NEAR AND FAR

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 1, Issue 46, 16 October 1931, Page 2

NEAR AND FAR

"Dry Ice." What would appear to be a revolutionary departure in freezing processes is provided by a new freezing agent known as "dry ice," the marketing rights of which for the Dominion have been acquired by a Dunedin syndicate. Consisting of carbonic acid gas solidified under immense pressure, the new agent is in appearance, very similar to the ordinary commercial ice, but whilst water ice is bulky and not altogether suitable for refrigerating purposes the so-called "dry ice" has the advantage of having a much lower temperature and, it is claimed, of retaining it seven or eight times as long«M#re-. over, when it dissolves it siiiffply" evoporates into the air, and so eliminaets the dampness inseparable from the use of ordinary ice chests. A Week's Work. "What do you do on the four days a week you are not working?" askte'd Mr. H. P. Lawry, S.M., in the Christchurch Magistrate's Court. "I chop

wood for the house," said defendalit. "But it does not take you four days a week to do that. What else do you do?" "I stay at home and look after my wife." 1 "Smithy's" Mascot. Mascots mean a great deal to many folk, but sometimes their uselessnbss is shown indisputably. When Air Commodore Kingsford Smith was f6rced down in Asia Minor, destroying his chance of breaking the record for a flight from Australia to England, he was carrying as his treasured mascot a faded photograph of the late Nellie Stewart, the famous Australian actress. The picture has aceompanied him on all his great flights. In reply to a question in Sydney recently, the airman said: "I wouldh't go anywhere without it. I've carried it with me since I was 18. It was right through the Great War with

me, and it's the finest luck-bringer I've ever had." But is seems that luck does not always accompany it. Relics of the Iroit Age. Relics of a primitive civilisation 400 B.C. have been discovered on tjh.e Methyr Mawr Warren, in Wales, Between Porthcawl and the- Ogmore River, which furnish definite proof that early Iron Age men settled on the Glamorganshire coast. On the trackless wastes of the dunes, hidden by the shifting sands of centuries, : is a watch tower that served the castles of Ogmore and Candleston. It was near this tower that finds — mostly by accident — were made. They consisted of medieval pottery, flint krrow heads and bones of extinct animals. Private digging operations followed and there was found a brooeh which fixes the date of the settlement as 300 or 400 B.C .

A Graveyard Vigil. Hundreds of people were rece-ntly hoaxed in Paris by an extraordinary story of an offer of £10,000 to wat'ch day and night for a year by a c|rtain grave in a Paris cemetery. The story, which apparently circulatjM very widely, was to the effeet that a wealthy Frenchwoman (whose name was never mentioned) bequeathed the equivalent of £10,000 to anyone who would watch by her grave, day aiid night, for a year. The watcher was forbidden, the story had it, to spekk to anyone during the vigil other than

the person who brought food and drink. Hundreds of people, anxious to earn the money, wrote to Paris newspapers from all parts of the world One man — an unemployed American plasterer — spent his 'life savings on the journey to Paris, to learn that no one knew anything definite about the bequest. It was later learnt that the story was started some years ago by one of the caretakers of the cemetery who was afterwards discharged. His object was to extract tips for information from would-be watchers at the tomb. Tiger Sharks Numerous. Tiger sharks are playing havoe with fishermen's nets in the Manukau harbour this week, according to Mr. P. Snelgar, a fisherman living at "Weymouth. The sharks, which are from 5ft to 8ft long, are following the schools of mullet that are very plentiful in the harbour at present. Three of the "tigers" have been caught during the last few days. Anyone wanting to have sport with the sharks will need to attach a wire trace to his line, as ordinary fishing cord is easily bitten through by the big fish. Generous Offerlngs. Bracelets, hanknotes, gold and silvep coins, watches, silver teapots, rings and ornaments of all kinds filled a large space in front of the pulpit of the Vivian Street Baptist Church, Wellington, one evening. They were the offerings at a collection taken up at the Baptist Conference in aid of misionary work in India.

Cinder Track Riding. The left foot is not used to any great extent by many of the best cinder track riders; it is poised more in readiness for a steadying dab after bad bumps and for slight rectification of any tendency to overslide. Other riders, however, trail the left foot all the time, using the toe more or less as a rudder, as in tobogganing; of =the two schools the latter is perhaps the more spectacular. The Roughometer. An interesting instrument is being used by the Main Highways Board for testing the smothness of road surfaces. The device is attached to a motor car, and all bumps are recorded. The apparatus is' known as the "roughometer" and it records the innumerable inequalities which could not be checked up by ordinary in~ spection. Curious Duck's Egg. A curiosity in the shape of an egg was laid by an ordinary duck, owned by Mr. A. H. Lambourne, of Peria, the other day. The egg was of large • size and contained the usual yoke and . albumen, but also had another small-. er egg within the outside shell. This was the size_of a pigeon's egg, and had a solid shell. When held to the light, however, it did hot appear to

eontain a yoke. Baby's weight. Keep a record of Baby's progress free. 'We invite you to make use of our up-to-date scales and present you with a card to keep particulars on. Len Fisher, Ltd., Chemist, Fenton Street.*