General News

Press, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22591, 22 December 1938, Page 8

General News

Newspaper Holidays

"The Press" will not be published on Monday, December 26, and on Monday, January 2.

"The Press Junior"

The Christmas number of "The Press Junior will be published on Saturday, December 24, in a special double issue with "The Gay Gazette. There is no issue of "The Press Junior this morning, and there will be none next Thursday, December 29.

Quorum Difficulty Solved

An unusual way of solving the quorum difficulty was adopted at a meeting of the N&rth Otago Tree Planting Association at Oaraaru this week. One short of a quorum, the meeting was in difficulties and was anxious to make * a start with the business. A suggestion was made that a. reporter attending the meeting should be "roped in" as a member. It cost the reporter 2s 6d as his first and perhaps last subscription; but the meeting was able to proceed.

Reciprocal Registration of Judgments

The first extension of the Reciprocal Enforcement of Judgment Act, 1934, to foreign countries, is made in regulations issued with last night's Gazette. Countries with which New Zealand now has provision for the reciprocal registering of judgments as a result of the extension are France and Belgium. The act, when passed in 1934, applied to Britain; but contained a proviso it could be extended to any foreign country on the signing of the requisite convention. The general effect of the extended act is that it entitles an applicant, without sueing, to register a judgment in the Courts in Britain, France and Belgium, which will enforce it. — Press Association.

Travelling Expenses Allowed

Members of the National Council of Physical Welfare and Recreation are to be allowed travelling expenses, according to an Order-in-Council published with last night's Gazette. Each member of the council will receive a guinea a day or part of a day on which he is actually engaged in transacting the'business of the council Travelling expenses will also be allowed, as well as a travelling allowance of £1 5s a day for personal expenses.—Press Association.

Direct Loading for Continent

The German steamer Naumberg, which is at Lyttelton at present, is the first German vessel to load direct for Germany since the Great War. She is the first overseas steamer to berth at No. 1 Breastwork. She is the first vessel for probably 30 years or more to load at Lyttelton direct from the shed to the ship without the use of railway trucks. However, although the use of railway trucks has been dispensed with, the wool, which is undumped, is being handled from the Harbour Board's shed to the ship's side by the Railway Department and some railway charges have to be paid. The Naumberg is to leave Lyttelton to-day for Continental ports.

Oyster Season

Under a salt water fisheries regulation issued with the Gazette last night the opening of the season for Foveaux Strait oysters is fixed for February 15, instead of February 1, as formerly. Another section of the regulations closes the toheroa beds on the beach between the Otaki and Waikanae rivers until January 15.—Press Association.

Air-liner Chartered

A Union Airways Lockheed machine was chartered yesterday by eight Public Works Department employees on the Great Barrier Island to fly them to Auckland for Christmas. The journey, which by steamer takes six and a half hours, was completed in 25 minutes. The machine, piloted by Commander White, with Mr A. N. Patterson as co-pilot, left Mangere aerodrome at 3 p.m. There were two women passengers, who are to spend a holiday on the island. The machine landed at 3.30 p.m. on the new aerodrome, no difficulty being experienced. The distance to the island by air is about 60 miles. The return journey was accomplished in even faster time than the outward. With eight Public Works Department employees, a woman and a boy as passengers, the machine left the island at 3.50»p.m., and reached Mangere at 4.15. The men are engaged in the construction of an aerodrome and roads on the island, and had not visited Auckland for some months.—Press Association. Duties of Town Clerk

The duties of a town clerk are many and varied. At the meeting last evening of the Sumner Borough Council the appointment of an assistant dog tax collector prompted the Mayor (Mr J. E. Tait) to ask who was the dogtax collector. "I am the dog-tax collector," said the Town Clerk (Mr J. F. Menzies) amid laughter from the councillors. "I often wonderea what you did," said the Mayor. The Capital of New Guinea

At present there is no co-operation at all between the Governments of Papua and of mandated New Guinea, said Mr B. W. Collins, who has returned to Christchurch after nearly a year and a half of prospecting for oil in the New Guinea bush, in an interview yesterday. The capital of the mandated territory was still at Rabaul, but there was talk of combining the governments of the two territories. The terms of the mandate would permit this, Mr Collins said, provided no native army was raised among the mandated tribes. Few of the planters worried about defence, he said, most of the whites being content to rely on Australia's strength and on the new flying-boat base that was under construction at Port Moresby. Injury to Councillors

"In 50 years I have never heard of a councillor being hurt while in the exercise of his duties —except in his feelings, and I don't think you get anvthing for that," said the Mayor of Waimate (Mr G. Dash), when the Borough Council was considering on Tuesday evening a proposal for the insurance of councillors against accident. After a short discussion the council received correspondence on the proposal and decided to take no action in the matter. No Fatal Accident in 12 Days

"Twelve days have now passed without a fatal accident on the roads of the Dominion," said the Minister for Transport (the Hon. R. Semple) yesterday. "This is the second longest fatalityfree period ever recorded in New Zealand and is an achievement of which all road-users might well be proud." The safety pennants at Auckland, Wellington and Dunedin had not had to be taken down for more than a fortnight.—Press Association. New Motor-Liner The Dominion Monarch, of 27,000 tons gross, described as the world's most powerful motorvessel, which was launched on July 27, will sail on February 17 on her maiden voyage in the new service of Shaw Savill and Albion Lines from Southampton to New Zealand via South Africa. A writer in "The Times" of November 24 tqjd of a visit to the new vessel while joiners, fitters and other tradesmen (about 2000 of them) were engaged in "putting the insides in." "Only one permanent ladder was in position when I went over," the article said, "and some parts of the ship appeared to be in an embryonic state while others needed only finishing touches. The great games deck, sheathed with Burma teak, is 250 ft long and 87ft broad, and is not marred by the lifeboats, which are high above its level. Australian woods have been used for panelling, and in the lounge elm has been used that was in the piles of the old Waterloo Bridge over the Thames."

Difficulties of an Obliging' Postman

While it is bad enough for the suburban postmen to be still out on their morning rounds when the afternoon has begun, and with messengers planting extra red bags in prearranged "caches," there are more difficulties than these for those delivering the heavyChristmas mails. In any suburban street when' the mail is nearly due, and very late at that, children are out at their gates waiting, and as soon as the uniform appears at the end of the street they rush towards it and beg the harassed postman to give them their presents at once. Yesterday, just before 2 p.m., as the last of the lunch hour traffic was returning to the city, one postman had been intercepted in Victoria street. His bicycle was leaned against the fence, and to please a young woman who had to hurry on to her afternoon's work before even her morning mail had arrived, he was burrowing among the tied-up bundles in his spare bag.