LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 56, Issue 79, 15 January 1936, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The Ashburton Silver Band's concert in the Domain, which was to have been given this evening, has been postponed on account of~the inclement weather.

The white butterfly has made its reappearance in the Methven district. One being caught yeterday by a Cairnbrae resident.

A Press Association telegram from Dunedin states that local business men express themselves strongly in favour of the proposal by the Canterbury Chamber of Commerce that mails should be carried by the Union Airways on its trunk service.

The ponds in the Domain have been popular recently among hoys, who angle for perch and other small fish. The cold, wet conditions this morning did not deter one boy from his fishing, and he was seen early in the morning standing patiently by the pond with his line in the water.

A Press Association telegram from Wellington states that for the year ended May, 1935, the number of meter licenses issued by the- City Council was 13,360. The number issued since June 1 to January 11 of this year was 14,678, so with four months and a half still to go the increase in the number of drivers' licenses for the year promises to be considerable. The City Council already has collected £3669 by the issue of drivers' licenses in the current year.

The fact that an eel can devour as many as three ducklings and four sparrows' was proved one night recently when a large specimen was caught in a cieek near Blenheim. A nearby householder had missed a number of ducklings recently, and on one occasion when a member of his family saAv an eel cruising in the vicinity of the young birds it refused to be driven away. Eventually the eel Avas "speared" with a pitchfork, and a post-mortem examination revealed the extent of bis diet.

Car parking at an angle is the rule in Ashhnrton, but there are some motorists who persist in breaking the rule. The parking areas have lately been added to, and these will all be marked off in "stalls" by means of white lines to ensure cars being placed as they should. The Borough authorities are taking pains to see that motorists know the requirements, and then the campaign against offenders will be stiffened.

A Timaru Press Association telegram states that the Mount Cook Company, Timaru, has received cable advice that Mr Barry Caulfield, one of the four leading exponents of ski-ing in Switzerland, will come to the Hermitage for the 1936 winter sports season.

A few years ago hluegum trees in the Wanganui district were affected by a disease which killed many of them and stunted the growth of others. In the Marton-Bulls district some disease is now attacking pinus radiata and pinus itisignis trees. To the passer-by it appears as if the trees have been affected by fire, but such is not the case. It is though possible that the disease may be spread by birds and insects, and unless steps are taken for its control it may prove to be serious to the country, especially if it obtains a hold on commercial plantations.

An endeavour was made to have the large four-engined passenger aeroplane which, inaugurated the Dunedin-Pal-merston North-Dunedin air service to-day land at Ashburton, hut the company" controlling the service could not grant the request. Efforts were directed to-day to have the 'plane fly over Ashburton after leaving Christehurch, on the last lap of its journey, between 4.30 o'clock and 5 o'clock this afternoon, hut up to the time of the "Guardian" going to press no word of the success of this endeavour had been received.

Poor visibility prevented Mr "W. M. O'Hara, who recently flew the Tasman Sea solo, from reaching Ashburton today. He had a luncheon appointment with a friend in Ashburton, and left Christehurch shortly after noon with two passengers in his Klemm monoplane. He reached as far as Rakaia, where he encountered a heavy bank of misty rain, and turned toward the coast in an endeavour to get through. Bad weather was met all the way, and he turned back and landed at Wigram Aerodrome. He Avas to leave Christchurch later for Timaru, flying via Ashburton.

The painting of the Ashburton railway station, a work which is long overdue, is expected to take place within a month, when railway painters who are working down the line are expected to arrive. Railway huildings are usually painted every eight years, hut the Ashburton station has waited longer, owing to economy measures in the last few years. The station has a very dirty appearance, while paint is peeling off the inside of the platform roof, and the outside is rusty. When painting commences, the station, stationmaster's house and all outbuildings will be renovated. The yards at Ashburton were cleaned up recently, and present syiidy appearance.

The marking off of the sides of the streets in the business area in Ashburton has been of great assistance in the control of traffic in the last month, and while most motorists are observing the regulations there are still some offenders. At brief intervals leaflets setting out the essence of the by-laws and giving a list of parking places are being placed in motor-cars parked in the streets, and the numbers of these cars are taken so that duplication in the distribution of the leaflets is eliminated, and if the drivers of these cars are detected m breaches of the regulations they will not have the excuse of ignorance to offer to the authorities.

A complete unit of the new electromatic vehicle-actuated traffic control apparatus, the first of its kind to be imported into New Zealand, will arrive at Wellington early next month for installation by the City Corporation on the crossing at the entrance to Queen's Wharf. The device is said to he superior to the ordinary timecontrolled coloured electric signal lights. The lights are retained, but instead of being timed automatically they are operated by the traffic itself. This is managed by vehicular pressure on a rubber-shod steel plate about eight inches wide, which is placed in a hermetically-sealed trench in, the surface of the street. The slightest pressure on the plate registers a contact, and the length of the contact is noted by a delicate electric recorder, which automatically operates the lights controlling the traffic.

At the monthly meeting of the Ellesmere County Council yesterday a letter was received from the Highways Board regarding the proposed new traffic bridge over the iiakaia River, stating that the preparation of plans was in hand and that any shortening of the length of the new structure, compared, witli the present bridge, would be small. A letter was also received from the Ashburton County Council in reference to the allocation of the cost among local bodies of the bridge. The Ashburton Council did not approve of the allocation, and considered that the construction of the new bridge was a national matter, brought about by a great increase in through traffic, and that the local bodies should not be asked to share the cost. The lette» was received. *

While the British Navy is represented by H.M.S.'Leith, there has concurrently been an invasion of the Whangarei Harbour (says the "Northern Advocate") by Portuguese men-o-war. The foreigners, however, are by no means so pleasant to meet. Last year Milford was subjected to a similar visitation by numbers of the attractive looking but dangerous jellyfish. During the present holiday season Tauiikura and McLeod's Bay have been the assembling ground for quite a squadron, the jellyfish floating right on to the beaches. Owing to their blue saillike crests by which they float on the water, the men-o'-war jellyfish are pleasant to look upon. They are able to sting verv severely, however, as several children, bathing in the shallow water at Taurikura have found to their pain.

"I» can only praise the Nazi regime, from my experience of it, travelling in Cermanv." said M. J- Bigfrid Edstrom, of Sweden, a member of the Olympic Games Executive Council, wlio is at present in Wellington. "Travel in Germany to-day is much safer and much more agreeable than it was a few years ago. There are no beggars or tramps; the whole country seems to be working intently. Nazi officials everywhere were polite and helpful to the tourist, and overseas visitors Avere made welcome. The roads, too, were excellent. When first the Nazis became established in power, they wanted to organise the Olympic Gaines in their own way, said Mr Edstrom. The council, however, refused to permit them to make a Nazi "stunt" of it, and threatened to have the games held elsewhere if they did not promise to conform to the Olympic regulations. The games were to be carried on regardless of race, creed or politics, and the Nazis had been obliged to recognise that fact.

Members of the Ashburton Volunteer Fire Brigade have commenced practice for their annual competitions, to be held early in February. A programme of events for the competitions will be drafted to-night.

A sum of £3740 2s lid in Ashburton Borough rates was outstanding when the council offices closed last evening. After to-morrow the 10 per cent, penalty will be imposed on rates not paid. The total of rates for the year is £10,073 19s 9d.

Successful 1935 students at Canterbury Agricultural College, Lincoln, will receive their college diplomas and prizes through the post instead of at a graduation ceremony. The ceremony, which would normally have been held toward the end of last year, was cancelled because of the position which arose over the resignation of the director, Professor R. E. Alexander. At the meeting cf the Board of Governors of the college yesterday, the retiring chairman, Dr. H.. G. Denham, mentioned that the university degrees had been presented to students at a private gathering held at Canterbury College. It had been necessary to bold the ceremony then to avoid the expense of preparing new diplomas. The board decided that the college diplomas and prizes still to be presented _would be sent to students through the~pcst.

During a week-end trip from Chicago, where he is studying at the North Western University, at. which he obtained a scholarship, Mr M. R. Cable, of Wellington, with two Australian friends who are also studying there, motored to Bloomington, Indiana, a 300-mile run, staying the night at Lafayette, at the citizens' concentration camp there. "These camps," he writes to his father, Mr M. Cable, "are like our relief camps, but are for the sons of unemployed people. - They are under the control of army men, and the campers, in addition to being given work are provided with educational training. These camps are doing a lot of good in keeping these young people off the street and teaching them discipline, as well as educating them. The masters are good, and the boys are well looked after."

Sweden, according to a prominent Swedish industrialist, Mr J. Sigfrid Edstrom, who arrived at Wellington last week after a fiyo-day tour of the North Island, is a great potential market for New Zealand fruit. All Europe needed fresh fruit during the northern springtime, stated Mr Edstrom. Sweden could import fruit at other seasons from California and Canada, and now spring fruit was being obtained from South Africa and Australia,. The South African fruit, of course, arrived on the market before the Australian. Sweden was a country with considerable buying power. Workmen were well paid, living was cheap, and labouring men, earning wages equivalent to about 12s a day, could afford to spend money on such luxuries as cars, kinemas, and imported fruit. Sweden ranked second only to Great Britain as a buyer of imported fruit. She imported more fresh fruit each year than did the whole of the lest of Europe. At present she was importing annually New Zealand apples to the value of several thousand pounds, mostly through London.