News in Brief

Star (Christchurch), Volume XLIV, Issue 190, 12 August 1931, Page 8

News in Brief

Tramway Traffic Declines. The tramway traffic to the trots on Saturday and the races yesterday showed a falling-off as compared with the corresponding days of last year, but details of the daily returns will not be made available until the meeting of the board to be held on Monday next. * Exit the Band. A familiar feature of race meetings at Riccarton was absent yesterday. There was no band. Old racegoers were unable to recall a previous occasion when the Grand National meeting was conducted without a band. The absence of the band, however, did not mean that there was no music. Modern methods had replaced the old direct system. Loudspeakers were placed in the grounds, and a gramophone and an amplifier did the rest. But, though there was music, most racegoers missed the band. Scarlet Tunics Wanted. Re-adoption of the scarlet tunic as the uniform for mounted rifle regiments under thc new territorial system of military training was urged by Colonel John Findlay at the annual reunion of the Canterbury Mounted Rifles Regiment last evening. “ In the old da3's of the scarlet tunic,” he said, “ the very fact that a man was wearing one filled him with pride, and a man who is proud of his regiment is the man who will work for it. The scarlet tunic is essential to the new system of training. Besides its many other advantages, it catches the eye of the ladies,” the Colonel added as an afterthought, “and when the uniform does that, a soldier realises that he is somebody.” Power Failure in City. Due to a surge in one of the transmission lines from Lake Coleridge there was a failure in the power supply for three minutes shortly after eight o’clock this morning. The interruption in the supph' affected all the tram services, but the cars were able to make up the lost time during the next hour. Better Times Ahead. Speaking at a social meeting of the Men of Kent and Kentish Men’s Association, in Wellington, Sir William Jlall-Jones expressed the opinion that better times were coming. “ I am sure,” he said, “ that with the turn of the new year times will improve. But it will be a gradual improvement, and just as we scarcely notice the lengthening hours of daylight after the shortest day of winter has passed, so will our present troubles leave us.” “ Too Much Viewing.” The opinion that there is a tendency of too much viewing of of accidents by juries in subsequent actions for the recovery of damages was expressed by the Chief Justice (Sir Michael Myers) in the Supreme Court at Wellington. Naturally enough, however, added his Honor, Judges did not wish to prevent juries inspecting the scene of a mishap if they thought, or if counsel agreed, it would conceivably be of assistance in determining the case.