LOCAL AND GENERAL

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 251, 17 July 1919, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

In view of the non-publication of The Dominion on Saturday, to-morrow's issue will contain the special features which ordinarily appear the next day. In addition, there will bo included in it illustrations and raiding matter particularly appropriate to the current celebrations. The Chief Postmaster Advises that on Friday evening a delivery of town letters will be made from the letter-carriers' branch, on the first floor of the General Tost Office, from 7 until 8 p.m. Local merchants are unable to obtain supplies of biscuits, and it has been remarked that this is owing to the railways refusing- to carry them. This, we are informed, is not so, the real eauso of the scarcity being inability to obtain labour, especially packers. The reduced train services have interfered considerably with school work. The secretary of the Education Board reported at yesterday's meeting that there had been serious dislocation at various points, owing to school children and teachers being unable to travel in the normal way. Tho best arrangements possible ill tho varying circumstances had oeen made. The ferry steamer Mararoa arrived at Lyttclton just after noun yesterday, after a prolonged passage occasioned by the strong south wind and heavy head sea which were encountered for the greiller part of tho trip—Press Assu. The firm of' Jlcsrs. Boss and Glondiniug arc initiating a scheme of participating bonuses for all employees who have been in the service of tho company for a given period. The banks will observe a holiday on Saturday and Holiday. Latest demobilisation figures show that mi Juiv fi the numbers of members of the New Zealand Expeditionary Fores still 1011, in England and Era nee were as Inllnw:—Strength in France, 12; strength in United Kingdom, 051; patients in hospital in United Kingdom, 7!KI; number with wives and families in United Kingdom, 120!); nurses and Red Cross workers to bo evacuated, 79; total evacuated since armistice, 1i5,102. Tho birth of quadruplets at Ngarauawahia brings lo mind the fact I hat, while the birth of triplets is not uncommon, the occurrence ol quadruple's is not frequently recorded (says the Auckland "Herald"). Such an event, believed to bo tho only one for a considerable time, occurred in au Auckland country district a few years agu. Tho four children, who are all 6trong and healthy, are still living.

The executors in the estate of a lady who died recently at Remuera have donated the whole' of the household furniture and effects of an eight-roomed dwelling to be sold for the benefit of fhe work of Sitter Esther amongst the poor of Auckland. Though Australia will need a largo navy some day. ir, is not likely that the Commonwealth' Government will seek many gift ships from Great Britain, because of the espouse of upkeep. To run 11.M.A S. Australia costs the Commonwealth from ,£2OU,iI(X) to .£250,000 a year. The nav of the DIM officers and men absorbs aniu-oximately i)135,OO0; coal, oil, stores, and so on make up the remain-' tier. A light cruiser, such as H.M.A.S. Melbourne, costs approximately .£IOO,OOO a year, the officers and crew, about 450 men. absorbing, say, X'(i7,oCO. A torpedo boat costs aproximaloly JJ20.00 a year. Tho question of the diversion of trade from Great Britain and her dependencies to the United States is touched upon in the report of Air. IV Ivakano, tho Premier of Tonga, which states:—"the Union S.S. Co. still refuses to lift our copra, and 1 have never received an explanation of the reason why. It simply means that now a market has been opened in the United States fur our produre, vessels will still come to lift it, and our trade will be diverted from British countries to the U.S.A." At the meeting of the Geological Section of 4he Wellington Philosophical Society, tho following resolution was passed—"ln tho opinion of the section tho preparation of a contoured topographical map of New Zealand on as large -a scale as practicable (say, 1: 125,000) is j now an jmuerative necessity, as tho map is required for agricultural, geological, geographical, and othet purposes. At a meeting of the Wellington Labour Renrasentation Committee held last evenine at the Trades Hall the question of the milk supply was under consideration. While L'ivinu' tlio Milk Committee of the Oitv Council every credit for trying to make the Mock system a success, tho meetiii" strongly protested against the action of somo of the milk vendors m their efforts to frustrate the successful wovkine of the block system. It further nointed out that if the council had not been controlling the milk supply at the uiTSeiit, momijnt a large number of the. communitv would have been without milk altogether, owing to the great shortn"e the supply being only about 3000 aaUons. daily, as against a necessary 5000 irallons. A peace souvenir which is likely to command a ready and large sale is to be issued this morning by the Peace Celebrations Committee through Messrs. Whitcombo arid Tombs, the printers and publishers. Tho souvenir is in tho form of a .book—with a coloured cover of handsome and appropriate design—containing in brief and interesting form a review of tho outstanding features of the war, a number of short sketches, and, 'above all, a splendid collection of war photographs, which should prove of lasting interest and value. . Tho book is a fine example of artistic printing and designing, the admirable effect being heightened by the excellent quality of the paper used in t:he production. Messrs. Wliitcombe and Tombs expect to complete the first issue about noon to-day, when it will be on sale to the public at 2s. a copy. There probably will be a big demand for copies of lihe souvenir, and country residents would be well advised to order copies as soon as possible through Messrs. Whitcomlw and Tombs. Mr. L. S. Panning edited the publication, and tho contributors include a number of names well known to New Zealand readers. The lion, treasurers, H.M.B. i\*ow Zenland Entertainment Fund, acknowledge the receipt of tho undermentioned amounts:—Previously acknowledged, ,£12!) Bs.; Wellington Cily Council, .£25; ~S.Z. Farmers' Co-op. Distributing Co.. ,£lO 10s.; A. M. Myers, £W Ms.; ,T. Firth, ,£'s as.; John ?. T.tilTc, .£5 55.; .T. Ifnrle, .05 55.; C. E, Smith, .CD 35. : S. Eichelbaum, .02 25.; A. W. Butt, Jj2 25.; Irene M. Barlow, £2 25.; A. 11. Atkinson, .£2 25.; Judge Chamnan, £1 Is.; G. and T. Young, Ltd., it; total, .£504 15s.

A nice point has arisen concerning the attitude of consuls in connection with tho Peace celebrations at the week-end. All consuls of foreign Powers have been invited to participate in tho procession on Saturday morning, and in the case of those representing the Allied Powers their course of duty is quite plain, but (.'hero are consuls representing neutral Powers in Wellington, such as the agents for Holland, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, who are not at all sure that they should, officially represent their countries at such celebrations as are proposed. In at least one case a consul has cabled to the Consul-General in Australia in order to elucidate the position, feeling that, whatever his personal feelings in tho matter may be, it may be prejudicial to the interests of tho country he represents to take part in rejoicings over the downfall of 'those Powers with whom his country has hod no quarrel. The London correspondent of a southcm naner states that beforo the Rifle Uric-ado left Brocton Camp the Brigade Band, bv Dermission of Lieutenant-Col-onel Sherjherd. D.5.0., gave a concert in Stafford. A feature of tho entertainment was the nerformance of Lieutenant V. Bennett, winner of tho "Dominion ohamDionship for pianoforte playing." Durinc the evening the Mayor of Stafford nresented the conductor, Bandmasler Shardlow, with a silver-mounted ebonv baton; as a token of appreciation of the services rendered by him and the band, notably on Informary Pageant Dnv. When considering applications for a vacant position in tho Masterton School, the Wellington Education Board excluded a candidate on the ground that he did not belong to the Wellington district. At the meeting of the board yesterday, Mr. G. T\ London protested against this decision. The candidate's qualifications were particularly high, ho said, and he considered that tho board was defeating the intention of tho Ednnation Act by confining appointments to tho board's own employees. Th« point was discussed at some length. Members generally were opposed to the appointment of teachers from outsido the, district, on the grounds that there was no reciprocity as between boards, and that dissatisfaction would be caused among the board's own teachers. The election by parents of two members of tho board of managers of the Technical School will take place on August 11. The roll will close on July 28. This will be tho first time tho now regulations, giving parents direct representation on the board, have operated. Tho Board of Education yesterday discussed the proposal that tho board of managers should be reduced from nineteen members to fifteen. The opinion of tho majority of the members of tho board was that fifteen was too small a number and a motion by Mr. J. J. Clark that tho number should be seventeen was carried. The Wellington Board of Education vesterday declined to accedfl to a request that it should collect on behalf of tho Teachers' Institute, the subscriptions of .members of that body. Tho board did not care to accept a task that was outside its function, and that might possibly involve friction with teachers. Tho Firo Brigade acknowledges a i 5 donation from Mr. W. Dutch, brassfounder of Wakefield Street m recognition of services rendered at a lire on June. 18. The money will go to swell the brigade's recreation fund. Snow fell in many purls of mid-Can-terbury on Tuesday night, but the city, according to a Press Association teegram, was not affected. 'Hie foothills of the Southern Alps appear lo have had a very heavy coating. Circumlocutory is the process involved when shopkeepers in a New Zealand town wish In alter their closing hours, says the Ch'ristchurch "Sun." They have to present a requisition signed by a majority nf tho retailers hi that particular trade. Sn far the procedure is plain. But that, rci.uisition has lo go to the local cilv or borough council, which has to certify that the requisition has been «i«ned bv a i iwority. However, the local authority cannot certify that from its own knowledge, and so it semis the rnnuisilioii to the local branch o! the Labour Department, which .investigates the matter and then reports back to the nilv or bimin-»li council whether or not the reonisilion has liecn signed by a ranii.ritv. Then the council formally passes, if the information justifies it, a resolution declaring that a majority have .signed tho renuisition, after which it sends the renuisition and its resolution to tho Minister ' Labour.

Tlie inquest inlo the circumstances surrounding tho (loath of Mrs. Green, who was knocked down % a taxi-eiib in Adelaide lioad on Tuesday, will bo held in the courthouse this morning. Preparations for tho rebuilding of tho Ijontire on Mount Eden are moving apace (says it recent issue of the Auckland "Siar"). A fence has been erected around the big poles (which are to act as presumably as a defining lino to be. recognised by the public. A ling hies from the longest of tho poles with a seemingly pleading invitation to those- who nngnt be later tempted to set the stack alight before tlie time appointed to 'bo British and refrain from giving elfeci to any such thought. An appeal is being issued by tho vicar, churchwardens, ana vestry of St. Michael and All Angels', Ketburn, in connection with tho effort to wise, by St. Michael's Dav (September 29), a sum of iISOO, which, with tlie sum of .£2200 previously raised, will bring the Churcn liiiilding l-'nud to XM'M. When that total lias been reached, it is hoped to begin the 'building of the church on the site at the corner of Upland Itoud and Upland Crescent. On Sunday next the parishioners are being asiceil to commence the effort by devoting a. special uffortory t(. the Building fund, marking the occasion of thanksgiving for the restoration of peace by giving the largest possiblo thank-offering, so tlut the foundationstone of the church may be laid in tho year of peace. In an advertisement in this issue, tho Labour Department seek? idlers of land upon which to erect workers' dwellings. The Superintendent of Workers' Dwellings points out specifically that the Department wishes to acquire not one largo block of land in.each city or town to which houses are allocated, but various small lots which will enable the houses to bo distributed about instead of being massed together. "Unemployment is steadily increasing owing to the restriction cf the uiiluny services," stated Mr. T. M. Charters, District Ucpatriation Officer, to a "Lytleliton Times" reporter on Monday. Ho added that before the restriction of the railway services the board ivas gradually decreasing the numbers i f men on its books, but at present the position was becoming worse and worse. Asked whether tho beard hod been able to send any men over to the Wast Coast to work in tho coal mines, Mr. Charters stated that very few men would accept such employment. "If they would go over to tho West Coast, I could place hundreds of men at work. But if the men will not go to such employment, tho board cannot do anything in the matter. As far as skilled trades in Christehnrch are concorned, the position is still fairly good, but we find it most difficult to find work for unskilled men, particularly labourers."