Local and General

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 8, Issue 38, 9 January 1945, Page 4

Local and General

Fruit Plentiful Stone and pip fruit crops in and about Whakatanc appear to be plentiful this year. Plum crops a,re particularly abundant 3 whilst aiaple and peach crops are coming well to the fore. ! Discolouration of Sea The effect of the flood effluent j from the Whakatane river was to be seen by the deep discolouration of j the sea for many miles outside the harbour mouth over the week-end. So vivid was the contrast that it was remarked upon by many of the visitors to Ohope who could not understand the phenomenon. Two and a Half Inches of Rain The three day spell of wet wea-< ther prior to last week-end registered in Whakatane just 2.54 .inches according to the local Government gauge. The rain which caused a little minor flooding, ceased in time to prevent anything of a serious, nature, though once aga'in floodwaters poured over station road and cut away the shoulders. A 2y 2 lb Lemon Proudly exhibiting a lemon weighing 2%lbs, which he declared was grown on the fertile Rangitaiki Plains, a subscriber, duly astounded the Editorial staff of the Beacon yesterday when he displayed the monster. The fruit is probably of the lime variety,, but it has all the earmarks of the Lisbon lemon, has the, matured appearance of the more popular fruit- and unlike the paler lime carries a golden skin. Outsize in Cabbages A monster cabbage weighting well over 321b when has been taken to Rotorua from the Bay of Plenty by Mr J. Banks. This cabbage was grown in the Katikati district by the. chairman of the Tauranga Harbour Board (Mr N. A. Blomqu'st) who had given it to Mr Banks, who is a member of the board. The cabbage has a girth of fully two feet and on the present price level of 3d a pound, the retail would cost in the vicinity of 9/6, and reflects the great productivity of the Bay of Plenty district.

Size of United States Newspapers Two English Army officers at present spending leave in Taranaki were astounded in the course of a recent visit to the United by the size of newspapers. At Boston a Sunday paper was delivered and to the visitors' amazement it contained 94 pages. None of the usual peace-time sections appeared to have been omitted. Apart from the news columns there were pages for racing gardening notes, book and film social doings and fashions and children's pages. Ration Coupons Ration coupons available this week are as follows: Meat —Nos. 10 and 11 H coupons 6d ? 6 Coupons sd, others 3d. Butter (ration Boz weekly, each coupon Boz) —Nos. 11 and 12 available until January 20. Sugar (ration 31b. monthly each coupon 12oz) —Nos. 9 to 12 inclusive available until January 21; special coupon Y7, available until January 31, for 31b for jam-making. Tea (ration Boz each coupon 2oz) —Nos. 9 to 12 inclusive, available until, January 21. Petrol (ration face value of coupon)—Nos. 6 and 7. available until January 31. Eclipses in 1945 Of the four eclipses predicted to occur this year only two, one of the sun and the other of the moon, will be visible in New Zealand. The first which will be an annular eclipse of the sun to the north of the Dominion, will be visible here only as a large partial eclipse on January 14. A partial eclipse of the moon occurring after midnight on June 26 will also be, visible here, but the remaining an eclipse of the sun on July 10 and a total eclipse of the moon on December 19 will not be visible at any stage i from tHiis. country. A Very Old Idea Everybody knows that "prefabricated" houses of various kinds will become temporary homes for thousands when the war ends. Few however, know that prefabricated buildings were known as far back as 1481, a writer in The Times Educational Supplement. In that year King John of Portugal began the practice of sending out trading ships equipped with special prefabricated forts as protection aga'inst the natives with whom they dealt. One of these forts a rebuilt and is actually still in use today at Elinina in the Gold Coast, being at present the home of some recruits, of the West African Air Corps.;