General News

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30026, 10 January 1963, Page 8

General News

Local Body Work Headed by foe Mayor (Mr Kingston) and foe deputyMayor (Mr W. H. Bennett), three members of foe Walpawa Borough Council recently shovelled coal on the night shift at foe Waipaiwa gasworks. With staff seriously depleted by illness and injuries a crisis arose over foe town’s gas supply. Urgent action was necessary if foe supply was to be maintained. Ice Breakout The work of foe icebreakers in McMutdo Sound has been eased again by foe break-out of more ice in foe re-frozen channel. A report received at the United States Navy Antarctic headquarters at Harewood yesterday said that ice had broken up to within 18 miles at Hut Point. The Glacier is at present working on extending the channel to within one mile of Hut Point Beaches Bleak The Christchurch beaches were pretty bleak yesterday under a cold wind and with choppy seas. The water was warm but there were few swimmers. The surf patrols at the life-saving clubs reported that throughout the day no-one was noticed swimming at Waimairi, half a dozen at North Beach and at New Brighton, about four at South Brighton, and ten at Sumner. Most of the activity in the surf was left to the plentiful schools of porpoises. Auckland Rain Auckland had its first rain tar 13 days yesterday. Overnight and morning drizzle turned into a slashing rainstorm over the city between 1 p.m. and 2 pm. In the 24 hours to 9 pm 1.34 in was recorded. The maximum temperature was 71.3 degrees soon after noon. The humidity was 99 per & lit. just after 2 p.m.—(PA.) Eights Station Huts The first of the prefabricated housing units for Eights Station, the new permanent scientific outpost in Ellsworth Land, was recently flown in by United States Navy Hercules aircraft. In all there are 11 units. They were unloaded from the Aineb at McMurdo Sound last week. It is expected that all 11 will be at the Eights Station site by next week. The unite are 27 feet by 8 feet by 8 feet 10 inches. Hardy Words What is believed to be the first published glossary of Dorset dialect words and phrases used by Thomas Hardy in his Wessex novels is nearing completion in Japan, says the "Guardian.” It will contain more than 10,000 entries including many resulting from material gathered by Professor Maorua Osawa, president of the Thomas Hardy Society of Japan, when he visited England and stayed in Hardy country last summer.—(London Correspondent.)