LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 41, 12 November 1917, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

A Press Association telegram from Auckland states that returns ol« tho total Now Zealand casualties to Uc tobor 22 furnished by Sir James -lUtn are: Dead, 9117; missing, 3a:,,P"f nols ' 102: wounded 23,50 U. total, 5.,9. U. Tho reconstructed National Efficiency Board sat in Wellington last week. Its members separated on Saturday, a returning to work in their own district.. The membors of tho board conferred with tho Prime Minister (Right Hon. W. l• Massey) on Saturday morning. Mr. iliu.«ey stated, in reply to a quest on on the subject, that tha board was work under tho new arrangement, whicli was working smoothly and cftectivelj. Information has been rcccW atl almerston North, says (rur special co respondent-, that a runaway engine and is short-lived freedom caused some excitement in tho Woodvlllo district; on Thursday evening. At about eeven o'clock an engine with steam up iras left unattended for a few Tnomonts ni the Woodvillo station yards, when suddenly It started off along tho line leading to Palmers ton North. Fortunately, after traversing about four hundred yards at a good speed the engine was thrown tho line and capsized. A sasli and door factory owned by Brownlees Limited, at lvilbirnie, was destroyed by fi.ro early on Saturday mora" ihg. The alarm was given | 5 a in., aud by tho time the brigade Teaciied the 6j>ot tho fire had a strong bold on tho building. A northorly I:»ree/.c was fanning the itames, whioh had. made very rapid progress. The Me concentrated its efforts on saving the adioimnz stacks of timber and joinery, and succeeded in confining the fire to the factory, Tho building and its contents wero insured in tho Commercial Union Office for JISOO, and the loss considerably exceeded that amount. The origin of the firo is not known. A short Bitting of the Magistrates Court ivas held on Saturday, with Mr. S. E. M'Cartliy, S.M., on the ■ bench, when Michael James SnUivnn, who was found helplessly drunk in Manneis Stroet, and against whom there neio four previous convictions was sentenced to three months' imprisonment. For insobriety, a first ollender was fined 10s, and given tho option of serving 24 hourti The quarterly meeting of tho Public Service Superannuation Board w&b he il on Thursday, Mr. J. H. Richardson in tlin chair. Twenty-seven contributors, retired under Scction 3t> of the Act, by reason of age or length of service, were Ktantcd allowances totalling £1393 per annum, and retired as medieally unfit for duty, weio granted annual allowances aggregating JCIB9. Fifteen widows and seventeen children wero granted the statutory allowances, amounting to JM9I P«™J; Tho board refused to grant an allowance to one contributor whom it was flawed #o retire as medically unfit and the retiring allowance of one contributor waa Xred forfeit for failing to submit himself for medical examination when required to do so by the board. In consequence of retirements under Section 3;> acorued compensation to the amount of J37830 16s. Gu. became a uabiluy 01 two Superannuation Fund and u corresponding rolief to tho Consolidated Fund. The bollock-judging 1 competition at tho Manawatu A. and P. Association s Show resulted as under :-The weight of tho bullook was 92751b., and Mr. D., Collins (ltairanga) and Mrs. AV. Freeman (Kairanga) divided the first and second P™es. taking £& 10s., each guessing Mr. L. A- Abraham (Palmerston ftortli), who guessed 927i1b., secured tho third ? Tho Church of England Chaplain at Taulierenikau Military Camp appeals to tho puolio for supplies of first-class readin" material, well-bound aud freah lookto" .in order to complete his library. There aro 2500 meu at tho camp, and the demand for books is very large. Parcels addressed "Church of England Chaplain, care Camp Commandant, iauherenikau Military Camp, will go fiec. It was reported at the last meeting of the Reserves Committee of the City Council that two valuable monkeys had died at the Newtown Zoo. Post-mortem i examination indicated that the cause of death was ptomaino poisoning, ilia lopu with which the monkeys had been supoiled was of the usual nature, and other animals had suffered no ill-effects from eating it. The inference therefore was that tho poisoning urns duo to some fool given to tho animals by membors oi tho public. The committee believed that the food given by tho public to the> animals is given with the bost oi intentions, but in these two oases it has proved disastrous. It was therefore ■.decided to appeal to tho public to give tho animals nothing which was at al likely to have an injurious.effect.it is not desired to prohibit the feedino of animals altogether,. thoughthis may bo preferable, but it is hoped) that the greatest earo will bo exercised m the class and quality of foodj given. William Burns, an eighteen-year-old youth', .who suffered injury to the head through collision with a motor-bus while riding a bicycle at Pctona on Friday evening, was reported last night to bo making satisfactory progress at tho hospital: , ... At 3.15 p.m. yesterday tho Fire Brigade received a call to Crawford Terrace, wliwe a (motor-car belonging to JJr. MaoSSin was on firo. The body of tho car was considerably damaged, but no other damage' of importance wai done. The car was insured for £200.

According to Trentham Camp orders, 55,707, Private C. W. O'Shea, Trentham Details (F Cov., Thirtietli Reinforcements), found 'guilty of deserting His Majesty's service, has been sentenced tu 112 days' detentions 59,203, Private J. llalstead, Trentliam Details (H Coy., Thirtietli Reinforcement), also found frailty of deserting His Majesty's service, has been sentenced to 81 days' detention. Sentences of 56 days' detention in cne caso and 42 days in two otlior casea have also been imposed.

In a short discussion by tho provincial executive of the Auoklawl Farmers' Union on tho subject of tree-planting, Mr. Somervillo advocated recommending the Government to allow portions of land holdings to stnnd vent free on condition that trees bt> planted on them. A motion in this direction was adopted. It was also agreed, at the instonoe of tho To Awamutu branch,' that the Government bo asked to send tree-planting experts to lccturo to farmers as to tho most suitable treea to plant,

While in tho South Island last week tho Minister of Public Works (Hon. W. Frasor) visited tlio Taicri Plain, where severe floods occurred in September and October. Ho found over 10,000 acres of tho plain still under water. Tho Publio Works Department 'has in hand tho report of a ltoyaL Commission sot up more than a yoar ago to investigate tho cbiidi* lions that produco Hooding of tho Taieri Pinin nnd to suggest remedies. lhe commission has recommended a scheme that would suvo a largo area of very vnluable land from the danger, of periodic Hooding, but tho expenditure involved is large and tho Department may not bo able to take it in hand uUling tho waT. Tho Thorndon branch of tho Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants has passed the following resolution:- I hat this meeting of tho Thorndon branch, having heard tho explanation of tho fixecutivo council, of tho railway ballot, and their treatment of tho Thorndon branch, has no confidence in them for rheir ao< tions in connection t with saino.' Iho resolution was carried unanimously. A committee of merchants and brokers interested in tho kauri gum trade has issued a pamphlet criticising adversely tho operations of the Government in connection with kauri gum since the beginning of tho war. Tho committee asserts that the Government's efforts to assist the gum-diggers by buying gum from them and making advances on unsold gum in the stores have been useless and detrimental to tlio interests of tho trade. It asks for a balance-sheet showing the actual results of tho Government's operations. The annual meeting of the Council of tho New Zealand Institute of Architects 1 is to be held at Christohurch en Novem--1 ber 29. ' "A question'of some importance to l members and to this instituto ; as ropre- ! senting the profession of architecture, is that of persons who aro members o, . architectural societies outside this Do- : minion remaining unattached to this in- ■ stitnte, and so being,_ for all practical ) purposes, beyond tho jurisdiction of any responsible body," says the annual report of tho New Zealnnd Instituto of Architects. "While the council does not go tho length of suggesting that full memberß of, sny, the Royal Instituto of British Architects should bo required, as a condition of membership, to ally themI selves to tho allied society of the conn-. try in which they reside, it fools disposed " to suggest that no licentiatcships should II bo continued nor any new ones granted to ' residents within this Dominion unless l tho person concerned is a member oi ! this instituto. In a very. i-hort time s from now the door of this, institute w U " bo entirely closed to all but those who • enter oitlier through tho examination 1 room or arc admitted ad cundem statim, • and it behoves the few architect* re- ' maining aloof to take advantage of tho ? opportunities remaining before their ev 1 elusion must become permanent. ,