NEWS OF THE DAY.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIX, Issue 118, 21 May 1938, Page 8

NEWS OF THE DAY.

For Service. The other evening at Papakura three clube held their annual meetings, and each clul elected a life member, which must constitute a record for a small township. The Papakura Orphans made their chief steward, Mr. W. L Klliott. a life member; tlie croquet club did the same with Mrs. J. Slack; and the bowlinp club followed suit with its retiring president Mr. S. D. Rice. Magistrate's Remark. A considerable amount of conflicting evidence was called in two cases heard before Mr. ■L H. Luxford. S.M., in the Magistrate's Court, Wellington. Both defendants were married women, and pleaded not guilty to charges of disorderly behaviour arising out of an incident between them in Aro Street. After some time, in which the magistrate listened to full stateI ments of 1 the two aspects of the cat-e, he remarked: "There is one thing about it. I am "lad this is not being heard by a jurv from Aro Street." Urewera Bush Conservation. j An announcement that he hml agreed tc t make the Urewera bush countrv an historic and scenic reserve was made by* the Minister of Lands, the Hon. F. Langstone, when discussing drainage matters with tiie Rangitaiki ratepayers' committee in Whokatane. Mr. Langstone said it was of vital interest to the whole country, and particularly to the Raii'.'itaiki Plains, th.it the I rcwera country be conserved. Tt would be nothing short of a tragedy to allow the settler und sawtniller to get in. and he had therefore agreed to make I the nrea an hUtoric and scenic reserve. It would be a contribution to the safetv of the people living in the Bay of Plenty, for if they allowed the timber to be felled in the watersheds of the three rivers, which had their source in the Urewera, it would mean the destruction of the lands and homes of the settlers. Scientist's Letters Lost. The personal letters of Lord Rutherford to his mother, sought by two biographers, and probably of great value to scientists, have di.-appeared. Written since Lord. Rutherford left New Zealand, the letters traced the great scientist's progress in England and made reference to many of his inventions and achievements in the field of science. The letters were asked for by biographers in Britain, and were gathered and placed in a case and lodged with a firm of solicitors at New Plymouth. where Lord Rutherford lived for * a number of years. The firm's buildings were demolished for rebuilding, and the documents were moved to temporary premises. In the meantime, Lord Rutherford died. The case, presumed to contain precious papers, was opened, but wos found to contain other documents. A most diligent search has failed to reveal the wanted letters, and it seems that I this most intimate link with one of the world's greatest scientists of modern times may be lost for ever. Teachers and Politics. I A notion that, in view of the general election this year, the New Zealand Secondary Schools' Association should ask' from the two j leading political organisations an assurance that full civilian liberty and freedom of spccch will continue to be enjoyed by teachers equally with other sections of the community, was j carried bv the New Zealand Secondary Schools' I Association conference in Wellington. "We I have had one instance oF restraint being put on the civil liberty of teachers, and. although I the political organisations have agreed that there should be no such thing in the future, it is right that we should ensure it will not happen again," said Dr. W. M. Smith, the mover. To combat the contention that servants of the State should not criticise the administration, he quoted Sir William Beveridge as saying that he did consider any country democratic unless all its citizens were freely allowed to criticise those in authority. The motion was carried without further discussion and without dissent. Australia's Variable Climate. Some remarkable contrasts in seasonal and climatic conditions in various parts of Australia are revealed in the latest reports from the country districts of the six States. In Victoria general rain would be beneficial in almost all parts, a position which is not uncommon at this time of the year, but the outlook is not as serious as in New South Wales. While drought conditions are not so ruinous in their effects as before the days of irrigation, improved water storages, fodder reserves and knowledge of the best use of supplementary feed, the conditions in New South Wales, unfortunately, are underminim? the prosperity of many thousands of farmers, and next season's production will be largely reduced. In Queensland the drought is most severe towards the south-west, where only scattered rain of little value has been experienced in recent months. West Australia has been greatly benefited by excellent rains throughout the wheatgrowing areas, and in Australia the State has seldom entered the winter months with its pastoral conditions more favourable or with the prospects of the wheat harvest more promising. In Tasmania, too, the conditions good, in fact the best for a number of years. ■■■■ """■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■a

Blackfish on River Bank. At the height ofi the flood on the Hauraki Plains on May 4 two blackfish became stranded on the stopbank at the mouth of the Piako River, a mile or two north of Pipiroa. The fish, which are now making their presence felt, measured 27ft and 23ft in length respectively. The larger one lies right on top of the stopbank, showing that the depth of water there must have been considerable. Flood-bound Cattle. Marooned near the top of Devil's Elbow, 011 the Napier-Wairoa road, since the flood of Anzac Day, a mob of cattle which was being driven from Springhill to Waipawa was got out only a few days ago, when the journey to \\ a i paw a was continued. The mob had reached the top of Devil's Elbow when the flood came, and progress in every direction was blocked by slips. With the exception of two or three animals which were caught by slips, they all herded on to high ground, where they were left until the journey could be continued. This was not possible until a few days ago, when a start was made for the Esk River. In spite of the very bad condition of the road, fair progress was made and the river was reached yesterday. Ihe whole mob, except a few that were bogged, got across safely. Offending Shopkeepers. Fourteen shopkeepers were prosecuted in the Police Court yesterday by the Department of Labour for failing to close their shops on a half-day. Appearing for the Labour Department. Mr. ( . P. Smith said the evidence showed that det.ndanis had been selling cigarettes and tobacco and not observing the halfholiday, while tobacconists were compelled to observe the half-holiday., ''It is most unfair trading, and i- proving a serious handicap to 1 the tobacconists. The Tobacconists' Associa-1 tion has complained repeatedly, and now the] illegal sale ot i-iu.ireltes has rebelled alarming' proportions. They ask that the law . hould' be complied with by ail persons selling cigar- ' ettes." In imposing fines of £2 and costiT on most of the offenders, the magistrate. Mr. C. R. Orr Walker, said it was <111 ite clear the Act was being broken flograntlv in manv 1 cases, and it must be stopped. " ' ,

Well -equipped Home. Additions to the Wilson Home for Cripplci Children at Takapuna, which are well on the way to completion, will make it an excep tionollv well equipped treatment hospital. Ai present only 30 child reft can be aceommodatec there, and some of the treatment facilities an of only a temporary nature. The addition wil fit in splendidly with the present style of tli< building. and contains as its major features a big nmssagp room and a bathroom. Tei plinths (massage tallies) will he fitted in th( massage room, and in the hathroom there is a big concrete hath. 20ft by Rft, with the I depth of water varying from ISin at one enc to 3ft at the other. When this is completed full hydro-therapy treatment can he sriven Tn addition four individual 1 latlks are beins I erected in the same bin room. When thie j building is fished. accommodation for ai extra ten patients will be available at the home. ! City Power Breaks. The burning out of underground cables caused stoppages of electric power in the districts of Kemuera, St. Helier'g and Ellerslie in varying periods between the hours of 4.3 C p.m. and < p.m. last evening—with considerable inconvenience to householders in those areas. Jive gangs were immediately put on the job by the Auckland Electric Power Board, and the necessary repairs were carried out in a very short space of time. Explaining the position this morning, Mr. R. H. Bartlev manager of the Auckland Electric Power Board, said that four faults in underground cables were discovered. The 6000-volt' cablc had burnt out in one place in Remuera, and in three places in Ellerslie. The breaks were caused by a. high voltic surge in the power, and the cause of this was being investigated The cables were regularly patrolled, was a big mileage to cover. The "Tin Can" Mail. Philatelists will be interested to learn that an opportunity of obtaining the interesting "tin can" mail covers will be afforded when the steamer llaunganui calls off Niuafoou Island during the course of her cruise to Tonga, Samoa and Fiji in August. Niuafoou, or "Tin Can" Island, an outlier of the Tongan group, is a small volcanic island about five miles in diameter, its whole centre being a crater lake surrounded by a ring of cliffs." It has no harbour, and the natives come out in canoee to pick up the mail, which is put overboard in sealed tins. To obtain the "tin can" mail postmarks on envelopes, they should be addressed to the intended recipient, and sent under cover of another envelope addressed to the Union Steam Ship Company, Wellington, and marked on the outside, "Tin Can Mail." Sixpence in loose Xew Zealand stamps for each cover to be postmarked (2*d for the necessary Tongan stamps and the balance for the Islanders' services in handling the mail) should be enclosed, and the packet must reach the Union Steam Ship Company, Wellington, before Friday, July 27. The envelope should be of a size to show off the postmarks satisfactorily, about Gin wide by sin deep. The will be taken to Niuafoou by the Maunganui, and after being dealt with there they will be returned by a later opportunity. It may perhaps be two or three months before the letters are received by the addressees, as, apart from the infrequency of calls at the island, occasionally there is delay through the island's supply of Tongan stamps running out.