LOCAL AND GENERAL

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 55, Issue 233, 16 July 1935, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

A Press Association telegram from Wellington states that the General Post Office advises that the London air mail dispatched on June 29 will arrive at New Plymouth on July 1/ by the Port Adelaide-. .

The agenda at the monthly meeting of the Canterbury Land Board comprised 111 eases, which included yj applications to transfer and four applications for land. The following application to. transfer was approvedSection 4, reserve 1109, block XI., VTL, Hinds S.D.-J. F. and E. Moore, as executors estate A. Moore (deceased), to E. Moore.

For over 12 hours from 8 p.m. on a recent Saturday there was not a single admission to the Auckland Hospital, not a single death, and not a- single operation. The staff was almost bewildered by the tranquillity. “Usually there is something happening,” said the medical superintendent (Dr. J. W. Craven) on the Monday, “but Saturday night was something new in my experience.”

The Ashburton Catholic Men’s Club met last evening, the president (Mr V. O’Donogliue) occupying the chair. It was decided to challenge the S?t. Stephen’s Literary and Social Club to take part in a senior and junior debate and ping-pong match on August 6. A mock court was held, and the proceedings proved to. be highly diverting. Supper was served.

•Something of an endurance feat was accomplished by a former noted Morrinsville Hugby football representative player, Mr It. H. Haycock, who is now a member of the Management Committee of the Morrinsville Rugby Subunion and a referee. After refereeing a junior game he found that the United Club, of which he is secretary, was a man short, and although on the wrong side of 40 he donned another jersey and filled a place, in the club’s pack. Both games were played on the same ground, and on an adjoining ground Mr Haycock’s son was playing in a 'third grade match.

An investigation into legal and other professional charges was advocated in a remit which came before the ■executive of the New Zealand Farmers’ Union at a meeting in Wellington yesterday, when several members contended that the fees were too high. It was suggested that charges had not been reduced in the professions in the same way as they had in the trades, and legal fees and dental charges in country districts were specially mentioned! The Dominion president (Mr W. J. Poison, M.P.) said that the remit was a general attack on the professions, and would be regarded as such. The remit was lost.

School children at Kerepeehi, Hauraki Plains, have had presented to them medals commemorating the King’s silver jubilee. Whereas most school committees used the 5d capitation granted by the Government for the commemoration of the occasion in providing sweets or free picture entertainments, the Kerepeeehi Committee had bronze medals made at a cost of Is each, and recently 120 of these were presented by Mr A. M. Samuel, M.P. The medals bear the profile of the King and the inscription, “King’s Jubilee, Kerepeehi School.” When presenting the medals Mr Samuel congratulated the children on their self-sacrifice in agreeing to forgo a free picture entertainment and afternoon tea in order that they could have medals, and he announced that they would have after-' noon tea after the ceremony.

A Press Association telegram from Palmerston North states that the condition of Mr Prank Cowdrey, who was seriously injured in' the Halcombe explosion on Friday, remains unchanged. All the other victims arc progressing satisfactorily.

One of the ambitions cf the Wellington city missioner (the Rev. T. Fielden Taylor), which ‘is to have available a permanent camp site to benefit the health of those within the scope of the mission, has suddenly been realised. A Wellington solicitor, Mr D. R, Hoggard, has given to the mission the use for 21 years cf two acres of land at Kaitoke.

Members of the Ashburton Rugby Union last evening expressed pleasure at the appointment of two Canterbury men as captain and vice-captain, respectively, of the All Black team which is to make a tour of Great Britain this year, and it was decided to send letters to Messrs J. E. Manchester and C. J. Oliver congratulating them on their appointments to the positions.

The motor ship Rangitane, now en route from London to Auckland and Wellington, will, on completion of discharge at the latter port, be laid up for repairs (says a Press Association telegram). The vessel has damaged the armature of one of her 550 kilowatt electric generators, and the damage will be made good at Wellington before she commences homeward loading. She will now spend an extra four weeks in New Zealand.

On the ground that the impounding of cows, on which they were dependent for their milk supply, would deprive up to 30 children of sufficient milk, a number of Porangahau residents requested the Patangata County Council to allow them to graze their cows on the road at an annual, fee. After a discussion it was decided that the permission to graze stock on the roads should be granted the applicants, provided that the stock are attended and not allowed to wander.

Among the many New Zealanders who sent personal greetings to the King on the occasion of his recent silver jubilee, Mr J. Ewan, of South Hillend (says the “Southland Times”), has received a reply from the King’s private secretary, thanking him for his message of congratulation. Mr Ewan was brought up on Balmoral Estate, and during the recent visit of the Duke of Gloucester to Invercargill was given, an audience with his Royal Highness.

“By New Zealanders the ‘Far East’ should be thought of as the ‘Near North,’ ” said Mr E. C. Carter, secre-tary-general of the Institute of Pacific Relations, in an interview last evening. on his arrival in Christchurch. “It has to be remembered that the Asiatic countries, , with their great mass of population, amounting to half the human race, are nearer to New Zealand than they are to London or to New York/ 5 he said. “Think of them in this nearer relationship and New Zealand’s concern with them will become more real.”

A total eclipse of the moon occurred this afternoon, making the fifth eclipse of this year. The full moon will rise in New Zealand, totally eclipsed, at 4.47 o’clock, 17 minutes after the estimated time for the mid-eclipse. The earth’s shadow on the lunar disc will persist till 5.20 o’clock, and will move off the disc at 6.17 o’clock, an hour and a half after the moon rises above the horizon. Penumbral eclipse, which is not likely to be detected by the untrained eye, will continue till 7.13 o’clock. There will be two further eclipses this year, both of the sun.

When the Levels Plains irrigation scheme was begun a fortnight ago, 25 men were selected from the unemployed at Temuka by officers of the Public Works Department. Thirteen married men have been added to this number. At present the work is being concentrated on the construction of the main water channel at Kerrytown and building the necessary camp on the banks of the Opihi River, where buildings are being erected and tools and equipment collected. The weather is settled, and the work is being pushed forward as quickly as possible.

Most people who have been on a dairy farm will have memories of long struggles with a butter churn. They will be interested to learn that, to make the sample which won the first prize in the separator butter class at the Whangarei Winter Show; Mrs 0. M. Courtney, cf Kara, adopted a much less laborious process. She simply put the cream in a flour bag, which was hung up in the shelter of a porch overnight. The next morning the butter was all ready to be worked up to. its proper consistency. The excellence of the butter so produced was proved by the fact that it caught the eye of the judge before other farm products made in the orthodox manner. •

In an address to- a large gathering of the Devonport Orphans’ Club, Auckland, on the importance of correct speech, Professor Maxwell Walker suggested a method by which' the speech of New Zealanders could be developed, and a source of pride to the Dominion and a model for the Empire. The idea was to appoint a professor or lecturer on speech at each of the four university colleges, and to require all 'candidates for the teaching profession to take a course for one or two years. Speech was largely imitative, said the speaker, and it would be through those properlytrained teachers that to-day’s children —the parents of future generations—would surely reveal progressive improvement in the spoken word.

The Star of Ashburton Lodge, U.A.0.D., met last evening the A.D. (Rro. E, M. Chambers) presiding. The Bards reported on visits to sick members, and sick pay was passed. Invitations from the Success of Ashburton Lodge to a card evening next Monday and from the Hakatere Lodge for Wednesday July 24, were accepted. It was decided to invite the Daphne and Hakatere Lodges to a social evening on July 29, and the St. Stephen’s Literary and Social Club to a debate on August 12. Five candidates were proposed, and one was initiated. One maternity claim was passed for payment. Bro. Chambers reported that the Benevolent Committee had made grants to three members. The Secretary (Bro. Furby) reported on the meeting of the United Friendly Societies’ Council and gave details of the proposed hospital agreement which was submitted by the sub-committee appointed to confer with the Hospital Board. Bro. G. A. Campbell was elected Y.A. Bard, and with Bro. I. Marusich, was installed by Bro. A. Garriock, D.P. It was decided that the Lodge meet next Lodge night at 7 p.m. At the close of the Lodge, a 500- flag tournament was held, Bros. Miller, Haw'ke and Stills being the winners.

Work will commence next week on the most thorough cleaning that the Ashburton Domain ponds have ever had. The water has been drained out, and the water-races which feed the ponds diverted, and a sea of mud and dead leaves has been exposed. The Domain Board has set aside a large sum of money for the work t and a great deal of spoil and debris will be removed 1 .

An unusual tender is being called in New Zealand. Efforts are being made in New South Wales to make beaches and estuarine waters safe for bathers and to this end a compfehensive scheme for the building of sharkproof meshes has been undertaken. The tender is for the supply of shark meshing, to be used between Broken Bay and Port Hacking. It must be the first tender of its kind called in the Dominion.

It will not be long before Rapley Street will be one of the most attractive thoroughfares in Ashburton. The residents have, with the aid of the Advance Ashburton Association and the sanction of the Borough Council, placed two lines of trees along the street, and the intervening space is covered with; grass, which the residents keep trimmed. As the trees grow they will form a remarkably attractive avenue. The young trees have been neatly staked for protection, and they will be well cared for.

Working long hours, a gang of about 30 men has wrought big changes at His Majesty’s Theatre, which is being reconstructed for the showing of moving pictures, and which will be known as the St. James Theatre. A suspension verandah has been placed in position, the floor has been raised at the back to give a slope, the dress circle has disappeared, as have also the shops and offices in front of the theatre, and the stage has been cut back till it is only a few feet from the wall. Attention is being given to the eeilin'g, while the new dress circle, which will have a curved front, is beginning to take shape. All but four of the men on the work are local workmen.

It is evident that the first mail for Apia leaving Wellington to-day will be of unusually heavy proportions owing to the interest taken by New Zealanders in the first issue of the Western Samoan pictorial stamps on August 7 (says a telegram from Wellington). The first-day cover envelopes are going forward for post-dating at Apiai on August 7, and the New Zealand Post Office is sending an experienced officer to the territory to supervise the process of affixing stamps and postmarking them in the careful way which pleases collectors. The final mail from New Zealand) to reach Samoa in time for the' first issue leaves Auckland on July 27, and the first outward mail from Apia'following the sale of the new issue will reach New Zealand on September 2.

Court Ashburton, A.0.F., met last evening, the O.R. (Bro. R. M. McC'arrigan) presiding. A motion of sympathy was passed with Bro. J. Wylie in the death of his mother. Eight members were, reported sick, and sick pay amounting to £6 15s was passed for payment. A challenge from the St. Stephen’s Literary and Social Club to a. debate on July 31 was accepted, Bro. R. W. Crowther and the secretary (Bro. W. H. Amos) being deputed to make arrangements. Invitations to their annual balls were received from Court Papanui and Court Victoria (Kaiapoi). Bros. Crowther and J. H. Ward reported on the meeting of the United Friendly Societies’ Association. It was decided to hold a progressive card match on August 5, Bros. G. D. H. Hefford and J. Meaclem being thanked for their offers of prizes. The C.R. reported on members’ recent visit to 'Court Star of Dunsandel, and those who provided transport were thanked. One new member was proposed. At the conclusion a card match was played with the Loyal Ashburton Lodge, M.U.1.Q.0.F., the Foresters winning by one point.