NEWS AND NOTES.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLV, Issue 2669, 8 December 1923, Page 1

NEWS AND NOTES.

Kecipe for strawberry jam:—Allow pound for pound for sugar and fruit, and make a strong syrup with Hie sugar, which must be boiled until it will set hard. A half pint of water to ( very two pounds of sugar. The strawberries should then be fill 1 into the pan and boiled fast for ten to fifteen minutes. Do not stir much, lest the fruit should 'break, and skim well. This is a very good recipe, and the jam is always most successful.

A fine specimen of a sfingaree was caught one evening last week b\ the third oflicer of the Kaikarai when lishing from his vessel at the Central Wharf, Auckland. The lish was an exceptionally large one for Auckland waters, measuring 6 feet bin. from head to tail, and 3 feet Jin. across. Tt was eaughi on an irdinary fishing line, which was too weak for it to be hauled on board, fhc difficulty was overcome by sinktig a coal basket under the lish mil hoisting it on board by the aid d a steam winch.

There are many people in tin’s country who agree with the facetious statement made many years ago by a wellknown world traveller to Iht' effect that the population of New Zealand is 756,000 —-mostly Government officials! But this Dominion will have to look to its laurels if it is to maintain its unique position in this respect, for the United States is fast becoming the land of Government functionaries. One person out of every twelve over the age of sixteen fully employed is on the public roll —national, State or municipal—for which the people pay approximately £800,000,000 a year.

The blooming of the Christmas flower on one of the tine pohutukavn trees on the Point Resolution cliffs, Auckland, denotes an unusually early season for this beautiful flower, remarks the “New Zealand Herald.” As a rule, the Christinas flower is not seen at the Parnell baths until a week or ten days before Christmas, so that its blooming in the end of November would seem to establish something of a record. All the poliutiikawa trees on the cliffs are showing a splendid spread of white buds, but there is a quantity of bloom on one tree, and the crimson is just showing up on Hip second.

Several splendid rainbow trout hi,vc been caught in Lake Taupe during the last few days, a party fishing in the lake at Wailinjaa on Tuesday last securing seven fish, all in fine condition. The smallest weighed 51b. and the largest 151 b. The same day a party trolling in Whangamata Bay caught seven fish during the afternoon, despite the. fact that there was no breeze and the water was glassy. The largest weighed 1.51 b. and another 121 b. There was one slam among the seven. but the average weight of the lot was nevertheless between «!'>• and fllb. Local residents, fishing with the fly at the Waikato outlet, have caught a fair number of fine fish during the past day or two.