NEWS OF THE DAY.

Auckland Star, Volume LXI, Issue 219, 16 September 1930, Page 6

NEWS OF THE DAY.

Control of Motuihi Island.

By notice published in tlio "New Zealand Gazette," the Auckland City Council; has been appointed to be the Motuihi Island Domain Board. The. first meeting is to he held on September 1», five minutes before the time fixed for the ordinary meeting of the.council. Evidently the proceedings will be more or less of a formal nature. New Railway Station Opening. Auckland's new railway station will 'be officially opened on Wednesday, November 12, and trains will run into the platformer and over the Wcstfield deviation three days later. It •is expected that the contractors, J. T. Julian and -Son, Ltd., will have completed their, part of the work at the end of next month. The official opening ceremony will be performed by the. Minister of Railways, the Hon. W. A. Yeitch.

Sobriety Tests. * Tests of sobriety as applied by two doctors at the police station were mentioned by SeniorSergeant McLean at the Wanganui Police Court. The person under examination, he said, was asked by the doctor to say difficult words such, as "Westminster Street" and "ipecacuanha wine." He made a poor job of it, added the senior-sergeant, "and I don't .wonder at it, for they are difficult words at any time." Scholarship in Law. Advice that the income .from. the estate of the late Sirs. Hugh Campbell is available for the foundation of a scholarship in law was received by the University College Council from the secretary of the Auckland District Law Society yesterday. The scholarship, which is open to Auckland students who have gained their LL.B. degree, and are reading for honours in. law,, is of the value of £50, and will be available for one year. It was decided to approve the conditions drawn, up by the society. Courteous Stationmaster. Last week an Eltham lady, who was "seeing off" a friend going on a long j railway journey, found, after the departure of the train, that she had thoughtlessly retained her friend's handbag and all her money. Without ticket or money the friend was probably threatened with trouble. Depositing the bag with the local stationmaster, the lady persuaded him to telegraph to the next station at which the train would make a stop,asking the officer in authority there to advance to the penniless passenger an amount equal to that left behind in her. bag. This was most courteously done.

German and New Zealand Students. The proposal from the University of Berlin that exchanges in students should be arranged between Germany and New. Zealand had received wide local support, said Sir George Fowlds, president of the Auckland University College Council, at a meeting of the council yesterday. Auckland was not in a position to provide accommodation for visiting students, though something might be done by the southern colleges. The council decided to' approve the principle of exchange, and express regret that the local college could not give effect to the proposal.

Echo of Manuka Wreck. According to a diver wlio went down off Long Point, south of Dunediii, the remains of the intercolonial steamer Manuka are now spread over nearly an acrc of the sea bottom. The vessel lias broken up. Caught on the rocks, 'she was exposed to the full force of the waves returning from the cliffs. The diver, it is reported, found that sand was covering most of the heavy gear. The boilers were not to be seen, and the propeller was also hidden. The remains of the Manuka are. still on the market for sale, but it does not seem at all likely that the underwriters in London will ever obtain the price they are asking for the wreck. Electrical Installations/ The re-inspection of electric installations is being carried out in the Devonport district by the staff of the Waitemata Electric Power Board. Reporting to this effept to yesterday's meeting of the board, the engineer, Mr. F. J. H. Wilson, stated that the largo majority of consumers seemed to realise the value of an independent inspection of' their electrical wiring and were, as a rule, anxious to rectify defects. It was interesting to riote that in a large number of instancies where alterations were required, consumers were installing additional lighting and heating points. Apart from these additions to the connected load, consumers in general were constantly adding to their electricial installations. Canadian Cars and New Tariff. The last shipment of Canadian motor vehicles and parts to come into New Zealand under the old tariff arrived at Auckland yesterday by the Canadian Leaden The ship left Montreal oil July 31 fwith; 900 tons of cargo, principally motor cars and accessories, all consigned to New Zealand. The next shipment of a similar kind will be by the Canadian Highlander, which left Montreal on August 26, but as the increased duty, came into force on August 20 the Highlander's cargo is affected by the altered tariff. A further shipment of cars will .arrive by the Canadian Commander, which left Montreal on August 29, and this shipment will also /be subject to the increased duty. Black Swans in Line.

. What appeared to be a long canoe manned by 26 canoeists . was observed : just beyond the line of. breakers near tlic East End pavilion at New Plymouth ori a recent morning. A more thorough inspection with the aid of field glasses revealed, however, 20 black swans resting on the sea in single file and close together. They were still there in the afternoon, but had drifted .apart somewhat. It is believed they were a flock on .their way to a nesting. ground. Swans are very strong flyers and cover, great distances by night- at this time of.the, year. It is their custom to come down to rest periodically. A Te Heriui resident said he had often seen groups of two or three swans floating in the'sea" in the same locality, but, never before had he seen so many at one time.

A Sporting Skipper. "No review of the past season would 'be complete which did not commemorate the services to Wellington and New Zealand cricket of Mr. T. C. Lowry," states the annual report of the Wellington Cricket Association. ("Apart from playing at considerable personal sacrifice in every game iu which Wellington took the field, Mr. Lowry also played in all four Tests against the M.C.C. team. . While his innings in the match against Auckland was probably as magnificent a fighting knock .as he has ever played, his originality and versatility as a captain are probably what lies will always be remembered by. No better tribute to these two qualities can be found than in the loyalty to and confidence in him of every member of the Wellington team." Training of Teachers. 1 "The proposal to make the training colleges part of the University system is one of the best in the report," remarked Dr...H. Ranston, at a meeting of the Auckland University College Council yesterday, when: the report of tlie Parliamentary Education Committee was discussed. The new scheme for the training of teachers, which will be considered .at a conference o'f the four University colleges in Wellington on September 25, provides for the selection of qualified students who will receive three years' full-time training at the University, and complete with one year of technical study at a training college. Professor. F. P. Worley said he was in favour of the ' scheme, as it would serve to raise the status of teachers, and: obviate .overlapping between the University and the training college. "I think the council unanimously favours the [ proposed changes," said Sir Geacge tfowlda,' '