NEWS OF THE DAY

Taranaki Daily News, 30 October 1935, Page 4

NEWS OF THE DAY

108 Bicycles Painted. The back mudguards of 108 bicycles at the New Plymouth Girls’ High School were recently painted white by an official of the Automobile Association (Taranaki), who spent about a day at the work. More Profitable Than Golf.

Tiring of golf, three New Plymouth golfers set out in search of something more exciting on Sunday afternoon. They looked for lost balls with such success that they found 20, including several that were really good. They prefer that the name of the links should not be disclosed. Pig Judges Appointed.

Judges for the pig sections at two of the Taranaki A. and P. shows were appointed by the Taranaki branch of the Pig Breeders’ Association at Stratford yesterday as follow: Taranaki show, Messrs. C. T. C. Weston, Bell Block, and R. Weeden, Pukearuhe; Stratford, Messrs. A. B. Walker, Ngaere, and W. Boddie, Mangamingi.

Life-Saving Ccfrtrol. The suggestion that the club’s delegate should endeavour to infuse more activity into the Taranaki centre of the Royal Life-saving Society was made at the annual meeting 'hf the New Plymouth Swimming and Old Boys’ Surf Club last night. The society did good work in the interests of young swimmers but little had been heard of the Taranaki centre for some time, it was said.

Reformatory Concert A concert given at the New Plymouth reformatory last night under the auspices of the New Plymouth Rotary Club was particularly good, and was much appreciated by the inmates. Popular items were the musical numbers by Martin’s orchestra and a conjuring exhibition by Mr G. South. Mr. L. Higginson ably led community singing.

Dairy Number Appreciated. The Taranaki Daily News was complimented by Mr. M. H. Lepper (Midhirst) at the meeting of the Taranaki branch of the Pig Breeders’ Association at Stratford yesterday, on the pig section of the Dairy Supplement published a month ago. The articles were splendid and the whole section very well arranged, said Mr. Lepper, who thought the industry in Taranaki was indebted to the Daily News for the production of such a fine number. Plumbers’ Examinations.

The New Zealand plumbers’ registration examinations are to be held this year at New Plymouth instead of at Palmerston North. Mr. A. L. Moore, director of the New Plymouth Technical College, reported last night to the New Plymouth High Schools Board that the change had been made in view of strong representations being made and additional fees being paid by the candidates. Saloon Car Overturns.

Two wheels were wrecked and extensive damage was done to a saloon car when it overturned off the road near Waitara on Monday. The occupants, Mr. and Mrs. T. N. Smallwood escaped with a severe shaking and minor bruises. They were on their way from Auckland to Wellington, Mr. Smallwood, until recently manager of the Auckland Savings Bank, having been appointed a director of the Mortgage Corporation.

Betting by Telegram? “There is a restriction in your office upon the sending of betting telegrams?” asked counsel in the Supreme Court, Wellington, of a post office employee. “More honoured in the breach than in the observance, is it not?” said Mr. Justice Reed. “That will be seen from some of this evidence,” replied counsel. It was pointed out by the witness that although betting telegrams were forbidden the difficulty was to define a betting telegram. New Zealand Song Birds.

In the course of a lecture delivered at Lower Hutt Mr. Johannes Andersen drew attention to the essential difference between the songs of New Zealand birds and those of other countries. White other birds sounded certain notes they never sang them in the same order. New Zealand birds, on the other hand, had definite themes which they always followed. Another distinctive trait of New Zealand birds was their morning choruses in which perhaps thousands of birds of different species joined in complete harmony.

Abyssinia or ? Idly turning the dial along a shortwave band, the owner of a radio set at New Plymouth was startled last night to hear a surging of noises suggesting the turmoil of war punctuated by explosive sounds like the firing of guns. Abyssinia. At last some enterprising American had set his microphone in some rocky pass to broadcast realism! The origin of the mystery could be nowhere else than rhe hills around Makale. It was a technical expert who sadly spoiled it all. He explained prosaically that the listener had intercepted a London-New Zealand radio telephone conversation purposely distorted for the sake of privacy. Before the words had been “unmixed” at their proper destination they would sound somewhat like the firing of cannon, he said. “Plant More Native Trees.”

After nearly four months in the Dominion Mr. Lloyd Powell, examiner to the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music, London, is an enthusiast for New Zealand scenery. So far he has had little time to visit the tourist resorts of the country, but he intends to spend some time both at the Vest Coast glaciers and at Mount Cook before returning to England. “Your native bush is wonderful,” said Mr. Powell, in an interview on his arrival at Christchurch. “I think, however, that New Zealanders might do more in the way of planting native trees and shrubs in their towns. Some New Zealanders pride themselves on their country’s similarity to England, but the English visitor would rather see something characteristically New Zealand.”

Shanghai’s Progress. How Shanghai is being developed into one of the greatest cities in the world was described by Mr. G. B. Marsh, an officer of the municipal council there, in a letter to the Sanitary Institute of New Zealand, read at a meeting of the Canterbury branch. With a population of 4,000,000, he said, Shanghai was nearly the fifth largest city in the world. Huge new buildings were going up, some of them more than 20 storeys high, and smart residential areas were replacing slums. The city was the aviation centre of China, with two big national services operating from it. With the regular trans-Pacific air service on the way Shanghai would gain added importance. Another point mentioned by Mr. Marsh was that in the absence of a good milk supply dried milk was being imported from New Zealand and reconditioned at Shanghai.

In order that women voters may have an opportunity of learning about the problems facing the Dominion and the views of the various Parliamentary candidates a series of open meetings has been arranged by the New Plymouth Y.W.C.A. Business and Professional Women’s Round Table Club. Details will be found in the advertising columns of this issue.*