Local and General.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXXIII, 27 November 1912, Page 4

Local and General.

The grand annual concert under the auspices of the Poverty Bay Scottish Society is to take place on Friday evening next, not Saturday evening as was inadvertently stated in yesterday’s issue

'Hie AA'ellington-Brindisi despatch on 18th October, arrived in London 22nd inst. * -

“Load the unflooded peoino and they will cut out,” was Mr. H. G. 'flicker’s warning to the River Board yesterday. “Treat them well,” he added, “and they will not mind paying n small rate.”

The valuation of the present rating area of the Poverty Bay River Board is £BOO,OOO. Rating on this at |d in th £ would bring in £BOO approximately. • Entries for the children’s song competition, to be held at the Opera House on Saturday afternoon next, close with the manager to-day. There will be separate judging for boys and girls, and competitors may choose their own songs.

A copy of “The Belfast Weekly Telegraph” just to hand chronicles the departure for New Zealand of Mr John Wright, “a distinguished teacher, whose friends in New Zealand have sent alluring, reports of the prospects for. teachers there.” Cr. Webb drew attention to the dangerous state of tlie roadway near McLaughlin’s crossing. They were right on the tram line, and should be attended .to. The Engineer was instructed to confer with the County Engineer regarding the matter. At a meeting of the Committee of the A. and P. Association yesterday afternoon it was decided to forward a list of names of all the people competent to act as judges for the purpose of having them inserted in the book of judges prepared by the New Zealand Agricultural Conference. It is expected that the Sedgwick hoys in New Zealand will this year remit £l*2o as Christmas .presents to parents and friends in England. The money will be sent through the Labor Department. The boys are each remitting between £2 and t’i this year as against an average of £1 last year. Of the original party tr pi boys, there are now about 43 remaining as wards of the Labor Department. Of the remainder some have reached 21 years, and so passed from the. department’s control, whilst a few have absconded.

Robert Berwick, who pleaded guilty yesterday to a charge of drunkenness while in charge of a horse and cart and strenuously opposed Sergt. Hutton s application for a prohibition order, was said to be a man of drunken habits, whose promises to keep straight were never worth much. Berwick, however, was emphatic in his belief that he was able to leave liquor alone if given another trial. The Bench (Messrs J. Sheridan and W. Akroyd,' J.’sP.) preferred the opinion of the police and stated that personal knowledge showed that accused had improved when under prohibition. In accused’s' own interests he would be prohibited. On the other charge, he would‘be fined'£l and expenses (ss) or 24 hours’ imprisonment. John Rockford was fined ISs and cc-sis (25.) or 48 hours’.

The Poverty Bay River Board, as was made apparent at yesterday’s meeting, is confronted with many difficulties, which it will take .some time to overcome. Mr. Kirkpatrick made reference to a big stretch of affected country on the far side of the ’Aiai Valley which was not included in the Board’s area as at present defined, and mentioned the necessity for the re-defining of the areas. An inspection of the "River Boards Act” showed that- an alteration in the area could only be brought about by ratepayers’ petition, and the members present agreed that a petition would be forthcoming with perhaps only too little trouble. Then came a further point, that if there was a “material change” in tieareas. a new Beard must 1 - - levied, which was easily explains;>!». because preseat member.-; might he led on to represent ratepayers who had not had an opportunity of voting, and also ratepayers then in other areas. Another point on which a legal opinion is being obtained is regarding the Board’s powers as to authorising occupiers or owners of properties to clear their frontages of willows. These matters should provide food for discussion at the meeting to be held a fortnight lienee. Mr. George 'Witters, chairman, remarked that he intended to “read, mark, and inwardly digest’’ the contents of the Act, so that, with the addition of the legal opinion to be got, the way should he a little clearer soon.

j Amid all that has been said anti I written about the Dunstan goldfields, there has been practically nothing to answer the interesting question as to what became of Hartley and Riley, the discoverers (says the /‘Otago Daily Times.”) Before their find was made public they had brought down about £'looo worth of gold to Dunedin, and in reward for making known the source from which- they had won this gold they received another £2OOO from the Provincial Government of Otago. AY hat did they do with their wealth? It is not easy to speak with detailed exactness after this lapse of time, but, at any rate, strange as it may seem, it is certain that neither of them went back to the scene of their success for any length of time. - Hartiev took up land in Canterbury, and seems subse-’ quently, like so many of tlie old miners. to have disappeared from view. Riley became possessed of the idea that the Clutha River could be made navigable up to Clyde, and was so confident of success that he interviewed the Provincial Government and undertook to take a boat up himself. The Government arranged to let him make the attempt, and he brought the boat up as tar as the falls below the Beaumont without much difficulty, but there his troubles began. Certainly, he brought the boat up to Clyde, but it bad to be carried for no inconsiderable portion of the journey. Shortly afterwards Riley crossed over to Australia, and there, some years later, he died a poor man. Reference to the navigation of the Clutha recalls the fact that there was a time in the very early days when provisions were taken 10 or 12 miles down the river from Alexander, the return journey being made by sail, as there was always a breeze up-stream that could be counted upon at nightfall.

An unfortunate atTaie; which has a happy ending.—Owing to the mistake of a London buyer sending out too large a shipment of ladies’ hats, a large warehouse lias had to sell their whole stock to Melbourne Cash at a loss of 60 p.c. . A big clearance is commencing to-day. Ladies’ ready-to-wear-bats' and straws from Is 6<l cash. Every lady ought to see them./ The trenvenjiWus excitement caused bv the anlvjJLpf the Great AA’hite Fleet in Alow Zealand waters some * , three yeniJi still fresh in the 1J mind of of or rone. n almost similar jM stir is being in Gisborne thK,* 1 week by M. Gfeat AYhiic Sajdf Snell a shjatf^pf,Jadiejf undenvoaq/clelightjj&Jiy n'jtmjamjf trimmed/ with indescriibaUW cha|ftmng)p\/j stylish, and tbfe pti-ttir sparkles of MwffSss rraw style?so muon admired womankind, lias never before been seen in.

When entering the channel of the Port of. Napier on Monday afternoon the Union S. S. Co’s Kararnu got slightly out of her course and ran aground, blocking the fairway. She was floated off at high tide, being undamaged. The foundation stone of the St. John's Ambulance Association’s new station at Auckland was laid yesterday by Lady Islington. Among the speakers were the Governor and the Premier. The contract price of the new building is £3347, and the cost of equipping it, including the motor ambulance, will bring the amount up to £4500. P.A.

The Invercargill Borough Council have retained Mr. A. C. Hanlon, of Dunedin, _ as counsel in tjio case in which £5,000 is claimed against the corporation in connection with the recent tramway fatality (states the “Southland Times”). An application is to be made to the Judge to order a change of venue to Dunedin. A branch of t-lic Political Deform League was formed at Wanganui on Friday. A correspondent of the “Dominion,” in announcing the event, states that the prospects of the party in Wanganui-are good. The Government was congratulated on the workdone in the session, and Mr Allen’s visit Home was considered a right step in the best interests of the Dominion.

A rather remarkable ease of endurance on the part of a newly-born calf (says the l’a tea “Press”) is reported locally. It appears that shortly after being born the calf was missed, and it was assumed that it had fallen into the river. It’s mother, strange to say, shared another cow’s calf. A few days ago, some nine days after the calf was missed, it was found by a surfaceman in some long grass by the railway line, alive and well, though it had not seen milk during the time. The captain of the whaling gunboat Campbell, attached to the fleet which has been operating from Jervis Bay, "New South Wales, during the .past two months, informed a Sydney interviewer last week that up to date the fleet had captured 130 whales, an average of over two per day. Of this number the Campbell accounted, for 55, the Sorrel- for 47, and the' Lionel for 28. The whaler Zealander has been taken over to New South Wales to join in the hunt. A Masterton resident; Air. W. L. Falconer, has applied for provisional protection under the Patents Acts for an improved life raft. The inventor claims that his idea will effect a great advance on life-saving appliances at present in use at sea in times of wreck. The specifications provide for a combination of tubular compartments and buoys, having accommodation for a large number of persons, arid with propelling appliances capable of developing a fairly high rate of speed.

The Borough Council last evening approved of the committee’s recommendation to appoint the Mayor and Crs Bright and Hepburn to confer with the committees appointed by the Harbor Board and Cook County Council for the purpose of considering the several proposals re the inner harbor as made by the Harbor Board’s engineer. The committee were instructed to conserve the interests of the Borough, and oppose any of those proposals which in their opinion would he detrimental to the host interests of the Borough.

At the Supreme Court at Invercargill to-day Josephine Kenner ley, who was charged with assaulting a young man named Potts by stabbing him with a hat pin, was found guilty with a strong recommendation to mercy. Hi* Honor imposed a fine of £5 and allowed the woman two months’ in which to pay the amount. Frank Hughes was found not guilty of four charges of breaking and entering, the jury expressing the opinion that there was not sufficient evidence to convict. —P.A.

Ts a farm drav.a. coach ? The question arose at the sitting of the Arbitration Court on Monday (says tin? “Press”), .when the Canterbury Coachbuilders’ dispute was under consideration, and a local firm applied for exemption on the grounds that it “neither made nor repaired anything which could by any stretch of imagination c-ould be called a coach.'’ The firm manufactured farm drays, hut it contended that a dray was not a. coach, and therefore it "considered that it should he exempted. The Court promised to consider the point.

“There has been an enormous amount passed for pipes to-night,” remarked Or. Webb at the meeting of the Borough Council last evening, “and I would like a report giving the number of those that are in hand. The amount of £I7OO is tremendous, and I would not like to see pines laving in hand for two years.” The Mayor explained that he had been wrong in reading this out for pipes, as only £356 was set down for this particular item. The sum of £691 had to be paid for gull.v traps, and an amount had to he paid to Eobb Bros’. He thanked Cr. Webb for bringing up-the matter, as it gave him an opportunity to explain the payment and enable councillors to have a clear statement of the payment

The forecast of the Borough works for the fortnight ending Pecember 7, 1912. is as follows:—St root works : Ordinary maintenance —metalling and tarring.' Gladstone Bond ; road formation. Aberdeen Road, Norman Street, Fox'Street. Harris Street; kerbing and channelling, Gladstone Road, Harris- Street, Fox .Street; shingling, Harris Street; footpath formation, Gladstone Road, Roebuck Road, Harris Street, Awapuni Road; tarring, Gladstone Road : sewerage, Dominion Road. E'cctricity: Poles are to he erected in the following streets: Cook Street, Wellington Street, Aberdeen Road, Stanley Road, Russell Street; erection of street lamps ; general line work; electrical installation of the Grev Street pumping station. Cr Smith wanted to know if there was any guarantee that the works mentioned would he carried out. The Engineer replied that they would he done, as far as possible.

If it wore possible to buv drapery in New Zealand at London prices, it •would make a very big difference to the fair sex. This week C. Rosie and Co. are advertising Ready-to-wear Robes at London prices. Their London buyer has picked up a fine lot of the latest styles and colors in these goods at about half the original price.*

The Acting Building Inspector reported to the Council last evening that for the fortnight ended November 23, the building progress was as follows-Three dwell ings value £1991, One addition to dwelling £230, one motor garage value £2OOO, sundry jobs £27 total £4318. The permit fees totalled £l7 2s.

“The End of Robespierre,” a drama which is claimed to be the most realistic picture of the bloody “Reign of Terror” during the French Revolution, is the star attraction in the new programme which Bathe Pictures will introduce at His Majesty’s Theatre to-night The manner in which the whistle is used on tho Gentle Annie tramway engines was brought under the notice of the Council by Cr. Wade last evening. He explained that the whistle was sounded unnecessarily when approaching vehicles, and horses in consequence became frightened and shied. One man was forced into a. ditch twice through this practice. The Mayor said that people should complain to the Council if there was unnecessary whistling. The Engineer, however, would attend to the matter.

The new general post office at Wellington was opened yesterday by the Hon. W. Fraser, in the absence of the Postmaster-General (Hon. R. H Rhodes), through indisposition. The Minister remarked on the enormous expansion of local postal business. In 1840 the revenue was only £52; in 1888 it was £282,000 ; and last year it amounted to £1,087,000. He paid a tribute to the men who had built up the Department, mentioning the Hon. W. B. D. Mantel], John F. Hoggard, W. Gray, and Sir Julius Vogel. The contract for the present building was let for £93,000, and the total cost, including the- land, was £173,000. Tho new building is one of the -best equipped for its purpose in the Southern Hemisphere. ' The mailroom measures 116 ft. by 50ft., and for transaction of parcels work nearly 11,000 square feet of floor space is provided in ■ the basement.—P.A. message.