General News

Press, Volume LXXXVIII, Issue 26856, 8 October 1952, Page 8

General News

Tastes in Sunday Concerts The Sunday concerts organised by the Auckland Public Relations Office in co-operation with the New Zealand Broadcasting Service are being discontinued until further notice. The organisers see no way in which to offer good entertainment without losing money, and they refuse to lower the standard. “When we started the series we did not know the exact type of Sunday entertainment that was required;” said Mr Bruce Barnett Auckland’s public relations officer, yesterday. “After the first two concerts, which provided good music but did not attract enough people to make them pay, we changed over to a variety show. The result was a packed house last Sunday night.” He said that the organisers were not prepared to give the very light kind of variety the public wanted.—(P.A.) Took to the Air. When he gave up motoring at the age of 88, Mr A. T. Osborne, of Christchurch, was reputed to be the oldest driver in Christchurch. Yesterday, at the age of 92, Mr Osborne was loking forward to a new experience in travelling—his first flight. With his daughter (Mrs A. Greenwood) he is visiting, another daughter in Auckland. Mr Greenwood described his father-in-law as “excited but not nervous” about the prospect of the trip yesterday.

Planes Diverted from Whenuapai Two National Airways Corporation aircraft from the South Island were diverted to Hamilton when low cloud closed the Whenuapai airport for several hours yesterday afternoon. Passengers were brought to Auckland by bus. One of the aircraft was scheduled to return south, and passengers for this flight were also taken to Hamilton by bus. The cloud ceiling had improved at Whenuapai by 3.30 p.m. Earlier, low cloud over Kaikohe and Kaitaia forced the cancellation of a northern flight by a. National Airways plane.— (P.A.) New Papanui Sub-station

Good progress is being made by the Ministry of Works with the construction of a new sub-station in Papanui for the State Hydro-electric Department. The sub-station site is in Greers road near Harewood road. Forty-five 63ft concrete piles have to be driven into the ground for transformer pad foundations. The piles, which are 16in in diameter, are being cast on the site. Thirty-three have been cast and six have been driven. The main substation building, which will be of reinforced concrete, is under construction. Air-Minded Farmers

Canterbury farmers are becoming air-minded. Some time ago a party from North Canterbury arranged with the National Airways Corporation for a flight over most of the South Island, including Milford Sound and the southern lakes. Now 24 members of the Hororata Young Farmers’ Club are planning a flight over Canterbury and the West Coast on Sunday if the weather is suitable. It is proposed that a National Airways Corporation airliner should leave the Christchurch international airport at 11 * a.m. and return at 1.15 p.m. During the trip it is proposed that the aircraft should fly over Hororata. Lake Coleridge, the Ramsay Glacier, the Franz Josef Glacier, the Hermitage, the Bealey Pass, and Ashburton. Forced Feeding of Murderer Police in Colbia. Mississippi, obtained a Court order today to force a hungerstriking murderer to eat so that he will stay alive until October 31. when he is due to be executed. The judge issued an order allowing forced feeding of Luther Mussilwhite. a 32-year-old former marine, who lapsed into unconsciousness in his cell today after refusing food and water for nine consecutive days.—New York. October 6. Waimate Branch Railway Both the Prime Minister (Mr Holland) and the Minister of Railways (Mr W. S. Goosman) have promised that the representations on behalf of Waimate interests, which have protested at the recommendation of the Royal Commission on Railways that the Stud-holme-Waimate branch line be abandoned, will receive consideration before a final decision is made. This advice was received by the executive of the South Island Local Bodies’ Association in Timaru last evening. The Ministers also advised that consideration would be given to the association’s views on the proposed railway between Glenhope and Inangahua.— (F.0.0.R.) Retail Meat Prices Representatives of the Master Butchers’ Federation will meet the Prime Minister (Mr Holland) and the Minister of Agriculture (Mr K. J. Holyoake) in Wellington today, to discuss. among other things, a revision of retail meat prices.—(P.A.) Early Strawberries Early strawberries were sold in Auckland this week for 5s 3d to 8s 3d a punnet. Only a few crates were offered and greengrocers bought the fruit mainly for window dressing. In Napier the first strawberries of the season brought 5s 3d a punnet or 10s 6d a pound. Losses of Hotel Glasses

The 65 hotels in and near Auckland lose nearly 3000 beer glasses each week. A proposal to brand glasses is 1 being considered. This is done in : Australia. Consideration may also be given to the introduction of less expensive plastic glasses. Restaurants, too, report losing cutlery, especially if it has a name branded on it. The plain type of cutlery is not so much in demand. The habit of taking cutlery from eating-houses has diminished since the Second World War. Another commodity which Aucklanders apparently accumulate in large numbers is milk bottles. A spokesman for a milk treatment corporation said large numbers of bottles were lost, but the trouble was being overcome by the introduction of a ‘‘no bottle, no milk” policy.— (P.A.) Film Stars as Clergymen “No glamour boy can be deemed to have won his colours these days until he has played a clergyman,” says the “Daily Mail” film critic. “To an Order which includes Fathers Tracy, Crosby, Sinatra and others can now be added, ludicrously, Father Van Johnson —in a picture called ‘When in Rome.’ On his way to Rome during Holy Year, Father Van meets an escaped convict (Paul Douglas). In Italy, Douglas makes off with Van’s clothes and evades the police by mixing with the armies of priests with which Rome is teeming. In a very short time Christianity has ‘got’ him and he saves the police further bother by joining the Order of St. Menna —Brothers whose vows include silence and a renunciation of all worldly connexions. I offer the facts of this story .without comment. 1 merely await with patience Gary Cooper’s debut as a cardinal, and Humphrey Bogart as moderator of the Presbyterian Church.” Whitebaitlag on West Coast Although river and sea conditions have improved recently at Hokitika, there have been no real runs of whitebait. One catch of 25 pounds has been reported, but most fishermen are only obtaining seven or eight pounds. Better results have been reported from the Arahura and southern rivers. In Hokitika the price has varied /considerably. but averages about 6s a pound. Some good catches of whitebait have been taken from streams and rivers in the Buller district during the last few days, and the price has dropped accordingly. The fish are selling in Westport at 5s a pint, but most of the . catches are bought by merchants and sent to the city markets. N.Z. Trees for Japan When Captain Y. Morihisa, master of the Japanese freighter Semiramis I returns to Japan he will take with him ; two New Zealand trees. The trees, a New Zealand cedar or kawaka and a kauri, were given to him by the Mayor of Auckland (Sir John Allum). Cap- , tain Morihisa doubts whether the trees , will take kindly to an ocean voyage, but he will tell if they survive when he comes to New Zealand again. Pensioners’ Flats Auckland’s first flats for pensioners, ’ which have been built by the City • Council, will be occupied within the ; next five weeks. There are six blocks . of flats containing 24 apartments. With the co-operation of a leading city fur- » nishing firm the council intends to exj hibit two of the flats to prospective • tenants and any others interested for L about two weeks. After this the tenants will take over.