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Te Aroha News, Volume XXVII, Issue 43113, 4 July 1907, Page 4

An English firm won the contract for 50 locomotives for New South Wales against, American, and Continental tenderers. Mr Wm. Gibson, who acted as temporary assistant at Thames School of Mines for a short- period, has been appointed assistant, lecturer to the Ka-rangahake arid Waikino Schools of Mines. The gamble in land still continues, says the Rawhitiroa; correspondent of the Eltham Argus. For instance, one settler, not in Rawhitiroa,, secured a leasehold property at 20s per acre. Another landowner has leased a farm of a ,'few hundred acres at such a price that the incoming tenant will have to earn something like £450 in the season before ho can start, to save for himself, and it is extremely doubtful whether the land could yield that what ever methods were used. The discovery some months ago of the existence in Dunedin of a. picture which in the opinion of Mr A. A. Longden (Bintish Fine Arts representative), is the work of Antonio Watteau has attrapted attention in England A copy of Lloyd’s Weekly just to hand has a short article headed “Picture Romance,” detailing the unearthing of Mrs S. G. Smith’s now celebrated picture and its history. The picture was painted in Paris in- 1711. The owner now has a cablegram from Mr Pierpont Morgan, of New York, asking her to- send full particulars and state the bedrock price of the Watteau. The answer is to the effect that it will not be sold for less than £SOOO.

The agitation for a legal eight-hour day for minors, which has been stimulated through the recent defeat of the Belgian Ministry on a kindred question {says -the Westminster Gazette) is having notable results. A. series of votes has been taken among the miners in the different districts, and the results are summarised as follows:

Total number of men entitled to vote, 137,455 ; voters, 81,955 ; abstained, 55,000. For the le-sral eight-hour day, 80,763; against, 1192. Even if we regard the abstentions as indicating dissent—for which there is a recent precedent in a great French strike—the majority is substantial. Moreover, the union leaders, have decided that in November, if necessary, the chambers Shall be encouraged to legislate on the question by the proolarmir tkn. of a general strike. j