Local and General

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 5, Issue 17, 16 February 1942, Page 4

Local and General

Many Racegoers

The Rotorua race meeting which was held on Saturday attracted a large number of local followers of the turf. Two extra N.Z.R. buses left Whakatane accommodating about 40 passengers.

Romantic Setting 1

The only duel that has taken place on Mt Egmont was fought during the period of the Maori Avars. Two men, one of foreign origin, decided to settle a difference between them, so they went up on to the slopes of the mountain and fought a duel in true military fashion. Only one re-

turned

Parade of Fire Fighters

Prior to the incendiary bomb demonstration at the laltefront on Thursday evening a parade of fire brigadesmen was held under the supervision of Mr C. H. Balsdon, deputy superintendent of the Rotorua Fire Brigade. Representatives included were from the Rotorua Brigade, the Emergency Precautions Service fire section, and the Tauranga, Te Puke, Whakatane, Mill and Ngongotaha Fire Brigades. Members of the pipe band of the Rotorua Caledonian Society headed a march from the fire station to the lakefront.

Taking no Chances They were talking about the Maori soldiers. A man. back from Crete and Greece' was speaking of their wonderful fighting, and particularly of their initiative. "Why," he said, "one of them on sentry go heard a rustling in some bushes some yards away. Immediately he called ,"Halt," then up with his tommy gun and tut-tut-tut went the instrument of death. Then tiie sentry remembered something he had forgotten, and called out 'Who went there;'" Women's Land Army "It's a myth !" declared an appellant to the Armed Forces Appeal Board, when he was asked if the employment of land girls from the Women's Land Army would not free ft reservist in his employment for service in the armed forces. Yes, he continued, he'd have pleasure in telling that to Mr Semple if lie got the chance. Anyway, he'd tried a land girl and she left, saying there were too many cows. There were chuckles in the hearing of an appeal which followed hard on the heels of this one. A man and a land girl were stated to be handling a farm and milking 78 cows. The owner of the farm, a cripple, answering a question by Mr R. Coulter, said that he'd also tell Mr Semple anything nppropriate to the occasion, but this girl was certainly giving every satisfaction in the discharge; of her duties.

Baby Swallows Penny Modern surgical equipment was probably responsible for saving the tife of a three-months-old baby, son of Corporal and Mrs 11. S. 1' orris, Milton Road, Greymouth. The bab.v swallowed a penny, which passed down tlie throat and lodged in the gullet. Forunately the coin remained upright and did net cause suffocation, although, the child had difficulty in breathing. He was taken at once to the Grey Hospital where a laryngoscope was used in removing the coin, without the necessity of an operation. The child is making good progress.

Theft of Soldiers' Tobacco ' An indication of the scale on s which tobacco is stolen from ship- 1 ments intended for men serving in J the Middle East, is given in a clipping from an Alexandria newspaper, i During a recent session of the mili- ' tary court there, 25 cases, all local ] subjects, were examined. Fourteen eases concerned subjects who had 1 bought or sold various stolen Army < goods. All the accused were sentenced to six months' imprisonment. Elsewhere in the newspaper, reference is made to the theft of eight hales el' tobacco from a Customs store. Stockings for Nurses A possible suggestion to the Wha~ katanc Hospital Board is contained in a telegraphed item from Timaru, which states-: Eight hundred pairs of stockings for sale to members of the nursing staff are to be purchased by the South Canterbury Hospital Board, according to a decision reached by the board at its meeting at Timaru. The purchase will be made on the recommendation of the Di-rector-General of Health, who pointed to the probable shortage. For the same reason the board agreed to purchase materials for the manufacture of nurses' uniforms and to discontinue the uniform allowance. A True "Fish Story" Many a story is told about ihe "one that got away," but here is an angling incident that takes pride of place in the category of stories related by the disciples of Izaak Walton. Oil a recent evening at the back cif the Wyndham township one of the local enthusiasms, Mr fl. Restall, had the good fortune to spot n ten-shilling note rolling about in an eddj r . After about a quarter of an hour's solid angling with the minnow the prize was duly landed, a little torn, perhaps, but nevertheless "good Aveight" when it was presented to the local bank for payment. Soon Scared . Not all National Military Reservists on sentry duty receive the prompt answer to their challenges which the public must give. One small boy who incautiously approached a coastal defence post was promptly challenged by a National Reserve private who had advanced upon his quarry in true soldier fashion. "Halt! Who goes there?" lie roared. "Garn. You can't scare me" was the startling reply received to the age-old military order. But the small boy's impetuousness soon gave way to genuine fear as he was gently but firmly ordered away from forbidden territory. Mayor Speaks Out That it was scandalous that there . should be conscientious objector r camps with better living than the men had overseas, was the opinion ' expressed by the Mayor of Palmer- . ston North, Mr A. E. Mans ford, at , a soldiers' gathering last week. He said that many men were taking . advantage of conscientious objection to escape military duties. Mr Mansford expressed keen disappointment at the poor attendance of the public at the gathering and said that many people lacked sufficient appreciation of the sacrifices the men were making to> attend even for half an hour. Where was the Tea An army marches on its stomach, so Napoleon is reported to have' said. In the' same way Britishers fight best when liberally supplied with tea (yes, the stuff that costs 4,/~ a pound). Judge then the consternation that reigned among the people of a certain district on the Rangitaiki Plains; when they assembled at a parade of the local Home Guard combined with a picnic for wives and children, but there was no tea. A copper boiled away merrily, and everyone expected someone else to make tea. It appears that those in command had made plans for a "hot water provided" picnic. Those present quenched their thirst with lemonade and waters