General News.

Press, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20648, 10 September 1932, Page 14

General News.

The Heathcote County Council decided last night to make its usual grant of £ls 15s towards the funds of the Canterbury Progress League. As the Canterbury Pilgrims' Association has been unable to get the Art Gallery on Saturday, September 17th, for the quarterly gathering of members, the function is to be held the following Saturday—September 24th. A party of members of the Christchurch Savage Club, numbering about twenty-five, lea\e this morning |or Oamaru, on a visit to the Oamaru Savage Club. The visitors will provide the programme at to-night's korero of tho Oamaru Club. Tho Christchurch Tramway Board has advised the Heathoote County Council that it. can in no way assist in,the construction of a shelter at tho foot of Hackthorne road, but that, if necessary, tho cars could stop a little nearer the shop at the corner of Valley road. Dissatisfied with the price offered them for thirty or forty baskets of fish caught in the Bay of Plenty, the owners of a launch which arrived at Auckland on Thursday gave thp lot away. Each basket weighed about on© hundredweight, and watersiders were the-principal beneficiaries. —Press Association.

Street collections usually include amongst tho coins tendered some samples of foreign coinages. Yesterday's Violet Day collection on behalf of the Plunket Society was no exception to the rule. Amongst the foreign and other coins was an Indian rupee, two 5 cent pieces, and a 20 cent piece of the Chinese province of Kwang-Tung. There were also some pennies wrapped in silver paper.

The new club rooms of the Canterbury Aero Club, at Wigram Aerodrome, will bo formally opened by his Worship the' Mayor (Mr D. G. Sullivan, M.P.), on Saturday, September 17th, at 2.45 p.m. Invitations have been extended to various other aero clubs for their pilots to attend, and exhibitions of flying Will be.given. In the evening a social and dance will be held in the club rpoms.

The Heathcote County Council decided last night that its contribution towards the cost of building a new causeway across McCormack's Bay on the Christchurch-Sumner road should be £IOO. On the motion of Cr. F. W. Freeman the Council decided to recommend that in future all relief works benefiting the metropolitan area should be contributed to by the .city, counties, and boroughs, 011 a valuation basis.

Tlio steamer Narbada, which arrived at Auckland yesterday, rescued a drowning man when off the coast of Alalaya. At eleven o'clock at night, a,pry was heard from the darkness. The ship, which was about twelve miles from land, put about ; and a native was hauled aboard. Hie had been taking copra from ono island to another in' a canoe when it capsized about seven in the morning. He clung to the craft for twelve hours, when it sank. He then swam for four hours till he saw the ship'p lights.—Press Association. •

Advice was received last night that the Boys' Division of the Christchurch Y.M.C.A. had gained second place 111 the indoor athletic contest, which was conducted among most of the New Zealand branches of the association during July and August. Six athletic events were held in. each of three classes, according to age, and Christchurch gained first places in altogether five events. The results from each centre were sent to Wellington, from where the result was announced.

The body of Mr Tuiti Makitanara, M.P., which was buried on June 28th in a grave dug near the summit of a sandhill at the front of his residence at Levin, was removed on Monday to a substantial vault on tlie top of the same hill. The transfer was carried out early on Monday morning under the supervision of Inspector W. J. Guinan, who had obtained from the Minister for Health a permit for the body to be exhumed and buried again. The ceremony of recommittal took place in the presence of relatives and friends. Brother Bilman, of the Mormon Church, who officiated on the previous occasion, dedicated the site and explained the significance of the transfer. The coffin having been reverently lowered, the vault was sealed with a concrete slab which marks the spot above ground. It is understood that a monu-~ ment to his memory will be erected in tho vicinity at a not Terjr distant date.

A census of motor traffic 011 the Sumner road, taken by the Heathcote County Council one day last month, showed that the number of cars using th© road between 7 a.m. and midnight was 800.

"The average racegoer stays to the last race, but being a married man with a family I have to leave the racecourse when I am told," said a defendant in the Lower Hutt Magistrate's Court. Later, the defendant, -who was charged with driving in a manner -which might be dangerous to the public, said he left early "to avoid the mad drivers."

"The Brazilian Government, like the Mexican, lias informed the Japanese tliat they are welcomo as immigrants," said Mr F. MiJner addressing 'the Historical Association last night, "but there are only about 22,000 Japanese in Brazil, and the yearly emigration from Japan does not exceed 9000. The Japanese, as a matter of fact, are an intensely honie-lovinc/ people, and more Japanese are returning home from Hawaii than ever before."

For the insulation of tho Auckland Farmers' Freezing Company's new cold store, a shipment of 170,000 square feet of Spanish cork arrived by the motor ship Triton from Lisbon this week, and is being discharged at the King's wharf. The cork is in the form of slabs, 3 feet by 1 foot, and 3in thick, Consisting of waste chips pressed together at a high temperature, and cemented with their own natural gum. Two layers of cork slabs will be laid 011 the walls, floor, and ceiling of the building.

The New Zealand Farmers' Union recently renewed its request to the Government for adequate compensation where the removal of hawthorn hedges in fruit-growing districts was made compulsory, owing to tlie danger of lireblight. The Minister for Agriculture (the Hon. C. E. Macmillan) lias replied affirming the decision maiiti in 1929 not to pay compensation, and reiterating that arrangements have been made to give first consideration to tho interests of the fruit-growers only in those areas where their industry is of particular importance.

Tho New Zealand Rugby team in Australia this season achieved the distinction of scoring more points than any other Rugby team which has visited tho Commonwealth. It was also the cause of another record-breaking performance, this one in the nature of an endurance test off tho field of play. It was on the occasion of tho team's visit to Ipswich, and is referred to in that section of Mr W. J. Wallace's report dealing with tho reception to the team as follows:—"So enthusiastic was this gathering that proceedings did not conclude until thirty-five speeches had been delivered."' •

The Canterbury Employers' Association' has been asked by two local bodies to convene a meeting on September 28th, at 2.30 p.m., to consider whether steps should be taken to obtain a new Arbitration Court award. The Heathcote County Council decided last night that Cr. A. G. Williams and the County Clerk (Mr J. H. McAuliffe) should represent the council, which is a party to both the local body labourers' and local body drivers' awards. Cr. Williams expressed the opinion that councils having the interests of tho ratepayers at heart did not require an award to ensure that they were treating their employees in a reasonable manner.

Enquiries still are being made of the - custodian of the Government Departmental buildings in connexion with the Government's scheme for payment of a bonus on deer-skins. During the present week 800 rounds of ammunition have been issued among four applicants. Since the schemo was explained at a public meeting in Christchurch two or three weeks ago, about a dozen men have applied for and received ammunition. Some of tho enquirers have no rifles and have asked if they could not bo provided with them by the Government, but have received the reply that this is impossible.

Criticism of the Mayor (Mr D; G. Sullivan, M.P.), and of Labour members of the City Cbuncil by the unemployed workers regarding the veget-able-growing scheme, in connexion with unemployed men, was replied to yesterday by Mr Sullivan, who said that the Christchurch Allotment Gardens Committeo was not in any way responsible for the compulsion that had been instituted. When the committee was formed there was no proposal to make vegetable growing compulsory. He thought it entirely desirable that relief workers should be encouraged to grow their own vegetables, preferably in their own gardens, and the committee's only object, when the committee was formed, was to assist those workers who were voluntarily co-operating in tho scheme. He could not possibly give his approval to the compulsory aspects of the scheme.

According to information supplied by the Secretary-General of the Post Office, tho International Telegraph and Radio-telegraph Conference at Madrid is likely to occupy the attention of the delegates for approximately two months. New Zealand is represented by Mr M. B. Esson, Now Zealand's representative on the advisory committee of Imperial and International Communications, Limited, London. On the telegraph side, the conference will discuss two important proposals, the first relating to vowel requirements in code messages and the second regarding tho use of numbers written in cheap-rate telegrams. It is hoped that tho outcome of the discussions wijl permit the removal of certain stipulations at present existing and to make this particular service less restrictive for cable users. On the radio side, the question of frequency allocations of broadcasting stations will be investigated. Difficulty is at present experienced in obtaining for N ew Zealand stations suitable frequencies clear of interference from Australian and certain other stations, and for this reason the proposal is of vital interest to New Zealand.

Particulars of the cheap fares and train arrangements in connexion with the races to be held at Ashburton next Saturday are advertised. A special horse train leaves Christchurch at 9.20 a.m. and a special passenger train at 10.35 a.m. Round tlie Bays in a Gold Band Taxi will only cost you 15s for a party of five, this is half the price of others and a beautiful trip to take your friends, but be sure you 'phone for a Gold Band Taxi, which is everybody's favourite. Thank you, —2 Johnston's N.O. Motor Co., Ltd., Rangiora, representatives: W. C. Wilson and H. Clark; manager, A. G. Prestney, authorised Ford dealers. 'Phones 87 and 88. —52

• Potato growers are advised to call and inspect Duncan Potato and Manure Sowers. The following is an extract from ono of many letters of praiso received by the Makers: "The Planter has given us every satisfaction, being 100 per cent, efficient. The potatoes can be put in to any required depth. One man can plant three acres a day." P. and D. Duncan, Limited, 190 Tuam street, Christchurch, and at Ashburton. . • —6