Reporter’s Diary

Press, 20 March 1978, Page 2

Reporter’s Diary

Perchance to dream TWO OF three South Canterbury centennial projects — The Maori Park Pool, and the Historical Museum — have been built since Centennial Year, 1959. The third, a concert chamber, remains but a dream nearly 20 years after. The Concert Chamber Association realises that the task is beyond it and the organisation will be wound up. It blames the apathy of the public and disinterest on the nart of ’he Timaru City Council. The executive has been told that no aid would be given by the Department of Internal Affairs towards a feasibility study until after August, and that the maximum grant available was $lOO,OOO. A car raffle being run by the organisers will be stopped and the money collected so far will be returned to the public. The full-time fundraiser will be paid and any money left will be given to the arts in Timaru.

John Vain to rescue A “DIARY” item about being asked to pay first ta leave a telenhone message at Auckland Airport re-

minded a Christchurch businessman of something similar that frustrated him in Christchurch recently. He called one of the city’s newest hotels to speak to one of its guests, Mr Joe Wilson, director-genera! of the Queensland Tourist Bureau. He was not in his room, said the receptionist. The caller explained that Mr Wilson was at a travel agents’ seminar in one of the hotel's conference rooms. Could he be paged? “No,” said the young woman, “We do not have a paging system” — which seemed to the Christchurch man a case of discretion overriding convenience. It was only when he called in reinforcements in the shape of Mr John Wain, the Australian Consul-General, that an impromptu paging system sprang miraculously into action.

■Vo prospector THE FORTHCOMING celebrations of the 250th anniversary of Captain Cook’s birth have reminded Britons of the great explorer’s only bad slip-up. Cook visited the Pacific island of New Caledonia in 1774, and named it because of its likeness to Scotland. He carved his

name on a tree, and. against local advice, ate an ugly toadfish which gave him a violent stomach ache. Deciding that the island had no riches to offer Britain, he sailed away without troubling to annexe it. But 89 years later the French took possession and found it to have mineral deposits which have proved to be one of the world’s richest sources of nickel.

Small fry only THE SHAH of Iran’s secret police, S.A.V.A.K. leave newspapers in absolutely no doubt about what they are not allowed to print.* One of the 19 rules laid down for editors says: “Countries unfriendly towards Iran are not to be praised, and any news that may be to their advantage is to be omitted.” Another rule helps newspapers to sort the sheep from the goats in reporting cases of financial skulduggery. Point 10 says: “Macro-size misappropriations, embezzlement and briberies are NOT to be exposed and reported in the pre s.”

Phantom pregnancy THE PENDING marriage of the comic strip character. “The Phantom.” now being featured in Wellington’s morning newspaper, the “Dominion”, has become a popular conversation topic there.

Petone senior citizens, 150 of them, celebrated the nuptials with glasses of sherry and a wedding cake. One of those present, Mrs Gladys Ford, is reported to have dismissed as a “malicious lie” the rumour that the Phantom’s bride (Diana) was pregnant. “The Phantom wouldn't marry that kind of girl,” she said.

Haunted pubs BRITISH pubs can be haunted bv more than just habitual drinkers, as one big brewery firm is finding out. Trumans has employed a noted ghosthunter, Andrew Greene, a member of the Society for Psychical Research, whose publications include “Ghost Hunting — a practical guide,” to check on reports of psychical phenomena in their hos’elries. Already he ha c turned up one haunter' pub which he believes igenuine. It is the old Lea 'her Bottle, at Northflee' Kent, which in the six teenth century was threseparate cottages. “It iquite feasible that thre< separate ghosts have beer seen there, as I have bee> told,” he says. According to Mr Greene: “Ghosts are usually caused by emotional situations, in places where a murder has taken place, or a suicide, or a fight. Pubs are places where people are more inclined to get uptight or

emotional.” Trumans says that if Mr Greene turns up enough ghosts the firm will consider publishing a guide to pub ghosts. “It would certainly give our customers something more to think about than chatting up the barmaid.”

Guide to Maori TN MAORI Language Year, it is only natural that attention should be paid to the phonetic spelling as well as pronunciation of Maori. Mr K. Young, of Gisborne, wrote to the National Roads Board asking to have Maori place names on road signs marked so as to indicate long vowels. The board sympathised, but considered vowels marked in this way might confuse the motorist instead of guiding him.

Harmonious relations ARY GLOVER. the 'ocial Credit candidate for ’apanui, seems to have ’etected a strong leaning owards the musical arts n freezing workers and heir bosses. In a statenent issued on Friday he recuses both sides of ‘tactics more fitted to prima donnas and the last gunfight at the O.K. Chorale than the amicable negotiating of award claims.” —Garry Arthur