NEWS OF THE DAY.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVI, Issue 299, 18 December 1935, Page 6

NEWS OF THE DAY.

Reduction of Hospital Fees. The Auckland Hospital Board sat yesterday from 2 p.m. until 0.10 p.m.', and when at the close Dr. J. P. Hastings introduced his notice of motion, "That charges made to the patients in the hospital be reduced," it was decided to defer the matter until the next meeting, when full consideration could be given to it. Several other matters were also deferred. Borough Grazing. "He lias done good work, but apparently a little too good in some cases," said the Mayor, Mr. T. McNab, at last night's meeting of the Mount Eden Borough Council, when mentioning one or two complaints from residents, who considered that the employee instructed to prune trees overhangiijg the footpaths had been a bit too severe in some instances. "By the way, I might mention another letter I received," added the Mayor. "It was from a ratepayer, who wrote: 'Would you kindly arrange for Air. ——, dairyman, to graze his cows in our street?'" Recreation for Patients.

On the motion of Mr. G. T. Parvin it was decided at the meeting of the Auckland Hospital Board yesterday to refer to the building committee a suggestion that a suitable recreation room be built for the patients at tlie infirmary. It was decided also to go into the question of buying a billiard table. The committee reported that a scheme had been inaugurated for the encouragement of the T.B. patients in handicraft. The men were now in inucli better spirits, and there was no doubt that occupation of this nature would be of great benefit to them. Heavy Goods Traffic. During the past week or so there lias been considerable activity and increased business in railway goods traffic. Primary produce for export lias been arriving by special trains from country districts, and one train alone brought 000 tons of frozen and chilled meat nightly from Horotiu for export. Last week eight vessels from overseas arrived at Auckland, and with increased consignments of coal and timber coining into Auckland by rail there has been a heavy demand for wagons. Not for several years has the goods traffic been so heavy. Purity of Onehunga Water. A favourable report on the Onehunga water supply to Mount Roskill was furnished to the Road Board by the foreman of works last night. This stated that credit was due to the Onehunga staff in charge of the reservoir, for the purity of the water. The supply was crystal clear and the residue nil. The foot valve and strainer of the pump was situated some .'SO inches from the bottom, and the reservoir acted ns a settling receptacle for any grit that might collect. The possibility of pumping grit from this source was negligible. The board expressed its satisfaction with the report. Signs of Improvement. Signs of improving economic conditions were before the Mount Albert Borough Council last night in the form of returns of building permits, rate collection and drivers' licenses. The building permits for November amounted to £4225, and for three weeks to December 12 to £3307, and it was stated that a bacon company would begin, early in the New Year, faotory extensions which would cost about £8000, exclusive of machinery. Bates collected up to December 12 amounted to £52,038, compared with £45,354 last year, and drivers' licenses, for less .than seven months, numbered 2592, and were greater than for the whole of hist year. Australian Golfers. Owing to the wet weather the golf matches between the local professionals and members of the Australian team, which passed through Auckland on the Monterey, en route to America, yesterday, were not seriously contested, only half the Maungakiekie course being played. Actually the local players, A. Murray and E. J. Moss, and N. C. Bell and T. Galloway, had an advantage over their opponents, W. Bolger and M. L. Kelly, and G. and E. Naismith, respectively, in the holes which were played. The visitors were playing the larger ball which is in vogue in America. Kelly, the youngest member of the team (he is just 23), revealed a very free and forceful style on the tees, but the few, holes played, and the fact that the visitors had just stepped off the boat, gave very little guide as to their capabilities. Their manager, Mr. H. Campbell,! who is secretary of the Western Districts Golf Association, stated that lie expected Bolger and V. Richardson to do best on the tour. Richardson won the professional championship in 1933 and this year, while Bolger won the Australian Open last season, with Gone Sarazen runner-up. Flying Tour of New Zealand. A torn- of the Dominion is- to be undertaken in the immediate future by Mr. W. M. O'Hara, the New Zealand aviator who recently flew the Tasman in a Klenun Eagle monoplane. The 'plane, which was damaged when the aviator arrived at Mangere from Australia, had been tested after repairing, and Mr. O'Hara has been granted a license for the machine in New Zealand. It will be recalled that his pilot's license was cancelled by the Australian authorities. Mr. O'Hara will set out on his tour on Boxing Day, and expects to complete it early in February. He will then probably return to Sydney by steamer, and fly from there to his home at Malang, Java, by way of West Australia, Darwin and Sourabaya. During his tour Mr. O'Hara has agreed to co-operate with returned soldiers' associations ip various centres, should they agree to organise events to coincide with his arrival for the purpose of raising funds. The itinerary for Mr. O'Hara's tour is as follows:—New Plymouth, Decenfter 2G and 27; Wanganui, December 28 and 29; Palmerston North, December 29 to January 2; Wellington, January 4 to 7; Blenheim, January 8; Nelson, January 9 and 10; Cliristchurch, January 11 to 14; Timaru, January 15 and 10; Oamaru, January 17; Dunedin, January 18; Hastings, January 25; Napier, January 20; Gisborne, January 29 and 30; Rotorua, January 30 and 31: Hamilton, February 1. " It is Not the Custom—" "King Willow" writes:—The letter from Mr. H. Johnston pointing out the rule regarding a batsman taking guard in front of his crease is interesting not only because it decides the issue, but because it illustrates the unique psychology of cricket legislation. "It is not' the custom," runs the note to law 2, "for the umpire to call 'one short.'" No other ga,me in the world is ruled by a ' code which contains such phrases as this, or which allows such discretion, to the rival captains. When that delightful hotch-potch of "laws," notes, addenda and sub-clauses which governs our glorious summer game first came into being, way back in the days of Fuller Pilch, cricket was treated as it should always be treated, namely, as a game, played in a sportsmanlike spirit, by men who would scorn to take unfair advantage of one another. Hence the apparent laxity of many of the "laws" and the necessity for' all the "notes." As an example of lucidity and clear direction the laws of both codes of football stand high, particularly those of Soccer, which has long been highly commercialised in the land of its birth. Cricket, however, is still governed by its time-honoured code, which savours very much of tlie "gentlemen's agreement," and obviously was not framed to cover bitterly controversial issues (such as the so-called bodyline bowling), which have arisen from time to time. It was originally a care-free, sportsmanlike game-, and that it may continue to be so is the wish of all true sportsmen, .

Want to be Nurses. The lady superintendent of tlie Auckland Hospital Board reported yesterday that there were 134 girls on the waiting list for appointments as probationer nurses. There were at present a total of 341 nurses on the staff, and 72 domestics. Sticks and Staffs. "They used to say school teachers were big men with thick sticks. To-day they say they are strong men with adequate staffs," said Mr. H. C. McCoy, a member of the board of trustees of the New Zealand Institute for the Blind, at the annual prize-giving ceremony held at the institute last night. He was comparing school life of to-day with the school life he had experienced. Invidious Comparison. A correspondent, "Seafarer," writes:- — "Criticising the new tunics issued to tramwaynien, one of the latter is reported to have said: 'They look nasty, and are nasty. People think we are firemen off boats.' As a fireman I wish to protest against this insulting statement. I am a 'fireman off a boat,' and I feel I am as deserving of respect as any tramwayman." " Hard Luck." "That is hard luck," said Mr. T. McNab, Mayor of Mount Eden, at last night's meeting of the council, when it was pointed out that the maximum that could be charged for the registration of an Alsatian dog was 10/. Several councillors expressed regret that the registration fee could not be raised, while one remarked that "the Alsatian is not as black as painted." This drew a reply from Mr. E. R. Greenfield that Alsatian dogs in his opinion were a menace to children, and that he was speaking from experience. Moving Terminus. The Mount Albert Borough Council was advised by the Auckland Transport Board last night that the council's proposal that the Owairaka tram terminus should be extended along Owairaka Avenue, on account of the dangerous nature of the present site, had been approved, and that the Avork would be undertaken. Mr. P. Floyd, a member of the council, drew attention to the dangerous crossing at the Mount Albert terminus, and suggested that a warning sign should be erected. The Mayor, Mr. R. Ferner, said the matter would lie attended to. Building at Mount Roskill. A very satisfactory report was presented to the Mount Roskill Road Board last night by the inspector, showing the number of buildings erected in the district. From January 1 to December 13 this year IGG permits had been issued, for works of a value totalling £74,710, including 7(5 dwellings, valued at £43,031, as compared with 152 permits last year, valued at £30,208, including 49 dwellings, worth £24,724. There are now 25 buildings in the course of erection at Mount Roskill. The inspector also reported that 1150 drivers' licenses had been issued during the same period, as compared with 1016 for the previous year. Help for Ambulance. With a strength of 22 members, the Mount Albert section of the Auckland division of the St. John Ambulance Association was recently granted divisional status, and last night the Mount Albert Borough Council had before it a letter from the divisional superintendent asking for a financial contribution in view of the greater expense involved. It was stated that the division had attended 300 cases on the sports grounds in addition to home and street accidents. The council agreed to donate £2 2/ and to congratulate the division on its new status. The council also decided to help the Community Sunshine Association by granting it the right to arrange organised play for young children at Cribble-Hirst Park, and the health camp movement by authorising the town clerk to use health stamps on all ordinary correspondence for a period. < First Life Member. The inauguration of the Stanley Bowling Club and the first meeting held in connection with it in the back room of the Methodist Hall in Calliope Road, when Mr. George Gribben presided over a quarter of a century ago, have been brought to mind by the announcement that Mr. John A. Boss, who was liresent on that occasion, was, at a recent meeting of the club, made its first life member. Mr. Ross learned the ancient game in his Highland home town in Scotland, and has been a bowler for many years in this country also. In his younger days he was also a prominent golfer and a noted rifle shot. Mr. Ross was for some years the oificial reporter for the Stanley Club, and was noted for the accuracy of his reports. In making Mr. Ross the first life member the club has paid a tribute to his fine sportsmanship on the green and his accurate knowledge of the rules of the ancient Scottish game. Future of the Port. "No port has such a chance of being the greatest in New Zealand as has Auckland," declared Mr. H. B. Burnett, retiring superintendent and secretary of the Auckland Harbour Board, at a farewell gathering in his honour following the meeting of the board yesterdav afternoon. "Wellington has the advantage of being centrally situated in respect of the whole Dominion, but actually it is at the tip of the North Island, while Auckland has the rich Waikato and Hauraki Plains districts on the one side and the northern districts on the other. Auckland has, too, a charm all its own, that grows on one. As a purser aboard a steamer running here from 1894 to 1897 I fell in love with the place, but it was 14 years before I could get back." On the question of whether Auckland would ever be a free port, Mr. Burnett said that this did not seem possible. Since the board had been "caught napping" in 1905 with insufficient facilities, its policy had always been to build ahead of its requirements, and heavy loans had been needed for this purpose. A Promise Fulfilled. A promise of many "years' standing was redeemed at the Auckland railway station yesterday morning, when the Limited arrived with the Prime Minister aboard. Mr. Savage for 12 years was very prominently associated with the relief committee of the Hospital Board, and when Parliament was in session he sat for long days dealing with the whole question of giving relief to the most needy people in the city. When some anomaly was discovered in dealing with pensions of many varieties, Mr. Savage always took note of it, so that in his position as member of Parliament he could bring it nnder the notice of the Department, and was of the greatest assistance to the committee in adjusting matters with the Health Department. In fact, it was recognised that some of his best speeches in the House dealt with social problems, because of his very wide experience of them. On account of all this the late chairman of the relief committee, under whom Mr. Savage sat for six years, predicted that one day he (Mr. Savage) would be a Minister of the Crown, and that the very first time he arrived back in Auckland as a Cabinet Minister lie would go and meet him and congratulate him. Mr. Savage, in that philosophical way well known to his friends, said that the years were passing and it might be a long time till he was a Cabinet Minister. Yesterday when the train arrived, and all the chief officials of the party were present to welcome their chief, Mr. Howitt hovered on the outskirts of the crowd, where the Prime Minister's quick eye soon' detected him, and with outstretched hand heartily greeted liim, for he recognised that the former promise had been kept, and that with the passing of the years he had attained to the highest position in the land.