LATE LOCALS.

Hokitika Guardian, 19 June 1930, Page 5

LATE LOCALS.

Mr and Airs J. R. Simpson left this morning en route for Scotland, where they will in •future reside. A ,

The usual weekly euchre tournament will be held .in St. Mary’s,-Club rooms this (Thursday) evening at 8 o’clock. Admission Is.—Advt.

The motor fire engine recently purchased in Napier arrived in Grey : mouth yesterday and is being brought to Hokitika this afternoon.

Keenan’s Motors have a sedan car leaving (for NMson to-morrow (Friday) at 8 am. Excursion fares. Ring 43a or 68.—Advt.

The amount of coal, timber, and general merchandse railed through the Otira tunnel for the last week was 12,797 tons, compared with 11,195 tons ■"or the corresponding period in 1929, and 12,866 tons for the same period in 1928.

In five and a half months this year, no fewer than 10 lives have been lost in railway crossing accidents in Can-v terbury alone. On January 27th, MaiyTsabel Clarke, a 12-year-old girl, was killed at the Addington crossing by a Parnassus train. Ernest Robert Vine was killed ,at the Waltham crossing when his motor-cycle collided with the Lvttelton train. In a collision between his gig and a train, Robert Bruce Breeze, was killed at Jeff’s road crossing in February. The most recent accident, at the Waltham crossing, resulted in the death of the keeper, Arthur William Bright.

Replying to a deputation at Wellington asking that the Defence expenditure be not reduced, the Prime Minister stated that it was hot, the intention o>f the Government to*Scrap the whole of the defence system. When the Government intended to do was to make a close study of the whole position, in other words to overhaul the system in an endeavour to improve it so that they would get value for the money that they expended. He was not one of those who believed the days of war were over. They had not yet reached that stag 6 when they could say, “ All is peace.” He believed, however, that they were making a certain amount of progress towards that happy goal, although he agreed that they could not afford to abandon completely defensive measures. In considering the whole question Cabinet would keep before it the representations which had been made by the deputation.