NEWS OF THE DAY

New Zealand Times, Volume L, Issue 11708, 21 December 1923, Page 4

NEWS OF THE DAY

A gift of £lO to the Radium Fund, per the Mayoress, Mrs R. A. Wright, has been made by Hamilton Nimmo and Sons, Ltd., piano dealers, Kent terrace.

Out of 23 oases of unemployment dealt with during the month 14 had since obtained work, reported the social welfare committee to the Wellington Hospital Board yesterday.

A small area on the southern side of the Nurses’ Home at Wellington Hospital has been enclosed by the erection of a light fence for the purpose of providing a play area for the inmates of the children’s hospital.

The Wellington Orphans’ Club is to be asked if it has any seats available to place in the hospital grounds for the use of visitors. The question of providing accommodation for visitors on the visiting days is being considered by the hospital committee.

The number of patients in Wellington Hospital and institutions on November 30th was 416, an increase of 18 during the month. The number admitted during the month, was 415, died 34, discharged 378. The daily average was 385.

During a .recent trip from Wbangarei to Dargaville in a motor-car a traveller was attacked by a bull which was roaming on tho road. The animal, infuriated, charged, the car, but the force of the impact was minimised by the car being speeded up. The car was dented by the animal’s horns.

The Railway Department charges one freight rate for tar and another for bitumen. In common with the Taranaki Counties’ Association, tho Hawera Borough Council has decided to ask the department to reduce the rat© on bitumen to a par with the tar rate.

In accordance with! the departmental circular of August Ist last the vVellington Hospital Board has to guarantee payment of 11s per diem for patients under treatment at the Pukeora sanatorium from Wellington Hospital district. There are nine Wellington patients in Pukeora institution at present.

The consumption of gas, water, lighting, and power at Wellington Hospital for the month of November was as follows (corresponding figures in 1922 in parentheses):—Gas. £lO9 9s 2d -(£114 los 8d); water, £53 10s 3d (£sl 10s); electric light, £35 17s 6d (£43 19s 4d); power, £2O 2s 4d (£l6 10s 4d).

A painful epidemic in the form of gastritis is attacking children and adults throughout Palmerston North and district. The cause is not known, but has been attributed to the water supplies being affected by the drought. The Manawatu “Times” suggests had it been a week later, the Christmas festivities in midsummer might more justly have been blamed.

A few days ago the Rev. H. Van Staveren was passing through the children’s playing area at Newtown on his way into the hospital, and stopped to give a cheery word to a chubby little youngster, shaking hands with him. As soon as the senior member of the board had departed the little chap ran across to has mother, and said: “Mother, Father Christmas has just shaken hands with me.”

About 29 members of the TararuaTramping Club are paying a visit to Mount Oook for Christmas and the New Year holidays. The party leaves on Monday evening and will be awav for a fortnight. The whole of the arrangements have been made through the local office of the tourist department, who haye handled the club’s very complicated tours to the club’s utmost satisfaction.

It was reported at the meeting of the Wellington. Hospital Board yesterday that the sum of £175 I6s 6d, balance of amount of bequest by Mrs Frances Rossdter Macdonald, has been received from the Public Trustee. The total fund amounts to £638 which includes the Government subsidy. The committee has* under consideration tho question of investing the sum in order to perpetuate the name in addition to the brass tablet affixed to “The Frances Macdonald Oot” in the children’s hospital.

“I suppose ‘damn’ has ceased to he a swear word now?” said the magistrate at Wanganui the other day. Mr Cohen: “Yes; it is a classic word now, and often used in the pulpits.” The magistrate: “It always was there, but used with special license.” Mr Cohen went on to say that farcical comedy he considered very tame without” a few damns. He referred to the first time the word was used on the stage in England, and the audience were awfully disgusted, and the play had to be withdrawn.

Although the bush fires in tho Tuatapere district have caused a considerable amount of damage to the bush and to sawmills, there are a number of instances in which settlers have actually been benefited by the fires (says the “Southland Times”). One soldier settler, over whose property the fires passed, was forced to sell his stock owing to the destruction of his grass. He is nevertheless heartened by the fact that a large portion of his land was cleared of bush and undergrowth, which would have required several years’ .work before the land could have been made productive.

Comment on the numbers of wild cattle which are causing serious damage to the trees of Mount Egmont was made at a meeting of the interim committee of the newly-formed society to promote interest in the flora of the mountain. It was stated that wild cattle were to be seen on the mountain in large numbers, and that they were doing irreparable damage. It was also mentioned that the cattle had caused the National Park Board grave concern in the past, and it was decided to give the board support in any movement that might be made to remedy the evil.

A judge’s experience in regard to buying what it was hoped would prove to be a racehorse was alluded to by Mr Justice Reed in the Supreme Court, Auckland, during the hearing of an action in regard to a bull. His Honour cited the instance of a man buying a yearling at a sale of racing ptock, with a pedigree of a winning sire and dam. The yearling turned out a “perfect duffer,” ana His Honour asked counsel if he would contend that damages ■could he claimed. Counsel replied in ithe negative, saying that the animal would still be useful for other purposes. ‘■'Tho yearling,” said His Honour, ‘ ’proved io be practically no good at all. II experienced that myself once.”

Tho engineer at the hospital has been instructed to proceed with tho lowering and regrading of the road to the Victoria Horae at an estimated cost of £323 17s 6d

The Auckland Trotting Club accepted the tender of a "Wellington firm for th© erection of the new grandstand at the Epsom trotting course. The price was £56,500.

Tire National Provident Fund public office has been removed from Manners street to the Government Insurance Building, Brandon street entrance.

During their stay in New Plymouth the New South "Wales tennis team wero th© guests of the Taranaki Lawn Tennis Association, and wore taken for a motor drive to Mount Bgmont.

While haymaking at Tatuanui, a man named Joe Begovich received severe injuries. He was working a horso rake when tire horse bolted. Begovich was thrown into a barbed wire fence. He was removed' to the hospital at Morrinsville.

After the audience had departed from the Strand Theatre a 17-year-old girl named Mary Miller, a resident of New Plymouth, was found in an unconscious condition. She was taken to the hospital, where she regained consciousness, and yesterday was reported to he progressing favourably.

At 8.15 last night a local resident was wandering up and down the corridor outside the City Council Chamber. “I was going to have a bob’s worth of pictures,” he said, ‘‘but a pal told me I could get just as much fun at the council meeting, but they went into oommittee just after starting and here I am.”

Owing to the heavy nature of the traffic on the footpaths, due to the Christmas shopping, the line down the centre of th© footpath, together with tho injunction “Keep to the Left,” has been almost worn off. It will probably require to be renewed several times before the public become thoroughly imbued with it.

“It seems inconceivable that in a city the size of Auckland it is impossible to obtain the quantity and quality of bricks required for the school chapel,” said the chairman of the Board of Governors, Mr V. J. Lamer, at the King’s College prize-giving. Air Larner said the foundation stone was laid in June, 1922, yet the chapel was still far from completion, owing to continual stoppages on account of short supplies of bricks.

The prolonged spell of dry weather is beginning to affect the pastures in the Te Pulse district, and the output of butter at the local factory has already begun to go down. A good dteal of green feed, especially millet, has been planted for the autumn, and rain is needed for this and the turnip crops already sown Haymaking is proceeding all over the district, the crops generally being good. The weather is ideal for the work, and the hay is being well saved.

In connection with the incident at a Chinese fruiterer’s shop at Patea, the “Press” report states that the young man who was shot, and had lost a considerable amount of blood, proceeded to Dr Simmons, who, after dressing the wound, ordered him to the hospital. It has been the custom for young men requiring fruit, etc., from Wong’s shop to go round to the back of the shop if tho hour is late, and it was whilst on a mission of this nature that the unfortunate incident took place.

The driver of at five-seater car found himself in a rather precarious position on Thorndon quay yesterday, and a serious accident w.ns fortunately averted by the promptitude of a motorman’s application of his brakes. The car in apparent haste endeavoured to pass another vehicle on tlie right-liand side, but the driver had not gauged his distances to any state of correctness for on passing the car in front of him he narrowly missed a head-on collision with the tram. There is evident truth in the old saying—“More haste, less speed.’’

“To those who are leaving to fight cut life’s battles we with every success, and if at any time they are desirous of obtaining advice or guidance we shall bo only too ploased to help them, and also we wish them to bear m mind that th© doors qf their old isbhool are ever open to them. To those Who contemplate returning we wish a very pleasant holiday, and we hope they will come back at, the beginning of February reinvigorated in mind and body ready to face th© work that lies before them.”— Mr T. S. Atkinson, principal of Wellesley College, at the annual breaking up ceremony last night.

Things are not always what they seem. Yesterday afternoon one of the Wellington Gas Company’s lorries with a load of coke .was backing into the kerbing in a streot in Kelburn, the driver aiming for a telegraph pole as the most likely thing to stay his progress down a siigilt incline. Gently as the weight of the lorry ivas allowed to rest against the pole it proved too much, and apparently the stout piece of timber snapped off, bringing a tangle of wires down across tho footpath and the yard of an adjacent house. An examination revealed that the pole had rotted' nearly right through at the ground line.