General News.

Press, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20499, 18 March 1932, Page 10

General News.

To meet tho convenience of ratepayers who find it difficult to attend to pay their rates at the Christchurch City Council's office during the ordinary office hours, it has been arranged that the office shall bo open to-night from 7 o'clock to 9 o'clock, to receive payment of rates. One positive case of infantilo paralysis was reported late on Wednesday. No cases w:ere reported yesterday. This week's report regarding tho lovel of Lake Coleridge shows that it is 1.55 ft below overflow level, which is 1672 ft. This wcek'3 figure is 1070.4 ft, as compared with 1670.85 ft, last week. Weighing ljlb when picked, a mushroom measuring 2 feet 8 inches in circumference, and Hi inches in diameter was on exhibition in a Temuka shop yesterday. It was picked by Mr C. E. Bremiior, of Temuka, on the property of Mr P, Mulverhill, at the head of the Kakaliau river. A letter from Mr L. O. H. Tripp, president of the New Zealand Acclimatisation Societies' Association, referring to the proposed presentation to Mr C. I. Dasent, who is retiring after 25 years' service as secretary of tho Association, has been referred to tho Finance Committee of the North Canterbury Acclimatisation Society, with power to act. The question of providing for a rebate on the prompt payment of rates was considered some time ago by the Finance Committee of the Christchurch City Couucil, and calculations then made showed that in order to provide for a rebate of 5 per cent, it would be necessary to increase the total levied by 5.3 per cent. It was not considered desirable to increase the amount levied to this extent simply in order that it might bo deducted. In the event of a rebate being provided for and a re,solution being arrived at imposing a 10 per cent, penalty, tho unfortunate ratepayers who failed to pay before the penalty was imposed would be penalised to tho extent of IS per cent.

. The Wellington Acclimatisation Society has referred to the North Canterbury Acclimatisation Society a letter written, by Mr Frank Dyer, a member of the Council of the Wellington Society, dealing with trawlers working at the mouths of rivers in the South Island and preventing salmon running up tho rivers to spawn. Mr Dyer wants the Government to alter the regulations governing the trawling for quinnat salmon at the mouths of rivers, to provide that trawlers shall not be allowed to operate closer shan one mile from such rivers, and that trawlers should be licensed for the sale of quinnat 6almon. The letter has been referred to a special committee of the North Canterbury Society consisting of Professor Percival and Messrs C. J. Holsey and F. Steans.

The house flag of the P. and 0. Company was flown for the first time on Tuesday from the New Zealand Shipping offices, the New Zealand Shipping Company being the chief passenger agents in New Zealand, for the P. and O. Company. This is the first time the flag has been flown in. Wellington, and, it is believed, in New Zealand. The flag is divided diagonally into four colours, red, white, blue, and yellow.

Advice has been refceived from the 1 Royal Institute of British Architects, London, that the New Zealand Institute of Architects' gold medal for 1931 has been awarded to Messrs Gummer and Ford, of Auckland, for the Auckland railway station, and that honourable mention is accorded to Messrs Tole and Massey, of Auckland, for St. Mary's College, Auckland. Each year drawings and photographs of prominent buildings are sent to the Institute, which adjudicates on them.

Although there are plonty of bananas in the Islands, the Tofua's shipment consisted of only 10,000 cases this trip. It was learned on the vessel's arrival that in order to obtain a fair market from the sale of tho product in Auckland the growers have decided to ration the shipments in future. Had the vessel brought a full shipment, it was said, tho return would not have paid the growers.

Tho liking of tho black beetle for the grass grub as an article of diet was known to some Otago gardonors many years ago, but that fact and tho derivation from that fact—namely, that it might pay to sot the black beetle to the task of destroying the grass grub—did not obtain general publicity nor gain the consideration of , the authorities, says an exchange. The whole matter dropped out of sight. A better outcome from the experiments by Mr. H. Bennett, or North East Valley, seems likely. Mr G. H. Mclndoe, of tho Horticultural Division, Agricultural Department, is sending particulars of a demonstration- to tho head office -in Wellington. Horticulturists and farmers will keenly watch for some practical result. The grass grub is a wiukod and übiquitous spoiler, as destructive on the Waikato dairy farm as in the orchards of Central Otago. One man', who specialises in the growing of soft fruits, remarked recently tliat he would now be financially independent if he had Hot had to fight the grass grub. The opening pf Regent street has been postponed until April Ist.

Considerable interest was caused in Suva last week by the discovery on the waterfront of a large steamer's raft, consisting of three cylinders painted light grey. There were no marks of identification on the raft, but the opinion has been expressed in Suva that it may be part of the wreckage from the Union Company's steamer Tahiti, which sank near Raratonga about 18 months ago. A curious position has arisen with regard to tho native registration of births at Taupo. In order to qualify for the "family allowance" tho applicant has to set out the names and ages of his children, and these have to be verified by the official register. The registration of births is not compulsory with natives, and therefore many children have never been registered. Now that they havo an influence on the pen-, sion, the father is registering children, some of whom are several years old. It happened that a neglectful father recently took along several children and registered the lot, and duly applied for the "family allowance." A suggestion was made at a meeting of the Wellington Chamber of Commerce by Mr A. J. Curtis that the Chambers of Commerce should make some move to endeavour to bring pressure upon tho Government to have penny postage brought back. Tho Government could, by responding, show that it was willing to assist the business community by reducing overhead expenses. The chairman, Mr C. J. B. Norwood, said ho thought it would be a very difficult matter to bring forward such an,..issuo when the country had such serious problems ahead as it had at present. Mr Curtis said ho was convinced that the reintroduction of penny postage would result in increased revenue to the Government. Mr Norwood said that the question whether revenue would be increased was a very open one; there were those who thought that revenue would fall. He did not think the question could bo successfully introduced at present. A decision to refer the question of X-ray charges to the House Committee, following the receipt of a letter from tho Hikurangi Medical Club, was made by the Whangarei Hospital Board. The' lotter stated that, while realising the benefits of having an up-to-date plant, the club was of tho opinion that tho charges were excessive. It was understood that Hospital Boards throughout New Zealand did not charge Friendly Societies over and above the ordinary fees where a member was a patient in tho hospital. The club was of the opinion that X-ray examination should be part of tho treatment. Mr R. Chcrrie said that tho Hikurangi Club complained mainly about the repeated X-ray examinations. The first was necessary, but the club felt it should not be called on to pay for additional examinations to see how the patient was progressing.

A function of considerable interest to Fiji and, from the point of view of the colonisation of the Empire, takes place this month, when Ratu Joseva Lalabalavu Vanaaliali Cukuna, B.A. (Oxon), of the Middle Temple, barrister-at-law, will bo installed as District Commissioner of the Lau district, the furthermost portion of tho Fiji Group, writes the Samoa correspondent of the "New Zealand Herald." This is the first time a native Fijian has been appointed to such an office, and the experiment will be watched with interest. Rata Sukuna is an interesting personality. An honorary aide-do-camp to the Governor, he holds the distinction of being the possessor of the Medaille Militaire, a decoration which he won while fighting during the war with the French Foreign Legion. A quiet and pleasing personality lias made Sukuna a very popular figure in Suva, where he wall be missed by many friends. Ho commenced service with the Government in 1907 as a clerk in the Colonial Secretary's office, attaining to the position of Chief Assistant Native Lands Commissioner, an appointment which he now relinquishes to tak4 over the more important duties of a.District Commissioner, with authority over all residents, European, native, or Indian, in his district.

" I'm up againßt it., Two of my boys who have finished with school have no work to do. Now the third is comiiig home. What can I dot Can you help me • to get them something to do on the land?" "This appeal," said Mr N. C. Gribble to Auckland Eotarians, "wis made to me by a man who was obviously in despair." The speaker gavo a striking address on "Tho Boy—the Nation's Best Asset." "In Now Zealand," said Mr Gribble, "12,000 boys leave school every year. One-third of these are in tho Auckland province. Eoughly, 20 per cent, of these go to agriculture and 60 per cent* to Government posts, professions, and town jobs. Our greatest asset was going to waste. The speaker largely blamed our educational system, which did not meet the requirements of an agricultural community. Mr Gribble outlined the work of the Future Farmers' Committee, and said it was essential that arrangements should bo made whoreby tho boy learning farm work should have the opportunity later on of owning his own farm. ' This problem was a challenge to the adults of the community to seo that boys were properly started out in life.

To assist students in acquiring their year's books second-hand, the Canterbury University College Branch of the Student Christian Movement each year conducts a second-hand book exchange. This year's operations were concluded last night by an auction sale of unclaimed books. The president of the Students' Association, Mr J. G. D. Ward, occupied the dais and disposed of about a hundred books of various values at prices ranging from a halfpenny to two and tennence. This year the book exchange has handled close on 2000 books and has had a turnover of about £220.

Regulations under the Immigration Restriction Amendment Act are published in the Gazette. They are intended to put additional restrictions upon the' entry into the Dominion or members,- adherents, and supporters ot tho body commonly known as the Third Communist International. —Press Association.