The Manawatu Daily Times An Age of Speed

Manawatu Times, Volume 59, Issue 220, 20 September 1934, Page 6

The Manawatu Daily Times An Age of Speed

It is still within living memory to those colourful clays of the sailing ship, when hardy, adventurous men and women embarked oil the long voyage to Australia in search of a new life under the Southern Cross. To us people who live in an age of speedy and comfortable travel, the full meaning of the journey undertaken by these pioneers of the past is difficult to visualise, and it is only by listening to the tales told by those survivors of the past that we get an insight into the rigours of a voyage that lasted many weeks. Australia in the ’seventies was a littleknown country to the people of England; it was spoken of as a place beyond the ordinary conception of distance, and illustrated the infinite in travel.

A man “from Australia"' was looked upon as rare and unique, a voyager to the Old World was something to make the insular-minded gasp and weave a halo of romance about the head of the traveller. Sheep and gold were associated with him, and the popular fiction of those days made every Antipodean a millionaire, and gave him an acreage of land that made some of the English counties look small in comparison. With the coming of the steamship the story lost -a lot of its glamour, but Australia still remained the “back of beyond.’"

The Great War, perhaps, taught England more about Australia than any story or book of the past, and though the men from “down under” still conveyed the impression of men from afar, they also demonstrated that they were abreast of the Old World in many things. Gradually, however, the sense of distance has been removed, and to-day aircraft have annihilated it.

The deeds of aviation within the last decade have brought England and Australia together in a sense never dreamt of by those pioneers of the sailing ship, and it is on record that one can glimpse the Sydney harbour on a Sunday and watch the waters of the Thames how past the Houses of Parliament the following Saturday. In seven days a modern aeroplane can span those miles of sea and land and burn up a distance that made a gap in the life of those brave spirits who placed their future in the lap of wind and sail. Those weary weeks of shipboard, with fresh water a luxury and provisions often down to the level of “hard tack” are now but dim memories of valiant hearts. To-day the drone of powerful engines makes light of mountain, sea and land and, next month fresh deeds of speed and endurance will mark the progress of this closing up of distance.

It is unfortunate that so many famous aviators have withdrawn from the Centenary Air liaee; but with the material still remaining there is talent and valour sufficient to reduce the time taken between England and Australia to three or four days. Shades of sailing ships! What must those old-timers think of the miracle that has been wrought? It is difficult to conceive of present-day steamers going the way of old sailing vessels, but man’s relentless urge makes forecasting hazardous, and the time may yet come when Australia will be no farther from England than a week-end visit.

With another week of sunshine the Manawatu Goi'ge will present its most attractive garb of bright golden broom, which is gradually spreading through the four miles of its steep hillsides. Knocked down by a motor-ear ir. Auckland on Tuesday night, Edmund Coppingcr, aged 39, a married man of Remucra, died in hospital early yesterday morning.

In the biennial Bulls Town Board election conducted yesterday an almost complete poll was recorded, 204votes being cast out ot' a possible 270. Those elected, in order of votes polled, were: Messrs A. W. Amon, C. C. Price, J. E. Walker, J, J. Mansell, S. A. Holland, E. Lundy ’ and C. 11. Edwards. The returning officer was Mr F. Cutts, who was assisted by Mr 11. I?. Wilson.

Tho Wyatt Earp, with Mr Lincoln Ellsworth, Mr Be nit Balchcn and Sii Hubert Wilkins and the expedition party, sailed from Dunedin at 10.30 a.m. yesterday for the Antarctic. The expedition was fare welled by a large gathering, including the Mayor and th-8 chairman of the Harbour Board.

A night-driver writes: ‘Two-thirds of tho cars met on tho Gorgo road now havo their lights focussed in compliance with the law. This is much appreciated by those who meet them, but tho other third should be prosecuted; they arc a menace to the safety of travellers. 1 ’

At the suggestion of his Excellency the Governor-General, the Women’s Division of the Farmers’ Union and tho Women's Institutes throughout New Zealand have enthusiastically taken up the collection and preservation of old Maori historic records. The annual calendar about to bo issued by the institute will have a Maori aphorism on each of its twelve pages. These were collected for them in the Manawatu. A copy of the calendar is posted to branches throughout the world.

While out of Paparua prison on license, Joseph William Groom returned to the prison boundary in a taxi and left some provisions for another prisoner. For this breach of the Prisons Act he was lined £5 and costs by tho Magistrate (Mr 11. P. La. wry) at Christchurch yesterday morning. The provisions included a pot of jam, two tins of tobacco and a packet of chocolates. Groom was stopped by the prison superintendent when driving away from the grounds. Mr F. M. Dale, a civil engineer, who has arrived back from England by tho Rotorua, remarked at Wellington on the activity in building at Home. What he had seen in Wellington in a few hours had convinced him that reinforced buildings here were us up-to-date as those in London. He mentioned the amount of wood used in scaffolding here, and said ho was surprised to see contractors using it for such a purpose. Steel tubular scaffolding was more desirable and easier to handle, also more economical, lasting longer than timber, and was much safer.

A proposal to expend some £IO,OOO in -wages in improving the surface of Hood aerodrome, Masterton, was outlined at Tuesday night’s meeting of the Masterton Borough Council by Mr W. L. Free, president of the Wairavapa Aero Club. The money is to be provided by the Unemployment Board, and the work carried out by lclief workers under the direction of tho Public Works Department. Tho council agreed to provide £IOO of a guarantee of £3OO required before the scheme is put in hand. It, is anticipated that the neighbouring county councils will find the other £2OO. The work will take about eight months.

Extraordinary shooting, which is believed to constitute a world’s record, was achieved on Tuesday by W. N. Masefield, the well-known Marlborough rifleman, when practising with W. H. West at the Blenheim butts. Shooting at the 300, 500, 000 and 900 yards ranges, seven shots at each, Masefield scored a bullscye with each of his 28 shots, thus achieving four successive possibles at the varying ranges. Westdropped only one-point at each range, so that between them the marksmen fired 30 shots and registered 32 bullseyes. Masefield leaves to-day to take part in a scries of rifle meetings at Sydney and Melbourne, including the Centenary shoot. A round-table conference among representatives of tho Southland Aeio Club, the Southland League, the Stewart Island County Council, and the (Stewart Island Progressive League, look place at Invercargill on Tuesday afternoon, when a proposal to establish an air service between Stewart Island and tho mainland was discussed. As an outcome of the conference, it was agreed that tho Stewart. Island representatives shout’d ask the Controller of Aviation to send an engineer lo inspect, the site suggested for a lauding ground with a view to having the necessary construction work carried out under a Government scheme.

A successful operation for tho removal of a piece of shrapnel shell which had been embedded in his skull for twenty years was performed on Mr L. Forbes' at the Whakatano hospital. Mr Forbes, who was in tho Imperial Army at the outbreak of war, wns wounded in August, 1914, and taken prisoner in France. He remained in a German prison camp for four and nhalf years. After lie had been released he married and came to New Zealand and settled in tho Whakatano district. He was recently subject to violent headaches and an X-ray examination revealed that a, piece of shapncl was embedded in his skull sonu* distance from the main wound.

Mr A. G. Shrimpton, Grand Secretary of the New Zealand branch, Manchester Unity, Independent Order of Oddfellows, and Mr A. C. Blair, Deputy Grand Master, arrived back by the Rotorua, which reached Wellington yesterday, from representing New Zealand at the Oddfellows’ conference in London. Mr Shrimpton said the outstanding feature of tho work of. the Manchester Unity in Great Britain was tho Unity’s war memorial orphan gift fund. Since its inception £247.601 had been raised by voluntary donations. Ho also said it was remarkable that, notwithstanding the operations of the National Health Insurance Fund and the compulsory enrolling of wageearners, tho voluntary membership of friendly societies in Great Britain was being maintained at a high level. Those in the lower strata of life, owing to economic difficulties, -were not in a position to pay contributions for benefits as voluntary members, and must be content with the minimum of benefit as State members.