NEWS OF THE DAY

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXVII, Issue 8356, 17 February 1913, Page 6

NEWS OF THE DAY

The anpual visit of the Mayor and councillors to the Wainui waterworks will take place on Wednesday next. The party will leave town at 9.50 a.m. A five-roomed house at Makino, Feildina, was destroyed by fire early on Saturday morning. _ The building was owned by Mrs Kenivan and occupied by Mr Reid. The latter had a very narrow escape, the fire _ having pierced the walls of the room in,which he was sleeping before he woke up. There was an insurance of £IOO on the building. Captain Amundsen is so far from seriously objecting to the intense solitude of polar regions, that he ha* declined the gift of a wireless installation for the Fram. “1 don t care for it,” he said in a recent interview in America. “It is very much better to be without news when you cannot be where the news comes from. We are always more contented if we .getno news. A good booh we like, we explorers—that is our best amusement and our best time-killer.” The statement of an Anglican minister in England that four-fifths of the children of New Zealand were growing up in atheism under the secular system of education was sharply challenged by Mr J. Caughley at Christchurch on Friday night, when he remarked that the minister must have known that New Zealand had the highest proportion of any country in the clul dren attending Sunday school, ihere were 154,000 on the primary school roll, and of these 130,000 were connected with Protestant Sunday schools and 13,000 with Roman Catholic Sunday schools. Was it suggested that these 140,000 children were being taught heathenism in the Sunday schools? He ventured to say that il the Church made any effort at all it could get the remaining children w ithout spending half the energy that it was putting into tlie Bible-in-fecnoois movement..

At the Magistrate’s Court on Saturday John McCarthy and Robert Bond were fined 20s and 5s respectively for drunkenness. Sir W. G. Ridcoll, S.M., was on the bench. At 10 o’clock this morning Ida JffimOT Mr Justice Chapman will sentence Charles Alfred Remmers on charges of breaking and entering and theft, and Kenneth Green for theft, A disabled motor-boat, which had drifted a considerable distance in the Harbour yesterday afternoon, was uoked up by the Duchess and towed to Day’s Bay. The occupants of the launch appeared to have had a most unpleasant experience. Another of the three boys who were dealt with by tho Juvenile Court recently for thefts from business premises was brought before Mr W. G. Riddell, S.M., on Saturday on a charge of breaking and entering the shop of Frederick Hatch and stealing 4s worth of goods. Tho magistrate committed the lad, Who is only seven years of age, to the Stoke Industrial School. Mr T. M. Wilford, who is appearing for respondent in tho divorce case ox Fuller v. Puller, applied to Mr Justice Chapman on Saturday to fix the security for his client’s costs so that she could defend the case. Mr Young, on behalf of petitioner, opposed tha application. After hearing argument, his Honor made an order for petitioner to find security to the satisfaction of tho registrar in the sum of £l5O, and ordered him to pay £2 2s, costs of the application. A busy week in oversea shipping at Wellington commenced yesterday with tho arrival of four big deep-sea vessels —the Morayshire and Tyrone from Liverpool, and the Cape Fmisterre and Buteshire from New York. Tho Waimato is due to-morrow from Montreal, and the Arawa will arrive about the same time from London. Tho Delphio is duo this morning from Timaru for Homeward loading, and the Makarini is expected on Wednesday from Waganui roadstead. The Corinthic ia also loading at Wellington, and is to sail on Thursday for London. The high wind in Timaru on Thursday was responsible for a very painful accident which happened to _ Mr V. Scott, a member of the reporting staff of the “Post.” Mr Scott had gone to the park to report a cricket match which was being played there, and ha was watching the game. from a seat under a big pinus iusignis tree where four other young men were also seated. Suddenly the big tree gave way under the heavy gale, snapping off close to the ground. Mr Scott was pinned to the ground and sustained a broken thigh, but his four companions, in some miraculous way, escaped injury. Cabinet decided on Saturday to in» vite tenders for various additions to the Government Printing Office. Tha new accommodation, which will cost about £6OOO, will comprise more machine rooms and lavatories. Later on, n three-story building will bo erected, to front Featherston street) and eventually arrangements will bo made to drive the whole of the machinery by electricity. Tho need for increased accommodation has been felt for some time past. The Hon. F. M. B, Fisher, Minister in charge of the office, told a “Times” representative last evening that tho air-space and general equipment of the office from the point of view of the employees would bo improved. The conference of school inspectors continued' its deliberations throughout Saturday in the House of Representatives, and finally concluded a few minutes before midnight; Mr G. Hogben, Inspector-General, presided. The principal matters discussed were machinery amendments to the school syllabus and the departmental regulations, A considerable portion of the deliberations and resolutions will he held confidential in the meantime until the Education Boards concerned have had an opportunity of reviewing the decisions of tho conference, after which they will ' bo Available for publication. ’ This morning, a conference of principals of training colleges will be opened at Parliament Buildings. Tho . Canadian-Anstrnlasian _ Royal Mail liner Zonlaudia, which arrived at Auckland on Friday from Sydney, had on board 147 through passengers for Suva, Honolulu, and Vancouver, while 98 New Zealand passengers joined the vessel at Auckland. .The Zealandia was engaged throughout. the day in loading several hundred tons of cargo, which included over 5000 boxes of butter, and lines of onions, frozen meats, hides, skins, wool, kauri gam, and general cargo. The vessel hot in her holds several hundred tons of Australian cargo, and when she left port on Friday night she was (says the “Herald”) practically a full ship. The Zealandia is due at Suva on Tuesday nest, Honolulu on February 25th, and Vancouver on March 4th. The English portion of her mail is due in London on March 3.7 th, Before ’the Terra Nova sailed to '.lie Antarctic regions on the voyage from which she has returned bearing such sad news, tho Scottish Society ‘of Christchurch sent a box of heather sprigs to tho vessel, with a request that they should be distributed amongst the ship’s crew on New Year’s Day. Chief Mackintosh, at Thursday night’s ceilidh, read (says tho “Press’) the following letter ho had received since the vessel’s return: “McMurdo Sound, South Victoria Land. January 18th, 19X3. Dear Sir,— The bundles o’ Scottish heather forwarded by you to this ship were distributed on New Year’s Day to the ship’s company. They were very much appreciated byall hands, and, while their recipients are writing to the kind friends in Scotland whose names are on the labels attached to the heather, they ask no to tell yon on their behalf how grateful they are for your kind thought in sending the gifts.—l am, etc., William McDonald.” , That the official representatives o! New Zealand in London have dingy and obscure offices has long been a commonuace among visitors to the capital ol the Empire. The tides of traffic do ict pour through Victoria street as they do through the Strand, and a .cranger must scrutinise each namedate before he finds the place he wants. The Commonwealth Government is erecting a handsome structure on the Strand, its site being part of an “island” formed by the crescont.naped Aldwycb, and this building will be set in the midst of London”.-; busiest roar. It will be a conspicuous addition to the great artery, and large rent displays of produce may he made in the ground floor, behind plate-glass .vindows. Such a thing would bo leither practicable nor advantageous in Victoria street. The need for better ind more central accommodation for New Zealand has been recognised by the Hon. T. Mackenzie, who stated in a report to the Government that this was a necessary preliminary to reform of the department. While in London the Hon, James Allen will confer with the High Commissioner in regard to , the questions of accommodation, and report on his return to New Zealand.

The following vessels will ho within range of the G.P.O. wireless station this evening: Wimmora, Manuka, Moeraki, Maunganui, Arawa, /eaiandia, and Moana. The Arawa is due from London to-morrow. Robert Murray, a wharf labourer, "said to bo subject to fits, fell off the footpath in Manners street yesterday morning, and injured his face and left eye. After receiving attention from Dr. Henry, the sufferer was taken to the hospital. The English and American mails via Vancouver arrived at Auckland yesterday morning by the Marama, and will reach Wellington about 4 o’clock this afternoon by tho Main Trunk express. Australian mails, via Auckland, ex tho Victoria, will arrive by tho same train. A public meeting is to ho held at the Club Hotel, Shannon, on Wednesday next, to consider tho question of raising subscriptions to augment tho proposed Dominion fund in aid of tho relatives of those who lost their lives in the Antarctic expedition. “The world needs turning upside down, and wo are tho ones to do it." 'This sentence, appearing in tho draft of the “conference address’’ which was submitted on Saturday to the Methodist Conference, caused a great deal of laughter and some criticism. One speaker said that the declaration would be all very well at a tea meeting, but it should not appear in a conference address. It was eventually, decided to delete tho sentence. At 2.20 yesterday morning a firo was discovered in' a shop owned by Mr W. Jennasa, in Railway avenue, Lower Hutt. Tho premises wore used as, a confectionery shop and refreshment rooms, and occupied by Mrs E. J. Bowie. The local brigade were smartly on the scene, and quickly suppressed the outbreak. Considerable damage was done to the stock and fittings, which are covered by £175 insurance. The damage to the building was not great. John McKinnan, a labourer, living at 48, Clyde quay, fell into tho harbour off the Glasgow wharf yesterday morning. and was rescued in a drowning condition by an A.B. on tho Queen of the South, named William Hollis. McKinnan was noticed struggling in the Water underneath the wharf by W. E. Bell, cook on the steamer, and gave the alarm. Dr Bradshaw, of the Corinthic, attended' to McKinnan, who was partly asphyxiated, and ordered his removal to the hospital. Hollis he'd tho man up the water till a rope was passed to him. Owing to insufficiency of work to warrant separate offices, the Customhouses at Oamaru and Hokitika are to ha closed, and in future Customs business at those places will bo attended to by the local postmasters. Mr C. G. R. Gore, Collector at Oamaru, will be transferred to Wairaii, and Mr Phantom, Collector at Hokitika, proceeds to Christchurch as a landing waiter. Mr Harrap, Collector at Wairau. will act as chief dork at Christchurch. These transfers take effect on March 31st. Meanwhile, suitable arrangements have been made for the initiation of the postmasters at Oamaru and Hokitika m their new duties. Patrons of tho Wellington Zoo will be interested to learn that on Saturday there was a valuable addition to the animal collection, the lioness presenting her companion “King Dick” with a cub. The little stranger comes at a rather timely juncture, because Mr Wirth is desirous of securing repossession of the lioness, or her value, £IOO, failing which she is to be returned on March Bth. Councillor Frost,, chairman of the Reserves Committee, has succeeded in collecting £4O towards the purchase fund, and is in hopes that the general public will come forward with the remaining £6O, in order that the lioness and her offspring may be permanently retained in the Wellington Zoo. It may be explained that there is at tho present time great difficulty In securing lions for zoological purposes, and their price has gone up very considerably. As Mr Wirth paid £2ob for the mother of the cub, it will be seen that his offer is. an exceedingly liberal one. and it is to be hoped that the zoo authorities will be successful in their appeal.