General News

Press, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22196, 13 September 1937, Page 8

General News

I Three Fires in Week-end Four calls to fires, none of which was serious, j were received at the central fire station in the j week-end. Shortly after 8 o’clock on Saturday | evening the engines were called to a small out- j break in a room over a grocery store in Ferry ■ road between Lancaster street and Wilsons i road! The fire was extinguished before much ] damage had been done. Two calls weie received at the same time to burning scrub in the . Lyttelton street rubbish pit, which was put out j without any difficulty. Yesterday a burning hedge at 190 Lincoln road brought the engines out. again. Except for the destruction of the hedge there was no damage. Bush at Jackson’s Bay Concern at the destruction of bush which might follow the erection of a wharf and other facilities at Jackson’s Bay, Westland, was expressed by Mr H. E. Herring, M.P., in a letter to the Minister for Lands (the Hon. F. Langstone). In reply, the Minister said he admired Mr Herring’s zeal for the protection of native forests; but zeal must be seasoned with reason. He gave an assurance that every care would be taken by the Slate Forest Service to guard against vicious destruction of trees. The dairy industry required 35,000,000 board feet of white pine annually for butter boxes, and he was afraid they would have to bow to the will of necessity. To obtain that supply they had to go to South Westland, where the white pine grew. He also assured Mr Herring that any timber taken out would be extracted in accordance with modern princinles, and the saplings and seedlings would be protected as far as possible.

Arthur’s Pass Excursion Rain spoiled outdoor recreation for the 213 persons who travelled on the excursion to Arthur’s Pass yesterday. It was raining at the pass when the train arrived, and rain fell all day. The excursionists spent the day in various forms of amusement in the railway social hall. “Empire” and “Kingdom” “I can’t think of the word ‘Empire’ without thinking of something nasty,” said the Rev. J. F Feron, speaking to a congregation containing a"oaradc of returned soldiers in St. Matthew’s Church, St. Albans, last evening. “There is selfishness, money-grubbing, and all that it bad I see nothing right, whatever empire .1 think of. looking back through all the ages. But what Christ is calling us to is a Kingdom, a Kingdom where there is righteousness, purity, mercy, and justice. I wish we could think more of that Kingdom than of these others. People are inclined to sit back and forget the greater fieht which all good Christians are obliged to wage. What is needed for that Kingdom is a fine man, mentally an’d physically, and a fine man spiritually under the hands of God.” Why Crowd Saw the Test? “To me it was the saddest thing; I recognised the herd instinct in man,” said Sister M. G. Davies • referring to the assembly of a huge crowd at the test match against the Springboks a week ago, in an address to the Theosophical Society last evening. “Nothing would make me believe that every ntan and every woman present was really interested in the match. It was the love of excitement that took many of those thousands there. ♦ Hatching Trout

One million fingerling trout will be released from the Auckland Acclimatisation Society s aatchery at Puketurua this season if present expectations arc borne out. Recent alterations and extensions to the hatchery have made pos;iblo the handling of about 700,000 ova already, and the e a ,- e now in the fry stage and are accommodat'd in the new holding A further 300,000 rved ova will be received m a few days, and all “should be past the fry stage this season. Fifteen concrete ponds, each measuring 25ft by 4ft, with a depth of 3ft Sin, accommodate the fingerling. and there are 20 boxes in the hatching shed. Water is drawn direct from a spring which flows at a rate of 2,000,000 gallons daily, and about which a storage dam has been erected. The ponds are independently fed with a steady supply of well aerated water. Two Ounces of Ginger Prescribed What constitutes a good Christian was discussed in interesting fashion last evening by the Rev. J. F. Feron, speaking in St. Matthews Church, St. Albans, where there was a parade of returned soldiers. “Some think a good Christian is something' dressed all in black, with a specially long face on Sundays, he said. “Not a bit of it. Sometimes I look at those ‘meek-ani-mildies’ and think, ‘My word. I’d like to put two ounces of ginger into you. A Hypnotised Billy? “You probably heard about the men on Sunday Island, and how they had a billy which fell off the fire every time they put it on, said Sister M G. Davies, addressing the Theosophical Society last evening. “Many people were puzzled about that billy, but I think I knew why it fell off. Those men were m a state of high tension on the island, they saw the billy fall once or twice, and from then on they expected it to fall off, and that is why it did. Their thoughts took command of it.” Cruelty to Poultry A complaint about the handling of poultry at the auction marts was received at the last meeting of the committee of the Wellington Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. The conditions of crating by farmers left much to be desired, it was stated, - the poultry being cramped considerably, apparently to save freight charges. Even considering the sarv amount of handling by purchasers, so, rough as to be absolutely cruel, the worst feature of the complaint revealed that fowls were in many instances carried away from the mart in sugar bags or sacks, in which the birds were packed one on top of the other in the same manner as crayfish. It was also stated that birds purchased for killing at hotels w r ere conveyed to their destination in boxes which were unsuitable. The committee decided that the inspector should exercise more vigilance in connexion with the markets, and take steps to prosecute in any case where cruelty was involved.

Cargo for China Held Up Because of the war between China and Japan, scores of cargo steamers bound from Europe to Chinese ports are not going further than Singapore, according to officers on the Union Company’s steamer Narbada, which arrived at Auckland from Calcutta and Singapore. The cargoes were being stored in the sheds on Singapore wharves, and, as many of the vessels were each carrying between 3000 and 4000 tons of goods, the sheds were rapidly filling at the time of the Narbada’s departure. The ships were of all nationalities. Death of a Leopard The death of a leopard when the ship was one day out from Calcutta was reported by the steamer Narbada on her arrival at Auckland from the East. The leopard, which was from the Alipore Zoo, Calcutta, was for the Wellington Zoo. Another leopard and several cranes, also for Wellington, arrived in excellent health. Buried Treasure Found A story of the recovery of buried treasure was recounted in Auckland by the_ Consul for Panama, Senor Simon Quiros y Quiros, following the receipt of an official communication from his Government describing the discovery of gold ingots valued at £600,000 which have been hidden for four centuries. The discovery was made by three prospectors near the northern border of the province of Chinqui, Panama, about a month ago The Government of Panama has claimed one-half of the The prospectors, Antomus Hih, Van Steck, and Warwick Emerson Thorp, were working on their own account, and were blazing a trail through rugged and almost impassable country by overturning stones and searching the earth underneath. One man removed the rubble and unearthed the treasure, which had been buried for more than 400 years. In addition to 120 ingots stamped with the Royal Spanish crown, there was a quantity of tools and antique weapons. These have been sent to the museum at Panama.