General News

Press, Volume LXXXVI, Issue 26031, 7 February 1950, Page 4

General News

Diagnosing Faults tn Motor-Cars A mechanical diagnostician for motor-car ills was displayed at a show held by the National Automobile Dealers’ Association in Atlantic City, New Jersey, to-day. The manufacturer said that the diagnostician—a device with many dials—contained in one unit all the testing equipment used to check the functions of vital car units when a car was taken to a repair shop. There would be no guesswork. The device would instantly locate trouble with “scientific accuracy.”—New York, February 5. Learning Housekeeping According to Mrs Nash, the former Minister of- Finance, Mr Nash, is now learning housekeeping. Mr and Mrs Nash are spending a holiday at the Empire Games in Auckland.' Mr Nash said he had 10 years’ work ahead, of him at home browsing through a gigantic collection of books, magazines, newspaper clippings, files, and mementos which had accumulated while he was in office, and from his numerous missions overseas on Government business. These almost filled his study, a sunroom, and the garage at this residence in Lower Hutt, and had seeped into his bedroom, and even the woodshed. There were parcels of papers dating as far back as 1937 still unopened, and a number of gift books, autographed by famous authors, waiting to be read. “I have just unearthed a document of commendation given tc me a long time ago by Mr Cordell Hull,” he said. Asked if he had contemplated writing his memoirs, Mr Nash said he was too busy.

Pupils at New School When about 270 pupils instead of an expected total of 200 to 240 arrived at the new Wairakei school on the opening day last week they found the accommodation inadequate. One parent said yesterday that her two children, who had been transferred from Fendalton School when the new school opened, found that the Wairakei School was just as crowded as Fendalton. The secretary of the Canterbury Education Board (Mr L. P. S. Butcher) said that the board was taking steps to accommodate the large number of pupils at the new school. The school has six rooms which could, if necessary, hold 270 pupils. Adequate staff would be found, as there were always plenty of teachers offering at this time of the year. Conditions were always uncertain at the opening of a year, especially in a new school, he added. Inventor Congratulated A letter of appreciation and congratulation will be sent to Mr A. W. Taff, the inventor of a device to assist persons who have lost the use of limbs, by the Christchurch R.S.A. This was decided at a meeting of the executive last evening, when the president (Mr H. E. Batchelor) reported on a demonstration of the device he had attended last week. Mr Taff sought no gain from his invention, but was practically giving it to those who needed it, he said. Grant to Centennial Fund A decision to make a grant of £lOO to the Canterbury Centennial Fund was made at a meeting of the Mackenzie County Council. The chairman (Mr C. V. Kirke) said that he was not in favour of spending the ratepayers’ money, but something had to be done. Better Chalk Promised An import licence for 110 tons of special plaster has been obtained by the manufacturers of chalk for use in New Zealand schools and supplies of chalk equal in quality to the best overseas product can be expected this year. This information is contained in a letter from the art and crafts branch of the Education Department to the secretary of the New Zealand Educational Institute (Mr G. R. Ashbridge). The institute had complained last year to the department about the quality of chalk, and the department referred the matter to the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research. • “Land of Frustration” “In so many ways to-day England is a land of frustration,” said Mr Alfred Walmsley in Invercargill, commenting on impressions gained during a recent trip abroad. “A motor manufacturer who requires so much coal and so much steel for a run of vehicles will be granted enough steel, but will be cut down in coal, or enough coal and steel, but will be cut in some other material essential for the .production run. In the words of a great British industrialist, there is too much interference by people who don’t know anybody’s business. I would say that the British people by and large are fairly sound and ultimately will win through. Propaganda is a dangerous and insidious thing and there is much of it flying about today, and it confuses so many. Although the £ has been devalued nobody can devalue the British ability tc stick together and win through.” Notifiable Diseases

One death from tuberculosis in Canterbury was reported to the Department of Health last week. Notifiable diseases reported were: scarlet fever, five cases; tuberculosis, two; septic abortion, two. Two cases of tuberculosis were reported from the West Coast. Bowl in River Bowling history was made at Whangarei recently by the heavyweight skip, S. Simons, when playing in the Whangarei bowling tournament. He became the first man to send a drive into the Waiaroia stream. Well known for lusty driving, Simons excelled himself on this occasion. The bowl flew through the head, struck the bank, cleared the sft fence, and dropped 20 feet into the Waiaroia. A search party took some time to find the bowl. Central Otago Fruit Fruit crops in Central Otago are developing well up to the estimates of a 30 to 40 per cent, loss formed after the heavy late frosts, which struck the crops early in November, officers of the Department of Agriculture report. The pear crop actually promises to be a little better than was expected. The harvest of the stone crop is well under way, and already early varieties of pears and apples, such as Jargonelle pears and Gravenstein apples, have appeared on the market. The first Bon Chretien pears should make their appearance in the next few days. Lamb-killing Records An all-time record for killing has been established at both the Makarewa and Mataura works of the Southland Frozen Meat Company, the numbers handled last Tuesday being 10,018 and 7162 respectively or a total of 17.180 lambs for the day’s killing at both works. The season began on January 5. and the total kill to January 31 is 318,493, representing an average daily kill of 15,166. £lO,OOO Lottery Prize First prize of £lO,OOO in an overseas lottery has been won by “Bob and Joe,” of power Hutt. Two other major prizes in the lottery have been won by New Zealand ticket-holders. “Mother, Mag, and Jim,” of Napier, won the third prize of £1250, and the tenth prize of £250 was won by “Lucky New Year,” of Point Chevalier, Auckland.

Fast Launches at Wellington Three speedy launches for use when the Tasman Empire Airways flyingboat service commences are at present lying at Shelly Bay, Wellington. They are one 40ft work boat and two 38ft 22-knot command launches, and were specially brought from Japan. The exact duties of the boats are at present being decided by aviation authorities. It is probable that they will be used as fire floats and crash boats. If, however, tests show that they are not sufficiently powerful for this work, which entails carrying much extra equipment, they will be used as flying control boats, in landing the aircraft. As passengers, are expected to enter and leave the aircraft at shore pontoons in Evans Bay, the boats will not be used for carrying passengers. The craft were built in Australia, and were bought from the Allied pool in Japan. Considerable reconstruction will be necessary before they are ready for use. Ship Awaits New Tailshaft

The delivery of a new tailshaft is expected to delay the overseas freighter Rudby at Wellington for about three weeks. The shaft is being brought from Australia by the Kaitoke. which is not expected to reach Auckland until about the middle of February. The Rudby will go on the dry dock for the fittine of the shaft.