LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 64, Issue 147, 1 April 1944, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Next week retail establishments in Ashburton will observe late night on Thursday on account of the Easter holidays. They will re-open on Tuesday morning.

A now issue of 1 lie Christchurch telephone directory will be available in September. From the practice adopted in Wellington and Auckland, where new issues were made available last year, this district is due for an up-to-date directory, as the last issue in the city was in April, 1942.

As a special concession to cover the Easter period coupon 24 in the meat rationing series, which normally would not be available until Easter Monday, may be used on and alter the preceding Thursday. The Rationing Controller (Mr J. E. Thomas) in Announcing the concession said it had been pointed out that housewives, who would have to buy meat on Thursday to cover the. period up to Tuesday, would in normal circumstances not have the benefit of the new week’s coupons when making their purchases, but the new arrangements bad solved the problem. —P.A.

The value of the Army Education and Welfare Service in occupying the leisure time of servicemen overseas, and the popularity its system of education in all subjects had gained among New Zealanders in the South Pacific area, were emphasised in a luncheon address to the Auckland Society of Arts by the assistant-director (Major W. E. Alexander). In the first week after all enemy troops had been chased from Vella Lavella, ho said, A.E.W.S. officers on the island were marking more examination papers from soldiers than were at the time being received in Wellington from all three branches of the armed services in the Dominion.

“Charles Real, boatswain on tlie s.s. British Sailors’ Society rooms when in port at Wellington,” states the society’s annual report. “After an interval longer than usual, he turned up the other day with a ribbon on his chest. Two of the society’s _ workers asked him what medal it signified, and how lie had won it, but be was silent. Up spoke his mate. He said: ‘Alter leaving New Zealand we went to England Then we headed for South America. When five days out from England our convoy was strongly attacked by aircraft and subs. Two ships went down. A bomb entered tlie magazine of our ship—evidently a time-bomb —and Ihough it did not at once explode, it set the magazine on fire. Charles Read seized a hose and played it on the magazine for five hours, knowing that at. any second he would probably be blown to pieces. I The fire, was controlled, the ship made ‘port, and Charles was awarded the British Empire Medal.”

The extent of the work of the department which fixed the price of Prescriptions submitted by chemists tor social security claims was given by tlie Auckland district chief clerk of the Health Department (Mr S. E. Watts) before the Auckland Manpower (Industrial) Committee. A, staff of 12 trained women was engaged in initial pricing, and dealt with GO prescriptions each an hour. The priced prescriptions were checked by foul' women, who bad had two years’ experience in pricing, three qualified male pharmasists and six unqualified male pharmacists. The male members of the staff checked 90 prescriptions each ail hour. With the exception of one man, tlie male staff worked eight, hours overtime a week and the female staff six hours a week.

On account of (lie Easter holidays, there will lie a double market at the Tinwalrt saleyanls next. Monday. The following sale, which will also be at Tiinvald, will be held on Tuesday, April IS. The next sale at Metliven will be on Thursday, April 20. The Addington sale will be held next Tuesday.

Advice that no rail permits will be issued io secondary school boarders and university and training college students lor the period of (lie school term holidays in May has been received iii New Plymouth. The Principal of the New Plymouth Boys’ High School (Mr G. J. McNaught) said this morning that he was endeavouring to find alternative transport for his boys, but it would be impossible to do so for many coming from distant parts of New Zealand. —P.A.

Work is in progress whereby a number of printer's errors which mar the edition of the Maori Bible published in 1924, and which was primarily the work of the late Bishop Herbert Williams, will be amended, states the annual report of the British and Foreign Bible Society of New Zealand. Maori scholars are at work on the proof reading. Their efforts will shortly he collated by a special committee, preparatory to the final judgment of a conference which will deal with the foimat of the new printing.

“There is now so much capitalism essential in any brand of socialism that will work, and so much socialism in any kind of capitalism that is possible, that these terms have become almost meaningless,” said the rector of Canterbury Übiiversity College (Piofessor A. H. Tocher) in an address. “It is necessai’y to forget them both ami to realise that the real problem is the reorganisation of all national resources for the ends in view. This means making the best possible use of all the means at our disposal, scrapping precedents and prejudices and securing the fullest co-operation of all the materials and all the capacity available.”

Gifts of various kinds for service hospitals were received by the MidCanterbury Centre of the Red Cross last month. They included fruit, cakes, jam, biscuits, books, face , and tray cloths, handkerchiefs, and hot water bottle covers. There was also a quantity of children’s clothing foi hospitals in Britain. These gifts were received from sub-branches of the Red Cross Society at Wakamii, Seafield, Metliven, Lagmhov-Westerfield, Mayfield, Eiffelton. Lowcliffe, Done, Ealing, Fairton, Lismore, and Lynnford, the Crcenstreet Women’s Division of the Farmers’ Union, and the Willowby Women’s Institute. The Ashburton Women’s Institute sent in 19* dozen sock mittens for the Air Force Relation's. An appeal for pieces ot old blanket to be used as foment coveis has been issued by the Centre. These may lie left at the Patriotic Wool Depot.