NEWS OF THE DAY.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVIII, Issue 259, 1 November 1937, Page 6

NEWS OF THE DAY.

Air Thrills. Spectacular tin-ills were provided the rniml present at tlie Al.ingere aerodrome yesterday afternoon, u lien Mr. <!. W. Sellars made two pa racliut e deiccnis, the first from an altitude i.f l.MlOt't and llie second from a height of one mile. The pa rachiit is|. despite the M i,hi- southerly bree/.e, showed good judgment, particularly in [lie mile drop, when ""••i man ami aeroplane broke through the cloud- with spectacular effect, impressing the crowds below. Flight I.ienlenanl I). M. Allan, "ho took Mr. Sellars aloft i,,r hot h jumps, "ave another thrilling displav of aerobatics, and demonstrated a bilidiii" from a hci'dit of UiMlOft with a "dead- motor. N.Z. Produce Featured in London. New Zealand produce is at pre-cut being featured by the Civil Service Snpplv .\s,ociation. one of London's greatest stores, as part of a scheme to promote thei>- -ale-- ~f foodstuff* from (lie Empire. With the a--i i.ince of the High Commis,inner'- Miblieil ,■ departincut an attractive display of \-w Zealand meat, butter, cheese, passion I'riii' e\tn.i< and tinned goods has been arranged (the Ptiminion's apples are out, of sen-on in Kngland), and sampler of butter and c'sees.-. ari' being given away. A special as.-istnnt, trained in the sale of New Zealand produce, is in atendatice at the di-plav to advance the sales of the-e goods. Dry October, Except Labour Day. The rainfall in October was only about half the average, ami then' was a spell of i>o days without rain, according to the report of 'he ollieial ( io\ eminent, observer, Mr. S. M. Yallop. The total rainfall for the month was ---*''"- compared with .*{. 1 r.lii in October last vein. The maximum fall was 1.02 in, on October 211. and rain fell on only seven days, compared with 14 days in the corresponding month last year. Sunshine was above the average, the total for the month being 107 hours 3<i minutes, compared with 171 hours 54 minutes in October last year. There were no days without, sunshine last month, the maximum being 12 houns .">4 minutes on October 20. New Zealand's Critical Year. An analysis of expenditure on military and other services in New Zealand during the early years of colonial development, discovered by an Auckland citizen among some old documents, has an interesting bearing on Maori War history. The ye«tr of greatest expenditure was IStl.l f.4. when £7H»i.l(i3 was required for defence. In the next five years the annual expenditure wan around .000.0(10. except for lH*i7-(iS. when there was a brief reduction to £120.000. Tn the 'seventies the figure settled down at. about £17(1.000. The rise to the 1804 peak was sudden, showing how critical was the emergency which the Covernnient was compelled to fill. In the year before the uprising of the Maoris military expenditure in New Zealand was only 1'fi.").4.">7. and prior to that it had never risen above £20,000. Impressive Ceremonial.

A glimpse of the colour and dignity that will attend the Catholic Centenary celebrations in February-March next year was given yesterday at the Convent of the Sacred Heart, Remuera, when the Blessed Sacrament was carried in procession. About 1000 persons took part in the procession, and :tllOo of the laity were present, many following in the wake of the procession. It was a scene of moving colour, of brilliant ceremonial and of devotional dignity. The natural beouties of the garden scene were enhanced with the flags of the route, with the vestment* of the priests, the banners, the costuming of the members of the various sodalities of the Church, and the canopy under which Bishop I.iston carried the Blessed Sacrament. Throughout the winding course of the procession hymns were sung, and they L'ave a solemn devotional note, too. to the Benediction, given by the Birdiop three times —at the starting point from a balcony of the convent, from an open-air altar, and agai,. from the balcony at the conclusion. The celebration concluded with the impressive singing by the whole gathering of "Faith of Our Fathers.'' In Praise of Barracking. Experienced judges of cricket have declared that "barracking" will never become popular anywhere except on the big grounds of Australia, but it is interesting to read the opinion of Mr. A. K. Lawton. the Derbyshire amateur, that advice from '"the gods" may have its uses. In a broadcast during the season just ended at Home he said. "The batsman expects applause when he hits his all-too-occasional boundaries, but he would be highly indignant if he were to receive expressions of disapproval when he failed to ncnre from loose or over-pitched balls." In the old days a voice from "the gods" would often be heard urging the batsman to "'it it," or get out. and Mr. Lawton tells a jjond story of a county match where the captain could do nothing right, and (he voice of an adviser on the sixpenny side repeatedly yelled. 'Tut Tones on." At last the captain could stand it no longer, so he did put Jones on. Twenty uus were scored in the over, whereupon the voice yelled, "Put Brown on." Agiiu the •nptain obliged, and again 'JO rniiH accrued. rii desperation the captain looked towards the spot where his well-meaning adviser was standing. Back came the voice: "Oh, put the Moomin' roller on."

Domestic Courts. The hope that the movement for domestic Courts that had occurred in England would he reflected in New Zealand wan expressed hy the IJishop of Wellington, the lU. Rev. IT. St. Bailie Holland, at the annual meeting of the Society for the Protection of Women and Children at Wellington. Kemnrking upon the nilconciliatory atmosphere of an ordinary Court, liishop Holland said that a. friendly chat in the domestic Court often assisted in the maintenance of family life. " Up, Guards, and At Em !** Twelve young bandsmen of the (Jrenadier (luards, with their drum major, were shown a special programme of New Zealand lilniK In-t week in the High Commissioner's olliee. London. The showing was arranged hy the High Commissioner'*; publicity department, and consisted of tilms made by the Tourist ami Publicity Department in New Zealand. It was part of the Cuards' educational scheme for younger recruits, and the inst nut or. Captain Heber Percy, who was at one time aidede camp to Lord Oalway, drew interestingly upon his persona] experience*; in the Dominion to enliven the programme. Emphasis on Maoris. The opinion that the publicity given to New Zealand abroad was inadequate was expressed in an interview by Mr. C. K. Hegg, general manager for Charles Hegg and Company, on his returning to Dunedin after a tour abroad. lie naid he had met widelytravelled people who had not known anything of the Dominion at all, but considered that in New Zealand publicity C much emphasis was laid on the Maoris. This was not likely to attract the middle-aged typo tourists, and he considered that more should be made of the scenic aspect of the country and the fact that it was highly civilised. The use of colour films on ships would greatly assist this. Parking Fee at Mission Bay. Parking areas normally filled to overflowing by motorists visiting Mission Hay during the week-end were capable of taking three to four times the number of ears they contained yesterday and on Saturday afternoon. Shopkeepers in the vicinity reported a substantial drop in takings, and attributed the decreased business to the imposition of a parking charge of one shilling by the City Council. Many motorists arrived at the bay. saw the notices announcing the fees, and backed out in search of cheaper places. Others solved the problem by parking on the road and 1 akinrr their afternoon tea down to the beach. Shopkeepers are indignant that Uncharge has been made right at the start of the season.

A Great School Reunion. A very pleasing feature of the diamond jubilee celebrations of the (Irafton District School, which eoneliided yesterday afternoon by a rally in the school grounds, was the large number of ex-pupils who came from great distances to be present. Several came from the Waikato, one lady made a special trip from Opua. and there were visitors from Wangamii. Napier, Wellington and the South Island. The longest distance travelled was from Sydney, and this ex-pupil bore greetings from several Australian cor who remem he red with affection the old sehool and its fraternal associations. This "gathering of the clans'' resulted in many specially warm demonstrations of friendly feeling among people who had not met for over 40 years, i At every function it was particularly noticeable how groups formed, separated, and reassembled, and every individual was sure of a hearty hand-elaup and a smile wherever he contacted with someone of his own "vintage." Tn concluding the celehre'ions yesterday Mr. Alex. Macfiregor, the chairman of the executive committee, said that the very desirable result was due to the enthusiastic support of a willing team of workers, whose labours had achieved success. The Boys and Girls of Yesteryear. At Saturday night's "lack to school" function in connection with the diamond jubilee of the (irafton School, a continuous ripple of amnncment was caused by Mr. Alex Mac(Jregor's recapitulation of the misdemeanours of the hoys of bygone generations. The school was then on the outskirts of the city; cows were kept in a paddock adjoining, and there were ponds at the Normanl/y Hoad and Boston Hoad intersection, which attracted illicit swimming parties and occasioned the school authorities much trouble. Mr. MocOregor related incidents in connection with "amioying Murke's cows," "li.-hiug in Mear's I pond." "making shanghais from hairpins and garter elastic," "teasing Mi~n Spilsbury's dogs," "robbing O'Connell's orchard in Cemetery Dull v." "putting bird lime on Morky Howell's doorstep." and "robbing Burton's bakery of hot cross buns." whicli evidently recalled juvenile rascalities to the old-timers present with every appearance of delivht.' Coiiceriiing the ui'rls of tliot era. Mr. K. j \blri.lue. who a.hires.,.,l the gathering vest,.,-! day. said thai the modern flapper, with "|ien-| eilled cvebrows. powdered el I;- and shorn locks." 'could not hold n candle to "the 1 maidens in pigtails and pinafores of bygone; eras." These "rosebuds in the (irafton garden"! were the adoration of the boys of their day.' and it had uiennt a real Ihril' for present -da'v' grandpas to again meet the -weethcarts of .".()' years ago. These recollections were all part; of the "do you remember" episodes which contributed -o'greatly to the out -I a ndiim Mic-ess of the occasion, and all present thoroughlv enjoved these references to the bovs and "iris! of long ago. ' |