GENERAL CABLES.

Hokitika Guardian, 17 April 1928, Page 2

GENERAL CABLES.

(United Press Association.—By Electric Telegraph.—Copyright.)

INCREASED EACTLITIES. SOFIA. April IT

The earthquake was more serious than at first thought. The death roll i is now known to he between fifty an< sevens y-tive. Tichirpan suffered the worst, thirty being killed there. The railway station was destroyed and many houses collapsed.

N.Z. APPLES. LONDON. April 14. Fruit traders are disappointed at prices realised for Australian and New Zealand apples. This is attributed partly to heavy supplies of good, cheap oranges and also to unexpected competition from Oregon Newtons. Recent ly those have been comparatively scarce, and only of moderate quality, , Init the Americans apparently reserved* some of their host and duinixxl nnuj^fe^fr—„ thousands of ease of goikl qualitythe English markets this week.

FRUIT MARKETING. LONDON. April U Mr Stephens, the representative of the New Zealand Fruit Board, points out in striking manner the advantage of landing fruit at Southampton. He says that it is cheaper and quick-

er to bring apples to Cevent Garden J. from Southampton than from or King George Dock, owing to cheaper port rates and better facilities for landing and dispatching the fruit.

As an instance, ho mentions the ease of the season’s first arrivals on March fl.Trd. when Australian apples landed at London, and New Zealand at Southampton within two hours of each other. The following morning 8000 eases of New Zealand apples were on the market, and oiilv 700 cases of Australian.

Mr Stephens is urging the Port of London authority to come into lino with Southampton. He also points out that better facilities exist at Hamburg as a Continental distributing centre, than at London.

PARTICULARS OF QUAKE. SOFIA. April IT

There were altogether twenty shocks ol earthquake. The area affected consisted oi twenty kilometres around Tschirpan with a total population, of twelve thousand. Fortunately it was a holiday and a majority of the people were out of doors when the buildings fell. Tschirpan is now uninhabitable. Every building has been damaged. Patients were miraculously rescued from the collapsed hospital. Three-quarters of the buildings in Borisovgrad were damaged and several villages were razed to the ground. Soldiers are carrying out rescue work and the people are camping in the open. GERMAN LUNCHEON. BERLIN. April IT. Ilerr Stresemann gave a luncheon to Lord Birkenhead and his golfing friends. The Foreign Office insist there is no political significance in the luncheon and that it was simply a social courtesy. DUCHESS IN A NEW BOLE. Australian Press Assn.—United Service LONDON, April 25. The Duchess of York becomes Com-liiatidaiit-in-ChTcf of the nursing section of the Order of St. John, heading 20,000 women of St. John’s Ambulance Brigade. NO COURT MOURNING. LONDON, April IT. There will he no court mourning Viscount Trematon. CHINESE TRAIN SMASH. . SHANGHAI, April IT. ' It is estimated that hundreds of Chinese were killed when a refugee train from Pukatien on route to Tientsin collided with an empty military train on a bridge at the Fai River in North Penghu. Several carriages plunged fifty feet into the river. The refugees over-flowed the roofs of the carriages and scored were killed outright and the remainder were drowned. The impact was terrific, every ear being derailed on both trains. STRIKING AN ICEBERG.

(United Service.) LONDON. April 15. The Montrose was steaming slowly when a huge double ice berg loomed in the fog. It towered above the ship’s

masts said a passenger. Captain Lundy bad to decide whether to go between two parts of the ice berg and risk the ship's sides being lipped open or go direct for one of the bergs. Without hesitation he look the latter caur.se. The ship quivered and rocked ominously. Wireless messages were sent out and the passengers went quietly to their stations. The captain slowly hacked the ship and within thirty minutes the passengers were in- v formed there was no immediate danger , and they could discard their life-belts. Before disembarking the passengers assembled upon deck and cheered the captain. MILAN HORROR ARREST. ROAIK. April 15. The man arrested at Como on suspicion of being concerned in the Milan bomb outrage is named Aomolo Tranquillc. His age is 21 years. The nervous manner of the prisoner excited The suspicion ol a hotel keeper. who informed the police of his presence. Thereupon the man jumped from a window and escaped. Later on Trnnquille tried to purchase clothes from a peasant in order to change bis dress, but the police were on his track, and they captured him The police found a Communist paper in the mail's pocket. He was taken to Milan for identification.