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Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LI, Issue 16921, 30 December 1925, Page 6

The New Zealand rainfall returns of November indicate that the greatest amount, recorded in the North Island occurred at Upper Mangorci, where 10.C2 inches fell on 19 days. At Gisborne 1.74 inches were recorded on eight days.

The fire brigade received a call this morning to an outbreak among .some old limber at the Borough Council's powerhouse in Carnarvon ! :street. The timber leid been slacked near the smoke-stack, and adjacent to the coal dump. By the time the brigade arrived the fire had a good hold, but it was suppressed before any serious damage had occurred. A new development in the motor ser-. vice system between Gisborne/ and. Wellington was mentioned by a local residen who returned yesterday from the Manawatu district. A service car meets tba Wellington train at Palmerston North at 7.30 a.m. daily, and arrives in Napior in time to connect with the afternoon cars for Wairoa and Gisborne. The new link represents a further saving of tima to those travelling between Wellington and Gisborne.

The fact that there was an increase of 1250 in the number of telegrams received and despatched during the four days preceding Christmas gives some indication of the extra work devolving on the Post Office staff. On, Christmas Eve the position was made more difficult by reason of a break in the line during the morning, and this fact, coupled with tho unusually! heavy traffic, necessitated the staff working 'right through the night, a largo number of telegrams beinjj delivered on Christmas morning, Mr A. Khelton, superintendent of mails at the Wellington Chief Post Office, has been promoted to relieving officer for the General Post Office. Mr Shelton started in the Christchurch office, where he remained for many years, and then went to Auckland. He was next appointed supervisor of the postal branch at Napier. Then for three years he was an inspector in the General Post Office. He mado two trips to San Francisco, inaugurating the mail agent service, and then took over bis present duties.

At'least one resident of Takapuna may be excused if his thoughts at the Christmas dinner table were not as ; merry as becomes the season. He was presented with two very fine live geese by a friend in the country, i One lie generously gave away to a friend, but the other was to have been the centre of interest at the greatest feast of the year. But the gods willed otherwise, and when the family arose on Thursdaymorning the goose was absent. It could not possibly have escaped, so that it probably held the place of 'honor at a gathering in some other home. A particularly heavy letter and parcel, mail arrived in Gisborne yesterday by the Mabana. from Napier, the shipment comprising 121 bags, and 154 hampers from all parts of the world. Furthei mails arrived from Auckland i>y the Wainui last night, and if these two consignments are included with those which arrived last week the mails dealt with during the Christmas period arei the largest for many years. It was fortunate that the heavy mails of this week' and last week both arrived two clear days before) the holidays, thus giving the postal staff ample time to effect deliveries. Last year the heaviest mail arrived on Christmas Eve, and the ensuing congestion was a beavy tax on the Post Officei staff.

The executive of the Trent ham scholarship fund has now made its awards for the year 1926. The amount available annually from the original fund, covering principal and interest over a period of' 20 years, is £2840. This has been supplemented by a grant of £ICCO a year for a period of ten years from the Canteen and Regimental Trust Fund Board, bringing the total amount available up to £3340. After- careful scrutiny it was decided to exceed the amount available by £IBO, making the (otal amount awarded £4020. This represents 121 renewals, equalling £2565, and 70 new 'awards, equalling, £1455. The work of entm bursar is carefully scrutinised, quarterly reports being sent in. This reveals a highly satisfactory slate of affairs, and in nearly every case the n«siManee granted is hoiriq; taken full advantage of, and in only nine cases was it. found necessary lo cancel the awards on account of poor resulte.

Tim Valuer-General, Mr, F, W. Flanagan, 0.8. E., was met by tlio staff of his oflieci at Wellington recently, and on the occasion of Jiis retirement the opportunity was taken io recognise in tangibin form their appreciation of the axecilent relations which had always existed between them and the retiring official. On behalf of the ofh'cei and district staffs the Hon. W. Nosworthy (Minister of Agriculture) pmsonted Mr> Flanagan with a money order for £4O. Messrs C. J. Lovat (chief clerk) and F. T. McKenzin (district valuer) also spoke, and at the conclusion, of the function Mr Thomas Brook, the newly-appointed Valuer-General, was introduced to the staff. Mr. Flanagan has an extensive and mrfl-itorious record of service, dating from 1871. when; h« joined the Government sendee as a. cadet in the Survey Department, Dnnedin. In 1906 lie was appointed to the administrative position c.f Commissions of Crown Lands and Conservator of State Forests for the Nelson district. His ' appointment as Valuer-General took place in 1909.

Mr J, S. Barton, S.M., Wangamji, has left for a holiday to Australia. The Chief Postmaster has been advised that 1 the spelling of the name |jjjjsj Ruaf'orea has been, altered, as from Dcf ccmbcr 23,' to "Ruatoria." No reason has been given for the change.

A disastrous fire occurred in the Matipo Park city reserve, WanganuL yesterday, and as a result about 10,C0O one to two-year pine trees were destroys ed. The fire swept several acres. A Maori, called at the Wapganui police station yesterday afternoon and reported that a half-caste child named Hyland had been drownod in a bucket of water a.l apa up the river. Tlie police have gone out to investigate., "j t The Minister of Agjjiculture (Hon, 1 W. Nosworthy) has been notified, of Mr W. D. Hunt's acceptance of his appoint-: ment as representative of the commer-; cial and proprietary interests on 'tse Dairy Produce Control Board. Mr James Ames, senior, city valuer and chief returning officer for' Wellington, is to retire from the employ of the Wellington City Council, after a. most unique career, covering a period of 58 years. This is probably a,record for Australia or New Zealand. Mr, Ames is in his eighty-first year. • ■ > ' A pleasant function took place recently, when the stall' of the Gisborne branch of the New Zealand Clothing Factory (H. 8.), assembled to v bid farewell to Miss M. Bartlett, on the occasion of her approaching marriage. On behalf of the staff, the manager, Mr G. Burnett, presented Miss Bartlett with a handsome silver-mounted salad bowl, with spoon and fork. . t ,.;, Miss J.'S, Wallace, a sister of Mt< James Wallace, of Palmerston North, •who has heen appointed matron of the recently acquired fiheepfarmers' Fund hostel at Awapuni, possesses the highest credentials qualifying her for the position. Her excellent record of practical service would appear to qualify Miss Wallace most eminently for her new appointment. An unusually heavy thunder and rainstorm was experienced in the Rakatiroa district between 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. yesterday. Rain fell in torrents and the river is reported to have risen considerably. It is also reported that the lightning split two large rimti trees from top to bottom and caused slight damage to the portion of the wall through which the telephone wires were taken in a house at Rakauroa.

Arrangements have been made with the Railway Department by an Auckland motion picture producer for tlie production of a film entitled "The Daylight Limited, New Zealand's National Train." It is intended to film the scenic grandeur of the trip and also advertise the scenic and commercial possibilities of the districts through which the train passes. The film' is to he screened throughout New Zealand and in other parts of the Empire.

An accident to a little child occurred last week when the four-year-old son of the Rev. Bothwell, of Kuripuni, received a bad wound or the side of the forehead, through the fall of a heavy soldering iron in use by a workman attending to the telephone wires outside the minis* ter's house. Fortunately, the iron eS" caped an eye and the top of the child's head, or the results might have been more serious; as it was, a deep gash was caused, necessitating the wound being ■ stitched. It seems hardly possible that the railway, traffic on any line in New Zealand would be so heavy as to cause a congestion of the street traffic, but such wak the case in Palmerston North recently! when either side of the railway crossings saw a large volume of motor and pedestrian traffic held up while goods and passenger trains speeded on their various ways. Upwards of ninety trains arrive or depart from Palmerston, and warning bells signal the arrival of the different trains at intervals of a few minutes,

A hackneyed truism possibly, but one that is replete with fact is that which holds that one man's meat is another man's poison. So great is the attraction of the Dunedin Exhibition this year thai hotel and boardinghouse keepers,- in business at Taupo and ilotoma, report an ebb tide of clients this season. Instead of being packed out and finding accommodation a problem, as is. usually the case at this time of the year, apartments in 'both of these spas has 1 become, more or less, a drug on the market. The frequency of cases of breaking and entering was commented upon by Mr Justice Heed in the Supreme Court at Auckland. "One hesitates very much,'' Z said His Honor, "about giving proba- .: tion.unless the circumstances are exceptional. Breaking and entering lias been going on all over the Dominion; and it has to be stopped." His ' Honor was speaking of the cases of two men committed for sentence from Wliakatarie. As the police report had not arrived from Gisborne, the headquarters of the district, lie remanded them-until afte/ !• the holidays, remarking that Mr. Justice \ Stringer would probably be able to deal with them early next month. "Why should a boy be damned eternally because he can't get five sums right?" asked Mr Charters, principal of the , Whangarei High School, in the course of his annual address at the prize-giving," states the Auckland Star. In illustration of his contention that this was not the be-all and end-all ss& [Hie, the speaker referred to the case otj'j a boy he came across in Waikato the principal was a school inspector! / The lad was thirteen years of. age, and only in Standard 11. On asking the teacher the reason of this he was informed that the boy was "very thick in the head," his trouble being arithmetic, The speaker questioned the boy" arid found that he was fond of reading, and had read one or two books which, the principal was ashamed to say, he had not read. He advised the teacher to put him up to Standard IV., and the result was satisfactory. As for arith* metic, commented the speaker, as long as the boy knew that two plus two were four and could count the change he received from the Chinaman he had sufficient for his needs. ■"';■' Plans for the reconstruction of the demolished portion of the Western ' Wharf were submitted to the Auckland Harbor Board by the engineer, Mr JV Holderness. It. was pointed out that the plans, which were for the consideration of the Marine Department for approval, embraced the whole structure with additional extensions to a point which it was thought might be reached when tho breakwater was carried out to its proposed full length of 1578 ft. The plan was prepai-ed so that the Marine Department engineers might see what was ultimately proposed, hut it was clearly set out that it was not intended to do more in the meantime than to re-

construct the 240 ft of (lie demolished portion with an additional 100 ft. It was felt that it was better to have this compi'ehensive Jay-out than to add to the wharf piece-meal at a later date.

The plans were approved for forwarding to Wellington on the understanding that the board was not committed to'con-

struct at present more than the length of the sunken portion of the wharf for which the steel, has been ordered. The work will not be proceeded with until the board has considered ways and means, although the chairman pointed out that the wharf would. have to be, built out of revenue.

A service will be conducted by M.r. W. ,W. Bridge at Whatatutu on January 3rd.* !

\ John Mcintosh, the Hutt Golf Club professional, is at present on .1 visit to Gisborne relatives. i The annual conference and camp meeting of the Seventh Day Adventists opened'on the Dannevirke Show grounds last night. The Rev. D. Gardner Miller, of Napier, has expressed his intention of accepting the unanimous call extended to bin* from the Trinity Congregational Church, Ohristchurch. - During,the past few days there have been one or twoffires started in the Waipawa river bed, any of which might have led to serious consequences, especially one that threatened the railway bridge for a - time. Owing to the prolonged diry spell the grass and shrubs are like tinder. *'Mr W.J. Hunter, LL.B., barrister, of Christtihurch, is visiting Gisborne after an absence of twenty years. He will b> remembered by many residents as the first- headmaster of the Mnngapnpa school. He was admitted to the legal profession at,Gisborne, and is senior partner in tho Christchureh legal linn of Hunter and Konnldson, and is president of the Canterbury Law Society. Mr. Hunter was greatly impressed by thV improved communications from the south by ro id and tho number of excellent buildings which have been erected , in.Gisborne. An accident occurred on the NapierAwatoto road on Sunday night, when a motor car driven by Dr. W. W. Moore collided witli a motor cycle ridden by two Chinese. Dr. Moore, who was travelling towards Hastings, was blinded by the strong head lights of an advancing car which failed to dim, and was pulling to the side of the road when he noticed a dark object ahead (states the Hawkc's Bay Herald). He immediately swung towards the centre, again, but was not quick enough to avoid smashing into the object, which subsequently turned out to be a motor cycle ridden by a Chinese, who was also carrying a fellow countryman/ The cycle was smashed somewhat and the riders injured. , ' "lb is a matter* of justice that the law should be altered in cases of this kind so that the man may give evidence in other parts of the Dominion in respect to the cases," stated Mr A. 0. Hanlon at the Dunedin Magistrate's Court the other day, when referring to charges under the motor regulations against drivers living in other centres (states the; Otago Daily Times). Mr Hanlon said that the alteration was desirable as the defendant might be at the other end of the Dominion when the case was heard, and had to plead guilty or journey to tho court. The defendant should be allowed to give evidence elsewhere. Under the present regulations a defendant declared, "I might as well plead guilty and get the case over quickly." The Magistrate (Mr H. W. Bundle) said that in certain cases a hardship might be inflicted on the defendant. He might be a visitor to the city and have a bona fide defence to the charge. The man should have an opportunity of placing his' evidence before the,court without incurring heavy expenses. Mr Hanlon said he was pleased to hear His Worship's opinion on the point. Probably the Legislature would alter the Act if the motor clubs took the matter up. . On Saturday afternoon last residents in the vicinity of Company's Bay jetty at Dunedin were startled by piercing screams from the direction of the water. A small boy and a girl (states the Otago Daily Times) had been enjoying themselves in a small punt at the b'oatshed just beyond the jetty, and the strong wind and tide catching the craft, it was "rapidly driven from the : shore. In afe# moments the children were carried on the strong current up the harbor. Their terror was increased when they discovered that the punt was leaking, and, as they had one oar only / they were practically helpless. Their cries reached the ears of two young men in the boatshed, who promptly launched a small rowing boat and eventually overtook the castaways well off Macandrew's Bay jetty. The rescue was effected none too soon, as the punt was well filled with water, and could not have remained " afloat much longer. In the face of the Strong nor'-easter the young men were having' a hard struggle, towing the punt back to Company's Bay, but a motor boat came along and took the children on board and towed the punt . to its moorings. Beyond a fright the , young "mariners" were none the worse for their adventure. • "I have travelled many times round the world," said a veteran San Francisco tourist, on the Carinthia, to a Dominion reporter at Wellington, "and I consider Honolulu the prettiest place 1 in the 1 world, with Southern California a good 1 second. After seeing Auckland, however, I have no hesitation in declaring that New Zealand is the third prettiest country in the world. California is the land- of bungalows, but Auckland can beat us hollow. Why, every person up there seems to own a bungalow. To see the streets upon streets of handsome homes, it gave the impression that every, man was as good as his neighbor—no better and no worse. In California some of the bungalows approach the palace, class, but here you seem 10 ' build the same design. Gee, it was 1 fine to see all those comfortable homes in 1 Auckland; they appealed to me. lam la lover of flowers and children, and 1 f have been absolutely astounded at the * beauty, healthiness,' and, grace of the children of New Zealand. I have never seen youngsters like them in any_ country. It would 'aeem that this is the land for raising children all right." The pressman ventured tho opinion that perhaps it was because we had plenty of air space here. "Yes," the San Franciscan admitted, "that might account in part for your beautiful children."