LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Taranaki Daily News, 29 September 1921, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

At a meeting of the Southland Motor Association last night the Motor Vehicles Bill was discussed and it was decided to advocate a tax on tyres in preference to the taxation of vehicles.— Press AssoTiation.

A meeting of the Western Park Board was held on Tuesday, when Mr. A. L. Humphries presided over a fair attendance. The sub-committee reported that the caretaker was making good progress in the clearing of the grounds. A temporary plain wire fence is to be erected along the Morley Street entrance, about four feet high, with a railing on top. The Labor Sports Committee was granted the use of the grounds on Labor Day. The committee acknowledge with thanks a donation of £lO from the Taranaki Rugby Union for the use of the football grounds.

“The Court looks upon the riding or driving of any vehicles at night without lights as a very serious source of danger,” said Mr. A. M. Mowlem, S.M.. in dealing with a breach of the lighting by-law at the Stratford Magistrate’s Court yesterday. “It is found that many men are negligent about the lighting of their machines and do not seem to realise that they are a source of danger,” he added. At a sale of leasehold property held by Messrs. L. A. Nolan and Co. yesterday, on behalf of -the New Plymouth Harbor Board, two sections in St. Aubyn Street, with a frontage of 46ft 9in each, were disposed of to'Messrs. C. A. Wilkinson, Ltd., Eltham. The areas were 16.07, and 14.11 perches, the rental being respectively 25s and 30b per foot per year, with purchaser’s rigjit of renewal at the expiration of the tenure, 21 years. The sites are between the New Zealand Express Company’s premises and the Union Steamship Company’s offices.

A new phase in harbor construction work at New’ Plymouth will be entered upon about the end of this week, when preparations for opening the Paritutu quarry should be completed. The tramlines are practically ready and with the in position and a huge quantity of stone to hand the prospect of pushing on with the breakwater extension appears much brighter. It is now some time since the last load of stone was dumped on the extension, the delay being accounted for by the fact that the Fishing Rock quarry was exhausted before a fresh source of atone supply was sought, the indecision arising over the respective, merits of Egmont and Paritutu quarries delaying the tapping of the Paritutu, supply.

Some time ago a British League of Nations Union was formed, for the purpose of making more widely known the aims and objects of the League. Since his arrival in New Zealand, Professor Pringle, professor of economics at the Dunedin University, has interested himself in the ‘work of the League, and, a® the outcome of lectures given by him in different centres, several branches of the union have been formed. Professor Pringle is expected in the North Island in December, and the desire has been expressed that he .should be invited to lecture in New Plymouth. Those interested in the matter are asked to communicate with this paper.

•’Let me tell you one or two things,” said Mr. C. J. Parr, when opening a new infant school at Manurewa. “We all give far too much meat to the children of New Zealand. Doctors will tell you of the disastrous results of that. What about giving tea to a child of about four or five years of age? That breeds trouble for the child, and then, too, the mushy sweets and sugar! We in New Zealand eat T29lbs_o£_ sugar each year, ami no other cc-cm. » within a third of that? j -ope you .will agree with me that the L/sc thing i .aging up a child is to assure him a healthy •body. You must feed him right, give him plenty of fresh air and look after his teeth.” The cost of school books forms the subject of a question tabled in the House of Representatives by Mr. R. Masters (M.P. for Stratford), who has given notice to ask the Minister of Education what action, if any, the Government proposes to take to afford some measure of relief to parents of children attending the State primary schools in the matter of the purchase of schoolbooks and stationery, either by supplying them free or at a price' showing a minimum of profit In a note to his question, Mr. Masters says: In IUIG the published price of “McDougall’s Complete Historical Reader” was Is 6d, today it is being sold in some centres at 4s 3d, and in country districts from 5s , 6d to 5s 9d. , 'ln like manner the prices of “Alexandra Readers” have greatly increased. When these readers were adopted the published prices were Is 6d and Is, now they cost 3s Gd and 3s 9d, and in country districts 4s.

Great secrecy has been observed regarding the turbo-electri,c locomotive which a leading British engineering firm i<s building for trial on a main line British ralway. It can, however, be stated that the principle adopted is similar to the system of electric ship propulsion which was first patented in Great Britain. The prime mover id a high speed turbine coupled direct to an electric generator; this generator supplies current through controllers to motors which drive the wheels through some form of gearing. The advantage of this arrangement is that it combines the great efficiency of the high-speed turbine with the flexibility of electric speed control. If the trials are successful they will probably lead to the conversion of many express steam locomotives to the electric drive. This turbo-electric locomotive is not to be confounded with a new type of “thermo-electric” locomotive which another leading British firm is building for experimental purposes. In this case the prime mover is an internal combustion engine of a novel and economical design, which can utilise any kind of crude oil. In countries where there is a deficient water supply along the routes of railways there is a magnificent field for an internal combustion engine locomotive which proves to be really efficient.

The annual installation ceremony of the. Lodge Ngamotu No. 48 wilt be held in the Foresters’ Hall, Gill Street, at 7.30 o’clock this evening.

“Fairy Wonder” washing powder holds pride of place as the premier household help. It is just as good and efficacious in the kitchen as in the laundry. For washing pots’, pans and sinks, scrubbing floors and cleaning paint-work, washing dishes, silverware and cutlery, it is invaluable. Will also cleanse hair brushes like magic. Never be without a supply of “Fairy” in the place. All grocers.

At Urenui sale on Monday will be sold a line of extra choice yearling Jersey heifers on account of Mr. P. Wells. See advt.

A Wanganui man who advertised a gorse-grubbing contract was astonished to find over eighty men awaiting him on the ground at the time fixed for showing intending tenderers the work.

“We are paying 6d per lb for sugar at the present time, when we should be getting it for 4d,” said a speaker at the Farmers’ Union executive meeting at Levin on Saturday.

A glut of cauliflowers on the Auckland wholesale market has resulted in a reduction in the price to as low as 3d per dozen, and the best at 3s per dozen. Sydney oranges are also to be had at cheap rates owing to the fact of a shipment arriving in bad condition. Unless they are disposed of within the, next few days they will be unfit for humai consumption. The Otira tunnel, which was commenced in 1908, is 5 miles 25A chains in length from end to end. The grade from the Canterbury end to that at Westland is 1 in 33. The height of the tunnel is 15ft On, and the width at rail level i4ft, increasing to 15ft at its widest part. The tunnel sides are concrete, lined it situ. Electrical power will be used for propulsion through the tunijel. The retiring president of the Auckland Drapers’ and Clothiers’ Association, in referring to the proposed revision of the tariff, said: —“Revenue by the way of the Customs tariff is favored by a certain type of politician, because it taxes the public without them directly knowing it; but if the lower price level we are now on, and to attain which the trade has suffered so much loss, has to be raised again by a higher tariff, it will be our unpleasant duty to see that the public are made well aware of who are to blame for it.”

All interested in the work of St. Mary’s Church arc urged to attend the meeting to be held in St. Mary’s Hall this evening, at 8 p.m. Important matters are to be considered and discus-sed having for their object the future welfare of the church.

The programme for the New Plymouth Amateur Athletic Association’s inaugural sports meeting is advertised in this issue. The list ( of events is a very attractive one. and should bring out large fields. The meeting is to be held at the New Plymouth Boys’ High School grounds on October 22, and is already attracting a good deal of interest from athletes and the public generally. •

Attention is drawn to the Old Girls advertisement and notes.

The Melbourne, Limited, are offering a particularly fine line of ladies’ black silk ankle hose at 4/11 per pair. The silk portion of these hose is of exceptionally good length, and the value is identical with those sold at 7/11 three months ago. Quantities are limited.