Manawatu Herald THURSDAY, DECEMBER 6, 1928. LOCAL AND GENERAL,

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLIX, Issue 3880, 6 December 1928, Page 2

Manawatu Herald THURSDAY, DECEMBER 6, 1928. LOCAL AND GENERAL,

Well over £4OO was raised by a carnival on Saturday promoted by the Masterton Beautifying Society. A serious accident was narrowly averted on the Nuhaka-Waikokopn Road on Tuesday when a Maori galloping on horseback crashed into a car driven by J. Cooper. No one was seriously hurt, but the car was badly damaged. The steamer Canadian Highlander, which left Napier for Auckland on Monday night, lost a propellor blade about an hour and a half after her departure. Her speed was consequently reduced to eight knots. Efforts will be made to effect repairs at Auckland wharf but. the steamer may have to be docked for this purpose. Pahi'atua has decided to form a sub-branch there of the Ruahine Aero Club with headquarters at Dannevir’ke. It was stated that a Takapau lady had agreed to purchase a private machine as soon as the aero club opened, and that a Dannevirke resident also contemplated the purchase of a machine.

A middle-aged married man named Jack Sorensen, was killed while working in the bush two miles from Pask’s mill at Kopaki, near Te Kuiti, on Tuesday. It appears that Sorensen, who was a mill employee, was working some distance from his mates and was engaged in breaking out a heavy log which fell on deceased indicting mortal injury to his head. Deceased belonged to Auckland.

The death is announced by the Press Association of Mr. Charles Parker, of Christchurch, one of the best-known of the old horse “cabbies” in the Dominion, and once famous because of an incident in the South African War, when he was tied to a gun wheel for not saluting an Impei’ial officer. The rest of the colonial troops freed him, challenging the Imperial guard to do their worst. The situation became serious. Lord Kitchener then took a hand and ordered the incident to be closed. i

Their tenders for. a contract for the Christchurch Drainage Board being exactly equal, Messrs P. Graham and Son and Thomas Pholoung, two Christchurch .contractors, tossed as to who' should get the tender. Mr; PheloiingAvon, and will be the man to erect four pumping stations in Woolston-and Becjtenham districts. The toss of the coin involved the sum of; £2,640! Mr. Pheloung had the patron goddess of two-up and pokei; schools on his side, states the'Sun,j' An invention known as the earchair, adjuster indicator, has been perfected by Mr. J. F. Mackley, locomotive engineer for the North Island Railways, and manufactured at Newmarket. This contrivance will enable passengers on the railway to adjust their seats by turning a handle, has been fitted to the seats of one of the Main Trunk cars, and others will be equipped in the near future. This invention should be a decided improvement on the old method of laboriously pulling the seat into the required position, and should add considerably to the comfort of railway travel.

Christ church, Ellerslie, an Anglican church possessing some of the most beautiful stained glass windows in Auckland, was much damaged by fire on Tuesday evening, the northern wall and eastern apex of the roof suffering most. With the exception of minor cracks in one pane, the windows were untouched. Painters had been engaged during the afternoon in burning off old paint. The brigade made an excellent save. The church was insured for £2OOO in the Diocesan Church insurance fund. Tho vicar and other church workers saved the church plate and other valuable property. Included in the jubilee procession at Grey town on Tuesday were the first buggy and wagonette to cross the Rimutakas. .The occupants of the antient vehicles were attired in costumes of by-gone da’ys and be it said the young ladies ' looked charming in poke bonnets and flounced dresses", which particularly .pleased the Gubanotorial party. A young man who has won fame on the motor cycle track, attired in morning dress and bun hat, gracefully rode an old-time bicycle. Other vehicles, both horse and motor driven, illustrated the evolution of transportation.

A Hastings boy of 15 who had been habitually rude and annoying to a woman in the street, was eventually dragged into his victim’s shop and chastised. Charges of assault were laid, and Mr. A. M. Mowlem, S.M., imposed fines of £2 (costs £2 4s) on the woman, and £1 (costs £2 Is) on a shop assistant, who captured the boy under instructions, and ordered the woman’s husband to pay costs (£1). The Magistrate remarked that the law did not allow any one the right to hostilely touch another. If people were allowed to take the law into their own hands, chaos must follow. He added, however, that the complainant’s father should exercise supervision over his son, so that he would not annoy people in the future.

The training farm for boys at Ilokio has again proved what can be produced on sand hills (says the Chronicle), for the vegetables, especially green peas, are looking well, and will shortly be ready for use.

A. well-conditioned cock pheasant met a tragic death while attempting a flight across the road in front of the early morning service car near the Whirokino bridge one morning recently. The driver tried to avoid the bird, which however was struck by the mudguard and killed.

Miss G. Witherow, an Auckland nurse, who is on a visit to her sister, Dr. With crow, at the Palmerston North hospital, fell through a skylight at the hospital yesterday. The young lady had ventured on to the portico to dry her hair. The young lady was cut about the head and sustained other injuries. Probably the first letters sent to New Zealand from Amsterdam by air mail via Batavia (Java) were received recently by a Wellington resident, Mr. A. Van Rooijen, from his people in Holland (says the Post). By the fast steamers it takes twenty-four days for letters to reach Batavia from Amsterdam, but those sent to Mr. Van Rooijen arrived in Weltevreden, near Batavia, 11 days after they were posted in Amsterdam —a difference of 13 days. From Batavia they were dispatched to New Zealand via Australia. On the letters is a post office stamp, “Per Luchtpost” (in Dutch) and “Par Avion” (in French), which indicates that they are to be forwarded by air mail. As is only to be expected, one has to pay for this very much more speedy transmission of mail matter. It cost Mr. Van Rooijen’s relatives 2/6 extra on each of the two letters sent to him by air mail and 1/6 extra on a postcard. Mark Twain once said: “Women is a conundrum —but I will never give her up!” This was in allusion to the changeable views of the adorable sex. The sex is certainly apt to alter its point of view. Time was when ladies “couldn’t bear tobacco smoke” —said it made them “ill.” In those days father and the boys had to seek the seclusion of the coal-house or the backyard when they wanted a whiff. Nowadays the girls —young, old and middle-aged—will tell you when to-bacco-smoke is mentioned that they “love it!” Well, there, are worse habits than smoking, and so long as the “ ’baccy” is good and not overcharged with nicotine it won’t hurt anyone. Apropos of that, its a pity the imported tobaccos are so full of nicotine. How is it? Our N.Z. brands are almost free from it. You can smoke them “till further orders” and take no harm. Sweet, cool and fragrant they appeal irresistibly to all smokers. All ■ tobacconists stock them. Ask for “Riverhead Gold” (mild), “Navy Cut” (Bulldog) medium, or “Cut Plug No. 10” (Bullshead), fullstrength.

A fairly good ambergris season is reported by Mr. Adam Adamson, of Stewart Island. He estimates that he has gathered about £l3O worth since, August. At present he is "clearing out. the wreckage from a big creek which catches the ambergris and retains it among the timber, making it difficult to get at. The wreckage is mostly from the barque Emile which was wrecked manv years ago. At the bottom of the "timber he came across the keel and kelson of the ill-fated ship and as this is about sft. across and 4in. in depth, Mr. Adamson is securing some gelignite to remove the obstruction. He states that the gale and high tide of last month was the biggest for 15 years and a. great quantity of debris caiue ashore. Amongst the various flotsam and jetsam he found a most peculiar small fish about 4in. long and 3in. deep. It has some remarkable fins protruding from beneath and is a stranger to anyone on the island.

Can the blind “see?” The question was raised at a concert given by the Blind Boys’ Band in Christchurch on Saturday night. Speaking at the concert, Mr. H. Holland, MA\, said that at the Jubilee Institui - ’a Auckland he was astonished file way in which the blind developed some of their senses. Walking with Mr. Clutha Mackenzie, he warned him that he was approaching a wall. Mr. Mackenzie replied that it was all right; he knew it was there. This gave Mr. Mackenzie an opportunity to explain that blind people have a very distinct sense of the presence of obstacles (states the “Lyttelton Times”). “It is a tremendous help to us,”, lie said. “We don’t go barging into walls and posts. Usually we know that we are coming to a wall when we are quite a distance away, perhaps twenty feet. We feel some obstacles when we are within six or eight feet of them. A lamp post or telegraph post we sense within one or two feet. The more elderly blind people, and those whose hearing is not very good do not acquire that sense, but the young, active people do, and that is why we don’t crash into everything. The same sense tells us when there is an open door; we hear the sound of an open space. Sometimes we only feel the presence of an obstacle; we may give it a dig with a stick, which may lie followed by a protest from s_omo stout gentleman. We have this sort of adventure, and, occasionally, it is given a humorous turn by people misinterpreting our actions.” “The Pilgrim’s Progress” is one of the books many people think the blind like to have. A lady presented Mr. Mackenzie with a pair of Pomeranian dogs.

During the jubilee pageant at Greytown on Tuesday afternoon a Moth aeroplane circled over Memorial Park and looped the loop to the great delight of spectators.

The prizes* in the Southern Cross Art Union were won as follows: — Ell2lß, Tai Tapu Dairy Company (Christchurch), Eoyal jAir Force flag; A 34308, D. Kirk, (Winton St., St. Albans), New Zealand flag; A 13040, Dr. Palmer (Blenheim), Union Jack; C0730G, 0. G. Miller (Dundas Street, Dunedin), Australian flag. Great enthusiasm marked the opening of the Greytown jubilee festivities on Tuesday. There was a great gathering of visitors from all parts of New Zealand, including many old identities. The Gov-ernor-General (Sir Charles Fergusson) and Lady Alice Fergusson were present, and were tendered a civic reception in the Town Hall. The Mayor, Mr. H. T. Rees, presented Their Excellencies with an illuminated address, and Sir Charles congratulated the town on its fine record. After the reception old identities and distinguished visitors were presented, and there was a notable gathering at the subsequent luncheon in the Oddfellows’ Hall. In the afternoon a pageant was held depicting the settlement of Greytown in seven scenes, and a Maori exhibition of poi dances, etc., followed.