A letter was read from Mr A. Rendall asking for the establishment of a school at Pikowai, Rotorua County. Mr G. W. Dunlop, advisory inspector, reported that there were 13 children over school age and nine under, with no means of being educated. A new block of 7000 acres had been surveyed and was to be thrown open for soldier settlement. Some of the families were nine miles from any school. There was an education reserve of eight acres. He could not say much about it as it was dense bush. Mr J. Farrell, architect, said it would cost 275 to put up a structure of dressed timber, but as there was plenty of bush a building might be put up of rough-dressed wood for about 80, and the settlers could be paid to do the work. This was agreed to.
Conscientious objection petition
A petition was presented to Parliament to-day signed by 14 electors setting forth:-(1) That a commission has been appointed to review the cases of objectors who are in prison for breaches of the Military Service Act, and that it is proposed to give favoured treatment to those who, because of religious convictions, failed to comply with the law, while the other equally honest and conscientious objectors are to bear the full penalty of their offence; (2) that there should be such unfair discrimination and that men who are guilty of the same offence should be treated differently because of their views on religious questions seems to your petitioners a grave reflection on the tolerant spirit of the age and the administration of justice; (3) your petitioners enter their emphatic protest against such inequitable discrimination, and respectfully pray that if any relief is to be given to objectors under the Military Services Act it ought to be given, not on the variable ground of religious belief, but on the common ground of the honesty and real conviction of the objector. The signatories were people resident mostly in Christchurch and on the west coast of the South Island.
Unchanged vineyard acreage
"There has been no alteration in the area under vineyards, which stands at 454 acres,'' says the annual report of the Agricultural Department. "The acting vine and wine instructor reports that, owing to unseasonable weather experienced, the vintage in all parts of the dominion was quite a month late. Although the grape crop was lighter, the fruit was in fine condition owing to the favourable autumn experienced, and should result in a good sample of wine being made. It is estimated the yield of wine will be 48,000 gallons, about one-fifth less than that of 1918. At a conservative estimate of 4s per gallon, this represents a value of £9600. The number of glasshouses in the dominion is 850. The inclement weather experienced during the growing season has also affected the grape crop under glass, which is estimated at 457,405lb - a considerable decrease as compared with the previous year. This crop, based on 1s 3d per pound, represents a value of £28,588.''
- ODT, 22.10.1919.
