GENERAL NEWS

Timaru Herald, Volume CXLI, Issue 20340, 12 February 1936, Page 8

GENERAL NEWS

Scenic Wonders “If I’d known that New Zealand was so wonderful I would have come over I here earlier,” remarked an Australian I tourist to Milford Sound last week. “As it is,” she continued, “I will come | back next year and see some of the parts which I have not had time to see on this trip.” Redcliff Power Line Reporting to yesterday’s meeting of the South Canterbury Power Board, the engineer (Mr G. W. Morrison) said that the Redcliff line was laid out and the poles had been carted from the railhead to their places. The erection gang would complete the line in about eight weeks, and would liven up each section as they went and supply current at once. Circular To Schools All schools in South Canterbury are shortly to receive a circular from the South Canterbury Power Board, and headmasters are to be asked to emphasise on the children the danger of touching electric wires. This decision was reached at yesterday’s meeting of the Board after a copy of a similar circular had been received from the Central Hawke’s Bay Power Board. Readj' Money For Investment The readiness of investors to participate in debenture holdings bearing interest at 35 per cent, was exemplified in the case of the South Canterbury Electric Power Board, who had £5OOO worth of debentures for sale. Within a few hours of the announcement being placed before the public the Board had disposed of the full amount, with an additional £2OO worth. “Fruit on the Water.” A philosophical outlook was shown by two fruitgrowers of the flooded area of Hawke’s Bay, who were found by Mr J. Adamson, the Government orchard inspector, sitting on a gate amid a sea of storm-water, in which thousands of apples and pears floated. “Well, we are the first to get our export fruit on the water, Mr Adamson,” remarked one of the growers, with a smile.

Charge for Benzine. The reason why benzine is retailed at a dearer rate in Wanganui than many other centres is to be inquired into by a committee of the Wanganui Chamber of Commerce, which intends to approach the local petrol sellers on the subject. The matter was raised at a meeting of the Chamber by Mr Charlton Pearce, who said that he had travelled to the Bay of Islands, and even in that comparatively isolated locality had been able to purchase petrol at 1/10 a gallon against 2/1 in Wanganui. Coat Forked Into Chaff-cutter. To have his coat, the inside pocket of which contained a wallet with several pound notes and his watch, inadvertently forked into a chaff-cutter was the experienece of the proprietor of an Eastern District chaff-cutting plant recently. The coat and wallet were cut into pieces, but fortunately he was able to recover portions of the wallet, one of which contained pieces of the notes upon which were the numbers. The loss of his watch was by far the most serious of the unusual affair. Service for Travellers A Post Office service for passengers on overseas vessels is the attendance of a telegraph messenger on the ship for an hour prior to its departure, for •’the purpose of taking charge of lastminute telegrams or letters. The experiment was tried first in Auckland, and then extended to Wellington, and during the last year every overseas passenger steamer either arriving or departing was provided with this facility. It was used to send 319 telegrams, 288 cables and 805 letters, which is sufficient to satisfy the Department that the experiment is worth while from the viewpoint of service to travellers.

Request for New Post Office. “It is a pity that the local post office was not washed away by the floods,” states the member for Thames, Mr J. Thorn, in a communication which he has forwarded to the PostmasterGeneral, Hon. F. Jones, in connection with the agitation at Thames for the immediate construction of a new post office in Pollen Street. “The roof has several leaks, and the floor of the dilapidated building is now practically resting on flood silt, from which a disagreeable odour arises,” adds Mr Thorn. “It is unfortunate that the employees of a great Department should have to work in such a building. The flooding adds urgency to the need of a new post office.”

An Old Boy’s Appreciation Professor John Collie, of the University of Otago, and an old boy of the Southland Boys’ High School, has written to the rector giving unstinted praise to the success of the boys in the recent University of New Zealand examinations. He says: “Allow me to congratulate you and the school most heartily on its fine showing in the university scholarship examination. It is a great achievement to three of the top batch, and as an old boy I am very gratified at the result . . . As I have no authority to give the school a holiday in honour of its achievement, I am sending you a small contribution to be used at your discretion for any of the boys’ special interests.” With the letter w r as enclosed a donation of five pounds. “Doctor” or “Mister.” The question of whether a barrister holding a doctorate should be referred to in Court as “Dr.” or “Mr.” was referred by the council of the New Zealand Law Society to the General Cc”ncil of the Bar in England (reports the “New Zealand Law Journal”). The secretary of the General Council replied stating that “in the Courts in England holders of legal degrees entitling them to the use of the prefix ‘Dr.’ are not so addressed in Court. Upon a previous occasion the counc’l has ruled that the degree of Doctor of Lavz. does not confer any right of precedence in Court. It follows therefore that the differentiation is not existent in Court. The actual degree «t Oxford entitled to the social use of the prefix is D.C.L. (Doctor of Common Law), and unless a member of the University has attained to that he would not be entitled to its use on any occasion.” The New Zealand Law Society decided to adopt the above ruling and to circulate it among the district law societies.