LOCAL AND GENERAL

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 84, 3 January 1920, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Wireless advice received from the Himntaka yesterday stated thai the vessel now expects to arrive at Wellington at fi o'clock to-morrow evening from Liver nool "All tlnv do is to take the microbes off the tl<:or and put them on the wall, where thev have a better juinping-oft place," sail a delegate to tho Teachers TnsHtute vesterdav, when describing the rather casual methods employed in the cleaning of schools. At the end of the year the following works under tho Wellington Harbour Board, wove in hand •—Koading at To' Aro reclamation; roadmg at Waterloo Ouav reclamation : Taranaki Street store; vermis and maintenance supply store, Waterloo Quay; additions to wharf olliic>. Queen's Wharf; Tipilea Wharf fivinforced concrete), and a new carpenter's workshop, \\ aterloo t.Hiay. Tihe opening of the Forts Boad, which runs from Evans Lay round Point llals-u-cli to Karaka Bay and, Seatoun. lu\i been eagerly seized upon by an army of motorists during the holidays, and all agree that Wellington now possesses the finest murine drive of any metropolitan centre in the country. One advantage of | the road is that it is perfectly level tho whole war, another is that it is in good order, and a third is that the blue I waters of the harbour lap the rocks at ! the. edge, of the road the whole way j from tho city (Oriental Bay! to Seatoun. 'Then 1 if a longer drive is desired, Lyall | and Island Bays can be taken in by ! miming down (inepti Road to the ocean's I lip. An almost continuous string of motor-ears and cycles daily prove the I popularity of the drive, which has been closcd to the public for tho last y v<years. Hindu bnllk'-gathorers arc unlicensed and yet they give themselves a license lo enter the privacy of anyone's backward at any time <if the. day, much to the annoyance find, at times, embarrassment of the housewife. The inspectorial authorities al the Town Hall at present, licerifo fruit hawkers and sell street stanik but: dn not have any control what<c«r over <i body of men who are B-iid lo corn anything between JZI and Jiti a week gathering bottles from people's back yards.

Complete returns of the output of p<,ld | for tlll' Auckland district for the past j year are not yet available, as the clean- ! tips for the filial lour-weekly period from Ihe principal gold-producing properties will not. be completed for some weeks. The returns available- to dato show the amount produced from tho Auckland district mines to be JMl(,7f>7. The output for the full vcar of 1018 was .£(1011,870 las. lOd. "Is the- Union .Tack kept too much in the locker?" The question suggested itself to two New '/ealanders during their recent, tour through the United Slates (says the "Lyttelton Times"), from one side of America to the other they saw the Stars a.nd Stripes floating everywhere in the breeze. Outside and inside every school and public, building, above every factory, bank, and business house it was unfurled, and at shows or other publio functions it was invariably the only decoration used. On some of I lie larger buildings the flag was not even allow'ed to benome invisible fit niciit time. but. was illuminated the whole nieht through by search! ighl.-:. While, of course, the British are noted for au undemonstrative characteristic, it is yet questionable whether exhibition of the Union .lack would not in the long run havo a sliinulating effect on patriotism. In' connection with the development of the Charleston coalfield, the Grevmouth covn'spe.ndei't of the Chrislchnreh "Sun" stales that the directors of the AVestport Coal Company have their arrangement* well in hand for starling the railway- fr-imi (Upe Fou.lwind ito the mines The gradient will l.v easy, so that large rakt-.s of coal will be hauled by a small cneine. and it is anticipated thai, when ilie supply is available, it wit! mat.-rlal'v lower the price of lignite. in the cities.

A nicrtiiiß of the hockey delegates From all the Movth Islam! n'sooiatioos will 1)0 held at PiilmorMou North at wi early dale to discuss (he mutter of (ho boundaries nf o;xcli The nvosjdonl: nnd Kecretnry of (ho New Zealand IToskoy Adoration «'ill iiHotul the Rathon'm;. Tlio dispute between tho Jfanawntu ami WHiiipr A»wcia(i!m ropirdinß their Ixiii'idavios will probably lw soiHod at tho .conference. The nir-niho-s of (ho O'.votorlmvv TCny.s' Cricket l.o.U'Uo's (outus visiting Wollm;;'on lenve for the south (o-niijhf. "Silk" stockings made from sawdust mid stUini! for aliaut 2s. a pair, compared wi!h A'l foi' (ho real silk o'ics, have been made passible by experiments conducted by tin- Svmeiise Vnivewil.v School of Forestry. The stockings made from sawdust look like silk and foci iikc silk. 'IV>ts show that they wiwr is well or oven bettor than the loal articlc, which costs ten times as much.

The unusually dry weather being e»' periencd in North Taraiuiki is having a serious effect in Ihe country. There has liteu but very little growth, and pastures are becoming dried up. Hay crops 100 are very light, paddocks in some instances hardly being worth saving.

Mr. Austin Blnckie, who has been selected to 6infr die leuor music in "The Messiah" with the Terlirugghen Orchestra, is a member of the local Postal staff, and has been singing ballads in Wellington now for tho past three or four yems. lie has not so far sung t!i ".Messiah" music in pu.Viic in Wellington, but his light lyric tenor should be nicely suited to tho opening tenor p-' . in the Ilandelinn oratorio. The lirst performance of "The Messiah," with f; big orchestra, will be given in Auckland on January 13, and the Wellington performance will talce place on January 27.

The surplus funds of the various A.LP. canteens in Australia and abroad, when accounts are finally closed, will amount; to about .£400,000, earned on an amount of trading estimated at about .£7,000,000 in value. It is intended (says a Melbourne paper) that the money shall be distributed amongst war widows and orphans and to the more seriously disabled soldiers. The funds will Ije vested in trustees. The A.I.F. canteens in Australia and abroad have heen eonducted without cost to the Government or to tho public, and Australia appears to be tho only country in which from the. early period of the war the troops had benefited by canteens managed directly on their beluilf. The amounts to the credit of the various canteens are likely to he as follow.—United Kingdom and France, .£1.17,000; Egypt, <£90,000; Australia, .£52,000; troopships, ,£20,000. In addition a large sum is stili dne by the. Navy and Army Canteens Board, bringing the estimated aggregate to about .£400,000.

One of tihe features of the educational system at Home since the war, said Miss A. W. Y/Uitelaw. formerly principal of the Auckland Girls' Grammar School, to an Auckland "Star" reporter, was the great demand for education—a demand so great that tho existing facilities were unable to meet it adequately. In her own school alone thore were no fewer than 245 on the waiting list, and, as a matter of fact, tho list was filled right up to the years 1924 and 1925. A great deal had been heard of the manner in which working people, who had been earning high wages during the war, were spending their'money in move or less useless luxuries, btit\ according to Miss Wlhitelaw, who has just returned from England, there was another side to this question. It was exceedingly gratifying to bo able to place on record the fact that a great many of them were keenly alive to the value of a good education, and were makingr every effort to obtain it for their children. Still another feature of tho post-war conditions was the number of girls who were seeking an education along definite lines wiih a view to entering various professions. In one of 'the Cambridge colleses for women, there were no fewer than 150 candidates for an entrance examination for which there were only thirty plaecs, and again, in one of the Oxford colleges, there were 72 candidates for ail examination in respect of which there were, only twelve places. This would serve to give some indication of tho demand, that existed for educational facilities. The crying need was for more colleges and more schools,

Some very scathing remarks were made a few weeks ago by tlie Magistrate (Lieut. 11. J. Hamilton) at I'rosperine (Queensland) in sentencing a man named Thomas Smith, of Melbourne. Smith was found guilty of assaulting a man employed at an hotel which had been declared "black." The Magistrate said: "This is a town which is made the dumping ground for the very dregs of humanity like you, who fiow in like_ a wave of poison gas by every train from all parts of the earth, preaching sabotage, direct nction, and revolution. You endeavour lo dominate

the district, paralysing industry, and only that there arc splendid police here you would have gone further. J am not going to give you tho option of a fine, as it would 'be immediately paid by your brother dregs now watching these proceedings, and your cowardly assault merits no mercy. \ou arc sentenced to two months' imprisonment, with hard labour, in Stewart's Creek. Gaol, Townsville—the extreme penalty the law allows—and let it be a lesson to deter from coming here men of your ku'ney, who are ever ready with a club up their sleeves to bellow around with the word 'scab' on their lips at every honest- man." Last June a young farmer who had iust got married furnished, his house at a cost of <£60. and recently he sold his farm, and sold his furniture at what he gavo for .it io the new purchaser. He. took up another place, and thought all lie had to do was to repeat his order for | furniture and get it at the same price. , Imagine his surprise when he was told! that tho furniture was now worth £90, or 50 per cent, more, and that it couldn't Ik supplied for less; also that there was a likelihood of a. further rise at the beginning of the year, as a rise had taken place in I lie-best timbers suitable for furniture making.—Auckland "Star." Miss Elisor, of .Dunedin, Mr. J. Ten--nent, of Wangamii, Mr. ami Mrs. Philp, and several other Taranaki residents, a few days ago made a most successful ascent of Mount Egmont. Tho snowwas reached at about 5500 ft. up, and was found to be in good condition. The : party kept to the .snow up to a point ' 1200 ft. from tlie edge of the crater. They crossed over lo the rocks on the sum- ; mil; track. Conditions favourable for rock-climbing were experienced up lo a ' point SOft. from the edge of the crater, j when a bad piece of ice was enconui tored. Owing to the lalenoss of i.he ! hour and the freezing conditions obtaiiir : in? it was decided to make the dfseeiu. I Some difficulty was experienced in nego--1 tiating llio first tOOOft. owing to a thin I coating of ice covering the rocks. Ali though the actual summit was not reach- | ed the party succeeded in geliing to a ; paint 450 ft. higher than any other party ' this 'Tiflnn.

Ah increase in the number of fires in the. Auckland tire district is recorded for tho war 1019. The three, most disastrous firs of the year were the two in Bycroft's (lotirmill and biscuit factory in .Shorthand Street, iuid that in tho Thames Hotel. A loss of about .£15,000 was caused by tlie first fire in the dourmill, the insurances of which totalled <£48.000, held Jjv the New Zealand Insurance company. ' The whole of the * ?"!>»•->itf iirvhi]:'."-;,' was practically destroyed. The second fire vesulled in the destruction of the biscuit, factory, and about P0 employees were thrown out, of work, making a tolal of 100 out of work for the two fires. Theie were a total of 110 fires in 1019, as compared with 92 for (he previous y.'ar, 132 false alarms as against 122, thirteen chimney fires as against nine, 30 gorss ■ind rubbish fires as against five, and four fires out. i? de Mr tVslricV as aga : nst nine for the year 191 S.

The customary quietness of Little Diver was rudely disturbed late last Saturday evening by the spectacle of a Maori who, whilst under the influence of liquor, assaulted his wife, made a bonfire and burnt, the wearing apparel of his wife and family and a rpiajility of household furniture. • The local constable, arriving on the scene, overpowered- tho Maori and removed him lo tho lock-up.

In an interview with a "Lyllellon Times" reporter, a member of a (Jliriftfhui'ch tobacco importing firm stated that a rise in price for all tobaccos was sure to come, but what the margin would he it was hard to say. Another authority on the retail side of tobacco trading straightway gave the opinion that any possible increases would in large nicasuro bo due to the rale of exchange. For every pound sterling tendered the return would bo but 17s, worth of goods. A. rise in prices, owing lo this phase in one 'sense, and tho shortage of slocks in another, had been anticipated for at least six months past. "Don't though, in my opinion, look for anything like a Ulfl per cent, rise in tobacco, although 1 can tip you that, after the New Year your smoko will bo dearer," ho addod. "When lite blow will fall I cannot say, but 1 suppose the devotee of My T.ady Nicotine will, when it comes, nevertheless indulge just as freely as ever in his pipe and cigar or cignrctte puff." Tobacconists assume (hat an increase of 100 per cent, in Melbourne (if made) will apply to all tobaccos and cigarettes coming lo New Zealand, as most: of the lines come through Melbourne. This will mean more than 100 per cent, in the retail | prices, a.x proportionate increase most bo allowed for tho extra capital involved.

Immense qtiant i Lip? o£ jellyfish hqvo been reported in the llnnraki Gulf. Pisliormen were unable to work on Sunday and Monday, as tho great number of jellyfish clogged their nets. According to a southern horticultural authority (stales the Brisbane "Courier'') tomatoes of choice variety "occasionally reach one pound in weight." A specimen which was displayed came within this description, for it weighed one pound, and, what was moro remarkable, was grown during a very dry seasun, when the restrictions placed upon consumption of water by the authorities militated against lavish watering. 'Ibe specimen under notice, shows what can be accomplished with the assistance of water, even during drought. In this conncct.'on it may be mentioned that a Chinese gardener at Mitchelton has turned bis attention soleiy to tomato-growing' for tlie Melbourne market, and, forsaking the primitive pole and bucket method oi' irr ; '_'iifion of his native country, lias l.Vpio.-l (be oil engine and pump, w : th ihe result that this season ho has turn!"! • iiV in immense crop, which it is Mid has brought in a gross. return of ,EI0"fl Ami this Chinaman employs whit-.! labour at "white" wages.

"The woollen and worsted goods trade is still holding its quiet trend," stated "American Prices Current" last month"Clothiers are still bringing their influence to bear in the men's wear field to induce early action on the new heavy weight season. Openings next month would be in accordance with ideas expressed in some ouartors, Hit well posted mill agents regard this as a little too early. The raw wool situation is not unlikely to change in t<me during the next six months. Even wool dealers themselves are showing evidence of belief that some of the efforts now being made may succeed in reducing tiio price of wool. It is understood that the altitude of the Boston wool trade is now in favour of a protest against further shipment of Austral'«\n wool for auctioning there after the initial shipment now arranged for. Worsted yam spinners show a conservatism of sentiment which is leading to the condition wliero some refuse to take advantage of the immediate situation to sell far ahead at top priccs. They would m'efcr to do business on a lower basis if that could be brought about easilv and naturally, and they will give it a. chance to develop." . The band of the New Zealand .Natives' Aswciation will play at Lyall Bay on Snniiav afternoon.

Tlie well known Auckland private hotel, Cnrgon, l-.as been visited by a bedroom th'ef, who lifted sums from .£2O down to a few shillings. Several rooms, were visited, the spoil coming from the pockets of the occupants. The total amount taken i was iSO. Tli is is the second occasion i within the last five months that such < •i.vratioik. have been effected to the satisfaction of the intruding party. ( The fishermen of tlie ICaipara are considering the question of establishing a ficozin# plant at lieicn-ville, in ease the Government docs not itself carry out the worlt, and have discussed with the Postmaster-General, tho Hon. .T. G. Coates, the quest'on of the terms under which the Marine Department would advance capital for the purpose out of the .£25,000 allocated by Parliament last session for advances in aid of the fishing industry. Mr. Coatss recommended the deputation to co-operate in providing a guarantee for the provision of cool storage, in which case the Government would be prepared to assist them. 'Clio regulations under which advances would be made had not, he said, yet been drafted. If some reasonable proposal for the investment of JKOWI were made, he would submit it to the Minister of Marine. A deputation from tho fishermen was to have waited upon Sir William Herries in Auckland on Wednesday on this and other snbiects, but through some misunderstanding tho appointment was not kept. 1 A material increase is shown in the net Customs revenue and beer duty collected at the Port of Auckland during the vear 1010, as compared with the figures for 1018. The amount collected for the vear 1919 totalled £1,242,673,' and that for 101.8 ,£057,054. showing an increase of .5285,619. Taking the Customs duties separately they showed an increase of .£26(5,466, and the beer duty ail increase of .£10,153. A to!#l of liCGloz. of gold was exported from Auckland for the month of December last, this being valued at. .E27.428. No statement of the year's expert? is available, Hie figure; relating to gold, as in war time, being withheld from publication carl'er in the vear. The silver exported Inst month totalled 54,69207... rallied at ,t'.14.755, a' against 133.72607... valued at .£21.721 for the corresponding month of 1018. The total value, of the silver exported in 1019 was <£103,084, and in 1018 ,£171.415, showing a decrease for 1010 of .£65,334.