LOCAL AND GENERAL

Dominion, Volume 14, Issue 43, 15 November 1920, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

The Postal authorities advise that the Manuka, which flailed from Sydney at :i p.m. last Thursday for Wellington, carries- 289 bags of mails, including small mails from Africa and the East.

The Mayor (Mr. J. P. Luke) will tender a civic reception to Sir Thomns Mackenzie, late High Coininisisonor in London, who is duo to arrive here tomorrow by the Roruuera. Tho tjme of the reception will be fixed when communication can be. established with Sir Thomas Mackenzie.

The 1920 session of the Presbyterian General Assembly will bo opened in St. John's Church to-morrow evening, at 7,30. 'The retiring .Moderator, the Rev. J. A. Asher, of Napier, will prosiele at the opening, and will install the| Mod-erator-elect, tho Eev. S. W. Ctirrie, of Balcluthft, who will deliver tho- Moderator's address. The Assembly will resume at 10 o'clock on Wednesday morning, and will sit again in tho evening at 7 o'clock. The sittings will probably be continued until Wednesday of next week. The Assembly will bo attended by approximately two hundred delegates, from all .parts of the Dominion. Tho General Assembly last met in Wellington in 1916.

The body of John M'Lean wa6 found in tho AYangunui River yesterday. Deceased went to Wanganui from Waitotara a fortnight ago. He stayed in Wanganui for a week and was not seen afterwards.—Press- Assn.

The weather gives no clue to the fact that Christmas is only six weoks ofr, and the longest day even nearer. It was reasonably line, though chilly, on Saturday afternoon, but in the evolving rain set in from the south, and nt 10 p.m. a 'hard gale was blowing with very heavy rain showers. There wero gleams of sunshine yesterday, but the sky was generally overcast, and tho wind had a wintry edge that called for big coats and "comforters."

Thomas Dalton, aged 10 years, a single man employed .as a fireman at tho City Corporation' powerhouse, was admitted to the Hospital last, night with his right leg broken above the ankle. Tho acoidont occurred at' a boardinghouse tin Willi's Street, where tho injured man resides.

Mr. Aldricb, secretory of tho Wellington E.S.A., wishes to correct a. wrong impression which bos got abroad through a statement made by him recently an regard to blinded 6oldiors. He was reported as saying that earo must bo taken not to. pamper tho blinded soldier. This remark was pcyssed in tho courao of a discussion dealing with the distribution of patriotic funds. Many people favour the distribution of tho funds now, and the statement made by Mr. Aldrich was to the effeot that this policy was wrong. Tho making of cash grants to men who are not actually in need had in many coses proved detrimental to the recipient. The policy tccommended by the Returned Soldiers' Association is that the funds 6hall be so conserved that where disabled men are following some form of occupation they may be assisted from time to tiiuo, should their occupations become unremunerative.

At tlio Alexandra Hall last evening Mr. P. Fra'ser, M.P., gave a resume of tho' recent session of Parliament from the Labour standpoint:) He spoko of tho Nauru Island purchase as one where a company with a capital of .£30,000 had sold out to Great Britain, Australia, and New Zealand for Q millions. Referring to butter prices, Mr. Froser said a great iniquity was bedng done to the people of New Zealand by forcing them to pay famine prices for butter just because there was a famine in 'Europe, 12,000 miles away. To hear tho farming members in the House speaking, one would imagine they were all on the verge of bankruptcy, just living on their debts and mortgages. He admitted that thoso who had bought land during the last two or three years might bo ha-ving a hard time, but that was caused through speculation in land forced np in value by fiotib'ous wartime prices. Mr. Eraser admitted having gained advantages by amendments to tho Compensation Act, but referred to the last housing rejiort presented to ill© nouse, showing expenditure amounting to .£153,000, nnd only 21 houses completed (with contracts for 342 houses let) ns typical of the manner in which the Government was attending to the housing question. He also said, in reference to bread, that tho amount of tho subsidies given to flourmillors in New Zenland would have bought every mill, plant, land, and building, two or three times over. Tlio speaker made reference bo tho guild movement as tone detrimental to th interests of organised Labour, and one that was contrary to (lie spirit of the preamble of the original Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act of 1894.

Application-has been made to the Auckland Harbour Board by Mr. Robert Snndors. formerly of Wellington, contractor for tho sheds on the Central Wharf, for some compensation for the heavy increases in prices of material nnd labour Hint had taken place since ho tendered for the work. The writer stated that material rose at suoh a rate that before ho could place orders this- prices had risen considerably above his schedule prices. As an instance, he said that "irders, which he had tendered on at .£2B ISs. a toil, had cost lira Bs. 6d. Steel plates were costing him up to .040 a ton, his schedule price boing only .030. Asbestos slntes rose 10 per cent, 'before be could got his order in. He had accepted a nrico for oaint at .£55 a ton. but thn British manufacturers charged him .£l2 a ton for tins to put the paint 111. H* had no redress as every thing had hoen on sight draft, and now eigb.t drafts had been refused', so he had had to go lo 110 e-amse of establishing a letter of credit n't Homo. "Now, on top of tine," wrote Mr Sanders, "comes n os. a week bonus in all workers, which it is impossible for me to pay on my schedule prices. Coupled wilh-thU is U* serious loss I have incurred owing to material not coming to band'. For months my plant has been, idlo for want of material, etc., and had t not' been for the efforts of the chairnan and acting-engineer. I do not know Xn * woul<l lav& Kot lf ' • Tho "'■?r tor i wm reforred to th'» board in committee, the aetiDg-enginter to report. I

A man named —. Cohen died suddenly on board the s.s. Tofua at 1 o'clock on Saturday afternoon. The 'body was removed to the Morgue, and an inquest will be held this morning.

Tho Wellington Shakespeare Club'e annual reading competition for pupils from secondary schools was held at the Technical School on Saturday morning. Six girls and two boys competed, and the judge, Mr. E. D. CnchemailU, made the following awards:—For the girls' section: Mary Cooley, Wellington Girls' College, 70 marks, first; and Kathleen Shirer, Wellington Girls' College, 71 marks, second. ]3oys' Ruction: A. C. Zohrab, Wellington Boys' College, 58 marks, first. In the prepared reading the work of many of tbo competitors was remarkably good, but in the sight-reading test the work was not nearly so satisfactory.

Last week, between 8 o'clock p.m. and midnight, the principal afreets of Christchurch have been patrolled by representatives of the women's branch of the Social Hygiene Socielv nnd the Society for the Protection of Women, and Children. The idea was Unit of assisting young girls, and anv young women who, in the discretion of the patrols, needed guidance. All the week until midnight the room? of the Social Hygiene Society have, been open and tho results of the work accomplice,! nro salt} to have amply justified the action taken. ili.3 patrols went out in pairs, and tho wor ( k was voluntary. To a representative °; 11° m " a member of the patrol shited that three groups of girls, between ii and 1C years, found wandering aimlessly about tho streets, were persuaded that home was a better place than the streets, and they were accompanied on their way by the patrols. In another case two voung girls were.discovered without lodgings for Hie nighf. Both girls shared' the. hospitality of a member of tbw committee in charge of the patrol work. A young woman with an infant six weeks old was accompanied to the rooms and provided with accommodation. ChlMren between the ages of 1(1 and IS wcro found playing about the railway station nt II p.m., in another instance, and girls loitering about the station after 11 p.m. were escorted to their homes after missing the last car to the suburbs. The patrol explained to the reporter that some of the girls when first approached adopted a defiant attitude, but the wise counsel given in every case earned the gratitude of those assisted.

At a meeting of tire Headquarters Standing Sub-CommiUce of the New Zenland Returned Soldiers' Association the following motion was carried unanimously:—"That the Executive Standing Subcommittee of the N.Z.R.S.A. expresses its strong condemnation of the Government's method in dealing with the war pensions legislation (his session. The sub-cornmit-teo feels that this legislation was kept back until the dying hours of the session and forced through immediately without any adequate opportunity being given for discussing the proposals of the Bill. In view of the fact that tho nouse of Representatives discussed the question of racing permits for somo days and the Finance Bill! containing the war pensions legislation, tor some hours only, the Executive Standing Sub-Committee feels that the claims of the soldiers are now being lost sight of by Parliament. They refuse to beliovo that, the country ns a whole, made rich, by tho war, acquiesces in the Government's and Parliament's neglect to proviefo for the just claims of its disabled soldiers and theirdepondants. Tho Executive Standing Sub-Committee protests emphatically against tho inadequacy of the sum granted, and expresses its keen disappointment that no attempt has been mnda, to meet the circumstances of partially-disabled men; and, further, that no attempt has been made to regrndo th« schedules for specific iuquiries. The N.Z.R.S.A. calls upon the Government to prepar,) a comprehensive scheme, of pensions legislation and to circulate it before next session."

The question whether insurance agents are eligible for registration as an industrial union has been answered by the Registrar of Industrial Unions, as the result of an application for registration from thte Auckland Insurance ' Agents' Union, which was formed some few weeks ago. The registrar points out that if insurance agents are "t-niployed" in the strict lefal senso of that term then they can form an industrial union of worlwrs under .tho Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act. The test is' tho amount of control that may be exercised by tho employer, i.e., if tlio employer can direct the worker ns to when nnd how the work is to be done, then the contract, generally speaing, is one- of employment. If, oil the other hand, though) bound to complete the, work within a certain time and in accordance with certain directions, tho worker can suit himself ns to when and how tlio work is to b« done, then the arrangement is, generally speaking, one of independent contract. In conclusion, the registrar asks for further information as (o the exact terms under which the applicants aro employed. This the secretary is supplying.

An unusual incident occurred in the Auckland Supreme Court on Friday at the conclusion of a cas.\ in which a youug man was charged.with cattle-stealing. When tho jury delivered ft verdict of notguilty an emphatic "Hear, hear" came from the body of th* Court. "Arrest thai man," ordered the Chief Justice, Sir Robert Stout, but the police wero unable to locate the ownor of the offending voice. His Honour remarked that if tho offender had been identified ho would have been sent to gaol. "Only on.one occasion have I had to dent with! an offence of this nature," added Sir Robert, "and I sent a man in a good position to gaol for it. I will not have the. Court turned into a theatre."

As illustrating the growth and expan. sion of> Auckland, the Mayor,- Mr. J. H, Gunson, quoted some figures when speak, ing at a supper tendered on Thursday evening by the City Council to Mr. A. J. Hntrican. .11* said that when Mr. Entrican first jointed the council, in 1898, the population of the city was 37,000, whilo to-day it was 08,000; the area, of the city was 1700 acres, against 7300 acres; tho annual ratable value of the city was .£313,000, as against .£1,250,000 to-day; the revenue was only .863,000, a.s compared with .£783,000 last year and an estimated total of .£1,000,000 this year.

Mr. P. J. Kellchor, of the Internal Affairs Department, has been appointed secretary of the Racing Commission. The commission will commence its sittings almost immediately, as it is required to report not later than January 111 next. It hns "to determine tho racing clubs to which licenses are lo be granted under section 50 of the Gaming Act, 1908, in the racing year commencing August 1, 1021, and the number of days on which the use of the totalisator is to bo authorised by each of those licenses; and generally to inquire into such other matters relating thereto ns may como under its notice in the course of its investigations." The commission, has power to conduct any inquiry at such times and places in the Dominion as may be deemed expedient, to call upon persons' to ,give evidence on oath, and to nsk for the production of books, papers, documents, or records of racing clubs. Mr. P. Earle (Aucklaud) is chairman of the commission.

That the coal position is not cosier .was tho opinion expressed to a representative of this paper on Saturday by a, gentleman closely connected with (he conl trade. Practically everv householder's bin in Wellington needed refilling, stated The Dominion's informant. In his opinion, the coal position would not lie easier until industries had at least six weeks' supply on hand, the. railways had 80.000 tons in reserve, the hulks in the harbours wero full, and next winter's supply of coal for householders was in sight. Some industries, he added, wero adopting tlio foolish policy at present of holding off buying forward supplies in tho hope of prices showing a decline through a fall in tonnage rates. If a f«ll did come—and he did not believe that it would—it would not toko place before March or April next because the Australian coastwise tonnage would be fully occupied in supplying Australian wants during that period. The New Zealand mines also closed down from Christmas Eve till January i, and that meant a loss of output, _ In my opinion." ho added, "every incentive should bo given to importers lo bring eoal to New Zealand in the' same manner as tho Hoard of Trade brings cement cargoes from abroad. A strong reserve of eoal is the best guarantee that our freezing, dairying, and other industries will be kept running at full capacity in order lo maintain production and employment. A 'captain of industry' who does not buy in a supply of coal because ho considers prices may fall is, in my opinion, not a coptain, but merely a recruit,"

Amongst the applicants.-for assistance from the Wanganui Patriotic Association is a soldier who lost an "id part of a hand during the war. Ho is making a brave effort at farming, and when the caaj caino before the association at ite meotfng recently it was recommended ,by the committee to (five the application favourable consideration.

At the annual meeting of the Ex-Mem-bers' Association of the Relone Navals, the following officers wore elected for the ensuing year:—Chairman, Mr. L. Parrant j secretary .and treasurer, Mr. C. It. Martin; committee. Messrs. Selwood, }. May, G. Eraser, 1. Ryan, Harrison, L. Price," May, Corner, and Wakefield.

Although money is aid to ho tight, the Town Clerk (Mr. J. R. Palmer) ra ports that investments in the corporation debenture renewal loan are coming in fairly freely. The inducement in this case is probably the short term of the loan (ten years), and the minimum income tax that it carries. The Town Clerk is now engaged on tho preparation of the .£250,000 loan—tho first instalment of the jn,i«o,ooo loan sanctioned by tho ratepayers a few weeks ago for important new city works".

I Vhb Dominion's Masterton correspondent telegraphs that the Wairarapn Returned Soldiers' Association has resolved to support the Wellington E.S.A. in its protest regarding the pensions legislation' passed miring tho recent session of Parliament.

Tho unusual sight (for November) of snow on the hills across the harbour, behind Dnv's Bay, iyas witnessed in Wellington yesterday morning.