NEWS OF THE DAY

Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 57, 4 September 1926, Page 8

NEWS OF THE DAY

Do Salmon Feed la Riven? The question whether salmon feed in rivers is an important one in regard to the advisability of their importation here, as the quantity of trout food is already not' very plentiful. In an interesting' book, Mr. Napoleon Comeau (guardian of the Godbout Hirer in Canada), who has landed a record bag of 57 salmon in a day, says he is convinced that they do not. Out of the many thousands of fish he examined, only four had any vestiges of food in them. In two at consisted of a largo species of fly, about an inch and. a half long, in the third wag the remains of a mouse, and in the fourth (a kelt) was a bit of fat with a shred of skin. "Four salmon," he writes, "out of twenty thousand, had enough food in them to keep; a small trout alive for one day.. I think we may well conclude they do not feed in fresh water." "The Bit of Oold" Wins. Tassels or no tassels T That was a question' which was exhaustively debated at the last'meeting of the Management Committee of the Auckland Rugby Union,"; when the matter arose of providing caps for the winning teams in the various grade competitions (states the "New. Zealand. Herald"). Before the war tassels were provided, but caps only have been given since. When it was suggested that tassels should be reintrodueed, the opinion of menrt>eTß seemed to have been fairly evenly divided, but recollections of boyish pride in the additional embellishment swung the scales in favour of "the bit of gold." Aeroplane at Palmerstpn North. On Thursday afternoon at 5 o'clock an aeroplane ,was seen flying low over Palmerston North. The machine is the property of the New Zealand Air JVro and is in charge of Captain Buckley, who has been commissioned by the Manawatu Eiver Board in connection with a survey of the board's district. The machine has its base at Foxton temporarily, and recently Completed photographic work in that locality at the time of the recent flood. The aeroplane did not effect a landing at Palmerston North, and after a period of manoeuvring returned to its headquarters at the river-port town. The flight was watched with interest and not a little excitement, as the aeroplane was flying very low. At tho railway station passengers by the Main Trunk north-bound train deserted the carj riages and delayed the departure of the express by watching tho machine until lit disappeared. Flimsy Bus Construction. Comment upon the flimsy construction of motor-buses was made by Mr. J. W. Poynton, S.M., yesterday during the hearing of a ease in which a collision- between two buses was involved, states "The Post's" Auckland correspondent. A witness said that the sides were made of three-ply wood, and Mr. Poynton commented that the buses were just like delicate boxes, and' did not seem to afford much protection for the passengers inside. He thought that* something might be put round them to strengthen them. He suggested an iron rail as a suitable reinforcement. Hero was a ease in which two jbuses travelling at a moderate speed j came together and had their sides ripiped off. ~ 7-LUZI-SL

A Lucky Escape. When walking down Willis street this morning a middle-agod man had a lucky escapo from severe injury. It was about 9 o'clock, and tho upstair windows of a shop wero being opened. One of the frames fell out, and struck the man on the pavement below. Glass was scattered in all directions, but except "for a shaking and some bruises to his head, the man escaped uninjured. Blind Musicians. Writing to the president of the Wanganui Eotary Club, Mr. Clutha Mackenzie, diroctor of the Jubilee Institute for the Blind, Auckland, states that music has not been neglected at the-in-stitute, but its scope has been limited almost entirely to the piano and the pipe organ. In these fields institute pupils have won many notable successes and have gained much pleasure and profit. Piano tuning as a profession has proved most satisfactory, and some 25 old pupils are now earning good livings at it in various parts of New Zealand. "The trustees feel, however," says Mr. Mackenzie, "that for reasons both of pleasure and profit orchestral music offers a promising development. An orchestra will be a big fillip to social life at the institute itself, and old pupils, when they leave us, will find themselves so much the more welcome in tho community which they join. Some, too, will find playing in professional orchestras a happy means of earning their living or of adding to their income. ... Music is a field in which the blind revel, and the pupils of the institute will be deeply grateful for anything that is done to bring it closer to them." . A Thief'in the Night. - Two residents of Duncdin who travelled from Wellington to Lyttelton in a two-berth cabin in the Maori on Tuesday night report, according to the | "Otago Daily Times," that they were robbed during the journey. They went to bed about 9.30 p.m., leaving the light on. They soon fell asleep, but one of them woke about 11 o 'clock, and, on looking through the open door of the cabin, saw a man approaching. The man stopped about three feet away from the door, and, on perceiving that i eyes were upon him, beat a hasty retreat. The traveller, whose suspicions were aroused, examined his pockets, and found that 30s in silver,'which he had left in his trousers, had disappeared. He aroused his companion, and. they found that the latter had lost his watch. The chief steward of the steamer was informed of what had happened, and a description of the man seen in the alley-way was given to him. The man was kept under surveillance until the Maori arrived at Lyttelton, where ho was arrested with the stolen articles in his possession. National Park Hostel. The specifications for the proposed new hostel at the National Park are now being circulated, says the "Taumarunui Press," and the Tongariro National Park Board is prepared to consider applications for the Tight to erect and conduct a hostel within the confines of the Park. The succossful applicant will also be required to take over buildings, huts, etc, already erected on the areas. The initial hostel is to contain accommodation for at leasr 75 visitors, and shall bo planned so that .extensions of a uniform nature may be added. Owing to the difficulty and expense of obtaining fuol, it is. considered that, if possible, electric appliances should be installed for cooking and heating. In this connection water is available from which power may bo generated. At least eight bedrooms must be provided with individual bath and toilet, and adequate provision must be made for general bathroom and toilet accommodation for both sexes. The site of the proposed building is on the Bruce road, about four and a half miles from the Waimarino-Tokanu road. Tho original tender received for this work, which included covered-in tennis courts, was somewhere in the vicinity of £54,000. Power Board Finance*. The statement made by Sir John Luke, when expressing approval of the Mangahao hydro-electric scheme, that only two power boards, "Hutt Valley and Waipukurau" showed a loss has received more attention by-Hutt Valley residents than the facts warrant, states Mr. A. J. M( Curdy, chairman of the Hutt Power Board. It must be borne in mind, he said, that though current was "turned on" for the Petone carnival in December, 1924, and was continued (with some interruptions) thereafter for night use only for a couple of months, the general supply to the Hutt Valley reticulated area could only date from February, 1925. At 31st March, 1925, there were 1356 consumers in the Hutt Valley and Eastbourne. During the succeeding three months 618 new connections were made, and the revenue for the quarter amounted to £4666; from Ist July to 30th September, 1925, a further 690 consumers were linked up, and that quarter's revenue totalled £5964; in the succeeding quarter 608 additional consumers were obtained with a revenue of £7760, and for the three months ended 31st March of this year 620 new consumers were added to the system, making, a total, of 3892, and the last quarter's revenue was £9949. It would thus be seen that the deficit on the twelyo' months' operations, £1197; might be considered trivial, when it was realised that the first quarter's revenue was £4666, and the last quarter of the 1925-26 financial year produced £9949—an increase of £5283 within nine months, or over 113 per cent. Since 31st March of this year an additional 808.new consumers had been connected to the system, and the revenue for the four months, Ist April to 31st July, 1926, amounted to £15,561, or over, 56 per cent, increase upon the last quarter of 1925-1920. The tot£l expenditure for the first four months of the current financial year was £15,120, of which four months' interest and sinking fund on loans absorbed £5890, and_ current purchased from Mangahao during the same period cost £3800. The expenditure on'capital account during the four months was £17,175, which was charged to loan account. A balance of some £7000 cash and a quantity •of material ana equipment in store was available for i further immediate -needs. The chair man said he would circulate full particulars regarding the proposed £150,----000 loan to the members of tho board before the meeting of 16th September.