NEWS OF THE DAY.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVII, Issue 59, 10 March 1936, Page 6

NEWS OF THE DAY.

Sheep Country. Asked regarding the price of land in Soutl Africa suitable for sheep farming, a niembei of the South African farmers' party repliec that the very best sheep country could b< procured at £5 per aero. Merino sheep wen held in high favour in his country. A lot o; these sheep had been imported originally fron ■ Australia. Romney sheep were not popular ii South Africa. . Failure in National Anthem. * ' Few of those who heard the Cairns Banc play its way to championship honours at Nev Plymouth appreciated the full extent of it: rise to fame. Three years ago, said Warrant Officer ~"J. Compton, at Stratford, the Cairn; Band broke down while playing the Nationa Anthem during a welcome to the Governor He was illustrating what could be achievec by liarcl work. South African Oranges. The loader of the South African farmers party, Mr. H. H. Dillcy, remarked to a jour nalist in Taranaki that he could not under stand why New Zealand imported so mucl fruit from California. He explained thai South Africa at the season of the year whei oranges were required in New Zealand conic supply large quantities of excellent qualitj fruit, and that there would be no difficult} at all in regard to shipments. "We have alsc in South Africa," lie added, "the most up-to-date canning factories in the world." Speed in . Travel. "I thought we knew how to move until my arrival clown under," Dr. Daniel A. Poling world president of the Christian Endeavoui Union, remarked in an address he gave to the New Zealand Club in Wellington. Americans were generally supposed to know the value of speed and how to employ it, but his eyes had been opened in Australia. There he travelled 4000 miles, flying 2500, and giving 42 addresses in nine cities in nine days. "After Australia I am going back to the United States to tell the real meaning of speed to Americans," he said. Electrical Supply. A report is to be prepared by the general manager of the Auckland Power Board, Mr. R. H. Bartley, on the conversion of the board's supply system in the city to alternating ■ current. When the matter was mentioned at a meeting of the board yesterday Air. E. H. Potter said that to be witfiout alternating current in addition to direct was a reflection on the board. They had it in the outside area, but only in certain parts of the city. Mr. Bartley replied that they wanted to see it as soon as possible, and a very comprehensive report would be brought down. Tourist Liner Coming. Bringing about 800 tourists, the' P. and O. Line's 22,000-ton steamer Strathnaver was to leave Brisbane this morning for Auckland, where she is due about 3 p.m. on Friday, on her second visit this summer, and the last of the season. Many of the visitors have planned trips to Rotorua, some of them intending to return to Auckland to rejoin the ship before she sails for Wellington at midnight on Saturday, and others to travel overland to Wellington, to re-embark there on Monday. Local sightseeing trips have also been arranged for the tourists. Cable Charges to Japan. A satisfactory response has been received to representations from the executive of the Associated Chambers of Commerce to the Postmaster-General, the Hon. F. Jones, that cable charges 1 between New Zealand and Japan are too high. At a meeting of the council of the Canterbury Chamber of Commerce the executive of the Associated Chambers advised that the Postmaster-General had replied to its representations on this subject, and had said the Go\>ernment realised the charges needed to be reviewed, and every effort would be made to have them reduced. The Speeding Motorist. Charges of excessive speeding against 19 motorists were dealt with yesterday by Mr. W. R. McKean, S.M., at the Onehunga Police Court. The majority of offenders were young men, who were caught speeding on the roads leading to the motor speedway at Mangere and on the Great South Road between Penrose and Otahuhu. Speeds varying from 37 to 59 m.p.h. were recorded, and the fines ranged from 25/ to £2, with costs in each case. After dealing with these cases Mr. McKean remarked that the craze for speed on the road was becoming far too common, and was dangerous, especially in limited areas, and that as the fines hitherto inflicted had not had a deterrent effect, he predicted that amendments to the motoring regulations were not improbable. Drivers before long would be faced with the prospect of much heavier penalties. Yacht Loses Sails. Manned by Messrs. J. IT. Whitelaw and H.N. Cook, of Russell, the B class yacht Rangi had a stormy trip from Bay of Islands to Auckland during the week-end, arriving here yesterday morning under mainsail alone, two hcadsails having been blown away. Leaving Russell shortly before noon on Saturday, the Rangi carried a fair wind to Cape Brett, where she ran into a heavy, confused sea and a strong south-easterly wind. In a particularly fierce squall the yacht was thrown on her beam ends, the jib sheets carried away, and the sail blown to shreds. The yacht thereupon ran into Whangamumu, where she sheltered until Sunday morning. Better weather prevailed on Sunday, but off Kawau Island a black squall carried away the re- | maining headsail. From the Rangitoto Chan- i nel, the Rangi came into port under power. The Marama from Mount Talbot. A party of alpinists climbing Mount Tal- ' bot, at the head of the Hollyford Valley ] (Martin's Bay, Milford Sound), recently had 1 an interesting experience. They bad almost ' reached the summit when the Marama entered < the Sound, and though she was still over seven i miles away they could see her plainly, even i to the foam at lier bows. She did not waste i any time, however, but having slowed down s to* pick up a passenger, turned slowly and s steamed out of the Sound. It is an interest- < ing fact and one not generally known that ; though the water outside the mouth of the 1 Sound is comparatively shallow, inside the ] Sound itself it is too deep for even the largest i vessel to drop anchor, and the propellers have to be kept turning to keep the vessel off shore. ' For the same reason tourists are unable to fish in the Sound, being unable to reach the : bottom. The fishing out at the Sound mouth, ■ however, is good. ]

Matriculation Examination. In answer to a request made at the annual meeting of the Rongotai College Parents' Association, the principal, Mr. F. Martyn Renner, stated that during the last two or three years the headmasters and headmistresses of the various secondary schools had been asked by the University authorities to send in with the matriculation entry forms an estimate of the chances of the candidate of passing the examination. A denoted a certain pas?, B probable pass, C doubtful, and D no chance. So far as he knew, stated Mr. Renner, these estimates were not made use of in the marking of the papers, though he had no doubt that such estimates, with a little further elaboration, might prove of very great value if they were used by the examiners, particularly in border-line cases. Their value, of course, lay in minimising the risk of doing a grave injustice to those candidates wffo had worked .well and conscientiously, and, did not show up to advantgac in a written examina- 1 tion.

Inland Air Mails. In referring to the proposal to establish inland air mails, the secretary of the Auckland Chamber of Commerce, Dr. E. P. Neale, said this morning that the chamber had been . working in that direction for some time. 1 Auckland business men would regard the pro- \ posed service as a great boon, as it appeared 1 that the rates were to be verv reasonable. e f Hospital Affairs. n W. G. Mulholland, a member of the n Auckland Hospital Board, has given notice to move at a meeting oil March 17 that the board should consider the advisability of making a new appointment to the staff at the . head office of the Auckland Hospital Board, to be termed secretary-manager, and that if ,V it is decided to create the new position to call 8 applications immediately to fill it. ® Bandsman's Record. r. With 4.3 years of contest competition to d his credit, Mr. "Harry" Bevin, of the Wanganui Garrison Band, was the oldest bandsman present at the Dominion championships at New Plymouth. Genial and popular cornetist, Mr. Bevin has been associated with many 3 ' bands since he played in his first competition at Duncdin in 1891 with the Kaikorai Band ' under the late Mr. E. Stratton. By continu- '' ous service since Mr. Bevin has a record with 4 few parallels in Dominion band history. Questions and Answers. Y „ Interspersing a serious discourse with 0 occasional humour at yesterday's meeting of the Auckland Rotary Club, Mr. Ivan Menzies told of the boy who was faccd with a difficult question in a pre-lioliday examination, and wrote on his paper: "God knows the answer; I don't. A Merry Christmas." With 1 the results of the examination he received ;, this reply: "God gets 100 per cent; you get r nothing. A Happy New Year." s Forgetful People. f All manner of articles were left behind 1 by visitors to the Ellcrslie lloral fete on 1 Saturday. All through the afternoon the announcer was broadcasting that such and i' such an article had been found; and tliey 1 ranged from a lost child to a lost hat—and 5 hats were easy to lose out there, so strong was the wind. But the point is that many articles have still to be claimed. For example, there is a gold watch without an owner; and 1 that is far from being the only valuable. "In . fact," said one of the officials this morning, : ."the only thing that was not left behind was - the baby." • Befriending the Birds. ; "Increasing numbers of thoughtful folk ' are putting bird baths into their gardens, and ' they are pleased to have feed boxes for them 1 during ' the winter and early spring, when ' natural food is comparatively scarce and bad weather may make foraging difficult," says the February issue of "Forest and Bird" in a reference to the erection of a drinking font, bath and nesting box for birds in the War Memorial Gardens of Kaikoura. Similar proi vision for the feathered friends of man should , be made in all public gardens, the magazine urges. Not a Kiwi Seen. "We have been in your country over a month motoring everywhere," said a member of a British tourist party to a "Daily News" reporter in Invercargill, "but so far the only kiwis that we have seen have been stuffed ones in museums. The kiwi is always figured in all the advertisements , for your country and appears to be your' national bird as figured in cartoons regarding football and, cricket. It is always the battle between the lion and the kiwi when your All Blacks play England. We have been told that they do still exist, but we would like to have seen one in the life." However, he went on to explain that such things were not peculiar to New Zealand. Last year they were in Brazil, but they could see none of the far-famed Brazil nuts. The First Portrait. Official visitors to the National Art Gallery at Wellington recently were rather amazed to find that in one respect the hanging committee had been forestalled. After inspecting several scrim-lined galleries, the Prime Minister, the Hon. M. J. Savage, was ushered into a large apartment, which Mr. G. A. Troup explained was to be the portrait gallery. Mr. Troup had barely explained this to the Ministerial party, when someone declared that a start had already been made with the collection, on which there was a general laugh. The portrait referred to was a newspaper portrait of the Prime Minister himself —pinned "on the line" by one of the workmen (says the "Dominion"). Standard-of-Living Bogy. Lord Barnby, who spoke at the Wellington Chamber of Commerce luncheon, referred to the standard-of-living bogy which was so often raised when an argument ensued between British and Eastern manufacturers. He said that the standard of living in Japan was so high that they could not compete on the mainland with Koreans, Mancliukuans, or Chinese, any more than Englishmen could conform to the standard of living of the Arabians. As a matter of fact, to measure the standard of living with money as the yardstick was completely erroneous. A person of culture and refinement might elect to live frugally and modestly on the cheapest and healthiest of foods, but was he any the less worthy than the uncultured man who lived on champagne and caviare? As it happened, the Japanese preferred a diet of rice and fish, but that did not impair the measure of their culture. M.C.C. Farewell. "We have tried to play the game in a free and easy way, but could not do so on Saturday," stated *15. B. T. Holmes, captain of the M.C.C. team at an afternoon tea given to the M.C.C. and New Zealand cricket teams at Christchureli yesterday. "The batsmen were playing to orders and were told that they were not to get out. It was perhaps a compliment to New Zealand cricket. The team had enjoyed every match of the tour, and, whereas representative cricket in England and elsewhere was not always enjoyable, the matches against the New Zealand teams had all been great fun." Finally, Mr. Holmes paid a tribute to the members of his own team and said no captain of a touring team ever had an easier task. "The tour has been an experience which will last forever in our memories, and we can never forget your hospitality, the friendships, and, I must say it, your weather. For ten out of the eighteen games it ha» interfered with the matches." Rajah's Fate. Lions and tigers at the Zoo had elephant meat on their menu to-day, for that is the way the Auckland Zoological Park authorities plan to dispose of as much of the flesh as is

possible of Rajah, the' 10-year-old bull elephant shot yesterday because of the possible danger of his existence to public safety. The taxidermist of the War Memorial Museum, Mr. C. W. Dover, worked with three Zoo attendants all yesterday afternoon to remove the hide of the elephant. Eajah weighed four tons, and block and tacklc and a lifting jack had to be used to hoist his body into a convenient position. A screen hid from the public gaze the strokes of the sharp knives. Mr. Dover estimates that it will be nearly four months before the hide is ready for the museum, and, as for the flesh— well, since African natives and an occasional Frenchman are about the only people known to have a taste for elephant steak, the lions and tigers of the Zoo will have a rare treat for several days to come. The hide will be brought to the museum within the next day or two, and its preparation and mounting will be done in earnest. It was stated this morning that the completed figure will probably stand in the general natural history hall, and will not be put -under glass.