PONS-WINNECKE.

Hokitika Guardian, 12 March 1921, Page 3

PONS-WINNECKE.

[by TELEGRAPH —PER PRESS ASSOCIATION] i FINAL TESTS YESTERDAY.

| TRENTHAM, Mrcli 11. | In a blustering afternoon tli 0 final I test to decide who should have the honour of holding tli Riflo Championship of New Zealand for 1921 was fired in the presenc e of the Governor General, and Lady Jellicoe, (Brigadier-General Chaytor, and other military officials, and a fair sprinkling of the public. The best shot of the match was that

of E. Ballinger, who got on a very fine | 12, as follows: 3 (sigliter) 3,4, 5,4, 4, j 5, 2,5, 4, 5. He takes the Rifle ClialI lenge Cup for winning this match and heads the aggregate for scores in all matches in th,> service and Belt series with a total of 973, D. McLeav was . runner up witii one point less. Alfo--1 gether the match produced poor shooting, not nearly up to the standard of the average of a ten-shot match at ]T)00 ' vards. The wind certainly was disconi.„ , • .

ocrting—a fish-tail had to lie gauged, ! ranging over an arc of 25 degrees and j running from 8 feet off th P left edge of the target to clear of the other side, i The presence of interested spectators ( no doubt upset some of the men’s nerves. Even so, the scorers could not with few exceptions do anything with the wind and the passing light and shade effects. Th ( . following are the details of the King’s Prize Match, 10 shots at 1000 yards, open to the 50 highest aggregate scores in the Belt series: —Belt, ' Cold Modal, Cold Cadge and £SO E. E. Vcnncll (Tewharau), range score 36, total 510; silver star and badge £25 Capt. A. Neilson (Napier) 30-543; silver star badge and £2O, H. V. Croxton (Karori), 26-539; silver star badge and £l4. Lieut H. H: Donald (Opaki) 30-539; D.R.A. Badge and £5; H. H. Mawley (Opaki), 39-538, badge and £5: E. A. Ballinger (Petone) 42-536 badge and £5; ,T. C. Carter (Petone), 29-536, badge and £5; W. H. West (Blenheim) 26-531, badge and £5; B. Oillick (Kiwi). 26-530, badge and £5; R. piper (Christchurch), 29-528, badge and £5; W. Moselem (Kaeo), 34521, badge and £5; McLeay, D., (Te Kniti) 24-527, badge and £2; Capt. H. Simmons (Eketahumt), 37-524, badge and £2; A. Patrick (Auckland),, 22-523, badge and £2; A. H. Dixon (Auckland), 21-522, badge and £2; C. Whiteman (Wellington), 27-521, badge and £2; Capt. \\ . X. Masefield (Marlborough), 29-520, badge and £2; E. J. C. Heston (Akarana), 26-520, badge and £2; N. " Wood (Frankton), 22-520. badg,. and - £2; H. Reynolds (Christchurch), 27 a 519, badge and £2; If. Hunt (Welling- 1 ton). 27-519, .badge and £2 ; D. J. Gui- f ney (Petone). 30-517. badge and £2; W. E. Pearce badge and £2; E. Sandford (Christ- J church, 22-516. badge and £2: J. Bn- a 'dim (Kaiapoih 29-514.

CO-MKT’S TRAIL OF -MILLIONS OF -METEORS. LONDON, Jan. 18.' Dr Crommelin, the astronomer of the Royal Observatory, Greenwich, states that when the comet known as PonsWinneeke makes its expected appearance some time in June there is only the. very slightest chance of its colliding; with the earth, and instead of causing ir catastrophe, as has been suggested in some quarters, it may pass by altogether unnoticed. “Instead of being alarmed,” said Dr Crommelin, “I think astronomers would welcome a collision to see what comets are really made of.” Pons-Winnecke, a comet first named in ISIS), becomes visible from the earth every s;f years, and Dr Crommelin has estimated that it will be very near us about June 15. If it passes in the daytime it may not be noticed, at all. “There is just the possibility that it will cross the orbit of the earth during the three weeks it will he near us,” I said Dr Crommelin, “lint the chances j are less than 1 in 1,000. There may be a gi&at display of meteors when the comet draws- near, because Pons-Win-necke, though not having what is commonly known as a ‘tail,’ lias a trail of j meteors 500 or 000 million miles long. | The comet itself travels at the rate oi 2-1 miles a second when near the earth.”