LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIII, Issue 19459, 15 October 1926, Page 10

LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

The death occurred in the Auckland Hospital yesterday morning of Mr. Ernest Scott, of Parkfield Terrace, Newmarket, who received severe injuries to the head through being knocked down by a motorbus in Khyber Pass Road on Tuesday evening. While climbing a tree at his home, 102, Lower Symonds Street, yesterday afternoon, Donald Stewart, aged seven, fell to the ground, sustaining a dislocation of the right elbow. He was admitted to the hospital and is progressing satisfactorily. An important event to the settlers took place at Papakura yesterday afternoon, when the Hon. A. D. McLood, Minister of Lands, officially set in operation the new water filter system which has been installed by the Town Board at the foot of the Hunua Gorge. The filters have been in operation for,some months. The installation, which is the only one of its kind in operation in the Dominion, is similar to that which the Auckland City Council proposes to instal in the Waitakere ranges, except that it is operated by pressure, whereas the Auckland water will pass through. the filters by gravitation. The Minister unlocked the door of the building with a gold key presented by the board.

During September the total births registered for the urban areas amounted to 1128, as against 1149 in August, a decrease of 21. Deaths in September were 609, a decrease, of 53 as compared with the previous month. Of the total deaths males contributed 349 and females 260. Seventyfive of the deaths were of children under five years of age, being 12.32 per cent, of the whole number. Fifty-six of these were under one year of age.

British-New Zealand Films, producers of "Rewi's Last Stand," advertised in the Herald recently for children to appear in a New Zealand comedy.' In commenting on the response the manager, Mr. Charles A. Dredge, writes:—"So astonishing has been the result that we are taking this opportunity to commend you on the Herald's remarkable circulation. In one day we had nearly 50C written rephes to the one-inch advertisement and there has beon a continuous stream of personal applications." The New Zealand. Manufacturers' Federation, which until Wednesday was known as the Industrial Corporation of NeW Zealand, yesterday agreed to ask the Government to grant the use of ou.e postal date marking machine for advertising slogans at each centre free of charge as was done in Australia. The report of the Diocesan Missions Committee©, presented to the Anglican Synod yesterday, stated that the recent "East and West" exhibition in the Town Hall had realised £933. The diocese had been asked by the Board of Missions to raise £4470 for co-ordinated missions in the 15 months ended June 30 last. It had raised £4812, together with £442 for non-co-ordinated missions. Owing to the absence of adequate lighting facilities the use of Shelly Beach baths for evening bathing has been restricted, but the disability is now to be removed. At the meeting of the City Council last evening it was decided to accede to a request by the Ponsonby Amateur Swimming and Life-saving Clnb that two flood-lights should be erected over the swimming pool and ono light placed in each of the dressing sheds.

With the paring of the Great South Road in concrete assured from Auckland to the far boundary of Papakura, the Franklin County engineer, Mr. J. F. McArthur, asked the County Council yesterday for authority to compile the necessary engineering data, to form an estimate of the cost of continuing the concrete road from the county boundary where it adjoined Papakura to Ramarama, a distance of approximately miles. Authority was. given. It was mentioned thai county ratepayers were discussing the matter and an estimate of cost would give them the necessary information to help them decide whether thoy would go in for concrete.

A curious position has arisen through the proposed erection of a petrol pump on the footpath of a street which is a boundary road between the city and Mount Albert Borough. For a distance of 200 ft. from the alignment of New North Road a carriageway in Dominion Road is under the control of the City Council, the footpath on one side is maintained by the Borough Council and that- on the other side by the City Council. The portion of footpath and road to be occupied by the pump is thus partly city and partly borough property, and the owner is anxious to know what his position is under the City Council regulations. The matter was brought forward at last evening's meeting of the City Council and was referred to the Works Committee.

An amusing story of a minister's disillusionment from Ohai, Southland. On a recent Saturday evening the power broke down shortly after the start of the pictures and it was announced to the disappointed audience that the remainder of the programme would be screened at the conclusion of the church service on the following evening. The visiting minister being unaware of this arfangement, held a service in the hall, on the Sunday evening, and was pleasantly surprised-at the size of' the congregation, which increased every few minutes. The climax was reached when in the midst of his eloquence a voice from the back sang out, "Cut it slvjrt, mister, we are waiting to see the rest of the pictures."

When reporting to a meeting of the Wellington Bowling Centre regarding the negotiations which have been entered into by Ene Dominion Bowling Council for a team to visit South Africa, Canada and England, Mr. F. Meadowcroft said that it had been suggested that the next team sent abroad should be composed only of men, as were cricket and football teams. There were many married bowlers, however, he added, and as they were "under authority." it was not deemed wise to carry the proposal into effect for fear of what the wives of the tourists would say when their husbands told them they were to stay behind.

That the foilage of the ngaio is poisonous to stock may not be generally known, but. this fact has recently been unpleasantly impressed on a Wanganui farmer. He has lost an appreciative part of hip dairy herd through the cattle eating the branches of ngaio trees which were felled on the land on which they were being gtazocL