NEWS AND NOTES.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLVIII, Issue 0234, 17 April 1926, Page 4

NEWS AND NOTES.

A new oil electric train, which was tested recently by the Canadian National Railways, ran from Montreal to Vancouver, a distance of 2037 miles, in less than three davs. The actual running time was hours, and the average speed -13 J miles an hour. The death took place a few weeks ago at Lumley, Sierra Leone, of Mrs Sally A. Cole, at the remarkable but well-authenticated age of 115 years. She had thirteen children, thirty grand-children, thirty-five and live great-great-grandchildren.

A machine has been invented for

limbering up the muscles a pianists’ fingers. The natural tendency is for all the lingers to work together. To counteract this, an apparatus has been devised that makes every linger move separately. Five minutes of machine exercise, the inventor claims, is equal to half an hour of technique practice. The Mayor of Masterton told what he called a characteristic story of Randolph Rose at the send-off at Wellington. Some four years ago a child fell into a stream near Masterton, and a boy of twelve jumped in and rescued him. Rose came up as the child was taken out'of the water, examined it, and ascertained that no harm had resulted, took a gold medal off his watch chain, and gave it to the rescuer. Mr. Rose interjected, “But I don’t know how you heard of it, as I never told anyone!” In an interview at Christchurch, Mr. P. J. O’Brien, of Wellington, said that though no specific disclosures hajd 'lieen made on the point, there was a tacit conspiracy between the present Government and certain powerful political forces regarding the destruction of the triennial Parliaments. This was being done under the specious pretence of licensing reform, and aimed at the restoration of five-year Parliaments. A telegram from Dunedin to-day says: “Mr. Paap, a member of the Executive of the Licensed Victuallers of New Zealand, states the matter has _ not even been discussed. The position lies entirely with Parliament. The Dunedin members arc definitely committed to oppose an extension of the licensing term.”