LOCAL AND GENERAL

Taranaki Daily News, 24 July 1929, Page 8

LOCAL AND GENERAL

A Wanganui solicitor had a novdl experience. He was lighting a match at an electric heater and accidentally touched it with two fingers and found that he. could not let go, and at. the same time the current was giving him a merry time in his right arm. He then kicked the heater over and broke it and liberated his fingers.

A donation of £5O has been made by an anonymous person to the Taranaki Hospital Board radio fund. . The sum is to be used in the installation of radio equipment in the isolation ward. It is Generally believed that this fund bears a £1 for £1 subsidy by the Government, but in reality it has to depend entirely on public support. Evidence of considerable unemployment among trained typistes and. women bookkeepers in the city was provided by over 200 applications for a clerical position in an Auckland office last week. The great majority of the young women who applied for the position were qualified. typistes, and nearly had undergone courses in business training colleges. The remarkable growth of the City of Auckland in recent years was referred to by Mr. J. S. Tyler at the annual dinner of the Auckland Master Builders Association last week. Mr. Tyler said since 1924 permits had been issued for the erection of buildings to a total value of about £7,000,000. It was a tribute to the contractors that the cost of inspection had amounted to an exceptionally small pereenage of the amount.

Numerous lambs have made their appearance during the past two or three weeks at Omata, where Mace Bros, have a floek of 120 ewes of which already more than half have lambed. It is expected that lambing will be over by the end of the month. Though it is so early iu the season the lambs are looking remarkably well, the weather, though at times rough, having been comparatively mild.

The application by Dean Barnett,. of Hamilton, for an injunction restraining Bishop Ch erring ion from setting up a commission to inquire into the deau’s fitness to hold eflire was net heard at the sittings of the Supreme Court, which concluded at Hamilton on Monday. Negotiations are proceeding between We parties and a j.cttlr n> nt may be rcaci cd.

Strong objection to tlio abolition of the cash oi delivery system t-y means of an Order n Cun • ! was taken by Mr H. M. Rushworth, M.P., at a meeting of the Auck'jnd provincial executive i;f the Farmers’ Union m Hamilton. “If mat ters like this are to be abolished,” he said, “it means that it is useless being a member of the House. One must be a member of the Government - to legislate.” The meeting considered the abolition of the system was unsatisfactory and decided to forward a further protest to the Government.

While dredging just inside the Newton King wharf at New Plymouth the dredge Paritutu uprooted a huge piece of rimu timber which it was unable to bring to the surface. A diver was sent down to investigate and after he had placed tackle around the wood it was slung on board. Over all the log measured 40 feet with a girth of 8 feet, and though the largest portion was dumped out at sea, a piece 14 feet in length is now on the breakwater, where it is being used as firewood. It has been estimated that at least 50 yeays must have elapsed since the log came to rest on the sandy depths of the sea floor. The growth of the Kabul Co-operative Dairy Company since its establishment in 1913 was indicated by the secretary, Mr. A. J. Brennan, at the annual meeting yesterday. In 1913 the total milk supply was 2,767,4501 b and the payment to suppliers £5072. Last year the milk supply was 4,348,6901 b and the amount paid to suppliers £12,818. This increase has come practically from the same area and is largely due to improved farming methods during the past few years. During tho first nine years there was practically no increase, the supply of milk in 1921 being only 19,1861 b greater than in 191'3, though owing to the boom prices ruling that year the payment, £14,854, was the greatest in the history of the company. With the completion of the Okahu Road making fresh supply available, and improved farming methods generally, the supply should show even a greater increase in the next few years.

An edible fish lays anything from 250,000 to 7,000,009 eggs a year, yet there are seasons when some fish are almost extinct. One year it may be the herring, the next the haddock, the plaice, the cod, Or the hake. One good season in the herring family will be reflected for eight years in the catches. A New Plymouth High School boy named Philip Dickson, who was riding a motor-bicycle, had a leg broken as a result of a collision with a motor-van driven by W. Ilardgreavcs, an employee of the City Meat Stores, on Avenue Road yesterday. Both vehicles were going in the same direction, away from New Plymouth, when the boy tried to pass the van. Jt is remarkable that neither the motor-cycle nor the delivery van received much damage. On inquiry at the hospital last night it was stated that Dickson's condition was quite satisfactory. The New Plymouth Astronomical Society has received a letter from the director of the Institute of Astronomy of (.'him:. Happily there is an English translation appended to the long lines of Chinese characters, so it was possible to learn that the institute would “appreciate the presence in our library of the publications of our venerable colleagues from all over the world.” This naive correspondent concludes: “Awaiting your scientific sympathy and thanking you in advance, I have the honour to be, Ch’ing Sung Yu.” During the past nine years 6297 people have visited the New Plymouth observatory. The sum total of the donations left by these people in the course of their visits amounts to £54. At a meeting of the Astronomical Society last night the secretary stated that this worked out at approximately lid for every visitor. It was agreed to charge one shilling for each adult visitor and sixpence for others. Jt was pointed out that if the research work was to be carried on the society must have finance to purchase some of the more necessary instruments. Therefore he. thought that the charge was not exorbitant.

Sir Truby King, Director of Child Welfare in New Zealand, arrived at Sydney by tho Tahiti from Wellington on July 8 to spend three weeks in Australia in the interests of the Australian Mothercraft Society and the Plunket Society’s Health Mission. Dr. Purdy made the suggestion, at a meeting held at the Sydney Arts Club, that Sir Truby King should allow himself to appear on the “talkies. “Future generations will revere your name/’ said Dr. Purdy to his former New Zealand colleague, “and they will realise that you were the prophet of your time. It is due to them that you should deliver a message which will be available for all time.'’ •

“Our railways were never in such a muddle as they are in to-day,” declared Mr. J. T. Hogan (Rangitikei) in the House of Representatives amidst incredulous laughter from tho Reform benches. Criticising the engagement by tho late administration of Sir Sam Fay and Sir Vincent Raven to report on the railway system, Mr. Hogan said we had men in New Zealand not only capable of reporting on the system but also of running it, yet we impoi xl outsiders to interfere with the running of the railways. Some members might urge that the present condition of the sylstem was duo to the fact that it was passing through a period of re-organisation. The re-orga-nisation, lie felt sure, would leave the railways very little better off than they were at present.

A number of public bequests, subject to certain prior interests, arc made under the will of the lato Mr. J. E. Hounsell, bookseller, Nelson, who died a few days ago. Various institutions _ will benefit,' as follows Nelson Institute, £100; Salvation Army,. £100; Royal New Zealand Society for the Health of Women and Children, £100; St. Andrew’s Orphanage, £100; Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals,. £100; Auckland Point School, £100; Central School, £100; Hampden Street School, £100; Nelson College Governors, £5OO fo r the purpose of founding and establishing a scholarship at Nelson Boys’ College; Nelson College Governors, £5OO for the purpose of founding and establishing a scholarship at Nelson Girls’ College; the residue of tho estate to bo divided into two equal parts, one share for the Tahuna Sands Association should it be in existence at a certain time, and the other share for the Trustees of the Nelson Anglican Cathedral Fund.

A recent issue of the New Zealand Samoa Guardian contains an interesting article on Lake Lanuto’o, which fills the crater of one of the. many extinct volcanoes in the main mountain ridge of the island of Upolu. In. a straight line from Apia, Lake Lanuto’o "is distant only two miles, but to reach it the traveller must walk or ride about six miles along mountain tracks. Pile lake is circular in shape, and has a diameter of nearly a mile, the ridge which surrounds its shores being little more than two chains in width at its thickest point. The silent, dark blue waters present a most refreshing appearance after a climb during a hot, tropical day up the surrounding slopes. Their depth is unknown, but some of the extinct volcanoes along the mountain chain are so deep that even the natives have not dared to venture to their lower levels. Some years ago a number of goldfis.i were liberated in the waters of the lake. They multiplied exceedingly, but Jost .their golden hue, and became blacxi. Whether the deep, black, volcanic :nud in the bed of the lake had anything to do with the change of colour is a matter for scientists, but the opinion is aeld that the change was due to the sombre surrounding tints. The curious crows of Australia ha\e a habit of swooping down on golf balls and carrying them off in the belief that they are eggs. This sounds a tall story, but Mr. W. Endcan, a prominent member of the New Zealand Yacht Squadron, who returned to Auckland by the Manama last week, had the experience of having his game interrupted by an inquisitive bird while in Sydney. With a friend he went out to the Concord links, and. at the third hole was advised not to drive too far, as the crows were bad. The New Zealander, believing that one of the course’s, stock jokes was being put over on him, drove with his usual length. No crow appeared to retrieve the white sphere, and Mr. Endean’s belief was confirmed. At the seventh hole he did the best drive of the day, and followed it up with a beautiful second. Going out to finish off the bole, much to his consternation ho saw a black shape s-woop down from the clouds, pick up his ball, and fly away with it to a mangrove swamp. After that Mr. F.ndean played with a ball that was painted yelilow, graciously loaned him for the occasion, it being explained to him that spheres of this colour do not attract the crows in tho belief that they are. eggs. Tho Hustlers’, sale which is now in full swing are now offering bargains at prices far. lower than cost. Grasp your opportunity by securing some of these snips for yourself, and benefit by our loss.