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Manawatu Standard, Volume LIII, Issue 14, 14 December 1932, Page 8

The Manawatu County Council yesterday received advice of payment of fines under by-laws of £3 11s 3d at the Bulls Coui*t; £1 8s 6d at Box ton and £l4 14s 6d at the Bedding Court. “Up to and inclusive of the year 1931 it was estimated that approximately 50 per cent, of the total Show admissions were either free or on members’ tickets,” stated a report submitted to the Manawatu and West Coast A. and P. Association yesterday. “Exclusive of members’ tickets and children under seven years of age, the percentage of free admissions is gradually being reduced. It is said that membership is the life-blood of the association. This is true up to a point, but as the concessions to members have grown year by year through extended days a.nd hours of the Bhow with no alteration in the membership charge, the gate takings have suffered materially in consequence. The greatest objection to the ladies’ tickets at the Spring Show is their transferability and their availability through the whole period of the Show.”

The Manawatu County Council yesterday supported the finding of the recent conference of local bodies held in Tedding to classify all the highways' within the Mo. 9 District Highways Council to a maximum of third class.

The doath occurred at Whangarei of Mr Nils Petersen, aged 95 year’s, a man who had numbered among his occupations those of fisherman, shipbuilder, sailor, “cabby,” gumdigger, fiaxmiller and storekeeper. During his 95 years he had been twice shipwrecked.

When he was painting the roof of a glasshouse at Massey College yesterday, Mr W. It. Smith, of Main Street, slipped and his' foot fractured the glass. He sustained an incised wound in the right leg and was conveyed to the Palmerston North Hospital by the Tree Ambulance.

“I don’t believe in breaking contracts 1 , but we have already broken them with the people we purchased land from, so why not do it with the local body loans,” queried Cr N. Morcom, at yesterday’s meeting of the Manawatu County Council in advocating that the council lodge a protest against the Government offering 5 per cent, interest for money.

“The outstanding thing about my visit to Central Otago,” said Mr J. S. Jessep, deputy-chairman of the Unemployment Board, when in Christchurch last week, “was that I met a big number of miners, but I did not meet one who wanted to go back to town. Many of them were working twelve haul’s a day. The great thing is that they are retaining their manhood and working hard.”

Decently a remit was passed by the New Zealand Farmers’ Union that the duties on all imported goods containing wool should be carefully reviewed. Yesterday the Wellington Manufacturers’ Association received a letter from the Farmers’ Union stating that the idea behind the remit was to get the 20 per cent, duty on British-made textiles containing wool reduced to allow of an increased use of wool in thoso fabrics. “I think that if the bank ’ rate of interest were reduced it would make a difference in every walk of life in New Zealand,” stated Cr J. H. Perrett, at yesterday’s meeting of the Manawatu County Council, during a discussion on a letter received from the Otago Power Board asking the council to support its move to have interest reduced. It should he made manadatory to have interest reduced, Cr Perrett added. The Postmaster-General has informed the Pukekolie Chamber of Commerce that it is not possible at present to reduce the charge for telegrams from Is to 6d. The chamber intends to renew its request, on the grounds that experience of the penny postage has shown that under the penny rate more revenue is being derived than under the higher charge, and that the same would probably result with cheaper telegrams. Among those who will make the flight across the Tasman Sea with-Air-Commodore Sir Charles Kingsford Smith next month. will be a mystery, passenger. With the exception of the fact that the prospective passenger is a New Zealander, nothing is known. His identity has not been disclosed. While it is assumed that the passenger will be a man, there is a possibility that some adventurous woman may be seeking the honour of being the first representative of her sex to fly across the Tasman Sea.

“If something is not done soon we will all drift into bankruptcy and yet we have people in the country advising that things ought to be allowed to take their normal course,” observed Ci’ J. H. Perrett, at yesterday meeting of the Manawatu County Council. Continuing, the speaker said that if nothing could bo done of a mutual nature it should be compulsory, Cr Perrett adding that a substantial reduction in interest should be the first step made towards restoring the prosperity of the primary producer.

A definite note of optimism was tlie prevailing feature of an address delivered yesterday by Mr G. C. Creagh at the annual meeting of the Auckland Stock Exchange. Summarising the events of the past twelve months, Mr Creagh said: “The year has been characterised by a growing spirit of confidence and hopefulness for the future. Speaking generally, and with due regard for tire prevailing conditions, business was fairly satisfactory during the earlier part of the year, and more recently, thanks to the growth of confidence, it has been remarkably good.” According to returns furnished by the chairman of the gate stewards to the general committee of the Manawatu and West Coast A. and P. Association yesterday, 436 people patronised the people’s stand and 793 the members' stand at the recent Royal Show. “Excluding the speedway attendance last year, and exclusive of members and the peak year 1929, the Show just past gives the highest public attendance in this stand for the past eight years and is exactly 100 per cent, more than the numerical occupation of the stand in 1925,” he stated. “The number of adults and children occupying the people’s stand is the highest recorded since 1925, including last year and the peak year 1929.” The presence of mind of the eleven-year-old son of Mr D. J. Ross, ieatherston, prevented an outbreak of lire in Iris father’s house from assuming serious proportions. The boy accidentally knocked over a bottle of methylated spirits which was standing near the kitchen fire. A high wind was blowing at the time, so the bov immediately closed all doors and windows. He then telephoned the fire brigade and his father, and, returning to the kitchen, set to work with a tablecloth to smother the flames. He had almost succeeded in doing this by the time the brigade arrived, although he rather badly burnt his hands in the process. “I have obtained information from every A. and P. Association in New Zealand regarding the charge made for membership and the privileges granted. In no single case has a.ny association granted anything approaching the privileges granted by this association for the money charged,”, stated the chairman of the gate stewards (Mr W. G. Black) in his report to the general committee of the Manawatu and West Coast A. and P. Association yesterday. “Most of the associations, including the major ones, only grant two or three single admissions to ladies, whereas we give four single admissions at the Winter Show and two open transferable ladies’ tickets available throughout the currency of the Spring Show.. I aga.in emphasise that the association is losing revenue in consequence of these concessions.”