NEWS OF THE DAY

Evening Post, Issue 29, 4 February 1935, Page 8

NEWS OF THE DAY

The "Evening Post."

The "Evening Post", appears today with; a new type for its news columns. There are fashions in the printing world as in other Spheres, -but the changes that occur in respect, of newspaper type: are directed towards improved legibility without the sacrifice of compactness. Very small differences in the forms and proportions of individual letters make surprising changes in legibility, and type design is one of the really difficult arts. The new type adopted by "The Post" is called "Excelsior." It is expected that readers will find that the legibility of the paper has been greatly improved by the change. Thirsty Birds. Owing to the exceedingly dry summer in Wellington' birds are having difficulty in securing water, with the result that some of them are suffering considerably, Mr. R. A. Nicol, inspecfor the S.P.C.A., stated today. Some residents were placing dishes of water in their gardens so that the birds could get a drink, he said, and if others would do likewise they would be showing a real kindness to the unfortunate birds. / More High Temperatures. T,he extremely hot'weather experienced in Wellington on Saturday and yesterday caused many to remark that the heatwas greater than at any previous time during the present exceptionally warm summer. Actually, however, this was not the case, although the maximum temperature recorded at the Kelburn Observatory on both days was greater than at any time during January. January's hottest day was Thursday, the last day of the month, when the highest reading on the thermometer was 81.1 degrees. On Saturday the maximum temperature was 81.7 degrees and yesterday it was 81.5 degrees. Today conditions were again too warm to; be comfortable but the maximum reading up to 11.30 a.m. was a mere 73.2 degrees*. The hottest day of the summer was Christmas Day, when the maximum temperature was 83.3 degrees. Museum Cases Damaged. When a crash of glass was heard recently in the galleries of the Canterbury Museum an attendant rushed to the spot to secure a "please explain." He found two young women, who said that their efforts to- squeeze between two glass cases had met with disaster. When he. asked for their names and addresses he was told that they were staying at a well-known hotel in the city. Later inquiries showed that both, names and addresses were imaginative. The authorities had to spend £8 10s in repairs" to the cases. The "Christchurch Times" remarks that Instances of carelessness or vandalism are very rare.at- the museum, but when they do occur it is curious how loath are members of the public who mayhave seen; "accidents" to give any assistance in tracking down the ofl fender's. ' . .-'.,' ": Beach Inspectors' Authority. .' ■• ' \ . r The extent of the authority ,'of beach inspectors was debated at e'a recent meeting- of the Canterbury Surf' lifesaving Association, special, .reference being made to the-< risk,of sailing canoes and bathing in dangerous spots. It was stated,'-that.inspectors would have no'authority'below, .-high water mark. The chairman .quoted a case'of two boys who "put'out to'sea in a frail craft and capsized 200 yards from the beach and were-able to swim ashore only with some difficulty. "There is one way to deal with, "cases like that," declared a member, "Put your foot through the canoe." , Fashions in Trousers.*, The changes in the uniform -t>f pupils of the Christchurch Boys' High School are meeting with a certain amount of opposition from parents. Shopkeepers state that mothers complained bitterly of the changes, the "Star" reports. In some cases, mothers refused to buy the new uniform, and had fitted their boys out with the old one. Outfitters have their complaint also. The changes were decided on at the end of the year, when the shops were completely stocked for 1935. The style of the trousers raises the most comment from the parents. .Many of them think they are far too wide round the legs. It is thought that the circumference of 25 inches makes them look, far more like women's hiking shorts than boys' trousers. They also complain of the crease down the side of the trousers instead of down the front and back. At other schools, it was pointed out, the parents had a chance of voicing their opinion regarding the style of the pupils' clothes. At the High School they had no such opportunity, and had to adopt the styles decided upon. Moths and Ragwort A settler in the Ngutunui district, Te Awamutu, has been much interested lately in the work of a small blue caterpillar among the ragwort,on his property, says a northern exchange. He says that the grub apparently does not eat the seeds or leaves of the plant but confines its attention to" the stems' boring right down to the roots. Consequently the plant quickly wifts and dies. Mr. G. B. Melrose, the Agricultural Department's district officer, said that the blue caterpillar and its propensities had already been investigated by the Department's laboratory staff, who found that it was not the cinnabar moth, nor v/as it especially useful, though assuredly it paid some attention to the ragwort. Its methods were too slow to be very beneficial. Mr Melrose stated that the cinnabar moth was liberated in the Pukekura district three years ago, and appeared to be making progress; in fact, in some places almost a clean sweep was being made One small section, where the cinnabar moth was very thick, was being kept under observation, with a view to distributing caterpillars more widely, but the difficulty was that the caterpillar seemed to be regarded highly as a tasty morsel by birds, and they were making the task of collecting quantities rather difficult. .

Tramping in Hutt Valley. -;Hilis and Valleys,"; the bulletin of the Hutt Valley Tramping Club, in its latest issue reviews recent tramping activities and forecasts future engagements. The club shelter in the Otaki River valley is now an established fact, the bulletin stales, and. will do away with tent-carrying to that vicinity. The scenery there is some of the best in the Tararuas and is worthy of at least a couple of trips each year. The bulletin concludes with some hints for trampers. ' • Blackberries Plentiful. The warm weather has led to the rapid ripening of blackberries in the Wellington district and picking operations are now in full swing. The berries are in good condition in most areas and many picnic parties have gathered large quantities, • Yesterday several score of pickers combed the brakes in the Akatarawa Valley with varying results, some finding their day's picking spoiled to a certain extent by the activities of a party of Chinese fruit merchants who visited the Valley earlier in the week. "I am 73 Years of Age." Two jurors were excused from service when they were called this^morning at the opening of-the quarterly sessions of the Supreme Court.' One man, a Salvation Army officer, said he was seventy-three years of" age. His Honour Mr. Justice Smith accepted his excuse and-instructed the Registrar to have his name taken from the jury roll. The second man was engaged in business which could not be done in his absence. , The first criminal case to be tried is estimated to last for about five days. Cruise by Otrantp. The. Orient liner Otranto is reported to have left Brisbane on Saturday, morning, on a cruise to New Zealand ports. She is due at Auckland at 4 p.m. on Wednesday and will sail at midnight on Thursday for Wellington, where she is due on Saturday morning. The Otranto will remain at Wellington overnight, leaving here on Sunday morning on her return to Sydney. About 800 tourists are making , a visit to New Zealand by the ship, and quite a number of them will be travelling* overland from Auckland to Wellington. Visitors to Lyall Bay. , " An unusual sight was provided this morning at Lyall Bay by the visit of a large school of porpoises. They appeared off the western shore, and came quite close in. According to one observer, there were literally hundreds of the big fish gambolling on the surface and breaking water with their fins. ,They'appeared to be in no Jiurry, and remained for some hours in the smooth water of .the bay. It is quite a common occurrence for porpoises to be seen in Lyall Bay and in other bays around the'coast, but they' are rarely seen in such numbers. They are quite harmless,'but bear a disconcerting resemblance to,the shark., Maori Race Praised. ' ~ _ . "I have seen native races in many parts of the world, but I have never before seen any so v high-minded,. so unspoiled, so handsome,, or so intellectually developed as the Maoris," said Mr. Thomas Haythornthwaite, a Lancashire ' manufacturer, in an interview with a "Hawke's Bay Tribune" reporter. "It has been a pleasure to me to see the cordiality of1 the relationship between the European people and the Maoris," he added, "and that relationship will stand high in the credit of both peoples. The way in which the Maoris have been accepted as a part of ;your_,race, ..and : justice that has been extended towards them, do honour to your country." The grace, the. beauty, and the artistic talent of the Maoris whom,he had seen ,and heard in entertainments at Rotorua had particularly impressed him. Bathing Warning Defied. What might be called "a splendid" ■example, of ...how people get-drowned occurred at Manawatu Heads yesterday morning, writes "The Post's" Palmerstoh North correspondent. A man who was to enter the water was warned by a member. of the life-sav-ing club that a very stiff undertow was running and that he should not go put too far. To the astonishment of the lifesaver the reply was, "go to —" Not many minutes had elapsed before the bather was caught by the undertow, and it was fortunate for-him that the surf club members were keeping a watchful eye. He was" brought to shore just in.time. Another man got into difficulties, in the afternoon and was being carried out -rapidly when ',th'e''beltmari reached" him,"^ '-Others -who -Had ventured, out too 'far' were helped to shore by bathers' forming a chain: ■"•?', _ : _■' * - r;" ;*- A^Playful Porpoise. ' ' ■- " ~ Much excitement'-'and some- apprehension were caused-, at' Paekakarifii beach-yesterday "morning by/ the appearance during the surf;c6mpetltions of'a large fish close: inshore. .-"' At the time of .its arrival, one of the heats" of the "novice' competition * for-the Law Rose Bowl was in progress, arid two of the '.'patients" were swimming outto the buoys. Suddenly a black fin appeared between the two swimmers, and kept pace with them5-for "about fifty yards. The life-savers kept' on swimming, and eventually gained the buoys, from where they cast anxious eyes on the fish. Thought they realised by this time that the unwelcome visitor to the carnival was probably only a porpoise, they did - not relish the consequences of mistaken identity. The porpoise circled the buoy several times, and approached quite close to them, breaking water frequently. *. It then'ma,de .off in a leisurely manner to the "south, to the evident relief of the surfmen. 'New Motor-ship. r " -- 1 An interesting shipping, arrival at Auckland is the Blue Star Line's new motor-ship Imperial Star, on her maiden voyage in ballast trim. She is the first of three large motor-ships which are being built for the company by Harland and Wolff, Limited, at Belfast, the other vessels being the New Zealand Star, which was launched by Lord Bledisloe from Government House, Wellington, .on .November..22, and the Australian Star. The three vessels are all of about 10,670 tons, and they are specially constructed for the carriage of refrigerated and other cargoes from New Zealand' and Australia to Great Britain:.-.. The New Zealand Star is scheduled ;'to reach New Zealand on April 22 and the Australian Star on May 16/'"The Imperial Star will call at Wellington, Timaru, Bluff, and_ P,ort Chalmers. Mayor Criticised. The conduct of council meetings by the Mayor of .Takapuna, Mr. J. Guiniven, was criticised at a meeting of ratepayers and residents of Takapuna and Milford, convened by the Milford Progressive Association. The "New Zealand Herald", states that about 350 people were present. Mr.-C. H. M. Wills, chairman of the association, presided, and the borough councillors, all of whom were present, spoke. An invitation had, been extended to the Mayor to be present, but he did not attend. The following resolution was passed with only three dissenting voices: "That this meeting of residents and ratepayers of Takapuna and Milford emphatically protests and records its indignation against the language and conduct of the Mayor in his official position and strongly resents the insults and humiliations heaped upon the councillors and the residents of the Borough of Takapuna by his Worship the Mayor, and his obstructionist tactics." ■■■.•■■•