LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 2388, 4 February 1922, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

A publican of Otaki was lined £5 on Thursday for supplying liquor to native women.

The‘Levin Chronicle of yesterday said: —Much regret will be felt locally at the death.(>f Mrs Mark, wife of Mr Oswald Mark, of Bruce Road, which occurred yesterday, after a few hours’ illness. The deceased lady was 29 years of age, and was a daughter of Mr AY. Hall, formerly a resident of lhakara. and now of Palmerston North. She was wellknown in the district, and esteemed by all her friends for a bright disposition and kindly nature. The deceased leaves a family of four young children, and to them and her husband, who have been so suddenly bereaved, the sympathy of the community will go out.

Before the .commencement of the opera at the Town Hall last night a good deal of dissatisfaction was expressed by a number of people who desired to patronise the pit at 2s, }>iit who were informed that only a limited number of seats were provided at this figure, and they wore all occupied. It appears that some had purchased tickets, and instead of taking the seats available, waited outside, and upon re-entering the hall were crowded out, and compelled to pay extra or get their money back. The management met the extra demand by reducing 4s seats to 3s. Some heated arguments ensued, and the police were called upon to intervene. At the opening scene Mr O’Connor, who appeared very agitated, said he had never before experienced such treatment. The company had travelled two thousand miles to come here, and had behaved themselves in trains and hotels, and he expected similar treatment. He did not want the money of dissatisfied people, and concluded by si;.ilipg that he was not going io stand this sort of filing. It. niav be mentioned that Ihc puces of admission >yere Os, 4s, and -.s, ami portion of the usual pit aecommodajiop was taken up by .the higher priced seats, and jto Hii? objection was I a hep.

Three-course luncheons are now being provided in Palmerston at Is

fid, as against 2s in the past. Toma locs were being sold in the Auckland market on Tuesday at from 2s to 4s per case.

A special meeting of the Borough Council will be held on Monday, at 7.30 p.m., to consider tenders for lease of Town Hall.

We are pleased to report that Mr T. Brewer, who met with a serious accident on Wednesday last, is progressing as satisfactorily as can be expected under the circumstances. The Whenuakura bridge, which was recently washed away, has been repaired, and the trains to and from New Plymouth can now run right through.

Among the list of officii)ling Ministers under the Marriage Act, published in the Ga/.ette is found Mr Clement L. Wragge, under the heading of the Spiritual Scientist. Church.

The price of coal is gradually falling. The last quotation for Australian coal received by the Levin Gasworks is fiOs per ton, a drop of 2s fid per ton from the previous ruling price. New Zealand coal costs £2 lfis 8d landed in Levin, as against £1 12s fid pre-war.

In the House of Representatives yesterday morning, Mr T. M. Wilford, Leader of the Opposition, moved that the railway estimates be reduced by £lO, as an indication that the Palmerston North deviation should not be proceeded with. The' motion was defeated by 42 votes to 20.

How many business men, as they perused the calendar in search of Tuesday’s date, noticed the repetition in the number of the day, the month and the year—2. 2, 22? This is a coincidence that will not recur for one hundred years, and it will b< over eleven years before a succession of threes can come about similarlv.

“The Lilac Domino” opera, staged in the Town Hall last night, did not commence till nearly 8.30 o’clock. Delays, which are sometimes unavoidable, cause a, section of the audience to grow restless, and their impatience finds an outlet in various noisy ways. A word of explanation from the management would be in the interests of all.

The Prime Minister said, in reply to a question in the House yesterday, that he would be very glad if it were possible to increase the maximum amount of the loans to local bodies, but, under the existing circumstances, it was not possible. He would be glad when things improved and the opportunity offered In go back to the original amount. Replying to Mr A. S. Melcolm, in the House of Representatives yesterday, the Prime Minister said that the rebate on land tax had been such an undoubted success in bringing in revenue that he was disposed to think that city councils would find the practice equally advantageous, but the necessary legislation could not be passed this session.

The Rongotea Go-operative Trading Company, that lias been carrying on business for many years, has decided to go into voluntary liquidation, finding it impossible to carry on with (Ik; capital at its disposal. Its sales last year totalled £22,983, an increase of £5,000 over the previous year, while the net profit was £239, after allowing rebates and discounts amounting to £289.

The Foxton Chamber of Commerce has invited the Palmerston Chamber to fix a date for the holding of a. conference to discuss matters in connection with local shipping. Representatives of the Harbour Board will also be invited to (he conference. The object is to arouse a wider interest in the port as a shipping and distributing centre.

William Blackburn, seventy-two-years-old veteran, of Boston, never will shine as a scholastic star. Blackburn, a trainee under the United States Government’s plan for vocational study for war vetrans, lias been trying to learn to write for the bud two years and four months. Director Forbes of the War Veterans Bureau said it has cost the Government exactly 3,G00 dollars to teach this man how to write his name. Forbes said Blackburn lias been discontinued as a trainee. Pie did’nt like school anyhow. The records showed that lie was absent threefourths of the time in the last four months.

For some time Mr E. Newman (Manawatu) has been endeavouring to induce the military authorities to issue medals or badges to homeservice men, especially those men who were compelled, against their will, to remain in New Zealand. On Thursday, in the House of Representatives, Mr Newman renewed his request for the issue of such badges. The Minister of Defence (the Hon. Sir'R. Heaton Rhodes) said that lie had asked for an estimate of t lie post of the issue of such badges, and lie luid also inquired whether a similar issue had been made ip other parfs of the Empire. He was informed that no medals had been issued to the home-service in Canada or Great Britain. He sympathised with the desire to see service recognised, but at a time like this, when cost had to be considered, lie had to postpone consideration of a wholesale issue of medals. The issue of badges to members of the permanent forces who were detained here against their will was somewhat different. fie had called for a return of the nuniber involved, apd the cost, and when lip obtained tluq lie would submit the matter to Cabinet.