LOCAL AND GENERAL

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 68, Issue 140, 25 March 1948, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Street Works

The Ashburton Borough Council has deckled to raise £4OOO of the £12,500 loan for street works. The ratepayers authorised the loan at a poll held during the last elections.

Rugby Union Officials Mr G. V. Furby, secretary of the Ashburton Rugby Union, reports that Mr F. Kennedy has been elected president, and Messrs A. C. Robinson and T. Phillips vice-presidents for the coming season.

Royai Visit The Mayor (Mr E. C. Bathurst) has instructed the Town Clerk (Mr R. C. Major) to write to the Internal Affairs Department, Wellington, not to the Wellington Town Clerk as reported in the “Guardian,” asking that the visit of their Majesties and Princess Margaret to Ashburton be made as long as possible.

Clocks Made in Britain

Though the Swiss are still supreme in watch and clock making, the industry in Britain -was making extraordinary progress, said Mr Frank Hannaford, partner in an Auckland jewellery firm, who returned yesterday after eight months in Europe. In England he visited most of the big clock and watch factories. British wprkmen were determined to turn out a high class product and were doing it, he said. —P.A.

Found Dead in Car Frederick Charles De Lambert, aged 65, a farmer, of Ethelton, was found dead in his car which had stalled on the Ethelton Gorge Road railway crossing early yesterday morning, says a Christchurch Press Association message. The car was undamaged. The police believe that Mr De Lambert collapsed while at the wheel, and the car continued until it stalled on the crossing. He left home alone at 7.30 a.m. to go to Christchurch.

Ashburton Chess Club There was a good attendance at a further meeting -of the Ashburton Chess Club held last night. Mr C. L. King, a member of the Wellington Chess Club gave a short talk on the principles of chess, and later played seven simultaneous games with members, resulting as follows:—Beat N. Lamont, lost to V. Hanson, beat A. C. Renner and R. Griffiths, drew with G. R. Copland and S. R. Hight, beat Miss J. N. Wallace and R. Scott, beat A. J. PI ays ton and J. M. Bell, and also beat G. Thomson.

Scottish Ancestry Otago’s Scots are not responding to the invitation to have their lineage traced. Most of the replies received so far to Sir John' Falconer’s invitation, and they number more than 100, have come from the North Island, with Otago well down on the list. On behalf of the Scots Ancestry Research Society, Sir John Falconer brought with him to Dunedin hundreds of registration forms for distribution in Dunedin,, the “Edinburgh of the South,” but it now seems that northern Scots have more interest in their ancestry than those in the south. — P.A.

No Additions to Olympic Team No additions will be made to the New Zealand Olympic Games team, it was stated at a meeting of the. executive of the Olympic Association at Wellington last evening, says a Press Association message. Additional names had been forwarded to the association, but none of them, with the exception of L. Stonex, an Auckland cyclist, had endorsements from national associations. It was emphasised • that the association would adhere to the resolution passed when the team was selected: “That no other athlete additional to those selected should be considered later, even though his full expenses were guaranteed by any association.”

Petrol Dearer To-day The wholesale and retail price of petrol will be increased by one penny from to-day. The net price to motorists at main ports will now be 2s 9id a gallon. It is understood that the extra one penny a gallon has been imposed because of the “increasing tendency” of freight charges in recent months. Other charges for motor-spirits have been adjusted accordingly, states a Wellington Press Association message. The price in Ashburton will be 2s 101 d a gallon, the highest price petrol has been since the start of the war. Petrol was also 2s 10Jd a gallon from July, 1942, to February, 1945. The change in price to-day is the twentieth imposed since the beginning of the war, when the price charged was 2s.

Sugar Shortage in Invercargill A critical situation has developed in Invercargill about the supply of sugar and if the position is not immediately improved several small businesses — bakers and pastrycooks —will be faced with the prospect of closing down until supplies can be obtained. The household supply position is also in a precarious state and the Invercargill Master Grocers’ Association communicated yesterday with the authorities in Wellington, and, in an interview, the president (Mr A. G. Campbell) said he was unable to obtain any satisfaction. Merchants are receiving only one third of the orders placed with the Colonial Sugar Company, and this is not sufficient to meet the permits issued by rationing officers in Southland. Representations have been made to Mr J: R. Hanan, M.P., who. said that he would get in touch with the Minister of supply (the Hon. A. H. Nordmeyer) to solve the problem—P.A.