Local and General News

Timaru Herald, Volume CXLVIII, Issue 21554, 17 January 1940, Page 6

Local and General News

No Recruits Yesterday There were no enlistments at the Timaru Defence Office yesterday and the number of South Canterbury recruits for the New Zealand Special Force remains at 508. A sitting of the Medical Board will commence at 9 a.m. to-morrow when about 20 men will be examined. A number of men will also be re-examined. New Zealand-Australia Fares In order to encourage passenger traffic between New Zealand and Australia, the Union Steam Ship Co. and Huddart Parker Ltd., announce that the war risk surcharge of 33 1-3 per cent, added to intercolonial passage money since October last, has been reduced to 15 per cent, by the Awatea and Wangahella as from to-day. “Didn’t Wait to See” When prosecuting a man for allowing a bull to wander on the road, Inspector J. Scott, of the Transport Department, raised a smile in the Waimate Magistrate’s Court yesterday. He said that the animal had been out once before to his knowledge, and was not a nice thing to have on the road. The Magistrate (Mr H. Morgan): Was it dangerous? Inspector Scbtt: I didn’t wait to see. Greenkeepers Confer The annual conference of the Greenkeepers’ Association at Palmerston North decided to present diplomas to greenkeepers qualified by examination. Officers were elected as follows: President, Mr A. Seifert; chairman, Mr J. R. Galloway; secretarytreasurer, Mr W. Horton; committee, Messrs J. Harvey (Invercargill), T. Easterbrook (Shirley), L. Watson (Miramar) and F. Hazelden (Akarana). Stolen Potatoes The unpleasant experience of waking up in the morning and finding that 17 100-foot potato drills had been turned over in one of his paddocks and the potatoes stolen befell a Taicri farmer one day last week. His only clue was that a lorry had been seen near the paddock on the previous evening, and on such slim evidence it is unlikely that the culprit could be discovered. Meanwhile the justifiably irate farmer has written down a very considerable quantity of new potatoes as “gone with the wind.” Sugar Supplies Housewives who have been worrying about sugar supplies over the fruit season will find that the grocery shops are able to cope with their demands. The recent sugar shortage was not caused so much by lack of supplies as by the fact that many people anticipated a shortage and decided to get a good stock laid by, the resultant rush on the shops necessitating the application of a minor form of rationing. Bags of sugar can now, however, be obtained without difficulty from the majority of the larger stores. Pacifism Unpopular Two strangers in a motor car pulled up at the entrance to Coronation pier, Tauranga, on a recent night, and one of them mounted a box and commenced to expound “pacifist” views. A returned soldier, calling on a few others, advanced and pushed the speaker off the box, which he threw over the waterfront embankment. There was every likelihood of the two strangers following the box; but, thinking discretion the better part of valour, they made for their car and disappeared in a cloud of dust. Largest Oil Painting Frank Salisbury’s oil painting of the Coronation ceremony of King George VI, now at the National Art Gallery, is the largest oil painting ever to have come to New Zealand. The picture, which was commissioned by the Prime Ministers of the five Dominions and presented to his Majesty, gives a vivid idea of the splendour of the Coronation. All the participants in the ceremony, as well as members of the Royal family and the Dominion Prime Ministers, are shown. The painting has come directly from the United Kingdom Hall in the New York World Fair. The frame measures 18 feet by 11 feet 6 inches. No Expenses forV Witness After the hearing of a cas® in the Magistrate’s Court, Auckland, an owner-taxi-driver claimed 5/expenses. “It is hard to judge,” he said, "how much business I have lost through being here. It may have been £5.” The Magistrate, Mr W. R. McKeen, said the new regulations covering witnesses’ expenses allowed a person in business up to 2/6 a day for out-of-pocket expenses incurred in attending the Court. "It seems unfortunate from the point of view of some witnesses, but I am unable to go beyond the regulations,” the Magistrate added, declining the claim. War and Tourist Traffic The shortness of the holiday season owing to the war conditions will have a serious economic effect upon Rotorua. Although during the Christmas and New Year holiday period the volume of tourist traffic compared with previous years there was a noticeable decrease as soon as the holidays ended and indications are that in the intervening months between now and Easter there will be little tourist traffic to the town. Already hotels and boardinghouses are not accommodating many more visitors than is usual during the winter months, while the motor camps are rapidly emptying. The decrease in traffic is very noticeable on the main roads, which for some days have been practically deserted. The Interested Spectator A well-known Hawke’s Bay sportsman, while fishing the Maraetotara recently, had an interested spectator in the form of a large black shag which kept a watchful eye on every flick of the fly. Perched on the river bank the shag kept dumb company to the fisherman, who, being otherwise alone, appreciated the presence of the spectator. Cast after cast was made without result, until finally, with a singing reel the rod tip bent downwards indicating the presence of a weighty trout on the fly. The water was crystal clear, and the fisherman could see the trout vainly attempting to free itself from the hook. Up and down stream the fish tried all its cunning to free the hook from its jaw, but it was fighting a losing battle. The fisherman, intent on landing his fish, for the moment forgot his friend on the bank, who was taking a casual interest in the fight, but as the exhausted trout was being drawn slowly to the water’s edge, the shag, with a piercing screech, dived from the bank and returned to the surface with the trout fixed between its beak. The fisherman’s line had suddenly become slack; the rod had returned to normal, and the fisherman could only stand and watch his fish form a meal for a friend who had suddenly become a foe.