GENERAL NEWS

Wanganui Chronicle, 29 November 1948, Page 4

GENERAL NEWS

Successful Garden Party. A successful garden party in aid of the Scots Memorial Hall Fund was held at the residence of Mr. and Mrs E. H. L. Bernau, St. John’s Hill, on Saturday. The official opening ceremony was performed bv Mr. McSkimming and the Wanganui Highland Pipe Band was in attendance.

Visit of Pipe Bands. On Sunday afternoon next there will oe a Highland Pipe Band marching display on Cook’s Gardens. Visiting teams will be present from Marton, Hunterville, Hawera, Patea and Manawatu. In addition there will be the Wanganui senior and junior Pipe Bands. The proceeds are for the Scots Memorial Hall. Band Concert. Members of the Queen Alexandra Band gave a scheduled municipal band concert at Durie Hill yesterday afternoon. There was a good attendance. The bands included “Finlandia,” “Shv Serenade,” “Land of Hope and Glory,” “So Deep Is the Night” and the march, “Queen’s Own.” The conductor was Mr. E. O. Schnack. Improved Weather. The marked improvement in the weather in the last three days in Wanganui has been greatly appreciated after the exceptionally wet weather of the previous two weeks. On Saturday all outdoor fixtures were played in sunny weather. The hot sunshine of yesterday enhanced the appeal of the outdoors and the beaches at Kai Iwi and Castlecliff attracted large numbers. There was also a large number of people at Virginia Lake in the afternoon. Swimming baths in the city and suburbs recorded good attendances over the week-end. Collier Arrives With 600 tons of coal from Greymouth. the coastal steamer Holmlea arrived at Castlecliff yesterday morning and will begin discharge at 8 a.m. today. The vessel was on a return trip to Wanganui after unloading West Coast coal last week. She sailed at 6 p.m. on Wednesday and loaded at Greymbuth again on Friday. Fine weather enabled the vessel to make food lime. Colliers have been more requent visitors to Castlecliff during recent weeks and efforts are being made to build up coal supplies sufficient to last large industrial consumers, such as gas works, over the Christmas and New Year holiday period. Week-end Flying. More than 15 hours’ flying was logged yesterday by the Wanganui Aero Club’s Percival Proctor and the three Tiger Moths, when full advant age of the fine weather was taken by club members. The attendance of the public at the airport, however, was small. On Saturday Mr. M. Nye returned from Wellington in a Tiger Moth, Mr. A. Palmer flew to New Plymouth and return, and Mr. A. Gordon flew to Taihape and return in the Proctor. A visitor was the Rotorua Aero Club's Auster, piloted by Mr. w. Stevenson. Yesterday Mr. W. R. Bennett flew to Waipukurau and return in a Tiger Moth, Mr. F. Bosselman flew to Palmerston North and return in a Moth and Mr. P. Bromiley flew to Pahiatua and return in a Moth during the afternoon. Two Tiger Moths from Stratford made brief visits to Wanganui yesterday. Dr. K. H. Christie flew to Napier in his Auster on Saturday and returned to Wanganui yesterday afternoon. Track Renewed. Railway track gangs attached to the maintenance branch began work in the Aramoho station yards at 6 a.m. yesterday and by evening had carried out extensive renewals of certain points and crossings. Operations were confined to the south end of the west yard and one portion of track renewed was the main line where it curves from the station platform to the signal cabin. Old rails and sleepers were lifted out bodily by a steam travelling crane and new sections of track, already assembled, were lifted in. The work was complicated by the signalling interlocking system and signal adjustors were also on duty to install new equipment for the freshlylaid track. Most of these points ar operated by levers in the south box and are so arranged that trains cannot be signalled unless the track is clear. The work was carried out yesterday so that no delays to traffic would occur. At one stage in the morning large sections of track had been ripped up.