Oddments

Greymouth Evening Star, 16 March 1948, Page 4

Oddments

A man approached a stall in a Midlands market, picked up a Brazil nut, cracked, it and looked at it critically. “How much are these?” he asked. “That* one,” replied the .stall holder holding out his hand, “is 41d.”

Experts of the Department of Agriculture, U.S.A., claim to have developed a cheap way to convert the 95,000,000 tons of wheat straw America throws away every yeax' into 20,000,000 tons of cellulose pulp for best-grade paper. .And they say it is cheap and practical. * $ * .t

The Geographic Board, in its researches into nomenclature, may discover how Nelson derived its name oi “Sleepy Hollow.” The oilgin of the gibe of “Sleepy Hollow,” as applied to Nelson, is attributed by some old Nelsonians, however, to the following story. Nelson, first, and foremost in many respects in New Zealand’s early days, including the .supply of Premiers and other celebrities, possessed one of the first fire brigades in the colony. In turning out to its first fire, however, the brigade made the grave mistake of taking a hearse —which was housed alongside the fire station —instead of its manual engine. The only one who lacked a sense of humour was the owner of the burning building. He dubbed Nelson “Sleepy Hollow,” and the name became as permanent as the Boulder Bank. —The Seeker