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Manawatu Standard, Volume LII, Issue 72, 24 February 1932, Page 6

It is regarded as’ practically certain that the Leader of the Opposition, Mr H. E. Holland, will move an amendment to the Addrcss-in-Reply motion when he speaks in the House of Representatives, probably, on Friday afternoon, says a Wellington correspondent. V Two in an action at the Timaru Magistrate’s Court were hard of hearing, and in one instance both counsel and the magistrate, Mr C. R-Orr-Walker, were obliged to exercise their vocal organs to much more than the usual degree. Evidently tiring in an endeavour to obtain satisfactory answers from a difficult witness, the magistrate turned to counsel for plaintiff and remarked: “You do the yelling; you are paid for it.” Luring the past few months thee number of farms in the South Island which have had to be taken back by the Crown Lands Department has been yery small. The commissioner for Crown lands in Canterbury, Mr W. Stewart, stated a few days ago that at“present the department was assisting its tenants to • remain on their farms and the few abandoned properties it had on its hands were being used to assist neighbouring settlers by providing extra feed for their stock.

“The landowners do not want to kill out the Canadian geese altogether, but they do want them kept to Lake Ellesmere,” said Mr W. 0. Rtennie, at a meeting of the North Canterbury Acclimatisation Society. The geese, he said, could do incalculable damage in a short period, for they were usually in mobs of 500, and at night —when most of the hann waß done — ns many as 2000 would be,together. They would eat as much feed In a night as 200 sheep, but they were worse than sheep, for no stock would graze where they had been. What they did not eat they tramped down.

Shanghai is a city built on river silt, according to Mr J. A. Jackson, who after 20 years there is retiring in New Zealand and who this week addressed the members of the New Plymouth: Rotary Club. The silt was brought down by the Yang-tse River, he said. A bore was put down by Japanese once, and though they went to a depth of 500 feet they did not strike rock. For that reason building was made difficult, and during the construction of a bank a few years ago great bolts of timber 40 feet long had to be driven into the ground ana connected together to form a kind of raft on which to construct the bank.

The brothers Eckstein were being entertained by one who was anxious to avail himself of their financial acumen. But, as ill-luck would have it, the talk veered to other things. “Do you like Omar Khayham?” thoughtlessly asked the host, trying to make conversation. It wasthe elder brother who plunged heroically into the breech. .“Pretty well,” he said, “but I prefer Chianti.” Nothing more was said until the Ecksteins were ou their way home. “Ikey,” said Abe, breaking a painful silence, “why can’t you leave things that you don’t understand to mef Omar Khayham ain’t a wine, you chump; it’s a cheese.”

The work of the Red Cross Society is world-wide, yet naturally national relief of distress and suffering is the primary object of local branches'. The Red Cross Societies muster 23,000,000 members throughout the world, and the organisations are complete in 59 countries. During the Hawke’s Bay earthquake contributions to New Zealand Funds were made from America, Australia, England and Scotland as well as from countries who have no bond of relationship but hre of different colours and creeds. Turkey, India, Siam, Japan, Egypt and obscure Persia, amongst others, came to the aid of New Zealand. It is by this co-opera-tion of other units of the Society that the world-wide activities of the Red Cross can be tangibly gauged. When some live overhead wires sagged almost to the ground in Cathedral Square, Christchurch, yesterday morning, one man, a crippled returned soldier, had a narrow escape. Long sparks shot from the top of a trolley-bus when the wires were dragged down on to it by one of its poles fouling tire stays. The live wires were held clear of the bus until the power was cut off over the section. The driver was apparently not aware of the .ocident until some seconds after it had happened. One of the poles of the bus came off the wire and the machine was stopped after about 20 yards of liv© wire had been torn down. The whole service was disorganised by the temporary cutting off of the power for repairs to be made, but it was normal in a short time. The flood in the Manawatu River is having a very detrimental effect on flax-milling operations. One mill at Foxton depends for its supply of washing water on the river and after such a long dry spell the flood waters are very thick and the consequent discolouration of the fibre washed in it is causing a serious drop in the grade of fibre produced. Work on the Main Drain between Rangiotn and Glen Oroua has been suspended as a result of the height of the water in the drain and a large number of unemployed engaged on this work have had to seek employment elsewhere. The unemployment relief work at the Government Drain, Whirokino, / has not been suspended as the men are working inside a bank at present. The flood, nevertheless, caused a setback to the work of putting in the new floodgates as it prevented operations being carried out in connection with the coffer dam.—Foxton correspondent.

Several members of girls’ cricket clubs in, Christchurch recently approached Mr E. H. Stringer with a request to make suggestions for a suitable winter game for girls something on the lines of Rugby football. Mr Stringer, in compliance with the request, has drawn up suggested modifications of Rugby, which he thinks will be suitable as the opportunities for rough, play and the possibilities of physical harm have been reduced to a minimum. In tile size of the ground and the number of players on each side the scheme makes no alterations upon Rugby laws. The proposed modifications include the exclusion of both set scrums and line-outs. Instead of a line-out there will be a kick-in, and instead of scrums there will be , free kicks. Each half is to be of 30 minutes, with a .10 minutes’ interval. The ball is to be full Rugby size, and the dress shorts and jersey with stockings rolled down to below the knee, and boots with leather studs.

Wireless is becoming more of a necessity every day. The farmer keeps in constant touch with the rest of the world —he receives weather reports, market reports and such like, as well as hearing interesting leoturettes on subjects of vital importance. When purchasing your wireless, get the best procurable for the money. Atwater Kent with the Golden Voice. —Collinaon and Cunninghame, Ltd. —Advt.

Early yesterday morning the mises of Leary’s Pharmacy the railway line in the Squ > aQ( j entered, a window being broken a small sum of money stolen. “New Zealand will shortly l»e defied into two classes, wil j jj 6 church business man. They win ° those who are sitting on «°” ml ® 0 b ’ and those who are being sat on y commissions.” , The Auckland Power Board understands that, power from Arapuni be restored about the over The board has agreed to take °v _ the whole of the Hora Mora le d about a fortnight from the first weex in April while the Waikato River diverted into the dam. If the Presbyterian Assembly of New Zealand, which meets in Christchurch this week, agrees a combined P* cession of witness,” consisting or presentatives of the Assembly the New Zealand Methodist Church, which is now in conference, will held in the city streets on Friday evening, followed by suitable addresse ■. Even those who were losing their money at the Auckland ?”***.“§ Club’s meeting on Monday laugh heartily at the antics of Realty in Mount Albert Handicap (says the Star). The horse went to the- barrier, but instead of preparing -R®® for business, it reared up and actually sat down on its hindquarters, just as a dog does when begging. It ,} A a second time! and then. to. add variety to the performance, lay nat down on the track, to all appearances stretched out ready for a sleep. driver, eventually got the horse harnessed up, and it went away well VJ the race, but half-way through it “thought out a new one,” and, instead of pacing, began to throw its legs about as though doing the tango. It was all .very, amusing—except tor those backing it. At Monday night’s meeting of the Foxton School Committee, the subject of children’s health camps was introduced by the chairman (Mr J. K. Hornblow) who, after referring to the establishment of the Otaki camp, and the proposed camp at "Wanganui, stated that it was the intention of the Health Department to establish a chain of camps throughout the Dominion, of which Otaki was thd first. The object of these camps was not to provide holidav outings for school children, but to place under observation and treatment ill-nourished children and those with a suspicion or lung troubles. Foxton seaside would provide an jdealV locality for such a camp and he suggested that the committee wait on the Harbour Board with a request that an area for the purpose bo set aside and that the Health Department be consulted with a view to further action. This suggestion was endorsed by the committee. —Foxton correspondent.

The Maori land purchases made by the New Zealand Company in 1840 will be investigated if the .Government decides to act on a petition by the descendants of the Otago tribes for the recovery of a valuable block of land in Princes'Street, Dunedin, now o<> cupied by business premises and hotels. It forms a part of the business area on the east side of Princes Street, a long block of about 18 chains, by nearly a chain deep. The land was originally intended to be a Maori reserve, ana it would bo such a reserve to-day had it not been for a sequence of events in 1866. This reserve was on the old foreshore of the harbour, and was granted to the Maoris for use as a landing place for their canoes, but subsequent activities on the part of high Government officials lost the Maoris their ownership of land. Shortly, after this had occurred a long series of petitions and protracted litigation on the part of Maoris for the recovery' of the land began, but .they met with little success, and after the lapse of many years a further petition will shortly be presented to the Minister of Native Affairs by the descendants of the original owners of the land.