Untitled

Auckland Star, Volume LIII, Issue 306, 27 December 1922, Page 4

The Governor's horses are at present running in the hospital grounds, which were recently transferred from the City Council in exchange for the Point Chevalier Park. A strong fence has been erected to define the area, and on the City Council's side of the fence the horses used by the Council have been grazing during the Xmas holidays. When the Hospital Board members were up at the hospital recently, and were looking at the new property recently brought under their charge, it was remarked what a truly democratic country New Zealand is, because there were the carefully-groomed horses belonging to the Vice-Regal 6tables hobnobbing over the fence with the hollowbacked old slaves belonging to "the Council. '<A truly Xmas scene." said one of the members, "and truly symbolic of the spirit of the season, for even the spirit of goodwill has descended to the animal kingdom because the horses which follow tbe hounds and the horses which cart the garbage of the city through our streets can bite one another's manes and have a gambol up and down the sides of the fence together— a lesson to all humanity."

The Post Office must 'be making quite a considerable profit on remittances to the United States at the present time (states a Taranaki exchange). At the beginning of May last a local resident had occasion to remit to an American publishing firm a sum of four dollars, for which he had to pay 18/7 and in addition the commission of sixpence. The exchange rate between London and New York was at that time 4.44 dollars to the pound sterling. That left the Post Office a fair profit. Last week the same price (IS/7) was charged for- a similar remittance of four dollars, though the pound sterling is now worth 4.69 dollars, so that the department's profit on the transaction to 25 cents, or a shilling, moTe than in May. But a month ago the same person had occasion to remit a sum of £25 to America. This was done through a bank, and the only was 1/3 the full amount of £25 paid into the bank here being paid at the bank in America. In a word, it costs 10/1 to meet a payment of 16/S through the (Post Office, and £2-5 1/3 to meet a payment of £25 through the "bank.

The Hector Observatory reports a large active sunspot group now visible on the sun's eastern hemisphere. The spots will cross the sun's central meridian about Thursday, and should be an interesting object in the telescope during the next week. The largest spot is easily visible to the naked eye if a shade or piece of smoked glass is used.

The spectators at Ellerslie yesterday got an unexpected thrill during the running of the hurdle race. As the field raced to the mile and a-quarter post, a spectator was noticed to drop from the rail right in front of the on-coming horses. Fortunately the field was not hugging the rails a? closely as usual, and to the relief of everyone thconlooker B°l> out of * perilous position; unharmed:.