LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 61, Issue 42, 29 November 1940, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

As to-morrow is St. Andrew’s Day the banks in Ashburton will observe a full holiday.

The Ashburton Public Hospital ireported this morning that Mr Allan Sutton, who was severely injured in a motor-cycle accident at Chortsey on Tuesday evening, is still unconscious.

A mushroom 12 inches across, with a stem an inch and a half wide, was found iii' a paddock ini the north end of Ashburton to-day. It was of good shape and well-developed all over.

The Ashburton County Patriotic Fund has been considerably increased by a' contribution of £234 9s 6d from the Mayfield district. Ealing has also forwarded £lB. With the Tinwald contribution the County fund stands at £3574 3s Bd.

Some of the farmers in the Waikato and' surrounding districts have already gathered their hay, while the majority of them have made their ensilage. Following a favourable season, the crops oil the whole have been very satisfactory. Recent warm rains should provide plenty of new pasture.

The quarterly meeting of the Council of the Ashburton United Friendly Societies’ Association was held l last evening, the president (Mr J. Brown) presiding over a good attendance. The hospital account for the ■quarter totalled £49 7s, including outpatients £l7 ss, X-ray 32s 2d. The administrative expenses amounted to £l3 16s.

■ “We have had considerable trouble with straight exhaust pipes on motor cycles in Ashburton lately,” said a Traffic Inspector in the Ashburton Magistrate’s Court this morning. “These vehicles have been making a great noise at night,” he added. The Magistrate (Mr H. Morgan) said it was a very annoying thing to hear some motor cycles at night.” He imposed a stiff fine on an offender.

The Stephen’s Mothers’ Union met yesterday.,' The meeting opened with a short service in the church conducted by the Rev. C; L. Mountfort. A social afternoon was spent, Miss M. Clarkson’s pupils contributing items. It was decided to donate £1 to the Sunday School prize fund. Preliminary arrangements were made for the annual picnic .in the ’Tinwald Domain in February.

A decision to ask the Government to entrust the dairy industry to a Minister, “who is able to implement the provisions of the Primary Products Marketing Act, and who is less hostile to. the industry than the present Minister,” was carried unanimously at a meeting of the Auckland (executive of the Farmers’ Union. The executive also agreed with the unanimous decision of the Dairy Conference regarding the guaranteed price, alleging that the formula evolved had not been followed.

An interesting sidelight on the effect of the war on the motor-car manufacturing industry in England is given by Dr. Murray A. Stewart .in a letter to his father, Mr W. StcinVt, of. Invercargill. Dr. Stewart, who is living in London, remarks that he had just put a high polish on his car. “It appears like new now, and if I wore to sell it l would get about twice the price I paid for it. There are no neAV cars •now, hence the sudden increase in usod car prices. These are going up another thijrd next month, so a car looks like being quite a sound investment.”

The bearing up of the people of New Zealand under an enormously increasing taxation burden is regarded by Professor James H. Gilbert, an American economist now on a visit to this country, as being remarkable. Describing New Zealand as a laboratory for the study of economic experiments, he stated in an interview that the ‘Dominion has been courageous enough to pioneer in many fields of economics with the 'result that it was a place of interest for overseas economists. Professor Gilbert, Professor of Economics at Oregon University, U.S.A., has been in New Zealand for two months studying taxation. It has been apparent to him. he stated, that industry had withstood the increasing taxation burden. His conclusion was that the woncterful soil and climate, the bountiful rainfall, and adequate natural resources, combined with tli eunusually intelligent, alert, and vigorous nature of the people, who were largely of British origin, had kept the country prosperous even in the face of what would have been considered 50 years ago as an impossible tax burden.

The calmness and courage of the people of Britain during air raids are emphasised in a letter received by a Wellington resident from a member of the Women’s Land Army in Essex, which is as much in the danger zone as any other part of England. The correspondent writes: —“We have our share of air raids and enemy bombers have been brought down nearby, but to date our only casualty has been a chicken. The sirem warned at 3 o’clock this afternoon, and as I was alone in the house I thought I had better not have a. sleep, which I was longing to do, in case an incendiary bomb came through the roof. They are easily dealt with by anyone on the spot, but can do much damage if left unattended. So I procured some fruit to munch to keep me awake until the ‘all-clear’ sounded. We got the usual fireworks last night, and consequently very little slee^ ? but we were on duty at 6.30 a.m. as usual. I am busy knitting gloves for soldiers and always have one with me when we go ‘to earth.’ I get through quite a lot of work during our enforced rests from farm labour.”

A decision to approach the Government on the subject of the names of volunteers for military service being printed in the conscription lists when ihey could quite easily have been purged from the rolls before the drawing of the ballot wa.'f reached at a meeting at Auckland of tine Discharged Volunteers’ Association. The me cling was well attended and delegates from the Waikatoi were present. It was also decided to approach the Government on the question of the issue of enlistment badges. It was explained that among those issued with the badge Were men who had volunteered knowing they would be rejected on . medical grounds, w r hile men who had served on home defence and were later discharged were not able to obtain the badges. The association intends to approach the authorities concerned again with a view to being represented on the Auckland Metropolitan Home Guard 1 Committee. Representation had been refused the association, but it was considered that the organisation had the .right to be represented.

Troop trains carrying men of the. Fourth Reinforcements hack to camp are doe in at Ashburton at 3.59 .and 5 o’clock to-morrow afternoon.

Tlie Ashburton Borough and County have been free from infectious diseases during the past week, stated the Health Inspector this morning. No cases have been reported! so far this month.

A further sitting of the medical hoards for County men drawn in the Second Territorial Ballot was held at the Ashburton Defence Office this morning. Fifty-five men were examined, 35 being classed as fit, five temporarily unfit and 15 permanently unfit.

More than 80 per cent, of the Wanganui Sailing Club’s active members and officials are now serving with the three services, Army, Navy„ and Air Force, or are waiting to enter camp. In spite of its depleted membership, however, the club is continuing its activities and races are held each week-end. Z class crew's are in training to defend this Cornwell Cun.

Tea bushes are flourishing 37 miles south of Auckland. A resident of Jellicoe Avenue, Tuakau, Mr Bruce Westland, has five growing in a sheltered part of his garden, raised from seed brought from Ceylon by a broth-er-in-law four year s ago. The seeds were planted early in the autumn'. Sis germinated, and the seedlings were planted cut about two months later. Five seedlings survived, and Mr West land allowed them to grow up to a height of about three feet, and' then pruned them down to about 15 inches. The growth to three feet in height allowed strong root development, hut for producing an abundance of tea leaves the bushes needed pruning and plucking. Mr Westland mentioned that for the first two years he had to protect the young tea trees with sacking from the frost each winter. He states that, judged l from experience in Ceylon, they are now so well established that they are immune from damage by frost. He has made his own, tea from them, "and finds it quite good to the palate. It took about 41b of green leaves to make lib of dry tea. Mi Westland does not know of anywhere else in New Zealand where tea bushes have beem established.