LOCAL AND GENERAL

Taranaki Daily News, 5 August 1930, Page 8

LOCAL AND GENERAL

The New Plymouth Amateur Operatic Society held its first rehearsal of the musical comedy “Going Up” last night. The production will be given before the end of the year. “If the by-law is so obviously absurd and unreasonable, why has my friend bothered to address the court for two hours?” said counsel in a defended bylaw case at the Stratford Court yesterday.

A large hapuka with two mouths is on view at New Plymouth. The fish was caught by Messrs. W. Smith, and A. Allen about 40 miles off shore, and apart from this deformity is a fine one. A hapuka with two mouths was recently caught at Auckland. The North Taranaki Radio Society wrote to the New Plymouth Borough Council last night asking whether it was possible to obtain a reduction in th? charges for electric lighting and heating. The matter was referred to the electric light and tramways committee. The Moa Dairy Company has finished the season with the fine average grade of 94.329 points. The liairman, Mr. R. B. Sutton, stated yesterday that though the season at the grading stores had concluded on July 31 the complete results -were not yet available, but he understood the factory was either first among the factories grading at Moturoa or a point or two away, second. The splendid result accomplished by group herd-testing in increasing production was stressed by Mr. R. B. Sutton at the meeting of suppliers of the Moa Dairy Company yesterday. He urged all suppliers to link with a group. The Moa group had put up a splendid performance in being placed third among the Taranaki groups, and only two lb. below the second group. Though listed in another group the highest testing herd in Taranaki, that of Mr. F. Bracegirdle, jun., was supplying the Moa factory.

The position of outdoor assistant traffic manager in the Railway Department is being abolished in the Christchurch and Dunedin districts. Both positions have recently become vacant automatically, and it is understood that when the officers occupying similar positions in other centres retire, or are promoted, their positions will not be filled. This step has been taken as part of the economy proposals formulated by the general manager of railways (Mr. H. H. Sterling). It will affect seven or eight positions throughout the Dominion, and will result in a saving in salaries of between £3OOO and £3500 annually.

The conversion of the larger trams in New Plymouth to the “one-man’ ’system would be completed about the end of September, said- the tramway a manager (Mr. G. J. Wyatt) in reply to a question by Mr. R. J. Pentecost, at the New Plymouth Borough Council meeting last night. It was slow work, he explained. One extra man had been employed on the staff in connection with the alterations.

One hundred dairy cattle to be offered by Newton King, Ltd. at the Kaponga sale on Friday include 45 specially selected young Jersey and Jersey cross dairy cows submitted by Mr. F. Reardon. In addition there will be 100 head of mixed cattle and 50 fat and forward hoggets.

“What about getting some of the .Ministers of the Crown down to help you in your campaign?” was a question put Mr. Vincent Ward by a member of his committee, to which, says the Southland News, Mr. Ward replied: “Good heavens, no. I don’t want anybody io hold my hand and tell you what a good little boy I am.” At Invercargill last week a reporter was shown an almost ripe strawberry in the garden of Mrs. T. E. Davis. The fruit, which is of a good size, has not lie.eii forced at all, says the Southland Times, and .its early arrival speaks eloquently of the comparative mildness of the winter.

it certainly did not look elegant, hut apparently the several girls whose ankles were encased in brown paper held in place by string did not care, a jot who noticed them, as they carefully picked their way back to work the otk.r afternoon alo. g the slushy street, says the Christchurch Sun. Appearances for once were absolutely ignored in an .effort to preserve tho spotlessness of s'.'k hosiery. „ “I U'd’uld like to make a personal explanation, your Worship,” said a man charged' with riding a cycle without a light, .at the;.Timaru Magistrate’s Court. “I have two lamps, but on this night I was delayed at work ..nd had. to.ride home.” Mr. C. R. Orr“ Walker, S.M.: “That’s no excuse. Why didn’t you push the cycle?” “I did,” said defendant. “You did; what do you mean?” Defendant; “I pushed it with my feet.”‘.Thc magistrate: “That’s smart. I won’t, however, double the fine for your smartness. Fifteen shillings and costs.” Many strange''things have occurred during a football match, but rarely has a referee literally dropped - his whistle and run .at the. sound of the firebell, says the Mataura ■- . Ensign. At Gore the other afternoon Mr. A.. Wallis was refereeing the Pioneer-Edendale match when the firebell rang. ' Without hesitation he responded to the call of duty, handed over his whistle to the chairman of the Eastern Southland Rugby Sub-union (Mr. F. Murray), and rushed away to the fire, which was a minor hedge outbreak, Within a quarter of anhour he was back again in control of the game. .

Snow is not the only thing that the Christchurch traiiK have to contend with in winter time, says the Times. There w.re delays on’several lines on Friday morning. Frost was the cause, and the trouble was not with the track, but with the overhead wfies which supply the power. Trouble of tms nature occurs mainly wl._n frost comes after rain, when tlie overhead lines are wet. Then ice forms on the lines and the contact becomes faulty enough to interfere to some extent with the power supply. These conditions have occurred many times this wiutcr, and the first trams have often been delayed. A fine old poplar tree on Barnes Terj&flce, at the foot of Fulford Street east, lias during the last two or three years suffered increasingly from the effects of the southerly winds, with the result that gaps have been made in its foliage. Mr. D. Davy suggested to the borough council last night that the tree should be severely topped immediately to enable it to throw out new growth and once again present a compact mass to the wind. The letter was referred to the works committee with power to act. A decision to dispose of surplus funds amounting to £6O was made at a recent meeting of the New Plymouth Shopping Week committee. No further shopping weeks are to be organised, and in view of the fact that the balance of the money would not be required for the purpose for which it was raised, it will be divided equally between the Taranaki Radio Society piano fund, the hospital radio fund and the Pukekura Sports Ground committee for the relief of unemployment among New Plymouth residents. In the course of a flight from Wellington to Blenheim a few days ago Captain N. E. Chandler and Mr. H. S. Hewlett had the unusual experience of watching from the air the capture of a whale by the Tory Channel whaling party. Captain Chandler from a height of 6000 ft observed three whales entering Cook Strait from the south and later saw the whaler’s launches put out in pursuit of one of them. The whale was plainly visible at all times from the aeroplane and could be followed during its soundings, but the men in the launch, of course, could see it only when it epouted. The aeroplane descended to 4000 ft and circled overhead while the whalers got the harpoon home and the bomb exploded. On reaching Blenheim Captain Chandler advised the whalers by telephone of the presence of the other two whales. ’ Rather unexpected appreciation of the feelings of a man under the influence of liquor was made by a wellknown counsel appearing for a prisoner in the Supreme Court in Wellington on Monday. ‘ He .had asked a woman, who was giving evidence, to explain the'accused’s condition when she saw him near his home. “The accused was not staggering about,” replied the witness, “but his condition seemed to be that of a man whose head feels several sizes bigger than it actually is. You know what I mean?” “Yes, I know the feeling,” said counsel quite seriously, no doubt thinking about the next question he proposed putting. Everybody in the Court enjoyed counsel’s frank and artless admission. No cases of sickness of any kind had been caused to cattle by infection from cattle tick, stated the Director-General of Agriculture (Dr. C. J. Reakcs), in making some observations on the extent to which New Zealand was infested with this parasite. Dr. Reakcs said that in a good many places in the North Island where the tick had made its appearance ordinary methods of control had apparently been successful. The spread of the disease was governed to a great extent by climatic conditions. In the milder areas along the coast the tick seemed to be more persistant than inland. They hung on to rushes and tall grasses in the winter and sought an opportunity of attaching themselves to p ssing animals. One measure of confro! w-as- to- destroy all winter'cover.