NEWS OF THE DAY

Evening Post, Volume CXV, Issue 32, 8 February 1933, Page 6

NEWS OF THE DAY

"The Post's" 68th Birthday.

To-day "The Post" celebrates its 68th birthday and enters upon its,69th year of publication. It was on Bth February, 1865, that "The Post" first made its appearance as a four-page, paper of 16 columns, six and a half of which wore devoted to news. A staff of five, not all of whom were adults, was sufficient for the paper's production in those days, and printing at the rate of 250 copies an hour was an adequate pace to set. Pox- Wellington was then but 25 years old, and was still in the eyes of the rest of New Zealand only "a fishing village on Cook Strait," with not a very large newspaper-read-ing population. But the proprietors of "The Post" had vision ana faith in' the future, and Wellington's new and first daily paper survived the competition of a bi-weekly paper and of two tri-weekly-papers, to become the leading newspaper of the capital city and a journal of influence throughout New Zealand. Two Able Men. A very favourable impression has been created in England by 'at least two representatives of the New Zealand Government, according to Mr. J. M. A. Ilott. Speaking at the Kotary Club luncheon yesterday, Mr. Ilott said that he was in London last year when Mr. Downie Stewart was there, and so impressed wer« England's leadirig financial, experts with Mr. - Stewart's ability that they hoped he would be present atthe international financial conference. Sir Thomas Wilford had done very valuable work during his term as High Commissioner, and when he returned home would leave behind a name for himself as one of the most able men who had represented his country in that capacity. .-'■■'• Dunedin Students for. Christchurch. About ninety Training College students have left Otago and Southland for : Christehurch, telegraphs' the " Post's " Dunedin correspondent. This is thetfrst time in fifty-seven years that students from Dunedin have been compelled to leave their own University centre in order to train for the teaching profession. ; The Gayest City. Contrary to the general idea that the world's gayest cities are to be found on the Continent—Paris, Berlin, ViennaMr. J. M. A. Ilott, told Eotary Club members yesterday; that, in his opinion, the gayest city at present is London. Quietly confident, and possessing that great asset—the British character —the p'.oplo of London were bright and attractive, and in their busy city there were few signs of the depression,'the effects of which were to be seen only too plainly on the Continent. ■ A Scream Or Not* A suggestion that, sho had been frightened or scared by an accident to a horse at Trentham was denied most indignantly by a lady witness in the Supreme Court yesterday afternoon. "Why did you scream?" she was asked by counsel. "I never screamed," she replied, obviously astonished at the suggestion. Counsel: "One witness will say you did." "I never made a sound," was the answer. Counsel: "Well, that quarrel is with the witness, and not with me." i This morning, when the hearing of the case was continued, an old roadman, well known in the district, was questioned about the matter, and he was just as emphatic that the lady witness did scream out. One of his answers caused much amusement. ' He was told that the witness had said she had not screamed out. "I think it is impossible," was the roadman's reply. Then, in the next breath he startled everyone with this comment: "If she didn't, I must have been deaf." There was loud laughter at this, and after it had subsided the old roadman covered up his slip by suggesting that the lady must have forgotten her scream. A Valuable Anachronism. That the House of Lords is a'valuable institution ana should be retained as a o part of the British Constitution^ is the opinion of Mr. J. M. A. Ilott, who recently returned from a tour abroad. Speaking at the Eotary Club luncheon yesterday, Mr. Ilott said that when he was in London he attended a sitting of the House of Lords and was greatly impressed by the mahnor in which British and world troubles arc discussed coldly, and calmly, from a business point of view. "The.House of Lords may bo an anachronism," said Mr. Ilott, "but I hope we shall have it for a Jong time." . . •. ■. . , >. : Petone. Crossing Suggestion. . About three. years ago, when there was lively (but sinco almost completely vanished) interest' in a proposal to bilild a ramp and overbridge to, avoid the level crossing at Petone, Mr, A. J. .McCurdy, Mayor of Upper Hutt, suggested that tho great expense of such an overbridge, estimated at about £50,000, could be largely avoided were the present narrow overbridge at; the north, 'of the Petone railway station widened, so that- traffic might run along the extension of the main Hutt road, at the back of tho old railway workshop yards, and so reach the overbridge. The proposal was adversely reported upon as being less convenient than the proposed ramp at the main road railway crossing and also as being likely to be an expensive job when all factors, were taken into consideration. Mr. MeCurdy proposes to bring the suggestion forward again, as a work which might be undertaken as a relief work of value to tho Wellington metropolitan district. Mr. McCurdy holds that ,the development of -the existing ramped road would remove Jmany of the traffic dangers at .the, Petone crossing/ and near the Petone Tailway station, and that that, consideration, outweighs the fact that traffic to Eastbourne and Petone would have to make . a short detour to use the • ovcrbridge. ; Intoxicated Motorists. A proposal byHhe Federation of ■ N.Z. Justices' Associations that the minimum penalty in thecas'e of a motorist convicted for being intoxicated while in charge of a motor-car should-be twelve months'" suspension of his licence was not supported1' by the North Island Motor Union yesterday afternoon, the consensus of opinion being, that the. idea was impracticable. Mr. G. W. Hutchinson (Auckland) said, that his .association had taken the view that it could not support the proposal because of the yarying degrees of intoxication. In many cases the offence was not'a serious onei although, from a legal point of view, the driver was in a state of intoxication, ana the proposed penalty would be excessive. Waiting at the Churcn. . An unfortunate hitch occurred at a Christchurch suburban wedding on Saturday. Two hundred guests had been invited, and there, was an expectant crowd at the cnureh. Long after the appointed time, there was no appearance of the bride, and people began to drift outside. Meanwhile the bridegroom sat in the vestry, a very worried man; tho registration papers had been mislaid. The groom thought the vicar .was making all the arrangements, while the vicar naturally presumed the bridegroom would have the papers. The bride's father in a taxi and the bride's brother on a motor-cycle set out to find the registrar, but there was uncertainty about locating him as it N was Saturday afternoon. The tension was relieved when the father returned and strode purposefully up the path from the taxi. It was then announced that the wedding had been postponed until the evening. •

Fund for Charities. • • The Wellington Commercial Travellers'and Wnrohoiisemen's Association has issued an audited balance-sheet in connection with its fund for . established charities. The statement shows that £527 was distributed among nineteen organisations in the Christmas effort, tho total -payments, including advertising and sundry charges, being £607. The excess of payments over receipts was £138. A Difficult Proposition;, Giving evidence in the Supreme Court to-day, tho driver of a petrol tank wagon said he had been driving along the main road at Trentham'' for about seven years, and was accustomed to passing horses. He was asked by coun^ sel for the plaintiff in the case whether he was able to tell a racehorse when he saw one. "I can tell some, "■ replied witness with a wealth of meaning. "It is difficult enough to tell them on the course," suggested counsel for the defendant. The Beautiful Bloom of the Ragwort. From, many parts of the North Island, and particularly the Waikato, are heard frequently regrets that ragwort has such a hold on the country. Hutt Valley farmers share in the regrets of other farmers, and, unlessihe indications of the past two or three summers are false, they will in a few years 'have their own regrets. A few seasons ago very little ragwort couid be seen. Last year it was fairly plentiful. This summer the brilliant yellow of the flower heads has become quite a decorative feature of parts of the valley farm lands, railway reserves, and- waste ground. In a few weeks the beauty of .the bloom wiil be gone, but hundreds of thousands of seeds will be maturing for a better crop next year. After a few more seasons of unchecked flowering and- seeding the ragwort pest will be truly established in the Hutt Valley: Ragwort is one of the five plant pests, the destruction of which: is compulsory under English law.. ■■.■:-. -■•■'■ .• /..'.-. Lost Child Found. Some time ago the New .Zealand Red Cross Society was requested by the parents ofVa child left in.Bussi'a at the time they were fleeing from the ißolsheviks nearly. 12 years ago, to help in the effort' to ascertain the child's whereabouts. The parents are now domiciled in. New Zealand, and all efforts to trace the child were for a long time futile. Eighteen months ago tho matter was placed in the hands of the New Zealand Society, and, following negotiations with, the League of Bed Cross Societies in Paris, a cablegram was received on New Year's Day to the effect that the cliild had been traced. and was safe and well at Margoul, Stretensk, Siberia. The New Zealand Society has arranged with the Comptroller of Customs for tho necessary passport, and steps are in progress for the repatriation of the child to the Dominion. .