NEWS OF THE DAY

Evening Post, Issue 36, 12 February 1935, Page 8

NEWS OF THE DAY

Dearer Butter. There has been a further rise of Id per pound in the price of butter on the local market and retail prices for standard brands are,now from Is ljd to Is 2d per pound. Obstructing' the Roadway. Despite the provision of parking places at Day's Bay and Lowry Bay, the obstruction bf the road by stationary vehicles continues every fine Saturday afternoon and Sunday. As parking places, apparently the cleared parking ground near Croydon School at Day's Bay and the old road at Point Howard are not considered equal to the bitumen track that winds round the foreshore, with the result that the highway is often narrowed to one-way traffic width-by the cars left on either side of it. Numerous complaints of the nuisance have been received by the Hutt County Council, which is taking steps to prevent it at both bays. Entrance to Show Building. * The decision at the annual meeting of .the Wellington Show' 'Association last year to proceed with the erection of a new front entrance to the exhibition buildings at an estimated cost of £300 was discussed at a meeting of> the association's executive last 'night. . It was decided that until the .association's finances improved the matter be deferred. • Pipe Bridge Maintenance. In moving the adoption of the finance committee's report, the Mayor (Mr. A. Scholefield) stated at the meeting of the Petone Borough Council last evening that further consideration was given to the Wellington City Council's letter in connection with the maintenance of the Hutt Pipe' and Waiwetu Stream bridges, asking that tallies taken on ', September 7, 8, and 9, 1934, should stand. . The committee recommended the council to adhere to its previous decision and to insist upon a fresh weekday tally being taken." He did not think the tallies represented the true condition, as regards traffic, said the Mayor. The report was adopted. County's War on Speedsters. Since the passing of the bylaw a little more than a year ago forbidding the driving of motor vehicles on the Plimmerton, Paekakariki, and Paraparaumu beaches very little trouble I has been experienced from cars on the beaches, but at Plimmerton cars speed I along the road parallel to the waterfront. The Hutt County Council has had several complaints of cars being driven at a dangerous pace in Steyne Avenue arid Shrewsbury Terrace, Plimmerton,: and ■' over the hill to Moana Road, Karehana Bay. The practice is also said to be prevalent on the road from the station to the beach at Paraparaumu. The County Council has expressed its determination to stop speeding in its district, and its determination had a practical effect in the Magistrate's Court when two men were each fined £ 1 for; exceeding the speed limit at Plirrimerton. Gold Mining Shares. The extent to which gold mining shares are sought in South' Africa was illustrated by Mr. Nathaniel Malcolm, who is at present visiting: Dunedin after being engaged in the mining industry in Africa for. so.me years. Re-1 cently a company applied' to the Gov- ■ ernment for a new lease over an area that had lain dormant for some 'years, and this was granted on condition that the company issued 800,000 10s shares for public subscription, Mr. Malcolm told an "Otago Daily Times" reporter. Immediately hard cash, cheques, and notes poured into the offices in an ever-increasing; flood, and a staff of 100 was engaged to handle the stream, which ultimately assumed the-- dimensions of £4,000,000! Naturally only a small proportion bf the applicants was able to buy shares, and, singularly enough, those who were modest' in their requirements received their -full allotment—lo or 20 shares—while dtherS' who- applied for hundreds received about 10. This is only one of many instances of the eagerness of the public to invest in gold mining propositions. Ratepayers Say Yes. A-poll of Tauranga Borough ratepayers on a proposal to raise a loan of £20,000 for waterworks , improvements resulted in the proposal being carried by 420 votes to 58. It is claimed that the new system will give about five times the present delivery of water from the Waiorahi Stream and enable the council to supply adjacent districts at Gate Pa, Judea, Otumoetai, and probably Mount Maunganui. It is expected that the townspeople will have the extra supply operating by the time they are called upon to pay the additional rate, which will be largely counterbalanced by a reduction in-fire insurance premiums and the increased number of consumers.

To Farewell Governor-General. An invitation to join with the Wellington City Council in a farewell address to his Excellency the GovernorGeneral, whose term of office has now practically expired, was received at a meeting of the Johnsonville Town Board*last evening. The board decided unanimously to associate itself with any civic farewell. It is expected that the ceremony will take place about the middle of next month. Johnsonville Finance Improves. Evidence that the financial position of the Johnsonville Town Board has improved during the past year was contained in the annual balance-sheet presented and adopted at the board meeting last night. Mr. R. Drury Town Clerk in the Johnsonville district, was congratulated oh the fact that the balance-sheet had been returned from the Auditor-General's office without tags. Loan Conversion. A scheme to convert a loan of £14,325 was considered by the Johnsonville Town Board at its meeting last evening, and it was finally decided to adopt the proposal... The conversion will take effect from April 1, and it is estimated that the annual charges I after conversion will show a reduction of approximately £107, as compared I with the present charges. The scheme |is on a table mortgage, and the new ! loan is to have.a life of 28 years. Streams Dried, Up. On the authority of the owner of , Salisbury Estate, Otago, two streams |on the Taieri Plain have entirely dried up for the first time in at least twenty 'years. That being so the anxiety of the municipal authorities concerning the shrivelling of the small feeders of the Silverstream race and other contributors to Dunedin's reservoirs—none of them of any size except in flood time—can be easily imagined (says the "Evening Star"). The amount now in storage is 69,836,000 gallons, while the loss of stored water from yesterday morning to this morning was 1,550,000 gallons. The- depletion of storage shows that the public are consuming over one and a-half million gallons a day more than is coming in In the absence ot rain alleviation of the situation can be brought about only by a restriction of consumption. Experience with Shark. No person, so far as is known, has ever, been injured by a shark in Otago Harbour, an elderly fisherman at Port Chalmers told a Dunedin "Evening Star" reporter. Sharks measuring up to 20ft and over have occasionally been caught in the" Lower Harbour. At this season of the year they come inshore. They follow fishing boats when fish are being, cleaned, and to see the big fin of a shark in the water is ah unpleasant experience. They are, however, at times a nuisance outside the harbour. The fisherman and his mate one day began to haul up groper ; on their fishing;lines, a shark snapping the fish and leaving only the head on the hook. Suddenly the fisherman who was standing up hauling in the line was thrown off his balance by a heavy thud against the bottom of the. boat. A large shark in following a hooked fish up from the bottom, had struck its snout against the boat with such force that two planks were split by the impact and the water poured in. The shark, a big, ugly brute, half-as long as the boat, came to the surface alongside, but did not molest the fishermen. Another fishing boat not far away was signalled to assist, and the damaged craft was towed.to the Spit in a sinking condition, , Petono Stormwater Drainage. The report of the works committee on the' eastern stormwater drainage question came up at the meeting of the Petone Borough Council last evening. . In moving the adoption of the committee's report, Councillor E. T. E., Hogg -stated that it was resolved that the council should be recommended not to.proceed at the present juncture with a loan proposal for eastern stormwater drainage purposes ■:,on the following grounds:—(a) That the flooding trouble was of infrequent occurrence. " (b) The area affected was limited in extent, (c) Having regardyto the above factors the cost was too great to undertake at present, (d) The sewerage complaint had been remedied. It was further resolved •by the committee that a copy of the engineer's latest report (dated January 25, 1935) be circulated to the members of the council, and it be advised that in, the meantime the committee had no recommendation to make in the matter. Mr. Hogg added that the committee obtained two comprehensive reports from the borough engineer. At one time the problem with regard to the eastern area was much more • serious than it was now. It was now confined to flooding. The engineer (Mr. C. L. Jackson) had prepared a report that dealt with flood--1 ing in other parts of the borough. The eastern area, after all, was somewhat restricted. On the suggestion of Councillor E. N. Campbell, the matter was held over until the next meeting so that : councillors could consider the 'matter further. .