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Evening Star, Issue 21931, 18 January 1935, Page 8

The annual report of the committee of the Dunedin Athenaeum, to be presented at the annual meeting on hebruary 11, states that the library now contains 43,955 works, represented by 48,018 volumes. During last year 1,304 volumes were withdrawn from the library and offered for sale to members and others. The total number of issues of books from the library during the year was 283,054, as against 276,477 for 1933. The details of the issues are as follows:—Science 241, fine and recreative arts 256, useful arts 324, social and political science 356, philosophy and religion 244, history and geography 3,172, biography and correspondence 2,613, languages and literature 28, poetry and drama 983, miscellaneous works (including magazines in book form) 294, fiction 274,343. The railways working account for the four weeks ended December 8 shows receipts as £491,588 and expenditure £430,645. The total revenue from April 1 to December 8, 1934, was £4,210,840, and the total expenditure was £3.801,681, the net revenue being £409,159. The totals for the corresponding period of last year were;— Revenue, £4,011,369; expenditure, £3,538,615; net revenue, £472,754.

The secretary of the Otago Acclimatisation Society has received the following fishing report Lake Mahmerangi is slightly higher, but still low. Some nice fish were caught after the recent rains—up to 41b and 51b weight, all brown trout. .There have been several catches of nine, ten, and twelve fish.”

The mayor thanks Mr John Hamer, manager of the St. James Theatre, for a free gift of passes for children of the unemployed to commemorate the visit of the Duke of Gloucester. These children, numbering about 1,250, attended the theatre this afternoon. The Port Chalmers Regatta Committee was notified last night that a consistent supporter of regattas in past years was donating a silver rose bowl for the championship four-oar rowing race, the same to be known as the Wilson competition rose bowl. This trophy, which is to commemorate Mr W. J." Wilson’s active interest in rowing for many years, will be competed for annually at Port Chalmers regattas, ■and'will be-held by the first local crew across the line in the senior four-oar class.

“ The action taken , by the tailors in Dunedin relative to refusal to pay sales tax is likely to meet with support all over the dominion,” stated Mr H. Preston, president of the Auckland Master Tailors’. Association. He added that his association had offered' its whole-hearted support, even if it meant taking a test case in The courts.' Mr Preston-said that the legitimate-tailor was unfairly placed in comparison with the retailer, who bought' from the wholesale houses and paid sales tax. The retailer paid the sales tax only to the wholesaler on the completed article, 1 but the tailor in addition to this had to pay 5 per cent, on a, sum comprised of the cost of production and profit.— Auckland correspondent. : Further details'of the chemical industry that is’ shortly to be established in Southland are now available. The name of the concern is Amalgamated Chemical Industries, and it appears almost certain, because of its close proximity to large forest areas and vast coal deposits, that Riverton is to be the location. The harbour there is possibly another inducement. It is understood that low temperature carbonisation of coal and wood, and the distillation of coal tar arc the principal objectives. Acetone for explosives, alcohol, benzol, motor spirit, and oils are to be prepared, but it is also likely that aniline dyes, drugs, and fine chemicals will be made. The concern is to operate under the low temperature carbonisation methods in use abroad, and these for several months past have been undergoing tests at the Invercargill headquarters laboratory at Gladstone.

The Harbour Board’s employees at the Spit intend to apply for a new award in place of the one which ran out about a year ago. The men are employed at the quarry and mole works. Everybody in New Zealand must by now realise that the Duke of Gloucester is a very fine horseman, and that riding is his favourite pastime. The public will have an opportunity of seeing him riding to-morrow afternoon (says to-day’s Christchurch ‘.Press ’), when he will play a game of polo with members of the Christchurch Polo Club at their ground in South Hagley Park, starting soon after 4 o’clock. His Royal Highness will play with Captain A. Curtis. Captain D. Schreiber, and a member of the club against a side to be picked from the remaining members of the club. It is probable that the fourth man in the Duke’s team wil be Major 6. F. Hutton or Mr D. W. J. Gould. The game will be of four chukkas only.

A bather at Sumner late yesterday afternoon, Mrs F. Harvey, of Dryden street, Sumner, was rescued from drowning after she had been caught and carried beyond the breakers in a current that runs in a channel just off Grafton street and near Cave Rock (says to-day’s , Christchurch ‘Press’), Not being a strong swimmer, Sirs Harvey resolved to float, and made signals for assistance. These were seen from the pavilion of the Surf Club, which was nearly a quarter of a mile distant, and the beach patrol, Mr S. B. Mason, and another member of the club, followed by the junior team with a reel, hurried to give assistance. Mr Mason was successful in reaching Mrs Harvey before she became exhausted, and brought her ashore without the assistance of the team. After a short rest Mrs Harvey was able to leave the beach and , return to her home. Arrested at Auckland on an eighteen-month-old warrant, a youth of nineteen, William George Sutton, pleaded guilty at Gisborne to two charges of making false documents, and was committed fbr sentence. Accused was employed by-a farmer, and extracted three cheques from his employer’s cheque book, with wliich, forging his employer’s name, he obtained goods and cash to the value of £ls.—Press Association.

A Press Association telegram from Marton states that a miraculous escape was experienced by two motorists—Mr J. J. Lambert and Miss M. Howie—on a watershed road in a back-country district bounded by a precipitous gully and cliffs when the steering failed. The car plunged over a bank, somersaulting six times and coming to rest greatly damaged. The occupants jumped clear in the nick of time.

■ Commencing from last week, a new notice to the travelling public, “ How to get off the tram safely,” is being displayed in Auckland tramcars. Two brightly-coloured pictures portray the right and wrong ways of alighting, and their attendant results. The woman who steps off facing the way the tram is going alights safely, but her unfortunate friend. who steps off backwards, is seen stretched out in the road—a hospital case. Similar notices have long been displayed in Sydney trams.

Don’t delay with eye troubles; they lead to other troubles. See the optician without delay.' To give satisfaction is the ideal of W. V. Stunner, optician. 2, Octagon, Dunedin.—f Advt. I

A public address on ‘ A National Health Service for New Zealand ’ will be given in the South Dunedin Town Hall on Monday next at 3 p.m., by Dr D. Cr. M’itillan, Labour candidate for Dunedin West. The address is being given under the auspices of the New Zealand Labour Party, and Mr F. Jones, M.P., will be in the chair.