In Town And Out

Southland Times, Issue 23736, 7 February 1939, Page 8

In Town And Out

Mechanical Excavator At Work

A mechanical excavator capable of removing up to 400 tons of soil a day is being used in the excavation work for the new building of the Southland Technical College in Forth street. The plant was put into operation by the Public Works Department yesterday morning and after three and a-half hours 180 tons of spoil had been removed. Passers-by found much to interest them in the working of the huge grab.

Monday Expresses For the first time since the Christmas holidays there was no through express to Invercargill from Christchurch last night. Normally there is no through train from Christchurch on the first day of the week, but during the holiday period a service was established on the Monday to cater for the bigger number of persons travelling. This service ended last week, as did the Monday morning express service to Christchurch.

Roads in Southern Rhodesia Roads which would win the admiration of most motorists in Southland were described yesterday by Mr A. B. Paterson, of Invercargill, in an interview with The Southland Times. Mr Paterson, who has just returned from a visit to South Africa and Great Britain, said that motoring was a pleasure in Southern Rhodesia. The roads were bituminized, but not as they are in New Zealand. There were two strips of bitumen on the road, serving as tracks for cars, and thousands of miles of roads were constructed in this manner. It would be too expensive, Mr Paterson said, to cover the whole surface of the road with bitumen, but the method adopted in Southern Rhodesia gave every satisfaction. Bicycle Stands In City

The system of bicycle parking in the city streets may be reviewed by the Invercargill City Council in the near future, and it is possible that iron stands suitable for angle parking of bicycles will be erected. The stands already in use have proved their worth many times over. Almost daily the fixtures are fully occupied.

“Quads” io be Filmed The Dunedin quadruplets have entered the Children’s Rest Home for a short stay while Mrs Johnson takes a much-needed holiday. The children still attract considerable public attention, and greetings have arrived from so far afield as England, America and Australia, as well as from many New Zealand towns. The quads have already been film stars, but Fox Movietone has again approached Mr and Mrs Johnson with a request to “shoot” the famous four.