NEWS OF THE DAY

Taranaki Daily News, 14 September 1934, Page 4

NEWS OF THE DAY

In order that the pupils of the New Plymouth Central school may sleep off the effects of the annual fancy dress ball last night, school will not open to-day until 10 o’clock.

A large consignment of dairy factory equipment will be aboard the Opihi when she sails from New Plymouth for southern ports this afternoon. Consigned by Messrs. J. B. Mac Ewan Ltd., the equipment will be erected in the newly constructed Rai Dairy Company’s factory, between Nelson and Blenheim. The previous factory was destroyed by fire. A flight to Wellington was made from New Plymouth yesterday by Mr. H. Lightband, in the Western Federated Clubs’ plane ZK—ABP. He had as passenger Miss Shannon. The return flight will be made to-morrow. Mr. H. Preston, ground engineer to the Wairarapa Aero Club, who has been visiting New Plymouth, returned yesterday morning in ZK—ABD.

The two coastal ships Breeze and Holmdale had made excellent time from Wanganui when they arrived at New Plymouth yesterday morning. They averaged over 10 knots. The Breeze left Wanganui at 10.40 p.m. on Wednesday and arrived at 9.35 a.m. yesterday, her time for the 107 miles being 10 hours 55 minutes. The Holmdale left five minutes later and reached New Plymouth at 9.15 a.m. in 10 hours 35 minutes.

A decision to practice at Sanders Park in future instead of at Pukekura Park was made by the Western Park Cricket Club at its annual meeting at New Plymouth last night. The main reason given for the change was the improved facilities possible at Sanders Park, and also its nearness to the residences of most of the club members. It was remarked by Mr. E. Spedding that the club would have the ground to itself, and would have more room for batting and fielding practice. There was no pleasure in practising at Pukekura Park, said Mr. E. L. Mason; it was' too crowded and one had to be always on the look-out. About 80 Taranaki residents took advantage of the special race train to Wanganui yesterday. It is expected that seats will be at a premium when the Auckland express leaves Stratford tonight. Already 60 reservations have been made at New Plymouth and two. additional carriages have been commissioned. Special arrangements have been made whereby the train will not call at Taumarunui but travel direct to Auckland. The return trip will also omit Taumarunui.

On the last Sunday in June, 30,000 railwaymen were employed counting all the railway waggons in Britain. Before the count was made it was estimated that there were 705,000 railway-owned waggons, and 700,000 privately owned, mainly belonging to collieries. Altogether 51,000 miles of railway were to be patrolled, and the enumerators were to count not only the waggons, but also the railway-owned tarpaulin sheets with which many were covered. Thousands of forms had to be filled up, and when all the figures were available it was to be the work of the Railway Clearing House to equalise the rolling stock between the various railway groups. It was known that a large number of waggons had been working on systems to which they did not belong. Some 360,000 tarpaulin sheets had to be accounted for.

“When Nazi-ism is lost in the limbo of oblivion, we shall still be going on and working out our destiny,” said Rabbi S. A. Goldstein in an address at the Auckland Synagogue, on the occasion of the Jewish New Year.

“Doped” pyjamas as a guard against insomnia are the subject of keen discussion in European papers. A doctor from Poland is said to be the author of the idea. The pyjamas are sprayed with a solution containing a small percentage of choloroform—not enough to be a danger to the wearer’s health, but sufficient to induce “peaceful sleep.”

“So you have come along here to get this story off your chest.” This remark in a domineering voice by a young solicitor resulted in a sharp rebuke from Mr. H. W. Bundle, S.M., in the Dunedin Police Court. “You may address clients like that in your office, but certainly not in this Court,” reprimanded the magistrate, and the solicitor expressed his regret.

The chief marketable product cultivated and sold by the Marine Department —rick oysters—has been bringing in increasing revenue. The Minister for Marine (the Hon. J. G. Cobbe) said that last season had been the best since 1930, and that the revenue from this source had grown to £5920 a year. More than 5000 sacks had been sold during the three months’ season, May 31 to September 1. The Minister added that the increase in sales was a sign of the times, and that it seemed to indicate that there was a little more money about now than during the previous three years. When James Brown, who is 62 years of age, awoke to find the tent in which he was camping near Forbes (New South Wales) a mass of flames, he wrapped the blankets and sheets from his bed around his body and rolled the length of the tent under the flap, and out into the open air. He received a singed head and face, but otherwise was unhurt. Brown watched Tils worldly belongings going up in smoke, and then calmly took an unburnt piece of the tent from the smouldering ruins, wrapped it around himself, and went to sleep for the remainder of the night in the open under a gum tree. “Confiscation is an obnoxious term and a relic of the dark ages,” wrote the Te Aroha branch of the Auckland Acclimatisation Society in a letter received at a meeting of the council of the society. It was a protest against the system at present in force of not only fining offenders convicted under the game laws, but also of confiscating their guns. It was considered unfair to confiscate the guns in addition to a heavy fine, and a case was quoted of a young man who had been so dealt with by a magistrate. “We think,” continued the Te Aroha branch, “that the regulation should be modified or abolished.” The council decided to reply that they regarded the provision as a great deterrent to poaching. The depredations by Chinese bird catchers on the flights of godwits-' as they passed along the coast of China was suggested by Mr. H. C. Savage to a meeting of the council of the Auckland Acclimatisation Society to be the cause of tire decrease in the numbers of these birds in New Zealand. Mr. Savage said that he had been informed by a retired sea captain that when the birds stopped to rest on parts of the coast of China on their long migratory flights to and from Siberia they were killed in tens of thousands by the Chinese and sold for the equivalent of a shilling a sackful. If that was the case, nothing done to preserve them in New Zealand would be of any avail. Dr. T. W. J. Johrison pointed out that the Chinese had probably carried out this practice for thousands of years, and it would hardly explain the recent decrease of godwits in New Zealand. The council decided to obtain detailed evidence of the depredations in China.

A customer in a restaurant complained to a waitress that he could smell something burning. A search was made, but without result, and the customer came to the conclusion that the smell must have emanated from the kitchen. Soon the smell became more pronounced, and other diners commenced to sniff. Once more a search was made, but again without result. It was evident, however, that something was wrong somewhere, and the mystery was explained a few minutes later, when the customer who had noticed the smell in the first instance felt his left side becoming hot. Hastily he turned on his pockets, and discovered that his pipe, carelessly put into his coat pocket while still alight, had burnt its way through the lining, and that a large area inside the coat was smouldering. To reach the “seat of the fire” the customer had to rip open the lining of his coat, which, fortunately for him, was undamaged on the outside. Owing to continued indisposition in the ranks of the Regimental-Municipal Band, to-night’s programme in Devon Street has been put off until next Friday. There was a fair attendance at the final day of the Whiteley flower show at New Plymouth yesterday. Last night the prizes won were presented by the Rev. F. Copeland.