LOCAL AND GENERAL

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXII, Issue 22215, 16 September 1935, Page 8

LOCAL AND GENERAL

New Blazer A black blazer with the badge of the Order of St. John surrounded by a wreath of St. John's Wort on the pocket has- been sanctioned by the Chapter-General of the Order. It may be worn by members of the order, association and brigade. Artificial Respiration Methods A conference has taken place in London of representatives of the Royal LifeSaving Society and the St. John Ambulance Association with the object of discussing the possibility of unifying the methods of applying artificial respiration. A satisfactory arrangement was arrived at. Fall From Tramcar Concussion was suffered by Mr. George Pulham, aged 66, married, an engineer, of 17 Belwood Avenue, Mount Eden, when he fell from a tram in Symonds Street at about 2.30 on Saturday afternoon. Ho was taken to the Auckland Hospital in a St. John ambulance, his condition yesterday being not serious. Whitebait lor Australia

The first shipment of fresh whitebait to be sent to Australia was taken by the Wanganella on Saturday. The consignment, totalling 2001b., was sent in a chilled state, whereas previous shipments have been frozen. The fish was taken from the Waikato River and it is stated the smallness of the shipment was due to a shortage of whitebait. Record in Umpiring

A record of which he may well be proud is held by Mr. W. Toomath, who retired from tbo office of chairman of committees at the annual meeting of the Wellington Cricket Umpires' Association. For 32 years he has been an umpire, and in that, time ho has not missed one playing Saturday. On one occasion he umpired for 21 consecutive days, and has officiated in all types of cricket in New Zealand. Sheep Shearing At Waiheke As a result of the fine weather that has been experienced at Waiheke Island recently farmers decided to commence shearing operations last week and about 400 sheep were put through at one shed at Ostend on Friday. Conditions are reported to be the best for some years, though the start has been made two or three weeks earlier than usual. Operations at another Ostend shed will be commenced this week. Efficiency of Navy A statement that the Royal Navy today was in a better position than it was in 1914 was made by Commander B. R. Willett, of H.M.S. Dunedin, in replying to a toast at the 10th annual reunion of the New Zealand Field Engineers, N.Z.E.F., on Saturday night. The inter-dependence of the services, the Navy, Army and Air Force, was emphasised by Commander Willett. He assured his listeners that at present the Navy was 100 per cent efficient.

Ambulance Training Striking testimony is made to the value of an ambulance training among the employees in any industrial organisation, in the last report of the St. John An\bulance Association issued from St. John's Gate. It is stated that a colliery company in the North of England notified the association that after adequate first-aid arrangements had been made there was a reduction of approximately 48.3 per cent in the number of persons who lost four days or more through accidents.

Grafton Bridge Traffic The efforts to discipline pedestrian traffic on Grafton Bridge have not proved very successful. During the week when traffic officers were on duty the directions to keep to the righthand footpath were observed, although many people were seen to cross over to the other side when further along the bridge. There were no officers on duty during the week-end and the majority of pedestrians chose the side which was most convenient, the nonobservance of the rules being particularly noticeable during visiting hours at the hospital. Winds In Taranaki The severely cold winds experienced during the last few days have had a serious effect on Taranaki pastures. Growth has been checked completely, with the result that on the majority of farms the feed problem is acute, because hay and silage saved for the winter has also been consumed. Stock generally are not in such good condition to face a new season as is usual in North Taranaki, and consequently production shows a considerable decrease compared with last year. Many farmers brought their cows in three and four weeks earlier this season and more cows are being milked, but the weather has been so bitterly cold that total butterfat still shows a decline.

Thieves In Church Evidence has been found of thieves having tried their fortunes in two New Plymouth churches recently. They got nothing for their trouble, but left a little trouble, in repairing minor damage, for others. Lock-up cupboards seem to have attrected the intruders. In one they found nothing but a supply of organ music, when they had broken off the back of the cupboard. A first attempt had been made to open the door, but the tearing off of the light back proved easier. In another church a cupboard with even less valuable contents was broken open, but in neither case was anything missed. There seemed to have been nothing in the nature of a breaking into the buildings, and it is presumed that doors were probably left unlocked, enabling the intruders to enter without difficulty.

Mails From Abroad Two Australian mails will be delivered in Auckland to-day and another will reach Wellington from Sydney to-morrow. Alter a, passage of seven days from Sydney the trawler Alfie Cam arrived at Wellington on Saturday morning with Australian mail, the northern portion cf which reached Auckland by train yesterday and will be delivered to-day. The Monowai, which is due at Auckland from Sydney early this morning, has a quantity of Australian mail and the Marama will arrive at Wellington from Sydney to-morrow morning with Australian mail, which will reach Auckland by train on Wednesday morning. The Marama's mail also includes an Empire air mail, which was despatched from London on September 1. Another Australian mail will arrive at Auckland from Sydney by the Monterey next Saturday morning. Mail from Engla nd and America will arrive at Wellington from San Francisco by the Mak ura this, morning. She has 269 bags of ordinary mail and 37 bags of parcels for Auckland.