NEWS OF THE DAY.

Auckland Star, Volume LXII, Issue 3, 5 January 1931, Page 6

NEWS OF THE DAY.

In Memoriam. Memorial services were lield in Holy Trinity Church, Otaliuhu, yesterday, for the former vicar of the church (the Rev. C. B. W. Seton), who died suddenly in England while on holiday. The preacher at the morning service was Archdeacon Mac Murray, and in the evening. Archdeacon Simkin. Strawberries Plentiful. * .Strawberries are plentiful just now. An Aucklander who visited Waikowhai yesterday described the scene on a local fruit farm. "The berries were so thick, after two or thre2 days of sunshine, following rain, that when I stood at the bottom of the rows and looked along, the vegetation appeared red. They were so plentiful that their colour eclipsed that of the green leaves." Spoiling the View. • "I like your harbour, but those hulks one sees at once don't improve it," said a man who has travelled widely on his arrival last week. "After all, it's your front door, and first impressions do count. I don't see why all those ships could not be moored somewhere else. There are a lot of them, and the impression they give may be quite misleading. Anyhow, they spoil the view where they are." Fight With An Octopus. A large octopus attacked Mr. J. Newton, who is cruising in the launch Crusader with the Rev. Jasper Calder's party, when they were at Stoney Bay, near Cape Colville. It threw a tentacle around his .right leg. Mr. B. Clark, who was near at hand, battered the octopus with a large stone, the only weapon available, and forced it to release its grip. It slipped into deep water and escaped. It is estimated that the tentacles of -the octopus were Gift long. Wheat Duties. , "It would pay the North Island to pay the South Island farmers to go out of wheat growing so the wheat could be imported without the present exorbitant duty designed to protect the New Zealand wheat farmer," said the chairman, Mr. M. G. Trotter, at a meeting of the Stratford executive of the Farmers' Union. His remarks were provoked by a statement that wheat invoiced at £G 15/ a ton from Melbourne would be subject to a duty of £9 per ton. Wealthy Sportsman's Plans. An elaborate hunting expedition is to be carried out in British Columbia this spring by Mr. S. De Ghandel, who, according to a Vancouver newspaper, will then come on to New Zealand. Mr. De Ghandel, who is a much-travelled sportsman, intends to cross the district on horseback, this method of 'travel having never been attempted before in that part of the country. In addition to his wife, secretary and personalattendants, Mr. De Ghandel is taking, with him a •mining engineer and prospector in order to investigate mining possibilities in the region covered. A Quinquireme. "Lee Fore Brace" writes:—ln Saturday's issue of the "Star" appears a query, "What is a quinquireme?" In the Macpherson collection of ship pictures appears an engraving of such a vessel, perhaps the oldest of its kind extant. She is represented as being a long galley-like vessel, fitted with five banks of oars on either side, or a total of 222 oarsmen. 'She carried a single mast fitted with a lateen sail. Such vessels, we are told (Macaulay's History of England), were used by the Phoenicians in their trade between the south coast of England and the Iberian Sea— long before the dawn of our maritime histpry. Around Mount Egrnont. A notable climbing feat was accomplished during the Christmas holidays by a party of New Plymouth mountaineers. The track across Okahu Gorge was traversed. This was done by descending on the scoria slope and ascending over a wide ledge. The cliffs there are over 300 ft high. It was very hot, and melted-snow water was pouring over the cliff, so the climbers took a shower at GOOOft. Proceeding south past Bob's Bluff to Fantham's Peak, they had to cut steps. As a side trip the party climbed to the summit and the snow was found to be in excellent condition. At the end. of the day they went down to the Dawson Falls Hostel. First Train Wireless. When the Leeds express steamed out of King's Cross, London, on November 24, it had the honour of being the first wireless-equipped train in England. Radio' experiments had been carried out on the railways, but this was the first time that every passenger could listen-in to the 8.8.C. programmes. Every seat had a socket for headphones which could be hired at a shilling for the journey. The next development will be; train telephones. This installation will enable the train traveller to keep in touch with an office, to book hotel accommodation or theatre seats, or to ring up his home, although he is, maybe, hundreds of miles away from it. New Zealand's First Autogyro. Test flights of the recently imported autogyro, which has now been assembled, have been made by Squadron-Leader J. L. Findlay, Officer Com? manding Wigram Aerodrome, who said that the machine flew very well. It was very different from ,the ordinary aeroplane and one felt the bumps less, since these were smoothed out by the flexibility of the coupling of the blades. Squadron-Leader Findlay finished his display by •making it stand still in the air. The blades above the fuselage whirled, but the machine remained perfectly stationary. After that he just let the machine drop down, allowing it to slip earthwards more slowly than a parachute, landing it with little forward motion, so that it stopped dead. The pilot who is to fly the autogyro upon its tour around New Zealand, when it will be demonstrated and make passenger flights, is to be Mr. R. E. Mathe'son, who has recently returned to New Zealand after holding a short service commission in the Royal Air Force. He also went to Germany and qualified for a C gliders' license. Workless Coming From Wellington. Since the beginning of May, the night shelter conducted by the Auckland City Mission has supplied 32,284 beds and 67,905 meals. The honorary medical .officer, Dr. Barraclough, has attended 260 men and the average nightly admission has been 130 men. On Saturday night'the oldest man in the shelter was 73 years of age and the youngest 20. "Men appear to be drifting into Auckland fro'ifi all parts of the country," said Mr. Albert "Wilson, the manager of the shelter, yesterday. "More particularly, they seem to be coming from Wellington, evidently under, the impression" that more work is to be obtained here. Unless employment is found for a large number in the immediate future our accommodation will be so taxed that we will have no alternative but to turn men away. Needless to say, we will be loath to do that." Mr. Wilson makes an appeal for funds and goods to enable the mission to carry on its beneficent work during 1931. While the main offices of the City Mission are closed (until January 12), gifts of clothing, shoes, etc., may be left at the.shelter, 13, Wellesley Street East (opposite the post office).