INLAND NEWS.

Taihape Daily Times, Volume 7, Issue 182, 9 April 1915, Page 3

INLAND NEWS.

AN. UNUSUAL CLAIM.

.: -.ABCXUT. A SOLICITOR'S PEE. . WELLINGTON, April 8; An. .unusual claim was heard in the Magistrate's Court before W. G.'lßiddell,'.',SM„ to-day, when Patrick Shivnan,.. Wellington, sued J. It. Lundon, solicitor, Auckland, for a- refund of £5 ss, feja paid- by plaintiff to defendant Action arose, out of a case against plaintiff's son, which was withdrawn in the Magistrate's Court,. Auckland. Plaintiff alleged that the fee had bejan pa,id for legal services which defend.ant had never rendered as to the work he and his clerk,had carried out In connection with the Auckland case. In giving judgment for defendant the Magistrate said his had no doubt the •"claim had heen-mad'e by plaintiff- under a misapprehension as he resided in •Wellington and Ava s theilaf l ore;unaware of the extent of services rendered in Auckland by defendant on behalf of plaintiff's son.

TRADE WITH JAPAN

COMMISSIONER INTERVIEWED. WELLINGTON, This Day. The Japanese Trade Commissioners are boing entertained at luncheon today by the Chamber of Commerce. In the course of an interview, Dr Miura statjsd that the desire of Japan was that existing, trade relations should he strengthened and extended so fatas New Zealand was concerned. It was felt that there was room for great improvement in the present means of getting New Zealand produce into Japanese markets. It was recognised that transhipment charges incurred on exports from this country to Japan, via Sydney, must be a handicap, at th|3 same time, trade at present; was not sufficiently large to establish a regular fiarvi'C.o, but rJossibilitief; of- expansion were fully recognised, and it had been proposed that a line should be run from Japan to New Zealand via tfc!3 Solomon Islands.

NURSES SAILED TO-DAY.

A GREAT SEND-OFF. WELLINGTON, This Day. Fifty nurses who are to go to the ftront yuud«r N v ;itlh/-,the Imperial Authorities, left by the Rotorua for London to-day. i A great send-off was given them, and a number of buildings were decorated. There was a large crowd on Glasgow Wharf and much chleering went up as the vessel moved off. Sir Joseph Ward addressed the nurses on the wharf, and on:;behalf of the Patriotic Society he presented Miss McLean, Assistant Inspector of Hospitals, in charge of the party,with a bouquet. Jupp's Band played a number of airs at the vessel's sid'3.

VOTING SYSTEMS.

UNIQUE TRADE UNION TEST. . NATIONAL PROPORTIONAL REPRESENTATION. WELLINGTON, Atiii 7. Important isxperiments in voting systems are being tried on a national scale by the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants'of New Zealand. Its members, who number nearly nine thousand, distributed ovfar the Dominion's railway system, will receive during this month a ballot-paper framed to meet the requirements of the proportional representation method of voting, and they will be asked to repeat the election which was held in January for the return of delegates to thj3 society's triennial conference. The candidates in that election appear again on the mock ballot-paper, but voters, instead of marking the names of the on e candidate in their own department of thf3 service they wished to elect, will show by means of figures the order of their prjsferenc for the whole of the candidates.

Proportional representation has been adopted, as the voting system for the j election of Legislative Councillors in the year 1917, but the A.S.R.S. will be the first organiations in New Zealand to makje anything like a national test ■ of this method of securing equitable .representation, of all elections of the electors. It is intended to ask some well known exponent of the system, such as Dr McNab or Mr P. S. O'Regah to superintend the vote counting, and ag there has been an actual election of delegates under the old system a highly interesting conference should be possible when the mock ballot is complete. . Thl3 A.S.R.S. conference considerd whether it would adopt proportional representation for its actual elections, but. resolved in favour of preferential voting, as this'system will enable th|s society to preserve '.special, or direct representation upon the conferenc/3 of the locomotive, maintenance, traffic and workshops branches of the railway service. "*

LAND FOR SETTLEMENT

BALLOT AT WAIPAWA. WAIPAWA, This Day. A ballot for twelve sections, aggregating about six thousand a portion of the Gw'avas Estate, "acquired by the Government, was held to-day. when 165 selectors put in 546 applications. All parts of the'Dominion were represented. The ballot resulted in section 1: L. Langley7~-F?as-tings; section 2, Pi. A. McKhy, Waipawa; section 3, R. W. Cassidy, Napier; section 4, : E. MeMillin. DanneYirke; section 5, A. S. Ilodd, Pahiatua;. section 6. T. Condrick, Tikokino; section 7, W. Chalmers, Waipaukurau; section 8. C. R. Yesty, Tikokino; section 9, T, Brassington, Christehurch; section 43, A. Foulds, Tikokino; section 44, M. Smith, Ngatapu; section 45, A. Rumbal, Tikokino. ( .

DECEASED PERSONS' ESTATES.

• "*' " WELLINGTON, April 7. The estate s of 350 ' persons were certifi-d last month for death dutiesr The largest was that of Annie Quayle Townend, of. Canterbury, at £196,448." The following are the principal figures for tho Wellington district--John Macßa e £81,327. W. F. McLaren £78,673. W. Perry, £36,685. W. Osborne Williams, £32,175. Alex. Sample, £25,390. Sydney Diamond, £21,588. Eugene Joseph O'Connor, £18,908. Thomas' Lowas, £12,440. Win. Swadling, £12,124. Thomas Kilby, £11,424. Alex, Stephen Bennett, £9,836. James Meehau; £8,686. John Sinclair, £600.4. Win. Moriarty, .£5,404. Richard Ching, £5.389. Wm. Holder, £5,384. Charles Philip Williams, £5,201. Geo. Hjanry Davies, £4,976. James;Stephens, £4247. John Small, £4,231. >£~ " ; Robert Smith, £3,720. August Hamilton, £3,256. ' Louisa Symons, £3,241. Leslie James Thomson, £3,215. David Thompson, £2,809. ■' • Henry Morrison, £2,708. Elizabeth McGill, £2483. Thomas Bevan £2351. ". ..Wm. Qzzvr* Smith. £2,215. George Richardson, £-A^.i. Edith Palmer Taylor, £2,000. Alice Williamson £1,645. Phoebe Fuller, £1,596. Symon Dryden, £1,510. John Young, £1,440. Emma Pickergill,. £1,392. Francis Aylward Sandilands £1,342. James Montgomery £1,221. John W. Cochranie, £1,216. . Ellen Durham £1,150. Thomas Dickson £ 1,110. James John McNeill, £1,049.

The statement that the womjsn of Germany are changing their golden wedding rings for iron ones has a parallel in the country's history. During the Napoleonic wars, the women of Dresden all changed their golden wedding rings for iron ones, so that the gold might be used to drive out the invad/ar. These iron rings were cherished as heirlooms by the women of Dresden, and are religiously preserved to this day as a remembrance of patriotism. The iron rings were inscribed with the words, "Ich gad gold for eisen," I gave gold for iron. Strenuous efforts' were made by the Liberals to get the Labour people in Wellington not to nominate •: a>; candidate against Mr.' Fletclier'" (M.P. for Wellington Central) for the local Mayoralty. All efforts, however, have failed, and in view of the present political situation there is a special significance in the-following extract from* the official organ of the Labour Party "Labour is not going to be the tool and plaything of the Liberal exploiters. It lias mapped out its own course and to-morrow night its official pronouncements will be made by its accredited candidates. If the Liberals want to enter the Wellington Mayoral contest no one should try to stop them, but it must be clearly understood that they can only come in as the enemies of Labour and as such they will be fought."

A GEEMiLN APP3AL

PORK, POTATOES, AND PATRIOTS. The Frankfurter Zeifu'ng" 'finds it necessary once more 'to 'appeal t'o'Ce'r-' 'man patriots'to.'eat less-pork and' fev.--_ er potatoese, thereby, show their heroism in the face of a. great national food crisis:-—. • •• ■■ ■ • If-we-desire-to succeed inour efforts to spare the German working and middle classes the horrors of seriii-stai"v'a-tion drastic measures to cope with the wasteful and improvident spirit which prevails so largely among that section of he population are urge nil}', needed. This applies to all food, but particularly the.two of ..the most popular commodities,- pork and potatoes. In view of this serious increase in the price of ..an indispensable household commodity of the poor, it becomes the Governmetit 's "duty:to-prevent the selfish hoarding of supplies. Several | of such cases have recently occurred in 'Frankfort. In one instance a working man xms head of "a'family of fMfes persons, lad ' purchased pork to the value of £6 .15/-. 'although repeatedly t-old by "the lurlcner that the meat could not be guaranteed to remain fresh for-more than two \or three day. In another case' the purchaser working man, had concealed a Quantity of meat between two mattresses. This unpardonable ignorance and egotism must be rendered impossible by the severest measures. . .-..'. ..-• Given a little intelligence there need be no food famine, but with the extravagant habits that characterise oitv people the danger becomes really imminent, and the danger is intensified T>y the tendency to form "corners" in food products. Such an attempt Turn 'already led in one town at least to a lamentable riot. - ■ • The 'prohibitionists won fourteen additional counties, at the local option eleetons in Michigan. (U.S.) also thirf teen towns in Wisconsin. The women's vote was a decided factor. - A meeting of Wellington retail shopkeepers decided to form a Shopkeepers' Defence League for the purpose of maintaining the existing option .In the matter of the weekly, half-holiday, giving the right to close either on Wednesday or Saturday afternoons. A Sydney wire states: Official indus-' trial returns show that 24,770 workers left various trades and callings to taks up military employment, including peopie in clerical and professional wont who enlisted. The State's unemployed are stated to be 5000.