LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 59, Issue 19, 2 November 1938, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

A grant of one guinea to the Oninese Refugaa Relief Fund was made by the Advance Ashburton Association last evening. Several members spoke of the worthy object of the appeal, and said that as'a. public body, tire Association should make contribution.

The St. Andrew’s Physical Training Club closed a most successful season last evening. The finals of the “padderminton” and “one over three” relay competitions Were completed, the winners being Allenton, who retained the Club shield. Two items will be given by the Club at the annual display of this Keep Fit Class on November 15.

Over 60 primary school teachers from all districts of the Ashburton County will he present at a refresher course at the Borough School on Friday. The course will lx? fo;r the one day only, and educationists from •Christchurch will give lectures. The day’s proceedings will conclude with a. play-reading by local teachers. All primary schoAls 'will be closed.

A freak tulip, with three blooms on a. single stem, was shown to a “Southland, News” reporter the other day. The blooms, of the red and yellow variety, ware all perfectly natural but were growing out of the one stem, an unusual occurrence with tulips. The fi-eak was grown in the garden of Mrs Currie, Louisa Street, there being several plants with two heads on the single stem in the same garden.

“I hope we are not having a new traffic term introduced,” remarked Mr Justice Callan during the hearing of a case in the Supreme Court at Auckland when' counsel .referred to a pedestrian crossing as a “safety zone.” His Honor said domes had been designated as “silent policemen,” which did not find favour with the police, and also as “poached eggs,” which he himself disliked. “I hope we are to be saved from similar designations,” his Honor added smilingly.

to dispose of the goods left over from the stalls at the earnivat on Labour Day, the Advance Ashburton Association has gained permission to conduct another booth at the A. ana P. Show to-morrow. Members of the Association will be in charge of the stall during the day and surprise packets will be on sale. Arrangements have also been made for the sale of sweets and this part of the stall will be under the charge of Mrs M. A. Constable.

The first consignment of some 8000 bales’ of wool brought annually from East Coast ports for the Napier wool sales has arrived at Napier by Messrs Richardson, and Co>.’s vessel Koutonui, which Until well onTnto the season East Coast wool will continue to arrive in largp quantities, and most of Messrs Richardson’s vessels arriving from northern ports will include consignments of wool in their cargoes, while the smaller vessels of the fleet will also he engaged for the most port in the transport of wool.

The New. Zealand, Assembly in Wellington yesterday adopted the following recommendation from the Hamilton church: “In the light of the Divine injunction to pray for the peace of Jerusalem, the Hamilton Church recommends to the Assembly that it advises all Baptist Churches to hold a day of special prayer on behalf of persecuted Jews, especially those who belong to the household of the faith. Further, that on the same day, offerings he taken up in the interests of the Jews.’’ The recommendation was adopted without discussion.

After three years of rock-testing and survey work oh this Waikato River between Cambridge and Taupo, it seems evident that the site of the Crow’s Nest, Maungataiitari, about .five,miles up the river from Cambridge, has been decided \jpon by the officers of this Public Works Department as the most, suitable for the establishment of a huge hydro electric plant,. There is considerable activity at the site at present, and at Karapiro, across the river from the Crow’s Nest, a camp has been established. The indications are that if a generating station is to he built it 'will be located, on the Karapiro side of the river.

For the last day or two, side-show people have been erecting their tents and their booths at the Ashburton Showgrounds in readiness for to-mor-row. A number of cars, lorries, and caravans bringing the entertainers and their paraphernalia to the grounds have attracted, a. good deal of attention as they passed through the town. Many of the side-show men have come from the Timaru show, which concluded last Saturday. ditions for the campers at the Showgrounds have been most miserable, for rain has fallen for the greater part of the week,

The way juries can differ on the same facts was revealed in the Supreme Court last week, states “The Evening Post’s” Palmerston North representative. The plaintiff, a woman, brought two separate actions. In the first she claimed £750 general and £55 special damages for injuries she had suffered as a passenger in her husband’s car, which left the road and fell down a 165 ft. drop. The defendant, she alleged had been responsible for the mishap through the negligent manner in which, he had driven his car when passing the car she was in. ’The jury in that action found for the defendant. A second claim by the same plaintiff was for * £2OOO compensation for the loss of her husband, who was killed as a result of the accident. The jury in that case awarded her £750.

An opinion that Ashlpirton should be given a bigger, brighter and bettei spot on the map than it- had hitherto been honoured with, was voiced by the Mr F. J. K. Cooper yesterday afternoon, when lie represented, the Advance Ashburton Association at. the meeting which was held for the purpose of forming a local committee to make arrangements for the Centenaiy Celebrations in 1940. Mr Cooper deplored the fact, that when New Zealand was considered generally, Ashburton received so little attention. “For instance,” he continued, “take the Government’s fun map of New Zealand. This has been sent all over the world and Ashburton is not even on it.” He .ilso held that all too little was said about the Ashbutrtoii River as a fishing resort. There was excellent sport to be had in the river, lie said, “notwithstanding the fact that Lord Liverpool fished for a whole day at Ashburton Forks and caught a sprat.’

Shops nrnl offices in r Ysh burton will close for a half-day to-morrow on account of the Agricultural Show. Primary and secondary schools will have a whole holiday.

An appeal for a. donation to the funds of the Ashburton branch of the Workers’ Educational Association, was received by the Advance Ashburton Association last evening. The W.E.A. outlined in a letter, the important work it had carried on in Ashburton in t'hje past. It was decided to make a grant of one guinea.

The new dress tunics for the Ashburton Salvation Army will be ready to use next Saturday week, when Colonel G. Gratton, of Wellington (chief secretary for the N<ew Zealand Salvation Army) will make his hirst official visit to Ashburton. Too new tunics, which will (he worn on special occasions only, are of red material, with gold trimmings.

Two Napier taxi drivers have evolved a torm of advertising light wh'iclv works from their car batteries and readily identifies their vehicles at night. They are understood to be seeking patent rights for the invention. Of course, they are not talking about the details of the method of construction just now, but if the invention could be developed along, the lines of the larger business signs, moulded into letters, and sold at reasonable cost, it should be advantageous.

The fact that a great deal of synthetic cloth was being sold in shops to-day as wool was mentioned at a meeting of the Wellington provincial executive of the Farmers’ Union at Taihape, states “The Evening Post’s” representative. It was recalled by the president (Mr L. Hammond) that the union had taken the matter up with the Minister of Internal Affairs, who made a statement regarding the position. He had issued a warning to the public that much of the material they were buying as wool w r as actually synthetic cloth. The Minister had also issued a warning to retailers that unless steps were taken to safeguard the public, action would be taken. It was very gratifying, said Mr Hammond, that the union’s representations had borne fruit.

An interesting souvenir of the wreck of the Wairarapa, which occurred 44 years ago last Friday, at the northwest end of Great Harrier Island, is held by Mr M. J. Hargreaves, of Auckland. It is an envelope which once contained one of the letters salvaged from the wreck. Jt- was posted from London on September 14, 1894, to a member of the staff of Messrs L. D. Nathan and Co., Auckland. Stained with the water and now Shelving the effects of age, the envelope bears a rubber stamp, “Saved 4rom the wreck of the Wairarapa,” on the top, and in ink besides the address a postal official has written, “Wrecked, 28-10-94. Sunday night. ’ Air Hargreaves, who was then employed in the Bay of Islands, recovered the envelope from packing which had been placed round an order received from Messrs Nathan and Co.

The remains of what it is thought might once have been a portion of a dense forest in close proximity to the present town of , Rotorua haye been unearthed by workmen employed by tbe Rotorua Borough Council engaged in digging an open drain to carry stormwater from the new municipal houses, states a Rotorua correspondent. A few’ feet under the surface several trees of considerable girth and length have been encountered, and tlie trunks are in such an excellent state of preservation that it has been found impossible to cut through them so as to extend the opeh drain. it is thought probable that mahy years ago the trees were uprooted by some severe earthquake or volcanic disturbance and subsequently became covered as the land in the vicinity was thrown the disturbance.

“Wie wejre, at the time of the crisis in Central Europe, travelling in the Duchess of Athol to Canada,” stated D'r. B. J. Dudley, of Lower Hutt, in the course of a talk in Wellington on his holiday experiences, “and we could not" but be struck by the up-to-date broadcasting of events received all day long on the boat. W e were naturally all on tip-toe with excitement. The same service was given as we travelled by train through Canada. It was, however, -very difficult 'on the New Zealand-owned Aorangi where no broadcasting facilities were available, except by courtesy of the radio officer, who gave us the benefit of his pri-vately-owned set when we were nearing New Zealand.” Dr Dudley deplored the lack of New Zealand papers at Suva.. ‘ ‘We expected,”’ he said, “to get the latest New Zealand gapers left by the Niagara, which had arrived jxom New Zealand, a. few days previously, but wei’e grievously disappointed. Australian papers there were in abundance, but not one New Zealand paper.”

Mr E. Cholerton, of Messrs J. R. Procter, Ltd., Christchurch, is at present in Ashburton, and may be consulted on all defects of eyesight at the Somerset Hotel To-morrow and Friday. —(Advt.)