CITY AND SUBURBAN

Dominion, Volume 23, Issue 55, 28 November 1929, Page 13

CITY AND SUBURBAN

HAPPENINGS IN AND ABOUT TOWN

The Wellington primary schools will close for the slimmer holidays on December 20 and reopen on February 3.

Students from the Wellington and Rongotai Colleges have been attending Victoria College this week, sitting for the National Senior Scholarship examination.

The following is a further list of contributions received in aid of the Victoria Hospital Radio Fund:—Already acknowledged, £6l/19/-; E.D.B , £5; Frank Hurley, £l/1/-; A. S. Paterson and Co., £l/1/-; Wm. Nannan Stead, £1; total, £7O/1/-.

St. John’s Church enrolled 160 members during the past year, and lost eleven by death, and 77 by removal and other causes. The roll now numbers 767, of whom 512 are members of full standing. The increase during the Rev. J. R. Blanchard’s ministry is 255.

The Wellington Education Board has accepted the tender of E. S. Griffen for the alteration and addition to the brick portion of Brooklyn School. The tender for the purchase of the old infants’ department at Brooklyn of W. Wilson has been accepted. The work will be done during the summer holidays.

“Has anything been done in regard to the charges on water?” asked Mr, H. D. Bennett, at last night’s meeting of the Harbour Board. “We have had some publicity given to the matter,” he added, “and there seems to be a ease to answer.” The chairman (Mr. J. AV. McEwan) said the matter was under consideration by a special committee set up to deal with rates and port charges.

The Royal New Zealand Artillery were to have commenced their annual service firing yesterday at Fort Dorset, the tests occupying three days. The firing takes place between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. on each day. Yesterday the seas were too rough for the target to be towed by the Janie Seddon, and the practice was put off until to-day. The guns used are the six-inch Mark VII, and the ranges are from 7000 to 9000 yards. Captain R. S. Park is in command, and the members of the R.N.Z.A. present are from Napier, Palmerston North and Wellington. If the weather is still too rough to-day the practice will be carried out tomorrow.

In the past church year Rev. J. R. Blanchard, of St. John’s Presbyterian Church', has officiated at 28 baptisms, 58 marriages, and 30 funerals.

While working at Messrs. J. W. Wallace and Coy's, premises yesterday morning, R. J. Goddard, a wire mattress maker,, suffered lacerated wounds to the thumb through his hand coming in contact with a circular saw. He was attended to by the Free Ambulance and admitted to the Hospital.

The application of the Whaitaitai Boating Club for a renewal of a foreshore license, for a boatshed and. moveable skids at Evans Bay, was agreed to on the recommendation of the Wharves and Accounts Committee, at last night’s meeting of the Harbour Board.

Information as to whether anything was being done in the direction of reducing the charges for electricity supplied by the City Council to the Harbour Board was sought by Mr. T. Moss at last night’s meeting of the board. The chairman (Mr. J. W. McEwan) replied that the matter was under consideration by the City Council, from whom a decision was hoped for at an early date.

The £lOO Christmas-box which the members of Parliament voted themselves before the close of the session, continues to be a standing, but barbed, joke everywhere. Speaking about the Government’s lack of money which caused the decreased school capitation fees, a lady at Miramar said: “I know what I would do if my husband only gave me half his wages. And I would like to know what the members of Parliament would do if they had their salaries cut in half.”

A strong underground flow of water has again been struck in the longer Tawa Flat railway tunnel, the stream being estimated at 18,000 gallons an hour. The spot is some six chains beyond where an underground reservoir or stream was tapped recently, between the shaft at the viaduct and Ngahauranga Gorge. In that instance the water backed up the grade to the shaft itself, and the pumps had difficulty in keeping it down until the flow moderated, but in the present case the water has backed up the grade only a couple of chains, and four pumps are holding it at that. The ground at the earlier flow was very broken, but it is more solid where the new flow has been struck.