DOMINION ITEMS.

Hokitika Guardian, 22 September 1926, Page 3

DOMINION ITEMS.

[BT TELEGRAriT —PER PRESS ASSOCIATION. N.Z. RAILWAYS NEW SYSTEM. WELLINGTON, September 22. From October Ist next a new system of staff discipline will be observed throughout the railway service. The essential features are the abolition of monetary fines and provision of the system of merit and demerit marks, in the opinion of the Hon Mr C oates as expressed recently the new order of things will ho much more equitable in operation than the old and will remove much cause for discontent. FARMERS’ DEATH. CHRISTCHURCH, September 22. John Savillo. aged 79. a well-known farmer, of Yaklhurst. who has been in feeble health for some time, fell into the lire on Monday night, and as a result of the shock died. -'•rC’IDE WITH SMALL RIFLE. INVERCARGILL. September 21. An inquest concerning the death of Henry Lucas, of Hamilton, who was found dead in a waiting room at Bluff railway station on September 14th, was held to-day before Mr G. Cruiks'liank, S.M. Tlie verdict was that deceased shot himself with a small calibre rifle. BUILDER DROWNED. WELLINGTON, Sept. 21. Frank Cameron, middle aged, builder, Plimmerton, was found drowned at Karebama Bay. 300 yards from his home. He was missed liy his wife at 3.30 this morning, and a search resulted in the finding of the body. STILL MISSING. OTAKI, Sept. 22. The young man Reid, whose ear was found over an embankment in Otaki Gorge is still missing and his whereabouts is a. mystery. AWARUA DETAINED. NAPIER, Sept. 22. The Awarua which was to have sailed for Wellington to-day is detained for the purpose of Government survey. The vessel is to go into the inner harbour where she will be slipped if necessary. Mariners assert tlie Awarua will pass easily. AUCKLAND HOSPITAL BOARD. AUCKLAND. Sept. 22. An important departure in hospital administration was made by the Aucklad Board which decided to pay two members on the honorary staff. Dr Neill, Honorary Radiologist, £SOO per annum and Dr Bruco-Mackenzie. Assistant Honorary Radiologist, £250 per annum. Tlie Board adopted recommendations by a special committee that students be admitted under the supervision of a- "Medical Superintendent, and selected members of the honorary medical stuff. BOARDING HOUSE AFIRE. AUCKLAND, Sept. 22. A two-storey boarding house in Bos- 1 ton Road was destroyed by fire at I one o’clock this morning. There were ten hoarders in the house at the time, ( also Mrs C. Buckton, managress and two women assistants. All made a hur- ' vied escape in their night attire. A 1 boarder was awakened by crackling and 1 found the flames burning fiercely he- 1 tween the attached wash-house and the back passage. He aroused the other I occupants who were unable to save any 1 effects except a few pictures. Tlie pre- f inises were owned fly Mrs P. Miller. 1 GOVERNOR-GEN HR A L. f ' BLENHEIM. Sept. 22. 1 Tho Governor-Genci'lil and I.ady 1 Alice Fergusson motored from Pic ton I to ■Blenheim this morning ayd were n met on the outskirts by a pipe band J and were played to the Square where s tho Mayor and Chairman of the Conn- i ty officially welcomed His Excellency < to the district. The Vice-ltegal party c were entertained, at luncheon und in- S spected various points of interest. I To-night a public welcome and recep- a Lion will be given at the'Town Hall. " A further round of festivities is ar- v ranged for to-morrow. Friday and 1 Saturday. . 1 i STEAMERS SHELTERING. " NELSON, Sept, 22. c Three steamers, Kaitangata, Koro- li miko and the ocean liner Yoseric, hav e i come to Nelson to replenish bunkers duo to heavy gales oil the West Coast v rendering the bars unworkable. A t number of other vessels hive put into i the Bay and have been sheltering at s Totaranui. s t A MAN FINED. £ CHRISTCHURCH, Sept. 22. ? Robert John Leslie Coleman threw f a man through a plate glass window 1 at Papanui in August and to-day he t was fined £3 for wilful damage and ] £2 for threatening behaviour. The c trouble arose through Coleman going < to a billiard room partly intoxicated. 1 STRANDED VESSEL. AUCKLAND, Sept. 22. i A cable from Samoa states the i schooner Greyhound has arrived from Auckland. An attempt was made to ] float the Teitte Vincula, ashore at j Xukunoni Island, with success. i i BOY MAROONED. i AUCKLAND, Sept, 29. < The experience of being marooned oil I Rangitoto Island, and spending Saturday night in the. open, befel a lad of fifteen, who resides at Pukekohe. The : boy, who is spending a holiday in Auckland, went to Cheltenham Beach, Devnoport, on Saturday afternoon and borrowed a. 10-foot dinghy, stating that be wanted to row along the foreshore. From these simple beginnings a mijd outing developed into an adventure and ended at Rangitoto, where the boy landed but failed to secure the dinghy adequately, for, on returning to the shore, he was amazed to find that the craft had drifted into the channel. Making the best of his plight the youngster sought the shelter of some scrub on the. foreshore. Despite the biting wind which swept the ishnd and the drenching rain squalls at frequent intervals, he kept himself fairly warm during the night. His failure to return on Saturday afternoon caused anxiety at Devonport, and a party set out in' a launch to search, and patrolled tho channel until darkness fell, but no trace of the dinghy was found. The search was resumed in the morning, when the boy was found on Rangitoto. The lad had seen the launch and signalled vigorously. CO AL FOR RAIL WAV S. WELLINGTON. Sept. 20. The average weekly fuel consumption of the New Zealand railways is about 8000 tons of coal. At Hie present moment upwards of ,o per ten ■ of that quantity is provided by Dominion ‘mines. The gleaned from official sources to-day go to show that the department lost no time in giving effect to the recommendations of the Board of Inqujrj which investigated the more extensive utilisation of locally mined coal on , the country’s railways. The department always has used a certam p' s portion of the Dominion’s hard coals, but on April 1 last, following the report of the inquiry, it increased these orders considerably. Oh June 1 more particular attention was devoted to the 3 question of utilising, soft coalst to an r increased extent, and the result ha s been that altogether the Jepart.ne t - now uses between 3900 and 6000 tons s of New Zealand coal a week. - officially stated that since June 10 ’ use has been made ot ■abojit 2000 tons

of soft coals per week .drawn from mines in North Auckland and Waikato in tho North Island and in Otago and. Southland districts in the South Island. Mines on tlie West Coast of the South Island supply bard coals.

HOSPITAL MATTERS. WELLINGTON, September 20. In accordance with a statement made recently by the Minister of Health (the Hon. ,J. A. Young), the Deputy-Inspeetor-General of Mental Hospitals (Dr T. A. Grey) will leave Wellington by the Tahiti for San Francisco on October 12 on an extended tour abroad to inquire into matters arising out of the report of the Mental Defectives Commission some two years ago. Dr Grey, who will be absent from the Dominion for about eight months, will make himself acquainted with model'll work in connection with mental hospitals and see what is being done in the way of out-patient clinics in regard to general hospitals. Other points to 1)3 investigated include an examination of up-to-date methods of dealing with the feeble-minded. Dr Grey will visit most of the principal cities of America, calling at San Francisco, New York. Boston, Chicago, Baltimore. Montreal and Toronto. Next, ho will visit England, ' Scotland and the Continent, including Munich. Berlin and Paris. Before his return to New Zealand, Dr Grey will probably spend some time also in Norway and Sweden.