Overseas Mall

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22102, 4 November 1933, Page 10

Overseas Mall

The Monterey, which reachel Auckland on Friday from Loa Angeles, has 47 bags of English and American mail and 48 parcel receptacles. The mail is due at the local office on Monday morning. Returned Soldiers’ Membership The membership competition which is conducted annually between the Dunedin and Christchurch Returned Soldiers’ Associations has been in favour of the local association during the present financial year, and the latest returns show that Dunedin has increased its lead to 196. The figures at'the end of October were: Dunedin 1891. Christchurch 1695. The Cruiser Diomede A fairly large nuipber of people visited the cruiser Diomede yesterday afternoon, and were received with the usual courtesy by members of the crew. The Diomede is timed to sail at 4 p.m, to-day foy Auckland direct. : ; Probate Granted Mr Justice Kennedy has granted probate in the estates of the under-mentioned persons:—Amelia Jane Sinclair, of Balclutha; James Rutherford, of Kaitangata, farmer, and William Malcolmson Mathewson, of sheep farmer,. Letters of administration have been granted in the cases of Agnes Ellis, of Dunedin, and Alexander Morwood, of Sawyers’ Bay.

Community Singing The first of a series of community singing gatherings was held in the Octagon Theatre yesterday from 12.30 to 1.30p.m., when there was a large attendance of the public. The leader was Mr W. R. ■Sinclair, who had associated with him on the platform the Rev. L. B. Neale. The latter explained that the gatherings had been arranged in order to assist in raising funds to provide Christmas cheer for the children of parents in poor circumstances, and at intervals during the hour he announced the receipt of a number of donations from listeners-in, advice of which had been given by telephone. Mr H. L. Young undertook the task of disposing by auction of a number of articles v/hich had been offered for the purpose, and a quick clearance was made. The principal attraction, of course, was the combined’ singing, and, under' the leadership of Mr Sinclair, the gathering settled down to this with evident enjoyment. The songs chosen included some of the old favourites, as well as others of a later vintage, such as “ The Flies Crawled Up the Window ” and “ Td-day I Feel So Happy.” The was diversified by the presentation of several items by individual performers, including the following;—National reel—Misses May Wilson, Lornh Budge, Olive Scott:, and Maisie Scott, the piper being Mr Gordon Crichton; dance, “ Ship Ahoy,” Miss Winnie Todd; songs, "0 Listen to the Band” and a number from the “Belle of New York,” Miss Gwenda Burt. The manner in which Miss Burt led the audience in the singing of the choruses of both her songs was in itself a feature of the hour and one which was very popular. Mr' Sinclair created a great deal of amusement by his decidedly unorthodox treatment of “Annie Laurie,” in 'which the keys became somewhat mi:s:ed, and of “Mary Had a Little Lamb,” which became a remarkably involved piece of music, with considerable variations. Alto--gether yesterday’s gathering was a distinct success, / From Gloom to Gladness !

She was very stolid, with a rather mournful expression. The community singing had been in'-progress for half an hour, with little result so far as she was concerned. Busy with her knitting, she sat through it all, the expression of settled gloom on her face becoming deeper and deeper. Indeed, it was a matter for wonder that she had ventured at all into that company of people bent on enjoying themselves in whole-hearted, joyous singing, and anyone less likely to respond to the prevailing influence .could scarcely be imagined. The song leader announced the next number. The lights dimmed and the words were flashed on the screen. Instantly she responded. Mood and 'opportunity appeared at last to have corresponded, and with a will she: gave voice to the song. Was it to be wondered at that her neighbour turned sharply and gazed at her in surprise—for with evident appreciation she was singing the refrain “To-day I Feel So Happy.”

The Otago Art Society During the past week there has been much activity at the Pioneer Hall in the shape of preparation for the Otago Art Society’s annual exhibition. The indications point to the presentment of a very representative and interesting display of New Zealand work. The Dunedin exhibition is popular with artiste throughout the Dominion, and large consignments of pictures have come to hand from Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Palmerston North, Nelson, and other centres, these numbering in the aggregate well over 200. The mere task of unpacking these is considerable. The industry of members of the local art fraternity is also shown, it is hardly necessar y to say, in the number and variety of their contributions. The Selection Committee ha* completed its work, and already such pro-, gress has been made with th s hanging of the pictures that everythin!' should be quite in readiness for the private view and drawing of the honorary members’ art union on Wednesday evening next. The .exhibition will be open to the public from Thursday till November 29.

Salvation Army’s Street Appeal The annual street appeal of the tion Army in connection with self-denial wag held in the city yesterday, and that the valuable work done by the .Army among the poor and needy .does not pass unrecognised was evident from the fact that the sum of £lO3 10s was raised. Commencing shortly after 7 o’clock yesterday morning, about 70 officers took part ia the collecting, which was finished aboiit 6 p.m., and assistance wag also offered by the Young Women's Christian Association and other organisations. The amount collected represented an increase of over 100 per cent, on last year’s; street day, and wag without doubt an eloquent expression of public sympathy with a very worthy object. •

Teaching the Japanese to Shoot In the latter half of last century, when Japan was realising that if she were not to become the victim of the aggressive policy of the European nations she .must remodel her whole national life in accordance with Western ideas, the decision was made to seek the assistance of British officers in the training and development of the Japanese fleet. Among those who were selected for this task was the man who afterwards became Admiral Sir Archibald Douglas. In the course of conversation with a Daily Times reporter yesterday, Mrs H. S. Sloman, Sir Archibald’s daughter, who is at present visiting Dunedin, related an interesting incident in connection with her father’s experiences while in Japanese waters. Sir Archibald was a gunnery expert, and his dutiea included the instruction of the Japanese officers in gunnery. Among his pupils was the man who in after years was appointed to command the Japanese fleet, Admiral Togo, who inflicted crushing defeats upon the Russian navy during the Russo-Japanese War, and gained a brilliant reputation as a fighting admiral. In view of the turn of events with regard to Japan at .the present moment, New Zealanders will be inclined to echo the sentiments of a Wellington resident to whom Mrs Sloman told the story. “ It’s a great pity,” he said, “ that your father ever went near Japan.” Benevolent Birds How gulls saved, from insect foes, the crops of Salt Lake Settlement (and the lives of all the good Mormons) is historic. But here is a new (and English) itory of rescue of Cheshire farms from caterpillars by crows, A correspondent narrates it apropos the South Canterbury caterpillar visitation: —“ Some 40 years ago ( a similar visitation was made in Cheshire, England, and caused considerable concern, as the caterpillars not only ate the grass, etc., but stripped the trees —mostly oaks— of all foliage. My father at the time ■ was managing part of the Egerton estates at Tatton Park, and hundreds of men were engaged digging trenches and placing salt at the bottom . of some, but with very little effect, as the pest changed its scene of action with every change of the wind. Eventually the prows solved the problem, and they visited us from all parts of the county, stuffing themselves so completely that we could have knocked them down with a stick. My father sent specimens of the caterpillar to the Field newspaper, their entomologist deciding that it was the antler moth, probably brought with potatoes from Germany. Nothing more was seen of the caterpillars next season.” ** -League of Nation* ” in CourtA case in which the plaintiff was a Chinaman and the defendant a Maori gave rise to some amusing comment between two counsel and the magistrate in the Lower Hutt Court on Wednesday (says the Evening Post). The case concerned a building erected by the plaintiff on the defendant’s land, and the point was whether it was a fixture or not, and counsel for the defendant (Mr E. P. Bunny) remarked jocularly that seeing the case was between a Mfiori and a Chinaman, it should be referred to the League of Nations. The magistrate (Mr J. S. Barton, S.M.) thought that it might come before one of the delegates of the Institute of Pacific Relations, and counsel for the plaintiff (Mr C. A. L. Treadwell) toped that relations would be pacific afterwards. Attendants at Parking Areas Consideration has been given by the General Committee- of the City Council to an application from two residents of Melbourne street for the issue of a permit or license to enable the applicants to act as watchmen or attendants on private car parks, the applicants charging owners of cars a small fee for their services. There is no provision in the city by-laws for the issue of such a license or permit, and the committee is of the opinion that it would be inadvisable for the council to undertake any responsibility in such a matter. The applicants have been advised accordingly. ; ; ir.v';* Unusual Autograph Collection An unusual type of autograph collection is in the possession of Mrs H. S. Sloman, an Englishwoman who is at present visiting Dunedin. Mrs Sloman, who is the daughter of Admiral Sir Archibald Douglas, accompanied her father when he served on overseas stations, and in the course of her association with the senior service she made the acquaintance of many of its most distinguished officers. She conceived the unusual idea of asking such men to write their autographs upon a table centre, and each of these signatures was then worked in coloured silks. The result is a particularly interesting collection, which would be the envy of any enthusiast. , Included among the names are those of Lord Fisher, Earl Jellicoe. and Lord Charles Beresford, in addition to those of many other of England’s most distinguished sailors. There ds a touch of pathos about several of the autographs, for they are those of ’’ men who later were to give their lives in the service of the Empire. Among these may be mentioned that of Admiral Craddock, whose fleet was annihilated in action with a superior German force off the coast of South America in the early stages of the war.

Maori Generosity Twp fine instances of generosity in the service of the Anglican Maori Mission were cited recently by the Bishop of Aotearoa (the Eight Rev. F. A. Bennett). He said that at a settlement (Wainui) in the Waikato, an elderly Maori woman gave a site for a church and the sum of £l5O. The site was accepted with thanks, and later she returned and added the sum of £l6O to the gift. In another locality in the Far North the Maoris felled kauri ' trees sufficient to build a church and carted it by bullock teams to the sawmill, where it was prepared for use, and the whole building was erected and finished free of debt.

Tramway Traffic Returns The traffic returns for the past fortnightly period as prepared by the tramway manager, indicate a decrease in revenue for the period, as compared with the corresponding period of last year, of £149. The total decrease in revenue since April 1 last is £3404, equal to 3.73 per cent.

First Aerial Ambulance New Zealand’s first aerial ambulance has been bought by the Wellington Aero Club, and will be in operation early next month, replacing the Waco cabin biplane which has been.sold to the Otago Aero Club. The ambulance is the latest production of the Waco Aircraft Company (says a Press Association telegram from Wellington), and when not being used_ as such is a four-seater passenger carrier. A metal stretcher will be carried at the rear of the fuselage when a patient ;s being carried. The stretcher is suspended from the roof above the starboard seats, thus reducing the vibration to a minimum and allowing a doctor, nurse, or attendant to sit alongside. The new machine will be easily the fastest civil aircraft in New Zealand, the top speed being 140 m.p.h. and the cruising speed 125 miles. Stone’* Directory

A fund of useful information is contained in Stone’s 1933 directory for the Wellington, Hawke’s Bay, and Taranaki districts, a copy of which we have received. This is the forty-third issue of this particular directory, and it has been added to and improved in various ways, which make it invaluable to business people as well as a useful volume in the home. The methods of finding names, even where only the pronunciation is known, have been simplified, and, in addition to these lists, there is a wealth of information regarding the membership of clubs, societies, committees, and associations of all kinds, ready reckoners, tables of various descriptions, the movements of the tides, the rising and setting of the sun and the moon, and, in short, practically everything of a general nature that *tho reader might wish to know.

Milking Machine Motors The Electric Power and Lighting Committee will recommend to the City Council on Wednesday night that the existing charge for milking machine motors be amended to meet the altered conditions under which these machines are now operated. Formerly a 2 h.p. motor, and in a few cases even a 3 h.p. motor, was required to operate these plants. The design and efficiency of these plants has, however, been so greatly advanced that motors of 1 hp., or even J h.p., are now quite usual. The present charge is a fixed horse-power rate of £4 per h.p. per year, plus a unit charge, which bears very heavily on those farmers who installed milking machines five or six years ago. Your committee therefore recommends that the charge for milking machine motors be amended to £4 per year for the 1 h.p. and £2 per h.p. per for any in excess of the first h.p. This amounts to a reduction of £2 per year for a 2 h.p. motor and £4 for a 3 h.p. motor. The total loss in revenue to the department will amount to £l6O per annum. White Walking Sticks

Beneficial results arising from the adoption of the scheme of white walking sticks by blind persons are referred to by Mr Clutha Mackenzie, director of the New Zealand Institute for the Blind, writing in the September issue of the Chronicles of the Institute. “ All the automobile associations in New Zealand have agreed to recognise the carrying of white walking sticks as the indication that the user is blind and that due caution is necessary,” states Mr Mackenzie. “ Many blind people using the sticks report that they are receiving very kindly consideration from passing traffic —both motor and pedestrian. The Auckland Automobile Association has made the suggestion that every blind person should carry a white stick.” Qualification for the Navy Regulations governing the admission of cadets to the navy were not so exacting 100 years ago as they are to-day. Mrs H. S. Sloman, the daughter of a former English admiral, tells an amusing story in this connection. A well-known admiral, whom she knew as an old man in her younger days, was speaking to her of the examinations for officers which were then being conducted. As he spoke, the mind of the admiral, who was probably a much firmer believer in practical experience than in theoretical knowledge, wandered back to the days of his own youth. “ All they asked me when I joined the navy,” he trumpeted, wap, “Which end of a cigar do you light?” Fireblight in Nelson Fireblight has made its appearance in Nelson, pear trees in several domestic orchards at Wakapuaka being affected. Mr J. H. Thorp, orchard instructor for the Nelson area, stated that specimen branches of pear trees from a domestic orchard at Wakapuaka, about five miles from the city, which were sent to the Plant Research Station at Palmerston North for examination, were found to be infected by the fireblight organism--erwinia amylovora. A survey of the position is being made by inspectors of the Horticulture Division, who will at the same time instruct owners of fruit trees as to their responsibility for the control and destruction of the infected material.