NEWS AND NOTES.

Manawatu Herald, Volume L, Issue 3989, 24 August 1929, Page 4

NEWS AND NOTES.

Britain’s yearly bills for bread and milk are curiously level. It spends £80,000,000 on bread and £86,500,000 on milk.

Men and women students at evening classes in Britain are increasing in number; there are now 150,000 women and 103,000 men. Natural gas, which wells up through a pipe originally sunk to find water at Heathgeld, Sussex, is used to light the railway station. London is being gradually rebuilt, Since the war £200,000,000 has been spent on the work of reconstruction, which is always going on.

That too much water can lead to a quarrel just as easily as too much alcohol, was proved at the Sports Trust Cup Rugby match at Lumsden recently (says the 'Southland Times). Throughout the game rain fell heavily. One spectator realising that his felt hat was catching a pool of water bent his head to let the stream run off. Unfortunately for him the stream, instead of flowing on to the ground ran down another spectator’s neck. Righteously indignant this man threatened te show the other the difference between “down the neck” and “in the neck.” Hasty explanations followed and before blows were struck a reconciliation was effected, tho sufferer finally extending his right band for a shake of goodfellowship, while he used liis left to wipe his neck.

Many claims have been made during the past few weeks for the £IOOO offer of a prominent English newspaper to anyone who can province plants of the fragrant musk. The secretary of the Auckland branch of the New Zealand Institute of Horticulture, Mr. N. R. W. Thomas, states that about 30 applications have reached him, mostly from Taranaki and Canterbury. A Taranaki lady writes: “Last year I bad a pot of musk, with its yellow flowers, in my house. It dies out in the winter, but comes back in the spring. About November it bursts into flower. The scent is strong when in' flower, although the delicate green leaves are scented as well. I am sure the plant is the one spoken of, and when it comes up I shall send as many of the plants as you wish to forward to the proper quarter.” If the claims can be proved, Mr. Thomas says, it will be the delight of many thousands of people throughout the world. He is making arrangements to forward the plants to England.