LOCAL AND GENERAL

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXIV, 12 March 1930, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

The full pre-earthquake telephone and telegraphic communication with tin: West Coast was restored to-day. Apart from the great work of the Departmental officers and staff immediately after the ’quake, much lias had to lx* done in the intervening months in completely re-establishing the services.

In France, immediately after the war, there was a great housing problem, stated Commissioner Cuuniglinni at a Salvation Army mass meeting in Wellington. In Paris tliero were literally hundreds of people who had no other place than the cafes and restaurants to sleep in ; and they had the greatest difficulty in washing themselves and changing their clothes. A commissioner was sent to England to study the work of the Salvation Army in London and the other big cities, arid a huge building was obtained in Paris as a shelter-home. They soon had 400 men in it. Indeed, it had not been open six weeks before they were crying out for an extension, und~acocnmiodation for >2OO men was added. (Applause.) The Salvation Army also bought a huge, house, built by one of the wealthiest women in Par is, and seized by the Government and used for military headquarters (during tiie war. It had kitchen accommodation, dining room accommodation, a gymnasium, etc., and 600 separate rooms. The Salvation Army paid 3,000,000 francs for it (at that time equal roughly to £30,000), possibly one-fourth of the original cost of the property; cleaned it—and it needed it badly—fitted it up thoroughly, and now they had in it 600 young women, who would otherwise have been down in The cafes and subjected to great dangers, but to-day were as a)V as any young women in the d. (Applause.) In that way the Salvation Army had grappled with the problem of housing the homeless in Paris and elsewhere. (Applause.)

An extract from the “New Zealand Journal of Science and Technology” dealing with New Zealand made leather states: “An examination of the ‘Monthly Abstract of Statistics’ reveals the fact that in the year 1928 261,456 dozen pairs of boots and shoes, and leather to the value of £254.602 were imported into New Zealand. For a population of about one million and a half, this means, apart from home-made supplies, two pairs of boots or shoes were imported for each man, woman and child. Three causes of this remarkable position may he proffered: (1) An apathetic public which purchases the article offered by the retailer without question ; (2) ‘prejudice against home-made articles because of inferiority in the past; (3) the standard of home-made articles being inferior to those imported.” The Leather Research Association carried out a series of tests with samples < of New Zealand and imported sole leather to see if any marked inferiority could he detected in the New Zealand article; and as a result it was announced that before any sound general conclusion could he deduced many more tests would have to he carried out, hut it appeared that there were some good reasons deducible from the tests for claiming that New Zealand sole leather as now manufactured was not inferior to the imported article, and that there was no .justification for the prejudice against it on the basis of quality. A co-operative party of coal miners from the Runanga district have commenced pumping operations at the Golden Point Colliery, Reefton, with the object of putting" the product from the coal seam there on the market. This property has been idle for the past three years. In conversation with a “Times” representative Mr Janies Ashworth, of “Horleston,” Saltwater Creek, added some interesting information to the subject of the implements in use in the pioneer days of the province. The first iron plough imported he claims to have been one that he used in 1854 for Mr Robert Rhodes on his farm at Purau. It was a one-wheel plough made hv Ransome and Sims, England, and probably was imported by Mr Rhodes. Air Ashworth also stated that the first implement of the kind placed on the market was the Berryman single furrow single plough, imported by Air John Anderson. .Ur \Ashworth purchased one of these ploughs in 1859, the price being £l4, and it is still to he seen on his farm. Quite a large number of wooden ploughs, lie said, were brought from England by the settlers, but they were found to be almost useless for breaking up the rough virgin soil, and lie had seen a large number on what was regarded as the rubbish heap in The Triangle where Messrs Alport and Parkinson held an auction sale every Saturday. Mr Ashworth added that the first’ wire binder to come to Canterbury was the Walter A. Wood about 1877, the McCormack arriving about a year later.

“It was very nice to see a Middlesborough firm beating the American record for the tons of constructive steel laid in a day,” said Major Stamp-Tav-lor, who returned from Sydney yesterday. “It was the day the Malolo arrived full of American millionaires moreover. That day 1300 tons of steel were put into the Sydney Bridge, while the American record was then 28b terns a day. Of course, the reason was that it was the heavier parts of the bridge steelwork nearer the shore which made it possible, but it was nevertheless gratifying to see an English firm making such a record.

Choosing a birthday present for a man is not quite as simple as shelling peas. You may so easily give him something ho lias no use. for. Tons of money is wasted on gifts received' with smiles and thanks, but which are not valued. Tastes differ widely, but there is one taste common to 19 men out of 20—the taste for tobacco. Give the average man something to smoke and he will appreciate it—preferably a bit of good “cut-up." And the finest “cut-up” is New Zealand grown. It is the purest of all because—unlike the imported —it contains hardly any nicotine. Consequently it can'be smoked all day long—“and then some," with perfect safety. Hows' that? Because it is toasted—the only toasted baccy on the market.—and the toasting kills the nicotine and gives its incomparable flavour and bouquet. Popular brands include ‘Cut Plug No. 10.” Navy Cut, Cavendish, and Itivcrhead Gold. There's only one thing better for a man’s present than a pound of this tobacco, and that's two pounds.* New fur-trimmed tweed coats in smart and exclusive styles, 65/- upwards at Meiv.iv s.*

A ball (St. Patrick’s) will be held in the Institute Hall, Motucka, on Tuesday, 18th March. A few very smart, but inexpensive, evening frocks in taffeta and georgette just arrived. 79/6 upwards at .McKay’s.* Exclusive bridge coats in brocaded silks and embroidered satins, just arrived at McKay’s.*

During Dm present, dry spoil the ! greatest care should be taken in keeping scrub fires adjacent to houses under control. Ip the. lust day or two the fire brigade has been called out twice to give assistance in putting out such fires. In their annual cricket match New Plymouth Bovs’ High School defeated Wanganui Collegiate School by 52 runs.

“The effect of the talkies on musicians in Sydney has been serious,” said Major G. Stamp-Taylor, who returned to Wellington yesterday after nearly five months in Sydney. “On many of the wharves one meets players of cornet, banjo, and saxophone, asking for alms.” In addition t 6 other circumstances in Australia, lie attributed a good deal of the depression to the fact that the wool clip was short in quantity, imports exceeding exports accordingly. The exchange rate on London now amounted to some £4 4s per cent., a rise since lie left Australia of 12s, and this was a serious mattet to those completing contracts, as where there was a small margin of profit the cost of sending money to England almost annihilated it. There was, said Major Stamp-Taylor, indeed very little money in Australia, as £7,000,000 had been sent to England recently. “I heard a visitor say that living in Sydney was 30 per cent, higher than in New York,” said .Major (5. StampTaylor, Australasian manager of Messrs A. Reyrolle and Co., Ltd., who returned from Sydney by the Maunganui yesterday (reports ‘‘The Post”). “It is certainly 100 per cent, dearer than in New Zealand. Flats run from £lO and £l2 to £ls a week, and there are very few for less than £5. An. enormous number of flats is going up in Sydney, however, and these later ones are all equipped with the latest electrical appliances, and rents are already on the down grade for the older flats. It is a delight to return to equable temperatures. Playing golf at 106.6 degrees provides one with plenty of excuses for bad shots. The liumiditv of the air, even at midnight., is such that there is a quart of water in the atmosphere of un ordinary bedroom, and it is all very enervating.”

Reference was made by Mr J. Slewart, principal of Marlborough College, at tins week’s meeting of the Board of Governors, to a regulation recently issued by the Education Department under which the senior school is now open free of charge to every child over the age of 14 years, irrespective of whether or not lie is the possessor of a proficiency or competency certificate (reports the “Express”). The idea at the back of the Department’s mind, said Mr Stewart, appeared to be that it was not suitable for pupils over 14 years of age, who had failed to secure a proficiency or competency certificate to continue to mix with Standard VI. pupils. It had a tendency to create in them what .scientists evil led ,an inferiority complex. It was recognised that backward pupils were bitter when mixing with their equals in the matter of age, while younger children were better away from their influence. The idea of throwing the secondary schools open to these pupils was simply the practice frequently followed in schools under which children were moved on solely on account of their advanced age. The Department had given the idea a wider scope.

A veteran Aucklander in mentioning tlie development of the Grey -Lynn district (Auckland) recalled that he lived near Commercial Road 60 years ago. In digging portion of a auarter-acre lection to prepare for the planting of vegetables he got 751 b. of kauri gum. which he sold for 17/6. He said that at that time gum digging fas in full swing at Surrey Hills, as part of the Grey Lynn district was then known, and a large number of men, by fossicking about the gullies were able to obtain a living. Another effort, this time by aii American expedition, is to be made to solve the mystery of Easter Island. When Easter Island was discovered by Europeans in 1866, the inhabitants were unable to explain the origin of the gigantic statues which were then standing, some of them to 70 feet in height, each surmounted by a huge can of red stone. The terraces on which they were standing were constructed of blocks of stone and extended for a distance of 35 miles around the sea front. The most recent book on Easter Island is by Professor J. .Macmillan Bvown, of New Zealand, who spent several months there, but, like the first discoverers, he found that the inhabitants knew nothing of the origin of the statues.

The annual conference of the legal profession in New Zealand will be held in Auckland during Easter week. The opening session will take place on 22nd April, and the conference should conclude on the 24th. - It is only two years since the first conference of representatives of the legal profession was held in Christchurch, and the success of that gathering led to a second conference being held in Wellington last Easter. Those attending the conference arranged for Easter time in Auckland will represent every section of legal activity. There will be judges, prominent barristers from the .southern cities, and many mein bon of the Auckland legal profession. Mr A. Gray, K.C., of Wellington, president of the New Zealand Law Society, will preside. An effort is being made to arrange for the opening ceremony to be performed by tne new Governor-General, Lord Bledisioe.

Details of the native settlement scheme under which the Minister of Native Affairs is empowered to deal direct with Maori owners of land were given by Sir Apirana Ngata at a hui at Waiomatatini. He described how the formalities of the Native Land Court procedure had been eliminated. Sir Apirana said that with the owners’ consent a land board could take over a property to administer and develop, and place natives, who need not necessarily be owners, on it to fence, road and otherwise improve the laud, which would then he opened for leasing to the best of the workers, whose rent would b.o payable to the owners. The operations under the scheme could be carried out at minimum cost, owing to the native workers’ acceptance of conditions foreign to the pakelia, with his complex scale of living. Sir Apirana referred to the presence at the hui of Land Court judges, to whom he apologised for his sometimes unorthodox methods of getting results. He advised them to subordinate their judicial duties to the administrative needs of native lands, and said that the partitions of blocks sometimes proved more hindering than helpful in promoting consolidation of interests. The officials, in their replies, indicated their appreciation of the Minister’s achievements, the deputy Native Trustee mentioning that £60,000 had been lent to Maoris since 1921, and only eight borrowers had failed to show good results.