General News

Press, Volume LXXXVI, Issue 26159, 8 July 1950, Page 6

General News

Satisfied Visitor Lieutenant-Colonel E. G. Bailey, R.E., of l Penang, Malaya, who ’ with Mrs Bailey is visiting Christchurch in the ( course of a 17-day tour of New Zealand, is the completely satisfied visi- - tor. Three weeks ago be walked into! the offices of the Tourist Department in Auckland and requested that they arrange -a tour for him. “I would give your Tourist Department full marks,” he said, commenting yesterday on his subsequent experience. He said all travelling arrangements made for him had worked out smoothly and he expressed satisfaction at lhe hotel accommodation provided. After having t travelled in many parts of the world, he said he knew of nothing better in the Way of scenery than that which he. had seen coming to Canterbury from 1 the West Coast. So impressed is Colonel Bailey with the country that, he may come here to settle when his, military service concludes. Lost and Found While cycling home to Henderson on Thursday evening Mr J. Buller was, knocked off his machine by a truck. 1 Another truck took him home. His wife discovered that a large strip had been torn from his trousers, including the hip pocket which contained a wallet and £2O. Searching with a torch at the scene of the accident, he found the wallet and the money on the side of the road.—(P.A.) “First Cai* in Ashburton” About 15 drivers, aged 70 or older, had claimed during recent tests to have once been the owner of the first motor-car in the Ashburton County, said the assistant traffic officer for the Transport Department at Ashburton (Mr E. J. Fox) yesterday. Some were not as extravagant and claimed that they had possessed “one of the first cars in the county.” As far as it is known, the first car in the county was ! owned by a former Mayor (Mr Thomas Bullock) and a photograph, bearing witness to this and dated 1902, is at present in the Ashburton office of the Automobile Association (Canterbury). The photograph, taken in the Ashburton Domain, shows an old two-seater box type of car.

Flame Throwers to Combat Wasps Beekeepers are using flame-throwers to combat the wasp invasion progressing down the North Island, it was reported at a conference of the National Association of Beekeepers at Wellington yesterday. Delegates said the wasps are spread from Raglan to Tauranga and were drifting south and north from the Auckland province where the menace was already very serious and should be dealt with as a national problem. The conference passed a resolution asking the Department of Agriculture to make available to beekeepers supplies of a more suitable agent than D.D.T. for the destruction of wasps.— (P.A.) Ministry of Sport Suggested Mr Attlee is to be asked to set up a Ministry of Sport, because of Britain’s “recent* failure in international sporting events.” A Labour member, Mr John Haire, has tabled a question in the House of Commons, asking the Prime Minist ?r whether “he will now consider setting up a Ministry of Sport and Physical Culture for the purpose of stimulating and encouraging training in organised games at home, and maintaining our national prestige abroad.” In the last two months, Britain has lost a cricket test match against the West Indies, suffered Rugby Union defeats in New Zealand and Association football defeats by the United States and Spain, received big set-backs in the tennis at Wimbledon. and lost at amateur golf to the United States.—London, July 7. Centennial Literary Competition

The judging of entries in the centennial literary competition has now been concluded and the results are expected to be announced next iflonth soon after the actual centennial celebrations begin. The competition was divided into five sections —a one-act play, a play for broadcasting, a short story, an essay, and a noem. Messrs Alan Mulgan, J. H. E. Schroder. Bernard Beeby, lan Donnelly and Professor Arnold Wall were the judges. Old Soldiers With the retirement of Superintendent D. J. O'Neill, formerly of Christchurch, there are left in the Polipe Force only two men who served in the Permanent Artillery at the beginning of the century before becoming policemen. They are Superintendent G. J. Paine, who has succeeded Mr O’Neill as the officer in charge of the Wellington police district, and Sergeant J. O’Shea, of Invercargill.

Bands’ Visits to Burnham At the request of the Canterbury Territorial Association the Canterbury Brass Bands’ Association has arranged for bands to .visit Burnham military camp on alternate Sundays to entertain territorials in camp there. A fortnight ago 30 bandsmen of Derry's Band provided a musical programme at the camp, and to-morrow it will be the turn of the Christchurch Municipal Band. Later the Woolston Band and the Lyttelton Marine Band will go to the camp. The secretary of the Canterbury Territorial Association (Mr C. V. Quigley) said yesterday that his association was most appreciative of the action of the bands’ association in making this arrangement possible.

Failure of Lights Twin electric lights high in the 162foot tower of the Wellington carillon, intended to give perpetual light as a war memorial, failed simultaneously on Anzac Day, 1949, and again on Anzac Day, 1950. No explanation can be given by the man responsible for them. Telling of the strange occurrences. Mr G. J. Butcher, curator of the Dominion Museum, said that the

“perpetual” light was not affected by the failure of either of the two bulbs—it was extraordinary for both bulbs to fail at once. That happened on April 25 this year. “I just couldn’t understand it,” said Mr Butcher. “It was going when I got up in the morning, and when I checked at 8 a.m. the light had gone out.” That was not the first time, for the light failed on Anzac Day, 1949. “Next Anzac Day,” said Mr Butcher, “we will watch it continuously. We will be more than interested if it goes out again.” Vandalism, said Mr Butcher, was impossible because a hazardous climb up the outside of the tower was necessary even to change a bulb. Auckland Property Sale The first freehold property in Queen street, Auckland, to be offered for sale since the controls were lifted, Halliday’s Building, was sold yesterday at the reserve price of £30,000. Bidding stopped at £29,700. and the property was sold privately later. The building, which is next to the State Advances building, has a frontage of about 28 feet and a depth of 83 feet.— (P.A.) Sydenham Clock i Information about the clock promised to the people of Sydenham for erection at the Sydenham Post Office was sought bv Miss M. B. Howard (Opposition, Sydenham) in the House of Representatives yesterday when she ; gave notice of a question to the Post-master-General (Mr W. J. Broadfoot). ! Miss Howard asked when the clock would be erected and in a note to the question explained that the new clock was to replace the clock removed when the clock tower was demolished. —(F.O.P.R.)