AUSTRALIAN NEWS.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXI, Issue 9129, 30 June 1908, Page 5

AUSTRALIAN NEWS.

CABLE NEWS. United Press Association—By Electric Telegraph Copyright.

AN AMENDED ESTIMATE. Received June 29, 10.20 a.m. MELBOURNE, June 29. Sir Thomas Bent has reduced the estimate of his surplus to half-a-mil-lion pounds. COMMONWEALTH AND STATES. MONEY FOR PENSIONS. Received June 2y, 10.28 a.m. SYDNEY, June 29. Mr Wade, State Premier, has invited the other States to re-submit the offer to the Commonwealth as to finding money for pensions, and urges Mr Deakin, Federal Prime Minister, to withhold all appropriation under the Surplus Revenue Bill. A MURDERER EXECUTED. Received June 29, 9.41 p.m. MELBOURNE, June 29. Deutschmann was executed at Ballarat, to-day, for murdering his wife. Death was instantaneous. PLAGUE. Received June 29, 9.41 p.m. .SYDNEY, June 29. A child has been attacked with plague at Alexandria. PAINTERS' DISPUTE. Received June 29, 9.41 p.m. SYDNEY, June 29. The painter's strike having in the meantime been declared off, the Arbitration Court, tu-day, granted the application of the Pointers' Union to have the award in their dispute with the Master Builders' Association made a common rule. Under the award unionists and non-unionists are placed on the same footing. The wages of skilled workmen have been raised from 14d to 15d per hour, and unskilled from 10£ d to Is. The award also provides that slow or aged workers may be employed at rates mutually arranged. FACTORIES IN VICTORIA. AN INCREASE. Received June 29, 10.35 a.m. MELBOURNE, June 29. A Ftatistical report shows that since 1905 till the end of last year the factories in Victoria increased by 266, the hands employed by 10,668, and the output by five million pounds.