LOCAL AND GENERAL

Dominion, Volume 14, Issue 79, 28 December 1920, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

The extra through expresses provided by the Railway Department durine tim holiday season hKvc been well filled. The train "that left Auckland for Wellington at 7.10 p.m. on Sunday was crowded, and the train at 8.10 ivas equally well filled, despite the many attractions of the northern city. A number- of immigrants from the Aiwa arrived by the second express. The number of travellers from Wellington to Auckland has been uniformly

During tho last three days Gisborne has been experiencing a heat wave, the highest reading in the shade on Sunday being 9G. Yesterday tho highest reading was 93. —Press A&sn.

An application to increase' the prico of coal came before the Auckland Prices Investigation Tribunal on Friday, at its last meeting for the year. The application was' made on behalf of the Auckland Coal Dealers' Association. Tho tribunal, taking all the circumstances put before it into account, decided that an incrcasn of 2s. 9d. t per ton should bo allowed, it would seem that New Zealand's'allowance of steam coal from Australia is to be somewhat curtailed in the future (says the "Star"). Discussing tho matter a member of the firm of Messrs. J. J. Criiig, Ltd., who has just returned from Australia, said that the original arrangement made between the two Governments was that New Zealand should get a monthly allowance of 50,000 tons of Jfaitland fuel. This has now been varied to the extent that the monthly allowance must inclu>Je a percentage of "borehole" coal. matter of fact the prospects of getting any Maitland coal for New Zealand before tho end of February next were remote. The . increase in price is duo largely to tho increased wages bonus affccting so many wage-earners employed in thiTTiulustrv. Loss of weight in transit from itho mine is another important factor.

A child named Muriel Garrett, aged seven years, died at tlio hospital at ten minutes past 5 yesterday morning from the effects of sca'lds caused by the deceased fulling into a copper of boiling water at Johnsonville on Sunday: It appears that a tea party was held at Johnsonville 011 Sunday afternoon, and a copper was left with some boiling water in it. Tho girl endeavoured to obtain somo of the water before going to bed, nnd the lid of the copper was removed by another child. Thfi deceased climbed on to the copper, and, overbalancing herself, fell into the boiling wafer. By the time assistance was obtained she was very Ixidly scalded, and later she was removed to the hospital. An inquest will be held

. Features of Christmastido in Timaru, a Press Association telegram, , were fine weather for Christmas Day and a splendid rain of nearly twenty-four hours from midday on Sunday till Monday morning. The Temuka sports had to be postponed till Tuesday. Farmers will rejoice over tho rain, as saving the late corn and the root crops. The bowling tourney was resumed, yesterday afternoon.

It is understood, says a Press Association te-logram from Gisborne, that the amencted harbour scheme designed - by the commission of engineers (Messrs. William Ferguson, Blair Mason, and Cyrus "Williams)'provides for tli© earn 6 site as originally recommended,- but the' area is reduced to 120 acres, w-ith a depth at the entrance of 35ft., and the' cost is estimated'at $1,000,000. : As a means of temporary relief to prevent the silting of the inner harbour, the commission recommends, inter alia,-a midwall in the entrance channel, which will reduce the width of the entrance to 100 feet. ■

Messrs, Kirkcnldie and Stains, Ltd., closed their premises at B o'clock on Christmas Eve. The occasion was celebrated by a tea, given to the staff by tlie'firm. The big tea room was taxed to accommodate the guests, who thoroughly enjoyed tho pleasing and unexpected diversion. As this is probably the first occasion upon which any retail drapery establishment has been closed at 6 o'clock on Christmas Eve throughout Australasia, members of- the. staff of Kirkcaidie and Stains, Ltd', have reason to be grateful to the firm for its liberal action.

A brief sitting of the Magistrate's Court yesterday morning was presided over by Mr. r. K. Hunt, S.M. Five first offenders were fined for insobriety. The fines in i.Hvo cases were ss. each, and in the remaining three were 10s, each, Charles John ilackie, who had obstructed a policeman, was fined 405., aud given the alternative of spending a week in gaol. William Haydon was fined ss. for insobriety und .£3 for using obscene language. He had a record of fifty convictions for various offences. The alternative to payment of (he .£3 fine was fixed at a week's imprisonment. Alexander M'Donald was fined ss. for insobriety, and was remanded till to-day on a .charge of wilfully, damaging a taxi-cab. Arthur Stevens, .who had disobeyed a prohibition order, and got drunk, was fined 10s. for each offence. Sum Fook Nam was remanded till Wednesday on a charge of being idle and disorderly.

The Auckland University cricket eleven which will play Victoria College to-day arrived from Auckland by the first express yesterday,

The Davis Cup management has decided to ask. the spectators to observe five seconuV" silence prior to the commencement of the Davis Cup tournament today as a tribute to the memory of the late Anthony Wilding—Press Assn.

Trance has always been partial to new a[,id odd methods of locomotion. It was France which first fostered the automobile when it was a feeble, balky, uncertain and unpromising thing; JjVaneo' placcd her faith in the airplane even before the Wrights gave their practical demonstration of heavier-than-aic flying; and now France is playing with water bicycles, winged bicycles, and other toys, so to speak, but these are toys which may yet prih-e practical in the not distant future. A recent water bicycle race, held iic.iv Paris; brought to light some interesting machines. As in previous contests! of this sort, nil kinds'of queer contraptions 'participated in the race. Some contestants used craft driveiyjby airplane propellers, others made iisfr of the. usual marine scrow, while still others mMe doubly sure of their locomotion, so it would seem, by using nirplajio propellers and marine/screws in combination. As luck would have it, (lie simplest form of machine won nearly all the races. ,

The water in the upper reaches of the Wanganui liirer is low at present, making navigation of some of tho rapids a difficult performance for the larger class of I'ivcr steamer. On Wednesday morning (says an exchange),-the Wairero, on the run from l'ipiriki, bumped heavily on ono of the boulders and donted a platenear tho bow, with the result that the front portion of the boat commenced to fill rapidly, and this necessitated a delay of two hours whilst repairs were being carried out. Later the vessel, with tin* quantity of water in the front hold, 6tuck fast on tho hank, and a. further d«lay of about half an hour took place.

At a meeting of farmers at Pipiriki lost week, the value of n Settlors' Association was discussed, but tho majority of farmers wcro against it for the reason that it was too parochial. One farmer stated that he would guarantoo the farmers in the Raotihi district had derived more benefit through the instrumentality of the Farmers' Union in olio year than t'hoy would in twenty ,fromM a Settlers' Association.

A pathetic pcene may be. witnessed at the basket-making claes at King George Hospital, Hotorua. A boy, who was suffering noni infantile paralysis, and tittable to use his hands, was aniious to learn the art of basket-making, and set to work to train his tow to accomplish the task usually done by the fingers. By pcrscTveronica lie mads considerable ( progress, and his determination is such that ho has. every prospect of success.

Following a demonstration with a model truck in Parliament House, tho New South Wales Premier, Mr. ,T. Storey, has authorised the construction of n full-sized truck as an experiment with the break-of-gaugc problem, 6ays tho "Sydney Morning Herald." This truck will embody the inventions of Mr. ,f. 11. Matthews, an engineer, of Northcote. Under his scheme whore a bleak of nauge occurs, a ''bottle neck is constructed in tho track, tho rails gradually converging from one gauge the other. Between the tracks at the "bottle nock" are laid two traversing rails. Tho rolling stock is fitted with a device containing levers, which engage "with tho traversing rails' as the trucks pass over the "bottle neck." The effect of this Is to disengage locking-pins, which hold tho wheels in position, and the wheels are I'-heri free'to slide on the axles. As th« rails draw closer together, pressure of the rails oil tho flanges causes the wheels to 'slide inwards to the new gauge, When the truck lias _ reached the even gauge the levers working on the traversing rails are disengaged. The effect o( This is ib lock tlie wheels in tho new position. Check rails inside the ordinary rail at tho "bottle neck" forco tho wheels outwards when passing from a narrow to a broader gauge.

"Wo will never do any good in Napier until wo build hotels to accommodate the people we attract here," said Mr. C. H. Edwards at the Napier Chamber of Commerce. "There are placcs in Lngland where the permanent population is 3000, and they can accommodate 20,000 people. One place, with 50,000 people, can accommodate 500,000 people. The; livo for oight months on what they mako iti the four months' holiday season."

During the proceedings of the Metho-. difif Synod at New Plymouth the Kev. Eobert lla'ddon, superintendent of the Maori mission work in Tnrnnnki, raised it protest against the influx of Asiatics into New Zealand. He referred to the pride of the young Maori party, who wove alive to their finest traditions, un-swervingly-loyal to the British nation, to which they were indebted for the knwledge of the Gospel, and .they felt very keenly on the matter. On his motion it was decided: "That the Synod call the attention of the Government to the fact that 'the influx of male Asiatic immigrants, unaccompanied by females of their own race is a grave menace to the welfare of the Maoris in certain districts." The question of inter-mar-riage between these and the New Zealand" Natives was a matter to be deplored and'it wjis hoped that everything possible would bo done to curtail the inflow of Asiatics and aliens.

The opinion was recently expressed by Mrs. Havily, wife of the captain of the American "Davis Cup team, in an"inter-

view-, that motor-power, instead of nervous energy, will be largely used to relieve tho over-pressure on women who tire overworked in domestic duties. The modern devices for housework are expensive, but in time the manufacture wllUncreasc, and they will come more within reach of the general public. It was Mrs. Hardy's idea that a convenient dish-washing machine in a home was quite as urircnt a necessity as a typewriting machine in an office, and would be_ thus-recognised l'nJtime. She was oft opinion that the "day girl" was not goto be a success generally, as she arrived after breakfast and left before dinner, thus throwing the heavy nart of the day's routine, on the housewife. This method of employing f labonr was; also'found to "be very expensive, and tho American women had found that the iCrux of' the problem lay in lessening the work by the aid of scientific appliances.

The "Westport New?" pays: Rrtuphly, the whitebait season recently closed yielded only about to Westport as compared with <£200fl to ,£2500 in former seasons. Such a shortage ns occurred thi^ : year is , unknown previously amongst those who hare been in the habit of annually spending time on the waterfront with their, muslin nets.

The Jones Shipping Act, passed several •months ago by the United States Government, was mentioned at the Napier Chamber of Commerce last week. Mr. R. L. Paterson, one of ilio delegates to the annual conference, characterised it as a deliberate attempt to strangle the shipping and commercial life of the British Empire. Other members said the Act ni?ant that all goods, carried from the United States to a British country must lie carried in American ships, and all goods purchased in a British country must be carried to America in United States ships. The Empire must he prepared to resist the Act if necessary by counter measures. In the meantime the Act has been withdrawn owing l to firm opposition by the British Government; but members were of the opinion that it would' bo revived.

An unpleasant, -suggestion of meanness, or perhaps thoughtlessness, amongst schoolgirls was conveyed l by remarks of Judge and counsel at the. Auckland Supreme Court when an application, was made for the hearing of a divorce petition during tlie. Christmas holidays. "Is Hie object to avoid publicity?" asked Mr. Justice Hosking. i( .\'o, J ' said counsel, "but we wish the case taken while. Iho schools are closed for the sako of tne petitioner's daughters." His Honour replied that unfortunately where there were children involved in a case the matter was thrown at them at school. He 'therefore made a fixture as desired.

An oxciting incident happened to a coast station manager in the Wainpu district (reports an East Coast' paper). Whilst out cattle limiting he was tree 1 by a wild cow for three hours. Tho am mat was very persistent in its attentions, but luckily some long supplejacks, which had been cut at: She lxitlom of the tree ity underscrubbers, were hanging from the tree. From- one of these vines tho captive made a lasso, and after considerable manoeuvring managed to drop it •iver the animal's head. After'a strenuous struggle of 10 minutes lie managed to choke the cow to death.

Asked by a Duncilin pressman if lie was favourably impressed with New Zealand. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle said it ivas the most wonderful place in the world. Never had he been in any country ivhero so much beauty was to be found in so small a place. "1 am reminded at. evcrv turn," he said, "of Scotland and Ungltui'd, with parts of Norway thrown in. I could wish to bring my wife and children out here and end my days in your beautiful country."

A good instanco of tho high prices charged for clothing occurrod the other duy in Whangarei, saya the "Northern Advocate." A settler of the district was in a clothier's establishment to buy a ready-to-wcal 1 suit for his son, aged 17 years. A selection having been made and the fit and stylo approved, the next matter was that of payment. "How much?" said tho farmer. "J.'3 17s. Gd.," smiled Hie provider of boys' wearing apparel. "Jill lis. 6d.!"?oxelaimfd thb unfortunate lather, with a smile of a different character. "I only not .£B' 17s. (kl. for my bale of wool. How muny suits would that make?"

An enterprising American theatre has provided a nursery, so that mothers wishing to see the play can leavo their babies in charge of a nurse. The babies mo given a number, like objects left at. & cloak room. There is'an electric signboard at the side of the stage, and if any particular baby becomes too unhappy, the number is flashed on the signboard. "Baby No. 18" would mean that its mother had to leave the auditorium and pay a visit to the nursery!

It has been found desirable by the Australian Repatriation Commissioners to severely restrict the meaning of the word "iiancoe" to persons who are "soldiers' intended brides." Under the repatriation regulations facilities are provided, under certain conditions; for the pas. sage of a "fiancee" of an ex-member of (he A.I.F. to Australia. Under such regulations many prospective wives havo luade tlic journey from Great Britain to the Commonwealth. Apparently, however (says the "Age"), "love matches" were made on Ihe other side not only by the male members of the A.X.I 1 ., but by several Australian military nurses, some of whom have npplied for free passages for their prospective husbands. The authorities take th© view that if a man is in a position to support his wifo ho should well be able to pay his own steamship fare, and for that reason they liavo stipulated, as indicated above, that the word "liancee' must have a "femalo" significance only.

A correspondent of the "Sydney Morning. Herald" gives the following explanation of the origin of the term "Yorker.': —"A very prominent bowler for the Albert Club was a little etockey Yorkshire left-hand bowler known to all players and followefs of the game as 'Yorkcy Coates. A very favourite and effective ball of his was one pitched right up to the crease (sometimes called a 'creaser'). hut known to all cricketers and onlookers as a 'Yorkcy Coatesor,' whothcr it was bowled by 'Yorker' himself or by anyone else. When Gregory's team came back from England they used the term 'Yorker' simply for this ball, and I' remember hearing Dave Gregory telling my eldest brother (who had asked him what the now word 'Yorker' meant) that it was an abbreviation of tlie old Yorkey Coatescr,' slichtly altered in pronunciation, but really referring to the one kind of ball. T remember the late Mr. George Long, inspector of schools, asking me one nigiit at Tanner's Hotel, in Orange, 30 odd years ago, if I did not think that 'Yorker' might be an abbreviation of 'Yorkey Coatescr,' and I said I was quite sure it was. Thero must be plenty of old 'Alberts' arid others who remember the term 'Yorkcy Conteser.'"

Perhaps there will be many Australians whose knowledge at first-hand of Mies Sylvia Pankhurst will save them from surprise at the fact of her imprisonment ifor revolutionary sedition (says the London correspondent of the "Sydney / Herald"). The case against her is generally regarded here as thoroughly proven, and tho conviction has merely the interost attaching to a name frequently in the public ear. Her now-published letter 10 I.enin as to flio difficulty of conducting her communist newspaper, the "Dreadnought," and the progress of revolutionary methods in Great Britain, has opened the eyes. of many people hitherto blind to the activities of Bolshevik propaganda in England. There is. nothing, so far, to suggest that a Bolshevik uprising, with its attendant massacres, has any chance of success lierp,, but there is n good deal of information to be liad from this one and that one, and now, nbtably, from the Pankhurst disclosures, as to the energy of th'e attempt by extremists of the underworld of political and social intrigue to fan into a flame the existing smoulder of revolutionary ideas. We gather that Miss Pankhurst will not this time go on' hunger strike. She admits, indeed; that recent events have shown that that particular game is "up."' , .