LOCAL AND GENERAL

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXVI, 11 August 1934, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Consent has been granted the North Canterbury Electric Power Board to raise a Waipara County reticulation loan of £37,000, according to a Gazette notice issued this week. The term of the loan is 20 years, the rate of interest £3 15s per cent., and the amount to be paid annually into a sinking fund £3 7s 6d per cent.

Forty-five years r.go Johannesburg was a mining camp c.f single-storey shacks, and to-day the skyline witli its tenstorey buildings looks like a miniature New York. Gold lids made the city. From below the bare Witwatersrand upland gold has already been taken of a value of £1,500,000,000. The gold-bear-ing rock is being mined at the rate of 40,000,000 tons a year, yielding about 10,000,000 ounces of fine gold. This means that the income of the Rand is between £60,000,000 and £70,000,000 per annum, with gold at its present price. Though it is realised that the day must come when the mines will be worked out, it is confidently expected that there will be gold-mining of some sort in the Johannesburg area a hundred years hence. The Witwatersrand reef contained the greatest deposit of gold that has ever been discovered in one place, and in the strange plum-pud-ding-like rock there is known to be still gold equal in value to that already taken out of the mines since the original discovery was made.

Answering a rumour regarding excessive tariffs, a statement has been made by the secretary of the United Licensed Victuallers’ Association (Victorian branch) through the Official Accommodation Bui’eau, 435 Collins street, Melbourne. The secretary says: “In no instance have I been able to ascertain that any charge greater than 30s per day will operate during the period, and that is the charge which has been agreed upon by leading hotel proprietors. The average minimum for those hotels of a lower grade than tlie eight major hotels is 13s per day inclusive tariff, and in the cases of the next grade 11s 6d per day. The weekly tariff in the two latter cases is 84s and 63s respectively.” It is interesting to note that hundreds of private home owners are recording accommodation with the bureau for those who desire the atmosphere of home life. This makes it practically certain that accommodation will be available for all, provided early booking arrangements are made..

Deaths at tlie rate of move than one a. day from automobile exhaust gases (carbon monoxide) are recorded in a United States Public Health Service report just received by Dr. T. Fletcher Telford, medical officer /of health at Christchurch. The figures were obtained while an enquiry was being made to see now much truth was in tlie common opinion of the danger of fumigating with poisonous gases. The results showed that of 396 deaths in six months from poisonous gases of various kinds—automobile exhaust gases, coal gas, gas and oil leaks, illuminating gases, chemical and fumigating gases—6o per cent, were attributable to automobile exhaust gases. Of tlie 233 persons who died and the 13 who were overcome by exhaust gases, three died while driving a car. Fumigating gases were responsible for only 1£ per cent, of the deaths from poisonous gases.

“Because of the stated intention of licensing authorities to check-up on lighting as well as braking equipment it is necessary that the requirements of the Motor Vehicles Act should be known to motorists,” says the latest Safety First message of the Canterbury Automobile Association. “The brake requirements were given previously. So far as lights are concerned the Act demands that every motor-car shall be equipped with two headlights of approximately equal candle-power, one towards each side of the vehicle, and of sufficient power to enable substantial objects and the nature of the road surface to be clearly visible under normal atmospheric conditions by a driver of normal vision at a distance of at least 150 feet directly in front of the vehicle. And here is an important requirement: Every headlight attached to a motor vehicle shall be so focused and adjusted that when the vehicle is standing on a horizontal surface no portion of the main beam of light will be projected above the horizontal plane of the lamp, or projected to a height which at a distance of seventy-five feet from the lamp is more than three feet six inches above such horizontal surface. Every lamp required to be attached to any motor vehicle pursuant to this regulation shall display a light of sufficient brilliancy to be visible under normal atmospheric conditions from a distance of at least three hundred feet. From the foregoing it will be clear to many drivers that their headlights and the headlights of others need adjustment to' bring them within the requirements of the Act and make them less dangerous to other users of the road.”

Fruit exporters are reminded of the meeting in the Redwoods Valley Hall on Monday, 13th August at 8 p.m. At the anniversary of the Stoke Methodist Church on Sunday next bright and happy services will be held on Sunday and a monster concert programme has been arranged for Monday evening by Mr H. Dicjcenson of Nelson. Members of the W.C.T.U. are asked to note that the monthly meeting will be held on Tuesday next in Bui-rough House at 3 p.m.

Attention is directed to an advertisement in this issue in connection with the sale of the property at Orinoco previously held by Mr Friend.*

Reference to kalipo spiders at New Brighton was made at. a meeting of New Brighton relief workers when several men stated they had Been bitten while planting marram grass. They decided to ask the New Brighton Borough Council to supply them with gloves.

The manufacture of aeroplanes will shortly be undertaken on a large scale in Australia, according to Air G. F. Davis, chairman of directors of Cockatoo Dock and Engineering Company, Sydney, who is now visiting Christchurch. Mr Davis said that although iris company had built about 10 aeroplanes recently, tiro industry had not been taken up seriously in the Commonwealth. But at the present time the company was negotiating with one of the foremost defence and civil aviation producers in Great Britain with the idea of building their machines under license in Australia. The company would then be in a position to supply all the airdefence requirements of Australia. Other industrial machinery, which had previously been imported, was also being built at the Cockatoo Dock Company’s factories in increasing quantities.

Although the export of veils is prohibited. the South Canterbury Calf Committee, through the chairman (Mr W. H. Staniland) have made arrangements for handling the calves this seasorr (reports the “Times”). At a meeting of the committee Mr Staniland said that he thought some arrangement could be made to drspose of the calves for the value of the skins and veils. After discussing the matter witli the authorities of the freezing works it had been found possible to dispose of the calves on a week-to-week basis and arrangements were being made for collection. It is understood that the first collection will be made on 13th August. This news will be welcomed by the dairy farmers of the Temuka district, as during the time the system of calf collection had been in operation it brought in a little'revenue.

On Monday evening at 7.30 the annual meeting of the British and Foreign Bible Society will be held in the Mia Mia Tea Rooms, Hardy street, when a iarge and enthusiastic meeting of friends ana supporters of the Society is expected. The occasion has been made an opportunity to invito the General Secretary for New Zealand, the Rev. David Calder 8.A., who will be the chief speaker of the evening. Musical items will be rendered by the different churches, and a light supper provided at a nominal charge. The Rev. James Hay 8.D., will preside. In the advertisement announcing this meeting a reminder is also given that the collectors of the Society in the Nelson area will wait upon ’ subscribers during the months of August and September.

In connection with the Richmond branch of the British and Foreign Bible Society, the Dominion secretary, Rev. David Calder, will be present and give an address at the annual meeting of the branch on Tuesday afternoon at 3 o’clock in the schoolroom of the Richmond Anglican Church. The vicar, the Rev. F. J. Daynes, will preside. “The Romance of the English Bible” is the title of an intensely interesting public lecture, which will be given by Mr Calder the same evening at 7.30 in the Richmond Baptist Church. The pastor, Mr Frank Variey, will preside. The ministers of the Richmond churches are observing tomorrow as “Bible Sunday.”

To celebrate the completion of the new building in Bridge street vvhicli is to be occupied by Messrs J. R. McKenzie, Ltd., and the Civic tearooms (Mr F. Flecker), arrangements havebeen made for ~the .Regimental Band (sponsored by Messrs J. R. McKenzie Ltd.) to play outside the building on Monday evening -at 7.45 o’clock, when the building 6hn be inspected from the outside. After the concert programme, the Band will be the guests of Air liecker at supper.*