General News

Press, Volume XC, Issue 27374, 12 June 1954, Page 6

General News

Royal Congratulations The Duke of Edinburgh has sent his personal congratulations to the Mayor (Mr R. M. Macfarlane, M.P.), on being created a Companion of the Order of St. Michael and St. George. “Congratulations. I was delighted to see your name in the Honours List,” said the Duke of Edinburgh in a cablegram which Mr Macfarlane received from Buckingham Palace yesterday afternoon. The message was signed “Philip.” Mr Macfarlane has also received a cablegram from a former Lord Mayor of London, Sir Denys Lowson. who visited Christchurch in 1951. “Very heartiest congratulations on the splendid announcement in today’s Honours List,” said Sir Denys Lowson. “We remember with much gratitude our very enjoyable visit to your city.” Homeric Nod A large black car double-parked in Manchester street yesterday afternoon caused a nuisance to traffic which had to swing round it and considerable annoyance to a motorist who was unable to drive away from the inside. For some minutes the motorist fumed until the outside car was driven away —by a City Council traffic officer. Tobacco and Cancer A doctor predicted last night that research would soon isolate an agent -in tobacco tars that, he said, caused cancers. Dr. Ernest Wynder, of the Memorial Hospital in New York City, said: ‘‘l believe that within the not too distant future we shall have isolated this agent. We will then be able to •remove it through different methods of manufacturing tobacco or by filtering it out.” Dr. Wynder spoke at the annual New York State health conference. He said there was no filter now on the market that- had been proved effective in removing agents from the tobacco tars tha>t had caused cancer in mice.—New York, June 11. Comfort for Warriors A Hollywood film company making a cinemascope production of “Helen of Troy” revealed that the Trojan horse being made in Rome would be equipped with padded benches “for the comfort of warriors awaiting their cues to massacre the Trojans.”—Rome. June 10. “Winged Torpedo” Tested The United States Air Force today launched a winged torpedo over the Atlantic and reported that it hit a target at supersonic speed. It was the first public showing of the weapon—a jet-plane type monster with a silvernosed warhead. It is called the Matador. The first rocket fired developed trouble and was guided into the ocean, 60 miles off the coast, by a ’ push-but-ton. The Matador, which is 39| feet long with a wingspan of more than 28 feet, was airborne at better than 200 miles an hour after it had travelled only one-eighth of an inch. Two seconds later it was going at 300 miles an hour.—New York, June 10. Fish Supplies Improve Because of bad weather during the last week, fish supplies in Christchurch have been poor. Yesterday supplies improved, and retail shops had a range of groper, sole, cod, gurnard, terakihi, ling, and flounder. The demand was keen, and flounders frqm Timaru sold to Is lid per lb. Groper, terakihi, and gurnard came from Akaroa, Lyttelton, and Kaikoura. Timaru boats were the only ones able to put out earlier in the week. A small supply of mutton birds has arrived, and they are selling at 4s 6d each. Oyster supplies, which' stopped three weeks ago, depend on weather in Foveaux Strait. •Dancing Bursaries Government bursaries in ballet are being offered by the Department of Internal Affairs. The bursaries, which may be awarded for varying periods, are available not only to students hoping to take up dancing as a career, but also to students who wish to undertake a teacher's training course overseas and to established teachers. They are valued at £360 each a year. Memorial to Missioner Some Wellington hotels yesterday spontaneously installed collection boxes for the Harry Squires Meriorial Home Fund, and met with a response that one proprietor described as “staggering.” The fund will commemorate w° r k of the Rev. Harry Squires, Wellington City Missioner, who died this week. The sealed boxes proved inadequate to cope with the rush of money. Between 5 and 6 p.m. in one city hotel, buckets were passed round to keep up with the rush of notes and silver. Some were nearly filled. One group of bar patrons raised £lB ‘somehow with a bottle of whisky,” it was reported. The Wellington Licensed Victuallers’ Association has accordingly asked all city hotels to provide facilities for customers to make donations. The president of the association (Mr J. E. Ewart) has anno°H£ced that the association will give £lOO to the fund. At the General Post Office yesterday morning, a collection was started by an exchange operator, and k v en d of the day more than £l4O had been collected. Gross takjngs two screenings of the film Titanic,” to be held in the Roxy Theatre today, w ni be given to the fund.—(P.A.) Prediction of Eruptions A Government geophysical research observatory to be built near the Chateau Tongariro will plot fhe depth and location of subterranean volcanic explosions in the Tongariro National Park. From these records it is hoped information will be gathered to enable geophysicists to predict volcanic eruptions. If magnetic tests prove satisfactory, the observatory will be built on a sloping plateau a quarter of a mile north-east of the Chateau. It will be in sight of the peaks of both Ngauruhoe and Ruapehu.