General News

Press, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22082, 3 May 1937, Page 8

General News

Sleeping Berths on Trains “I think the charges made by the Railway Department for sleeping berths on trains travelling on most of the lines in the Dominion are ridiculously high, and I would not care to do much travelling at the present prices.” This opinion was expressed by Mr A. G. Argo, a prominent businessman of Durban, South Africa, who is at present touring the Dominion, in an interview with “The Press yesterday. “It seems that £1 for a sleeping berth on the trip from Auckland to Wellington is a ridiculous charge, when in South Africa the charge is only 3s even if the trip takes two days, and without any difference for distance travelled. For the sake of tourist trade the department should reduce the charge to ss, which would be ample,” he added. Air Freight Increases Freight carried on the Westland air service by Air Travel (N.Z.), Ltd., during April showed a considerable increase on the previous month, indicating a steady expansion of the use oi aeroplanes for transport on the West Coast, The freight carried in April was 24581b, compared with 11891b in March. Tinned Harvest Offerings Tinned food and tinned tobacco are among the gifts received from Merivale parishioners in response to the vicar’s request to his congregation, according to a statement in the Church News” this month. Merivale has naturally no harvest offerings to make, so the vicar made the novel request of his congregation that they should make offerings of tinned “fruits of the earth.” The result "of the appeal has been satisfactory, and a good quantity of food for the orphanages and homes, and tobacco for the men patients in the sanatorium has been collected. Loyalty in Speech The speech of New Zealand is English, but the speech of Australia is “Australian," according to Mr J. P. Perry, a retired Viennese banker who arrived in Christchurch yesterday, on his first visit to the southern Dominions. New Zealand is, I think, the most loyal of Great Britain’s possessions,’’ he said. “She is very much more loyal than Australia. My impression was that the Australians were more selfcontained—they are Australians first and foremost. In New Zealand the people are British. You can tell it in the language. In New Zealand they speak pure English; but in Australia they speak—well, Australian.” Praise for Glow-worm Caves High praise for the glow-worm caves as a tourist attraction in New Zealand was expressed by Mr A. G. Argo, a South African businessman at present on a tour of the Dominion, in an interview with “The Press” yesterday. Mr Argo said he had been very favourably impressed by the attention which tourists were given, by the forest scenery, and by Rotorua; but what had impressed him most was the glow-worm caves. He had visited caves in England, in Australia, and in many other parts of the world, but in his opinion there was none to approach those he had seen in New Zealand. Help for Blind Motorists and pedestrians generally endeavour to assist blind people whom they meet on the streets, but few of them understand the signals which these people give with their white sticks. The trustees of the New Zealand Institute for the Blind are anxious that the blind should get the maximum amount of good from the use of these sticks, which are now their accepted safety sign, and have made known the meaning of the signals, as follows: —Stick held straight out in front, “I wish to cross the road”; stick raised straight above head, “I wish to board a tram”; stick held in middle horizontally across the body, “I.wish to ask a question.” A response to these appeals will greatly assist the movements of blind people among the fastmoving traffic of the city. Trout from Blue Lake 1 The popular belief that the Blue Lake between Rotorua and Lake Tarawera contains no trout, or, at least, no trout of any size, has been dispelled by an angler, who recently brought in three excellently conditioned fish, all more than 51b in weight, taken from this lake. Various liberations of trout fry and smelt have been made from time to time, but for some reason the fish did not appear to take as they have done in other lakes. Recently, however, it was reported that large shoals of smelt had been observed around the lake margins, indicating that the fish food, at least, was established. The fish taken had obviously grown fast, and their condition indicated that there was no lack of food. Control of Public Credit “There is no doubt that the unlimited control of public credit and public finance by a single, inexperienced individual, of avowed Socialistic principles, simply bristles with danger,” said the Hon. J. G, Cobbe, M.P., Oroua, in referring in an address at Feilding to the Reserve Bank Amendment Act of 1936. “It really paves the way for the nationalisation of banking and appoints one man, who does not possess the slightest practical knowledge of banking or has not had any considerable financial experience, to the position of a financial dictator, and gives him the powers of a despotic ruler over monetary affairs. The Governor of the Bank of England does not possess the uncontrolled powers of the New Zealand Minister for Finance.” Work for Youths “There is one problem of the utmost importance which has not been touched by the Government,” stated the annual report of the Wanganui Employers’ Association, “This is the problem of the future of youths in industry. Unfortunately the legislation so far introduced by the Government has only intensified the difficulties of the employment of youths.” Ban on Roosters Because the crowing of roosters at bight and in the early morning disturbs the sleep of guests in hotels and boarding houses, the Rotorua Borough Cpuncll has adopted a by-law prohibiting the keeping of poultry in the inner area of the , town. Another new by-law provides that dogs in the streets in the same area must be securely held by their owners on a suitable leash. This was enacted owing to complaints by shopkeepers that stray dogs were an increasing nuisance as well as a danger to traffic. Late or Early? The birth of the first of the season’s lambs is usually chronicled in Southland, but an Australian has stolen a march on the local flocks this time. When the Waitaki arrived at Bluff from Melbourne last week she had on board a shipment of stud ewes consigned to Wellington, and one of the ewes gave birth to two lambs at Bluff. One of the lambs died, but the other was a lively specimen. This must be a record for a very early, or very late, lamb in Southland. Co-operative Fruit-buying A suggestion that co-operative buying might be organised by the women’s institutes to provide cheaper fruit for country people was advanced at the annual meeting of tl.~; North Wellington Federation of Institutes, which met in Palmerston North. The discussion arose from a motion that the organisation assist as far as possible any scheme to reduce the price of oranges. One delegate stated that by private buying at Tauranga she could' secure New Zealand lemons, oranges, and grapes at a price within the reach of all and cheaper than could be bought elsewhere. The conference endorsed the recommendation, which will go forward to the Dominion executive, Japanese Holiday

The Japanese Emperor Hirohito has just celebrated his thirty-sixth birthday. In Japan this occasion is observed as a public holiday with all the colourful pageantry associated with that country. Two Japanese ships at Auckland, the Manju Maru and the Brisbane Maru, were gaily beflagged, but both, however, were working. Members of the Consular Corps paid calls on the acting-Consul for Japan, Mr Trevor Davis.