NEWS OF THE DAY

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26959, 20 December 1948, Page 4

NEWS OF THE DAY

Dog’s Seven-mile Race

An assistant county engineer in North Otago was speaking to a grader driver recently, and before driving off, the driver’s retriever dog jumped into the back of the engineers light truck. His journey was ov.er seven miles of back-country road for the purpose of examining a bridge. On the way up the dog missed its owner, and whimpered continually, and as soon as the truck stopped, leaped out and set off on the return journey. A 10-minute stop sufficed for the bridge examination, but the dog arrived at its destination before the engineer, who drove the truck at about 3fl miles an hour. Penguin’s Promenade A penguin captured at Runanga, two miles from Seven Mile Beach, was released on the Seven Mile Beach by miners on their way to work at the Strongman mine. It was quite fit and apparently had gone for a stroll inland. A penguin was seen once before on the road between Rapahoe and Runanga, having walked a mile from the beach. Supply of Cars

Australian car owners, and would-be owners, are evidently in a better position than their counterparts in New Zealand. According to' Australian trade sources, it will take just over two years at the present delivery rate to satisfy the requirements for cars from Canada and America. Most British makes are in comparatively good supply, while the Australian-built Holden has now come on the market.

Shield Challenge They are at it already with next season’s challenges for Rugby’s “ log of wood,” the Ranfurly Shield. First on the list is Waikato, which advised the Management Committee of the New Zealand Rugby Union last week that it wanted a special challenge match against the holders, Otago, as early in July next as possible. Waikato is to be advised that challenges may not be lodged before January 1, and that theirs should be submitted again. No Recommendation Before grading was introduced, teaching appointments were often influenced by peculiar factors, the acting director of education, Mr A.'F. McMurtrie, told a gathering of teachers at New Plymouth. “I know that in my early days I lost an appointment because the committee learned that 1 had won a boxing championship at university,” he said. “They were not going to have a fighter teaching theit children."

Valuable Stamps One of the biggest stamp “ finds ” of recent years is that of. a Christchurch woman who, in turning out some'old ledgers recently, discovered four complete sheets of the blue “ Laughing Boy ” Health stamp of 1931. and many other early “ Healths.” The value, it is claimed, is something like £IBOO, although their total purchase price at the time of issue was only a few pounds. Lamb Breeding “ That is nothing but a lot of rot,” said Mr S. Crosson at a meeting of the provincial executive of Mid-Can-terbury Federated Farmers, referring to a statement made by the chairman of the New Zealand Meat Producers’ Board, Mr G. H. Grigg, at the MidCanterbury competition for export lamb at Fairfield recently. The statement by Mr Grigg was that the reputation of Canterbury lamb had b§en built up on the light-weight lamb. Light-weight lamb breeding had been encouraged only in the last 30 years, and the reputation of Canterbury lamb had been made before that, said Mr Crosson. Termites Found

State Forest Service inspectors making a routine inspection of hardwood sleepers landed at Lyttelton last week from the steamer James Cook found 21 sleepers infested with termites, out of the total cargo of 48,700 sleepers. The infested sleepers were burned. This is the second time that termites have been discovered in Australian hardwood cargoes landed at Lyttelton. On the previous occasion two infested poles were burned. State Forest Service inspectors examine every item of hardwood as it is landed, and turn it over piece by piece in a routine examinaton. Infestation can be discovered by an external examination. Radio Frequencies “The changing of station frequencies in Australia and New Zealand is only the first step in a plan for the overall improvement of broadcast coverage throughout New Zealand,” said the Director of the National Broadcasting Service, Professor J. Shelley, replying to a letter from the South Canterbury Provincial Executive of Federated Farmers complaining that the reception of certain stations in South Canterbury was poorer in some parts than it was before the changing of frequencies. “The full benefits to be derived from this plan will not be apparent until a number of new stations are brought into operation and the powers of some existing stations ar<* raised during the next 12 to 18 months,” he added

Salary Anomaly It was “ not right and proper ” that the board’s chief officer, surgical specialist to the district, the man responsible for the care of all serious cases of illness, should receive less than general practitioners, said the medical superintendent of the Buller Hospital, Dr D. H. Ryder, when he discussed salary anomalies with members at a meeting of the Buller Hospital Board. The house surgeon at the hospital also should receive at least as much as one of the hospital porters, said Dr Ryder. “New Zealand hospitals are seething with indignation over the difference in the remuneration of their doctors compared with others practising in the Dominion," said Mr W. H. Mclntyre. He added that it was “ridiculous” to see the medical superintendent of the Wellington Hospital in charge of institutions in many outlying districts, getting only £IBSO a year, compared with £2OOO for a house surgeon in a private practice.