The Manawatu Herald. Thursday, October 3rd., 1912. NOTES AND COMMENTS.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXIV, Issue 1004, 3 October 1912, Page 2

The Manawatu Herald. Thursday, October 3rd., 1912. NOTES AND COMMENTS.

At Tuesday’s meeting of the Manawatu County Council, a letter was received Irom a resident of the County of Durham, England, asking for a position as road man. The writer explained in a nicely-written and well-worded letter that he had seeu a paragraph in the Newcastle-on-Tyue Weekly Chronicle, taken from the Feildiug Star, to the effect that the Council required men for road work. He said that he would be glad to come to New Zealand for a permanent position. He and his wife were 40 years of age each, and in sound health, and they had a family of five boys and one girl, the latter being fifteen, and the boys ranging from 17 to 2 years. The son and daughter were at work, and the applicant was employed himself in a colliery, but was formerly a road mender. He asked that the Council should arrange for the cheapest mode of transport for himself alone, or for his whole family, and he would repay it out of earnings as soon as possible. He forwarded the names of a parson, a schoolmaster, and a farmer as references. The letter bore the stamp of sincerity, and it would be a good thing for the Dominion if families of this stamp could be brought here. It was decided to leave the. matter in the hands of the County Clerk, to enquire into the methods usually adopted in similar cases.

The Prohibition Party are holding mass meetings in all the principal centres throughout the Dominion in support of settling the liquor traffic by the democratic principle of the bare majority. The following pledge is being signed at all meetings: “I hereby give my pledge, that regardless of party, I will not at the next election give my vote to any candidate for Parliament who will not promise, if elected, to do his utmost to remove, or at least substantially reduce, the present unjust condition upon both the issues of uo-license and national prohibition.”

A GOOD deal of time was taken up in the House on Tuesday night in reference to certain criticism which had appeared in the Dominion newspaper, and by the Minister lor Finance in respect to the State Guaranteed Advances Board, which was accused of making advances under pressure for political purposes. The Board has written to the Minister, indignantly repudiating such charges. Opposition members are of opinion that the newspaper committed a breach o! privilege, and should be brought to book. On the motion of the Prime Minister, the following motion was unanimously agreed to: ‘‘That the Public Accounts Committee be directed to enquire fully into all loans paid or applied tor, or provisionally or finally approved for local authorities, under

the State Guaranteed Advances Act since its inception, the committee to report on losses made, if any, since the Act came into operation, the commitments, available means, and the unexhausted loan authorities at 31st March and 16th September, 1912 ; the committee to be open to the press, also that the letter of the Superintendent of the Government Department, dated September 30th, to the Minister of Finance, to be referred to the said committee, and the committee to report within ten days.”