LOCAL AND GENERAL

Wairarapa Times-Age, 5 April 1938, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL

New Type of Police Station. A new police station —a two-storied reinforced concrete building, costing in the vicinity of £28,000 —is to be built at Palmerston North, being the first of its type in the Dominion. Use of Polo Balls.

It is estimated that 300 polo balls were used at the Saville Cup touruament at Hamilton. The balls are made of light willow, and as many as a dozen are chipped beyond further use in one match. Novel Swimming Pool.

‘‘Necessity is the mother of invention,” says the old proverb. One ingenious country school teacher proved this when, unable to find a pool in which to teach the children to swim, he interviewed the manager of a Taranaki butter factory, and with his permission used a cheese vat for the purpose. This fact was reported by Mr. T. N. Watt at a recent meeting of the Taranaki Swimming Centre.

A Selwyn Anniversary. The anniversary .of the birth of George Augustus Selwyn, the great pioneer bishop of New Zealand, falls today, for it was on April 5, 1809, that he was born at Hamstead, London. In 1841 he began his association with this country, and until 1868 he continued his labours for the welfare of the settlers and the Maori people. Half Holiday Petition.

A petition signed by more than the necessary 10 per cent of electors has been lodged with the Waipukurau Borough Council asking for a poll at the municipal elections in May to decide the day on which the statutory half-holiday shall be held. The question has been a burning one in Waipukurau for many years, and on two occasions the poll has been upset on a petition. The present half-holiday is observed on Wednesday. Infectious Diseases.

Seventeen cases of infectious disease and three deaths—two from tuberculosis and one from eclampsia—were reported to the Wellington office of the Health Department for the week ended yesterday. In the central Wellington area three cases each of scarlet fever, diphtheria and tuberculosis were reported; also two cases of erysipelas and one each of eclampia, puerperal fever and lead-poisoning. In Nelson-Marlborough . there were two cases of scarlet fever and one case of poliomyelitis. The Intoxicated Motorist.

Praise for the efforts being made in New Zealand to force the intoxicated motorist off the road was expressed by the Rev Dr. R. V. Bingham, Canada, who is conducting a lecturing tour of the Dominion, states “The Otago Daily Times.” “I am glad to hear that your magistrates are treating these men severely,” said Dr. Bingham. “In Canada we have been very lax, and the death rate is soaring. It is about time that charges of this kind were made criminal.”

Boy Migration. The support to be given any possible move to bring about a resumption of boy migration for farm work was the text of a resolution passed unanimously at a meeting of the Auckland branch of the Oversea League. An address was given by Mr Cyril Bavin, honorary secretary of the immigration bureau of the Overseas League, London, and many aspects of migration were discussed. Mr Bavin stated that in England there were a number of lads who would like to come to New Zealand to take up farm work. They would, be well selected boys of the righ type, and the bureau in London would be willing to co-operate in their selection if an invitation were sent from the Dominion. Members of the league expressed the hope that some move would be made shortly. Cheaper Cement. Reductions in the price of cement were announced at the week-end by the Minister of Industries and Commerce, Hon D. G. Sullivan. These reductions, which vary in different districts, will operate as from today. “Since I took office as Minister of Industries and Commerce, I have been in close touch with the cement industry,” said Mr Sullivan; “and for some months past my department has been carrying out a thorough investigation of the costs of production and selling prices of the various companies marketing cement in New Zealand. As a result of the negotiations that the officers of the department have had with the cement companies, I am very pleased to be able to advise that reductions in the price of this commodity will take effect in certain districts as from Monday, April 4, ranging from Is 6d to 9s a ton.” Cfant Wicketkeeper.

The New Zealand public is accustomed to seeing Maori players participating in various branches of athletic sports, more particularly Rugby football, but it is a rare thing to witness a Native taking part in the .game of cricket. The exception, states that “New Zealand Herald,” was provided in the annual match, decided at Eden Park between the Auckland and Wellington Railway Workshops teams. Included in the Wellington eleven was C. Parata, the wicket-keeper, whose age is 24 years, who is 6ft. 4in. in height, and who weighs 23st. Parata’s agility behind the wickets and his running between them was a revelation to those who witnessed the match. Parata played Rugby at school, but says he was hurt too much and so turned to hockey. He plays for the Petone club in senior grade, and represented Wellington some years ago. Parata plays cricket in the Petone junior grade, and he is no mean exponent with the bat as well as with the gloves. Chicks Like Bumble-Bees, Chinese quail chicks have been a constant source of interest at Cornwall Park, Hastings, in the last few days. Most of the interest is in the smallness of the chicks, which are, in the words of the superintendent of reserves (Mr. J. G. C. MacKenzie), “not much bigger than bumble-bees.” The chicks are now about 10 days old, their colouring being much the same as that of a thrush. Later, the male chicks will develop a blue tint. There are seven of the chicks. All of them arc developing well.