LOCAL AND GENERAL

Wairarapa Times-Age, 30 December 1938, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

No Publication on Monday. The "Times-Age” will not be published on Monday next, January 2.

New Serial Commences Today. There commences in the “Wairarapa Times-Age” today a delightful story entitled "District Nurse” by that noted authoress Faith Baldwin. Readers should not miss the opening instalment.

Wounded by Stingray. i While swimming at low tide at Thornton’s Bay, Thames, on Monday evening, Mr E. Day, aged 40, a resident *bf Hamilton, suffered a severe gash on the leg, which necessitated hospital attention. According to medical opinion the wound was inflicted by a stingray. Recently a young woman bathing on the Thames coast was fatally injured by a stingray.

Motorists More Careful. There did not seem to be so many cars on the road this Christmas, said Mr J. McGregor, Borough Traffic Inspector, this morning. This, he said, was probably due to the unfavourable weather. Mr McGregor said one thing that was apparent was that motorists seemed to be driving more carefully than in previous years. He thought that the road safety campaign recently instituted by the Government was bringing results. Rainfall Record Broken.

With three days’ observations yet to go the year 1938 at 9 o’clock yesterday, morning established the record of being the wettest year in the past 49 years of Wellington’s meteorological history. The station at which recordings have been made over the longest continuous period is the Karori Reservoir, where observations were begun in January, 1890. Up to and including the 9 a.m. reading yesterday the total rainfall to date this year in Karori was 62.05 in., as against the previous highest yearly total there of 62.01 in. in 1928. Trams or Buses. , “There is no settled opinion among transport authorities throughout the world upon the question of whether trams and buses or trolley-buses are the best systems of conveyance for the public,” stated Mr J. R. Kemp, Commissioner of Main. Roads in Queensland, who passed through Auckland by the Monterey for Sydney. Mr Kemp said that every city in the world solved its problems in the way best suited to itself. London had decided to abolish its trams and introduce trolley-buses, but Glasgow maintained its tramway system, as well as motor-buses. In countries desirous of conserving fuel, trolley-buses were popular. Te Aroha Geyser.

Because of pressure of work the Public Works Department is unable at present to construct a’ catchment basin and storage tank for the Te Aroha geyser. A month ago it was hoped the work would be completed before Christmas to enable visitors to the town to see the novelty of the Dominion’s only soda water geyser in action. The Government tourist officer, Mr E. Wing, has made an alternative arrangement to have the geyser playing during the afternoon on all important holiday dates during the Christmas and New Year season. Steps will also be taken to improve the surroundings and make them more attractive,’ than at present. It is expected the. concrete catchment basin will be completed by Easter.

“Nice as the Nicest.” From time to time letters have been received by Wellington athletic officials and competitors from Mr Malcolm Joseph, the manager of the West Indian athletic team which was in Wellington earlier in the year before and after the Erhpire Games at Sydney. In his letters Mr Joseph has indicated that he has a warm place in his heart for this country and its people, and this is plain also in a letter recently received by Mr A. C. Kitto from another member of the team, J. Cumberbatch, the sprinter. Ih his letter Cumberbatch says that on his way back to the West Indies from New Zealand he met aboard ship Englishmen and Scotsmen who had spent 20, 30, and in some cases 40 years in New Zealand without having gone back to their native land once. “I had no cause to wonder,” Cumberbatch adds, “because I think your country is as. nice as the nicest.”

Oamaru Pioneers.

Forty pioneers of Oamaru were the guests of the Mayor and Mayoress, Mr and Mrs K. Familton, at a gathering held to organise an Old Identities’ Association. The event was unique in the history of Oamaru, if not in New Zealand. Five of those present were over 90 years of age, including Mrs George Jones, widow of the late Hon George Jones, M.L.C., founder of the Oamaru Mail, and Mrs James Irving, who arrived by aeroplane from Palmerston North to attend the gathering. Each is over 92 years of age. Also present were Mrs Jasper Nicolls, who was born 79 years ago, and has lived in Oamaru ever since, Mr George Grenfell, aged 80, who has lived in Oamaru for 78 years. Mr William Milne, aged 90, who has lived in the town for 57 years, Mr John Vernor, aged 90, who has lived in Oamaru for 62 years, and Mrs Hannah Barry, aged 90, who has had over 60 years’ residence in the town. All present were over 75 years of age.

An Efficient Service. A Christchurch resident had the efficiency of the “person to person” telephone service demonstrated to him recently. The sudden illness of a member of his family necessitated the presence of a female relative who was camping at one of the three or four motorists’ camps at Rotorua. A call was put through late at night, and at 8 o’clock next morning word came through that she could not be located. An hour later, however, she had been found and was at the telephone awaiting the message. There was scarcely the same speed, however, in the transmission of a telegram announcing her departure by air from Auckland on the Monday morning. The plane left Mangere aerodrome about 2 hours before the telegram was handed in at Auckland, and the sender was in the house in Christchurch at 2 o’clock to receive her own telegram from the telegraph messenger. An alteration in the street numbers delayed the delivery of the telegram by about 10 minutes, but after allowing for this and the later dispatch of the telegram, the aeroplane appears to have scored a decisive win. However, the aeroplane was not hampered by. holiday restrictions.

“Don't you deplore people who reply to one question by asking another?" "What sort of question, for instance?”