In Town And Out

Southland Times, Issue 23047, 14 November 1936, Page 8

In Town And Out

Road to Oreti Beach. Although the work of tar-sealing two miles of Dunn’s highway, on the main road to Oreti Beach, has not yet been completed, the Southland County Council has decided to open the road for traffic to the beach tomorrow. A special request is made by the County Council that motorist going to the , beach should keep their speed to 15 , miles an hour over the two miles being , treated. ■ Sunshine and Colour. j The spring sunshine during the past few days has brought colour to the • streets of Invercargill. Winter’s furs and mackintoshes have been replaced , by light, gaily-coloured dresses, while , in several cases sunburnt noses gleam self-consciously from beneath a layer of powder. Man, too, has made his I concession to the weather. Grey flan- i nel suits and bright coloured ties throw ( into relief the first indications of sum- , mer tan. White Herons Depart. The arrival about a month ago of a second white heron at the Botanic Gardens, Christchurch, raised hopes that these graceful birds would become a permanent attraction there. The new arrival, however, did not stay very long, and now the first one to arrive has evidently been attracted away by its mate, as no sign of it has been seen by the workers in the gardens for some time. During their stay the birds were a source of continual interest to visitors. Whales in the Tasman. Masters of vessels crossing the Tasman between Australia and New. Zealand have noted a large increase in the number of whales frequenting these waters. They have also reported fairly frequent fights between thresher sharks and whales, these encounters usually’ being fierce and desperate. One master expressed the view that the fal-ling-off in the activities of the whaling fleets in Antarctic waters in recent years had enabled the whales to increase in numbers. A Tip from the Pulpit. In his speech at the Sprcydon Baptist Church anniversary gathering the Rev. Dr J. J. North said that he had once preached in the church on the evils of gambling, and that one of his points had been that gambling was the “great delusion” (states the Christchurch Star-Sun). During the following week a man met the preacher in the street and informed him he had heard the sermon, and happening to go to the races wondered what horse he should back. Looking down the list he noticed that Great Delusion was running. "I backed it,” he said, “and it won.” Fishing in Scotland. The relative sizes of trout caught in New Zealand and in Scottish streams are commented on by Mr C. H. Wilkie, of Napier, in a letter to a friend. He says: “I fished for four days and caught about two dozen—very small from a New Zealander’s point of view. The biggest I landed was four and a half pounds, and that was considered very good, being the largest fish caught by anyone at the hotel while I was there.” Mr Wilkie added that the weather was perfect for a holiday in the Highlands, except for the midges, “which gave me an awful time.” New Motor Vessel. The second of the two motor ships being built at John Brown and Co.’s yards on the Clyde for the New Zealand Shipping Company is to be named Sussex. The first of these vessels, the Essex, was launched recently. The ships, which have large refrigerated spaces, are of the shelter-deck type, and are of about 11,000 tons gross, the principal dimensions being: Length, 530 ft; breadth, 70ft; depth,_ 47£ft. The propelling machinery consists of two sets of opposed piston oil engines, the horsepower per engine being 6500 at 120 revolutions a minute. These units, it is interesting to note, are the highest powered of the type so far constructed. Increasing the Population. The increasing of New Zealand’s population by a large percentage in the next 10 years is advocated by the Auckland Manufacturers’ Association in a remit that will come before the Dominion Federation. “This association is gravely disturbed that the natural growth of New Zealand’s population is now only three-quarters of 1 per cent, a year, and that during recent years more people have actually left the Dominion than have come into it,” the remit says. The inauguration .of large-scale immigration and the increasing of the urban population by at least 10 per cent, a year during the next 10 years is urged as a remedy. “A Ghastly Success.” “I don’t remember ever having been present at such a ghastly success,” said Mr Arthur Rosser, chairman of the Auckland City Council Works Committee, when speaking at the ceremony at Devonport on Monday night when the new sodium vapour street lighting system was inaugurated (reports The New Zealand Herald). Most of the speakers remarked on the deadly pallor which the yellow beams of the light gave the spectators, although all were enthusiastic about the road-light-ing effects obtained. Mr W. J. Lyon, M.P., said that while h- was glad to see that the new lights were going to minimize the danger factor on the roads, he had to admit that to him every pedestrian looked like an accident. Taxi Commission’s Work. How vast is the amount of work which has confronted the committee of inquiry appointed by the Government to investigate conditions in the taxicab and town carrying businesses is amply indicated by the fact that since it began its sittings on September 28 it has travelled over 2000 miles. It has held sittings in nine centres and has heard evidence from 170 witnesses, as well as having to examine countless written representations and figures. The commission, which consists of Mr P. M. Butler, a member of the Wellington City Council, Mr J. Walker, a Masterton master carrier, and Mr H. B. Smith, chief clerk for the Transport Department, concluded its public sitting in Auckland on Tuesday. Hairiness in Wool.

Much interest was taken by Southland wool growers in the demonstrations of the benzol bath method of detecting and gauging hairiness in wool given by Professor G. S. Peren, principal of the Massey Agricultural College, Mr R. Waters, head of the testing department of the college, and their staff when they visited Invercargill in July. That was a pioneering trip as far as this work was concerned, but several Southland flocks were tested. Advice has now been received by Mr J. M. Watson, of Invercargill, that Mr Waters and his staff will arrive in Invercargill about the middle of next week to test fleeces where desired. The length of the visit will depend on the number of applications received, but Mr Watson told The Southland Times that a good response was assured and that Mr Waters would probably spend about a week in this province. It is possible that Professor Peren will accompany the party.