New Ferry Steamer Rangatira

Otago Witness, Issue 4048, 13 October 1931, Page 3

New Ferry Steamer Rangatira

According to a wireless message received by the Union Steam Ship Company from the captain of the new turbo-electric ferry steamer Rangatira, the vessel will arrive at Port Chalmers about October 17 from Greenock. The Rangatira will dock at Port Chalmers, and will sail on November 2 for Lyttelton to take up her running m the Cook Strait service, in place of the Maori.

Navel Oranges The heavy supplies of Australian navel oranges which have been reaching the local market for the past month or two will cease shortly, as the season is now drawing to a close. The Dunedin market has this season absorbed an enormous quantity of oranges from Australia—more than twice the quantity in any previous year. The fruit has generally come to hand in such excellent condition and has been of such fine quality that the demand has been sustained throughout, and the wholesalers have had little difficulty in clearing the stocks as they have come to hand. The consumption of oranges has, however, affected the demand for locallygrown apples, and to that extent the position may be regarded as a somewhat unfortunate one. It is interesting to note (hat Australian shippers benefit to the extent of about 3s in the pound on the rate of exchange, and that this amount just about pays the freight of the oranges from Melbourne to New Zealand.

Astronomical Gift Offered A spectrohclioscope has been offered to the Dominion Observatory by Dr G. E. Hale, an American astronomer, who has helped to perfect the instrument. There is a stipulation attached to the offer, so Dr C. E. Adams told the annual meeting of the astronomical section of the Wellington Philosophical Society, to the effect that, if it is accepted, a regular observational programme shall be carried out with it. This, Dr Adams explained, would entail a fair amount of work, but unfortunately at present there was no one who could be spared to do this work. He hoped, however, that some-- means would be devised to get over the difficulty and allow the generous offer to be accepted, lire instrument would permit the visual observation and analysis of the sun’s prominences and of the flocculi on its disc. “It would be a valuable addition to our equipment,” added Dr Adams, “ particularly out here, because generally if anything of interest happens on the sun wc know nothing about it until it is all over. With this instrument here, we would be able to see and know for ourselves what is happening.” Taxation of Motorists

The diversion by the Government of funds raised for highway construction, as proposed in the Budget, was discussed by the South Island Motor Union’s Executive Committee in Christchurch on Thursday evening. The Government’s proposals, which provide for the diversion of the estimated surplus on the operations of the Main Highways Board of £240,000 and the imposition of a further 2d per gallon on petrol, were dealt with in committee, the following statement being issued:—“That this .executive regrets the necessity of the proposals for diverting an estimated surplus of £210,000 from the Highways Construction Fund towards assisting county councils and thus relieving somewhat the demands on the farming community. This executive trusts that this allocation will not retard the progress of works on main highways which have already been approved for immediate execution, and that the diversion will not be treated as a precedent. This executive also regrets the necessity for the proposals for a further class tax on motorists of 2d per gallon on petrol to aid the Consolidated Fund, but, in the circumstances, urges all its members to accept the extra burdens with the best grace possible as helping the country in meeting is obligations.”

Flock House Scheme The Dunedin Returned Soldiers’ Association forwarded to headquarters some time ago a proposal that the Flock House scheme, which was originally organised for the purpose of training for farming pursuits the sons of deceased sailors, should be extended to include the sons of deceased soldiers. The scheme was originated about seven years ago by the New Zealand Sheep Owners’ Federation as an acknowledgment of the excellent work done by the British Navy and the merchant marine during the war and as a tribute to those in the services who gave their lives. The fund has approximately £130,000 at present, and. as there are not many sailors’ descendants to take advantage of the scheme, it is considered that its operation should be extended. It is understood that certain legal and financial difficulties stand in the way of an immediate reorganisation, and these matters are now, having the attention of the executive of the New Zealand Returned Soldiers’ Association.

A Dilatory Schoolboy A trophy won by Taranaki has been presented to Manawatu, all because a Christchurch schoolboy (says a Press Association telegram from New Plymouth) was dilatory in delivering a letter. The trophy is the Wigram Shield presented to the centre of the Royal Life Saving Society with the greatest proportionate number of successes in life saving work among the schools. The delayed letter contained the Taranaki returns. The controlling authorities, believing that Taranaki was displaying no interest, declared the competition closed and awarded the shield to the leading centre. The Mana-watu-council of the society is now in a quandary.

Tramway Returns The tramway manager’s statement of the traffic returns for the fortnight ended October 7, as compared with the returns for the corresponding period of last year, shows that the decrease in revenue for the period was £661. The net total decrease for trams and buses from April 1 to October 3 was £5940, or 6.65 per cent.

Motor Ship Taranaki 1 lie presence of the Shaw, Savill, and Albion Company's motor ship Taranaki at Dunedin draws attention to the fact that there were two other ships that bore the same name. The first steamer Taranaki of 443 tons was built at Black wood and Gordon’s yards for the New Zealand Steam Navigation Company in 1866 Two years later she struck a rock in the. boat harbour in Queen Charlotte Sound. The vessel had a large passenger list, but all were rescued by two other ships. The Taranaki remained under water for a year and the work of raising her was begun in August, 1869. Six boats and 90 men were engaged in the work, which proved exciting and full of anxiety. After delays and accidents the vessel was raised four feet and driven ahead 60ft on the first day. After that she came up at the rate of three feet a day. When finally raised she was towed across Cook Strait to Wellington on October 1, 1869. The Taranaki was taken over by the Intercolonial Royal Mail Line and was run in the New Zealand coastal service until she was lost at Tauranga The Shaw, Savill, and Albion Company previously owned the clipper Taranaki, one of Duncan's beautiful ships She was described as a real clipper and made no fewer than 34 successful voyages to New Zealand. Launched in 1877 she was one of the last sailing ships built for the Shaw, Savill and Albion Company. Her tonnage was 1126 and her length 228 feet. The motor ship Taranaki has a net tonnage of 8286. The old clipper was sold to Italian owners in 1900 for £2900, and in 1914 was still afloat. She made some remarkable runs to New Zealand and back, one of the best being under Captain Wright, in 1879, when she made the voyage from Glasgow to Port Chalmers in 75 days.

M The Railway Foe ” Following an attempt last week to wreck a train near Mount Eden Station, the editor of the Auckland Star received a letter in print handwriting purporting to be from the man responsible, •who signs himself “ Old Black Joe, the railway foe.” The writer describee how he obstructed the line and telephoned the police, and asserts that with a num ber of others he looked on while the obstruction was being inspected by the police. Further, he alleges, that he was responsible for three previous attempts to stop trains. Only he; himself, is concerned, and he regrets he cannot sign his name. “ as there may be more sensations yet.” The letter was handed to the police. The Town Belt

During a discussion at the meeting of the executive of the Dunedin City Ratepayers’ Association lest night on the fencing in of the Asylum ground, Mr T. payers’ Association last week on the Town Belt during the past few years had been enormous. He stated that the fencing in of portions of . the belt for croquet greens and the erection of buildings was illegal, and a citizen, if he took action in the Supreme Court, could secure the removal of them. Some years ago when the City Council had allowed a fever hospital to be erected on the belt at Belleknowes, the late Mr W. H. Reynolds had taken legal action to have it removed, and as a result the building had been pulled down. It was not generally known that the Town Belt belonged to the people of Otago, and not to the people of Dunedin. Free Entertainment

He exuded cheerfulness the moment he boarded the tram (says the Auckland Star). He produced from a capacious handbag a white rat, a black rabbit and a grey one. Three timid creatures were deposited on a seat, and then the amateur trainer of pets began to put the trio through a Saturday matinee performance. Held in the air with one hand, the rabbits performed their tricks unconcernedly, and then settled down comfortably when placed upon the shoulders of astonished passengers. Women and children came through from the further compartment of the car, and one youngster played happily with the very meek white rat. Back on the seat again, the pets, under their master’s instruction, huddled up together for a brief doze, quite oblivious to the attentions of the email boys crowding round them. On reaching Queen street, rat and rabbits went back again to the bag, with which the owner departed proudly. ‘ He did not take up a collection.

Increase in Pensioners Auckland has a growing army of pensioners, and it is stated that the payments in that district are now a quarter of the total of the whole Dominion. Last month £17,500 was paid out from the mam pen sions office to 3860 persons This included £9300 for war pensions, £6OOO for old-age pensions, £l2OO for widows, and a small amount paid in family allowances. The figures were similar to those for August. In the last annual report of the Pensions Department it was shown that there had been a large increase in the number of pensioners in New Zealand, and the fact that men of 65 years and over are not employed on relief works has compelled them, in numerous instances, to apply fo" pensions. Rates in Cities

Figures which were quoted by a Christchurch newspaper recently for the purpose of comparing the amount collected in rates per £lOOO of rateable capital value in the four principal cities of the Dominion were described a« quite fallacious by the town clerk (Mr G. A. Lewin), to whom they were referred by our representative last week. The amounts collected on this basis during 1930 were given as follow:—Auckland £l2 Ils, Wellington £9 18s sd, Christchurch £9 5s sd. Dunedin £l2 18s 6d. In arriving at these figures, said Mr Lewin, use had been made of the Government valuations, and it was this fact which made the compari son so unreliable. In Wellington and Christchurch the rates were levied on the unimproved system, and in both cities care was taken that the Government valuations were kept up to date, the City Councils contributing portion of the cost. Whereas in the compilation of the figures quoted by the Christchurch newspaper the valuations used with respect to Wellington and Christchurch were those made in 1929, the greater part of Auckland had not been valued since 1922, and the valuation used in the case of Dunedin had been made as far back as 1920 When it was pointed out that the valuation of Dunedin at that time had been £5,500,000 and would probably now be £7,500,000 or £8,000,000, it would be seen how misleading was a comparison of the kind that had been instituted. In the same article the rates per head of the estimated population in Christchurch were also given and were shown as follow: — 1925, £3 4s lOd; 1927, £3 12s sd; 1929 £3 13s Id; 1931, £3 14s lOd. In compiling these figures allowance had been made for an increase in population from 83,247 in 1925 to 89,400 in 1931. Mr Lewin stated that rating per head of population in Dunedin had been as follows: —1925, £2 19s 4d; 1927, £3 9s Id--1929, £4 0s lOd, 1931, £4 7s 9d. It would be seen that in 1925 and 1927 the rates had been lower in Dunedin than in Christchurch. Moreover, in arriving at the Dunedin figures no allowance had been made for increased population, which had been regarded as 68.000 in each case.

The Dominion’s Obligations The following telegram has been sent by the Dunedin Stock Exchange to the Minister of Finance (Mr W. Downie Stewart): —“The Dunedin Stock Exchange wishes to express its appreciation of your decision not to interfere with or reduce interest rates on Government loans. We are glad to know you recognise how necessary and important it is to keep the reputation of the country for honourable dealings paramount. We are confident that citizens of the Dominion would suffer temporary increased taxation sooner than agree to any compulsory reduction of the Government’s interest contracts.— (Signed) Harman Reeves, chairman.” Kinerna on Christmas Day

An application to screen a moving picture at Te Aroha on Christmas Day was made by Mr T. H. Billing at a meeting of the Te Aroha Borough Council last week. Mr Hobson said the significance of the day was often overlooked. While not averse to the picture being screened he was of the opinion that Mr Billing should be asked to contribute a portion of the proceeds to some deserving cause. Mr Kennedy said the council should either grant permission or refuse it. The Mayor, Mr R. Coulter said that in previous years leave had been refused owing to the pictures then sub mitted being unsuitable. After much discussion a motion was carried that leav** be granted to screen the picture, Mr Billing to make a donation or not at his own discretion.

Child Lost in Bush As the result of the disappearance from her home on Monday of last week of the three-and-a-half-year-old daughter of Mr and Mrs Richard Thomas, of Waihoka, a small country centre eight miles from Tuatapere, considerable anxiety was caused to the parents,, and a large number of district residents spent the night searching for the missing child. At 5 o’clock on Tuesday morning (says the Southland Tunes) the child was fortunately found by the searchers, apparently tittle the worse for her unenviable experience. When the little girl, who had wandered sway from the house unobserved on Monday afternoon, failed to return, her parents became alarmed and search parties were formed, the neighbours willingly offering their services. Constable M'Cullough. of Tua tapere, and Constable Cooper, of Orepuki conducted searching operations which extended throughout the night. The little girl’s name was called many times, but without response until on Tuesday morning she was found wandering about in a clearing in the bush Her eyes were swollen with crying, but otherwise she showed no harmful effects of her night in the open. Although there had been a frost during the night the fact that the child was warmly clothed and that the bush itself provided a certain amount of shelter saved her from discomfort in this respect. The Property Market The opinion that the effects of the slump were just beginning to be seriously felt on the property market in Dunedin was expressed by a land agent last week. His view, he added, was shared by a prominent conveyancer. There were a few buyers coming into the market in the hope of securing property at ridiculous prices, but they were being disappointed. The passing of the Mortgagor s Relief Act had been primarily responsible for keeping the prices of property at a reasonable figure. He was convinced that had the Act not been passed values would have slumped very heavily. The Kawsrau River It was stated during the hearing of a civil action on Tuesday that the report of civil action yesterday that the report of Professor Hornell on means of obtaining gold from the Kawarau River may be released in the near future. The report, it was added, was now in the possession of a bank, which would release it upon the payment of £l5OO by the new company formed by the amalgamation of the claimholders’ interests. The Northern Light Mr C. W. Sundstrum has received a letter from M Balokovic, owner of the pleasure yacht Northern Light, in which the writer states: “Our Tasman crossing to Sydney was quite free from bad weather.”

A Narrow Escape Billy Murphy, the only New Zealand boxer who ever won a world’s championship title, had a very lucky escape from certain death on Saturday morning (says the Auckland Star). He was walking down Queen’s wharf when a packing case about sff ’square fell from the crane unloading it from the liner Rangitiki and crashed on to the wharf on the spot over which life had passed barely 10 seconds before. The case was smashed, and its contents were unrecognisable, as the crockery they had once been. Pieces of wood and china were thrown in all directions, but those standing near were not hurt.

Special Prayers Prayers specially prepared for use by the Archbishop of New Zealand in the present crisis and for the Peace Conference in Geneva next February are published in the Church News by Bishop West-Watson. “ I hope they may be widely used,” states the bishop in his monthly letter. “We want to prepare the way byprayer and faith and to keep the matter constantly before our minds,” he adds. “The burden of armaments is again crushing the nations as it did before 1914. Feat is the inspiring motive of this terrible competition—fear of other nations and fear of trusting disputed rights to arbi tration. In ordinary cases petitions at church doors are to~be deprecated, but in this case I think that we might well try to give all our people the chance bf signing the great petition which is at present before us.”

Daylight Saving Extension In acknowledging receipt of a copy of the letter which the Otago Cricket Association sent to the Prime Minister (Mr G. W. Forbes) urging that the daylight saving period should be extended beyond Easter, Sir Thomas Sidey has informed the association that he will be pleased to support its request. — Sir’ Thomas’s letter, which was read at a meeting of the committee of the association last week, states : “ The desire for the extension of summer time to include Easter will be specially strong when it is realised that Easter falls in March, and that summer-time ends on the Sunday preceding Good Friday. It only requires an extension of a fortnight to carry it over the Easter holidays. While daylight saving remains at the half-hour I am sure it could without inconvenience commence a month earlier and end a month later. That period would not, however, be so suitable for the hour. I may inform you that the Summer Time Committee in Wellington has asked that Cabinet should consider making the present period of summer-time one hour’ for this year owing to the economic conditions. lam not, however, sanguine of Cabinet agreeing to that. The request of your association is much more likely to receive favourable consideration.”

Amy Bock. Memories of New Zealand’s greatest masquerade were revived by the appearance of Amy- Maud Christofferson, formerly known as Amy Boek, in the court at Hamilton on Wednesday last on charges of false pretences. The accused, who is now an old woman of 72, had, with plausable stories, induced four women to advance her sums of money aggregating £l6 10s. She pleaded guilty, and was committed to the Supreme Court for sentence.

Ten Thousand Pilots The Royal Aero Club has issued its 10,000 th aviator’s certificate. This is an interesting landmark in flying history. The certificate is the only recognised proof of proficiency the private flyer in Britain may gain, and he must possess it before the Air Ministry will grant the A license, without which he may not pilot an aeroplane outside the immediate vicinity ot an aerodrome. It is now more than 21 years since certificate number one was granted. The applicant was Mr J. T. C. Moore-Brabazon, still one of the leading figures in British aviation. It was followed b.y certificates to George Coekburn Cody, Cecil Grace, Graham-White, and other famous pre-war flyers. Now that the 10,000 th has come, on a day when women pilots vie with the men, it is appropriate that it should have gone to a woman, Miss Isabel Craig Watson, of Wishaw, Scotland. Picton’s Misfortune

Though bad weather has brought misfortunes upon Dunedin, these visitations cannot be said to have hampered the progress of the city to any serious extent, but it is claimed that Pieton has fared differently, in that Nature has been most unkind on two occasions which were of vita] importance to the town’s growth and prosperity. As far back as 1862 when, as the result of an agitation for the removal of the seat of Government from Auckland, a commission was appointed to select a central town with a good port as the capital of the colony, the claims of Picton were very strongly advocated. The day which the commissioners chose for their visit to Picton, however, could scarcely have been less favourable, for the combined effect of a blustering south-westerly gale and a heavy downpour left them in such miserable spirits that the contrast when they arrived in Wellington to find the hills bathed in sunshine was claimed to be sufficient to entice them ultimately to decide in favour of the North Island town. The second occasion on which, it is claimed, the weather was unkind to Picton occurred more recently. When the members of the Railways Board left Wellington on the Tamahine to inspect the South Island Main Trunk railway they encountered conditions probably even worse than those experienced by the commissioners of 1862. So'rough was the passage, according to an account given to our representative, that the vessel had to sail almost due south and seek the lee of Cape Farewell before she should turn in safety and make for her destination. The unpleasant experiences of the members of the board were said to be sufficient to prejudice them permanently against the crossing, and Picton therefore claims once more that the weather has treated it badly.

Wetherstones Daffodils So that flower-lovers may have the opportunity of viewing the daffodil field on Mr A. Hart’s property at Wetherstones, the Railways Department will run an excursion train to Lawrence on Sunday, October 18, when it is expected that the blooms will be at their best. Since its inception, this excursion has become one of the most popular outings of the year, and as the Wetherstones daffodils promise to be exceptionally well grown this season, the fields, comprising nearly 40 acres of hillside thickly carpeted with golden blooms, should present a magnificent sight.

The Safest Matchbox , A correspondent writes to the Auckland Star as follows:—“Many methods of making a fire, or, at least, of preserving the means of ignition, have been suggested by correspondents since the Ruapehu tragedy, and I-am rather surprised that one of the most effective has not been mentioned. For many years, when working in the bush, I carried a tiny bottle containing a few wax matches, and packed with cotton woo]. Of course, I made sure that the cork fitted tightly. The little contrivance took up hardly any room in the pocket, and was waterproof to the extent of swimming a river. Also, the wadding helped as a means of starting the fire under small wooden chips.”

“ A Canterbury Asset ” Objection to interference with what he s described as a Canterbury asset was ex-' pressed by Mr F W. Johnston at the meeting of the executive of the Canterbury Progress League on Wednesday night, when a scheme for the drying-up of Lake Ellesmere was under consideration. Mr Johnston said he had no axe to grind as far as the sportsmen were concerned, but, looking at the matter purely from the community point of view, he thought it would be a thousand pities to dram the whole area of Lake Ellesmere and use the land for farming purposes. He considered that the whole question should be gravely considered before any attempt was made to tinker with the lake. Similar opinions were expressed by several other members who were concerned with the threatened interference with the rights of duck shooters. Publicity Methods

The opinion that improved publicity methods were essential if New Zealand and Australia were to capture overseas markets was expressed by Mr 11. 0. Davies, of Perth, who passed through Auckland by the Niagara after investigating markets in America and Europe. “ We have a lot to learn from the American publicity experts,” said Mr Davies. “They are a long way ahead of us in the methods they use. One could quote the case of fruit. I have opened American fruit in England and on the Continent, and found that not only did each fruit bear an individual wrapper, but that the wrappers were attractively printed with recipes showing various ways of using the contents. All the wrappers in the same case did not necessarily bear the same recipes. While I was in the United States Californian raisin-growing interests launched an unusual publicity campaign. A number of university students whose practice it is to work during the holidays were paid to learn how to make raisin bread. When proficient, they were sent out on the road. They called from house to house and, free of charge, taught the housewives how to make raisin bread. The result was that bread so made became a craze and the sale of raisins went up by leaps and bounds.”

Unemployment Expenditure The town clerk (Mr G. A. Lewin) stated on Thursday, in answer to a question by our representative, that the City Council had paid out in wages, on behalf of the Unemployment Board, under the No. 5 scheme, for the six months ended September, a total of £48,308. In addition to this amount, the council had itself expended £11.761, tin's being the sum required for supervision, material, plant, tools, cartage, etc. Mr Lewin added that the City Council had budgeted for a total of £25,000 to £26,000 for the year, to cover its liability under the No. 5 scheme, so that it would be seen that the council was so far within its estimated expenditure. Women in Industry

In order to ascertain the number of women and girls employed in Auckland manufacturing industries, the Auckland Manufacturers’ Association sent out circulars to the various firms concerned. Fifty replies were received at the meeting of the association last week (says the Star), and it was found that in 1930 the average number of females engaged in manufactures was 2073. This year the total is 1941, showing a decline of less than 7 per cent.

The School Journal An allegation of historical inaccuracy is made against the New Zealand School Journal in the latest issue of the Roman Catholic journal, The Month. The complaint refers to several items in the School Journal, one of which is to tho effect that many of the early scientists were tortured or put to death because they dared to voice their opinions, which were in opposition to the ideas of the Church. The Month describes some of the statements as “ a re-hash of hoary myths,” and adds: “The Roman Catholics of this Dominion have passed by with silent contempt a lot of the School Journal’s faulty English, and its occasional bad taste; but, on this occasion, the interests of truth and of ordinary fair dealing, and a sense of duty to the cause of education generally, compel them to demand that they—and the plastic minds of the children of all State and private registered primary schools—be not further insulted by ill-informed nonsense and. falsehood of the kind provided in the number of the School Journal under notice.”