NEW ZEALAND NEWS.

Taihape Daily Times, Volume 7, Issue 263, 12 August 1915, Page 4

NEW ZEALAND NEWS.

! RETURNED MAORIS. ! FROM PANAMA EXHIBITION. WELLINGTON, This Day. The Maori troupe numbering 20, who went to the Panama Exposition, returned from 'Frisco by the Marama to-day. KILLED IN ACTION. NEW ZEALAND OFFICER. NELSON, This Day. News received states that Captain James Houlker, officer commanding the 13th Canterbury Regiment, New Zealand forces, has been lulled in action. TWO NEW BATTALIONS. ACCEPTED BY ARMY COUNCIL. FROM NEW ZEALAND. \

WELLINGTON, Wednesday The Army Council has accepted the offtfr of the New Zealand Government j of two new battalions. They will go into camp when the Trenthams leave about the middle of October. WORKERS' DWELLINGS. WELLINGTON, August 11. The Cabinet has authorised the erection of one hundred workers' dwellings, involving an estimated expenditure of £50,000. At the, time authority was applied for, about two hundred applications fcr dwellings had been received by the Labour Department from all parts of this country. At present th e department and its agents are engaged in making the necessary inquiries and arrangements with a view to proceeding with the building programme. j

N.Z. WHEAT SUPPLIES. A SATISFACTORY POSITION. WELLINGTON, August 11. In the past few days there has been an appreciable drop in wheat and flour and there- ar e likeily to be further reductions in the opinion of those ablfv to gauge the prospects. The Prim e Minister recently had a census taken of all the wheat in the country. It wa s gathered from merchants, millers and farmers, and the result of this showed that there was suffie'ent in the Dominion to last until the next harvest. The new season's hprvPjSt is generally available in the middle of February, but it. is necessary that there should be a "carry over" supply. The wheat census i 3 the first one taken in this country, for a very long time. Altogether th? outlook is by no means bad, considering that the croos in America and elsewhere have been good.

PARCELS FOR EGYPT. WELLINGTON, August 11. The Minister for Defence stated today that in order to improve the parneb service between New Zealand and Gallmcli. he was ?,rranging with the Postmaster-General that parcels shouM in future -go direct to Egypt. Their distribution from Egypt would be arranged by the Ne,w Zealand bas P at Alexandria. Colonel Essen, the officer commanding the base at Alexandria.has provided th e Defence; Minister with a report on the postal arrangements there. He states that th e 'arrangements generally work well, and the delays which nave sometimes occurred in the delivery of parcels have been due to the despatch of the boys from Ne ; w Zealand via to Egypt. This trouble will be overcome by sending parcels, direct to Egypt. SICKNESS AT MILITARY HOSPITALS WELLINGTON, August 11. The following information has been received concerning sickness in the various military hospitals as at noon to-day: Palmerston North: Total ndmber of cases 55, comprising measles 29. The diptheria cases are convalescent. Oth- ! erwise there are no serious cases.

Waikanae: Total number of cases, is- all progressing favourably Kawarra: Convalescent patients, 20. Wellington: Total number of cases, 41- one case seriously ill . Total number of cases, 14 Greytown Civil Hospital, 18. Masterton Civil Hospital, 10; no sen.

ous cases Trentham: Total number of cases. 110. Upper Hutt: 10. The total number of cases of all kinds of sickness in the, military hospitals on Wednesday was 282.

FATAL ACwIDBNT. MAN CRUSHED BY DREDGE. DUNEDIN, This ay. Thomas Jamieson, agod 2S, employed by the Harbour oßard,'4Rs crashed bej tween a dredge aad a pile Lust night. His injuries terminated fatally to-day. ' LIEUT.-COL. MALONE KILLED IN ACTION. WELLINGTON, This Day. News has reached Welingtcn that Lieatenant-Golpnel W. C. Malcne, officer commanding the Wellington Battalion of the New Zealand Forces, has been killed in action. At the outbreak of war he was in command cf the Taranaki Rifles, and went with the Main Expeditionary Force. (This Stratford family holds an Unique record. Colonel W. O. Maclne (reported killed) and two sons, Edmund and Terence, are serving with the forces at the Dardanelles"', the Co-.ene? being in command of the Tenth (Wellington) Battalion. One of his

sons (Terence) has been severelywounded. A third son, Maurice, :s leaving with the Sixth Reinforce-

nients > and anther Brian, has alreadyseen service in .Samoa, and has been •accepted for the reinforcements, hoping to get away within the next throe months. A sister. Miss Nora Malcne, is nursing with the Red Cross organisation in England, "or elsewhere " and this'completes the tale of the family, not one representative of which, will be- left m New Zealhnd when Mr. Brian Malone dons khaki again, and: sails for the front. "And if there wore more of us, they'd be in it, too/* Ihe remarked to a pressman to whom j he told the foregoing facts.) i NEW ZEALAND'S OFFER ACCEPTED BY WAR OFFICE TWO NEW BATTLIONS TO BE ': RAISED. TO BE TRAINED UNTIL FEBRUARY NEXT OTHER REINFORCEMENTS MAINTAINED. WELLINGTON, August 11 The Imperial Government has accepted New Zealand's offer of two additional battalions. This rr.orning, the Hon. James Allen (Minister far Defence) received the loLowing telegram, from the Governor, who is at Christchurch: "Army Council gratefully accepts the offer of the Government of New Zealand to send two additional infantry battalions and heartily agree that they should be trained in the Dominion until February."

"Now that cur offer is definitely accepted," said Mr Allen to-day, ''we will provide; at Feather&ton for another thousand men. We had provided originally for 2500, but we will now take 3GOO men there. In the; two camps— Foatherston nad Trentham permanent camps—we shall take 7500 men. The new battalions will go into camp when the Trentham Regiment leave?, v.faich will be about the middle of October. "Will fres.h recruiting - efforts b'} necessary." the Minister was asked. "We shall see," he replied. "The publci may as well know that between now and the 14th bf*December next we shall want to have in camp, in addition to what w e have, now, close on twelve thousand men. We shall require that many actually to pass the* medical test. By June cf next year w e shall want over 22,000 to pass the medical officers, so you see, we have our wrok cut out, and especially as I have given my positive assurance bath to General Birdwood and General Gcdley that New Zealand will keep up its regular reinforcements to the main body and for these separate battalions, the "Trents." and those we have just agreed to send away. All w e want now is steady registration of men without any- undue excitement to supply these added responsibilities, but we do not want me,h who register to leave their work until asked by the Defence authorities to do so. That is the New Zealand policy, and it has proved its value. We ar e making this appeal especially to young unmarried men who have not already registered to get on the register as soon as they can, and" remain at their employment until weask them to com e out. The Eighth are ready to come into camp, and a certain number have registered for the Ninth. I do want to call attention to what General Godley has written to me—that the authorities are not so anxious about additional units as that a regular supply of reinforcements should b* £ kept up. They want to feel that whatever may happen the; main body- shall have all blanks filled."