NEWS OF THE DAY.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIX, Issue 24, 29 January 1938, Page 8

NEWS OF THE DAY.

No Forestry Decorations. With the object of furthering foreet preservation, the executive of the New Zealand Institute of Horticulture will urge, at the approaching national conference, that the I'cilieo Department l>o requested not to relax its vigilance with regard to the Native Plants Protection Act. and that the Government again include in the Act a clause preventing the decoration of streets, halls and motor vehicles with native pltints. Dr. Barnett, of Baltimore. One of America's distinguished economists, Dr. (J. E. Burnett, of Baltimore, Maryland, will arrive in New Zealand shortly on a brief visit. Dr. Burnett is a professor of political economy, and has been professor of statistics at. the Johns Hopkins University since 1911. He was president of the American Economic Association in 103'2. and is also a member of the American Statistical Association and the American Association for Labour Legislation. Dr. Burnett will l>c accompanied by his daughter, Miss Elsie Burnett. Once a "Slough of Despond." The groat improvements that are being carried out by the Public Works Department on the main road from Pokeno to l'aeroa are greatly appreciated by the motorist. Only a few xcaiv ago the journey meant chains on all wheels and then "go for it." with a wire at the end of the journey, if you were lucky, to your friends that you had safely negotiated the plains. The many annoying curves and twists through the Pokeno Valley have b-cn straightened out, «nd that notorious steep hill by the old Anglican church has disappeared. Another bad hill is disappearing under the efforts of a steam shovel, the one leading up from the Mangatangi River. The traffic in the meantime has to detour round the Kaiaua landing road. And the tar-sealed ronrle across the plains from Waitakaruru, over long straight stretches, are indeed a vision of a motorist's Eden. There is still one bridge near Maramarua that wants "fix- ! ing"; it is a narrow one at almost right angles to the main road. Road Manners. A N/apier resident has returned from a 1200-mile motoring tour keenly impressed by what he considers to hare been a perceptible improvement in road manners among motorists at large. "I found the courtesies of the road being observed far more thoroughly this year than has ever been the case in my previous experience," he said. "On many stretches I was not a little surprised to find drivers of vehicles taking the first opportunity of giving the 'come-on' signal to traffic overtaking them—rather a different position from that which I have- encountered in the past, when I ha\ - e on many an occasion been obliged to follow laboriously behind a lorry for miles before the chance came to pnes. This is a courtesy which all motorists appreciate, and one which makes road travel a far more enjoyable occupation. The improvement is not confined to lorry drivers, however, for, although I noticed quite a number of instances of speeding, private motorists for the most part appear considerably more eager to observe the rules of the road to the letter."

Flags from German Samoa. A claim of the capture of two more German flage at Samoa has been made, bringing the total to eight. The new claim was reported yesterday by a resident of Christchnrch, Mr. L. H. Buchanan. The two flaps are said to have been taken by Private Harry Laurenson, brother-in-law of Mr. Buchanan, who landed with the advance party at Samoa in 1914. One fla™ , was taken from the residence of the German Governor rn Samoa, and the other from a German pinnace. A report from Wellington on January 21 stated that there were three flacrs of which the authenticity had been established in the Auckland Museum, and that three other flajrs claimed to have been captured at Samoa had since been produced. A larjre flap taken from the Governor's residence, said Mr. Buchanan, was ' presented by Private Txiurenson to Well mart on College in 1914. A smaller flag, about 16in by 12in, which was taken from the pinnace, had been in Mr. Buchanan's possession since 1914. This flap bore an inscription by Private Laurenson: "Taken from the longboat of the Governor of Samoa, Aupiist-September, 1914." Bad Roads in the South. Canterbury motorists who undertook southern tours during the holiday season returned feeling proud of the state of highways in their province, reports the "Press." Roads penerally in Otapo, Central Otatro and Southland are said to be very and there are only isolated stretches of paving. A city motorist told a reporter that, after travelling on a sealed highway almost all the way from Christchurch to Dunedin, he found that the corrugations and potholes on the route to Invercarg*!! and thence via the southern lakes back to Dunedin made motoring most unpleasant. After leaving Milton, on the way to Invercargill, he did not" meet with any sealed highway other than through towns until he had driven 580 miles and reached Milton again on his way back. He did notice, however, that a lot of reconstruction work had been done, notably from Dunedin to Invercargill and from Quocnstown to Dunedin. and he was told that heavy holiday traffic havl contributed to the bad state of roadfi after the Xew Year week-end.

Money in Shearing. A young Ongarue farmer who took up shearing two years ago has now brought hie tally up to 250 a, day. After he clipped hie own sheep and completed the neceseary seasonal work on his farm he joined a gang of shearers a few weeks ago. So far he has shorn 5000 sheep, which, at 34/ a 100, has brought him in £8.3. Cook Island Wireless Telegrams. A wireless telegraph office was opened at Pukapuka, in the northern group of the Cook Islands, on Wednesday lust, with the call sign ZKK. The postmaster at Auckland advises that the ordinary telegram charges are 1/3 and !)d. and that the night letter telegram charge is 10/5 for 2.3 words or loss, and ;3d for each extra word. i English Cyclists in Germany. The marked preference shown for Germany by English cyclists when they go abroad is shown in the figures just published by the Cyclists' Touring Club. Out of 2640 cycling tours abroad undertaken by members of the club during last year, 854, about a third of the total number, were made over German territory. In 1930 English members of the C.T.C. rnnde 700 cycling tours in Germany, and in 1935 the number was 455. Attack on Gorse. Several thousand weevils have boon liberated in New Zealand to attack the seed of the goree plant, according to advice received by the Wangamii provincial branch of the Farmers' Union. A letter from the Cawthron Institute, Xelson. stnted that a further supply of tho weevil would be made available next spring on application to the institute. In reply to a question frnm the Wangamii branch of the union, it was stated that it was not deemed advisable at the present time to introduce further parasites to uttnek the gorsc plant itself. Poisoned by Berries. A party of Hastings picnickers had their day spoilt recently as the result of eating a quantity of lawyer berries. The party was walking about the fields, and along the banks of the Tiikituki River, and several ate of the berries. Only one had ill-effects, however, and she developed a vivid raeh, with much vomiting, and medical aid was sought. The victim responded by the evening to the treatment, the diagnosis being that the condition was a form of poisoning. The eating of lawyer berriee ie quite a common practice, hut, like many other native berries, it is a cose of "one man's meat is another's poison."

The Age of Speed. The present age is one of speed, and in the last 30 or 40 years the world has progressed more than it did in the previous 1000 years, according to the lion. Adam Hamilton, speaking in Southland recently. It was necessary to travel fast, he said, but in doing so care must be taken to retain all that was good in the past. New Zealand had a standard of living higher than any other country in the world. The test of education was whether it made for better citizens. The trend of education was towards manual training, and it was only natural that that should be so, as in boye of up to 17 there was an urge to do something with their hands. "After that the urge is not so great," added Mr. Hamilton, amid laughter. Our Air Defence Force. The Government was spending a considerable sum on aviation, but, if the Dominion wanted an efficient defence force, it had to be done, stated the Hon. F. Jones, Minister of Defence, speaking at a dinner which was tendered him at Thames last evening. He said the initial work -would take from 18 months to two years to complete. Mr. .Tones said that in the Civil Reserve of Pilots they had sufficient young men to serve and defend their country. Recently, the Department had purchased 27 aeroplanes as a nucleus, and they would give these young men an opportunity to "find their wings" in the Territorial Air Force. The next instruction camp would be at Auckland, and the men there would be used in reconnaissance work on the coasts. There were 200 on the waiting list, and it was wonderful, indeed, to see how young men were responding to the call. They had received 4000 inquiries and had selected 700 men, of whom the greater number had passed the teets. Hawke's Bay Flood Incidents. Scenes reminiscent of a shipwreck were witnessed at Onga Onga, near Wuipukurau. following heavy rain. Through the rapid rising of the Tuki Tuki River.during the night, six people encamped on a V-shaped' strip of land found themselves isolated. A muddy torrent several feet deep and about r>o yards in breadth separated their island from the mainland. After a few very anxious hours, during which time the waters were rising swiftly, reducing their island; they were rescued one at a time in a boeun's chair rigsjed by Mr. B. Diamond, who is in charge of the Central Hawke's Bay Electric Power Board's sub-etation at Onga Onga. The persons rescued were four men, a woman and a seven-year-old child. The men were employed at a stonecrushing plant, and all six were living in tents nearby. When they discovered their predicament they fired guns, and. on investigating the reports, farmers living in the vicinity Paw their plight. One tent was swept away, and two motor trucks, a. tractor and the stone-crushing plunt were submerged by the flood and were considerably damaged.