NEWS OF THE DAY.

Auckland Star, Volume LXI, Issue 161, 10 July 1930, Page 6

NEWS OF THE DAY.

Gifts for Waikato Diocese. - Biehop Cherrington, who is now in England attending the Lambeth Conference, advises by cable that he has already obtained gifts amounting to £1000 in aid of the Waikato Diocesan Fund. Ambulance Station at Show. A first-aid station for the treatment of accident ana oilier emergency cases has been organised by the St. John Ambulance Society in shed number 12 at the Auckland Winter Show. Women attendants will be on duty during the daytime, and men during the evening. Theatre in Grafton Gully? In a letter received by the Auckland Town Pla'nning Association at its annual meeting, it was' suggested that the rubbish dump at the top erf Grafton Gully should be conrerted into a small sports stadium or a Greek theatre. The writer said that at present the refuse heap was an eyesore. He enclosed drawings showing how the site might he used for . band performances, open-air plays, dancing, or public meetings. The suggestion was referred to the technical group for a report. Daylight Saving Favoured. Summer days mean long days on the bowling green, and there are few bowlers in New Zealand who do not wish for the time when clocks are put forward and play can be carried on until early evening. At yesterday's annual meeting of the Dominion Bowling Association's council it was decided that Parliament be asked to extend the period of daylight saving for a month every year, so as to make certain of including the summer time vacation. Several speakers said that the daylight-saving measure was popular with bowlers from one end of New Zealand to the other. Parish Priest's. Protest. When discussing the method of raising funds for the Waikato Diocesan General Fund at the meeting of the Waikato Diocesan Synod yesterday, Canon E. H. Strong, New Plymouth, said he was exceedingly annoyed- when he received from the diocesan office what amounted to a peremptory demand that as the quota from his parish for a certain fund did not come up to expectations, he was to go out and collect the deficiency. Canon Strong said the duties of a parish priest did' not include the collection of taxes, and he would not do it, no matter from whom the order came. There was a general objection to the whole method of levying quotas, said Canon Strong, and he would support the proposal to make a change. When Ingenuity Counts. One of the surprising features of the district courts at the Winter Exhibition is the ingenuity with which every inch of space has been used. The space allowed is only 30ft by 16ft 9in, inclusive of storage, but in it there has been arranged a bewildering variety of products, without any suggestion of crowding, and with a fresh interest from every angle. In the case of the Whangarei court the managers brought down 135 cases of exhibits, and found when it came to arranging everything that they were hopelessly overstocked. They worked for three months or more on the plan, and had an army of helpers.' Te Kuiti's effort was just as ambitious in its way, and in both cases the exhibits had to be brought long distances. The exhibition authorities appreciate the heavy expense, and make a donation of £50 towards each court. Besides that, there are transport concessions arranged with the Railway Department. Examinations Upheld. There should he no examinations for the very young, said Mr. H. J. D. Mahon, headmaster of the Auckland Grammar School, in a paper delivered last evening at the inaugural meeting of the Auckland Educational Conference. Mr. Mahon remarked that examinations had been compared with the plucking up of roots to see how young plants were doing, but, he contended, they had an important value in gauging results. Also they made pupils and teachers work steadily and to a time-table, and developed the power of working up a subject for a purpose, which had a direct bearing on the success of a professional or business career. Dealing with the effect of examinations on creative minds, Mr. Mahon said genius, instead of being suppressed, would always assert itself, and, as far as the great majority of people, was concerned, they had to be trained to work. He admitted, however, that the examination system was liable t6 tie a teacher down too strictly to his syllabus. Rangitoto's New Road. A new scenic route that will open up littleknown parts of Rangitoto Island is to be opened on Saturday by the Devonport Borough Council in its capacity as the Rangitoto Domain Board. Prison labour has been employed for five years in forming a hand-packed scoria road that should last, in the opinion of the authorities, for all time. It is ten miles round the island, and the road, except where it ascends to the summit, is practically level. It runs from .the ferry tee to Islington Bay, and, in the other direction, skirts the western shore of the island to the beacon and then turns up the saddle to the back of the cone. From the highest point a short zigzag path leads to the summit. Continuing round the lower slopes of the mountain, .the road links up at Islington Bay with the straight road to the starting point. It has cost the Rangitoto Domain Board about £2000 as its part of the scheme. Without prison labour the expense would have been prohibitive. Albert Street Tramway. "The problem of trams in Albert 'Street goes very much wider in its application than its injurious effect on ' Queen Street or otherwise," states the report of the Auckland Town Planning Association in. regard to the proposed Albert Street tramways. "It is only one more of the warnings which are now arising, and points to the urgent necessity of comprehensive town planning. The transportation plan is one of the most important steps in proper civic development. Upon its effectiveness every citizen and every business -is inevitably dependent. It. is therefore futile to regard the desired improvement from a local or parochial point of view. An analysis of past and future problems must precede the formation of plans for orderly development, which should be . effected by systematic and gradual improvement. The question of betterment should also be considered in relation to the proposals. To place the full, burden of the cost or transport services on the passenger does not seem just, in view of the collateral advantages which flow to the neighbouring property owners in the form of enhanced values. There is no question but that in many cases a direct local benefit results which should be met, as in American cities, by a betterment assessment." "Drive" Distribution Organised. The task of distributing the .500 tons of clothing collected by the Auckland Commercial Travellers' Association in their "drive" on June 28-has been put on a sound and well-organised basis, in order to prevent overlapping and to ensure that all the recipients are deserving. A j registration office has been established in pre- . mises in Civic Buildings lent by Mr; T. O'Brien, j and there 4 is' kept a list of all who receive gifts of.clothes or goods collected during the drive. Each social organisation has a supply of cards, on which-the recipient's name is entered. The duplicate is kept at headquarters, and no issue either of wearing apparel or of food supplies (purchased from the cash which was collected) can be made without a corresponding entry. Already over 1200 recipients have been registered. " The success of the drive may be gathered from the fact that £1500, was collected in cash, as well as the huge supply of clothes. The money has been expended in tickets for staple articles of food, such as meat, potatoes and oatmeal. Coal tickets are also The clothing collected was .in excellent condition, less than one ton of the 500 being unsuitable for issue and immediate wear. a.