MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS.

Hokitika Guardian, 2 June 1920, Page 2

MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS.

ACSTKALIAN it N.Z. CABLE associkviomJ STRIKE OF ENGINE MEN. LONDON, June 1 The Drivers and' Firemen’s Union at Sheffield have struck against the three-3hift system. The fires at the industrial places have gone out. Twenty thousand workers are idle. x ’ WOOL SLUMP. LONDON, May 3L Following on recent declines in wool prices at the London, Provincial. and Antwerp wool sales, the wool trade generally expected that the London auc. ■ tiions opening to-day would produce lower rates, but' the extent of the decline was greater far than expected. It reached to from 5 to 20 per cent of i fall below the last .London sales closing rates. This fall has exceeded all anticipations. ' There were 11,620 biftes offered, out • of which 2707 ,were New Zealand wool and the selection was fairly representative. ■ • , There was a large attendance, but the bidding was very slack. The Yorkshiremen would not buy merinos, and the Continental buyers operated sparingly in them. They had an allround decline of from 15 to 20 per cent. Fine crossbreds met with slow bidding and that at, a 10 to 15 per cent, decline, / 1 ’ . 1 Medium and lower grades found better support at about a 5 per cent decline. New Zealand wool from “struan” clip made 41d. . 1 .

N.Z. NURSE HONOURED. ■ (Received this day, at 9.30 a.nL) LONDON, June L. The international -Red Cross at Geneva. has awarded a Florence Nightingale medal to Sister MacLenn, Matron-in-Chief of the New Zealand Army Nursing Service. GERMAN NEWS. (Received this day, at 9.30 a.m.) BERLIN, June 1. The election campaign is characterised by much rioting in various centimes. Von Graefe, a well-known conservative deputy was brutally ill-treat-ed at a meeting at Mecklenberg, where, the tension was exceptionally great. Several- landdwners and families fled +o Berlin. It is'reported agricultural labourites are plotting to expel landlords and divide their estates. Government has promulgated an edict * forbidding private enlistment in flew 1 military corps, the penalty being five years imprisonment. j'

NEW GREEK TERRITORY*. ATHENS, May '•!. It is officially announced that Grpek troops, without incident, have occupied the railway line, in their newly -acquired Thrace territory, ns far as Kon-leli-Burgns, and also have occupied tile town of Demotion. The French have handed over to the Greek authorities the administration of Western Thrace.

A TARTAR SOVIET. . [LONDON TIMES SERVICE—COPVRIQHTj (Received this day at 9.20 a.m.) TEHERAN, May 31. Tlie Tartar Soviet Government of Azerbaijan. was established, after the occupation, of Baku. It exists merely as a nominal Republic town by conflicting Turco-Russian intrigues, Moscow intrigues predominating. Government maintains relations with Persia, but has broken off relations with the Entente. Eighty British are employed as labourers. Bolsheviks subsequently proceeded to deal with Georgia and Ar- ! meriia. They temporised with the former, and pretend to recognise theirindependence, but actually signed peace ■ at Tiflis on May Bth. There was great rejoicing. Meanwhile heavy Red forces were concentrated on the frontier from Baku, where heavy fighting is proceeding. Armenia was roughly handled. from the outset, but pluckily rejected an order to evacuate Kara liagh and Zancezur, and hurriedly, formed a new Cabinet, which suppressed internal Bolshevism, and prepared to resist the Reds to the last ditch. *- long'ed resistance is impossible. The v . only hope is peace between the Allies and Bolshevists, which is likely to cause Turco-Bolslievist dissention and disintegrate the monstrous opportunist alliance, including Bolshevists, to give Armenia a chance, whereas Turkey is determined to destroy the latter. Apparently wide reaching Bolshevistic designs on Persia have been postponed, pending the subduing of Georgia and Armenia. The situation at Enzela is ■ > unchanged. ,