Hundreds Of Fish Found On Inland Farm Field

Northern Advocate, 14 July 1949, Page 2

Hundreds Of Fish Found On Inland Farm Field

NEWS IN BRIEF .

Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of small fish have found their way into a 10-acre paddock at Omahu, near Hastings, in a manner which has not been accounted for.

The fish were found on the property of Mr R. S. Nowell-Usticke, a Hawke’s Bay stud sheep breeder. They are about four inches long and like snapper in appearance. The paddock is being rapidly cleared by seagulls and other birds. The only theory which Mr NowellUsticke has is that the fish were caught up in a waterspout, carried aloft, and then came down in a shower of rain.

Apparently they mostly fell within his 10-acre paddock, which has been ploughed and sown down in chou moellier. They showed up clearly on the black soil.

A jury in the Supreme Court at Grey mouth found Ronald Phillip Intemann, 23, truck driver, guilty on a charge of driving a truck in Buller Gorge negligently on December 3, 1948, causing the deaths of John William Porter and Raymond James Muir, when the truck went off the road into the Buller River. The jury acquitted accused on a charge of being intoxicated while in charge of a motor vehicle and added a strong recommendation to mercy. The prisoner was remanded for sentence.

The wanton killing of goats kept by farmers in the Raglan district for the useful purpose of eradicating blackberry and other noxious weeds is causing concern to settlers' in the area. Trespassers have been shooting the animals. One farmer found 29 dead goats lying in a corner of his property. The animals had evidently been driven into the corner and mown down £>y rifle fire at short range.

The Government is interested in the possibility of a visit to New Zealand by the Covent Garden Opera Company and the Sadler’s Wells Ballet Company. This was stated by the Prime Minister (Mr Fraser), when replying to a question from Dr A. M. Finlay (G—North Shore) in the House of Representatives yesterday. Mr Fraser added that the question of costs was important, but inquiries would be made from the Arts Council to ascertain whether these visits were feasible.

The campaign to eradicate the wallaby pest in the few areas they infest in New Zealand was making progress, said the Minister of Internal Affairs (Mr Parry). It was estimated by the Wild Life Branch of the Internal Affairs Department that the 2000 wallabies on Rangitoto Island, Auckland Harbour, would be exterminated by mid-September. “The area most affected is the hill country north-west of Waimate, South Canterbury," continued the Minister. He added- that in a period of three months in 1947 5000 wallabies were killed and last year 7000.

The MacDonald miue was idle yesterday’ following a prolonged stop-work meeting, which did not end until about 10 a.m. After the meeting the men returned home. Work proceeded as usual in the five other underground* mines in the district.

The needs of the districts served by the Auckland-Rotorua railway were urged upon the Minister of Railways (Mr Semple) in the House of Representatives yesterday. The Minister was asked to give serious consideration to these districts when allocating railcars now on order. The request was put in the form of a question from three Opposition members, Messrs W. S. Goosman (Piako), W. Sullivan (Bay of Plenty) and G. F. Sim (Waikato). Mr McCombs (Minister of Education*: You have got them all in the North Island now.

A brood mare, Hymestra Miss, was found by her owner, Mr A. M. Farnoll, shot dead in a paddock at- Mt Wellington. The matter has been placed in the hands of the police. Rabbit shooting is popular in this area, and it is thought that it may have been a stray shot that killed the horse. Hymestra Miss, by Hymestra from Miss Martian, was bought by Mr Farnoll from Mr A. Rowan, of Ellerslie, about a year ago. for lOOgns. She was not insured. Mr Farnoll has the old stud property at Mt Wellington, and has grazing right on an adjacent property, where the horse was found. * * a a

A letter from the American Automobile Association indicating that unattended slot petrol pumps were not generally favoured in the United States was received by the Automobile Association (Auckland) last night. The president (Mr F. G. Farrell) said the idea had been explored with a view to enabling motorists to get petrol when service stations were closed. However, he appreciated the point made by the American association that there was a danger in leaving petrol pumps to be handled by people who might be incompetent. He therefore did not think there was any need to pursue the matter further. This was accepted. ;