100 years ago — from our archives
Electricity development
MR E. E. Stark, city electrical engineer of Christchurch, is at present on a visit to Wanganui, and in the course of an interview (says the special correspondent of the Dominion) predicted tremendous development in electricity in the near future. The advent of the storage battery for vehicular propulsion, said Mr Stark, had opened a new era in Christchurch, where there were in use nine electric trucks and vehicles, ranging from a pleasure car to a fourton lorry. Discussing further possibilities of the battery cars, Mr Stark said that the only drawback to the electricallypropelled vehicle at present was its inability to go more than a certain distance from its source of supply, but this, so far as the electric truck was concerned, was of no serious moment; in fact, very few trucks or delivery wagons ran over 40 to 60 miles per day. If a bigger radius was wanted, it could be supplied, for there was no difficulty in the way of providing battery capacity for from 80 to 100 miles. Mr Stark is most optimistic in regard to the future of electricallypropelled vehicles, and is convinced that within five years after the close of the war Christchurch will have a fleet of 500 cars. He strongly urges the development of hydroelectric power in New Zealand, which, he contends, is singularly adapted for the purpose.
Soldier’s honesty
An Oamaru tradesman tells a good story of the honesty of a soldier, who could easily have evaded the payment of debt which, though not representing a very large amount, was quite worth the trouble of collecting. The soldier in question knew that he owed a certain sum to someone in business in Oamaru, but could not remember the name nor the lass of business, so he wrote to the man who tells the story, with whom he happened to be on friendly terms, asking him to make inquiries. He accordingly complied with the request, and after a little searching discovered the creditor to be a coal merchant, who forwarded the account to the address given him. Nothing further was heard until three months later, when the coal merchant received a letter marked ‘‘On active service’’, containing the money.
Drowned rabbits
A Dunedin visitor to the Maniototo district during the recent floods states that a great number of rabbits must have been drowned. In many cases small mobs of sheep were isolated on rising ground, and were standing with water well up their bodies. Fear had driven the rabbits to swim to these sheep, and they could be observed perched on the sheep’s backs. The dogs which were used to drive the sheep out of the water when it had commenced to fall found the water so cold that in a number of instances they could not be prevailed on to continue their work. Where, however, the dogs had an opportunity to scramble along on the backs of the sheep they quickly took advantage of the living bridge, as it were, and in this way followed out the commands of the drover.
Maori weather forecast
The old Maori weather forecast — that when the flax and toitoi were unusually luxuriant in bloom in the autumn a heavy winter followed — seems to be verified this year. Along the Waitaki, and indeed everywhere, the flax bushes were heavily crowned with flowers, and the height and thickness of the toitoi plumes were the subject of general remark. — ODT, 8.6.1917.