In the Dominion

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 72, Issue 106, 6 May 1929, Page 6

In the Dominion

Valuable Ambergris The sensational find of ambe rgrll made some months ago by Messrs Subritzky Bros, on the West Coast below Glink’s Gorge has been realised on the Home market for a sum not tar below five figures, says the North Auckland Times. The firm of Subritzky Sons and Anderson which reaps the reward of the find is to be congratulated cxi its good fortune. Milk by the Pound "It was New Zealanders who Invent* cd the system of measuring milk ia pounds instead of gallons,” declared Mr N. H. 8. Law, inspector of schuoig, in addressing a meeting of teacher.i at Palmerston North. "The quantities o? milk delivered at our creameries arc s< largo that every farmer had to wait in a queue until his milk was measured in gallons. It would take so on( that the last man would never get bacli to his farm. The measuring of th< milk in pounds allows it to hgj done by a single operation, and so saves time,” Suspected as Burglars

That precautions are being observed by the guardians of the city of Wellington owing to th( recent tamperings with shop fncki was made clear to three men retum ing home from their night work aoou 3 o’clock tho other morning. Thej were attracted by a window display ii Mercer Street, and stood for some min Utcs "devouring” the scene within, They were rather amused and surprised when a night watchman on hi« early morning rounds alighted from his bicycle and interested himself in the same display until the party continued their journey homo. Much jocular discussion ensued later as to the "suspicious” characteristics of the trio. An Old Bushman

Watching the removal of one of tuo old wooden telegraph poles from iho pavement at the foot of Queen Street, Auckland, the other day, was Jim Macnamara, an old-time bushman, who was a member of the gang which felled tee tree in a Waikato forest more than 40 years ago. ‘‘Well do I remember it,” he said. "It was a big totara, and .vc cut it at Tc Wauutu, near Ox for'!, on the old Rotorua line. We fe’Jed fwur big trees in one day—and it was a Sunday, too! This tree was what we call a £22 pile, and the others were nearly as big.” Mr Macnamara recalled that his companions in the bush in those far-off days were Dan McLeod and Harry and Walter Dyer —all wellknown Auckland identities.

Intoxicated in Fresh Air Somewhat unusual features were attached to a case that came before the Danncvirkc Court when a man was charged with drunkenness. It appears that in consequence of complaints received the police went to the defen 1ant’s house, where they found him in bed fully dressed. He was persuaded to accompany the police to the sta'inn to take out a prohibition order, as, according to a statement made by the police sergeant in court, "drink was getting him down.” On getting into the fresh air the man became so intoxicated that when he reached th« station he could not sign his own nxmo and a charge of drunkenness was consequently laid. Ho was treated as a fust offender by tho court and prohibited. Birds Eat Babbit Poison

‘‘Travelling between Whitford and Manurcwa, we saw five dead pheasants' on the roadside within a distance of about 300 yards,” said an Auckland motorist the other morning. The particular motorist happens to be interested in acclimatisation affairs, and said that the havoc was due to poison pollard spread for rabbits. He said ih.»t on a previous trip between the districts referred to he had seen two dead grey ducks and a number of small bir-b. Ho took it as an indication that tho game birds were suffering severely as the result of tho w T ar being waged on rabbits by trappers, and considered that if poisoned meal were spread on a wholesale scale the results would l>o disastrous, says an exchange. Stern-Faced Custodians The stern-faced custodians who control the city reserves are apparently no respecters of persons or of rank. Mr J. N. Millard, sole selector for the Wellington Rugby Union, told the Management Committee of the union that he had been peremptorily ordered off Newton Park on Saturday afternoon. The chairman of the Management Committee (Mr J. Prendevillc) and Mr H. Murphy admitted that a similar fate had overtaken them at different times. Mr A. E. Neilson, the secretary of the union, stated that in order to get past "the dragon at the gate” he was forced on occasions to resort to the use of a player’s pass. (Laughter.) Mr Millard considered that the official in question had been unduly officious, and the secretary was directed to interview the director parks and reserves in order to see if a little sweet reasonableness might not be observed with regard to uni<n officials who had a right to visit ihc grounds. South Island Scenery. "Of all the things I have seen In New Zealand, the glacier district about Mount Cook is supreme,” said the Hon. Mr Drummond, Minister of Education in New South Wales, in an interview at Christchurch. "It is remarkable not only for its ruggedness and beauty of snowclad mountains, but also for the excellence of its hotel and motor service.” He had seen, he said, much of the rural landscape coming through from Queenstown, via Gore, where he was met by the Southland Progress League and motored through to Invercargill, via Wyndham. Throughout his tour of the South Island he was impressed with the uniform excellence of the country for mixed farming, the thrift, well-kept appearance of the farms, and the comfortable farmhouses and surroundings. It was a wonderfully fine stretch of good country. In the run over the Lindis Pass he found particularly interesting the view from the tops of the ranges and tho peculiar purple haze on the hills, which was unique in his experience. On the trip down the lake from Queenstown, when the mist lifted in the morning, he had seen and greatly admired the snowcapped hills in contras? with the blue water of the lake.