The certificates were transferred to the head office in Wellington, which now holds them, to the value of about three-quarters of a million. As the interest on these certificates is cumulative, there was no need for the owners to have access to them, and the Post Office held them only on condition that they could not be withdrawn and redeposited. It has been found, however, that there is a demand for a safe deposit system under which holders of war bonds, title deeds, and securities may have access to their documents. Such a system could not be centralised, and would involve some expense, both in the provision of storage and in dealing with requests for access. The Post Office has decided to inaugurate such a scheme, and will bring it into operation in 40 centres as soon as the special safes, which are now on order, arrive from England. Separate receptacles for each person’s property will not be provided, as in the Public Trust deposit system, and articles of plate, jewellery, etc., will not be accepted. Documents only will be received, and these will be placed in envelopes sealed by the depositor. Charges of 5s, 10s, and £1 will be made, according to the size of the package, and depositors will be given access to their envelopes four times a year.
Adela Pankhurst gaoled
Sydney: Adela Pankhurst, the heroine of a hundred riots, is again in trouble. She led a riotous crowd in Melbourne the other day, came into collision with the police, was committed to gaol, and is now out on bail, pending an appeal. This particular Pankhurst has been a nuisance to Australia practically since the outbreak of war. When the real nature of the war became apparent to all intelligent people, Adela’s mother and sister forgot that they were suffragists, and became simply women of England — patriotic, enduring, self-sacrificing. They abandoned their cry for the vote, and cried for work to do. As a result, they got both work and the vote. But the more stupid and irreconcilable Adela — who, one may recall, has been formally disowned by her mother and sister — has devoted all her energy to embarrassing her countrymen in time of war. She is against military service, she is against the Hughes Government — against everything, apparently, except the ambition of Germany to dominate the world. The greatest curse of the submarines, perhaps, is that they have made it impossible to ship Adela back to Europe. The ‘‘Women’s Peace Army’’ — which, like Miss Pankhurst, is against everything — met at the Treasury Gardens and listened to Miss Pankhurst and others denounce the Government, the profiteers, and high price of food. Then they started off in a mob for the Federal Parliament House — Miss Pankhurst and others leading, and a disorderly rabble of women and several men following and singing revolutionary songs.
They marched through the city, and then came back to the House, and tried to climb the steps. They were sharply ordered off by the police. A scuffle ensued, followed by disorder, and the police seized Miss Pankhurst, who was very prominent. Several of her friends, urged by the crowd to resist her arrest, clung to their idol, fought frantically and assailed the police. Ultimately, the police, minus a helmet or two, got their prisoner out of the crowd, and marched her off. — ODT, 17.9.1917.
• COPIES OF PICTURE AVAILABLE FROM ODT FRONT OFFICE, LOWER STUART ST, OR WWW.OTAGOIMAGES.CO.NZ
