IN TOWN AND OUT

Southland Times, Issue 21088, 21 May 1930, Page 4

IN TOWN AND OUT

NEWS OF THE DAY. Traffic Domes. The City Council decided last evening that traffic domes will in future be constructed of white material and be of a uniform size, 12in. in diameter. This is the size of the domes at Rugby Park corner. » * • * Motor Car on Fire. A motor car, which caught fire in Earn street' yesterday afternoon was responsible for the City Fire Brigade turning out in response to a call at 4.55. The damage done to the car was slight, the outbreak being extinguished before the arrival of the brigade. « 3* Bird Life Near Monowai. A party which was out shooting on the Sunnyside estate near Lake Monowai during the week-end reports that native pigeons were very plentiful and that several parrakeets were seen in the bush. In one spot hilly 100 pigeons were congregated. A sparrow hawk was also seen. Boosting New Zealand. With the object of bringing the attractions of New Zealand’s tourist resorts before the public overseas, an attractive new booklet has been issued recently by the Tourist Department. It contains illustrations, finished in colours of the various beauty spots. The booklet is declared to be one of the best published so far and it devotes a liberal portion of its contents to resorts within the South Island, including the Sounds and Stewart Island. Copies have been despatched to the tourist bureaux overseas. « » « * Motor Cars Collide. Although the vehicles involved received practically no damage, a collision between two motor cars at the intersection of Dee and Don streets yesterday afternoon was responsible for a man having his hand injured. The mishap occurred about five o’clock when a motor car coming out of Don street to proceed in a northerly direction along Dee street became jammed against another car travelling in the same direction. When an effort was being made to release them, a man was unfortunate enough to have his hand caught between the two cars. Although no bones were broken the hand was badly crushed, requiring treatment at a near-by chemist’s shop. Power Board Special Rates. On the recommendation of the Finance Committee the City Council last evening decided that the following remit be submitted to the next conference of the Electric Power Boards and Supply Authorities Association: “That section 56 subsection (2) of the Electric Power Boards Act, 1925, be amended so as to give proper effect to the reasons for the clause as set out by Mr Coates as Minister of Public Works (Hansard Volume 194, Page 454) in support of the clause and with a view to ensuring that any separate rate shall be struck over all rateable properties in a power board district for which a supply of electricity is available on the boundary’ thereof, or at a point within 10 chains of such boundary.” Industries Week. The following letter was received by the City Council last evening from the Invercargill Chamber of Commerce: “It has been decided to hold a New Zealand Industries Week in Invercargill, commencing on Monday, September 1, next. It is felt that a week of this nature will, in Invercargill, us it has in other centres, be a means of stimulating New Zealand in local industry and bringing this prominently before the public. This committee would feel very indebted to your council if you could see your way to undertake the lighting of the town as was done in the case of May Fair Week. It is not desired to go to any undue expense, and if you could kindly make this lighting a donation from the council to the project, your action will be very much appreciated by this committee.” The letter was referred to the Trading Committee.

Long Distance Telephony. A notable achievement in long distance telephony, so far as New Zealand is concerned, was recorded on Wednesday last. The Hon. P. A. de la Perrelle, Minister of Internal Affairs, who was at Rotorua for a meeting of the Cabinet, was very anxious to get into telephonic communication with Winton, and with the assistance of Mr McNamara (secretary of the Post and Telegraph Department) he accomplished his object. A connection was first made between Rotorua and Auckland, and then from Auckland to Winton. The Minister was able to hear every syllable that reached him, the voice at the other end of the wire being quite distinct throughout the conversation. The incident is interesting as showing conclusively that telephonic communication can now' be carried on from practically one end of New Zealand to the other.

Proclamation of Invercargill as a City. The City Council has arranged for a formal function to mark the proclamation of Invercargill as a city to be held in the entrance to the Town Hall on the afternoon of Wednesday, May 28, at 3 p.m. It has been decided to invite Sir Joseph Ward, the Hon. P. A. de la Perrelle, Mr Adam Hamilton, M.P., his Worship the Mayor and Mayoress, city councillors, ex-mayors and the Hon. A. F. Hawke to be present. Sir Joseph Ward has been asked to address the citizens. If he cannot be present Mr de la Perrelle will be asked to take his place. The oldest ex-mayor will be invited to address the citizens and his Worship the Mayor, after addressing the citizens, will call upon the Mayoress to unveil the commemorative tablet with a key to be presented by the council. hollowing the function afternoon tea will be provided in the Council Chambers for the invited guests. Native Birds in Westland. An interesting account of how native birds are faring in South Westland was contained in a report forwarded to the Wellington Acclimatization Society by Mr E. J. C. Wiffin, who has recently been on a stalking expedition in that district. In the Landsdowne Valley, Mr Wiffin saw no tuis, but a few pigeons and quite a number of keas and kakas. He agreed with those who contended that the kea should not be shot in the districts like the wild country in Westland, where there were no sheep. Stoats and weasels in the valley were very numerous, and he saw no ground birds at all. The bellbird was fairly numerous, and there were tomtits, riflemen, pied fantails and black fantails, but he did not think that there was anything like the number of birds that there ought to be —undoubtedly the stoats and weasels had been killing a great many. He had watched a stoat stalking a tomtit, and he saw evidences of the work of stoats and weasels by the feathers of the birds that had been killed. The blue ducks were scarce, but the paradise duck was very numerous in Otago and South Westland. In the Landsborough there were hundreds of them, and they appeared to be breeding fast, and quite able to look after themselves. After crossing the Landsborough River at the junction'' of the Haast, several fords had to be crossed, at one of which the party nearly came to grief, owing to a horse taking fright. The cause of the fright was the startling of some hundreds of paradise ducks. These birds came from the water with a roaring sound, which lasted for some time. It was a .wonderful sight, and dispelled from his mind any question as to the numbers of these birds. In the valley there was evidence as to the great number of rabbits that had been there, but now there were very few, and unfortunately the stoats aad, weasels were very plentiful