LOCAL AND GENERAL

Wairarapa Times-Age, 15 July 1941, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Cyclist’s Death. An elderly cyclist who fell from his bicycle near the National Tobacco Co’s building, Port Ahuriri, yesterday morning, died in hospital in the afternoon. He was Mr J. Neville, 12 Latham Street, Napier. It is believed that Mr Neville had a stroke and fell from his machine.

Carriages Derailed. The derailment of two carriages in the Wellington railway station’s yards about 2.30 p.m. yesterday caused late running of many trains. The 3 o’clock express to Auckland was 38 minutes late, and the Limited express 36 minutes late, and there was considerable interruption to suburban services. One carriage was replaced on the rails in the afternoon, but trouble was experienced with the second, which was finally put back about 10.30 p.m. Gold Production.

Gold production in New Zealand last year, 185,8040 z., was the highest for any year since 1920, said Mr Webb, Minister of Mines at Auckland yesterday. It was an increase of 68490 z. on the previous year. The Government’s policy of assisting by subsidies and loans the prospecting and development of minerals in areas considered to have some prospects had been continued and £56,695 was spent in this way in the last financial year. Rents from mining privileges credited to local bodies amounted to £16,722 during the financial year and gold export duties totalled £265,292.

The Search For Oil.

A tribute to the efficiency with which the search for oil was being conducted in New Zealand was paid by the Minister of Mines, Mr Webb, at Auckland yesterday. Under the Petroleum Act, 66 prospecting licences, covering 11,558 square miles, were quickly taken up by strong financial companies, h.e said, and at present 58 licences over 10,143 square miles were still in existence. A staff of experts, at present numbering 178, was engaged on scientific work in locating sites suitable for drilling. Over £1,000,000 had already been expended in prospecting work. Two wells were being drilled. The one at Morere was now down to 5512 ft., and that at Midhirst to 7238 ft., this well being the deepest ever drilled in the Dominion.

Safety of Soldiers.

A warning that unofficial advice about the safety of members of the Second New Zealand Expeditionary Force should be treated with reserve by relatives in the Dominion was given yesterday by the Minister of Defence. Mr Jones. In some instances after the fighting in Greece there was a conflict between information sent officially to next-of-kin and that contained in private cablegrams. Inquiries have been made and a cablegram in reply has been received from Army headquarters in Cairo. The text of the cablegram is as follows: “Private cables reporting safety were originated in Greece, but due to breakdown of communica tions were not dispatched till after operations in Greece. These were then dispatched without reference to this office, which could have supplied information regarding subsequent casualties to personnel concerned.”

Black-out Restrictions. A Municipal Association deputation to the Acting-Prime Minister had asked for a statement of just what danger existed or was feared, and as a result of its representations he thought there would be some relaxation of the blackout restrictions, said the mayor, Mr Andrews, at last night’s Lower -Hutt City Council meeting. School for Boot Operatives. The Government’s first boot operatives’ training school was officially opened at Auckland yesterday by the Minister of Labour, Mr Webb, in premises which have been taken over in New North . Road. The first course is being taken by 25 men and 15 women, who will be intensively trained for 16 weeks before being absorbed into factories. AH the men are ineligible for military service, eight of them having leg disabilities, one being deaf and dumb and others being returned soldiers of the present war. While being trained the men will receive a weeklywage of £4 13s and women £2. Patriotic Effort.

Having raised £lOOO for the patriotic funds, members of the Auckland Stock Exchange yesterday witnessed the drawing of an art union, the prize of 100 Bank of New Zealand shares being won by Mrs M. G. Airey, Remuera. A total of 20,000 tickets was sold in the course of a few weeks' intensive effort. The Under-Secretary of the Internal Affairs Department, Mr J. W. Heenan, who witnessed the drawing, said that they had produced the perfect example of an art union bal-ance-sheet. There was no expense, all the tickets had been sold, and the full proceeds went to the patriotic funds. Fire at Te Mahanga.

A house and contents on the farm property of Mr J. M. Cameron, horse trainer, at Te Mahanga (Hawke’s Bay) were completely destroyed by fire on Saturday afternoon. No water was available and nothing could be done to check the flames. Mr Cameron was working some distance from the house .whert he saw the fire and by the time he and an assistant reached the house, which was built of dry heart timber, it was an inferno. All the contents were lost, but none of the outbuildings was damaged. The house was occupied by an employee on the property; but he had been away several days. The building was insured, but furniture and contents were not covered and Mr Cameron is a heavy loser.

Industrial Growth. No fewer than 88 new factories have been established in New Zealand during the last three months, according to the Minister of Industries and Commerce, Mr Sullivan. He said at Christchurch yesterday that in spite of the impact of the war upon industrial and economic life, manufacturers were continuing to show enterprise and new manufacturing units were still being established. “In many of the new units the raw materials to be processed are of domestic origin,” said Mr Sullivan. “There has been considerable expansion in the manufacture of wooden toys and also of metal toys from what otherwise would be scrap. The packing of foodstuffs has shown considerable growth and the manufacture of gloves and leather goods has been extended materially. An Australian concern interested in the processing of milk contemplates a big expansion in production.”