LOCAL AND GENERAL

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXI, Issue 21697, 12 January 1934, Page 8

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Child's Fall from Stack As the result of a fall from a haystack on which she was playing at about eight clock last evening, a nine-year-old girl, Hannah Molloy, of 28 Duke Street, Mount Roskill, suffered injuries to the ribs and internal injuries. She was taken to the Auckland Hospital by a St. John ambulance, her condition late last-evening being-fairly serious. H.M,S. Diomede's Movements H.M.S. Diomede, which went into dock on Monday morning for cleaning, painting and refitting, will come out of dock this afternoon. The cruiser will leave Auckland on January 22 for Port Fitzroy, where landing parties will carry out exercises for four days. She will return on January 26 and will be in attendance at the Anniversary Regatta on January 29.

Peat Pires at Kaitaia Kaitaia and the surrounding districts have been enveloped in a haze of smoke for the past few days from burning peat in- the Kaitaia swamp. The fires are due to the extremely dry weather which has been experienced lately, and it is probable they will burn until heavy rain falls. It is common for the peat to start burning in the hot summer months, and scarcely a year passes without the heavy pall of peat smoke enveloping the countryside. Yacht's Ocean Cruise

Advice was received yesterday that Mr. J. W. S. McArthur's auxiliary yacht Morewa, which left Auckland on Boxing Day and arrived at Norfolk Island on December 29, was expected to leave the island at four o'clock yesterday afternoon and would make the return trip via Mangonui and Whangaroa. The vessel is due at Auckland next Wednesday. The Morewa, which is making her first ocean cruise, has a crew of 11, including Mr. McArthur, hi 3 wife and daughter, and the builder of tfie boat, Mr. C. Wild.

Sheep Drowned by Floods Eighty hoggets and rams, valued at £l5O, were drowned on the farm of Messrs. Watson Brothers on the Ash-burton-Methven Road, two miles below .Methven, by the floods following the heavy rain last Saturday evening. Several of the sheep were trapped and drowned in a gravel pit when an adjacent water-race burst over its banks, and the others were drowned when the water overflowed from the pit and washed them against a fence. The flood waters scoured put the gateway and carried 14 of the dead sheep on to the road.

Missing Girl TTntraced The Auckland police have not yet received any indication .of the whereabouts of Miss Marie Ann de Stigter, aged 20, . who has been missing from Onerahi since last Saturday. Fears are entertained for the safety of the young woman, - who left her home about 11 a.m., and is thought to have come to Auckland.- Miss de Stigter, who is a native of Java, is about sft. tall, and has fair hair, blue eyes and a sallow complexion. "When last seen she was wearing a navy blue dress, ' a white linen hat and black shoes.

Meeting in Mid-ocean The first meeting of the Shaw, Savill and Albion, liners Mataroa and Akaroa since the latter vessel has been in the service of the company occurred in midPacific recently, when the Mataroa was about 10 days from Xew Zealand. The Akaroa was bound from Auckland to London, and the Mataroa from London to Wellington. Some of the crew of the Akaroa. which was named the Euripides before it was taken over by the Shaw. Savill and- Albion Company about IS months ago, were previously on the Mataroa, and the two vessels approached so close that former shipmates ware able to greet each other as they passed. Accident Victims' Condition

Improvement took place yesterday in the condition of Mr. Arthur Robert Saunders, aged 23, who received internal injuries in a motor-cycling accident on Wednesday afternoon. The injured man, who resides at 11 Martin Avenue, Remuera, is no longer considered to be in a serious condition. A similar improvement took place in the condition of Mr. G. A. Harmden, aged 42, of 77 Sarsfield Street, Ponsonby, who received fairly serious injuries on Tuesday through being struck on the head by a bag of sugar during cargo operations at the Colonial Sugar Refining Company's works at Chelsea. South Sea Melody

Through the empty maze of corridors and passages in the old House of Parliament on Tuesday there suddenly echoed the sound of men's and women's voices raised in a beautiful song. The melody and the form of harmony indicated the song to have been born somewhere in the South Sea Islands. Few persons were about the building at the time, but most of those who were came out of their offices the better to hear the singing while it continued. It came from the offices of Sir Apirana Ngata, Minister of Native Affairs, who was being informally entertained by the visAirig party of Rarotongans after he had received them there on behalf of the Maori people.

Bathing Pool at Rangitoto The construction of a pool for the safe bathing of children at Rangitoto Island has been undertaken by the Rangitoto Domain Board. The pool, situated near the ferry wharf, was completed some months ago, but the tides were found insufficient to maintain the depth of water required. The new bath, which is being reconstructed by prison labour, will be semi-tidal, having a valve to allow draining at regular intervals; this device will enable a depth of about 4ft. to be kept at all tides. The floor of the pool has been levelled and hand-cut slabs of rock from the island will be laid down to form a smooth bottom. The work is expected to be completed in the near future. Lot of Office Workers The conditions enjoyed by young men who worked in offices in New Zealand were in striking contrast to those ruling for young men in similar positions in England, and particularly in London, Miss Nina Daly, an English visitor, stated in a recent interview with the Christchurch Press. In London, Miss Daly said, young men working in offices had to live miles away from their work, with the result that they spent their hours away from work during the day in travelling to and fro. During about four months of the year they were lucky if they saw their homes in daylight during the week. In New Zealand voting men in similar positions could leave their offices and be engaged in healthy sport for some hours in the eyening, or they could spend the weekend in the mountains or at the seaside. That form of relaxation was impossible in England.