LOCAL AND GENERAL

Wairarapa Times-Age, 5 September 1940, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

False Fire Alarm, The Masterton Fire Brigade was called out shortly after midnight, last night. The alarm, which came from the Fleet Street box, was a false one. Borough Rates.

Masterton ratepayers are reminded that tomorrow is the last day for payment of borough current rates with the allowance of 5 per cent discount therefrom. The Borough Office closes at 4.30 p.m. Pembroke Now Wanaka.

The name of the township on the shores of Lake Wanaka is no longer Pembroke. From Sunday it became Wanaka, according to a proclamation published in the New Zealand Gazette.

Day of Giving. As a result of a day of prayer and giving for the proposed new Anglican Church, held by the parishioners of St George’s Church, Seatoun, last Sunday. £283 was obtained. Services throughout the day were largely attended. The preacher in the evening was the Ven Archdeacon E. J. Rich, Masterton.

Railway Service Restored. The restoration of ’ the StratfordTaumarunui railway line after the extensive damage done during the floods last February has progressed sufficiently for the resumption next Monday of the whole of the former timetable with the exception of the New PlymouthAuckland express. The running of the express will be resumed as soon as possible, but the date is indefinite. Plunket Society.

The following donations are acknowledged by the Masterton branch of the Plunket Society:—Mesdames C. A. Whiteman and A. Jenkins, £1 each; Mrs C. Walker, 10s; Mesdames C. T. Richardson, W. G. Whiteman, R. V. Brader, T. T. Smith, R. Bunny, F. Mitchell, D. Twomey, N. D. Bach, R. Mallon. D. Costello, G. McCullough, A. W. Gray, 5s each.

Flying Boat Passengers. With seven prominent Americans who arrived by the clipper on Sunday, the Tasman flying-boat Awarua left Auckland for Sydney yesterday. The flying-boat carried GOOlb of mail and 921 b of freight. The Americans aboard are Messrs Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney, Fletcher Bowron, J. L. van Norman, Stephen Royce, Paul C. Patterson, Clem J. Randau, and Edward O. McDonnell. Mi’ Harold Gatty was also a passenger. First Echelon Mail. Advice that ordinary mail and parcels are now being received by members of the first echelon in Egypt has reached Auckland. In an air mail letter which was posted in Egypt on August 14 a soldier said that long-awaited parcels, papers and letters sent by ordinary post had reached the camp in large quantities, and, after four days, were still being sorted and distributed among the men. “You will find it hard to imagine,” the letter adds, “the difference in the spirits of the men now they have received full news from home.”

Fire on Ship. About 200 tons of cargo, machinery and parchment paper, which was slightly damaged by smoke and water during a fire on a British motor-ship at New York on July 31, when 15 firemen were overcome by smoke and fumes, has reached Auckland. Damage to this portion is estimated as only 3 per cent. Said to have started in the cargo of potash and rubber in number 2 hatch, the fire lasted two hours and was fought by 13 fire engines and a fire float. Investigation was ordered into the possibility of sabotage and the sailing time of the vessel was postponed. Radio Licences.

At the end of July there were 346,441 paid radio-receiving licences in force in the Dominion compared with 302,549 in July, 1939 —an increase of 43,892, or 14.5 per cent. Making this statement last night the PostmasterGeneral, Mr Webb, said that this figure exceeded the peak reached in March last by 731. Free licences issued to blind persons, orphanages, charitable institutions and hospitals, totalled 1278. The percentage of licences to the number of householders was now 89.4 per cent, and the number of such licences per 100 of population was 21.3 per cent.

Munition Work Hours. An application by Booth, MacDonald and Company, Limited, to work under a 44-hour week at ordinary rates of pay while engaged on important munition work has been refused, according to advice received by the Auckland Manufacturers’ Association from the Minister of Labour, Mr Webb. The refusal has been received with surprise, not only because of the nature of the operations upon which the company is engaged, but because the application followed an unsolicited offer by the staff to work beyond the 40hour week for four hours on Saturday at ordinary rates. Raffling of Section. The raffling of a section of land in Masterton, given by Mr W. Nops, has given rise to some misunderstanding about the position of the winner when the draw has taken place. It has been suggested that the winner will have to pay the stamp duty and transfer fees to take the title. The secretary of the Zone B Provincial Patriotic Committee. Mr G. T. O'Hara Smith, said that that was not the case. Provision had been made in the regulations governing raffles for the payment of all expenses, and all costs con(nected with the transfer of the section to the winner would be borne by the money raised by the sale of tickets. The raffle will close on September 17. ! New Wool Store. r Mainly to provide against possible [shipping difficulties arising from the war, the board of directors of the I Hawkes Bay Farmers’ Co-operative Association has authorised the expenditure of £lO.OOO for the erection of a new wool store in Napier, with a stacking capacity for 10.000 bales of undumped wool or 13,000 of dumped wool. The store, preparatory work on which has begun, is to be erected on the north-western corner of the South Pond, Port Ahuriri, near two other stores belonging to the firm. This work is the first stage in the development. of the Napier Harbour Board's South Pond. Provision for additions is incorporated in the plans, so that additional spaces can be provided ex- ' peditiously as it becomes necessary.