MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS.

Hokitika Guardian, 10 January 1924, Page 1

MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS.

AUSTRALIAN AND N'.Z. CABLE ASSOCIATION. LONDON DOCK FIRE. BIGGEST IN HALF CENTURY. LONDON, Jan. S. The biggest London dock fire for half a century occurred at Poplar where a large warehouse stocked with rubber, tea and other inflammable goods was gutted. Seventy fire engines were present and they mostly directed attention to preventing the spread of the flames to an adjoining timber yard, oil stores and other warehouses.- The molten rubber, which came streaming from the bunting building, blocked the drains and the narrow streets were soon several I’eet dec]) in dirty tepid water.

Several exciting escapes are recorded, but no casualties. The extent of the damage at present is unknown. KING’S RETURN WANTED. LONDON. Jan- 7 ■ ••The Times**” Athens eorresottilent, states that AL Veniscclos’ task i- proving more difficult than even lie imagined. The question ol (lie return of the King is the main stumlrling block, and will apparently Ik- the first condition laid down by antiYenixelist leaders as a preliminary to any discussion or reconciliation. They are of opinion that the King must return forthwith and remain in Athens pending a plebiscite on the nature of the future regime. On the other hand, the extremist republicans refuse to discuss the King’s return, and state they they cannot promise to abide by the result of a plebiscite should the nation favour retaining the monarchy.

Instead of helping AL Venizelos, the extremist and Royalist press is adopting an attitude calculated to widen the lire.-uh, and make a reconciliation most difficult, if not hopeless. The “Skrip,” for instance, reproduces on the front page photographs of the Ministers executed in February. 1922, and asserts that AL Venizelos was res]>onsiblo for their deaths. Another anti-Yenizelist organ refers to him as a “pitiless tyrant with criminal instincts.” TMIO PEACE OF GREECE. LONDON, January !). The "Daily Express” Athens coney I'ondent says that peace in Greece depends upon the fate of the exiled King. Tli e Republican extremists would plunge Greece into a fierce revolution as they wish to establish Pangalos a<a factor, eliminate Jill political opposition, proclaim a republic without a plebisetie, and then reorganise the a liny in order to reconquer Eastern Thrace. The Assembly is of opinion that AL Venizelos lias lost his flighting qualities and he seems bent on a reconciliation. He had a long interview with Aletaxas, the Royalist- leader, in Paris. If AL ATjnizelos fails the Liberal Party will be dissolved and the Republicans will thou bold the field.

Four eminent physicians are attending Venizelos wlm is suffering from heart weakness. Venizelos has written to the Liberal party stating that, unless a constitutional Cabinet is formed this week head! leave Greece. WORLD’S NEW SHIPPING. LONDON, Jan. 8.

“.Lloyd's Register" shows that there were 1.23! .Lilli tons of merchant shipping under construction in Britain and Ireland at the 31st. of Dee. as compared with an average of 1,800,000 tons during the twelve months before the war. Work on ships aggregating 214.000 tons lias been commenced and I I 1.001) thousand tons were launched during the December quarter as compared with 111.000 and 06/100 tons respectively in the previous quarter. There were under actual construction abroad, ships aggregating 032.000 tons, this being a decrease of 42,000 as compared with the ,30th. September, 1023, while 217,000 tons were launched and 228,000 tons commenced throughout. the world during the quarter. The latter total considerably exee ids that for the previous quarter and in conjunction with the increase in the British yards this appears to show a tendency towards improvement oi conditions in the shipbuilding industry of the world.

GIRLS AXI) TRUNKS. COCKTAILS TOO POPELAR. LONDON. January 7. An article in tlit* "Daily Sketch” on "cocktail girls” says :— English girls drink to much. They consume about four times the amount ut alcohol thev should. Eighty per out. of the girls who can afford t > go io iosti aunts and dance cluhs and oinutr parties, and follow the usual social lound, and drink nearly as much as tlieir male companions. 1 hoy drink loss than the New York pi,ls among whom, since prohibition, there has been a real wave of drunkenness. Keen an English girl of decent standing gets drunk sometimes. What would have caused a shudder of horror in their circle a century ago, and would have been whispered about as Ihe deepest disgrace, is now laughed at. with jokes about "morning headache.” (!iris, through modern dinners, ale like a city gourmaiidi.-er. They start off with cocktails, sometime- several of them, and consume about half a bottle of champagne apiece, winding up with hcpier-. At -upper, they will have a glass ol port and a soda in the morning to pul! her round it .-he was up late the previous night. Girls have also developed the whiskv and soda habit. No sensible person would advocate teetotalism for women, but that girls, only in their teens, should take the quantities of spirits and potent cocktails, liqttcis, is as detestable as it is dangerous.

KILLED BY (UIXLSi: BRIGANDS. PEKING. Jan. The steamer Tzesui was attacked by brigands on the upper roaches ot the Yangtze river, am! the British captain. Brandt, and a man named Shroff we.re killed. Both bodies "ere thrown into the river. Ihe brigands also wounded the quartermaster. a passenger and a coolie. BELGIANS 1 CLAIMS. PARIS. Jan. 8. A case in which ten Belgians are suing the Government for compensation for ill-treatment when deported during the war, has opened before a raised arbitration tribunal, established under the Peace Treaty. The Court is composed of three judges, these being a Swiss, a Belgian and a German. Tile- decision will affect eighty thousand Belgian deportees and it may be invoked as a precedent by 25.000 French.

CHINAMEN MURDERED. PEKIN, Jam 8. A statement is made in official circles that several hundred Chinesewere murdered in the disturbed areas of Japan following on the late earthquake. Some were killed by mistake and others were murdered, either -n----tentionally or because of hatred towards them. SPELT I. ATQR EX PELL ED. PARIS, Jan. 8.

The Minister for the Interior has signed a decree ordering the expulsion of a Dutch exchange speculator on a charge of spreading alarmist reports regarding the fall of the franc. FOOT AND AIOUTH DISEASE. LONDON. January 8. Two Glasgow hoys are believed to suffering from foot and mouth disease. Their tongues are swollen and ulcerated. Doctors consider they were possibly infected from milk. THE LEITRIAf’S EIRE. LONDON. January 8. A message from Alalia. says that the Lieirim, so far, has discharged .1430 bales of wool, all being damaged by sea water and part damaged by fire and water, two hundred being badly burnt. CHURCH UNION. LONDON, January 8. The “Daily Afail” says the National ('liurch League passed a resolution that union with Rome was impossible and undesirable. Sir Inskip said the Archbishop of Canterbury almost appeared willing to sell the pass by sending to Alalines delegates ill representing the essential position of the church.

WAGE DISPUTE. LONDON. January 8. At the close of an all-day meeting, the Executive of the Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen officially announced that, in view hi an overwhelming majority, namely 0 to 1, against the acceptance of the Wages Hoard’s award, the executive lias <3e-i-ided to request the General Managers of the railways to meet them to discuss the position, with a view to its improvement. HTGII PRICES. LONDON. January 8. The final report of Lord Linlithgow’s Committee on distribution says: Distributing eosts are a far heavier burden than society will permanently eonsent to bear. Economies could be made and the processes of collection and distribution shortened. The producers should develop a marketing sense, and should aim at a standardisation of products. The British producer must seek to break the inertia of custom. While tin- farmers and farm labourers are suffering serious losses, the position of the traders in agricultural produce are in an enviable position. By maintaining comparatively high prices they restrict both purchasing power and production. which is a definite dis-service to the agricultural industry.

DUNLOP < OAIPANY. LONDON, Jan. s. A resolution of confidence in the directors was passed at the extraordinary meeting of shareholders of the Dunlop Rubber Company, Ltd. Sir Eric Geddes, presiding, said that the finding of the committee of investigation was that nut of the loss shown in (lie balance sheet of August 31. 192.1, an amount of L 1,769.000 was accounted for, including £‘3,569,000 sterling written off stocks and £822.000 loss on rubber sold during the year, wliilc £‘550,000 was unaccounted for. The directors’ conclusions raised the gravest issues in vio'v of the issue of writs by Bir Arthur Dun-os. Alfred Dticros, and George Dueros to establish their agreements The Company was advised of the issue of five writs covering ten names. These writs were actually issued where the individuals concerned made tentative offers of settlement without prejudice to the Company's business, which had now reached such a state of stability, that the Board inteiultd to submit to the shareholders a. proposal for a- reorganisation of the capital. Sir Arthur Duc-ros said that the losses were made after his total severance from the management of the company.