DOMINION NEWS.

Hokitika Guardian, 16 November 1927, Page 1

DOMINION NEWS.

(By Telegraph—Per Press Association.) CARNAL KNOWLEDGE. GISBORNE, Nov. LI. At the Supremo Court Eripi To Hnu, a native youth, was found guilty of carnal knowledge, with recommendation to mercy. Justice McGregor ordered accused to come up for sentence if called upon within two years. FIRE AT KAIKOPRA. KAiKOUKA. Nov. 11. About three o’clock this morning a five-roomed house owned and occupied by Afr 'Eric M.’Kcnzie was totally destroyed togetiher with its contents. Only a little bedding and night apparel were saved, and Mr and Mrs M’Koiizie are heavy losers. The house was situated in Margate Street. c|f the esplanade, and was a new structure. The building was insured in Hie Phoenix Office, but details are not available.

PEACE SENTIMENT. AUCKLAND, Nov. IT

The remarkable expression of peace sentiment in England has been noted liv Auckland newspapers, which to-day devote leading articles to the subject.

'Die “Herald” says:—“The trite fallacy that professional’ military men are war mongers received lately a salutary cheek in Field-Marshal Sir William Robertson’s speech. His condemnation of war was no whit less downright than that of the most extreme pacifists, and its thoroughness has aroused considerable interest, yet in spite of anonymous comment suggesting that such denunciation from tln‘ lips of a great soldier is rare, it can ho matched without difficulty hv many statements from such sources in the last nine years, to say nothing of similar utterances of like origin before the war. As little justification is there for believing that anti-inili-tarist determination spreading over Britain on the' oeasion of the ninth anniversary of the Armistice is a sudden arising. It is at least nine years old. indeed it is very much older. There have never been lacking in recent years insistent pleas lor the banishing of war in British lands. The Press has been in this as consistently active as either platform or pulpit. It- may he that in some quarters the war weariness of a lit lie while ago has passed away, hut the declension from the will to peace has 'icon almost negligible. Scarcely anyone l can be found willing to glorify war.

FROST DAMAGE. DUNEDIN, Nov. 11. The orehardists in the Alexandra district had a hitter experience this morning, when a sharp frost was experienced, with disastrous results to fruit trees and tomato plaids. Ihe heavy south-west gale which swept over Otago yesterday had died away, and the fruit growers had a feeling that ii might he followed by trust. I lie night hours passed, however, and all seemed well, but; about hall-past three (standard time) there was a chilling frost. Tomatoes in thousands have been ruined, and also the stone fruiis in most of the orchards.

The orehardists in the Alexandra district, had. with good reason, been looking I’oni'ard lo a very remunerative seasons, hut in a little over an hour their hopes for prolific crops were shattered.

DEATH FROM BURNS. TAUMAIiI XUL Nov. IT

A child. Bertha Ellen Harriet liennet. aged three years and eight months, died in hospital yesterday as the result of burns received on Saturday. The child was left in the house at her parent’s home at Pungapunga, near Maiuinui, while her lather went outside temporarily. A few minutes later another child ran out to the father to say that her sister was on Tire. The child was badly burned. \ TEACHERS’ PROTEST. WELLINGTON. Nov. 15. At a meeting of the Executive ol the N.Z. Educational Institute, held to night, to consider the Education Amendment Bill now before Parliament, strong exception was taken to the clause in the Bill providing lor the imposition of a fine, up to £lO, on nnv teacher guilty of wilful disobedience ol any lawful command, or of neglect cl duty, such line to he deducted Horn the teacher’s salary. It was pointed out that this clause east an unnecessary reflection'upon the teaching service as a whole, and in view of the high esteem in which the profession was held by the public, it implied the suggestion that it was necessary to discipline its members by a system of lines, which was quite uncalled for. There was already available adequate and effective means of safeguarding the efficiency and good conduct of the service. It was decided to enter a strong protest against a proposal which in itr. implications would tend to lower the prestige of the profession in the eyes of the public.

SAWMILL FATALITY. DUNEDIN, Nov. ID. John Pullar. 17 years of ago, died in the Owaka Hospital to-day, as the result of an accident at Hogg and Coy’s sawmill at Tnhakopa. GISBORNE HARBOUR AFFAIRS. IX VEST] GAT JON PR OPOS ED. WELLINGTON, Nov. 14. Over six hundred ratepayers in the Gisborne Harbour district recently petitioned Parliament to have the affairs. of the Harbour Board investigated. The Public Petitions Committee of the House of Representatives reported to-night, referring the matter to the Government for consideration, ■with a recommendation that a commission should he appointed to inquire into harbour works ulreaJy carried oat by the Gisborne Harbour Board, with a view to deciding whether or not further expenditure was justified. Satisfaction at this recommendation was expressed by Mr Lysnar, member for Gisborne, and the position was briefly explained by Mr Burnett (Temukn) a member of the committee, who saiil that Gisborne, an isolated but wealthy, fertile district, had had an up-hill fight to create deep-water facilities. It had spent £616,000, but the only definite part of the scheme complete was a small slipway. “In my opinion, ’’ a tided Nlr Burnett. “this Gisborne fiasco is an object lessen to the whole Dominion. ’there

wore many amateur engineers on our boards, especially, after the war. when folk were so used to thinking in millions that it was so simple to persuade peonle that for patriotic district puiposes it was the right thing to commit themselves to hundreds of thousands of pounds. It is an object lesson that money raised so easily, and in a measure so easily spent, requires

some watchful eye from a Dominion hoard of competent engineers.” The committee’s report was adopt-

£7O FOR A CANOE. GISBORNE, N«v. II

An unusual ease came before the Magistrate, Mr Lcvvy, S.M. at the Port Awamii Court on Friday, arising from the destruction of a valuable Maori relic, a Lot am. canoe called “Whakatatarawurn ire,” 42 feet in length, hewn out in 187-1. Some months ago the canoe was sawn up by Kerema (Graham) Aupouri for firewood, flic sequel being a claim for £7O by the Paramount Chief of the Xgatirangi tribe. Pene lleibi. who claimed ownership of the canoe. In evidence, Pene Heilii said he was over eighty years of age. The canoe was his, and lie was claiming £7O, hut the actual value of the canoe was between £2OO and £3OO. The defendant, In evidence, said the canoe, when he cut it up. had been neglected for many years, and was splil from end to end. “You vandal !” said the Magistrate angrily. “Wluit do yon mean by cutting up such a priceless relief” Defendant replied that he had done it because the canoe was broken up. “Tell him I don’t believe him,” said the Magistrate to The interpreter. After some further evidence had been heard as to the neglected and sun-cracked, condition of the canoo. the Magistrate said that £7O seemed a lot of money to allow, but in view of the evidence that it whs in a sufficient state of preservation to he put in a museum, he did not. think it was too in lie’ll. lie awarded plaintiff the full amount of the claim with costs.

MAORI WOMAN’S DEATH. MASTKRTOX, Nov. 15. The death occurred in hospital late last night, ol Wiki Tanora, a married native woman, aged 31. a resident of Gladstone, who fell in a fainting lit on an open lire and was severely burnt. At the inquest to-day, a verdict of accidental death was returned. ■MENTAL DEFECTIVE CHARGED. CHRISTCHURCH, Nov. 15. Herbert William Carey, aged 23 appeared at the police Court to-da.v charged that on Nov. 7, ho did set tire to a house at the corner of Bordsley Street and Kerry Road, the property of Josiali MeClint nek. The house had been unoccupied for some time and after the outbreak of fire had been quelled, there were traces of tire having .been started at three separate places in the* building. MoCiintook, giving evidence, said lie knew accused through his (Carey’s) hrotlier-in-law, with whom he (McClintoek) was not on friendly terms. When asked if he had ally questions to put to witness, accused said that his hrotlier-in-law told him to set. lire to the house. Constable ttowe produced a statement in which accused admitted the offence, alleging that his hrotlier-in-law told him to set. the house afire when he got the chance. Other evidence was to the effect that accused was subnormal mentally and unable to write. Carey pleaded guilty and was committed to the Supreme Court for sentence.