NEWS OF THE DAY

Evening Post, Volume CXV, Issue 63, 16 March 1933, Page 10

NEWS OF THE DAY

The End of Summer Time.

Summer Time ends at 2 a.m. on Sunday, at which hour, By the putting back of clocks thirty minutes, New Zealand standard time is .reverted to until next October. This putting back of the clocks means that on Sunday evening it will be dark by about 6.45 p.m., as the sun sets that day. at 6.7 p.m. However, early, risers will find compensation in the lighter mornings, the sun rising oii Sunday at 5.5 f a.m. Wairarapa Electricity Consumers. At a preliminary meeting at Carterton last night (writes "The Post's" Carterton correspondent) it was decided to form a "Wairarapa Electricity I Consumers' Association on similar lines j to an association operating in the Manawatu district. Tire annual subscription was fixed at'2s 6d, and Mr. B..Huntor ■was appointed organiser. An executive was elected pro tern., -and another meeting will be held in a month's time when officers, will be elected. Similar meetings, arranged by the organiser, will be held in other Wairarapa centres. Forest Buried by Eruption. During the excavations for the sewerage scheme- along Carrie Street, New Plymouth, the mechanical ditcher has brought to light a considerable quantity of timber which was buried years ago when portions of the area wero reclaimed and levelled for building purposes (says the "Taranaki Herald"). At the Courtenay Street junction the depth of the "trench -is nearly 30 feet. The ditcher went down through the solid yellow clay and then into an earlier formation evidently covered by the - eruption of Egmont thousands of years ago. Timber from a buried forest has been encountered, and Mr. \Y. H. Skinner secured a strip of totara found at this level. The bark is wonderfully well preserved, despite the fact that it must have been buried for thousands of years, so well in fact that one would think it had only just been stripped from a growing tree. The bark will form a most interesting addition to the 'exhibits in the New Plymouth museum.,

An Unwelcome Guest.

Some ..excitement was caused in a household in Mataura on Thursday when a huge bull, which, in, company with another, one, was being driven to tho usual stock sale, entered the front door and walked along the passage (says tho "Southland Timos"). Until' the animal showed»his head above the slide, of the dining-room door, none of the occupants appeared to be aware of his; presence. After having casually observed the surroundings in which he found himself,, the> "stranger just as quietly retired to the street to join his companion. Naval Division. . •■ . . Two warships of the New Zealand Division of the Royal.Navy arrived in port this morning from Akaroa. They are H.M.B. Veronica and H.M.S. Laburnum, and are at present berthed at Clyde Quay Wharf. They will remain in Wellington for over a month,\'during which time tho crews will • undergo military instruction, at Tfcntham. Half of' the ships' companies will go to camp on.- Monday, arid tho other half about the begiuning of-April. H.M.S. Bunedin and H.M.S.- V Diomede were in port last weekend, but they left again on Monday- afternoon. They will return to. Wellington on April 1. ; The Diomede will leave on April 3 for Auckland, but the three other warships will be in port for somo time, during which a "Navy Week" is to bo, held. " ." Tho "Winton Weea." "An escaped,flower" was the 'description given by an agricultural expert in the Auckland,;fyipreme Court of the noxious weed ragwort; the spread of which in. the North Island recently has, caused a deal of concern to farmers (states tho (iStar"). Ragwort has a yellow flower, and tho expert in question stated that he had heard of people cultivating it in their- gardens. It was, however, a serious menace growing wild on a farm, for the reasoft that its fibrous stems were- eaten, with relish by cows, and set up a dangerous livet trouble. Sheep were not so susceptible. Ragwort has been recognised as a menace to stock for many years in the South Island. -More than 40 years ago it made its appearance in Southland, and its sinister effect on stock was suspected and discussed It was then called the "Winton weed" from the fact that it was first observed in paddocks of the district round the township of Wintom

St. Patrick's Day.

Tomorrow is celebrated as St. Patrick's Day-r-ti clay of great importance tn all connected with the Emerald Isle. The usual big Irish conceit, which is to take place in the Town Hall in the evening, is likely to be ns popular an event as it has always been in the past. The day is one' of the statutory bank holidays and is also the first of the two days' raco meeting at Trcutham.

A New Pastime,

Sixteen children entered the competition for a prize recently offered by the Masterton Horticultural Society for the largest collection of white butterflies. Their collections ranged from 2200 down to 20, and totalled over 10,000 specimens. Several children went to considerable trouble in setting out their specimens. Ouo 11-yeav-old girl mounted over 1500 butterflies in an album, carrying out the work in a beautifully neat and painstaking manner.. The first prize winner was. Erie Wilson, of Wangaehu. . His collection comprised 2200 specimens caught in a turnip field on his father's farm.

Man's Spine Fractured,

"This was a somewhat extraordinary accident," said the Coroner (Mr. W. R. ■MeKean, S.M.), at an inquest. at Auckland regarding the death of a former police constable, Mr. Samuel Flavell, widower, aged 69. The deceased was a passenger in a motor-truck on November 1, and he struck his'head apparently on the woodwork 'of the cab when the vehicle passed, over a bump in the road, says the "New/Zealand Herald." Evidence was given, .that the deceased subsequently complained of a stiff neck. After receiving medical advice, he entered the- 'Auckland Hospital on December 16,. and it was found that he had' a fractured; dislocation of the cervical vertebrae. He died on January 17 from pneumonia following on the injury. In returning a .verdict in accordance with the medical evidence, the Coroner said there was no_ possible question of blame upon the driver of the.vehicle, Mr. 'W. Peters It was not clear whether the' deceased was struck on the fr.qnt or the back of the . head through the jerking of the Vehicle. >. - - *

Silent Bells,

The five bells of the Post Office clock were silent all yesterday, although the hands, of the clock still continued to give visual indication of the right time. The reason of the silence was the overhaul of the striking mechanism. This will not be cbmpletcd until next Tuesday, but the big bell on which the hours are struck will be functioning again at 5 p.m. today: The .striking mechanism, which has not had an overhaul for some" considerable time, has been found to be in very good order, and but few repairs and adjustments will be_ necessary. The clock and the four chime bells were presented jointly by the_ City Council and the Harbour Board in 1889, and in the same year the hour bell was presented to the city as a memorial to the late Hon. W. B. Rhodes by his widow. This bell weighs' about. 29ewt, and at the time of its presentation was the largest bell east in the _ Southern Hemisphere. The clock still keeps very accurate time, the daily checking by means of time signals from the Kelbu'rn Observatory seldom, showing an error of more than a second or two.

Otira (Jorge Eoaa,

*• At a recent meeting" of the Greymouth 'Automobile Association there •was a discussion on the question of restoring the Otira Gorge Road. The discussion arose out of a communication from.the Minister of Public Works, in which he stated,' that r'-.consideration would bo given to the restoration of the road after the meeting of the Highways Board on March 15. The association has telgraphed to the Member for the district and the Prime Minister asking them to support the restoration of the Toad,-tmd also-asking-them to urge a reduction in the freight on cars railed from Otira and Springfield, and vice versa. In connection -with this latter request, the . association" points out that the tunnel is at present the only outlet from'the district, and that even if it is decided to restore the road over the* gorge the work will take six months. • ■ .

Norfolk Island and Fruit.

The views of the residents of Norfolk Island on tho action of-the New Zealand Government in restricting importation into the Dominion of produce from the isJand are given in a letter to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce. This letter the chamber will send on to the Minister of Customs (states the "Auckland Star"). It refers to the action by the New Zealand Government in prohibiting import's from that territory of the Commonwealth of Australia under the embargo against the importation of fruit, produce, vegetables, and seeds from Australia. Attention is drawn to the fact that although Norfolk Island is a Territory of the Commonwealth of Australia, the laws'of the Commonwealth do not apply there unless specifically stated to apply by any law enacted by the ' Federal Government of Australia, and in view of tho foregoing, facts the Chamber of Commerce at Auckland is asked to take the matter up. .

For Many Years!

The opinion that the tax in New Zealand will remain for many years was expressed by the president of the Auckland Importers' Association, Mr. H. Q. Thomas, at the annual meeting (states the ".Auckland Star"), "The sales tax is ono that concerns importers generally," he said, "and although, without the exchange development, it seemed inevitable, it became imperative because of the extra cost to the Government, and is unlikely to be lifted for a long time. It is interesting at this point to examine the change in the incidence of taxation. In the past the Government depended on the income tax for a considerable' amount of its ■income. Today that is a failing source owing mainly, to the depleted profits of business houses. In my opinion, the sales tax will remain for many years and will become a substitute for the depleted income tax, arid in a measure also a substitute for Customs duties, levied for revenue purposes, and which in the adjustment of our tariff must disappear."