LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 56, Issue 69, 3 January 1936, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Ashburton County rivers are reported to be in good order for weekend fishing.

Shops in Ashburton re-opened to-day after the New Year holidays. There will be no late shopping night tonight, hut the usual half-holiday will be observed to-morrow. A number ot offices have also re-opened, and most will be open at the beginning of next week.

With the aid of a towel, a bather at Devonport recently succeeded in driving ashore and capturing a small flying fish. The fish broke the water inshore from the bather, and, in seeking to escape, “Hew” on to the beach. Lhe presence in the inner harbour ot this inhabitant of the open waters or tlie gulf is reported to be most unusual.

About 70 members of the Ashburton Church of Christ and their friends travelled to McLennan’s Bush m bus and cars for a picnic yesterday. _ An enjoyable time was spent, games being played. The party stopped at the Methven Domain for tea on the return journey. Mr E. Seott was the organiser.

Fishing in Lake Alexandria on Wednesday evening, Mr F. Lewis of Timaru was a very surprised man when he caught a strange looking fish of about four pounds in weight which appeared to be a new and totally unfamiliar specie of trout. The nose was snubbed and the bottom jaw protruded nearly 2 inches. The body of the fish, however, was identical with that of any trout and the phenomenon may be only a peculiar deformity.

“After living in Australia, most of us were astonished to find that a Government department could function smoothly and efficiently as the New Zealand Government Tourist Department.” said a tourist on the Strathaird shortly before the vessel’s departure from Auckland for Wellington and Sydney recently. “Those of us who made the Rotorua trip were delighted with the arrangements made for us by your tourist officials.” he continued. “As the trip is really an excursion one, we were not expecting anything wonderful in the way of motor cars, but we were supplied with magnificent machines.”

The date nalrn, perhaps the most common and beautiful palm to be seen growing in Napier, is, at the present time, proving to bo a very interesting subject of study for at least one Napier resident, who is the proud possessor of a magnificent specimen of the Phoenix dactyliferia or fruit-bearing species, states the Napier “Telegraph.” This palm has a straight stem reaching to a height of approximately 2oft, and bears a head of 40 to 80 dark green pinnated fronds from Bft to 10ft long, and a number of branching spadices, each of which is bearing about 100 fully-grown dates. The palm is about 40 years old, and previously has not borne any fruit of size or maturity. This year for the first time, however, there is a great quantity of sweet and tasty dates hanging from the numerous spadices which branch from all quarters of the head of the palm. The dates are somewhat small, perhaps, in comparison with the Turkish and Indian dates which are so familiar to all, but nevertheless they have a true date flavour and are very palatable.

A cable message from, Sydney an? nuances that twenty-one i\ew South Wales bowlers sailed yesterday by the Aorangi for a tour of the Dominion.

The condition of Mr A. Sim and of Mr R. tineas, who were admitted to the Ashburton Public Hospital a week ago suffering from dangerous injuries as a result of a motor collision at Windermere, is reported to be still improving.

One of the glories of the Christmas season of the year was in evidence in the cool of a recent evening in the valleys just out of Wanganui—thousands of bellbirds and tuis paying homage to the close of the day with their glorious notes. Bellbirds en masse caused Captain Cook to marvel. Those same birds cause New Zealand to marvel still.

The reaping of the cocksfoot crop on Banks Peninsula has not yet commenced, all the paddocks being not nearly as mature as at the same time last year. The crops all promise to be fairly heavy, but the wet spring and early summer have prevented the seed from ripening as quickly as usual. A Peninsula farmer said yesterday that if the fine weather continued the reaping would be commenced in the earlier parts in about a week.

Six dairy companies in the Stratford district recently paid out the sum of £50,296 to suppliers, this being the first occasion in four years that the monthly sum has exceeded £50,000. The total paid in October was £35,203, and in November £-14,904. The payment for December last year was only a little more than £40,000, so that this year about £IO,OOO more was released just before Christmas than was the case last year. The six factories are at Stratford;, Midhirst, Cardiff, Pembroke, Lowgarth, and Ngaere.

The annual excursion of the Ashburton Salvation Army Sunday School held yesterday, was the first picnic of the new year in the Temuka Domain. The 1.5C 1 excursionists made the joureny by train, arriving early, and spent a pleasant day enjoying the facilities at their disposal. The oval was the scene of sports and organised games throughout the day, and the swimming baths were continuously patronised. The arrangements for the excursion were directed by Major H. W. Hayward, the Young People’s secretary, and the Corps Officer, Captain N. E. Bicknell.

At a recent meeting of the Southland Provincial Executive of the New Zealand Farmers’ Union thechairman (Mr G. Hamilton) said he had heard several complaints recantly regarding false and careless packing of wool. He suggested that the executive should officially advise the woolbuyers that it was absolutely opposed to the practice and would co-operate with them in any effort they might make to introduce a system to overcome it. “False packing casts a slur over all Southland farmers,” he added. Mr 11. Sim asked what really was the test of wet wool. Opinions, he said, seemed to differ on that question. No action was taken in the matter.

One Invercargill resident nearly lost his Christmas goose. He was promised a goose fcr Christmas dinner, but before it was delivered he changed his residence. On the street one day he was informed by the donor that the goose had been left hanging in ail outhouse of his former residence, nobody being at home. Without delay he proceeded to his old address, to meet a housewife who had not questioned her good fortune, but had already plucked and cleaned the bird. She met the reverse blow of fortune with good humour, and the owner of the goose was relieved of his anxiety and the man’s part of preparing the bird for the table.

A movement is on foot in both New Zealand and Australia (the “Dominion” says) to make the Tasman air service a memorial to Sir Charles Kingsford Smith. For several months prior to his last flight, Bir Charles Kingsford Smith had been working towards the establishment of such a service with flying boats, and for that purpose a company known as Trans-Tasman Air Development, Ltd., was formed, with headquarters at Sydney. Lady Kingsford Smith has taken Sir Charles s seat on the directorate, although, for the present, Mr L. J. Thompson, a public accountant, actually attends the Board meetings. A number of Sir Charles’s friends in both the Commonwealth and the Dominion are supporting the venture. All regard it as a business, to be run efficiently and profitably, and point out that it would benefit both Australia and New Zealand, but more than this, they think that the finest and most fitting memorial that the world s gieatest aiiman could have would bo an air service for all time over the route which he had pioneered and upon the lines he had planned.

The devotion which Maori women show towards their children is well known to New Zealand people, but the action of one particular mother m the Ohautira settlement, on Raglan Harbour, is worthy of special mention. Unable to purchase warm clothing tor her children, she set herself the task of learning to spin wool, from which she would lie able to knit the required garments. At the nearest women s institute at To Uku, about seven miles distant, there was a spinning wheel. Notwithstanding the fact that the road was in a very bad state, she rocle backwards and forwards to the institute on horseback until she was proficient with the wheel. After saving carefully tor some time, she purchased her own spinning wheel, and has now taught her children and other Maoris in the settlement how to use it. She has provided warm clothing for her children, and by means of the spinning wheel other Maori women have followed her example.

A first ascent of Mount Jcllio (7232 feet) was made by two members of the Ashburton Mountaineering Club on New Year’s Day, under excellent conditions. Five members of the Club left Ashburton at 4.30 on New Years morning, arriving at Erowhon at 7.30. Journeying up the Clyde River to the cld Mcßae homestead, they arrived at 10.30 a.m. After refreshment, _ four set out to climb Mount Jollie, immediately above the hut. The going was very rough and the rock climbing-some of the worst they had yet .encountered. Reaching an altitude of 6,000 ft by about 3.30 p.m. the climbing became more difficult still, and two of the party decided to stop, while the remaining two, Messrs C'. Denham and J. Rattle continued with the ascent, which involved some very strenuous rock climbing until the summit was reached at 6 p.m. The view comprised most of the Alps from the Cook region to the Waimakariri. Leaving a record

outlie peak the descent was commenced, and picking up the two other members, the party arrived back at the hut at 10.30 p.m. The return journey to Erowhon was made by easy stages.

Starlings in flocks of hundreds have recently made their appearance in the Pohangina Valley, where they may be seen traversing the fields in search of grubs and caterpillars. Where dead patches of grass show' the presence ol the grass grub they have restoredL£he pasture as effectively as a cultivated parasite. # .

The largest ccuger eel ever caught in the Oamitru Harbour was landed, the other day after an exciting struggle. The eel weighed more than 401 b, JS-Oa-sured more than sft 10in long, and was 24 inches in girth. It was taken near the Normandy wharf. Eels are seldom found in these waters, but when caught they make a determined fight.

The second instalment of the Christmas and Mew Year bonus to relief workers w r as paid in the Ashburton County to-day. The sum of £783 10s 6d was paid to 275 men on the No. 5 scheme and I<6 men on sustenance, ot which £7Ol Is 6d was paid from the Ashburton Post Office. This represents the balance of £2403 6s 6d, equal to one and a half week’s allocation. Relief work will re-commence on Monday, after a holiday of two weeks on pay.

There was an unusual occurrence in connection with a professional heavyweight boxing contest at Whakatane the other evening between Val Luttrell, of Hamilton, and Sid Wells, of Whakatane. After the decision of the amateur preliminaries the electric power failed, and the hall was in darkness for an hour. The spectators took the position in great spirit, and joined m community singing. The different temperaments of the two professionals was demonstrated during the hour of darkness. Luttrell immediately tell asleep, while Wells, completely unnerved, sat wide awake in his coiner and occasionally walked about uneasily. The contest lasted a little more than three minutes, Wells being knocked out early in the second round.

Mentioning that the hay crops on Hauraki Plains were particularly heavy this year, an early settler has expressed the view that there will be a greater number than usual of cases of stacks of hay being burnt this summer due to spontaneous combustion. The winter had been a very wet one, and though an early part of the month had. been hot and had hastened the growth of grass, it liad not dried out the ground particularly where the liay crop had been thick. The hay had cured, quickly, but in the curing it had attracted moisture from the soil. Experience in a similar season many years ago had taught old farmers to turn tlieir hay frequently before stacking to minimise the risk of spontaneous combustion.

In the north of Italy the troops were preparing to leave from Bologna for Abyssinia, when Mr and Mrs C. N. Taylor, of Wellington, who recently returned to New Zealand, were visiting the country. Many of them were not Italian but Austrian by birth. Naturally unwilling to fight for Italy, they went to war reluctantly. Notable among them was the proportion of mere slight and small without the bulk of manhood. An atmosphere ot unspeakable sorrow hung over the city. One morning sleepers were roused by the sound of thousands of feet marching over the cobblestone streets. In utter silence the people watched the soldiers go. A thin cheer went up as the officers rode past, and according to a picturesqug custom flowers were thrown at the men and a posy handed to them; but there was no exultation.