Local and General

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 2, Issue 134, 11 March 1940, Page 4

Local and General

Sign of Restrictions. A sign of the benzine restrictions is supplied in the Clansman s deck cargo of 129 empty drums for Auckland. Formerly this vessel carried something like 300 on every outward trip.

Shortage of Uniforms. The greatest difficulty is being experienced by the Centennial committee in obtaining military and naval uniforms of the period for the re-enactment of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi. Any persons who may know the 'whereabouts of, such clothing would be doing tvhe secretary a great service were he or she to communicate with the BEACON Office. Ahead of Time. : Having once worn a unilorm (as a matter of fact it was that of the King's Navee) a certain resident of Whakatane determined to show up in it, al the social tendered to Lead-ing-Seaman McGougan at Taneatuu. It was rather a pity, then, that he made a mistake in the matter of date, and Monday night found him in the glad rags, 'rarin' to go. He was on deck, however, on the due date. A Remarkable Sight. An unusual sight for Opotiki was witnessed just before dark on Thursday night, when thousands of starlings flew across the borough to the east, just as a big storm swept across the Waioeka foothills. The birds musti have extended for a distance of two miles and made, a peculiar noise with the flapping of the countless wings. Soon afterwards the birds ilew back in a westerly direction, but the formation was broken a great deal. It is most unusual for so many birds to be seen at one time over the Opotiki Hats.

YIM GIVES VITALITY! There's nothing like Yim Tablets for building up Avorn-out, pale, thin, nervous people inlo strong, rieh-biood-ed men and Avomcn. V. G. Mackloav and oilier Chein'sts sell Yim at 4/6.

More Butter. The Clansman arrived on Thursday with about 150 tons of general cargo. Sailing on Saturday morning with 3300 boxes of butter, the vessel also carried 419 crates of cheese. The latter consignment. Lhough not the largest shipped by the Clansman, is the biggest for some time. Strange Animal. What appeared to be a strange animal wandering through bushes close to his house, was noticed by a farmer a few days ago. The animal, when captured, proved to be a neigh hour's dog with a treacle tin stuck on its head. The dog had been missing for several days and had been wandering blindly about the coun-try-side. Crowd in Town. „ Friday night saw the greatest number of cars in Wliakatane since the Christmas rush. Every available parking space was occupied. Shopping wa§ brisk for a while but one business man still shook his head gloomily. "You can't make in two hours what itl used to take sixtytwo to get," he said. He was of the opinion that benzine restrictions had dealt a mortal blow to trade but the proprietor of another concern seemed satisfied with conditions. These Babies Again. Referring to the ?tem headed 'Enemy within the country?' which appeared in the Local and General column on Friday, a local resident fcold us a story of the Great War. Apparently it was the custom to send dried Terakihi to th<j Maori

troops overseas and one oiv. occasion, Avhen the Maori lads were tearing at the dried fisli a grc'ip of Tommies stared Avondcringly. One of them approached an officer who Avas enjoying his fisli and asked him Avhat he Avas eating. "Oh," Avas the reply, "this is Ncav Zealand baby. We are cannibals, you know, and after the youngsters are killed they arc sent over to us!"

Bonkora takes off excess fat. No dieting. Safe, quick reducing. Call to-day. F. G. MackloAV, Chemist, Whakatane.

Ready for Signatures. The Centennial Register donated by the BEACON is now almost complete and leave will be distributed for signing prior and during the Centennial celebrations. It is understood that they will be in the hands of responsible stewards. When finally bound they will represent an interesting volume which will be a permanent record of the great event Captain's Gracious Act. A gracious act was performed by Captain W. E. Parry of H.M.S. Achilles while in Rotorua. The captain made a special trip to Ngongotaha to visit Mrs H. Gully, the mother of Able-Seaman A. C. Shaw, who lost his life in the engagement of the River Plate. Shaw was one of the two New Zealand casualties, and the thoughtfulness of his commander in visiting his mother is greatly appreciated. An Ancient Site. The fact that the new Union Bank stands 011 an ancient site is borne out by the discovery during the recent excavations for the foundations of a Maori skull and many human bones. There can be no doubt whatever that the whole of the southern strip of the Strand was the scene of much Maori activity in the past. Origin of Flat Feet. A group of workmen working near the Strand last Saturday, were engaged in lifting a heavy piece oi metal. An onlooker aggravated the men by lolling against a nearby post and proffering much free advice and un-asked for criticism. "Corne and give us a liana instead of slinging off," said one of the workers. "I would too," came the retort. "I'd lift the thing on my own, but I'm afraid of tlattening my feet."