NEWS OF THE DAY.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVI, Issue 271, 15 November 1935, Page 6

NEWS OF THE DAY.

The Lakes Trout Season. Improved catches of trout arc being obtained at Taupo now that the weather is more settled. A moderate south-cast breeze enabled anglers at the mouth, of the Waitahanui Stream to enjoy better sport than in the. past ten days. The period mentioned has been disappointing for the very large number of visitors from overseas and elsewhere. Consistently good sport is reported from Turangi. Cure for Seasickness. Touching on the recent launching of an Italian liner fitted with an electrically-driven gyroscopic stabiliser, at a recent meeting of the Canterbury Philosophical Society, Mr. E. Hitchcock said it might have been described as an electrical cure for seasickness. It was intended to minimise the roll of the ship. "In a community eenec," he said, "there may be inore significance in the idea of electricity as a stabiliser and a cure for sickness than ycf appears." Old Boys' Reunion. The annual Old Boys' and Parents' Da] arranged by the Auckland Grammar School! Old Boys' Association will tako place 01 Tuesday next at the school. The proceeding! will commence with a cricket match in tlx morning, and at 1.40 o'clock in the aftcrnooi there will be an assembly in the school. Fol lowing the roll call the headmaster and presi dent of the association will address th( gathering. The rest of the afternoon will b< i taken up with an athletic programme, and <• gymnasium display. In the evening from 5.3( until t o'clock there will bo a reunion* in tlu school hall. Radio Telephones. The Public Works Department has re cently installed radio telephone sets at Manga hao and Waikaremoana, As the varioui hydro-electric generating stations are now linked for the supply of power, it is cssentia that communication between the stations b( quickly effected at all times, and for this reason the wireless sets have been installed During the tests excellent results were ob taincd, and there is no doubt that this additional medium of communication will be ol considerable assistance to the Public Works Department in connection with their po'wci supply schemes. Books in the Rain. The provision of free supplies of browi: paper to wrap books as a protection againsl the rain was an innovation at the Canterbury Public Library recently. On wet days most borrowers of books arc put to some inconvenience in protecting them from the wet and thos"e who do not carry bags arc compelled to hold them awkwardly under coats but good use was made of the free supply- oi paper. Although most borrowers arc careful to protect books from the rain,: the library staff has found that some are very carelese, and only this week a new book was returned with its cover in a condition that showed that it had been exposed to the rain for a long time. Statement Wanted. The Otago branch of the New Zealand Educational Institute at its meeting last week decided that the executive bo> asked to press the Government for an immediate statement of its educational policy, with special reference to the entrance age, staffing on roll numbers, the rationing of teachers, the down-grading of schools, the size of classes, capitation and teacher training , . A motion to this effect was moved by Mr. D. Forsyth, headmaster of the Port Chalmers School, who said that so far no definite statement in this connection had been made by the Nationalist party. These were questions t>f vital interest, not only to the teaching profession, but to the people as a whole, and he thought it was time more definite announcement had been made by the Government. The motion was seconded by Mr. L. Forrester and was carried without discussion. Art and Poverty. "If poverty is a requisite of art, and it would appear to have its place, our young New Zealand artists need have no fears for the future of their art," said Dr. E. B. Gunson in the course of a luncheon address on "Antiques of the Future" to members of the Auckland Society of Arts yesterday. "The prospects of the antiques of the future dating back to our period do ■ not appear to be very great, because we arc living in an age described sometimes as a mechanical age, sometimes as an age of progress and certainly an &ge of change," continued Dr. Gunson. "So, rapid are the evolutions of the time that few' standards remain sufficiently fixed to warranjt even a semblance of security in any business or profession, including art. Whether this period will prove ultimately to have produced any art of a standard which posterity would judge to be of sufficient interest to justify the application to it of the term antique can only be a matter of speculation." Mr. J. A. Lee as Author. The general understanding that the widely read book, "Children of the Poor," was written by Mr. J. A. Lee, sitting Labour member for Grey Lynn, was confirmed by Mr. Lee himself at his meeting in the Ambassadors Theatre, Point Chevalier, last night, when Mr. Hallyburton Johnstone asked Mr. Lee if it were true that he was the author. The chairman declined to allow the question, on the ground that it was a personal matter. However, Mr. Lee waved aside the chairman's decision, and said he was very pleased that the question had been asked in public, as there had been a great deal of "back door" talk regarding the authorship of the book. "J am pleased to make this first statement in public that I wrote that book." Mr. Hallyburton Johnetone: "Do you not think you were rather hard on your sister and mother—" amid cries of dissent. Mr. Lee replied: "That's all right. I do not mind being asked the question, and you may hear more of it in two or three days. I am pleased to state that I have received many letters commending that book, and I feel some satisfaction that jt has been favourably commented upon* by some of the leading authors of Britain and America."

"Is that English?" - The principal of a local secondary school was recently relieving a teacher who was ill. A pupil came to him for some exercise books he had been marking. Pointing to a pile of books, the principal asked if they were the ones. "Yes, six, them's the books," wae the reply. "Is Uiat English?" asked the head"Ko, sir, them's arithmetic," answered the pupil. Show*" Deadheads." "There are some members of our general committee we never see at any time," declared Mr. F. A. Snell at the annual meeting of the Waikato Winter Show Association. "While I do not wish to push anyone out, I think we should retain on the committee only men prepared to work and show some interest in the association. Some of these deadheads do not even attend our annual meeting." Tribute to Stud Breeders. A tribute to the studmastcrs of New Zealand was paid by Mr. T. A. Duncan, chairman of the New Zealand Meat Producers' Board, in the course of an address to farmers at Invcrcargill. "The whole country is indebted to the men whp have kept their cattle up to such a high standard in face of thj: uneconomic prices of the past few years," he , said. Cultivating a Lake Bed. The lake bed at Tangoio (Hawke's Bay) which was raised in the 19:51 earthquake, and has since been drying out, is this year being ploughed and cropped. The greater part of the land is in the hands of the Maoris, who arc just now very busy planting maize, kumaras and potatoes. Altogether about 150 acres were made available by the earthquake, and about half of this area is being cropped this year. A "Hawke's Bay Herald" reporter was told that tho Maoris arc planting more potatoes in tho Tangoio district this year than ever previously. Pilfering of Clothes. It seems that shopkeepers have to put up with the pilfering of clothes on the way to their shops as well as shoplifting, judging by instances given to a "Southland Times" reporter by a retailer. He showed how deftly silk shirts and underwear were taken from their packing cases and the broken part of the case replaced so that at lirst glance the thefts would not bo noticed. "Dozens of shirts, singlets, and so on were taken," he said. "Other shopkeepers have suffered as well. The losses from pilfering seem to go in rotation."

Lewis Pass Road. The Lewie Pass Road to the West Coast, work on which etill calls for extra men, is going to have a special interest to Canterbury people by making Hanmer Springs a port of call for tourists and others (rsays the "Christchurch Star-Sun"). At present Hanmer is an end in itself. When tho Lewis Pass Road is opened—it is hoped in about eighteen months —a motorist will have to be in a very great hurry not to make the slight deviation from the Waiau ferry bridge- that would carry him to Hanmer Springe for a longer or shorter utay. There are 190 men at work on the road, which has already become an' attraction to Canterbury motorists as an agreeable destination for a day's outing. Rewai's Philosophy. A young farmer near New Plymouth had taken his cream to the road gate. Eagerly he sought the morning paper and sat on the roadside reading the war news. Slowly down the hill came old Rewai, an ancient Maori resident. "What te story?" he asked of the render. The young man explained ns best he could. "Good country' Abyssinia," said the old man. "Xo sharp things. No good tc other country. One time I fight for my country," and he brought his fist down into his palm. "You light for your country ?" and again he brought his list down into hi? palm. "Now, och! no good. Te law, you know, tc law. Now you must go to tc secretary" (meaning, no doubt, the League of Nations). " My Fault, Entirely." Strolling blithely across Wakefield Street this morning, with a bottle of milk in one hiind and a loaf of bread in the other, a pedestrian stepped straight into the path of a citybound motor car. He narrowly escaped being knocked down, for a second car was close behind the first. It was one of those* occasions known to oven the most cautious pedestrian, when attention is drawn in another direction, and one neglects to look ahead. Fortunately both drivers were travelling at a moderate speed, and the ever-useful fourwheel brakes pulled* both cars up sharply. The driver of the first car was within a few feet of the "jay walker," and he gave vent to his natural feelings, asking, "Why don't you look where you're going?" Realising that, in this instance at least, he alone was to blame, the pedestrian replied, my fault entirely!" The look of astonishment on the face of the motorist was amusing. In view of this frank admission he could say no more, but a muttered, "Well, I'm blowed!" reached the ears of the pedestrian as the cars went on their way. Phoenix Islande "Eclipse Expedition." The arrangements being made for the expedition to observe tho total eclipse of the sun at the Phoenix Islands (Pacific Ocean, about 000 miles north of Fiji) in 1037 were described at the annual meeting of the Kaitaia Astronomical Society by Mr. C. B. Michie, of Kaitaia. Mr. Michie said that he was in communication with scientists in various parts of the world, arranging for the necessary authority, equipment and transport.. The Scientific Research Department and the British astronomers, as well as others, were giving valuable assistance and advice. He had recently received cabled advice that Sir Frank Dyson and Professor Stratton, two eminent British astronomers, were supporting his application for the largo British camera which was used by the New Zealand party in 1930, and which would be sent on after the approaching eclipse in Japan. Mr. Michie had the experience of erecting and using this instrument on the former occasion. There would be several smaller instruments which would be used in special supplementary work. The New Zealand authorities, said Mr. Michie, had already promised the loan of various equipment, including a portable radio, which was desirable, as the Phoenix Islands were now uninhabited. Condition of Domestics. "Conditions (governing domestic service are materially and morally degrading, the average wages of domestics being deplorably low, their hours of leisure almost none, and their social status menial," declared Mrs. V. J. Crowther, a member of a deputation that waited on the Mayor, Mr. Ernest Davis, yesterday, to ask his assistance in getting relief for unemployed women and girls. "The few exceptions are dependent on the gracious humanity and generosity of individual employers. Until domestic work is generally recognised as an important hygienic contribution to society, and at least commensurate with many less important jobe that are performed in the regalia of collar and tie, domestic service will offer to many female victims of injustice fewer attractions than the seemingly easy profession which is the other alternative to unemployment." Mrs. Crowther added that because of certain prevailing conditions it must surely be understood, though it was as yet publicly ignored, that women were becoming of increasing importance to the community. "Motherhood is more and more surely becoming a voluntary function," the speaker added. "It would be well for legislators to bear this in mind. Let us hope they do not contemplate complacently the advance of physical and moral rot in the Dominion's potential mothers."