LOCAL AND GENERAL

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 244, 3 July 1918, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

The report tof Iho Defence Expenditure Commission is to bo, printed beforo it is released for publication. This means that Ihoro will yet. be a considerable delay before the public may know the contents of tlio report.

Major L. E, Purritt lms arrived in Wellington to take up duty as ..president of the special Medical Pc-Examin-al.ion Board. This - board in going io scrutinise the papers of the remaining C 2 meu of (lie First Division, including men who have been discharged from ramp. Tim board is lo start its third itinerary at Auckland on July 24. and it will make a complete lour of tho Dominion. About -100(1 men have lo be examined, It is expected that, (ho board will bo able lo complete the examination of the First .Division Ci men on this occasion. Major Farrilt, who recently returned lo Now Zealand on a hospital shin, has had service experience lo guide him in handling the C 2 cases.

Sympathy for the dependants of those lost on tho Wimmora was expressed at a meeting of the Seamen's Union, and a motion to that cffect was passed.

"That the Government take into considomtion the arlvisnbility of acquiring, when tin 1 price of shipping becomes normal, a Hod: of State-nwned vessels us a means whereby (lie producer ami consumer of New Zetland products may bo brought into direct contact, and an a.si't-off against any trust' which may try to (jet control of the New Zealand meat or other produce markets," is a remit, which lias been forwarded by Otago for decision at the annual contp'.'opco of the Now Zealand Farmers' Union, which is to open at. Wellington, on July 30. Recommendations favour ins Iho establishment of a farmers' shipping company have been submitted by tho Auckland and Wellington unions,

An Island Bay fisherman, giving evidence in a caso at the Magistrate's Court yesterday afternoon, staled that April last was (he best, month for fishing experieiicul this year. In that month the owner of a four-line boai cleared £!0I). During .May, witness, whose beat carries five fishermen, said he made ,M!) 5, and in June his net receipts wero ,JJ22. r ). Another fisherman testified that his was a six-lino boat, and in April his net takings wero J!2(10. Evidence was given by tho partner in n. fishing firm of four men that his share of tin proceeds of tho operations in April was .£32 10s.

The personnel of tlio New Zealand Orthopaedic Hospital, to be established in Clirislehiirch, will consist of Lieu-tenant-Colonel D. S. Wylie, Wellington; Lieutenant-Colonel T, Mill, Olago; Captain U1 rich. Captain G. W. (.lower, Auckland ; Captain W. K, Wallis, Olago; and Captain D. F. Myers, Canterbury. Captain Wallis will hnvo linden his charge the- therapeutical, massage, and gymnastic departments, and Captain Myers wilt hnvo charge of the X-ra.v department. In addition to the medical officers ol the unit, two curative workshop instructors are being trained specially for splintmaking, and in the making of _ special appliances. One man is being trained'for n'-i-lnr work, while one nurse _is to l>e given a special course of training in plaster work, and two of the massage staff are to receive special instruction at the Hammersmith Military Hospital in muscle re-education and electrical work. No definite news has been received as to when the unit will leavo England.

The body of' a Chinaman was found in a house, No. u naining Street, yesterday. H is not known how the deceased met his death. The body was removed to the morgue, and an inquest will be held.

During the mouth of May the dental department, of the Wellington Hospital treated 151 out-patients and 20 in-pat-ients, tho total attendances numbering 315. There were 70 new patients treated, and tho non-paying cases were 13. The dental surgeon in charge (Mr. F. W. Bond) appended a note to his report: as follows : r "I desire, to report the increase in vincc-nt angina. The eases treated in April wero 10 as against in ihis month (May), and treatments 50 as against 38."

To-morrow (July 1) is the American national feto day—tho anniversary of the independence of tho linited States. Flags will bo flown from the principal Government, lianking, . commercial houses, and the shipping, in honour of our latest Ally.

In reference to the motion passed on Friday last by a meeting of Auckland citizens advocating that any scheme of pensions for tho dependents of military and naval men should be participated in by tho dependents of men of the merchant service, Captain Macmdoo (secretary of the Merchant Servico Guild) stated lo a reporter that such action wis unnecessary. Ho has reeeived a cablegram from the High Commissioner in whirh it was stated that men on all British ships, wherever registered, wero covered by tho Board of Trade compensation scheme' for death and injury of officers and men.

During the month ended June 11, cases of diphtheria came under the notice of the Wellington Hospital authorities, as against '18 for. tho preceding month, and 91 for the corresponding month of last year. The figures, would serve to show that the disease is still rampant in our midst, though not so generally prevalent as last year, when the hospital became unite. congested with cases, and- two diphtheria patients (children) had to be accommodated in tho samo bed. That state of things brought about the building of tho new infectious diseases hospital on the hill at tho back of the other hospital buildings, which when completed, will ropKG the present infectious diseases hospital available for diphtheria rases only. The number of cases of scarlet, fever reported during tho last month was twelve, as against eleven for the preceding month'. When consulted yesterday, the Mayor (Mr. J. P. Luke) stated that though the applications for tho position of superintendent of the reserves and Lotauical Gardens had closed at the end of last month, no appointment (in succession lo Mr. G. F. Glen) had been made. A good number of applications had been leceived, and were now in the hands or tho.Reserves Committee, who may bo in <ho position to make a recommendation at the next meeting of tho City Council.

The newlv-designed reserve at tho Conrtenay Place terminus, which has added considerably to the attractiveness of that part of the town, has lately been top-dressed, and the lawn is lookin" verv well indeed. Tlio success of the experiment in Courteimy Place might encourage the City Council to continue tho "open-door" policy as regards our reserves generally. bo jar the shrubs which have been plantei. fairly thickly in the open round tlio Basiii Reserve (outside tho fence) have not been interfered with, and are growing splendidly. It has been proved everywhere in tho world that in tho nvitter of open street shrubberies and flower plots the public aro to be trusted. The row Superintendent of Reserves might feel disposed to open up tho IventCambridge Terrace reserves, which have a stiff confined appoaranco after seeing the open reserves.

A request' has been received from the Imperial Government to supply a number of homing pigeons for war work on tlio West .front. The Defence Department has been in communication with the various societies, and it is hoped that the response will be good. It is desirable that the birds . should bo as young as possible. A similar appeal has been made in the United Kingdom and in Australia, and the fanciers thero have given their birds free. It is said that'over 60.000 birds were given free of cost ill the United Kingdom. The New Zealand Government would be glad to receive offers of birds from fanciers in New Zealand. It should bo stated whether the birds are given free, or the cost per head fanciers are prepared to accept. All correspondence should be addressed lo Headquarters, Now Zealand Military porces, Wellington.

Mr. E. W. Just, representing the New Zealand liducatioiml Institute, in the course of a lecture delivered by him ir. Southland last weelc on "Education lipConn," said tint tlios Minister of Edit calioii was keen to inaugurate reforms, Gut legislative power and more money were necessary, and until they showed the Government and Parliament that they really wauled reforms, tlio reforms (vould not be secured. " Preaching in St. Paul's Cathedral, Duncdin, on Sunday morning, the Primate (llishep Nevili) made a significant pronouncement regarding the general question of Inborn: unionism, and ono that is of special interest in view of tlio widely-held belief that tlio Church is out of sympathy with organised labour, says tlio "Otago Daily Times." The subject of his address was "Signs of tlio Times," and dealing with what lie described as "the great Socialistic bodies" that; have been formed in every country of (.no world, ho slated that theso wero an evidence of the fact that the masses .were beginning to realise their power and wero intending to use that power ill the future. Jlo recognised that these great organisations wero going lo wield a vast, inlluenco ill the years to tome, and he also recognised that lliey possessed many admirable features among others that "'ailed for a measure of revision and modification. The Church should extend her sympathy to these great movements which taught, as one of their cardinal doctrines, the brotherhood of man, and which possessed many potential possibilities for good; but Church peoplo should endeavour to show that, while "the brotherhood of man" was an excellent teaching as far as it went, the relationship between God and man came first, and Ihe wliolo was governed by the great kingship of love. The Church jvas not out of Sympathy with labour, but sought to clevato its ideals and bring them in conformity with the truly Christian standpoint.

Attention is to be devoted at the coming conference of the Now Zealand Farmers' Union to the subject of harnessing Hip. water power of llie .Dominion. The Wellington branch has forwarded a remit suggesting that the conferenoo impress upon the Minister of Public Works tho necessity for proceeding ivith the preliminary work on the Mangahao hyd"o-o!ectric scheme as an urgent step towards national efficiency. In view ot (lie largo demand for nitrogen for fertiliser purposes the Taranaki Union suggests that (he Government bo askeil if it contemplated tho use of hydroelectric poiver for tho production of nitrogon.