LOCAL & GENERAL

Wairarapa Times-Age, 31 May 1939, Page 4

LOCAL & GENERAL

A Clean Sheet. No bankruptcies were recorded in Wairarapa this month, with a similar state of affairs for the current year. Increase in Rates. An increase of a penny in the rates was decided on at a special meeting of the Waipukurau Borough Council, making a total of 1/- in the pound, compared with lid last year. Tuis in Masterton.

Tuis have been seen almost in the centre of Masterton during the last day or two. Yesterday two were seen in Bunny Street enjoying the warm sunshine. St Andrew Society.

The monthly gathering of the St Andrew Society will be held in the Masonic Hall on Saturday, commencing at 7.45 o’clock. A feature of the evening will be an address on Scotland by Mrs Neil McKay, M.A. (Edin.). The Wairarapa College Pipe Band will be the guests of the society.

Upper Hutt Mayoralty. Five nominations thave been received for the Upper Hutt borough mayoral by-election, which has been occasioned by the death of Mr. Peter Robertson. Those nominated are:— James Blewman, Francis Percy Keys, Angus John McCurdy, John Purvis, Charles Arthur Rendle.

Taken to School in Pram. A considerable stir was caused by a schoolboy with an ankle swathed in bandages when he arrived at Hastings Street School yesterday morning. It was not so much the nature of the injury which caused amusement as the fact that the boy was nonchalantly seated in a pram pushed by a much younger brother.

An Unenviable Record. “The toll of the road is now 50 lives in 50 days —this is an unenviable record,”’said the Minister of Transport, Mr. Semple, in an appeal issued to all motorists yesterday. “Last year New Zealand motorists probably had the lowest fatal accident record for each 10,000 cars in any country in the world, but if we continue this year as we -have started, that proud position will be lost.

Syrians Welcome Priest. Wellington Syrians met at a social gathering last night under the auspices of the Libanese Society to welcome the Rev. Father Rabouil. The Rev. Father T. George, S.M., introduced Father Rabouil, who spoke in Syrian and in English, giving a sketch ( of developments, political, social and economic, in the Republic of Lebanon. The even - ing closed with Syrian poetry, speech and dancing.

“Kiddyland” jat Exhibition. A miniature amusement park, to be called Kiddyland, will be a feature of the amusement park at the Centennial Exhibition, said the chairman of directors, Mr. T. C. A. Hislop, at a Rotary Club luncheon in Wellington yesterday. One of the attractions would be a model railway, run by a concessionaire, representing the Coronation Scot, famous English express. Mr. Hislop said that almost the: whole space in the amusement park available for letting was now taken, at prices satisfactory both to the organisers and to the lessees.

Largest Bacon Championship. With 200 carcases on show, the Dominion bacon championship, at the Waikato Show yesterday was the largest of its kind in the world. Judging began in the morning and was completed in the afternoon, the following being the results: F. K. Downie (Peria, Matamata), 112. points, 1; C. G. Sheffield (Piopio), 108 pbints, 2; W. R. J. Franklin (Newstead), and Candy Bros. (Te Kawa) 104 points, equal 3; Cairns Bros. (Te Awamutu) and Miss G. Breen (Hastings), equal, 5; G. D. Porritt (Pukeroro) and F. Dunnett (Peria), 102 points, equal, 7. Three People Injured.

Three people were injured when a motor car collided with a heavy motor lorry at the corner of High and Pretoria Streets, Lower Hutt, at 7.45 o’clock last night. The body of the car was ripped off the chassis by the force of the, impact. Miss D. Higgins, 1 Boulcott Street, Lower Hutt, driver of the car, received slight concussion and shock. Mr. S. J. Higgins, father of Higgins, and his wife, Mrs. E. Higgins were also injured. They were admitted to the Wellington Hospital as patients. Their condition last night was reported to be satisfactory. How to Catch Rats.

An amusing incident was witnessed in the business area of Masterton yesterday. A certain storekeeper, who displays his goods outside his shop, saw a young rat hiding beneath some boxes outside his business establishment. After a short chase round the footpath the rodent hid beneath another box. With one fell swoop the proprietor let the box fall and as luck would have it the rat, which was calmly sitting beneath it, was smartly despatched by the weight of the box falling upon it.

Farm Separation. An indication of the increasing popularity of separation on the farm in the aWirarapa was shown in a report on yearly installations submitted to the annual meeting of the Wairaropa Electric Power Board held at Carterton yesterday. In 1937 the number of separator motors in the board’s district was 264. in 1938 it had increased to 299, and this year it has jumped again to 338. This was, members considered, definite proof of the increasing popularity of butter over cheese. Refrigerators also showed a marked increase, there being 126 more than the previous year. Radio and Children's Studies.

By arrangement with the director of the Wellington Technical College, he had set a questionnaire to the pupils of Wellington College on the subject of radio in the home, said the headmaster, Mr. W. A. Armour, in a report read at yesterday’s meeting of the Wellington Colleges Board. He had received 610 replies which he had classified as follows:—Homes with radio sets, 591; radio on most of the time, 448; number who listen to news items 249, sports items 378,- travel talks 364, foreign affairs 367. plan’s 503. thrillers 457, comedies 493, serials 435; number who do homework with radio on. 200. "This shows that the radio is having a marked effect on the children ” said the chairman, Mr. L. McKenzie. "Of the 600 pupils, 200 have been doing their homework under the sound of the radio, which must distract them from their work.”