CITY 4ND SUBURBAN

Dominion, Volume 23, Issue 52, 25 November 1929, Page 12

CITY 4ND SUBURBAN

HAPPENINGS IN AND ABOUT TOWN

A sign at the other end of Oriental Bay, fixed on a light pole opposite the entrance to Carlton Gore Road, announcing when the road is closed at Evans Bay during the time a ship is being put on the slips saves a long run for nothing.

Through a motor-cycle he was riding skidding on the road at Ballena Bay, an engineer, W. D. Sullivan, who resides at 33 Hinau Road, Eastbourne, received a fracture of his left ribs, and shock yesterday afternoon. He was attended to by the Free Ambulance service and then taken to the Hospital.

Persons of large size certainly experience some very embarrassing situations at times, and particularly when in public conveyances. As a case in point, a lady boarded a city-bound tram at Courtenay Place on Saturday, and immediately a small college youth rose and offered his seat. It was quite obvious that the seating space occupied by the boy was totally inadequate for the lady, and, broad grins appeared on the faces of other' passengers in the compartment. However, a young lady who had been sitting next to the boy came to the rescue and stood up, and this just gave the requisite amount of space.

Good progress is being made at present with the water reticulation scheme at Petone. One-third of the total area to be done under the first loan has been completed in the six or seven weeks since the contractor started to lay the new mains. The streets completed are those south of Jackson Street and west of and including Nelson Street. The gang (of some 30 men) is now working down Jackson Street towards the railway station, and will then go on to Petone Avenue and Gear Street.

A little girl of between three and four years was watching her grandad play bowls on the Petone green on Saturday afternoon. “Like an ice cream?” asked one of the bowlers. “Oh, yes,” replied the little one. “Isn’t it too cold for ice cream, though?” he suggested. “Oh, no; I can keep.my hat and coat on.” She had the ice cream.

A city professional man who enjoys this column over his breakfast, vouches for the following curious incident which occurred in the city on Friday. A client of his has an office in the city for receiving orders, and in the morning made his first entry for a customer named Slack. A little later another order was taken, the customer being Mr. Ness. The combination of “Slack Ness” was the order of the day, for, curiously enough, not another customer did he get before closing.

It is a most dangerous practice to jump off a moving tram, especially in the City.- The Wellington streets are not wide, and motorists are forced in many places to travel only a few inches from the footboards of the trams. Yet, despite all warnings, many people are foolish enough to jump off trams right in front of oncoming traffic. On Saturday morning a man, without looking back to see if the road was clear, jumped from a tram just outside the Union Bank of Australasia, and landed almost under the wheels of an on-coming motor-car. It was a lucky thing for the man that the car was pulling up at that particular spot to allow a passenger to get out, otherwise there would have' been a bad accident. There is a rule which says that a person must not board or alight from a moving tram. One might suggest that this should be enforced in the City area.

A New Zealander recently returned from a business trip to Great Britain and the United States is Mr. H. J. Preston, New Zealand representative of Waterman’s Ideal Fountain Pens, and William Collins Sons and Co., Ltd., Glasgow. At the request of Mr. Frank D. Waterman,"the well-known millionaire, of New York, Mr. Preston, immediately on his arrival, got in touch with the Government Publicity Office in Wellington with a view to having some photographs and general publicity material sent forward to Mr. Waterman, who owns a hotel in Lexington, New York, and the Fountain Inn Hotel, in Florida. Mr. Waterman is an enthusiastic advocate of the beauties of the Dominion, and the material which the Department is supplying should prove an excellent advertisement for the attractions of the country.

St. John’s Presbyterian Church has a place on the 2YA church rota for the broadcasting of services, and, according to the annual report on the past year’s activities of the church, many letters have been received from far and near acknowledging the helpfulness of the services. The following communication was recently received by the church authorities from a resident of Honolulu:—On Saturday night, October 5, 1929, we were listening-in to stations over in California, when we had a rather severe earthquake. Of course, we turned the radio off, and started calling different members of our family on the telephone to find out whether or not they had felt the ’quake. In about fifteen minutes I thought I would tune in on another California station, but just as the dial got to number 740, we heard a prayer just as clearly as if it were in the same room. We were a little taken back to bear this prayer just after the ’quake, so we listened to find where it came from. After the prayer, we listened to your sermon, ‘Personal Immortality.’ The sermon was so interesting and cleaithat we decided to listen-in to the end. which we did. The sermon was beautifully given and the singing and organ were wonderful.”

The announcer at the Kilblrnla Speedway on Saturday night addressed the 13,000 spectators as follows:— “Will those who find it necessary to bring liquid refreshments with them kindly refrain from dropping the ‘empties’ into the back yards of the neighbouring properties. If they drop the ‘empties’ on the ground underneath them they will be collected to-morrow.” The crowd laughed uproariously.

At a meeting of the Hutt Valley residents last week the old question of Gear Island as an aerodrome was again brought up, with special emphasis being given to its use as a ground for training pilots. If the island could be obtained for the purpose a local branch club could be run, affiliated with the Wellington Aero Club. On the understanding that this could be secured it was decided to form a local branch, and a large number of provisional enrolment forms were signed.

There is evidence of a severe motor accident at the lower end of Hamilton Road, Kilbirnie. A large piece of a telegraph pole is missing, and there are numerous skid-marks and much spilt oil on the bitumen. An eye-wit-ness of the accident states that on Saturday afternoon a sedan car was unable to negotiate the corner by the Anglican Church on account of excessive speed, and leapt across the footpath, striking a telegraph pole head on. The front portion of the car was severely damaged. The driver of the car, although not injured, was badly shaken, and was taken home by a friend. The police arrived shortly afterwards and are making inquiries. The identity of the driver was not made available by the police last night

Appreciation of the work of the Rev. J. R. Blanchard is recorded in the annual report of St. John’s Presbyterian Church. “The Rev. Blanchard.” states the report, “has now firmly established himself as our esteemed and respected minister, and to his ability and wise leadership must be attributed much of the progress which has attended the work of the church of the past year.”

About ten miles of streets in the Lower Hutt Borough are to be tarsealed this summer and preparations are now in hand for the work. It is expected that the urgent work of sealing the approaches to the new Hutt bridge will be done by the City and Suburban Highways Board’s plant prior to paving the Taita Gorge road in February.

“Although we commenced on July 1, 1928, with a credit balance of £l9B/1/1 to end up with a debit balance of £154/1/4, is not at all discouraging, when the heavy expenditure of close on £lOOO in painting and renovating the church buildings is taken into consideration,” states the annual report of St. John’s Presbyterian Church. “St. John’s has done well, and will continue to do so; the debit balance of £154 will be an incentive to one and all to assist in the liquidation of this amount before very long. To owe no man anything may be the counsel of perfection, Jint St. John’s have the ability and capacity to reach this desirable state of affairs, the only thing necessary being the will to do it, and the finance committee and board of managers have no doubt on this score.”

The dull monotony of suburban tram travel was somewhat livened by a little incident which occurred on Friday. From the window of a closely packed car, a woman noticed an acquaintance who was driving a motorcar in the same direction. She jumped to her feet and pushed her way through the standing people until she reached the platform. Then, catching the motorist’s eye, she called out in a voice that rang through the whole car: “John, don’t forget the fish at ——.” The message having been duly received, she forced her way back to the compartment, and glared at the one who was now occupying the seat she had lately vacated.

The report of the Session and Board of Managers of St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church, to be presented at the annual business meeting on Thursday shows that good progress has been made in all departments of church activity. The report embraces a period of 16 months owing to the General Assembly having altered the date of the church year from June 30 to October 31. A financial statement prepared’ by the Board of Managers shows that the ordinary revenue, £1943/19/6, has exceeded the expenditure, £1905/18/6, by £3B/1/-. This result, which has been attained after the deduction of £44/3/11 for budget purposes from ordinary collection, is regarded by the board as satisfactory. The corresponding figures for the same period in 1928 were £lB7O/5/- and £lBO5/14/10 respectively. The response to the appeal made in April for a thank offering resulted in the receipt of £240. In the statement there appears the amount of £129/16/- as hall revenue. St. Andrew’s Hall was leased to the proprietors of Wellesley College from February-20 to July 9, 1929, during the reconstruction of the college, which had been partially destroyed by fire, the sum received from this source being £ll5/7/6, which was a material help to the finance of the church. The total sum raised during the period under review for the budget, missions and other Presbyterian Church assessments, also many philanthropic objects, was £632/9/10, so that St. Andrew’s has not only fully met its budget assessment of £4OO. but has subscribed for objects outside its own church a further sum of £232/9/10.