General News

Press, Volume LXXV, Issue 22657, 11 March 1939, Page 14

General News

The Fishing Rivers According to the latest advices received at noon yesterday by the secretary of the North Canterbury Acclimatisation Society, the .condition of the fishing rivers is as follows:—Rakaia, Hurunui, Waimakariri, and Selwyn, clear and fishable; Rangitata„ slightly discoloured, \ but fishable. Motorised Squadron . The Nelson-Marlborough Mounted Rifles Motorised Squadron will attend the annual camp of the 3rd Composite Mounted Rifles Regiment at Wingatui, Otago. Having departed from the various training centres yesterday, the unit has assembled at Blenheim before departure for Wingatui. The following is the schedule which will be followed in the trip to Dunedin? To-day, bivouac at Parnassus; tomorrow, bivouac at the District Military School, Burnham; March 13, bivouac at Timaru; March 14, Wingatui. The unit is carrying blankets, baggage, and cooking utensils in its own transport and will stop for meals at suitable places. Cyclone Encountered A cyclone was experienced by the liner Strathallan between Sydney and Brisbane, which was the last port of call before the vessel left Australia on a cruise to New Zealand. The liner arrived at Auckland yesterday afternoon with 950 passengers, 30 of whom are leaking a round voyage from England. The Strathallan was scheduled to arrive,at Brisbane from Sydney last Sunday morning, but did not arrive until Monday morning. A cyclone was encountered on Saturday night, and the vessel was hove-to for 12 hours, many of the 850 passengers on board suffering from seasickness. The Strathallan then had to wait for the tide before berthing at Brisbane was possible. The voyage across the Tasman was fine and uneventful. The liner will sail from Auckland to-night for Wellington and Sydney. A number of passengers are travelling overland to Wellington. The Strathallan is the last of eight cruise ships to visit New Zealand this season. —Press Association. Scholarships for Maoris

Part of the moneys granted by Parliament to. the Taranaki Maori Trust Board in compensation for lands confiscated from the west coast tribes is being used to assist young Taranak' Maoris to receive education on approved lines, through the establishment of the Runa Wakarua Memorial Fund in honour of one of the original members of the board. Scholarship grants were made yesterday to three Maori boys who propose to study medicine, motor engineering, and railway engineering. The grants will enable them to attend an approved secondary school or university college.—Press Association. Arthur’s Pass Park Funds “The time has come when further funds must be made available if the work done by the Arthur’s Pass National Park Board is to be continued,” said a letter from the board to

the Rangiora County Council yesterday. “Over the last three years the Government has contributed nearly £ 1500, enabling the employment of a permanent ranger and the execution of many necessary works, while the Christchurch City Council has recently voted a further £SO. Both have suggested, however, that support shoufd be given from public bodies and associations in Canterbury and Westland. My board requests that you consider making a grant to assist in the development of the park. The park’s great natural beauties, its unique flora, and its undoubted value as a ‘lung’ for the communities of Canterbury and Westland give my board confidence in the merits of the appeal.” The County Council received the letter. Difficult Haulage Task Weighing 16| tons each, two of the. three transformers unloaded in Wellington recently by the Napier Star were transported by road to Khandallah, where they will be installed at the sub-station. The third transformer is to be hauled from the railway wharf to Khandallah later. Because of their bulk and weight the transformers present a difficult haulage problem. Each transformer is lifted by crane on to a trailer, and the combined efforts of three six-ton motor-lorries are required to haul the trailer to Khandallah via Onslow road. Each transformer is 14ft 6in high, 9ft 2in long,

and 6ft 2in wide. New Police Van A new police vein has replaced the old “Black Maria” was familiar in Wellington streets for so many years. The new van is considerably larger than the old one and the title, “Black Maria,” a term associated with police vans in many countries, is no longer appropriate. Prisoners travelling between Wellington police stations, Mount Crawford Prison, and the Magistrate’s Court are now conveyed in a modern vehicle of plain appearance which could be taken for anything but a police van. It is painted green, and, apart from the two uniformed constables in attendance there is nothing to indicate that it is engaged in police business. Dominion Monarch Advice has been < received in Auckland that the new quadruple-screw motor-liner Dominion Monarch will now reach Auckland from Wellington on her maiden voyage on April 3, two days later than her original schedule. The liner, which is en route from London and Southampton, via South Africa and Australia,will reach Wellington from Sydney on March 25, her scheduled date. The postponement in the arrival of the Dominion Monarch at Auckland from Saturday, April 1, to the following Monday is to enable all available working time to be used at Wellington-in handling cargo. One of the largest personally-conducted parties of tourists ever, to visit New Zealand will be brought by the new liner. The members of the party, which was assembled in England and South Africa, will make a complete tour of both islands by private motor-cars. Pets Travel. by Rail A variety of household pets travelled in the guard’s van of the Limited express from Auck- % land for Wellington on Thursday night. With the exigencies of train travel demanding a truce in their natural animosities, a cage of; more than 20 chattering budgerigars was alongside a box containing a purring cat, while another nearby case housed a sleeping puppy. Speedily reconciled to the strange surroundings, neither dog nor cat stirred during the confusion and only the noisy birds gave a hint of the van’s unusually varied freight. Mount Eden Crater Fire Smoke from a grass fire in the crater of Mount Edeh, Auckland created the illusion of a volcano in mild eruption on Thursday. A pall of smoke rose skyward for about an hour, and attracted wide attention all over the city. Workmen were intentionally responsible for the fine, the purpose of which was to clear the crater of grass and dried fern, in preparation for a centennial fireworks display next year. Until the rains come and _ new grass appears, the crater will appear unsightly to the visitor. , Flowers Out of Season The unusual spectacle of spring flowers blooming six months before their time is provided in a display of daffodils and hyacinths that is at present on view in the window of a Dunedin shop. The explanation for this horticultural feat is that the bulbs were imported from England and have j?ut forth their blooms at a time that corresponds with the English spring, the plants not yet having had time to readjust themselves to the changed seasons. Heat on Egmont Considered by the climbers concerned to be a record for this time of the year, an atmospheric temperature of 87 degrees was recorded on the summit of Mount Egmont recently. In the shade the temperature was 65 degrees. /In spite of the heat, little, change has occurred in the ice formation in the crater, however, and the ice cavern has not yet opened up. During the last two seasons this cavern has been an object of considerable interest to mountaineers.