LOCAL AND GENERAL

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 84, 2 January 1918, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Wellington, according to the experience of tho Police Court yesterday, was a very sober city on New Year's Eve. Tho police only secured one inebriate on Monday. The offender appeared in the Magistrate's Court yesterday before Captain \Hfinnah, J.P., and was convicted and discharged. A Press Association cable message from Sydney states that tho great heat of the ivist few days has been broken by steady rain. Tho exuberance .of tho New Year's Eve crowds wan nrach lessened and checked by the downfall. A military policeman named Frederick Riclicrd Woodley Perrin, employed as a military guard on one of the wharves at Lyttelton, was arrested <_n Saturday by Detective Quartermain and ■ Acting-Detective Bickerdyko, _on three charges of breaking and entering and theft of goods to the value of £40 at Styx in June ami July, 1916. Pe.rrin was in uniform at the time of his arrest, and was on duty. He appeared in tho Lyttelton Magistrate's Court before Mr. W. T. Lester, J.P., and 'vns remanded to appear at Christchurch.

There have been some excellent to-, cords of war service established bv New' Zealand families, hut probably the following would be hard to boat: Mr. Thomas Pratt, lato of tho Baptist Manse, Lincoln, and now of Limyood, has a cousin of the same name living in Bradford, Yorkshire, the whole of whose family of nine sons and one girl aro engaged in war work. Three of tho sons aro officers, four are non-com-missioiicd officers and privates, one controls a munitions works, ami ono is a scout. The daughter is a Red Cross nurse. There was recently publisli.nl in a Home paper a photograph of this patriotic family. A large department store in New York City opens' its working day with a "sing." A visitor who happens in punctually at 9 o'clock hears a. chorus of several hundred melodious voices rendering agreeable songs, accompanied by an organ, in a large rotunda- in the centre of tho store. Tho "sing" lasts for five minutes or more, ending with "The- Star Spangled Banner." Tho employees seem to enjoy most heartily this unconventional introduction to the day's work.

Although the King had recently to tap 50 tons of molten steel in Scotland, he hnd not to face an ordeal like ono to which his father, when Prince of Wales and a pupil of Lyon, afterwaTQe Lord Playfair, was challenged.; ,"Have you faith in science?" asked the tutor_ of his Eoval pupil. "Certainly," Tepljed the Prince. Playfair washed the youth s hand and wrist with funmonin. "Will you now placo your hand in this cauldron and ladle out.a portion of boiling lead?" "Are yon serious?" asked the Prince. Being'answered in tho affirmative, be plunged in his hand ond ladled out the white-hot metal unscathed.

"It looks very clear to us that until we succeed in developing our hydroelectric power resources," states -the Hou. W. D. S. Mac Donald, Minister of Minos, "that we must do all we can to explore and develop our coal supplies. Hydro-electric power is a bis; thing, and will take a long time to come into general operation, so that we must look to eoal for some time yet. Early in the new year I will submit to Cabinet a report I am obtaining from Mr. Morgan, Director- of Geological Survey, upon the Mokau coalfield, in Northern Tarana'ki. The owners of the area have offered to the Government the mineral rights over about 60,000 or 70.000 acres, containing a largo quantity of coal, much of which can be easily transported down tlio Mokau River. This waterway can fie improved at small expense by straightening ono portion. It might also be possible to use much' of the land for tlio settlement of soldioTS, but this is_ a matter , apart from the mining question, ■which the Government will considor at an early date." A unique entertainment was given at Wanganui recently, when the Male Choir held a patriotic concert and raised £54 12s. 6d. With ideal weather conditions, tho scbemo lor holding an outdoor outertainment proved very successful. The choir embarked on a pontoon which was illuminated with hin-h-power lamps, and towed to tho mScldlo of Virginia Lake. Tho audience was spread out on tlio grassy slopes of the lake- border, and the effect of the voices across the wator was distinctly pleasing. It is hoped to hold similar novel concerts during the summer months. A drover employed by tho Wellington Farmers' Meat Company had occasion to leave a foot-soro sheep in the lirni's holding paddock at To Ore Ore recently. The sheep was missed later and investigation showed traces of it having been slaughtered and taken away. A farm hand was subsequently arrested on a chargo of stealing the sheop.

It was decided that the Milford Sounds overland track should not bo opened to tourists this season, but tho Tourist Department eventually reversod its policy, Mid tlm track will be ready this week. Tlie reopening is duo to rho fact that tho tourist bookings from Australia and America this reason arc- much heavier than usual. New Zealand is getting somo sharo of tho tourist Lrsiflic diverted from Europo owing to the war, and the Department hopes to further encourage this movement whon times become, more auspicious. As one of the moans to that end, tho splendid angling for kingfish at tho Bay of Islands and other parts oF New Zealand has been made tho subject of an attractive booklet which will be shortly published, and supplies scut to America and England for distribution nnionjg sportsmen.

Passengers on the Auckland ferry boats got rather a shock on Sunday afternoon, on observing two'struggling liguros fully clothed in tho water oil the Queen's Wharf (says tho "Star"), il few minutes later three more- persons appeared racing along the wharf. On nearing tho edge they ail took a dive and landed near the struggling pair in tho water. That ono of tbo men had fallen into tho harbour and tho others were rescuing him was tho belief of all on board flio ferry boat, and tho astonishment of all was turned to laughter on olfsarvf.ng the men slowly crawling up tho stops fully clothed, and on resslilcg the top of the steps ono of rjie won sadeonly turned and pushed tlicm !n tlie water again. It appears thai Vws raen wc-rft firemen oIF a vessel ;n port, and in order to get over the restrictions regarding bathing costumes they wero obliged to go in tho water in their clothes.

When Sergeant William Bruce, of Winnipeg, was measured for the Army lio stood fivq'feet eight inches tall. Today ho stands but five feet five inches .ind a half tall. Two and a half inches of bono wero tßken from each log at tho ankle, and both feet were grafted on again in a London hospital. Tho King's own surgeon made tho operation in a London hospital, after Sergeant Bruce's ankles and wrists had been smashed by a shell explosion. Grafting was doue with silver wires. After many months) the bonea knit, and Sergeant Bruce was able to walk. J-Jo has no ankle joint. His feet are permanently at right ankles to his legs, but ho can walk just as well. A similar operation was performed on bis wrists, but no bone was taken out.

In the Industrial Arbitration Court • in Sydney a fow days ago, Mr. Justice j Heydon concluded the hearing of cases | in 'which J. C. Williamson, Limited, summoned eight members of the Musicians' Union of A.U3tralasia, and tho j secretary, A. E. O'Srieii, to 6Jiow cause why they should not pay penalty for having taken part in a strike. Mr. Justice Heydon said that eleven musicians wero engaged for a pantomime. They failed to attend a rehearsal. They contended that the orchestra should have been eighteen or twenty, in accordance with an undertaking alleged to have been given when the award was made that tho number of the crchestra should not bo reduced. Ho iield that a theatrical proprietary had just as much right as any other business concern to keep down its expenses by a reduction of tho staff to within tho probable income, and that therewas no record 'of a promise to maintain tho pantomime orchestra at eighteen or twenty. Each defendant was fined £>]0, with costs.

Some men havo no luck at all! A thirsty soul who had commenced Us Christmas festivities rather early wandered into the Masterton Park. Evi-, dently mistaking tho water in Jie uasm round the fountain for a promenade, ho walked right into tho water. Ihis amused two gentlemen who were seated near by. Being annoyed at their effervescing mirth, tho one who was now wot outsido as well as inside let oil: steam at the two others, in lurid higuage. Tliis is where his luck left him —the gentlemen wore both stipendiary magistrates 1 The Durio Hill elevator tunnel at Wan»anni has been completed, and a start has now been made with the elevator shaft to connect with the tunnel, and in which an electrically-driven elevator will convey passengers to tho level of the highest point of the suburb.

The sum of £750 was stolen recently from tho 10.38 train from Oakleigb. to Melbourne. The "Argus" states that inquiries make it appear that the robbery was committed while tho train was at a standstill between Richmond and Flinders Street stations. The stop was due to the air brako having beeu applied in a guard's van in the :;entro ot tho train. On that occasion the guaid, together with the fireman, ran along the train to ascertain what was wrong, and it is supposed that advantage was taken of this opportunity-to remove the money. A passenger stated that he saw two men jump down from the footboard and run towards the rear of the train. Among the,applicants for Telief ft the Sydney Town Hall depot (says a Sydney paper) was a woman from one of the poorer parts of the citv, whose story sounded' genuinely pathetic, but who made her appearance in a fur coat, which one of the experts present judged to be worth 15 guineas at least The committee looked sideways at that coat, and when she had concluded her talo of suffering turned to the subject at once. "How does it come that yon apply for relief wearing an expensive fur coat like that?" asked the chairman "Oh, it isn't mine," explained the woman. "There are five of us in it It's only my day for wearing it.

The Cork correspondent of tho London "Daily Chronicle" wrote on October 22:—'"One result of the U-boat campaign has been the springing up of a new industry, which is earning small fortunes for those who have had tlio foresight to invest in it. Tins is tlio traffic in the cargoes of vessels wlucli have been torpedoed, but which liavo managed to reach port. Frequent y these cargoes are only very slightly damaged, but almost invariably tliey are sold off quickly at next to nothing, such is the haste to get the vessel m dock and repaired for further service at the earliest possible moment. in theso times of high freights every day that a ship is out of action means a substantial loss to her owners. I know of one instance where a cargo of grain, damaged bv sea water as a result of a vessel being torpedoed, was sold off from the vessel's holds at 10s. a ton. But almost immediately the fortunato purchaser disposed of the grain again for foodstuffs at £6 10s. a ton, and as there wero no heavy harbour dues or carting charges to pay, the difference between his buying and selling prices was almost entirely c car profit. Nor was this the end of the golden harvest reaped from this cue cargo. As the demand increased the ' price bounded up until it changed hands again first at £9 and finally at £12 10s. a ton. A' year before a similar cargo at tho same port fetched but £1 per ton. In still another case a buyer bought a crato of stuff at a salvage auction for £10, and within a. quarter of an hour was enabled to resell at no less than £'0. Later, whon be discovered the value of his purchase, he tried to rebuy it, but was asked £130! It is even rumoured in one port in the South of Ireland that a purchaser bought for 4s. a bar of gold, both seller and buyor being under tlio impression that it was brass 1 But just in the nick of time a Governmont official, with greater knowledge of tho goods, stopped in to prevent the purchaser carrying off his golden gain, which must have been worth anything uo to £500.