LOCAL & GENERAL NEWS

Timaru Herald, Volume CXLIII, Issue 20929, 7 January 1938, Page 6

LOCAL & GENERAL NEWS

Executive Commission The Executive Commission of Agriculture, which is to investigate the dairy position in South Canterbury, will sit at the Fire Brigade Hall, Temuka, at 10.30 a.m. on January 11 and will continue the following morning at 11 o’clock at the Parish Hall, Geraldine. “Bordering on Vulgarity” A decision to inform the police that it viewed with alarm some of the sideshows at agricultural and pastoral shows was made at the meeting of the Masterton Agricultural and Pastoral Association. Mr H. M. McGuinness, who introduced the question, said that on one or two occasions he had made a tour of the sideshows and he had come to the conclusion that at Palmerston North and Carterton certain of them were not in the interests of healthy public opinion. He considered that they were bordering on vulgarity or worse. Summer Suitings at Races Men’s fashions were the subject of some comment at the Ellerslie races on Monday, when appropriate summer suitings were worn by a team of 19 visiting British bowlers, who were guests at the course. Among the conventionally-dressed male race-goers the visitors were prominent because of their tropical silk and duck clothes, which were Ideally cool for the heat of the occasion. Their headdress consisted of Panama hats and white topees, which, together with the suits, were purchased at Curacao while the team was en route to New Zealand. Fire-swept Forest The Commissioner of State Forests, the Hon. F. Langstone, intends to call a conference of timber millers and forest service officers to consider salvage work over about 2000 acres of bush in the area from the main road between Waimarlno and Tokaanu which was swept by fire a few weeks ago. If it is decided that the scheme can be an economic proposition, the Minister's hope is that work will cease in other parts of the district and resources pooled to get the timber out of the affected area. The forest service is interested in about half the area swept by fire. Ambergris Found A piece of ambergris, weighing 211 b, was found by Messrs A. J. Parker and T. Cockroft, of Hamilton, on the Maiora Beach, four miles north of the Waikato Heads, on Sunday. The ambergris was lying well above high-water mark, and indications were that it had been washed up quite recently. When the substance was submitted to an expert he confirmed the view that it was ambergris, and that it was of fairly good quality. Arrangements for the disposal of the ambergris have been made, but its value is uncertain, and depends on the amount of amberine it contains, and the present market quotations, which are not available in New Zealand. Clipper Mail Worth £4145 A total sum of £4145 was produced by the sale of stamps for the first air mail taken from New Zealand by the Pan-American Airways’ Samoan Clipper, which took off from Auckland at 3 a.m. on Sunday last. The mail Included 25,034 letters and weighed 3531 b lloz net. The registered portion of the mail totalled 3863 letters, weighing 5581 b, and the ordinary air mail 21,171 letters, with a weight of 2981 b. Contrary to early indications, the major portion of the mail was for San Francisco. Details supplied by the Chief Postmaster at Auckland show that the mail was made up as follows:—Ordinary: For San Francisco, 12,814 letters (weighing 1911 b); for Honolulu, 3172 letters (411 b for Pago Pago, 8185 letters (651 b Registered: For San Francisco, 2908 letters (411 b for Honolulu, 353 letters (451 b for Pago Pago, 702 letters (931 b