title role very lySir Ernest Shackleton, who will lie accorded a. civic reception in tho Wellington Town Hall at noon to-day, has been leading the strenuous life, for nioro than two years. He left Buenos Aires for the Woddoll Sea- at the end of October, 1914, and thero has been no pause in his activity since that time. He pushed into strange waters in tho Wcddell Sea in his effort to find a landing place from wbjch lie might attempt a 1700-mile march across the solitudes of the frozen polar continent; ho lost his ship in the grip of the ice, spent ten months on a drifting ice-floo,-. reached South Georgia after ono of tho most adventurous boat journeys on, record, and then achieved, at fourth attempt ,a.nd in the face of stupendous difficulties, the rescue of tho men ho had left behind on Elephant Island. That part of tho work completed, bo raced across two continents in record timo, in order to get tho steamer to New Zealand, and go south to tho Ross Sea with tho Aurora, to tho rescue of the men who wore to have met him at tho end of his trans-continental journey. He rolurned to New Zealand on Friday with tho work completed, as far as it could bo. But ho looks fit and well, and he told a Dominion reporter that he felt quite ready for fresh exertions. Even searching Government Commissions fail to reveal somo of the faults appertaining in the administration of our public facilities. Occasionally succinct instances of tho slipshod methods of the running of official Departments leak out in tho course of Court cases. An illustration occurred during proceedings at the Supreme Court at Auckland, when an employee of the Railway Department was tendering his evidence as a witness for the Crown. In crossexamination he admitted that some Lgoods went astray at times. It was the custom at sma<l stations, such as his, simply to tell people their goods woro in such-and-such a wagon* and to lot them go and secure them. Everything arrived and stayed at the placo at the consignee's own risk. Thero was no such thing as receipts. Counsol for the Crown made a gallant attempt to redeem tho witness. "Have you not heard of tho goods going astray coming to hand?" he asked. "Well," replied tho witness, ■"■ all I can say is that some of the goods have not come to hand yet." (Laughter.) When the witness said no receipts were taken by him, His Honour saw the chance for a judicial shaft of humour. "It is a very wayside station, then?" ho remarked, whereat counsel for tho prosecution solemnly put the unanswered query, "I suppose the people there aro their own police?" An interesting relic of Sir Ernest fßiackleton's "Farthest South" journey is in the possession of Mr. T. Kellett, momber of tho First Otago Military Service Board. This is Sir Ernest Shackleton's "harness" of canvas and leather used by him in dragging a sledge. It will bo remembered that on one occasion during that memorable journey tho explorer fell down a crevasse, and was suspended by his harness. The set Mr. Kellett now possesses is the identical set that thus saved Sir Ernest Shackleton's life, and bears distinct evidence of the strain it was subject to on that occasion. The memento was presented to Mr. Kellett's son, Mr. Jack Kollett, by a member of tho expedition. Speaking of the requirements of war organisation, Mr. Craigie, M.P. ? for Timaru, stated last week that in his opinion neither the Government nor private people were making all the efforts they could niako to comb men out of civil life for military service. "Take one instanco," he said, 'that of. railway employees. The Railway Dopartment apparently wants all its men exempted from military service, bccauso it expeste to keep the trains running jiist as often as it would under normal conditions. Is it right for the Department to keep on sending out race trains all over the country when, we are at the crisis of the tremendous struggle for the integrity of civilisation? I think the Department ought to cut down all the extra services, and perhaps some of tTTe ordinary ones, and if this will not release enough men for active service, let them employ women whorover thero is work that they can do. We cannot reduce the. skilled stuff to such an extent as to endanger tho safoty of tho railway service; but surely women could do a great deal of the clerical work, jiist as thoy are doing in other Government Departments and in many private establishments. It looks as if tho Government is prepared lo rob any other business but its own, and this is not tho-way to set an cxamplo to tho rest of the Dominion. Let tho Government make its saorifieo along with" the reut."-

Tho dogs brought back from the Antarctic by tho Aurora were taken to the quarantine station on Somes Island on Saturday, and will remain thero, until their future disposal has been arranged. Some people have cast covetous eyos upon the woolly little puppies that woro born shortly before tho party left M'Murdo Sound; but sledging dogs do not make s'Sti.sS.'se3ry pets in a city home. They are big, aggressivej and full of fight. When they fight, moreover, they like to kill their opponent, and their aptitude in this respect is apt to bo a trifle disconcerting to an owner accustomed to the ways of civilised dogs, in which the wolf strain is not dominant. At a conference held at Christchurch, on Friday between tho representatives of the Canterbury Education Board and tho District Schools' Committees, the following motion was carried:—"That the Government has recognised the increased cost of living in all departments of administration, except in the provision for the local administration of its primary schools. Such provision is remaining the same as in the pre-war period, for which period it was really insufficient, and is now utterly inadequate, and! this conference, having full knowledge of the matter, declares it impossible on the sum now granted to defray the aiecessary administrative expenses of the boards and witti the balance to maintain the public schools in a state of ordinary cleanliness, comfort, and decency, and therefore demands, in the vital interest of tho children attending them, that the Government grant for the above purposes should be increased forthwith to at least 13s. per capita on tho average attendance"; also that it be decided to take steps to convene a Dominion Conference on tho matter during tho next session. The fact that so many owners or lessees of farms are being called up under the ballot, and aTe placed in the position of having to dispose of their holdings, is beginning to arouse considerable attention, in country districts. In tho North Island steps aro being taken in different parts to appoint boards to look after absent soldiers' farms, but no united action has yot been taken in tho South Island. Iu conversation with a Christchurch Press representative Mr. J. Douglass (Wnikari), who, as trustee, is looking after three absenteo soldiors' properties, and C. 11. Ensur (White Rock) expressed.the opinion that tho county council. should undertake tho duty of arranging for the oversight of such properties. The county councils would form* a complete organisation throughout the Dominion, and they would thus bq made use of during tho war in a similar way to which thoy are being called upon in England. Twelve first-year pupils of the Bay Technical School at Dunedin who woro employed on sheep stations during tho shearing season have just returned with cheques varying in amount from £10 os. to £20, the avcrago earnings being approximately £13 each, says the "Otago Daily Times." Although the lads, with one cxcfjstiaji are only 11 or 15 .years of ago, they seem to have found the work cqncenial and bracing, while tho satisfaction of the employers is evidenced by the fact that already a number of the lads havo been offered engagements for next season at the same places at a wage of £2 ss. per week and found. Thus may the schoolboy do his share in the busy season and during times of siress. In conversation with Mr. John M'Queen, on. Thursday, a, representative of the "Southland Times" learned that the statement published to the effect that the late Hon. Dr. Robt, M'Nab had lost four brothers in early childhood, through poisoning by sheen dip, was incorrect. Mr. M'Queen is in a position to know exactly what caused this heavy losa in tho M'Nab family. Dr. M'Nab's father waß then, one of the pioneer farmers of Southland, and was rearing his family on tho Knapdalo homestead. The whole household, of which Mr. M'Queen was theu a member, was stricken down, with two exceptions. Theso exceptions wore Mrs. M'Nab and Mr. M'Queen himself. Mr. M'Queon devoted his whole attention to nursing RobK M'Nab, then about seven years old. Robert pulled through,, but four brothers and a sister died. Tho cause of death, was dysentery or British cholera. Tlie same trouble appeared on other homesteads in tho neighbourhood. A sister of Mrs. M'Nab's (Mrs. Copland, of Ono Tree Point) who was staying at the M'Nab homestead at the timo, nursing a child, was ordered by the doctor to return to hor homo at once. She- did so, but both she and tho child contracted the sickness, and the infant died, as did also ono of Mrs. Copland's sons who was about four years old. Mr. Copland and another boy also fell sick, but recovered. Thero were other deaths in the district at tho time, and the epidemic also caused considerable mortality in Tasmania. Mrs. Cameron, of Glendhu, whose family contracted the illness, was out of reach of a doctor, and afterwards,claimed to have cured her children with whisky. For summer holidays you'll need a pair of cricket trousers, 9s. 6d., 10s. 63., 15s. 6d., to 235. 6d. for sound quality, at Geo. Fowlds, Ltd., Manners Street.— Advt. Housewives greatly appreciate grocers' kindness in giving the "Thinker" NoteBook free Tvith every Is. package "No Rubbius" Laundry Help.—Advt.