LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 61, Issue 253, 7 August 1941, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Two tickets held in Ashburton won £5 prizes in the “Luck for All” m't union, drawn yesterday, as follows: 175250; 67110, “Security.”

Fire engines in Auckland, which are not required to comply with the blackout headlight restrictions, now carry a red light just above and behind the driver’s head to indicate to policemen, that it is a lire engine approaching.

The annual football and basketball matches between the Ashburton High S'chool and Technical High School were plaved on the High School and Technical High School grounds respectively this afternoon.

There was a very large attendance at a bring and buy social atternoon held bv the St. Stephen’s Anglican Ladies’ Guild yesterday afternoon. Mrs ,T. H. Millar and Miss Betty Millichamp contributed vocal solos, Mrs R. Orr elocutionary items and Miss J. Andrews pianoforte solos. The sum ol £b 10s was raised for the Guild funds.

Members of the St. Stephen’s Anglican Ladies’ Guild utilised every minute /of their time at the meeting yesterday afternoon. While items were being presented and the meeting progressed all were busily engaged sewing for tbo Lady Galway Guild. The material had previously been prepared and was handed to those present so that mnen valuable work was done during the afternoon.

That the mind of the Sierra Leone native is not so dark as ,his skin was illustrated by an incident when; a troopship carrying New Zealanders called there. Leaning over the rail a Maori soldier, watching a native diving from his sampan for pennies, addressed him affably in the words “Hullo, darkie-” His discomfiture at the prompt retort, “Yo’s not so white yo’selfl’ greatly amused his comrades.

As a result of a sale held lest month the* Sit .Andrew’s Ladies’ Guild, Tinwald, had sent mere than £9 to St. Saviour’s Orphanage, it was reported at a. meeting in the vicarage this week. Mrs H. Fountain presided. It was stated that the proceeds from the “beetle” evening had been spent on material and garments for the Lady Galway Guild, a parcel of 41 garments having been sent to the Ashburton depot already.

The difficulty of getting swede turnips cat ted from the farms to the railways for despatch to military camps and transports was explained to Mr P. C. Webb on Monday by Mr W. Grieve, .chairman of the executive of the. Southland Provincial Patriotic Council. Mr Grieve suggested that it might lie possible to have the carting done by army lorries. Mr Webb said that he would get in touch with the Minister of Defence and sec what could •be done.

A New Plymouth housewife had a narrow escape from a terrifying experience recently. The family had moved into a house and she had swept up' an accumulation of wood and paper to use in the washhouse fire. She noticed three short sticks of a yellowish grey substance which, when shown to her husband, vtere identified as gelignite. Had her husband not possessed a knowledge of explosives the consequences might have been serious.

After an offender in the Magistrate’s Court- in Wellington had been convicted on a charge, of breach ol a prohibition order, the Magistrate (Mr J. H. Lnxford) imposed a fine of 10s. “You have only 7s od?” asked the Magistrate, who had evidently seen the police return of the accused’s effects. “No, I have a. pound,” said the accused, tapping his pocket. The Magistrate then made an order for immediate payment of the fine:. “You must have missed that one,” he said to the prosecuting sub-inspector.

Returned men; from the present war are already beginning to be regular visitors at the Ashburton Soldiers’ Club. Every man who comes back after serving overseas automatically becomes a member of the Returned Soldiers’ Association for three months, after which he can join as an ordinary member. It. is stated that one Ashburton man who was assisted by advice by the Association’s secretary (Mr EL J. Daniel) before he left fer camp was so impressed with the service that all the time he was overseas he declared that the first thing he would do o-d, his return, would be to join, the Association. He came back a little while ago and within an hour of his arrival in Ashburton lie had paid his subscription.

Appreciative reference to the New Zealand Parliament’s decision to observe a minute’s silence as Big Ben strikes the hour of 9 p.m., has been received by the Speaker of the House of Representatives •(the Hon. W. E. Barnard) from Sir Waldron 'Sm it hers, a member of the House of Commons, and chairman of the Big Ben Council, and Mr Tudor Pole, a. founder of the movement in Britain (says a Press Association telegram). A cable message has been received from Sir Waldron Smithers and Mr Pole stating: “We wish to express our heartfelt, gratitude for the inspiring lead given, by your House on the historic inauguration; of the Big Ben silent minute, which is much appreciated', hv members of the House of Commons. Warm greetings from the Big Ben Council.”

The steps being taken to increase the per acre fertiliser allocation for certain crops were outlined by the Minister for Agriculture (the Hon. J. G. Barclay) in the House of Representatives yesterday, when answering a complaint by Mr J. A. Roy (Opposition, Clutba) that the present quantities allowed were totally inadequate for practical use in Otago and Southland. “It is not proposed to alter the procedure being carried out in the rationing or supplies of fertiliser for crops, it being considered that this method is the most equitable one for the allocation of available supplies,” Mr Barclay said in reply. “The National Council of Primary, Production and loading representatives of farmers’ organisations have approved the rationing scheme. Steps are being taken, however, to increase the per acre allocation for certain crops. Swedes and turnips will receive 2 ewi an acre of superphosphate when ridged. Turnips and swedes sown on the flat will receive 1J- ewt of superphosphate an acre, or its equivalent in basic superphosphate. The allowance for mangels will be increased from 2 ewt an acre to 2A ewt; but the amounts for ail other crops will remain as set out in the phosphatic fertiliser control notice.”

The weekly luncheon meeting of the Ashburton Rotary Club was held today, when the chief speaker was Mr G. Iv. McPherson, of the Agriculture Department, whose subject was “Flax."

Two slogans in a consignment of kumeras from Niue Island caused a New Plymouth importer some amusement recently. Stencilled boldly on one side was: “Niue Kumeras Best in .the World.” On the other side- was printed: “Modesty is the best policy.”

There are now over 80 soldier patients in the new Hamilton . West School, which has been taken over as an; annexe to the Waikato Hospital. Most of them are suffering from mumps and measles and have been admitted from the Cambridge and Ngaruawahia camps.

Air John -Stevenson, a single soldier, aged 28, was admitted to the Ashburton Hospital from Aitken Street. Mr Stevenson ci.it his loot with an axe while chopping wood. It was reported this morning that he had spent a fairly comfortable night and bis condition was satisfactory.

A story of jewellery which had been stolen the same night being found in the pockets -cf a man taken to a police station because ho said he had : nowhere to sleep was told in the Police Court, Wellington, when, William Cunningham, labourer and miner,, aged 35, was charged with breaking,and entering a shop and stealing jewellery valued at £33. Answering a question by the accused, a police sergeant who was giving evidence said the accused was not drunk, having been capable of running 200 yards before being caught by a constable.

The bulk of the brown, penny-half-penny stamps converted into twopenny stamps by overprinting will be exhausted early this month, and a gradual reversion will be. made to the twopenny orange-yellow Maori whare stamp of the pictorial series. Toward the end of the year the brown threepenny stamp of the pictorial series, with the head of a Maori maiden on it, will have its colour changed to blue. The red penny-halfpenny stamp of the King George series, which is to replace the present brown one, is not expected to be issued until late next year. This year’s health stamps will be the same- as last year’s, with- the exception that both denominations will be overprinted with the date 1941.

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