LOCAL AND GENERAL

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 23162, 7 October 1938, Page 10

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Dead Kiwi Found While searching for a calf at Houto, North Auckland, Mrs. W, W. Holster found a 1 largo dead kiwi. About 10 yards away Mr. Holster found "bird's nest in the end of a log. The nest contained two largo eggs.

Rowing and Eating "You can't row on a full stomach." said Mr. H. 0. Collier, at the annual meeting of the New Plymouth, Rowing Club, when the subject of training after tea was being (discussed. ' Wrestling seems to be the only sport in which men can succeed after heavy meals, he added. "A wrestler cati eat a meal of 14 eggs before going into the rind for a bout, and still wrestle well."

Tasman Mail Connection Filling a gap of more tjian week between sailings of regular liners for Australia, the cargo motor-ship Clydebank will leave Dunedin to-morrow for Sydney with Empire air mail and Australian mail. The Empire air mail, closing at Auckland at 6.30 to-morrow morning for inland air connect/ion, should reach London on October 24. The next outward mail will be by the Awatea, leaving Wellington for Sydney next Friday.

"An Urger" "I understand that you have a source of, revenue from the occupation of an urger," said counsel to a defendant in the Wanganui Magistrate's Court recently. "I don't understand what you mean," replied defendant. "An urger is a person who tells other persons 'good things' for race meetings and receives a commission from the proceeds if the 'good thing' comes home," said counsel. Defendant denied that he followed that occupation.

Absentee Voting Facilities To overcome congestion that has occurred in other years, special arrangements to handle a large number of absentee voters at the lown Hall on election day are being made by the returning officer for Auckland Central, Mr. W. A. Dowd. Five polling booths will bo provided, each staffed by a deputy returning officer and two poll clerks. Each of the deputy returning officers will be a man who has had a thorough experience of this class of voting at previous elections. Water Main Burst By Heat

The intense heat of the fire at the premises of G. W. Wilton ahd Company, Limited, in Shortland Street early last evening burst the water main which supplied the motive power for an hydraulic goods lift, and for neatly three hours water poured over the ground floor and began to seep slowly through a small hole in the wall and down to the floor of Shorter's Rental Cars, Limited, next door. Ultimately the stop-cock was found and the threatened flooding averted. Busier Port Trade

. After a protracted period of comparative quietness a busier tone will be given Auckland waterfront activities to-day, when six overseas ships will be berthed. They will include three liners which are due to-day. The Remuera, from Wellington, and Tamaroa, from New Plymouth, will arrive in the morning and the Mataroa, from Southampton, in the afternoon. Three more ships from overseas, the Rotorua from Liverpool, Temple Moat from New York, and Triona from Nauru Island, will enter port to-morrow. Stools Wanted

Only on three occasions during his tour of the Dominion has Mr. Felix Swinstead, F.R.A.M., examiner to the Royal Schools of Music, London, found piano stools satisfying every requirement. In all tho radio studios he had played beautiful instruments, but had not been able to find a stool to his liking, Mr. Swinstead stated in the course of a lecture in Palmerston North, when a similar difficulty cropped u». In the north, ho recalled, an empty brewery case had been pressed into service, but he found a Manawatu butterbox too uncertain last evening. Howitzer Demonstration An idea of the mode of using field guns in action was given last night by tho 20th Light Battery, one of the batteries in tho Northern Coast Artillery Group, which was responsible for the display yesterday in continuance of the recruiting week. The demonstration was given in Victoria Street near tho intersection with Queen Street and a crowd quickly collected when a 3.7 in, Howitzer was set up in the middle of tho street. A sighting station was established on the opposite side of Queen Street and the position of the imaginary falling shells was semaphored to the gun crew for the purpose of obtaining moro accurate aim. The week's recruiting drive will end this evening.

Territorial Training A suggestion to eliminate the difficulty caused by the holding of territorial camps on dates disadvantageous to certain seasonal industries was contained in a letter from the Minister of Defence, the Hon. F. Jones, received at the meeting of the Auckland Chamber of Commorce council yesterday. The alternative proposed was that in businesses affected the men might bo given time off to undergo a course of training at the district schools, which would bo open throughout the year Tlio Minister added that there were indications of a decided improvement in recruiting, and lie was hopeful that the strength and efficiency of the force wouid soon reach a higher plane than had been the caso for a number of years.

Natural Gas at Hastings A chance strike of a pocket of

natural gas by contractors who are boring for artesian water in the Hastings Civic Square gave rise to much conjecture in Hastings as to the possibilities of mineral resources beneath tho town. Tho gas,' pocket was tapped at a depth of 110 feet, and gave out after the pipe bore had been driven a little further. The gas was apparently contained in a small pocket which was punctured by the pipe, and was not under high pressure, for although the noiso of it escaping from tho top of tho pipo was sufficient to bo heard above the noise of tho motor operating tho boring apparatus, tho gas gave a flame only about a foot high when it was ignited by a match.

Strange Sea Monster Naturalists havo been interested in recent weeks in a species of monster now lying on tho beach at Tatapouri, East Coast. Tho animal—or fish—came ashoro about two months, ago, dead, and since then has been lying on tho . fringe of tho tide. It has resisted tho ordinary processes of decay. The carcase shows no head, limbs, or fins on tho surfaces exposed to view. From one portion of tho hugo mass protrudes a rudimentary tail. A strong hide has been cut through in moro than one place, exposing a white (lesh-like blubber. The hide has a coating of long wool-like growth. Among the various suggestions as to the identity of tho monster is that it is a sea-cow, a mammal rarely found in New Zealand waters.