NEWS IN BRIEF

Dominion, Volume 33, Issue 68, 13 December 1939, Page 11

NEWS IN BRIEF

Embargo Reprisal

A suggestion for a reprisal against the New Zealand embargo against British live stock was put before the Federation of the Chambers of Commerce of the British Empire by Sir Mark Sheldon, Sydney, recently, to the great amusement of members. Sir Mark said the Australian Jockey Club should be approached by the British authorities and induced to ban New Zealand racehorses from Australia. “They should not be allowed to go to Australia,” x he said. “At present they do, and they win all the Australian prizes.”

Overseas Telegrams. In future one authenticating group, consisting of five figures or five letters, is permitted in overseas remittance telegrams to the United Kingdom from leading insurance shipping and commercial firms. Heavy Rail Traffic.

Seven express trains, five more than usual, are to leave Wellington for Auckland on Friday, December 22. Of these trains four are already fully booked. The demand for accommodation shows no signs of slackening, and many additional trains will be run on the Taranaki, Wairarapa and Hawke's Bay lines also. Inward traffic to Wellington is expected to be heavier than outward.

Buried Engagement Ring. When digging up the lawn of his home in Hamilton, Mr. L. J. Mark, headmaster of the Hamilton West School, found a diamond engagement ring. An inquiry was made and it was found that the ring was lost by Mrs. J. B. Pomeroy, Hamilton, when she and her husband occupied the property 19 years ago. Two of the 12 diamonds were missing from their setting, otherwise the ring was undamaged.

Visitors to Rotorua. Rotorua hotels and boardinghouses are fairly well booked for the Christ-mas-New Year holiday period, though the bookings came in considerably later this year than last, because of petrol restrictions. Before the removal of the restrictions, bookings had been poor, and it appeared as though Rotorua would spend a quiet new year. There are not many visitors in Rotorua at present, but this is usually the case before the Christmas rush. New Tracks For Trampers.

Auckland tramping enthusiasts in the habit of spending a weekend in the Waitakere Ranges have recently been active in cutting new tracks through the bush in that popular area. The scenic drive is one reason for increased activity, many trampers preferring to keep away from the hard surface of the road which bisects tracks formerly in most favour. One of the chief attractions in the ranges at present is the area between Bethell's and Waitakere, which is as yet not penetrated by first-class roads.

Transport To West Coast. West Coast residents who are hoping to get home for Christmas Day are finding some difficulty in making their transport arrangements in the North Island, as advice has been received that there will be no service aeroplane from Wellington to Westport on Sunday, December 24, or Monday, December 25. A passenger steamer will leave Wellington for Nelson on Sunday evening, but there is no connecting car from Nelson to Westport. There is an alternative route,• Wellington to Lyttelton on the Sunday, thence to Greymouth and to Westport; but advice has been received that the steamer is a full ship. Secondary Scholarships.

The New Plymouth Boys’ High' School boarding scholarship for three years, valued at £57 a year, was won this year by Fred West, a pupil of the Arohena School, near Te Awamutu. A scholarship tenable for three years at New Plymouth Girls’ High School has been won by Fenella Martin, a pupil of Te Mata School, Raglan. Another pupil of- the school, Mary Phillips who was an inmate of the Waikato Hospital for eight weeks just before the examinations gained second place last year. The Harriet Scott scholarship, of a value of £5O a year and. tenable at Southwell School, Hamilton, for two years, has been awarded to lan D. Leggat, of Hastings.

House Numbers. With so many hill roads,' houses in Wellington are often some distance above or below street level. This makes it difficult to see the number from the road, and the system of having several numbers at the top of the path that leads up or down as the case may be is unsatisfactory in that, having narrowed the field down, it leaves the searcher to do the rest. The problem has been solved by a resident of Kelburn Parade who has hung the number of his house from the porch (the house is above the road) in bold numerals about eight inches high. The spread of this idea would be a help to those who have to do a lot of searching for houses in their day’s work. Enemy Traders.

Seven pages of the latest Gazette are occupied with the names and addresses of upward of 400 persons, firms, and companies which have been declared enemy traders for the purposes of the Enemy Trading Emergency Regulations, 1939. The Minister of Industries and Commerce is satisfied that they are carrying on business to a substantial extent for the benefit of alieu enemies resident out of New Zealand. Some of the names mentioned are very, well known, and addresses given show that the businesses affected are situated in every part of the world. Large numbers are from different parts of South America, and many others from such countries as Finland, Norway, Sweden, Iceland, Iran, Mexico, Cuba, Yugoslavia, and Japan.