LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 61, Issue 252, 6 August 1941, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Delayed by the levrv the southbound express did not arrive in Ashburton until about 10.40 this morning.

Pushed into a tank of hot ashes at one of the Ashburton schools yesterday, a small boy, Thomas Skilling, eg id 5 years, suffered burns on both Ivs legs and was admitted to the- Ashburton Public Hospital. It was stated this morning that he was comfortable.

Black-outs the world over have meant an extra demand for white paint. Tramway and electric liglit wire, poles in tho vicinity of the main entrance to the grounds of the Houses of Parliament in Wellington have been painted white from base to tip as a guide to wheeled traffic on dark nights.

The speaker at the monthly meeting of the Ashburton branch of the Now Zealand Registered Nurses’ Association last evening was Dr. W. R. Ryburn, who dealt with antiseptics and asepsis. The president (Miss B. presided over a good attendance. Several new members were welcomed.

When the suggestion of the Power Boards’ Association that broadcasting programmes should be curtailed to save power was referred yesterday to the Minister in Charge of Broadcasting, U'e Hon. D. Wilson, M.L.0., he said tho proposal was already under consideration (says an Auckland Press Association telegram).

In this issue the Railway Department advertises particulars of alterations, operating from to-morrow, to the Invercargill-Lyttelton wharf express and the 8.40 p.m. LytteltonChristchurch train. The north-bound express will arrive at Ashburton at 5.4 p.m. and. leave at 5.14 p.m. on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. ' t

Metalling of the surfaee of the roadway where the Borough Council staff have been levelling the roadway over the last few weeks, has boon put in hand and the'muddy state of the section, at the corner of Eton and Tancrcd Streets, will soon disappear. The severe frosts delayed the work of taking down the high crown of the road, the workmen being able to do excavating only in tho afternoons on several days.

The Ashburton Borough Council has taken in hand the filling of gaps in the plantation on the river bank, where trees planted originally some years ago died or where wind blew down a large number, ft is estimated that about 2000 trees, all pines, yill be needed to fill the gaps. The plantation generally is growing very well and before many years should prove to be a considerable asset to the Council..

Not only an occasional child but whole families fly the Pacific nowadays with complete unconcern. Passengers by the Pacific Clipper when she arrived from America last week were Mrs F. W. Droller and her three daughters, aged five, two and one, who arc returning to Sourabaya from the united States. Mrs Dreher said the children thoroughly enjoyed the trip and seemed to take to air travel more naturally than adults.

The care that should be taken by pedestrians when approaching doorways leading out of grain stores on the west side of Ashburton was brought home to a- resident this morning when he stopped in front of one of these doorways just as a. lorry was emerging. Some of the doorways have a sign of warning to look out for vehicles, but these often are ignored, and the drivers of lorries often omit to sound a warning before they come out on to toe footpath.

The Ashburton branch of the Toe ii has gained branch status and was presented with a charter on 'Monday evening by Mr A. S. Geddes (regional chairman for Canterbury and Westland). The charter was signed by Brigadier F. T. Bowerbank (Honorary Administrator’s deputy), the Rev. O. W. Williams (Dominion Padre) and Mr Geddes, who is also chairman of the Dominion executive for the Central Council ox Toe H*in England. A small number of the instructional sheet that was issued a few weeks ago to householders in Ashburton, stating what should he done in the event of an emergency or a bombardment, have been* received by the Town Clerk (Mr R. C. Major) for distribution to houses where there is no such instruction sheet. The idea is that when a new house is built the owner should at once place a sheet in a prominent place, and it is for this purpose that the extra copies have been obtained. The instructions that were sent out some time ago should be left in the house when residents change to other dwellings. Southland can claim several records in the national savings campaign. The district, which had its headquarters in Invercargill, is tho only one in which there are three towns each with 100 per cent. of. accounts to population. Riverton and E'dendale have been in this category for some time, and yesterday Waikaka achieved a similar distinction. An estimate of the enthusiasm in Riverton can be gained from the fact that recently within 20 minutes of the birth of a baby there her father had opened a national sayings account 'for her. This child is claimed to bo the youngest depositor in the campaign in the Dominion. Besides having the youngest depositor, youthland also has the oldest. Mr Thomas Barrett, of Waikaka, aged 101, is a regular contributor. A fourth distinction claimed is that Southland has the largest family group of national savers in New Zealand. Mr and Mrs Robert Miller, of Waikaka, and tlfeir 15 children are all operating accounts, making 17 in one family. Previously a Waverley family held this distinction with a total of 15 accounts. The Joint Council of the Order of St. John and the New Zealand Red Cross Society has arranged for a supply of parcels for New Zealanders known to lie prisoners of war. Butter, tinned meat, jam, coffee, and milk have been purchased to the extent of ten. tons each, together with one ton of plain chocolate. This will be sufficient, it is estimated, to cover a period of seven weeks, and arrangements are being made to forward the goods as expeditiously as possible. In this work the Joint Council has had the full co-operation of the National Patriotic Fund Board. Stocks cf food parcels have been accumulated in Geneva in anticipation of such an emergency as has arisen and these have been released and are reaching their destination. The sea journey between Lisbon and Marseilles is under the auspices of the International Red Cross, which gives ton days’ notice to the belligerents thus reducing enemy interference to a minimum. Between May 1 and 15, 121,479 parcels \yere dispatched from International Hed Cross, Geneva, which was approximately 30,000 parcels in excess of what was re - quired to provide one parcel per man during that -period.

The now batch of 12. State houses on the cornel - of Beach Road and Willow Street are making good progress. The framework of six or seven has been erected and on some a start has been made with the weather hoarding.

The chief item of business before the last meeting of the Ashburton branch of the New Zealand Educational Institute was a disbussion led by Air H. H. Hawkins, on the teaching of spelling.

“I don’t know why you should laugh!” said Bishop Stephenson, himself smiling, when the Nelson Synod, with merry sympathy, granted leave of absence to the Rev. C. R. Nicholson (Cotlingwood) who had “a spot cr two at the week-end” (i.e., measles).

At a meeting of the Ashburton branch of the New Zealand Retail Motor Trade_Assoeiation last evening a report of The executive’s interview with the new general secretary (Mr C. R. '.Edmond j when lie was in Ashburton recently was given by the chairman (Mr F. J. E. Small bone). Air Smallbone was appointed to represent the branch at the annual conference to be held at Wellington at the end of September.

Members of the Ashburton branch of the New Zealand Registered Nurses’ Association are fully organised to meet any emergency that may arise. Ail members are registered with the Health Department for emergency work. Some are taking a leading part in the arranging of first-aid points in the County and others have been delegated to form the staff of an emergency hospital, should it ever bo necessary to establish such an institution in Ashburton. Every week this emergency staff meets at the Public Hospital serving in preparation for the hospital.

The last of the re-painting of pedestrian crossings in the business area ot Ashburton is in progress and the work should be completed by Friday. Most of the crossings had been worn off by traffic over the last six months. It is the intention of the Borough Council to ,put down an experimental crossing as soon as the frosts nave ceased. Tho white lines in this crossing will consist of cement over a base let into tlfe surface of the roadway. It is stated that this form of marking has been used with success in a number of towns.

One feature of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force which has greatly appealed to war correspondents from other countries has been the inclusion of (Maoris. Air James Aldridge, known correspondent, who left ,oy Clipper for the United States. last week, said that the American newspapermen particularly were struck by the acceptance of the Maoris in full equality with the European New Zealanders. “It is exceedingly good propaganda for the Empire,” he said, “although it is not intended as such. The Americans said: ‘Wo have been trying to get something like this for years; and here it is working 100 per cent.’ ”

A simpler way of dealing yith an incendiary bomb than the shovel-and-sand procedure advocated in the Auckland emergency precautions booklet is described on one of the British war posters now being shown in the Auckland Art Gallery. The new method requires a sandbag only partly filled. The user shields his face from the heat with the bag as he approaches, then throws the bag. with the sand in it, on top of the bomb and makes off as quickly as possible. As some incendiary bombs contain explosive charges, it is recommended that those falling in tho open be loft to burn for some minutes unless they are ! near inflammable material.

The new 25 per cent cut in petrol rations for private motoring hris made fuel even more precious, and a ,number of motorists in Auckland are fitting a home-made device to their petrol tanks to safeguard their small stocks of fuel from thieves. The idea, which originated in England, may be applied to cars where the intake pipe to the petrol tank runs through the luggage locker. A short section of the pipe within tho locker leading to tho tank cap is replaced with a length of rubber hose. When tho ear is parked the driver has only to disconnect one end of the rubber and fasten the locker. It is then impossible for petrol-thieves to insert a tube to siphon out the fuel.

A visitor to any of the Ashburton school grounds these days cannot but be impressed by the large numbers of bicycles that are parked in and around the outbuildings. The bicycle is Doing used more and more by children going to school and at times the presence of so many machines in the school grounds has caused some difficulty in the matter of accommodation. At the Borough School this morning there were no fewer than 120 bicycles, many of which were lying on the ground in rows that are easy to get at. The object of this is that, should the school have to be evacuated in a hurry the children with bicycles would be able to select their 'own machines quickly and leave for home without'delay.

In forwarding the list of Ashburton passes at the Air Force trainees’ educa : tioiial examination, the Director of Educational Services (Mr E. Caradus) says: “Your readers will probably he interested to know that all men selected for the air crow are now required to satisfactorily complete our preliminary educational "course, owing first to the fact that it brings them up to the necessary standard in mathematics and elementary science if they were at the outset bplow this standard, and secondly, to the fact that the course includes many matters, such as elementary air navigation, theory of flight, map projections and meteorology, which are included in the course at the groimu training school and which aid the work being done at that station. Air Force preliminary tests are held some six or seven times a year on the completion of each course of this instruction.”

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