LOCAL AND GENERAL

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 23175, 22 October 1938, Page 12

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Oriminal Trials Of the 16 cases for trial at the quarterly criminal sessions of the Supreme Court, which opened on Tuesday, only five now remain to bo heard next week. One indictment was rejected by the grand jury and in the 10 cases that have gone for trial the Crown has secured a verdict of guilty in eight, and two accused have been found not guilty and discharged. Destruction of Showboat The fate has now been decided of the old schooner Columbia, a ship better known to Aucklanders at her berth in Mechanics' Bay as tho Showboat. Loaded with a quantity of inflammable material, she will be towed on some calm day to Rangitoto Island and there destroyed by fire. With proposals to break up the vessel or to dispose of her by tender proving unsuccessful, Auckland Harbour Board officials are now making arrangements for tho veteran vessel's last voyage. Station Loud-speakers After having been out of commission for several weeks, the loud-speaker system at the Auckland railway station was in use again yesterday and was of valuable assistance in directing tho largo number of people leaving Auckland for the week-end. system is not yet in perfect working order and the loud-speakers failed occasionally last night. The break-down of a piece of the apparatus caused the original failure of the system and difficulty was experienced in obtaining a replacement. Trafalgar Day Addresses Following the custom of previous years addresses were given at schools in Auckland yesterday on the occasion of Trafalgar Day. The addresses were given by permission of Commodore H. E. Horan, Chief of Naval Staff for New Zealand, and Commodore I. G. Glennie. The speakers were Lieutenant J. F. Thompson, at King's College, Lieutenant A. J. Dent, at the Auckland Girls' Grammar School, and Commander F. B. Lloyd, at the Takapuna Grammar School. The addresses were on the subject of Lord Nelson and the Battle of Trafalgar. Pilots' Refresher Course A refresher course for pilots of the Territorial Air Force is being held ut Wigram and will last for a fortnight. Three pilots from the Auckland Squadron and three from the Christchurch Squadron are receiving general flying instruction in Baffin machines. The five trainees from the Royal [New Zealand Air Force, who were allotted to tho Canterbury Aero Club, under Squadron-Leader G. L. Stednian,. are now all flying solo. In addition to these, 10 members of tho civil reserve of pilots are receiving instruction at the aero club and six of them have qualified to fly solo.

Work lor Boys and Gifls "At present there would seem to be little excuse for a boy or girl to bo idle if fit and not waiting for a special type of work," said an officer of the Dunedin Vocational Guidance Association. "A decided shortage of boys for industrial work and for errand boys' jobs is reported, although sometimes difficulty is experienced in finding apprenticeships for unemployed boys who possess considerable working experience. The position to-day is in striking contrast to that which existed in the depths of the depression, for at one time then the association had over 800 unemployed girls and boys on its register seeking employment." Record Air Mail

A new record was established in the transport of mail from England to New Zealand, when mail posted in London on October 9 was delivered in Auckland yesterday, Imperial Airways flying boats and the Union Company's transtasman liner Awatea were the means of transportation. The mail flying boat, which l£ft England on October 10, landed at Rose Bay, Sydney Harbour, last Tuesday, but there was not time to transport the mail to the wharf before the departure of the Awatea. Other arrangements were made and the Awatea stopped off Rose Bay to allow shipment of 43 bags of mail frotn two launches.

City Street Paving Reconstruction of the street paving in Customs Street East, portions of Symonds Street and the section of Hobson Street between Victoria and Pitt Streets is shortly to bo carried out by the City Council. The deterioration of the surface in Customs Street East has been particularly noticeable in the past two or three years and to-day the cushion of rolled rock asphalt has worn through in places to the concrete foundation and in others it has rolled up into unsightly ridges, bringing the carriage-way well below the standard required in such a busy thorough faro. The position is almost equally bad in Hobson and Symonds Streets. The present paving was laid nearly 25 years ago.

Exhibition Gabaret Because no cabaret was included in the designs of the New Zealand Centennial Exhibition a certain amount of criticism was raised 011 the grounds that Wellington lacked sufficient nip;hi life to provide entertainment for visitors from all parts of New Zealand and from all over the world visiting Wellington during the centennial on pleasure bent. Steps, however, have now been taken to remedy the deficiency. Plans for a large modern cabaret to bo conducted in connection with the exhibition have been approved by the directors, subject to certain conditions. The cabaret will be run by a syndicate of Wellington business men and will bo erected by the exhibition contractors, Messrs. Fletcher and Love. The dance floor will measure be one of the largest, if not the largest, danco floors in New Zealand. CJoats-of-Arms at Takahe

Five new coats-of-arms have now been added to the collection at the Sign of the Takahe, Cashmere Hills, Canterbury. These are the armorial bearings of Lord Galway, Lord Liverpool (a former Governor-General), the Bowes-Lyon family (family of Queen Elizabeth), John Robert Godley (founder of Canterbury), and Lord Bledisloe (a former Governor-General). They have been carved in wood and painted in heraldic colours by members of the staff at the Takahe, and some of them have already been hung in the armorial room. A further coat-of-arms, that of Lord Nuffield, is also being made, and will be added to the collection, which now totals about 90, at an early date. Mr. J. A. Thomson, who is in charge of the work, has submitted a drawing of Lord Nuffiekl's arms to the Windsor Herald (Mr. A. T. Butler); who has made certain suggestions about the design.