In Town And Out

Southland Times, Issue 23726, 26 January 1939, Page 6

In Town And Out

Earthquakes in Queenstown An earthquake was felt in Queenstown at 2.50 p.m. on Tuesday afternoon. The earthquake, which lasted for several seconds, was accompanied by a very loud noise like an explosion. Several minor earthquakes were felt during the past week, but in no case was any damage done. Heavy rain fell in Queenstown on Monday night and on Tuesday morning the surrounding hills had a good coating of snow. M.unganni On Sunday

The trans-Tasman passenger vessel Maunganui left Melbourne for Bluff at 10.3£) a.m. yesterday. If the voyage is normal and circumstances are favourable the vessel will arrive at Bluff at 9 o’clock on Sunday morning.

Safety of Port “The gale established the stability and safety of the Bluff wharves,” said the chairman of the Bluff Harbour Board (Mr W. A. Ott) at the meeting of the board last night. “Not a rope nor a bollard nor a pile was broken,” he said. A report was received from the acting harbourmaster (Captain F. J. Callan) that the gale had reached a force of 80 miles an hour with gusts of even greater velocity. All the vessels had been made as safe as possible and steam had been kept up on the vessels and on the board’s tug. The whole staff had stood by in case of emergency, but no damage had occurred. It was decided to thank the staff for its excellent work in preventing damage during the storm. Escort Vessel Departs

The close of the Sanders Cup contest also terminated the stay at Bluff of the Imperial escort vessel, Leith, which sailed yesterday morning for Oamaru after a four days visit to the port. The ship attracted the interest of many hundreds of Southlanders during her stay at Bluff. “Shiffing in The Slot” , When asked in the Magistrate’s Court yesterday if he wanted to give any evidence a young man said that that depended on whether he was going to be convicted. “You can’t put a shilling in the slot like that,” said the Magistrate (Mr R. C. Abernethy). One Use for the Wind

The high winds wkl.h have been blowing in Invercargill recently have brought pleasure to at least one person in the city. He is a small boy who has erected a home-made sail on a trolly and made a form of land yacht for himself. While other persons find mild discomfort in a strong wind- he sets the s 'on his craft and bowlsWappily along the bitumen.

Big Day In Court Yesterday was a big day in the Magistrate’s Court in Invercargill. There were more than 60 cases and the Court did not adjourn until after 5 p.m. At one stage there were 11 constables, a detective and a sergeant in the courtroom and all the seating accommodation for witnesses and defendants was occupied.

Slipway at Bluff “The first vessel to be unslipped, the Hirere, came off very well, the period from the release of the brake until the vessel was clear of the cradle being five minutes. Until-more vessels have been handled, it, would be premature to state that the slip is working satisfactorily, but the indications all point to our having overcome the slipping difficulty,” stated the engineer. of the Bluff Harbour Board (Mr'D. E. S. Mason) in a report to the board on the improvements recently effected to the slipway. Motorists Not Exempt

“You know what cyclists are, like—they travel all over the road,” said counsel in the Magistrate’s Court yesterday morning. “I know what motorists are like, too,” remarked the Magistrate (Mr R. C. Abernethy). Reclamation at Bluff

In a report to the Bluff Harbour Board last night the engineer ( (Mr D. E. S. Mason) stated that the preparations for reclamation of land near the wharves were practically complete with the exception of the actual laying of the pipeline. Arrangements had been made for the installation of the temporary culvert for the pipe line under the railway line.

Sport in Japan With the exception of cricket, the Japanese took part in the same sports as New Zealanders, said Mr H. Ogasawana, of Osaka, when discussing his country in an interview with The Press, Christchurch. In addition, the American game of baseball was very popular, being played all the year round. Skiing and skating were also very popular sports, and there were a large number of ski clubs in North Japan, where there was ample snow for this sport during the winter. Mount Fujiyama (12,391 feet) about 100 to 150 miles from Tokyo, was climbed by many persons, including tourists, during the summer, but was not safe for mountaineering during the winter. Another much-visited place was Hakone, where the hot springs were on a much larger scale than those at Rotorua. Sea fishing was more popular than river fishing, the rivers in Japan being much swifter than those in New Zealand, he said.

Publicity Expenditure “The Municipal Corporations Act and other legislation contemplate the use of local funds for publicity, but until this association came into being operations in publicity were spasmodic and almost wholly competitive in character,” states the report of the director of the South Islands Travel Association, which was presented at a meeting of the executive in Greymouth yesterday. “By co-ordination we eliminate the second factor, and we hope to make each of our guides direct attention to other provinces while advertising its own region. Publicity expenditure in this country is small compared with what is done elsewhere, and yet our problem is greater. The city of Miami spends more each year than the Government of New Zealand; Vancouver spends much more than five times the amount spent by the cities of this Dominion; Auckland spends more than any two cities in the South Island.”