GENERAL.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXVIV, Issue 57, 12 February 1916, Page 7

GENERAL.

I TLo balance-sheet of the Hospital Ship Fund was issued yesterday by ' the Department of Interna] Affairs at J I the direction of the Governor. It, 'shows that the total amount subscribed by the public for the equipment of the two hosupital ships, the Maheno and the Marama, was £60,766 7s 2d, and the balance still in hand amounts to £14,811 19s Id. | I A writ for libel, claiming £loooi damages against the secretary of the Australian Workers' Union (Mr E.j Grayndler), lias been issued by Mr Jack Dunn, a shearer, and member of the union (reports the Sydney Daily Telegraph). The alleged libel is said to have been contained in a series of articles, including a circular signed by the secretary of the A.W.U., and the president (Mr W. G. Spence, 1 M.H.R.), which was marked "private and confidential, for members of the A.W.U. only." Mr Dunn alleges that in the circular an attempt was made to induce members of the union tolieve that he was at one time a member of a bogus union called the Machine Shearers' Union, that had bee:i organised to break up the bona fide union-- the Australian Workers' Union. A somewhat novel prosecution under the Sale of Food and Drugs Act was heard in the Dunedin Police Court on Tuesday against a shopkeeper who sells vegetables and fruits (says the Star). In effect he was charged with exposing to possible contamination from dust and Hies food ordinarily eaten in the same state as it is sold in, the vegetables in question being spring onions, radishes, and lettuces, which at the time of the inspector's visit were in boxes outside the shop. Mr \Y. L. Moore, on behalf of the defendant, contended that none of the articles, named were ordinarily eaten in the state in which they were sold, the onions being skinned, the radishes scraped, and the outer leaves of the I lettuces discarded; while in addition 1 all were washed by ordinarily clean 'persons before being placed on the table. Mr Moore pointed out, tco, | : that such an interpretation of the regulation would involve growers, who did not commonly cover their vegetables with gauze. The police contention was that the regulation referred to all foods that were not cooked before being eaten. The magistrate (Mr J. R. Bartholomew, S.M.) declined to interpret this regulation in so drastic a fashion, expressing the opinion that it referred principally to fruits and I confectionery, and holding that the vegetables which were the subject of the charge were not food ordinarily 1 eaten in the same state as that in which it was sold.

I Officers of the steamer Morinda, which arrived at Sydney on ThursIday week from Papua, reported that two lackatoys, containing 75 natives, I were missing off the coast. (They ,have since returned to port). Lackatoys are native craft, constructed of, huge pine logs, • sometimes seven or eight feet placed abreast, on top of which are laid long spars. The spars (are lashed to the logs by vines, etc., land thus a sort of raft is made. The jlogs are hollowed out to give, them 'more buoyancy, and when at sea the 1 natives are continuously employed bailj ing out the logs. On top of the raft, which is sometimes 40ft. or 50ft. long , by 30ft. wide, is erected a large house. The fleet which left Moresby lately I carried cargoes of pottery, etc., stored in the houses, the pottery, to be ex- ) changed for sago on reaching the Fly River. The fleet returned to Port Moresby, with the exception of the two largest lackatoys, each capable of holding 75 natives. A sharp lookout 'was kept on the Houtman and Morinda, but nothing was seen of the miss-| .ing Papuans. It sometimes happens I that when heavy weather is encountered the lashings of the spars give I way, and the craft breaks asunder, j !throwing the house and natives intoi I the sea. I

| At Lyttelton on Monday, about 5.45 'p.m., a middle-aged woman, neatly 'dressed in black, rushed in an excited j manner down the gangway of the steamer Mararoa,' and made her way to 'the end of the wharf (says the Press). The surprise of those who saw her | quickly turned to alarm when she was I seen to jump into the harbor after digesting herself of her coat. The first to act was a railway casual worker, James Scott, who jumped after her to effect a rescue with the assistance of a rope, while a number of men waited on the wharf to hoist her out of the water should their services be needed. She proved to be a strong swimmer, and resisted violently the efforts of her rescuer to place the rope around her. ft was only with the greatest difficulty that he managed to maintain bis hold of her, and at the, same time keep beside a pile under the wharf. Seeing his plight, the second officer of the Mararoa, Mr Hastio. who the previous day had assisted to rescue a soldier who bad fallen into the harbor, slid down the pile to assist. him. Their united efforts to get the

woman out of the water, however, proved unsuccessful. At about this time a boat was observed tied to the i end of the wharf, and, to the great re- ' lief of all concerned, with the possible exception of the woman herself, who 'now for a moment ceased her struggles, it was Quickly manned and rowed to where the trio were in the water. Despite her kicking and fighting'the woman was pulled into the boat, together with the two men, and taken to the landing steps at the other end 'of the wharf, where a constable took 'her in charge. Although thoroughly soaked she was still full of fight, and showed her contempt for the law by slapping the constable's face, and it was only by gripping her firmly after placing her in ;i taxi that he saved himself from being further assaulted.

Last week the Okalui tunucl, on the Stratford-Main Tn;n,; line, -..a:, pierced. The excavations had been goinj.'; on from both ends. The work has been carried out under the supervision of Mr A. J. Baker, resident engineer. The completion of the tunnel, bricking in the walls, and laying the line will be steadily gone on with. Those who really know the merchant service sailor are not surprised at the way in which he has ignored the peril arising from German submarines and mines, says a London paper. A" a matter of fact the reduction in the supply of sailors due to this danger has been infinitesimal—at the most. only 1 or '2 per cent. Nor has there been a falling-off in the number of likely boys come forward, but, owing to there being fewer ships available, not so many youngsters can be indentured. As to the attitude of seamen, the instance is cited of a man who ships through the federation office, and who has been on three shipr. which were torpedoed. He is still at

Two applications were made to Mr W. Ken - , S.M., at YVanganui, for exemption from military training on the grounds of religious objections. The Defence Department was not represented in court, nor did it offer any opposition to the applications. His Worship granted the applications, personally expressing his dissatisfaction at the exemptions. He added he was pleased to -see that in the Old Country the Imperial authorities had passed legislation making it no longer possible for people to escape their obligations on account of religious belief's in the exigencies of the case, and he hoped soon to see the Xew Zealand Parliament repeal the section under which the applications wert made.

A physician found a soldier lying with a bullet wound through his, head after an unsuccessful German charge. When the physician tried to make the soldier comfortable, the latter said, "For God's sake, doctor, give me one more cut at those devils. Don't fuss with me until I've had one more shoL at them." The soldier had been blinded by his, wound. "Where are they, doctor? What's the range:'" asked the man. "Six hundred yards," said the doctor, to humor the man. "Fix my rifle sight for me,"; ordered the soldier. The doctor did as ordered, and the blind soldier fired it in the direction of the Germans. Then he sank back and was dead within a few minutes.

"Do you believe in God?" a sergeant of police asked a .Mohammedan witness in the Tort Chalmers Court the other day. The witness answered in the affirmative. "What God?" pursued the sergeant. "There is only one God," said the witness- looking hard at the sergeant, who remarked that the previous witness had said he did not know whether there was a God. The witness who said there was, only one God also said he was a Mohammedan; and would swear by Mohammed thath'e would tell the truth, remarking that, as the accused, on whose behalf he was called, was neither his father, brother, nor other relative, there was really no reason why lie shouldn't tell the truth. His evidence was then taken.

The Hon. G. W. Russell has a photograph, which will probably be shown in Christchurch, of the new Pukeroa Hospital, at Kotorua. The building has two big octagonal wings, "Anzac" and "Sulva," each with a capacity of two hundred beds, and a large administrative block, with a dining hall in the centre, named "Te Old Oki Kinga." This i s an expression from the Gospel, "And ye shall find rest unto your souls," but a more literal translation would be, "A place where the weary and heavy laden may find rest." There will be a tank capacity of 10.000 gallons, and underneath the tanks a workshop where the men may be exercised in carpentry and. so on.' A hall, 50ft x 20ft, will be used as a library, meeting-place, and read-ing-room. This is being erected from funds given by patriotic societies. A replica of this new hospital is to be built at Hanmer.

The Suva correspondent of the Auckland Star writes under date 23rd January: "Last month there was introduced in the Legislative Council of Fiji a Bill to amend the marriage law. The Bill provided, inter alia : 'lf any emigrant (Indian) being, in the ease of a male, fifteen years of age. and, in the case of a female, twelve years of age or upwards, desires to contract marriage, il shall be lawful to solemnise a marriage between them.' The Bill has not, up to the time of writing, been proceeded with, the Acting Governor intimating that he has decided to send it Home first, for the approval of the Secretary of State for the Colonies. It will, however, provide food for reflection to many colonial readers tiiat a Bill containing such a provision should be contemplated in the Antipodes in the year of grace 1916. Marriage in the years of childhood is without a doubt a relic of barbarism that it is reasonable to believe India will herself throw off at no distant date. A girl twelve years of age should be at school, and a hoy of fifteen years of age. even though he be physically and mentally fitted for the marriage state—an assumption open to grave doubt—is not under any of the conditions in Fiji, with which the writer is acquainted, Ikely to lie able to mantain a wife in the circumstances consistent with the standard of civilisation that ought to be insisted upon in the Paeilie. It may be argued that early marriage is an Indian custom that cannot lie latered by a stroke of the pen, but custom, it has to lie remembered is not hereditary, and can be, and is, very considerably influenced by legislation."