ROUND THE TOWN

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 19919, 15 August 1927, Page 6

ROUND THE TOWN

The new port light at the entrance to the Wanganui river has been tested and found to be working satisfactorily. It has been gazetted to come into operation to-morrow.

A casual labourer employed on road work by a local body in this district, promptly fainted* when he was informed .last week that his services were no longer required.

The city unemployment relief fund continues to show substantial increases daily, and Saturday’s contributions are stated, to have brought the total amount to over £2400.

The roofing of the dome of Bastia Tower has been completed. The finishing touches are now being made to the structure and th© valves and other fittings are being installed..

A Fordell resident who received a letter from a friend In Edinburgh last week was informed that at the time of writing New Zealand butter was being retailed there at Is lid. and Danish at Is 8d per pound.

Many glow worms have attached themselves to the walls of the tunnel which connects the Manga'horopito stream with the City Council’s dam at Okehu, and in some places there are hundreds of tiny phosphorescent dots above one’s head.

Motorists who enjoy a thrill would find excitement in driving a car down the narrow sledge track which leads to tho Okehu dam. This twisting track appears perilous enough in dry weather, and* when it Is wet and greasy great caution is required.

The loan collection of English pictures in the Sarjeant Gallery has now been visited by 3849 people, and the gallery is an attraction which draws a large number of oversea visitors. Many of the great cities of the world are represented in the visitors’ book.

Speaking on the subject of unemployment at the Opera House last evening the Mayor (Mr W. J. Rogers) said he hoped the day would come when statesmanship would solve the problems of unemployment and assistance to parents who were struggling to raise families.

Mischievous children often do a great deal of damage by thoughtless acts, and a city resident recently saw two boys bombarding with stones the monument in front of the Sarjeant Gallery. The area around the monument was littered with stones, and this was not an isolated instance.

A collision yesterday afternoon between an automobile and a motor cycle resulted in the admission to the Wanganui Hospital of tho cyclist, Albert Sewell, aged 20 years, a resident of Glasgow Street. Last night, the victim of the accident was stated to have sustained a flesh wound.

From this evening, between 7 o’clock and 11 o’clock, a patrolman will supervise nightly at the parkingstand for cars in St- Hill Street. This system of supervision is tre result of the endeavours of the Wanganui Automobile Association and the scheme was instigated as the result of the numerous incidents recently of vandalism to cars in the city.

Plans and specifications for the removal of the overburden of soil above the rock at the Harbour Board’s quarries, are being prepared by the engineer (Mr H. V. M. Haszard) and the city engineer (Mr N. Crofton Staveley) and tenders will bo advertised for in’ a few days. It was recently stated that the cost of removal of this top layer of earth largely determined the cost of the rock to the Board.

On Saturday evening, the visiting Southland. Rugby players were guests at a dinner given by the Wanganui Rugby Union. Yesterday, the tourists were conveyeyi by car on observation trips to neighbouring points of interest. The members of the team are to leave the city to-day for Wellington, where they will play a match on Wednesday and later they will return To tho South Island.

The attraction of Rugby was again in evidence on Saturday on Spriggens Park, when the Wanganui representatives were defeated by the Southland touring team. Minor injuries caused to several players and a severe leg injury necessitated the removal from the field of Amorangi, the local full-back. A feature of the day was the exceptionally large number of cars parked outside Spriggens Park.

A choked drain last week caused the flooding to a depth of several inches of a Guyton Street residence, and some djamage resulted. The occupants have been similarly annoyed on two or three occasions, during the past year or so. It is a singular fact that the house is the only one to bs invaded by the unwelcome waters and to date, workmen’s endeavours to locate the cause have proved? futile.

To bring the pressure down to a workable one for domestic purposes, the water from the Okehu dam passes through break-pressure tanks on the eleven miles to Westmere reservoir. “Were it not for this,*’ said Mr J- 8. L. Deem, Assistant City Engineer, to a “Chronicle’’ man, anyone who held a cup under a tap would find only the handle in his hand. As a matter of fact the town pipes would not be equal to the pressure.’’

On Saturday afternoon the Children’s Giuld of Kindness pfesented Mr H. Williams, manager of His Majesty’s Theatre, with a rug and with a bouquet for Mrs Williams. Keen regret was expresed at Mr Williams’ approaching departure for Oamaru, and the children thanked him for the interest he had taken in them. Mr Williams replied that he had studied, the children as much as he could and had avoided screening at matinees films which were not suitable for young people.

Wireless is now playing an increasingly large part in the city’s affairs, and the management of a local restaurant has installed a set in its lounge. Pedestrians late on Saturday night formed an interested audience, outside dealers’ premises in Victoria Avenue, when the account of a fifteenround boxing contest in the Sydney Stadium between Hahn b (South Africa) and Long, an American negro, in which the former won on points, was given. According to the broadcast report, the contest was exciting, and while the spectators across tho Tasman were repeatedly aroused to high excitement, mild enthusiasm was also shown by the Wanganui audience which stood shivering in the Avenue-