LOCAL AND GENERAL

Timaru Herald, Volume CLIII, Issue 22491, 28 January 1943, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Presentation To Thousandth Baby There was a close contest for the honour of being the thousandth baby to be born at the Cass Street Maternity Hospital, Temuka, and only an hour separated two of the contestants, both of whom were girls. The winner left for home yesterday afternoon and the occasion was celebrated by a small presentation being made to the baby. Wheat Testing Station A moisture testing station for wheat was established by the Wheat Research Institute in Timaru last year. This servicß which was available to farmers free of charge, was used extensively and will be continued this year. The testing station will be established to-morrow, and farmers are invited to send in their samples to the Farmers’ Union office, Timaru, within the next few days. Prison Camp Conditions Conditions in the German prison camp, Oflag IX A/H, concerning which there were complaints last year that prisoners had been deprived of certain amenities, have returned to normal, according- to advice received by the Prisoners of War Inquiry Office. It had been reported that the prisoners were deprived of some toilet articles and all clothing except that which they were wearing. Overcharge by Butcher A fine of £2 was imposed by Mr Harley, S.M., in the Magistrate's Court, Lower Hutt, on George Lunnis Munday, a butcher, for the sale of a forequarter of hogget mutton for 5/3, when the correct charge under Price Order 98 should have been 4/8. A plea of guilty was entered, but leniency was asked for on the grounds that the sale had been made by a casual hand and the margin of overcharge was small. Naval Discipline At least one member of the Women’s Royal Naval Service in New Zealand has recently had cause to remember the strict discipline in the navy. Admiralty regulations (states the “New Zealand Herald”) emphasise that women’s hair shall be worn not lower than an inch above the uniform collar at the back. For letting her hair down for a period while on leave, this "rating” was confined to barracks for I 24 hours. Useless Licence “I was asked if I wanted a bigger licence to import infants’ shoes,” said a representative of a firm in an appeal before the Auckland Manpower (Industrial) Committee. He had readily grasped the opportunity. “But the joke is on me,” he concluded. “I can get a licence now to import as many shoes as I like, but I cannot use it, because before I was offered the increase Britain had already stopped her export trade of infants’ shoes.” Accidents to Children More children die from accidents in the home than from accidents in the street in New Zealand. That is rather an alarming statement to make, but it is borne out by figures, states a Health Department bulletin. In 1940, for instance, 67 children under five years of age died accidental deaths. More than half of these—3s of then—died from accidents in and round the home. Swallowed objects, that suffocated or punctured vital spots head the list, and the others comprise deaths from burns, poisons, gases, suffocation, falls, and mishandling of machinery. Ballroom Replaces Church The removal of a church so that a ballroom might be extended for the occasion of the first royal visit to New Zealand, was recalled at the Anniversary Day meeting of the Early Settlers’ Association, by the singing of a hymn by Mr W. B. Allen, the oldest member present. Mr Allen was a chorister in the church which is now the chapel in the Bolton Street cemetery, where it has stood since 1869. He recalled that it had been hauled there on skids when it was decided to enlarge a ballroom for the visit of the Duke of Edinburgh. Dunedin City Lighting Coloured lighting has re-appeared outside many buildings in the business area of Dunedin after a blackout lasting about 18 months. Picture theatres and restaurants have been among the first partially to restore neon-gas lighting, and last night the city presented an unusually bright spectacle. The restrictions still in force prevent the full utilisation of coloured lighting, and the large electrical signs which were widly used in the days of peace. The partial restoration, however, provides a welcome sight to persons accustomed to the blackout. Early Wellington Relics A panorama of Wellington from the harbour in 1841 and the minute book of the Wellington Volunteer Fire Brigade in 1871 were added to the relics preserved by the Early Settlers’ Association at the Anniversary Day gathering. Bare hills are the predominant feature of the panorama which would now show roads and tiers of houses. Made from the deck of the ship Brougham by Josiah Woodward, it was presented by a grandson. The records of the fire brigade, including photographs and newspaper cuttings, were recently rescued from waste paper collected for salvage. Cast Upon the Waters This from a resident of Oriental Bay, Wellington, on Friday: “I was reminded this morning of a song entitled ‘Pennies from Heaven.’ The bay at an early hour resembled a sea studded with miniature mines. To the delight of local beachcombers these miniature mines turned out to be luscious apples, in prime condition. In no time the bay was cleared, the ‘minefield was swept,’ so to speak, and for the lucky ones there will be apple-pie on Sunday, a luxury indeed, these times. It is strange how the sea gives up what people (not the Internal Marketing Division, surely) cast upon its waters.” Theft of Army Petrol “The Army cannot afford to have petrol stolen, and the sooner such offences are stopped the better,” said Mr Gouldlng, S.M., in the Magistrate’s Court, Wellington, in sentencing William George Kyle, soldier, aged 20. to 14 days’ imprisonment on charges of having, between October 1 and October 14 last, at Porirua, stolen six gallons of motor spirit, valued at 16/9, the property of the New Zealand Government. Senior-Sergeant T. Campagnolo said that accused, who was a motor-cyclist in the Army, owned a motor-car and had been found syphoning petrol from the Army motor-cycle into his own motor-car. Blackout Episode A retired policeman who is in very good physical condition was stopped by two young men in Jervois Road, Ponsonby, Auckland, about 11 o'clock a few nights ago and asked for a match. The shrouded street lights gave little illumination and there was no one else in the vicinity. The ex-constable had no matches but was smoking a cigarette and at arm's length held it out. “They lighted their cigarettes from mine,” he said, “but I was very suspicious about their bona tides and I was quite ready for them. My doubts were confirmed when they passed on, for I heard one say 'He was no good, anyway.’ It was the blackout that encouraged these two fellows in what I am sure was criminal intention. They ,were not drunk but had had some liquor.”