General News

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 86, Issue 115, 19 May 1942, Page 4

General News

Blackout Time. The time for the drawing of blind. , “ in Wanganui to-day is 5.50 p.m. ( M’omen “Posties” Ten women “posties" arc engaged in distributing mail to householders s in Wanganui. There are no more vacancies in this department, but K with a further call-up of men more women may be needed for letter de- '■ livery. ' c Essential Undertakings The Wanganui Abattoir Co., Castlecliff, is gazetted as an essential undertaking for the treatment of < hides and skins, under the National ! Service Emergency Regulations. 1 Under the same regulations the 5 Arthur Body, Ltd., timber works is ' also listed as an essential undertaking. c Tug Overhauled f The Wanganui Harbour Board’s 5 steam salvage tug, Kahanui, had re- j turned from Wellington after under- ; going her annual overhaul, reported the engineer, Mr. R. R. Dawson, at the board’s annual meeting yesterday. < The harbourmaster, Captain F. G. | ! Taylor, reported that the vessel’s sue- j vey had been completed in Wanga- J nui. i Many Visitors at Gallery. There were many visitors at the Sarjeant Gallery last week, said the ( custodian, Mr. M. H. Newrick, yester- ? day. This increased patronage was t due, no doubt, to the school holidays. ‘ The exhibition of the Empire Art 1 Loan Society’s collection of twentieth i century British art, which had been 1 in the gallery since January 22, was 1 still creating much favourable com- I ment and interest. Matches as Currency. s The scarcity of matches has opened I up new Helds for trading and their s present worth was fully realised by a c Herne Bay (Auckland) resident jast i week, when a fellow-shopper offered ? three boxes of wooden matches in ex- 1 change lor a half-loaf of bread at a 1 dairy. He was about to intercede and J buy them himself when the shop- i keeper accepted the proposal and pro- t ceeded to wrap up the bread. The on- s looker, who is a heavy smoker, noticed ? that both parties seemed satisfied with 1 the unusual deal. Harbour Soundings c Shoaling had increased at the hats i hour entrance, reported the harbour- i master, Captain I*. G. Taylor, at the t board's monthly meeting yesterday, t Soundings taken on April 27 showed 1 that the maximum depth was 17ft. f 6in. (high water, ordinary spring c tide'. The depth from the mole ends t to Castlecliff was 19ft., and from f Castlecliff to the Town Wharf, lift f 6in. At the approaches to the X own ( Wharf there was a depth of 15ft., 1 with 13tt. at. the berthages. The i depth at the Gas Wharf was 14ft. 1 Generous Donation. Appreciation of the good work being done in its campaign lor the preservation of New Zealand’s native plants and birds is shown by a donation to the Forest and Bird Protection Society of £250 by Mr. Arthur H. Fisher,, ol Dunedin. In its annual report, the society, referring to this and other gifts of considerable amounts, says: s “It is indeed heartening and very help- A ful in our long uphill tight on behalf c of New Zealand’s unique plant and .[ bird life to have such sums come along 1 unexpectedly, and makes the members f of the executive feel that, they themselves must continue to do their best < in order to justify the confidence so generously expressed in them.” a No Criminal Trials. The usual formalities associated 1 with the first day ol a. Supreme Court a session were dispensed with in Wan- a ganui yesterday when the second sit- v ling for 1942 was opened before Mr. Justice Smith. No criminal cases were sei down for trial and the grand jury i was excused from attendance under the Grand Jury Emergency Regulations. 1941. Because no civil eases were set down the services of the common jury were not required also. Al the request of His Honour the ancient custom of handing the Judge a pair of white gloves, to signify tnat there were no criminal cases lor trial, was not observed. The session will con- b cluee to-day and is believed to be the t lightest on record in Wanganui. ii Garrison Band’s Decision {.. A decision to carry on despite de- r peted ranks caused through the war was reached at a meeting of the 11 general committee of the Wanganui . Garrison Band. Eighteen members of the band are serving in the Armed £ Forces overseas and in the Dominion. r Some of the personnel are in brigade bands and R.N.Z.A.F. bands. It was p 1 announced that the learners’ class ie which was formed and taught by Mr. , . . R. Francis until he entered camp is being carried on by Mr. D. Williams. It is a source of gratification to the older members of tne band that it has , , 60 years’ continuous service, being J formed in 1882. it. is among the old- J y est musical combinations in New Zea- r ie iand - r , Contempt of Court. F A warning that it is contempt of )i Court to approach a Judge directly v concerning a prisoner was given b,> Mr. Justice Fair in Auckland, when a 7 prisoner came before him lor sentence, s- ■ He said he had receix ed a letter from , p the prisoner's wife. “It cannot be too L generally known,” continued His HoniO our, “that if it is desired by any person to put any information before the Court, the proper course is to comll ’ municate through the probation officer and those representations are avail- ; . able then both to the Crowm Prosecu- i ls tor and to the prisoner’s counsel. To j ('; act otherwise is. of course, contempt, r h because the Judge sitting in Court r must del ermine these matters only on r y the evidence he hears in Court or on t information put before him by counsel c for the Crown or counsel for the v prisoner.” \