General News

Press, Volume CI, Issue 29801, 18 April 1962, Page 14

General News

Biggest Ring

The biggest ring ever made in New Zealand has just been finished by a Wellington manufacturing jeweller for a Christchurch customer. Valued about £4OO, the ring took four days to make compared with four hours for an ordinary ring. Of 18-carat gold with 18 two-carat diamonds and an £BO ruby in the centre, the ring is more than seven times heavier than an ordinary one.—(P.A.) Mechanical Error A Darwin businessman has received a bill for £11.999.953 Os Bd, and he doesn’t even owe the Bd. A sports store proprietor. Ted Davies received the bill from a company which makes motormowers. The first item on the bin was for £11,999.953 Os 7d. Debit of Id was added in to make it £11,999.953 Os Bd. “It seems that the accounting machine went mad and the account wasn’t checked,” Mr Davies said. Mr Davies said that instead of owing the company nearly £l2 million, the company owed him £46. "It’s nice to know my credit is so good,” he said. "It’s.not every man who can run up a bill for this amount. win, April 17.

Time Flies American travel agencies make a feature of direct flights from the United States to Zurich for skiers which enable the tourists, if they wish, to ski on European snows the same day they leave their home country New Zealand can make a similar claim. Recently two ski parties left Melbourne with a wager between them as to which would be ski-ing first. One party which flew from Melbourne to Christchurch, and from there to Queenstown by charter flight and by car to Coronet Peak, was ready to ski two hours before the other group had reached Mount Hotham. in Victoria itself. Quinces For Windsor New Zealand-grown and canned quinces will be eaten at Windsor Castle this year because of a request by Lady Freyberg to a Hastings cannery. Each year the firm sends a number of cases of canned goods for Lady Freyberg. This year she wrote to ask if they canned any quinces as she was fond of the fruit. “We had not done them before,” said a spokesman of the company in Hastings today. “But this season as an experiment, we packed about 10 tons of quinces and will send a few cases to Lady Freyberg.” Lord Freyberg is Lieutenant . Governor of Windsor Castle. —(P.A.)

Hanmer Pool Charges Increased admission charges to the thermal pools at Queen Mary Hospital. Hanmer Springs. were' announced yesterday by the medical superintendent (Dr. A. W. Wilkinson). Dr. Wilkinson said that higher operating costs had necessitated raising the present nominal charges. Adults will now pay Is 6d instead of Is for a private thermal bath and Is instead of 6d for the thermal pool. Children’s prices have risen by 3d One In Six One out of every six pupils at the Aranui High School is a member or on the waiting list of the school orchestra or school band. The orchestra has 34 players. 12 learners and 10 waiting and the band has 10 senior players, 12 learners, six drummers, and 28 waiting. Last evening the school board approved the purchase of five new band instruments Old People's Needs The Health Department’s survey team investigating the needs of old people will be in Christchurch from Monday. April 30 until about Tuesday, May 8. The team is at present operating from Timaru Members of the team call on old people and ask about their general persona) circumstances. The information is treated as private, and the forms on which it is recorded are destroyed as soon as the requirements of the statisticians have been met.

The Gause All grassed areas of the Aranui High School had been scarified, reseeded, and topdressed, the headmaster (Mr W. J. A. Brittenden) reported to the board last evening. "I feared the dry weather tn recent weeks would nullify much of the work and asked everyone to pray for rain After last week-end, I feel they may have been overzealous,” he said, amid laughter.

Public Tomatoes A tomato plant believed to have grown from a tomato sandwich is thriving in Ballance street, Wellington. There is another public tomato plant, in No. 3 platform in the Wellington station. It is bearing fruit and is said to have sprung from a small plant in the same place last year. Polio Campaign Poliomyelitis oral vaccine doses were given yesterday to 7828 children in the Christchurch health district, bringing the total since the campaign began to 68.643. Yesterday’s figures were: preschool. 1155; primary school. 4760: post-primary school. 1913. 102 Today Mr Walter Reid, of Herne Bay. who will be 102 today, has made a reluctant birthday resolution—to give up reading the newspapers every day. “The small print is getting just a bit too much for my eyes.” he said today. A fifth-form pupil at Auckland Grammar School. Kenneth Green, will read for him. Mr Reid was still driving a car up to the time of his 100th birthday.—(P.A.)