NEWS OF THE DAY

Evening Post, Volume CXXIII, Issue 3, 5 January 1937, Page 6

NEWS OF THE DAY

Immigration Restrictions. "So long as a person is of good char acter, and has not served a prison sentence within the past two years, there is no restriction on his entry into New Zealand," said Sub-Inspector J. A Dempsey in the Magistrate's Court today, when a youth appeared before Mr. J. H. Luxford, S.M., on a charge of deserting his ship, a cargo liner ir the Home trade. Sub-Inspector Demp sey went on to explain that a provision of the Immigration Restrictior Apt making further stipulations hac lapsed after December 31, 1936. Weeds Grow Better Still. Two farmers near New Plymouth recently decided, instead of continually cutting noxious weeds on their properties, to try sodium chlorate (states a correspondent). They spent several hours on the task, giving all the weeds a good spraying, and then sat back to await results. The weeds did not wither as they had expected. On the contrary, after a few days they seemed to have taken a new lease of life. Growth was extraordinarily vigorous. Investigation then disclosed that instead of being supplied with sodium they had been given a highlyconcentrated nitrogenous manure.' Terns at Black Reef. Visitors to the Gannet Sanctuary at Cape Kidnappers have found added interest from the return of the terns to the rocks at Black Reef, states a correspondent. About four or five years ago the terns were in considerable number in that locality, but were disturbed by people breaking the eggs and generally frightening the birds, particularly the fledglings, and consequently they migrated elsewhere. It is believed that they were to be found on certain parts of the Tukituki River last year, but apparently they were disturbed by sportsmen, and this season they have returned to their nestingplace. Friendly Germans. "In Germany particularly, British visitors find the people very kind, and when I was there in October they wanted to do all they could for us," said the Rev. W. S. Southward, of Christchurch, who returned by the Tainui today from a nine-months' tour of England, Scotland, Germany, and Belgium, partly on holiday and partly working. Despite the great re-arma-ment programme in Germany, he said, nobody seemed to want war, and the guides who showed visitors the new fortifications explained that they were not erected because Germany wanted to fight, but in self-defence. "I don't know whether that was bluff or not," said Mr. Southward. He added that Hitler had done a lot for Germany, and one could not help admiring him in many ways. Large Catch of Eels. More than 500 eels were caught by children at Selwyn Huts in a drive organised on Saturday by the Hut Owners' Association to take the place of the New Year sports, which could not be held because of the restrictions of the health authorities. The drive lasted from 7 a.m.. to 6 p.m.. states the Christchurch "Press." This is the first time an eel "drive" has been organised on such a scale. A fishing expert estimated that the number of trout saved in a day by catching these eels would be at least 2000, estimating that on the average an eel eats four trout a day. Eels also eat young ducklings. A large influx of eels in the Cooper's Creek area, and some excellent catches —including eels of 271b and 151b in weight—are reported by visitors to the Rangitata River and Cooper's Creek areas. A reporter was told that floods usually brought eels in large numbers to these regions; but this year the numbers had been much greater than usual and many large eels had been gaffed by sportsmen. Giant Tortoise for Zoo. Weighing about 2801b, and possessing a shell 36in long, a giant tortoise from the Seychelles Islands was landed from the steamer Orangemoor when it berthed at King's Wharf, Auckland, yesterday morning, states the "New Zealand Herald." The tortoise is for the Auckland Zoological Gardens, and will make an interesting addition to the collection of tortoises already there. It will be placed on view immediately. The giant tortoise is probably the most long-lived of animals and the new exhibit, although between forty and fifty years old, is probably less than halfgrown. When taken to the London Zoo in 1908 a tortoise of the same species weighed 8701b, while another, which is still kept in the barrack grounds at Port Louis, Mauritius, is known to have been fully matured for at least 150 years. Many years ago the giant tortoise was exterminated in its original home on Aldabra Island, in the Indian Ocean, but specimens were introduced to the Seychelles Islands and kept in a state of semi-domesticity by the planters. In former times even larger land lortoises had a wide distribution and have been found in fossil form in France and India with shells 6ft in length. The tortoises already at the Auckland Zoo are representative of three species, 'the snapping turtle, the black Japanese water tortoise, and the leopard tortoise. New Zealand's Mountains. A survey of the mountains of New Zealand, with special reference to their structural conditions, is being made by Dr. Leon Bossard, doctor of geology and petrology of the University of Zurich, Switzerland, who is at present staying at Weheka (states a Greymouth correspondent). Dr. Bossard intends to publish a book after he has finished his investigations. Dr. Bossard has been in New Zealand for about six months, and has partly completed his work in the North Island. Among the mountains which he has already visited on the West Coast are Alexander and Spencer in the Lewis Pass district. From Weheka he intended to climb to the Chancellor Hut, where he would study the geology of the country at the head of the Fox Glacier. Later he will go to the fiordland in the south, and Arthur's Pass, as well as Otago and Canterbury. His work was not sufficiently advanced to allow him to make any comments on the mountains of New Zealand generally, said Dr. Bossard. He will attend the conference of the Australian and New Zealand Association for the Advancement of Science at Auckland this month. At the conference he will deliver an address on the structure of the Southern Alps. Dr. Bossard was previously in New Zealand for about five years, when he was doing geological work for mining and oil companies.