LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LX, Issue 18537, 23 October 1923, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

A large, number :of :; passengers will' arrive in New Zealand from England this week. The Shaw, Savill and Albion liner lonic is .due at ; Wellington from Southampton thisy afternoon with ;; about ;500, and the New v Zealand Shipping Company's liner Remuera '? is due at Auckland from i -: Southampton ;■• on v: Thursday ;. with about 500.

■ A narrow escape from losing the fingers of, one"hand' befel HazelvPates, a four-teen-year-old i; girl,; when " recovering a " ball from a drain h in -Garfield Street, Parnell, on ';■ Sunday afternoon. :-.%• She was reaching down the c drain when the heavy ; iron cover, which ' was being lifted by another child, slipped back into its place, and severely jammed 'her ) 'fingers. ! '••■ She was taken to the hospital for; attention.; ; v

: The ' Main Trunk express, which left for Wellington last evening was well patronised, there being aproximately 480 passengers, both the first and second-class being full. The train consisted of four first-class and six second class carriages, in addition to two sleepers, two luggage vans, and one postal van, a total of • 15 cars. Among the passengers were ten Hamilton n.c.o.'s returning from the training camp : held at Narrow Neck last week. Two special ■ trains from Claudelands, run in connection with the Hamilton races, arrived in Auckland last night at 10.9 and 10.27 respectively. Both trains were well patronised, tiTe former having about 1000 passengers' and the other over 400. % :,::. '.:■■■■.-•■'

Severe ■ injuries to . his , head were received last evening by Mr. Charles E. Cameron, aged 36, a plasterer residing at 32, Valley' Road, Mount Eden. The injuries, ' which were the result of a fall down a flight of steps in High Street, necessitated an operation.

No news had been , received up to a late > hour last evening of Mr.. James Alexander Campbell, who has been missing from his home at Tatutoi Street, Parnell, since 9.30 a.m. en Thursday last. Mr. Campbell, who is a retired mercantile captain, loft home with the intention of visiting the city and Birkenhead, and has not been seen since. v

; In connection with tho discussion whioh arose at tho meeting of the Dunedin Manufacturers' Association with' regard to the Dunedin-West Coast cargo service, Mr. S. K. Sleigh, manager of the Dunedin branch of the Union Steam Ship Company, stated: "I will admit that the service between Dunedin and the West Coast has » not been very frequent of late, but the whole question is governed by the falling off in the ' quantity of West Coast coal coming to Dunedin in consequence of the strike among the miners at Westport. There , is not . sufficient coal shipped at Greymouth alone to justify the running of a regular service between that port and Dunedin. When the Westport miners resume working the " opportunity for shipping goods will necessarily be more frequent." • Appliances of all kinds are used to a surprising extent in the average American home," said Mr. M. Cable, ; chief electrical engineer for Wellington, when referring to his recent visit to the United States. ' " According to a recent census -taken by one of the large companies rt was found that in a typical case of 1000 residences, 720 ■• possessed flat irons, 360 vacuum cleaners, and 295 washing machines, in addition to numerous fans, 'heating and cooking appliances." .

The wealth of material for the student of Maori ethnology to be found in -the gongs of the Maori tribes in Taranaki was commented ion; by Dr. P. H. Buck in New Plymouth last week. , " The songs of the : Taranaki Maoris,*' he said, "go' back not only-to the migration to New Zealand, but also ;to the migrations in Polynesia. The songs are older than those of ; any, other tribes in New Zealand, and the- purity oftho language will be of great value: to the student of. ethnology." ' in-! stancing one particular point concerning the data' to be found in the songii of old Taranaki, Dr. Buck said it was definitely known that the Aotea canoe, from which the Taranaki tribes claimed descent, came from Raiatea, in the Society Group, near Tahiti. Their motto is "We will never be lost; we come of the seed which was sown in Rangiatea," but the dropping 01. the " ng" sound by the Tahitians has shortened the name .of ; the x island Raiatea. Qi:[ ■;' '.. .'. ■''•;'.■< ;vt r ':V ; Vv/ : \...M; ■.'•■•• V;--,:''■;■ ■•''

: A stir was caused at Kumeu last week when a fire,; which .was being used to destroy waste ; paper and rubbish in the school grounds, got out of hand and catching the scrub, made rapid progress in the direction of the Huapai Fruitgrowers/Cooperative Association's packing shed. A call for assistance was : responded to; by about 20 fire-fighters; who ; beat out the flames just in time to save the building. It is reported that several angling en* thusiasts /of /..-North;'; Taranaki, whose eagerness ■/ to try ; the streams caused them to anticipate "\ the > opening /of the season by a few hours, were not successful in / evading the watchful '; eyes of the rangers. The names .of one or two prominent men in the province have been mentioned as possible recipients of " blue papers." , . ' ..<j /' ' -•The work of the erection of . Nelson's v war memorial at the foot of the Church Hill is in a fair ■ way toward completion.; The memorial, which consists of; a 1; lifesized marble, figure of a" New, Zealand soldier in full field equipment; has, come to/ hand. This' will /be mounted on a polished granite ;: pedestal ;; and/supported, by . four ; ; turned, and polished marble columns 'and a polished granite shaft. / / ; "The more I think about. it the more I am : : convinced / that / motor, trains -are the 1 only ' solution for the non-paying lines in/the Dominion,'' said Mr. H. Holland' at a' meeting '//of .the "Canterbury District Railway Committee. He added. that while travelling .: in / the- North: island recently ~ he //had ,.. noticed . trains with■' 30 or 40 passengers that some year*. ago would have ; been crowded. " Like sending a small' child ,to school on a draught - horse," said another member. Mr. Holland said he understood /•'that; the ■ department was ■ taking action to secure two or three motor trains. /- ,/.'

' "There are some, giant trees to be found in the bush country of .1 Taranaki. Recently; in the Uruti district, a couple of settlers 'decided to cut up a totara tree ■that-' had been torn out by the roots in a gale many years ago.;;;.. The totara had a diameter of 10ft. at' the widest part; By using >. a 1 nine-foot crosscut -saw, maul and wedges,:axes : and' powder, the \ big trunk' was reduced 1 ; to timber'.; that was ; sold ; for £20.. In addition to posts, there were many loads of slabs, which "; found a ready market for .culvert and cutting work on roads. The timber- throughout the tree was absolutely sound. ..■'■, "That ■ is quite a:• good ■ exhibit > for an: agricultural ; show," commented Mr. J. G. L. Hewitt, S.M., president! of the Assessment ; Court, at Okato, Tarahkai, 1 last Friday, when one-,of the objectors : , to a recent Government valuation of. a' property;j produced a trailing blackberry vino about; 15ft. in length, ,* which, he said, represented six ; months': .'growth.! Amid; laughter the -'objector declared, ''If ' the grass would* grow as long as this I' wouldn't bo here to-day."; /', - : ' A : tramping club, to be called the Mas-! terton Tramping; Club, ; was formed at- a meeting held at' Masterton last week.'• About 50 people were:present. - The rules of the Tararua , Tramping Club were adopted,-; with;; C slight, alterations, 1 -, and;: : it, was decided, to co-operate with that club. The Tararua Range runs close to Masterton, and the ascent of Mount Holdsworth, one: of the: highest: peaks in the range, is a favourite trip from that town. I