Local and General

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XVII, Issue 17, 4 January 1927, Page 4

Local and General

The rainfall at Napier in December was ll.ili inches, making the year’s total 20.89 inches. The Havelock Fire Brigade desires to thank the following for donations to the fund:—Mrs John Nairn £1 Is. Mr. J. Faulknor £1 Is. Mr S. 1. Dixon £l. Mr J. H. Smith 10s, Mrs Holt 2s 6d. Anxiety is felt in Wellington regarding the safety of Joseph Albert Twist, who has been missing since two days before Xmas. He was shot in the head during the war and has been known to wander before but has never been away so long.—Press Assn. 'A lady on the Grandstand a,t the Hastings rases yesterday suffered a nasty fall as she was going down the steps, immediately descending to the lawn. She slipped from the top and, falling on her back, she traversed the full flight to the lawn. From appearances, she must have been considerably hurt. The rainfall at To Mata for the year 1826 as registered by Mr B. Chambers, is as fgllows:—January 1.20, February 1.84, March .76, April .21, May 3.68, June 167, July 2.85, August 2.47,September 1.12, October 1.59, November 2.30, December 4.30. Total 23.10. Of this fall 3.80 fell from 24th to 27 th December. The Mataroa, 12,341 tons, arrived in the Roadstead at Napier at day« break this morning to load' butter, meat and wool. The vessel, which is under the command of Captain W. A. R. Kershaw, formerly of the Mahana, is making its first visit to the port under the flag of the Shaw, Saville and Albion Co. It is not often that there is not a centenarian ’at the Auckland Infirmary (says the “Star”), but at the present time, while t'hera are several men and women over 90 years of age, there is not one resident who has attained the century. There are a great number of both sexes quite hale and hearty who are well over 80 years of age, “Now that the coal strike has ended I expect the tone of the wool market in England will become easier,” stated Mr. J. M'D. Wright, wool buyer, of Bradford, who arrived at Auckland a few days ago from London. He stated that the prices for coal had been exorbitant, and consequently manufacturers had not been buying much wool. Mr. Wright will attend this season’s sales on behalf of English firms. The amount collected at Wellington in December in Customs revenue was £230,210 16/11 and in beer duty £5,088 11/1. For the quarter the figures were £648,777 Oijll and £14,890 9/6 respectively, and for the year £2,-534,011 12/- and £54,379 10/- respectively. The 1925 totals were: December £221,955 12210 and £6.355 2/8; quarter £684,309 9/2 and £15,313 16/-; year £2,460,192 0/6, and £55,368 17/3, respectively. Notwithstanding the interesting theory that capital U, standing for United, superimposed on capital S, for States, was the origin of the dollar mark, there is more evidence in favour of tracing it to the early days of Southern North America, when much of the trading was done on a basis of dollars and reales. There being eight reales to the dollar, they were denoted by a cancelled figures 8, or the eight was sometimes placed between two slanting lines: /8/. Captain Enos, well known in South Wales shipping circles, had a remarkable experience at Eberstwyth. He heard cries of “Help!" from the sea front, and plunged into the water fully clothed. To his great surprise, he found that the bather in difficulties was his own daughter. The father brought his daughter safely ashore, but then found he had lost his pipe. To the amazement of the crowd he coolly returned to the water and swam after his favourite briar. A giant telescope made in the middle of last century is to bo scrapped, not because after 75 years there is a larger one Jo take its place, but because it is too unweildy. It is the telescope with which Sir William Peck discovered Jupiter’s fifth moon. It was built for the Russian Government. but the Crimean War prevented its delivery. It was- shown at the Great Exhibition of 1851 and then went into private bands. It was Sir William Peck who secured it for the Edinburgh Observatory, where it is naw to give way to smaller and more convenient telescopes.

The New Zealand Society of Professional Teachers of -^ U ?, I , C, _ which war established in 1924, will hold its fourth conference in Auckland, commencing on January 25. Unfavourable weather conditions affected the attendances at the Napier Municipal Baths during several months in 1926, the revenue suffering in consequence. However, the year, taken on the whole, was quite satisfactory, when £670 13s was collected; as against £662 3s 3d for the jffevious year. The N.Z. swimming Championships held in January- greatly swelled the attendances, when no less than £2OB 16s, was collected, as against £123 17s 7d for January, 1925. February also proved a much better month than that of the previous’year, but the takings for December last showed a decline of £l2O on those for the same month in 1925.