LOCAL AND GENERAL

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 70, Issue 45, 3 December 1949, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Family Affair Mr I. J. Berghan was elected county chairman at the annual meeting of the Mangonui County Council. Mr Berghan’s mother has had the unusual distinction of seeing her father, her husband and her son all a's chairman of the council during her lifetime.

Defaulters Voted At least two men believed to be wartime defaulters are reported to have exercised the vote in Auckland electorates on Wednesday. Both cases are the subject of inquiries under the Electoral Emergency Regulations, 1943.,Defaulters are disqualified from enrolling and voting. —P.A.

Further Remand

Charged with the murder of Emily Christina Hall at Foxton on November 3, Napoleon Brown, aged 28, flaxcutter, appeared on remand in the Wellington Magistrate’s Court yesterday. He was further remanded by Mr J. Hassell, S.M., to appear in Foxton on December 7. —P.A.

Mental Aberrations' As the moon nears its full it may be of interest to ’ recall that the expression “applied lunacy” which received such an airing during the recent election campaign is not new, or rather is only cognate to what the papers of 25 years ago were full of. The suffragette campaign then in full swing was dubbed “organised lunacy.”

Killed by Bee A verdict that Mr John Albert Morgan, a farmer, of Aratapu, died as the result of a bee sting on the left side of his chest, -was returned at an inquest at Dargaville. Evidence was given that Mr Morgan had been ill on other occasions when stung by bees. Dr. J. C. Baird said he conducted a post-mortem and found -that the deceased died from shock, due to a bee sting.

Picnic Train Sets Out

How many excursion trains through the years have carried loads of exciting children to the nearest beach, at Timaru? The East School picnic set out shortly after 9 o’clock this morning to add to the total. Nineteen carriages of all vintages, some really mature, comprised the train. Some 40 baby carriages rode in the van. The train, was full, but crowded only in spots. One mystery will probably remain unsolved: Why so many ren on an excursion train bury themselves in comics.

Eel Attacks Lamb ' While taking ewes and lambs across a small creek a Kaponga sheepfarmer saw a large eel attack and almost kill a lamb. Most of the flock had crossed the stream and five lambs remained. When these were driven into the water, ail eel bit at the neck of one and tried to pull it under the water. The lamb got away, but the eel attacked again, and it was only after a number of heavy blows from a supplejack that it released its hold on the lamb. Such attacks are rare in the Wanganui or Taranaki districts, but it is understood that in the Waikato eels have been known to attack lambs under similar circumstances.