NEWS OF THE DAY.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIX, Issue 106, 7 May 1938, Page 8

NEWS OF THE DAY.

Poor Fishing Season. Inclement weather and much rain haj been a disappointment to.anglers in the Roto rua and Taupo districts, and the fishhi" has been poor. The Tongariro River, at Tan no wh.ch is usually one of the best streams foi trout, has been discoloured and runnin~ while at Rotorua only at the mouths i>! streams have anglers had much success. Th< level of the lakes in the Rotorua district has been high, and water temperatures have beer above normal for this time of the year. Laughter in Court. "What is your excuse for not having a light attached to your bicycle?" Air. EC Levvey, S.M., asked a young men who appeared in the Chrirtehurch Magistrate'* Court on a charge of riding a bicycle at nisrht without a light. "I was groin* to a football practice, but my young brother got the lio-ht first. ,, the young man replied, amid laughter. •Costs only," Mid the magistrate, in rfvinj Ins decision. c " The Toll of Fast Traffic. "We could close two wards, immediate]v/ ! declared the Auckland Hospital Board chairman tile Rev. W. C. last ,vo,u,J at J apakura, when doling with tiic fmancos of the boart. He wont on to qualify his startling ;«"l«ration by « y inp. -That is," if you could tear your streets of motor cars and motor cycle*, for two wards arc always full up with motor accident .x.sos. an,l thoso from motor cycle accidents stay usually a lon- time for a ball waT"° r "' ° Cr "* h<?# th " ™ ,im is tn Free Library Service Welcomed. Appreciation of the action of the Hamilton Library Committee in supplying free books for the use ot pupils of Standards V. and VI was 'jessed by Mr. F. W. Hare. of the Whhiora School, in a letter received by he library committee. Mr. Hare referred to the splendid collection of books received bv the school, and mhled that their use could not fail to assist iu the education of the pupils to Z'aa- S i m ;' a,r reported that the committee had distributed CSS books anion- sis schools m the town. House Shortage at Dargaville. Shortage of accommodation at Damnville has become acute. and the position to-day ie more serious than it has ever been before" ihere appears to be very little possibility of the demand beinn- met, even with the completion of the State houses, and many toum married conples at present are pavine hi~h rates for board. Many single men and women are unable to obtain accommodation. One woman undertook a housc-to-liouse canvas among the private houses of Dargaville Under present conditions nmny residents have provided board in their homes. A Butterfly is Born. i SU J dy Of the life of the beautiful Monarch butterfly is making a fascinating hobbv many Auckland children at present. 'Thev gatherthe caterpillars from the leaves of the "swan" plant, place fhem securely—for thev are energetic things—in netting-covered boxei Mid feed them carefully with the proper foliage. After a few days they find each lon* fat caterpillar has turned into a ehrysalis of green and gold. A few more days.'and the bntt«rfiy emerges from the chrysalis which Iras by now turned a blackish rwL to unfold its porjreous wings—gold and black, with embroidery" of white and velvet blue. Fire-lighting in State Bush. That the lighting of firee in State forests vnthout a permit is illegal and dangerous was brought into prominence yesterday when Keith Brooke-Taylor, Edward Robert" Griffiths Wallace and Raymond George Corser were sc charped and fined £5 each and costs Lα the Wellington Police Court. Charges three other defendants were dismissed. Fires were lit in the course of a tramping expedition in the Tararua Ranges durinjr the Wellington Anniversary week-end. Mention wa= made of a fire in the Tararuas in January, biit these men were not responsible for it. Fines were also imposed on various oT the defendants in regard to having a rifle without a permit and shooting deer. Kookaburra and Customs Breach. One of the incidents of the returned soliiers' trip to Sydney resulted in thp Wellington Zoo acquiring a kookaburra. It is stated that when one of the party on the Monowai was embarking at Sydney h<. was approached to take a small leather has aboard to a passenger, but owing to its lightness nnd suspicious fluttering within he insisted on knowing the content-;. With some reluctance ho was informed that the bag contained a kookaburra, and immediately he had visions of fines md penalties for taking the bird out of the country. However, he was fully imbued with the spirit of care-free abandon' characterising the departure, engendered by the lavish pitality of the friendly Australians, and. although formally a responsible citizen, he Bnel!y agreed to accept the gift on behalf of the intended recipient. The bird was handed jver to the care of a member of the crew, but iext day, on reflection, the agent decided that to atone in some meaeure for the breach of the regulations it should be presented to the Wellrnjrton "Zoo. The bird ,is now quite at borne in the zoo.

Flowers aund False Spring. In conurton with the general run of fruit and flower plants, which have been "fooled* into blooming out of season by the mild eutiimu weather following on a hot summer, the taro plant, which blooms rarely and then as a rule in springtime, has ben observed to be in flower in the Opotiki district. A flowering tnro, a speeiee of lily, is a rarity, and it has not previously been recorded in Opotiki. Dargaville's New High School. The new Dargaville District High School, which has been erected to replace the building destroyed by fire in April la6t year, was occupied by pupils for the first time yesterday. Children and teachers assembled in the new classrooms in the morniug. The headmaster, Mr. H. F. Wilkinson, said he wae particularly pleaeed with the school and i<s eppointments. The classrooms, however, wetfe rather small for the present size of the classes. Moving Day at School. It was moving day at the Stanley Bay School yesterday. The addition of a new room and the remodelling- of the old building nifldf necessary the provision of temporary accommodation, and school lias boon held for some time in two adjacent church halls. With the completion of the work tho task of returning desks, blackboards and nil the paraphernalia of a schoolroom was tackled yesterday. Many hands made light work, and tlie children treated the task as a holiday. Highway Dangers. The highway between Thames and Coromandel wns opened n> traffic ycvtorclay, but owing tn erosion by the sea tli'p i-oa-taV road for 12 miles north of Thames is in a dangeroii« condition. Motorists on the route should exertHKe great rare and pay attention to the warnings erected by the Automobile Association. Repairs are to bp carried out «s soon a> possible by the Public- Works Department. The Kaimai Hills route between tho Waikato and Tauranga is still closed. Slijw in the Awakino fWgc yesterday worried motorists negotiating the Xew Plyn'iouth-Auckland highway, (iiven good wenthrr. it was hoped to have the road cleared to-day.

Care of Watches. The opinion that people in Xew Zealand do not know how to take rare of watches was expressed by M. Andre Juillornt, Geneva, who is visiting Wellington. They forgot, he said, tliat tliu natch was an article of the iu<>st delicate precision, governed by a balancing action which, especially in the popular wristlet watch, was very small. What other pieces of machinery could stand up to abuse like the watch? The engines of locomotives and aeroplanes were examined after every run, and were frequently overhauled. But if the mechanism of a watch gave trouble people were apt to coudeinn the article right away without any consideration of the rough usage to which it had been thoughtlessly subjected. Income Tax Forms. A new method of distributing land and income tax forms lias been adopted tliie year, the Taxation Deinirtnie-nt having arranged with the postal authorities to leave a form, together -with a Departmental circular, at every home. It is expected that the forme supplied for Auckland city and snburbs will be delivered within the iiext two or three days. As this method will make it unnecessary for individuals, in the majority of cases, to call at the various post offices 'for forms! only a limited supply has been provided for distribution over the counters. The Department, therefore, asks taxpayers not to apply for forms unless for any reason they are overlooked in the postal deliveries, or require to make out more than one return. Jurymen in Discomfort. Attention to the fact that jurore had had to stand every day since the Supreme Court opened on Tuesday was drawn by Mr. J. Hynes, the foreman of a common "jurv. at Hamilton yesterday. Addressing the *Chief Justice, Sir Michael Myers, Mr. Hynes said that no forms had been provided for waiting jurymen in the vestibule or in the back of the Court. "Of course, it should be done," said his Honor. "There should be some seating accommodation nt the back of the Court." The Registrar, Mr. O. p. Clark: "I have applied for eeats." His Honor: '-Well, apply again as a direction from the Court. When men are called to do thoir duty to'the country and take part hi the highest' function of the State, the administration of justice, the least that can be done i* to see that they are provided witli decent comfort." . Sideshows Yesterday and To-day. Once again the Winter Exhibition ha* come, and with it the usual varied collection of sideshows, some being gome* calling for skill and straight ne<s of eye and others being divers curiosities and 111ii> of interrst x<> be looked at. While many Piii-h Attractions; have not chuiiLMvl with tho time*, n gLaure at some of the features of ;1 fair held in ] ss;s will show a striking min r;i-t to present duv sideshows. ••The teh-phoii.>. by which visitor* will be able to , coinmunii-ate with their friends at various part* of the hall: electricity, practically applied by Professor Pearce:' microscopes and other objects of interest." reads the catalogue, which goes on to state that the "fair will be commodiously illuminated with hundreds of lanthorns. and is so situated that persons of quality's coaches may drive up to the entrance." However, the basic motive of the show seems unchanged, as the following extract from a handbook, printed in old lish style, shows: "Ye object of ye market be to encourage ye Industrie of manie faire workeres."