General News

Press, Volume XCII, Issue 27734, 11 August 1955, Page 12

General News

Explanation Jacob ("Buddy”) Baer, a former prizefighter, explained in Court here yesterday why he could not pay 750 dollars in alimony arrears. “I’m too old to fight,” he said, "and 1 haven’t had enough acting experience to be a good wrestler.”—Los Angeles, August 10. Oamaru Butcher’s Record A report that two Wanganui butchers, Messrs Noel Grant and Mick Geoffic, had sliced their way through forequarters of beef in 27 minutes 45 seconds and 29 minutes 33 seconds was accepted yesterday as a challenge by an Oamaru butcher, Mr Jack Ritchie, who reduced the unofficial Wanganui record by 12 minutes five seconds. Precisely at 1 p.m. he lunged his knife into the shoulder and 16 minutes 30 seconds later the roast beef, blade steak, and gravy beef were hanging on the hooks, the corned beef was ready for the pickle, and meat from the bones was prepared for the mincer. The bones were sliced up and the bench wiped clean.—(P.A.) Ram , Milk has replaced beer as the favourite drink of the Royal Navy. This is shown by a new survey into the eating and drinking habits of servicemen in forces canteens. The Navy is shown to prefer milk while Army and Air Force men are drinking more coffee and soft drinks. The survey reported that alcohol sales, which amounted to 95 per cent of the turnover 50 years agb. were now only 5 per cent, of the turnover. “We are selling more . milk than beer to the Navy—an astonishing increase," a forces canteen official said today.—London, August 10. Time-Payment Restrictions The recently-imposed time-payment restrictions hit at the' working man and no-one else, said Miss M. B. Howard (Opposition, Sydenham) in the House of Representatives last evening. The working man could not afford £lOO for a refrigerator or washing machine, and had to buy on hire purchase. The deposit of 15 per cent, required would not. stop people from spending, said Miss jloward. Those who had an income cbuld get all the goods that should be in the average home, but the workers would have to go without them because, in the Government's opinion, time payment was such a terrible thing.—(F.OJP.R.) Drunk in Charge at Steamroller Percy Brown was fined £3 ■at Merthyr Tydfil, Glamorganshire, today, for driving a steamroller while he was drunk. He was banned from driving for a year.—London. August I°. • , ' Sydney Launch at Nelson The Sydney owned 50-foot flush decked cruiser launch. Dawn, slipped into Port Nelson after a rought 1250 mile* passage from Sydney. The Dawn, with a crew of four, left Sydney heads at 7.15 p.m. last Tuesday and, in spite of running before a storm for a day and a night averaged 8.2 knots for the voyage. The owner-captain of the cruiser is Mr S. Sleeman. formerly x)f Auckland and now of Sydney. With him are Messrs H. Jones, L. Fyfe, and R. Mclntyre, also of Sydney. It is the crew’s intention to look into the fishing possibilities in New Zealand and trips are planned with this end in view. After a few days in Nelson, the Dawn will go to (F,O.OJL) “Thought to Qualify”

The nomination of Mr Thomas Doody for a long service certificate was received by the Canterbury School Comzxpttees’ Association last evening. The. Oxford District High School Committee said he was “thought to qualify” as he had been a. member since 1908 (with one -two-year break) and was again chairman. The certificate is'given for 10 years’ service. Mr Doody said that Oxford had some of the earliest experience in Canterbury of consolidation, open-air hom«i, and milk in schools, and was now rated a* the finest country school in New Zealand. He was proud of his record. Mr D. Good, of the Marshland School Committee was another “thought to qualify.” He had been a member since 1916 and chairman except for one year.' He will receive his certificate at the next meeting. x Drinkers’ Strike Dublin’s publicans, just recovering from a strike by barmen, are now threatened by a drinkers’ strike, according to the “Daily Mail” today. It said the drinkers were protecting against bar prices, and had formed the “Drink Consumers’ Association.” The association issued a “communique” accusing the publicans of “contempt regarding the humble needs of their ordinary patrons.”—London. Aug. 10. N.Z. Fine Furniture in Sydney New Zealand-made pine furniture is being shipped to Australia for the offices of Mr J. A; Malcolm, senior New Zealand trade commissioner in Sydney. The timber, according to the latest issue of the “New Zealand Timber Journal,” was supplied by the Dominion Sawmillers* Fediirction, and the furniture was made in Hamilton. It comprises a reception counter desk, roll-top desk, office desk, squab-style settee, occasional magazine table, two office chairs, and two wastepaper baskets. Visit by Explorer’s Son Mr Peter Scott, son of Captain Robert Falcon Scott, who led the first British expedition to the South Pole in 1901, will visit New Zealand early next year. Mr C. R. Ford, of Auckland, who was the youngest member of Captain’s Scott’s expedition, has been told this in a letter from his sister, Miss H. M. Ford, of London.— (P.A.). Consultation on Appointments The Christchurch South Intermediate School Committee’s suggestion that headmasters should attend meetings of the Canterbury Education Board’s appointments committee when appointments were being made to their schools to ensure suitable selections received short shrift from the Canterbury School Committees’ Association last evening The president (Mr R. W. Taylor) said that the highest-graded teacher applying must be appointed unless there were exceptional circumstances. Positions at 50 schools might be/considered at one meeting and if every headmaster attended it would take a month to deal with them, to say nothing of the spate of appeals which could result if the present practice was varied, said the secretary (Mr A. Greenwood), who is chairman of the board’s appointments committee. Teachers would be represented on the new district appointment and promotion committees. Lithium from Thermal Water The hot water handled in developing the first 37,500 kilowatts of geothermal power at Wairakei will bontain lithium worth about £lOO,OOO a year. This is described in a bulletin of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research as being the only constituent of the Wairakei waters which may have a commercial value. The difficulty is to recover lithium at concentrations of 12 to 21 parts in a million. Common salt, although not mentioned in the bulletin as being of commercial value, is also contained in the thermal water. One well delivers about a ton of salt an hour. Tasman Air Record A Douglas airliner of Canadian Pacific Airlines broke the commercial record for the Sydney-Auckland flight last night, when it crossed the Tasman in 3hr 40min 16sec. The average speed was 363 miles an hour, and at one stage the plane attained 382 miles an hour. It flew at 21,000 ft with a good load of passengers, freight, and’ mail. A Pan American Airways plane set the previous record in 1952. when it flew the same route in 3hr 42min.-—(P.A.)