NEWS OF THE DAY.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIV, Issue 98, 28 April 1933, Page 6

NEWS OF THE DAY.

Turned Down. Despite an appeal that the girl riders did not attain a very fast speed, and proposed to race over roads little used by other traffic, a request by tlio Auckland Ladies' Amateur Athletic Cycling Club to hold road races over a section of the district was declined this week by the Mount Roskill Road Board. Market For Barley. It is stated that a large Dunedin brewery has sold its complete present stock of barley to an American company at 7/6 a bushel, and it is shortly to be shipped to the United States, where it will be used in the brewing of beer. This should give a fillip to the barley growers of New Zealand, since it is unlikely that large stocks will be available in America. "Royal Signals" March. The New Zealand Corps of Signals has received by a recent mail from England a presentation from its allied corps —the Royal Corps of Signals —of two gramophone records of the Royal Signals March, played by the band of the Royal Signals. The inarch is composed by the bandmaster, Mr. R. R. Ricketts, who is a brother of the bandmaster of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders Band, which toured New Zealand after the Dunedin Exhibition. Misleading Name. Confusion among Southern folk concerning the exact headquarters of the Northern Boxing Association has decided that body to alter the name to Auckland Boxing Association. In proposing the change, the president, Mr. G. Bush, mentioned that to South Island people "northern' included the whole North Island, and some of them thought the N.B.A. should bo centred in Wellington, while others, more fully informed, thought the title "northern" had reference to North Auckland, whose centre was Whangarei. Wedding Wires Crossed. Cars conveying the bridegroom and near relatives arrived at the church well up to time at an Easter wedding in New Plymouth. It was intended that one car should return for the bride and her maids. Some instructions must have gone astray, however. The vehicles remained parked at the church, and the drivers were as curious as any in the crowd to see the bride appear. The minutes wore into half an hour before a frantic telephone call reminded the best man of his duties, and a very late car was dispatched for an almost hysterical bride. Better Off Than Many Others. Every farmer is not a pessimist, although »t times one perhaps has reason for thinking that that is the case, states the "Southland Daily News." A farmer and his wife were in Invercargill shopping recently, and were very cheerful and hopeful, although the depression has hit them as hard as any other man on the land. "We still have a few sheep and fat cattle, and a couple of acres of potatoes," said Mrs. Farmer. "We will have plenty to eat and drink, so I don't see any use in growling. Wo are better off than thousands of people in the towns." Racial Animosity. A Greymouth radio salesman is at present keenly interested in the Chinese, having a prospective customer of that nationality (says the "Grey Star"). He is also deriving considerable amusement during his demonstrations of the receiving set, and is acquiring a Chinese vocabulary. One evening recently a foreign station was heard on the air, and the announcement causcd much excitement among tho Chinese who were listening to it. One of them explained that there was good news, and that a Japanese airship had been brought down, over 100 Japanese being killed! The antipathy towards the Japanese has reached even to the Chinese in Greymouth. In the words of the radio man, "to tune in on a Japanese station is like stabbing them in the back. They all leave the room!" Clean-up After Motor Accidents. The service officer of the Taranaki Automobile Association has again had occasion to protest against the failure of people involved in accidents to clear the broken glass from the road. At Mangorei last week he found the road littered with broken glass for a distance of two chains. Over the couple of half-chain lengths the road was so covered with pieces of glass that no car would have been able to escape them. The glass had come from a broken windscreen, because the service officer found the place where the car had been pulled to the side of the road and the remainder of the glass taken out. Getting Things Done. In returning thanks last evening for the confidence shown in him by his election for the eighth successive occasion as president of the New Zealand Rugby Football League, Mr. Cyr:l A. Snedden created a ripple of laughter by a sly allusion to a now historic political war cry. "1 deeply appreciate your confidence," he said, "There is no need to assure you that I will continue to do my level best to "promote the national interests of our fine game. However, I do not propose to hurl at you, regarding myself,' a wellknown Parliamentary slogan about getting things done. I will say that close acquaintance with the code, its administration and sincere supporters inspires me to fi.Tht for the game to victory. I am convinced that in the span of my lifetime Rugby League will bo played popularly throughout tins Dominion." Back to the Horse. A little check to evolutionary progress would appear to be announced in the statement that a firm of Dunedin coachbuilders has been instructed to build a baker's two-wheeled delivery cart —the first order of its kind to be placed with tho firm within tho last twenty years. The reversion to horse-drawn vehicles is justified by a vendor, who has had considerable experience with motor vans, on tho grounds of the greatly reduced outlay and running expenses as against the relatively small saving through expedition. Undoubtedly the heavy motor taxation and the unfavourable exchange for motor importation are compelling an investigation into the costs of delivery, and, judging by the number of orders already placed with locarcoachbuildere, there is not the slightest doubt that before long there will be a substantial increase of horse traffic in Dunedin. West Coast Bar Harbours. The westerly weather last week resulted in ships being held up at the bar harbours, reports of the kind coming from Oneliunga, Westport and Greymouth. The Union Company's steamers Kaimiro and Kini were held up at Greymouth. On Friday there was a 10-knot fresh in the river, and this added to the trouble of the bar. Ships at Greymouth have to berth with their bows facing up the river, and when there is a strong fresh they cannot be turned round to proceed out to sea because of tho narrowness of the river. However, the fresh serves the purpose of scouring out the bar. When it is reported in the shipping columns that a ship is barbound at Greymouth, it means that the seas are so rough on the bar that the ships cannot venture through. April and May are tho worst months for holdups in the West Coast harbours. Fowl Rejects Grain. A strailge fowl, now nearly a year old, and a.splendid layer, which will not eat grain, roosts in the fowlhouse of a Stanley Bay resident. The hen is of a decidedly friendly nature, and allows itself to be stroked without trying to get away. When the other fowls have grain thrown to them, this one refuses to take any notice, and just goes away and scratches at the ground. Wheat, oats, or maize make no appeal to it, but it will come for food if a boiled potato, pumpkin, or any soft food is offered to it. In the morning, when the other fowls are picking up the grain, it will remain ravenous till the desired vegetable is brought, when it eats it in a way which shows it to be hungry. Any attempt made to leave it without its favourite food, so as to compel it to eat grain like the other fowls, is fruitless. It simply has no time for grain, and the owner, who has been familiar with fowls for half a century, says no case like it has been seen before, as far as he knows.