Town Talk

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 79, Issue 281, 30 November 1935, Page 8

Town Talk

; Inter-Island Ferry, | Booking for the Christmas period on L the inter-island ferry steamers are ’ particularly heavy this year. Although P there is still ample accommodation for Il passengers prior to Christmas Day, it | is reported that the season promises to J be a record one. Male travellers on [ the steamei s are already .being issued i with berths in the smoking-room and I dining-room but women passengers still i can secure cabins. • The Hawke Cup 'The first elimination match for the Hawke Cup, the trophy which is comi peted for annually by the minor cricket I associations of the Dominion, is to be | played at New Plymouth on Thursday, [ Friday, and Saturday of next week, between Wanganui and Taranaki. It will ' depend upon this match as to which : association has the right to challenge the holders of the trophy, which is at present in possession of Manawatu. i Speedboat Racing. I The speedboat racing season on the Wanganui River will be commencing in the near future and many enthusiasts | are now preparing their craft for the season’s events. This sport is a thrilling one both from the point of view of the competitor a-nd t'he spectator and is becoming more popular in this centre each season. A speed of 30 to 45 ifiiles an hour is not considered fast on the road to-day but to cut through the water at such speeds provides thrills for the stoutest hearts. Fire Brigade Busy. The anganui Central Brigade received two calls yesterday arternoon. The first was received at 3.24 and a machine was despatched to Kerl’s Avenue, Aramoho, where an outbreak of fire had occurred in the kitchen of a dwelling owned and occupied by Mr. T. R. Lambtss. The brigadesmen made a good save and the damage was confined to a portion of the One of the occupiers of the house displayed considerable presence of mind on discovering the fire and before giving the , alarm closed all doors, thus eliminating draught. The second call was received at 4.45 p.m. to a grass fire in London Street. The outbreak was soon extinguished. Checking Electoral Dolls. A task of considerable magnitude now being undertaken by the Keturnino- officer, Mr. AV. S. Jones and staff, is that of checking the electoral rolls. This work, which will last several days, is necessary after each election. T’he rolls are examined with meticulous care and every effort is made to trace possible cases of the one person having voted twice. When the check is completed the absentee votes are counted and the final re-count takes place. The Returning Officer tor the Rangitikei electorate, Mr. F. C. Wilson (Marton) is similarly engaged. In those electorates where the successful candidate has been returned by a substantial majority, such as Wanganui and Rangitikei, the checking of the rolls and the | re-count is not liable to make any dif- ■ fercnce to the result of the polling. I Valuable Postage Stamps. During the many years he has been collecting Hostage stamps, Captain Antonio Cacoyannis, of the Greek steamer Nemea, now at Castlecliff, has acquired some rare and valuable specimens which would be the pride of any philatelist. One Bermuda penny stamp, surcharged threepence, is valued at £350. The skipper is also proud of the Japanese stamps of 1871 and the 1919 issue, with over-printed aeroplane denoting the start of air mail services in that country, which came into his possession during recent \on aging to Japan. T r c has also some valuable stamps of Australia, which he counts himself very fortunate to have obtained during the past few years. Captain Cacoyannis does not carry his entire collection on the ship. The majority of his stamps are left in safety at his home in Athens, Japanese Cigarettes. Although many people claim that Japanese articles fall shert of the quality of the products of England and the Dominions, in the manufacture ot cigarettes the Japanese can market an article of a high order. On many of the tramp steamers that visit New Zealand the officers and crew smoke Japanese cigarettes, which compare more than favourably with the higherpriced cigarettes marketed in New Zealand and are retailed at threepence for 20 in Japan. A reporter yesterday compared some of these cigarettes with several popular brands retailing in New Zealand al four to five times the price and was satisfied that the Japanese article was uf equal quality. Saiety matches, each box or which contains more than a New Zealand box, are retailed in Japan at threepence for two dozen boxes and the matches, 100, are of good quality. Overseas Mails. Two English and American mails have reached Auckland this week. 'J he Niagara, three days behind acr usual running Lime, arrived on Thursday from A ancouver and was followed by the Matson liner Alonterey from Han Francisco, which arrived yesterday. The Wanganui portion of the Niagara’s mail was delivered yesterday and the Monterey 's mail is expected to reach the Chief Post Office in time for ' this morning’s deliveries in the city and suburbs. The Niagara, incidental! v, was originallv held up by a labour dispute in Sydney and on her outward trip to Vancouver omitted Auckland as a port of call. The Alonterey resumed her voyage to Sydney and Al elbourne last night and took a quantity of New Zealand mait for Australia. Advice has been received that the mails which left Wellington on October 30, via San Francisco, arrived at London on November 27. Timber Export. A further large quantity of maiai timber, milled in the King Country and consigned to Alelbourne and Sidney, will leave AVanganui next week when the 2040-ton intercolonial freighter Abel Tasman sails for Greymouth. During the past years many thousands of feet of timber have left the Wanganui wharves for overseas. During those periods when this trade was at its peak as many as five and six vessels t were to be seen foading at the Town AVharf at the same time, but with the gradual depletion of the large bush ■1 areas the trade has gradually dwindled. There appears to be a revival, ho. 1 ever, so far as the port of AVanganui is concerned. Some weeks ago the s.s. s James Cook loaded what was consid2 ered a record consignment of matai and the Abel Tasman, due at the Town Wharf at about noon to-morrow, will r commence loading on Monday morning, t The freighter will remain in port for t about five days.