LOCAL AND GENERAL

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 147, 17 March 1919, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

It is stated on good authority (hot the whole of the Hororativ's draft, including untuy oilicors, signed u petition to the Minister of Defence (Hir James Allen), iiskiii!,' thnt tho gratuity and clothing allowances should be raised to the Canadian ami Australian level. Tho allowunco made for clothing {£■>), in particular is deemed to bo altogether inadequate.

Tho military authorities announced last night that the liner Athenic will arrive in the stream at 7 o'clock to-morrow evening. If she is declared to be a "clean ship" she will probably berth on Wednesday afternoon.

Acting on a report that a man not in a. normal state of mind was wandering about Torawhiti, members of the Mounted Police were sent out yesterday to scour ths country. They found the man, wandering about with bare feet, and quite unable to give a reasonable- account of himself. He was lately a resident of Lower Hutt.

A largely attended meeting of the Auckland Soldiers' Mothers' League passed a motion expressive of slirong indignation that widows' ponsions were being administered through the charitable aid boards, and urged that tho epidemic widows' pension be administered through the Pensions Department.—Press Assn.

"If we Britishers have ono characteristic that is worth hanging on to it. is that we have good hearts and can stick out hardships, and difficulties," remarked the Minister of Defence, Sir James Allen, ■when presenting the prizes to tho successful competitors at tlie Dominion Eiflo Association's meeting at Trcnthnin on Saturday.

A Press Association message from Wairoa states that tho County Council on Friday decided to apply to the Government for a permit to harness Waikaremonna for electric power, and also invited local bodies on tho East Coast and Napier and Gisbornc lo cail a conference with a view to all joining in the proposal.

Tlib first sitting of the Police Commis. sion will be held on April 7. Tho proceedings will not be open to the Press. Tho commission is to investigate and report to the Government reynrdinjr various matters of administration, including pay ami promotion of tho pnlico force and the hours of work of constables.

The .mantle of Polonis Jack appears to have fallen on a number of his fellow members of the finny tribe. It is a long time now since Pelorns Jack was observed piloting a vessel through the French Pass, and he has either forsaken dm watei;3 which knew him for so many years or has died. A Dunedin citizen, howeyer, who recently crossed Cook Strait from Nelson to ■Wellington by tho Mapourika, states that half a. dozen porpoises led tlio vessel for several miles in the manner made familiar by Pelorns Jack, gambolling backwards and forwards and rubbing themselves alongside tlv. stem. They then departed just as suddenly as they had made their appearance. Sailors on tho Mapourika stated that the porpoises had been accompanying their ship for the past six weeks or so. During the course of the recent Poultry Conference (says (he "Lytteltnn Times"), representatives of the North and South Island Associations and the Championship Association met In discuss tho terms of settlement of the differences existing between the respective associations. After considerable, discussion an agreement was come to between those present which there is every hone will eventually put. an end to the division which has for so long hampered tho fancy.

Tho engineer to (ho Raglan County Council, speaking on the question of road? expressed tho vinw that concrete roads were the only thins; for Inrtniphs, while tar srroutiiVwas regarded as the most suitable material for country roads when the question of expense was taken into consideration. If a road wore tar fronted, and the riece«arv attention paid to the surfae? it would be practically everlasting, us th" foundation would not b? toHied. Such a road, it had been computed, would cost about 15* nor chain per annum to maintain if the traffic were heavy. Concrete roads would also be tho better for a surface dreeing of (nr and "chips." and this would also enable horses to keep their footiii" on the concrete, a matter which was a" difficullv ever present with concrete roads. If tar grontmg were genorally adopted by the counties throughout the Dominion aiMher problem would evolve namely, where would t.he supof Hγ be drawn from? N»«- Mland would not be able to satisfy the demand. Tho Central Fire Station received a call to the Empire Mannfaclnvinj Com. liiinv's premises in Broadway terrace <olt Webb Street) at 2.53 p.m. yesterday. A quantity of rubbish near a boiler on tie mwiiul 'floor had become ignited, hut, the brigado had it out before any dam«ie was done to the building or contents. The building was insured for £1000 in the United Insurance Office, and the contents are covered by a policy in tho Guardian Office for .0000. A. deputation of Onslow residents waited on Mr. AVill. Anpletou. who has been a member of tho Onslow Borough, Council for a number of years, and has taken ii prominent part in the succes-:tul campaign- for amalgamation with Wellington Citv and asked bim to contest a seat on the' Citv Council at tho forthcoming municipal elections. Mr. Appleton re r gretted to have to decline the request, on business grounds.

Before tho Fisheries Commission' at Auckland, Mr. Ayson, Chief Inspector, said there was no part of New Zealand where there was such n very large extent of trawling and fishing ground as around the coast of Auckland provincePress Assn.

\t the Auckland Police Court Catherine Dann and Ernest Dann were fined & on two charges of selling indecent postcards.—Press As*n.

The mask habit, which never got a grip in Melbourne, appears (says the llelto be on its last legs or mouths. Ono of tho last to discard the "protection" was a pretty maul in the employ of a well-known Collins Street medical practitioner. Day after day. with womanly heroism, she met each caller at the door, her natural, dencate type ot beauty hidden away beneath a monstrous, mask-ono of the perfectly fitting, scientih'c pattern. An inveterate caller upon the doctor discovered to his astonishment a dsiv or two ago that the maid had at last discarded her mask, and in reply to his concerned inquiry the young; woman explained that she had heard that persons who wore masks lost their legs— "Hie less dropped oft' 'em!" The young woman 'apparently was referring to some imperious post-mortem development. Possibly the inveterate caller coineetin-ec this "wax works" horror was .the Imal resort 'by which the doctor sought to nvoid unenviable notoriety ns estal> lishment. Anyway it "worked.

Blackberries are ripe. The fruit is a little late this year, but the, crop is said to he u sood one. Hundreds of people visited Knitnke and the. AkataviiTO Valley yesterday on berry-nicking bent, and some heavy baskets and tins wore garnered for jam-niakwg. In the orders issued to the officers of (ho returned draft by the Hororatu on Saturday ivas a paragraph outlining the arrangements made for Hie transport of the men away from the wharf by motorMi , . One sentence read: It must be clcarlv understood that not move than three' next-of-kin will be allowed to accompany any soldier in a motor-car. Such a'vnle'wa.s doubtless easy to lay down, but it was not so easily carried out Those who lined Hie route freely commented on Hip fact that there were so many iwxt-of-kin joy-ridin/r that the soldier 'could scarcely bo found.

■The huso crowds which invaded Wellington f> ? oi» nil parts of the district to participate in Hie wel-ome to the llororata's draft of returned soldiers mount a hamM to the Iroms, the lea rooms, anooinmdation limu-cs and picture shows. ■\-i the men were landed in pood time, thp crowds swarmed up town lietween 3 and I p.m. »»:! such was the. invasion of Ihe various ten rooms that the demand was in exec?? of the supply, and, in some we'; patience was a virtue thai went unrewarded. Tlv tramways were heavily taxed Iliroiißliuut the day.

The Tlarhour Hoard's M rtore will be mippii all day (o-dav for the redemptio:i of surprise 'packet-tickets in connfction with the enmmcTcinl li-,ivellers' ell'ort for llu- mei-cuitilo marine. The balance of poods will '•" sold at auction, commencing at noon to-morrow.

About 10.30 a.m. on Saturday people in tho vicinity of Te Aro Ilouse were witnesses to an unusual night. The lanyard hud become detached from the flagstaff at the top of the building, and one of the stall daring enough hail volunteered to undertake the dangerous climb, that the II .iK might be still kept flying. Coatless and bootless, (he wan climbed to the top of the flagstaff and re-threaded the lanvnni. Then he de.-cended, reaching safe territory without, mishap, much to the reih'l , of the crowd below.

A sudden gust of wind dii'ictr-H its violonce against one of tho windows of Messrs. George and Kersley's premises on Inmbton Quay yesterday afternoon and blew it out. The "window was one nearest the. Bristol Piano Company's premise.;, just inside the, vestibule, and' it is rather extraordinary that the glass should have been blown out on to the pavement instead of inside. Not a particle of glass was found inside. The window is valued atalxmt .£3O.

At the Supremo Court sessions at Ham. illon, Patrick Lowrv, an uldeny man, charged with stealing cat.tlo at Kaimai, was fined &50.—-Picss Assn.