LOCAL AND GENERAL

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXI, Issue 21806, 22 May 1934, Page 8

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Clothing Stolen " . ] . Tho theft of a small quantity of clothing and several suitcases from tho premises of Smith and Caughey, Limited, in Newmarket, was reported to the police yesterday. The thief entered tho building after breaking a small window at the back. The theft was discovered yesterday morning.

Upusual Express Passenger A large pig left Auckland by the express for tho South yesterday afternoon. The animal, which was on its way to a Hawke's Bay farm, was accommodated in a'crate in tho. guard s van. It is not very ysual for animals to travel on express trains, but in this instance a speedy passage was required.

Knitting at Lectures Regret that public lectures at the Auckland University College were not better supported was expressed at a meeting of the college council yesterday afternoon. "Not only are the attendances small, but some of the people who attend have peculiar characteristics," said Professor Maxwell Walker. "There are old ladies who bring their knitting, and others who come just to spend a cosy evening." Writing Letters to Himself The unusual position of having to write a letter' to himself occurs occasionally with Mr. J. 0. McGillivray, who is secretary ■ both to the Canterbury Rugby Union and the Lancaster Park Board. The position occurred last week when, as secretary of the union Mr. McGillivray wrote to the meeting of the board asking that steps bo placed in the embankment. He says he has to write letters to himself in this way in order that complete records of all correspondence may be kept. Business Difficulties The difficulties of the dairyman's lot were described at some length by a deputation which waited on the Heathcote County Council in Christchurch the other day. One dairyman referred to the price-cutting that was prevalent, and another said that in the Halswell district it was estimated that there was £SOOO owing for milk. "You are not unique in that respect," said a member of the council. "Everyone is in the same boat. I could tell you, harrowing tales about my own 'business. The undercutting going on is simply atrocious!" Goats on Mount Egmont "I got the shock of my lifo when I was on the slopes of the mountain between the Waiwakailio and Mangorei Rivers recently," said Mr. Robert Burrows, of* Egmont Village, a few days ago. It was three years since he paid his last visit to the locality. Then the country was clear of goats, due to the work of the board's rangers. Now from the radius line to the top of the various' ridges ho saw mobs of goats, young arid'old.'They were attacking the flora of;the forest,.and unless they were soon shot he feared ■ for the future of the plant life of the mountain.

The Tongue that Failed Circumstances could scarcely hare been more appropriate for a collapse than when one competitor broke down in the course of a song number at the Christ-church Competitions ... Society's annual festival. "I Would - that my tongue could utter the thoughts that ariso in me" were the words the competitor was endeavouring to produce musically. What she did sing was,. "I would that my tongue could . . and there stopped. She had forgotten the lines momentarily. A quick dash to the piano and she was re-established before the audience. She recommenced the song and: sang it successfully - at the second attempt.

Sport With Wild Pigs Wild pigs are still a great menace in the back country of the Wanganui district, particularly 011 the upper reaches of the river. Farmers welcome shooting parties when it is convenient for them to operate from a stock point of view. It is often a practice of city people to spend holidays in the bush, where hunts for wild pigs prove to be exciting sport. One enthusiast of this type of holiday set off from Wanganui recently armed with a .303 rifle, a shotgun and hundreds,of rounds of ammunition for each weapon. " That is a i far better way of spending a fortnights holiday than going to Sydney or Auckland," he said, when some of his rellowworkers were inclined to be critical. Temporary Blindness in Sheep A great deal of blindness, in sheep) particularly breeding ewes, has developed this year in hilly country behind Wanganui, reports the Chronicle. A blue-grey film settles over the eyes, and the affliction lasts for approximately three weeks, 99 per cent of the animals recovering. It is stated that the flush autumn has been responsible. On one property in the Kauarapoa region as many as 29 sheep affected were counted at one time. Nearly all the stock owners in that district have reported trouble of a similar nature, and care has been taken to protect the flocks as far as possible, during the affliction. Many animals have fallen over cliffs into gorges, and have had to be recovered. Captain Cook's Spruce Beer The honour conferred upon Captain Cook by the Royal Society of England was not for his survey work in Now Zealand waters, but because he discovered' a method for the mitigation of the ravages of scurvy, remarked Professor It. Speight in the cpurse of his presidential address in Wellington to the Royal Society of New Zealand. "Captain. Cook was, therefore, the, earliest member of the New Zealand Board of 'Health, and with powers of enforcement of his orders not possessed by the chief of that department now, or even by the Minister in charge. We read an entry in his log, indicating a seaman who shall bo nameless, 'To refusal to drink spruce beer, three dozen.' Cleanliness, ventilation, fresh food and spruce beer —a brew made from rirnu tops—were his specifics. I wonder if anyone since Cook's time lias made any investigation into their medicinal properties or their vitamin constituents."

Busj Magistrates For some time past considerable congestion lias occurred in tho work of the Magistrate's Court in Wellington, and the position is now so bad that it is almost impossible to get a fixture for tho hearing of a civil case within less than threo months. The delay has caused much inconvenience both to litigants and to solicitors. This state of affairs is in no way due to the members of the magistracy in Wellington, Mr. E. Page and Mr. W. F. S til well. For a long time they have been working at. their fullest capacity, and the pressure of their duties has become so great that not infrequently magistrates have been called from Masterton, Nelson and Timaru to assist them. The trouble is due to the fact that for some time Mr. J.- S. Barton, S.M., has been absent from tho Court doing work oh tlio Royal Commission, and the Govern merit has not appointed anyone to take his place.