Notes and Queries

Otago Witness, Issue 3768, 1 June 1926, Page 48

Notes and Queries

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Anxiety,” Nightcaps, wishes to know the address of Messrs Thornton, Butterworth (Limited). Publishers; 15 Bedford street, Strand, London, W.C.2. p. A. Me., Clinton, wishes to know the date cn which the immigrant ship Christian M‘Causlin arrived at Port Chalmers on Lor second voyago (Captain Brown in command).——June 23, 1871. " Anxious,” Arapunl, wishes to know if Port Jackson is the finest harbour in the world. Port Jackson is a good harbour, but opinions differ materially as to which is ” the finest harbour in the world.” «* Work,” Oamaru, wishes to know what firms will purchase (1? marquetrie work, (2) crochet work. After making inquiries wa cannot find any purchasers i'or either class of work. MaV-S,” Oamaru, wishes to know if there is a friendship or correspondents’ club in •3*-. istchurch, and address of same. We snail be t,lad if one of our readers can supply the address. C. B. V., Ifyde, wishes to know the names of the doctors who are in charge of the Colonial Hospital, Suva. The latest information we have is that the Hon. A. A. Montague, fci.B., was chief medical officer in 1924. •* Springhills,” writes: “Would you tell me which committee (hall'or school) is responsible for the cleaning up of the hall, including ante-rooms, after a school concert, the school ?ommittee having rented the hall for the night? ” There is no regulation on the question. 1* is a matter of arrangement between the parties concerned. North Otago,” Omarama, has some Australian gum seeds, and would like to know (1) the best time to plant them ; (2) will they transplant readily? “Agricola” replies: “ (1) It i 3 somewhat late now to sow the seeds unless you can provide suitable cohditions of warmth and shelter, and 1 suggest waiting until next spring. '(2) Yes.” “Globe,” Green Island.—With reference to your query in the Witness of May 4 as to *here ii was possible to obtain parts for a Globe separator, “ A Subscriber to the Witness ” sends the following information :—“ In your reply to ‘ Globe’s ’ . inqu'ry you said that there were no agent 3 for Globe separators in Dunedin. • 1 have a Globe, and Messrs A. and T. Burt stock all parts.” .“Lino,” Gore, writes: “My cork linoleum .is badly marked by plaster and lime marks caused during plastering operations. These marks resist all washing and scrubbing, and to remove them by .friction, such as sandpaper, would injure the surface of the material. I shall be obliged if you can suggest some solvent that would dissolve or soften the lime without injuring the inoleum.” It is possible that diluted hydrochloric acid would answer your purpose. “Housekeeper,” Otiake, wants to know (1) the best method for cleaning the inside of an aluminium teapot; (2) a recipe : for the making of cream horns. (1) It is difficult to clean aluminium, as all the well-known acids and alkalis attack it and destroy its surface. Common salt, however, is quite safe to use, and if you . were to rinse the teapot in a strong solution of salt and water the stains might partially disappear. Polishes for aluminium which remove tarnish by means of friction and yet do not hurt the metal are steel wool, calcium carbonate, and “Bon Ami.” (2) Can any reader oblige? !*ltawaipendi,’ Owaka, asks: (1) How long does it take to go to India? (2) Which is the best route, and from what port .must one embark? (3) What are the fares second class single and for children under 14? (1) Eighteen days from Sydney. (2) Lyttelton to Sydney, 'then Sydney to Colombo. (3) About £44 second class saloon, single, to Calcutta. Over 12 years full fare, under 12 halffare. S.S. Sussex leaves New Zealand, taking limited number of passengers for Calcutta, about every three or four months. Saloon fare £SO. .“Reader,” Oamaru, writes: “(1) Where could I procure an engineer’s cap such as marine engineers wear, or one similar to those the railway engine-drivers wear, and what would be the price of same? (2) I have several young apricot trees, which have grown from stones planted three years ago. I would like - to know the method of transplanting them out to bear fruit?” (1) Any capmaker would, if supplied with pattern and furnishings or trimmings required, give you a quotation, (2) Transplant after pruning superfluous top-growth and tap-root and also straggling rootlets to position desired. The holes must be of ample size. If the soil is at all impoverished, some stable manure should be applied, but not in contact with the roots. The trees are easily moved, but should have plenty of room to develop. If placed In their permanent position a space of from 10ft to 15ft apart is desirable. •* Miniature,” Tirharu, writes : “ Can you give me any information about a miniature by P. 11. Wouvermans? I have one in my possession—a very fine hunting scene. It is beautifully coloured, and is on ivory, with an ivory frame, making a pretty picture, 9in by 7in. Can you give any idea as to its value? " Its value will depend upon the market in which it is sold. Philip Wouverman, or P. J. Wouverman (1619-1668), was one of the greatest artists of Holland. His reputalion was unique, and his paintings of hunting scenes unsurpassed. His pictures invariably have a white horse somewhere in the scene. A collector in quest of Wouverman’s paintings would probably pay a big price for a genuine work, but the value of a painting is difficult to estimate in advance of its ascertained market value. Temuka.—With reference to your query in the Witness of May 18 as how to keep apples out of doors, “A Subscriber to the Witness,” Walkaka Valley, sends the following informations “I keep my apples as follows, and often have apples in November: Make a wire netting hammock In a cool, dark, shady place out in the open air. Cover tho netting with thin sacking to stop apples going through, and make a bag .fly (Just like a tent fly) above, so as to keep severe frost out, but not enough to stop moisture from getting through. I have mine in the orchard, hung between two large apple trees, and have no difficulty In keeping fruit. It does not shrivel up at all. In very windy weather the fruit should be covered with wet bags to prevent drying. The fly

wants to be up from the fruit from 6in to Ift.”

Wine,” Oamaru, wishes to know how to preserve the pure juice of grapes. The juice of the grape can be kept without fermentation, and is sometimes called unfermented wine. There are many ways of doing this, but the following is one of the simplest and most effective: —Squeeze the juice out of the fruit, from which all but the thoroughly ripe has been taken. Do the squeezing with the hands, if possible. Put in a wooden tub, and allow it to stand over-night In a cool place. Then carefully skim off all the floating skins, etc., and pour off the sediment. Carefully strain through muSlin, and then put in a clean boiler, and boil for an hour or two. Again skim very carefully, and strain, after which allow it to settle, and pour carefully off into glass bottles. Fill these to about the top of the shoulder if the necks are long, and stand them uncorked in a boiler, which you fill with water to about the level of the juice. Then bring the water slowly to a boil, and tightly cork the bottles while hot. The liquor thus prepared will keep for a long time, and is a very palatable beverage, either alone or mixed with water to suit the taste. Of course, it is best kept in a cool place.

Sheepskins,” Woodlands, asks for the correct method of curing a sheepskin to be made into a mat. To prepare sheepskins for mats make a strong lather with hot water, and let it stand till cold; wash the fresh skin in it, carefully squeezing out all the dirt from the wool; wash it in cold water till all the soap is taken out. Dissolve lib each salt and alum in 2gal hot water, and put the skin into a tub sufficient to cover it; let it soak for 12 hours, and hang it over a pole to drain. When well drained, stretch it carefully on a board to dry, and stretch ft several times while drying. Before it is quite dry sprinkle on the flesh side loz each of finely pulverised alum and saltpetre, rubbing it in well. Should the wool not be firm on the skin, let it remain a day or two, then rub again with alum; fold the flesh sides together and hang in the shade for two or three days, turning them over each day till quite dry. Scrape the flesh side with a blunt knife, and rub it well with rottenstone. Analine dyes act very well, but we give a few recipes in which the method of dyeing is slightly different to that usually adopted. To dye blue, steep the skins for a day in urine and indigo, and then boil with alum. For a purple colour wet the skins with a solution of roche alum in warm water, and when dry again dub them by means of the hand, with a decoction of logwood in cold water. A dark green colour is produced by steeping steel filings and sal ammoniac in urine till soft, and then smearing the skins with the composition, afterwards drying in the shade. A yellow colour, aloes and linseed oil, dissolved and strained. To give a sky colour steep some indigo in boiling water, and smear the liquor over the skins next morning, after the former has been warmed. (See also reply in this column to “ Reader,” Edendale.)

•Reader,” Edendale, asks for a recipe for curing rabbit or opossum skins. Writing early in the year in regard to tanning skins, Mr Richard Norman supplied the following:—“No matter what tanning or curing process is used, the skin must be either green (just off the animal) or, if it is dried, it must be well soaked in water before the curing process begins. If put through any process in the dried state the skin never gives satisfaction— lf useless, in fact. My nephew, Mr W. Robert Norman, of Pembroke, gave me full particulars of how he successfully tanned a large number of opossumskins and 200 ratskins. While he was away on a working holiday at Nelson, he embarked on opossurh trapping. Part of the camp equipment was a big tub full of the tanning liquid. Tho latter was made by chopping up native birch green bark into Jin lengths, and boiling it for about half an hour, till the resultant liquid was a very dark brown, and this was poured into- the tanning tub. The skins were put in soak in this tub, and generally took a fortnight to tan. The fat and gristle must be first taken off them. From time to time it was necessary to tear off a tiny piece of skin to see if the tanning liquid had gone through. When the liquid became weak it was necessary to prepare a fresh lot. When the tanning was completed the skins were washed well in clean water and dried slowly, and then worked well to make them soft and pliable, and they then had a soft and velvety feel. He also tanned a young goatskin on these lines with equal success. If anyone interested in tanning will call on him at Wanaka he will be very pleased to exhibit a fine opossum-skin rug, the skins forming which are various shades of very dark brown ; and also a tanned ratskin and goatskin, and the latter is pliable enough to make clothing. It would now be quite easy to get birch bark from any of the sawmills forwarded to any part of Otago, and a rabbitskin bedrug prepared on these lines would be very valuable, saving the purchase of an expensive pair of blankets. I have heard that boiled dock roots give a reliable tanning liquid, and perhaps Bomeone might give it a trial. The bark of Australian black wattle trees abounds largely in tanning material, but we never see any of these now.”

LAW QUERIES,

[Answered by • solicitor of the flnprma (tort •f New Zealand. Letter* and TsUtreme most he addressed ta "LEX,” a/a Editor. Ola* WHm* Dol tdin.]

'Not to be Beat.”-—Your only remedy is to keep your cow off the road-line.

‘Subscriber.”—The question of wages or compensation is a matter of arrangement between A and B before the work of digging tha channel is undertaken.

‘J. M.” asks: “If an old age pensioner leaves New Zealand to reside at Home, doe*, his pension cease?” Yea, the pension is only payable while the pensioner is in New Zealand. ‘Colin,”—(l) You cannot comnel the town board to repair the drain. You can, however y serve notice under Sub-aection 2 of Section 28 of “The Land Drainage Act, 1908.” (2) You cannot fill in the drain. (8) and (4) You can serve notice under the Land Drainage Act calling upon your neighbours to join in repairing the drain. ‘Perplexed.”—Your oontract should have prescribed a time limit. In your own interest you should retain 25 per cent, of the contract price until thirty-one days after

the job is completed. You should serve a written notice on the carpenter etating that if the job is not completed within a prescribed time, you will employ other meane t 6 complete the work.

'H. F. M.” asks: “(1) Is a farmer required to furnish an income tax return to the Commissioner? (2) If a person is left money by his father’s will, is he charged succession duty by the New Zealand Government; if eo, what is the charge?” No, if he ia farming freehold lands and has no other assessable income. If he is farming leasehold lands, a return must be made (2) If the value of the succe«sion does not exceed £IOOO, no duty; if the value of the succession exceeds £IOOO, up to £SOOO, 1 per cent.; £SOOO to £IO,OOO, 2 per cent.; £IO,OOO to £15,000, 3 per cent. ‘Anxious” asks “(1) Can a man ehoot a dog on his property if it ie not worrying sheep, cattle, or any other animal? (2) Can another man, not a servant to owner of property, shoot a dog found trespassing on another man’s property, but not worrying sheep? (3) Can owner of property shoot a man’s dog accompanying him on the owner s property if notices are up on the property to say that dogs will be destroyed?” (1), (2), and (3) No, not unless the dog is unregistered or is running at large amongst sheep or cattle. ‘lgnoramus” asks: "(l) Can a company legally charge 8 per cent, interest on arrears of calls on shares (2) A has a mortgage on a farm owned by B. In the event of an insured building on the farm being burned, who is entitled to uplift the insurance moneys? (3) Can a power board seize stock or other movable property owned by a ratepayer in payment of rates if the ratepayer does not pay under a judgment summons?” (1) Yes, if the articles of association of the company so provide. (2) If the insurance policy is in the name of the mortgagee, A uplifts the money. (3) Yes, if a distress warrant is issued and there is no registered bill of sale over the stock and other property.