DOMINION ITEMS.

Hokitika Guardian, 7 January 1927, Page 4

DOMINION ITEMS.

BY IfcT.ECIIAPH —I'UMS ASSN., COPYRIPHT. STOLEN .MOTOR CAR. A lE( HANK ADMITS THEFT. WEJ ,1.1 NOTON, Jim. 5. ITulcterred by the uncertain weather preceding the holidays a motor mechanic, Harold Joseph Whittle, took a motor car left in. Alerter Street from the stand oil December 14th. and set out on a tour to Auckland. The car was the property of Ha trick and Co., gjid had been left by a salesman. Whittle reached Tokomaru next day and there stole a rug worth £ll belonging to Roland Judd, and an overcoat attache case and contents of a total value of £9 11s Gd, the property of John Bert Wilkinson. His next move ws to change the number of the car and go further north, obtaining benzine, from various people on route, ft is alleged that he broke the monotony of the journey at Halcoinbo on December 19th. by breaking into the s.hop of W. J. Francis and Co., and stealing goods worth about £lO. After leaving Rutaruru the car went over a bank, turning over several times into a sreek. This, however, did not end the tour. It was not till he reached Cambridge that lie fell into the clutches of the. police on December :10th. These facts were admitted by Whittle before Air W. 0. Riddell, S.Af. to-day. Whittle alias Tobin, is 25.

Chief Detective Ward said that Whittle was at present on probation and there was a lengthy list of previous convictions.

The Afagistralft-: Tic seems to have very little sense of responsibility so far as other people's property is con-

cerned. Whittle was sentenced to three months’ imprisonment, concurrent on each of two charges of theft at Tokomaru, and lie was committed to the Supreme Court for sentence on a charge of stealing the car. He was remanded to appear at Feilding on the charge of breaking and entering at Haleombo.

AAIERICAN RED CEDAR. AVERTIfNCiTON. Jan. 5

In a recent- Wellington court case, dealing with the use of Western red cedar for weather boards evidence was given to the effect that on tbc Pacific Coast of North American building j authorities commonly allowed the use ot bevelled sidings nailed directly to the studs. It was known, however, at the time of the case, that the general procedure was contrary to this, and that sheathing must first he applied to the studs before using bevelled sidings. Inquiries wore accordingly instituted by the State Forest Service to ascertain the practice on the Pacific Coast, and advice has now been received from the'City Engineer, San Francisco. that the building laws there require the use of sheathing, the application of bevelled Western red cedar direct to the studs, and the importers 'Hie method adopted in New Zealand ’ with regard to maiai is to apply it direct to the stns. and the importers of red cedar claimed that similar oon- ; struction shouftti he allowed with red cedar, although it is of thinner crosssection tbaji matai. As a matter of fact, it is stated that the poor strength of red cedar and its poor naif-holding qualities, should require a much thicker section to be applied if tbc same strength is to ho obtained as in the case of matai. A LADY FARMER. AUCKLAND. January 1. For a young woman to settle on a | big (arm of her own with its attendant duties and responsibilities, is a. task for which few women have either qualifications or inclination. However, an arrival by the ALn-ama from Sydney to-dav was Afiss .f. Alma Raker, daughter of Air O. Alma Raker, wellknown in New Zealand as flic friend and companion of AH Znno Orev in his recent deep-sea fishing adventures. Alias Raker, who accompanied AH Raker from Sydney, will proceed shortly to a 12,000 acres sheep and cattle farm which her father has purchased for her in Raglan district. The property situated at Limestone Downs, fifteen miles out from Tunknu. is partly grass and partly hush, and will provide .Mr Raker and his family with a permanent interest in New Zealand, as be expects to spend a good deal ot liis time in the Dominion in the future. AI iss Raker is very fond of riding and she lias lived on sheep and cattle stations most of her life. Air Raker intends to stock the farm with Polled Angus cattle and South-J down sheep, hut attention will also Pel paid to the breeding of stock horses and thoroughbreds. On bis way to New. Zealand Hum the Federated Malay States where be has extensive rubber and tin interests, he selected a number of purebred stock in Australia for put ting on the new farm. RECORD HOLIDAY TRAFFIC. AUCKLAND, Jan. 5. All records in passenger traffic have been broken at the Auckland railway station this holiday season, and had it not been for the wet weather and the disorganisation of flic northern services owing to floods and wash-outs at Christmas the figures would have boon very considerably increased. As it is the amount of revenue received up till this morning has eclipsed last holiday season’s figures, which were afso a record, by over .-€4OOO. I fie totals given are from December 7th. tho date on which excursion fares were first issued, up to the departure of the daylight Limited for AVellington this morning.

During the period 15,723 excursion tickets, representing a cash value of £21.954, went issued. In addition 31.(571 ordinary tickets of a value of £17.743 were purchased hv passengers. The total number of tickets was 4..394. for which the travelling public paid £39,097.

INCH-PASH IX STAMP SALES. WELLINGTON, Jan. 5. i Figures simplied bv the postal auI thorities to-day showed that fi'oni December 21st. to Decemlter 24th. £5802 was taken for stamp sales alone in Wellington, against £5726 in Auckland for a similar period. The sales in I both centres show an increase in taklinjjs on the previous year. The amount of money spent in. stamps from December 21st. to December 24th. was £29.990 as against £27.824 for the corresponding days during the previous year. This covers the 18 Chief Post Offices of the Dominion where the following amounts of stamps were sold, the value of 1925 !«?ing shown, in parentheses: Auckland £5726 (£4848). Blenheim £895 (£IS7). Christchurch £3737 (£3481). Dunedin £2300 (£1619). Gisborne £470 (£498). Grevmouth '* £720 ! £753). Hamilton £1523 (£1530). Invercargill £1196 (£1094). Napier £2265 (1647), Nelson £283 (£569). New Plymouth £914 (£1264), Oamani £346 (£269), Palmerston North £1558 £(1529). Thames £664 (£812). Timaru £759 (£1011). Wanganui £1122 (£1311) Wellington £5862 (£5046). Westport £252 (£255). Th» mnnl>or of telegrams forwarded throughout New Zealand for the same four days was 137.991, ns against 142.373 for the same period the previous year. Received messages were also lower, a falling-off of 3.417 per cent, being observed for those days. In 1925 176,640 were received while the 1926 figures were 170,605. More messages wt>re transmitted, however, last

year than, in the previous year, the number for the four days being 265,000 against 258,349 transmitted for the same period of 1925. The number of parcels handled at AVellington this Christmas was very large indeed .there being 81.101. whereas only 75,852 passed through the hands of the postal authorities for the same period during the days of the previous year. A BURGLARY. AVELLINGTON. January 7. An audacious burglary was cominit-f ted,at Eastbourne when a safe was removed from Days Ray pavilion which is conducted by George Bird. It Is understood the safe contained the day’s takings. The lessor does not reside on the premises and it is believed the intruders took advantage of this and removed the heavy safe during cover of darkness. The police arc Investigating. DIVING ACCIDENT. AUCKLAND, .January 6. At an inquest into the death of Percy AVarbrick (40). Airs Warbrick said that she and her husband were spending their holidays on Rangitotn Early on Saturday morning he went to bathe. As he was walking over the rocks Tiis foot slipped, and to saved himself falling, he dived into the water! His head struck a submerged rock. AVhon taken out of the water he was unconscious. Dr Cashmore said that deceased was admitted to the Auckland Hospital at ten o’clock on Saturday morning with a broken nock and lacerated scalp. He died the following afternoon.

The verdict was returned that deceased met his death through injuries caused by diving on to submerged rocks.