NEWS IN BRIEF

Dominion, Volume 29, Issue 254, 23 July 1936, Page 11

NEWS IN BRIEF

Use of Word ‘Tommy” “It makes my blood boil when I hear immigrants referred to as ‘Pommies,’ ” said Mr. A. Leigh Hunt when speaking on immigration at a meeting of the English Speaking Union, in Wellington, last night. “What were our mothers and fathers if they were not ‘Pommies’? I would like to see the use of the word made a penal offence.”

Sold Liquor Without a Licence. At his second trial in the Supreme Court at Timaru yesterday. Bernard Lewis Blackwell, of Ashburton, was found guilty on two charges of selling liquor without a licence, says a Press Association message. Sentence was deferred.

No Planes for 12 Months. No use by aircraft of the aerodrome at Stratford should be permitted for 12 months, advised Wing-Commander T. M. Wilkes, controller of civil aviation in a letter received by the Stratford Borough Council. This lapse of time was considered necessary to permit of the establishment of a good turf. Lamb Prices Firm.

“Lamb prices have remained firm throughout the season,” states a clause in the annual report of the New Zealand Sheepowners and Farmers’ Federation, “and provided no undue complications arise as a result of discussions with the British Government with respect to quantitative restriction of meat Imports, the outlook for the satisfactory disposal of our output of lamb and other meat products is distinctly hopeful.” Very Cold Day.

A biting southerly wind made yesterday one of the coldest days this winter. The sky was overcast and leaden, and in the morning occasional light rain squalls passed over Wellington. A few flakes of snow fell at Kelburn and Karon at half-past 8 in the morning. Although the wind slackened somewhat toward nightfall, the temperature remained low, and a bitterly chill evening followed. ,

Applications to be Withdrawn. Applications of the New Plymouth Borough Council for an extension or hours for its electric light department and its tramways and omnibus department are to be withdrawn in view of the fact that negotiations over anomalies in the Factories Act and Its amendments are proceeding between the Electric Power Boards and Supply Authorities Association and the Hon. H. T. Armstrong, Minister of Labour.

Winding the Clocks. Absent-minded people will agree that the task of keeping a clock oiled and wound without fail should not be un derestimated, but even they may be surprised at the differing estimates of monetary worth of the undertaking. Two tenders for the maintenance and winding of three city clocks were received by the Auckland City Council this week. One quoted the sum of £lOO for two years, and the other, the present bolder of the contract. £3a. New Zealand History.

Emphasising the necessity for a n> or ® complete record of early New Zealand history, Professor J- Rutherford, in an address to the Auckland Institute, said the work should not be neglected anv longer. “There should be a research on a national scale for records in private hands,” he added. “All large collections of articles should be assembled and systematically searched Their contents might then be made known through the publication of historical calendars and almanacs.”

Ski ing Conditions in the South. Ski-ing conditions this week are good at both Mount Cook and Arthur’s Pass. I n th e Mount Cook region there was a further fall of snow on Sunday, and conditions for ski-ing. on the Ball Glacier are reported now to be very good. Light falls of snow on Monday at Arthur’s Pass improved ski-ing prospects there, and a report on Tuesday stated that there was a fair depth of snow on the lower ground, three inches of it being new.

Cats Desert Oil Tanker. The disinclination of any cat to remain on their ship is a source of con siderable disappointment to the crew of the Admiralty oil tanker Nucula. which arrived at Auckland from San Pedro the other afternoon. Three years ago, a member of the crew managed to entice a large grey cat on board at Devonport. The finding of seven kittens in the lifeboat one morning on the return voyage to New Zealand convinced most of the crew that fam ilv ties would keep the old cat on board. However, when the . Nucula tied up at Devonport, the ship’s first pet. followed by seven fat little kittens. walked down the gangway and has not been seen since.