NEWS OF THE DAY

New Zealand Times, Volume XLIV, Issue 10296, 3 June 1919, Page 6

NEWS OF THE DAY

The amount of Customs revenue collected throughout the Dominion for the month of May was £437,888, and the excise beer duty £23,512. The figures for the month of May last year were £304,432 and £20,351 respectively. Commenting on the figures, the Hon. A. Myers, Minister for Customs, points out that the Custome revenue for May is remarkable ; from the fact that it is-the-greatest amount ever collected in any month. The nearest previous figures were £422,580, collected in June, 1915. The Minister states that increased shipping, fulfilment of overdue orders, full cargoes, and the high values of goods are no i doubt responsible for this record collection.

The departure of the R.M.S. .Moana from-Wellington dor- San Francisco-has-been- postponed till '5 p.m. next Friday.

At the Returned Soldiers’ Conference in Christchurch it was resolved to meet next year in Wellington.—Press Association,

A motor-car accident yesterday at Waikari resulted in the death of a child, aged three, named Hephzibah Kennedy. No details are available, except that the deceased was 'ono of ■a* party -in a- car driven by her father, and was killed by the car overturning. ■

Amongst the movements In the ealeo of land not the least important are the operations of Mr Ernest Short (states the Feilding “Star”). He recently sold 430 acres at Kopane at £9O per acre, and refused an offer ot £l2-5 per acre for the balance of his holding down there, as he is reserving ft (151 acres) for one of his sons. It is not Mr Short’s intention to leave the big house at Parorangi, but ho is cutting up and selling that block (comprising nine or ten farms) with tho exception of 250 acres with the homestead. Mr Short’s recent soilings have aggregated £BB,OOO, including the sale of 956 acres on the other side of Oroua, sold to a neighbour.

In the half-yearly report of the Wellington Hotel Workers’ Union the following reference is made to tho proposal to establish a federation of all hotel workers in New Zealand:—"Your executive is of opinion that this matter should bo immediately taken in hand, as during tho next session of Parliament w© want some amendments to the laws under which we work, more especially those relating- to hours of work, for the time has arrived when tho workers in hotels and restaurants should have a 48-hours’ week and tho eighthour day granted to them. This is a matter that affects the whole of tho unions in New Zealand, therefore it is necessary for us to have the combination to fight for these reforms.’’

The Gilbert Howe memorial trophy for 1918-1919 has been awarded by the Wellington Cricket Association to Mr 11. Lambert, captain of the Wellington College Old Boys’ Cricket Club, last season’s champions. It will bo remembered that the trophy (which will bo awarded annually for at least five years) was presented last year to the Wellington Cricket Association by Mrs It. Howe in memory of her son, the late Lieutenant Gilbert Howe (killed in action), who was a prominent Wellington representative and a keen supporter of the game. According to the desire expressed by Mrs Howe, it is awarded to the player who is adjudged the most improved all-round player for the season in senior grade matches.

Tho secretary of the _Wanganui-Wai-totara Patriotic Association has sent the following letter to Mr Sydney Kirkcaldie in regard to the Trentham Scholarship:—“At a meeting of my finance committee yesterday. Dr Biddell laid tho particulars of tho Trontham Scholarship Fund before the committee, and it was resolved to vote the sum of £2OOO, and this nmoqnt is to be paid to you in War Bonds, 14 years, bearing 4} per cent interest. This, at tho end of that period, will be, with interest, considerably over £SOOO. We will make a transfer of these to you on October Ist. As 1 have tendered my resignation to the association (after four years’ service), and will be vacating my position at the end of next month, I will advise my successor re tho grant, and would thank you to communicate with the association on or before October Ist, in order that the matter will not bo overlook-**'

-Yesterday, in the Supreme Court, the Chief Justice (Sir Robert Stout) granted a decree nisi in the case in which Ellen Alborton Day (Mr J. A. Scott) asked for a dissolution of her marriage with William David Day. The ground of tho petition was misconduct with a Mrs Keenan.

Though to-day is a general holiday, jurors summoned to attend tho Supreme Court this week have been ordered to put in an appearance this morning as usual. Tho rather unexpected decree is not altogether pleasing to tho “good men” affected, to many of whom the King’s Birthday is an award holiday.

A man named James Cullen, employed by the Railway Department," was admitted to hospital at Christchurch on Sunday, suffering from severe injuries to the head, Cullen, who resides at Little River, was returning front work on Saturday evening .on a ganger s trolley, when a train overtook liini - and dashed into tho trolley. He regained consciousness this morning.

At 12.42 p.m. yesterday the fire brigade received a call to the premises of Morris and Isaac Gottlieb, cabinetmakers, Martin street, where _ there was an incipient hrc. The hrigadesmon extinguished tho flames with a small hand-pump and chemical appliance before any material damage resulted. The cause of tho outbreak is unknown. The contents of the workshop are insured in the Kew Zealand office for £l5O. The building is owned by Mr V. Jansen.

One of the machines belonging to the New Zealand Elying School made a trip from Auckland to Russell on Saturday morning. Mr A. B. Williams, of Waipiro Bay, who arrived in Auckland, being anxious to visit Bussell, decided'to take tho trip by air. He accordingly arranged with the Flying School at Kohimarama, and left at 11 a.m. for Russell in'a 125 h-p. seaplane, Mr George Ball being pilot. The distance, 145 miles, was covered in a little under two' hours. The sea route was followed to Russell.

There are about to be submitted to the Senate of the University or London, in the interests of demobilised officers and men, of released war-workers, and other persons, proposals for starting next session within the University a special two-years’ course of comprehensive study for intending journalists, and for instituting a university diploma in journalism, to be awarded after examination to students taking the special course. The proposals have been drafted by a committee forrned of leading members of the University of London under the chairmanship of Professor Sir Sidney Lee, Dean of the Faculty of Arts, in conference with the chief officers of the Institute of Journalists and representatives of the appointments department of the Ministry of Labour and of the Board of Education.

Speaking yesterday with regard to the raising of loans,. the Mayor of the city said that, together With the housing committee, ho had paid a visit to the City Council’s Lya-Il Bay property, and the commit-toe would now take the necessary steps in connection with the erection of a number of houses. Mr Luke added: —“No doubt the council will be prepared to make the necessary financial arrangements for the building of houses without delay. Money must also bo raised for the completion of the widening of Willis street, the reimbursement of. the;, district,fund", moneys advanced in connection with the outlying districts drainage schemes and the Willis street widening; also to provide for the further extension of drainage. During the war period the council was able to carry on- without the necessity of raising loans, but now, with a forward move in prospect, other financial arrangements must bo made.”

During the influenza eidemic many members of the Hotel ‘Workers’ Union were unable to work on. account of the hotels being closed, and, in , addition, not a few were themselves affected. In the half-yearly report of the union it is stated:—“Your executive claimed that these workers were entitled to be paid their wages tor this time, and consequently demands were made upon different employees on behalf of our members, but the employers refused to pay the wages, consequently wo had two cases taken to determine the points; (1) To decide tho liability '.of the employer to pay wages to workers for the time the hotels wore closed for and through the epidemic; (2) to decide the liability of the employer to pay wages to those workers who were laid aside through influenza, and whose contract* of service was not legally terminated, Both of these cases were decided in favour of the union. Wo then called upon the employers who had not paid these wages to workers for this period to pay up, but to our surprise the employers flatly refused to pay wages, which the law and court of this country has stated that they should pay. Wo are now taking legal proceedings against all of those employers who - have refused to pay these wages for the recovery of the' said wages/’ On Juno 6th, 1844, the Young Men’s Christian Association was formed in a small room of a drapery establishment in St. Paul’s Churchyard in London. George Williams, a country hoy from a farm in Somersetshire, who had served an apprenticeship in Bridgewater before going to London, was tho moving spirit of a group of twelve young men, who met and organised under the name of tho Young Men’s Christian Association. June 6th is now annually observed by the associations throughout tho world. Tho germ of this national, international, world-wide organisation, planted Mil London, 1844, was carried, with the name, to North America, where it fell into more congenial soil than in Europe. On this new continent it developed into an agency and organisation with a staff ot workers and equipment, the strong, contagious, shaping influence of which has been felt in Europe, where the original ’germ was planted, and throughout the world. In Sydney, in 1853, and at Auckland, in 1835, Young Men’s Christian Associations were formed by members from the London Association. The Young Men’s Christian Association of 1919 may be described as a world brotherhood of over 1,000,000 young men and boys, resident in over fifty countries on all continents, speaking, fifty languages and ' dialects, banded together in some 9000 cities, towns and smaller communities, at a financial cost ot £2,400,000 annually. Proper equipment to the value of over £40,000,000 has been secured; and this has been invested cbiefly in association buildings. On Thursday next, in the Town Hall, the local branch is celebrating ■'Founders’ Day.” Speeches are to be delivered by Sir James Allen and General Richardson, and 4000 ft of pictures showing “our boys” in English camps will ho displayed. '

The out-patients’ department o_f the hospital will be closed to-day (King’s Birthday). Urgent cases only will be treated at the main* hospital.