NEWS OF THE DAY.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVI, Issue 231, 1 October 1935, Page 6

NEWS OF THE DAY.

A Pineapple " Bouquet." A freak fruit was brought to town recently, writes the "Star's" Suva correspondent. It consisted of a pineapple which liad all over the top no fewer than 39 young perfectly-formed small pines, making what was named a fruit "bouquet." It attracted much attention. " No Help from City." "We know from our reception in Wellington that we will get no help from the city," said the Mayor of Takapuna, Mr. J. Guiniven, at Nortlicote last night, when referring to the harbour bridge. "The city members arc pledged to the Morningsido tunnel, and couldn't possibly get both." He suggested that the Unemployment Board should be asked to start the approaches, and, speaking as an engineer, said they would never get the money for a bridge to Birkenhead. The sooner that talk was dropped the better. i Little Change. A type of political tactics which has apparently not changed a great deal in the last four centuries was mentioned by Professor J. Shelley in a lecturc on Florentine art in the fifteenth century given to the Workers' Educational Association at Christchurcli. He quoted the remark of Cosimo de Medici, that "new and worthy lords can bo made by a few ells of cloth," explaining that the same principle had been followed comparatively recently in England, when Kings and Prime Ministers had threatened to create enough lords to outvote those who were blocking some measures.

Timber By-product Possibilities. In the House of Representatives hist week Mr. R. Scmple drew nttention to the desirability of encouraging the development in New Zealand of an industry for the production of power alcohol, tannin extracts and other chemicals from wood, writes the "Star's" Dunedin correspondent. It is interesting to learn that an exceptionally big scheme is now under way in Southland to develop the industry, and it is understood that initial trials conducted on Southland timbers were so satisfactory that many overseas business houses have placed large buying contracts in advance. The question of national defence is also involved, and the Overseas Munitions Supply Board is in close touch with the project. The scheme should open up hitherto unexplored avenues for employment. Message Found in Bottle. A friendship between Mr. IT. L. Crook, Omapere, Hokianga, and a resident of San l<Yancisco, has developed in a novel manner. A few months ago Mr. Crook picked up, just inside the heads of Hokianga Harbour, a sealed jar containing an ordinary travel folder. He communicated with an address at San Francisco written in pencil on the back of it, and has since received a reply stating that the jar had been thrown overboard from the Monterey about four months before it was found when the vessel was 1000 miles from Auckland. His correspondent proposed that they should continue to write to each other, and extended an invitation for Sir. Crook to visit him should he be in the United States.

Teachers' Broadcasting. Whether—and, if so, how much—school teachers should be paid by the Broadcasting Board for preparing and broadcasting addresses in educational sessions was discussed at a meeting of the Wellington Educational Board. A letter was received from the Broadcasting Board requesting approval of a proposal to pay each speaker 10/0 per talk as from the beginning of the third term. Mr. A. C. Blake appealed for higher payment because of the large amount of preparatory work done by the teachers. Mr. C. H. Nicholls raised the point of the teachers possibly receiving two payments for the same work. He questioned whether they should be paid anything by the Broadcasting Board. The meeting decided to ask for payments of £1 1/. Work at Standard Rates.

Men employed on work for which they are not receiving standard wages are responding readily to the Unemployment Board's inquiry for.men to undertake full-time work at standard rates, probably iu the country. About .TOO men will be required in the Auckland district at first, and applications from registered unemployed arc almost equal to this number. Work will be started within the next week in the northern King Country, Waikato and Thames Valley areas, consisting mainly of improving and metalling roads giving access to farms. About SO or 00 men arc also to be started shortly on the development of the area at Kauri Point recently taken over by the Defence Department, while an increased number of men will also be employed on improving the landing ground at Hobsonville aerodrome.

Moa Bones of Pliocene Age. The bones found 011 Saturday by workmen engaged in road construction on the south side of Hastings have been identified by Dr. J. Allen Berry, of Napier, as the bones of a small moa. lie expresses the opinion that the bones belong to the pliocene age, which dates backsome millions of years. It was beyond doubt, he said in a statement, that tile bones were those of a small moa and the fact that they were found among deeply embedded oyster shells suggests their age. Similar discoveries, in which bones dated even further back than the pliocene age, had been made iu various parts of New Zealand, Dr. Berry added. Among some localities in which such discoveries had been made were the Wanganui district, at Waikoliu at the time of the building of the cast coast railway, and in the vicinity of Oamaru. Some of the discoveries belonged to the miocejic age, which was even more remote than the plioccne period.

Assured Market Needed. "We must have an assured market for many years, said &ir Alexander ITcrdman in the course of a political address at the Remuera Library Hall last evening. "Mr. C'oates has obtained a breathing space, but ; that is not enough. The danger of suffocation ; still exists. If New Zealand farming is to j grow and settlement is to increase we must have something more permanent. To be | ordered to come up for sentence when called upon is of no use. If we can open the door in favour of England we may be able to arrange that she places restrictions upon the imports of other countries, including Australia, when these countries insist upon keeping up high tariff walls or subsidise, by exchange or otherwise, their exports. Until some arrangement which will provide permanent security is made with the Imperial Government, -we must live in a state of uncertainty and apprehension." Dog and the Motor Car.

A correspondent writes: "I was recently instructed by a traffic inspector that if I did not keej) my dog off the back of my motor I would be prosecuted," and asks for clarification of his position. The motor regulations state: "No person shall operate a motor vehicle if the vehicle or its load or both arc so arranged that the load is not cither safely | contained within the body of the vehicle or I else securely fastened to the vehicle." There is 110 specific reference to the manner in which dogs shall be carried, but the interpretation of the authorities is that they come under the category of a load, and, as such, must be securely fastened. If a man were driving a lorry with a clog in it, and that dog was not fastened, he would be committing an offence. The purpose of the enforcement of the regulation, however, is to prevent the possibility of a dog leaping off a car and causing an accident, or in any way obscuring the driver's vision or interfering with his handling of the car.

Pay Cartage Too! Knowing colds were prevalent at this time of the year, a resident of Ponsonby a week ago picked from the lemon trees in her garden two or three hundred lemons and rang up a local organisation which is accorded extensive public support. The suggestion was made that the organisation should pick up the fruit and distribute it among the poor. The woman was told the fruit would be appreciated, but that she would have to send it to the depot and pay cartage. Next morning she placed the hundreds of lemons on the footpath for the dustmen to take away. " Political Noxious Weeds." "Those political noxious weeds" was how the chairman of the Liberal party, Mr. W. Jamieson, described the Democrats and the Labour party at a Liberal meeting in the parish hall at Northcote last night. The Democrats, he said, were a mere offshoot from the Tories, so there was little to hope for from them. The National Government was really the old Tories in disguise. "The only people they represent are the banks, financial trust companies and speculators," he said.

Tennis Not For Boys. A school where tenuis is a forbidden sport is the Hamilton Boys' High School. This was mentioned at the iirst annual dinner of the Christehurch old boys of that school. Mr. C. W. Ivent-Joliiiston, who outlined the progress of sport at the school, said that tennis was there presumably looked upon as a game that should be left to girls. The boys themselves, however, had different views. Outside of school sport they played a high standard of tennis. Many of the local championships were held by boys from the school, who played in their free time. But while tennis was not permitted, hockey, which is regarded by some as exclusively a girls' sport, was becoming the chief game among those played. Trout Season Opens. The trout fishing season in the Auckland acclimatisation district, which includes the Waikato and Wanganui river systems, opens to-day, and the rivers, though fairly high, are reported to bo generally very clear. The society's revenue lias increased in the last four years from £000 to about £900, and this is taken by the president, Mr. F. E. McKen/.ie, as an indication that fishing is better. The day and week licenses have also proved popular. The construction of ponds has enabled the trout to bo hatched at the places where they are liberated, and this has reduced mortality among the fry.

Politics A 1 Fresco. The pro vision of a loud-speaker to carry [ Sir Alexander Herdnu.n's opening address for the Parnell election outside the Rcmuera Library proved a wise precaution last evening. The hull was packed before the meeting commenced, and people soon gathered outside until there were over a couple of hundred there. There was a slight drizzle at times during the candidate's address of an hour and a half, but the outside audience stood patiently abo'it the hall or in the shelter of the trees th.-re, while some made themselves as comfortable as possible sitting on the kerb. The outside audience was just as quiet as that more comfortably seated inside, and reception was exceedingly good.

[ Warship Becomes Ark of Peace. An unusual sight met the eves of the crew of H.M.S. Wellington when she called off one of the smaller islands in the windward group of the Fiji Islands recently, writes the "Star's" Suva correspondent. As the vessel approached the island immense flocks of birds came flying to it and landed upon her decks in hundreds, i They were remarkably tame, and two which landed upon the bridge permitted close-up photographs to be taken of them, and the female bird allowed herself to be stroked. Later a sailor came into the cabin with one bird perched on the palm of his hand. The oflicer identified it as a. bo'sun bird. When the sailor went out 011 deck the bird flew off for some distance, inid then came back to settle upon the sailor's hand again.

The Power of Organisation. An amusing illustration of the value of organisation was given by a speaker at u relief workers' meeting held recently at New Lynn. He told how, when he was working for a farmer, lie had been impressed with It in employer's skill with the whip, as during a drive to a jieighbouring farm lie saw him flick a grasshopper on a fence post, a dragon fly in the air, and also several bot flics which hovered around the horse's head. As they approached tiie homestead the employee noticed a beehive near a gate, and remarked: "You are pretty spry with that whip. Now see if you can flick off some of those bees from the top of that hive." "So," replied the farmer. "I leave those fellers alone. You see, tin y're organised."

Night Cartage of Stock. The opinion that the cartage of stock by night was essential was expressed by a widely representative gathering of farmers, carriers, freezing works representatives and stockbuying and stock-selling organisations held in Napier yesterday. Mention was made of certain activities that were being directed toward the preventing of night cartage as a means of stamping out the theft of sheep, but all who spoke were unanimous in the view that if night cartage were disallowed many hardships would lie suffered by all concerned. It was decided to make representations to Mr. H. M. Campbell, M.P. The chairman of No. 4 District Transport Authority, Colonel R. F. Gambill, promised that that body would consider the matter and submit a report to the Minister of Transport if a request were made for It.

Bread and Health Regulations. I 1 or some time past there has been a move to make it permissible for bakers to use chemical improvers in bread, and Mr. C. C. Langc, president of the Master Bakers' Association, who returned to Invercargill from Christcliurch, stated that New Zealand was one of the only two countries in the world which, under their health regulations, forbade the use of chemical improvers. "For a long time the Wheat Research Institute has been endeavouring to have the ban lifted in the Dominion," he added. "One of the wheatgrowers' organisations, in conjunction with the bakers and millers of the country, will shortly apprpach the authorities with a further request for a revision of the existing regulations. At its meeting recently tile Wheat Research Institute agreed to place at the disposal of the growers, bakers and millers all the information oil improvers that it has collected."

Root Cultivation. The area devoted to the swede and turnip crop in New Zealand amounts to over 400,000 acres, and is greater than that devoted to any other arable crop (reports the "Star's" Mataniata correspondent). An article in the September issue of the "Journal of Agriculture" devoted to a description and distribution of swede and turnip varieties in the Dominion gives figures, inter alia, with a local application. Respective figures for the central plateau, embracing the Putaruru, Tokoroa and Rotorua districts, and the Waikato and King Country—covering the Waikato, Waipa, Raglan, Otorohanga, Waitomo and North Mataniata countics, are:—Total area of swedes and turnips, 2700 acres, 38,300 acres; percentage of Dominion average, O.G, 9.0; acreage devote'd to swedes, 2400 acres, 35,200 acres; to yellowfleshed turnips, 100 acres, 1550 acres; to whitefleshed turnips, 200 acres, 1550 acres; percentage devoted to swedes, 00, 92; to yellowfleshed turnips, 3, 4; to white-fleshed turnips, 7, 4. The table from which these figures were taken comprised 21 districts subdividing the Dominion, and was compiled from replies to a questionnaire submitted to instructors in agriculture. °