NEWS OF THE DAY.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIX, Issue 223, 20 September 1938, Page 8

NEWS OF THE DAY.

'Varsity Donations. The donation of a e<rt of the Stntutes of New Zealand dating back to ISJ4, from Mr L. J. funks, of Auckland, was acknowledged at yesterday s meeting of the council of the Auckland University College. Tlie Law Society of the District of Auckland Lo ad vwwl that a number of text hooks in the law »>i-«ry had heen replaced |, v j at er editions, and that the Law S,,,i,ivWo,M,ci| had granted (he college the use of these works. Flight to the Altar.

" There has l.eeii an increase in the. mar

nape rate and an increase in tlip birth rate," -nil Mr J. A Leo, M.l'., amid laughter, la«t night, when he addressed supporter-, at Orev Lynn. "A tew years ago many n )».v conl'd !!.'." <,v<> " ti,k, ' I;'- young lady to the pictures. Hie young Indies w. n< sometimes borrowing a shilling from their parents to t.ike their boyn. But today tli,. young people are <>ettiiig married right and" left. Wi- can't keep .air typists i,, the fJ.nvnniicnf offices in Wellington: they arc al! tiie time Hittiii" off to Kft married—and wo arc -lad to see 'it, too." Snowfall in National Park.

A heavy full of snow was experienced at the Chateau Toii.j;;rir<> ilnrinjj the week-end and Miow is ,„,„,. than a f..ot ilcep around the building last nij-ht. The ,-.kii| to ihe National Park station it, covcre.l. Two cars were in (liflteiilties whilt m,ui.niii-_- the road above the Chateau, hut little dillirulty was Px[)erienced in extricating thdn. S-,,, : ,i Flat is well covered, and. even without further -now, excellent conditions for ,-ki ii: L . -.honld prevail for about six weeks. ri,,. \ OT ,,nihoe Cup, presented for competition anion" skiers by Mr. T. Mitchell, of Australia, is to be eonn>eted for at National Park on October 2. War Risk on Marine Policies.

Advice that it was intemlfd to cancel within 4S hours the war ii«k coverage on marine policies except in the case of special endorsements rclatiiiu' to <j<>ml-; in transit, was conveyed to many Auckland importing firms yesterday liy iitt-iininre companies operating i n \ PW Zealand. Furthermore, there has heen n flood nf -.1 \-i>-.-~ iron, oversea* iiLM'MN to the effect lli.K *ali«* are siil.ject to fluctuation* of war insurance on buyers' account. Sucli ad\ i.-c- come from ii'mny countric-;. including , Mich i-.'initrie-, out of (lie I'.iiropcan zone »n Iniliii ;'i..| ( aicnlii. The po-iti'in now i_ (lint in-tcul of general coverages, importers n(|uiiiiiu insula nee are finding it necessary in iiin&t instances to hike nut war risks >uliject to the conditions in effect at the time of shipment. The special war risk rote f|tloied yoterday from Canada and other countries \vm tJI p'cr cent, a rise from the recent rate of 10/ p«T cent. Wellington's Emu Hatch.

Hatehiiij; three healthy chick* from a clutch of si\ eppi, over which lie had Inooded for nine weeks, the N'ewtown Zoo cock emu lia<s again won for Wellington the paternity contest against the Auckland emu. The emu yesterday morning aro«e from his iiiwt and led forth three l>l«ick flml white striped duy<»l<l emu chicks. Of the remaining egi. , *. two were addled and one sterile. The curator. Mr .1. Lanjri-id'T. and keepers at the zoo regard the event, in view of earl hniiake, ruin and hail, and almost et>ll«Utenl ly unfavourable wenther, including t«<> extremely severe storms, as outstanding in local zoological history. The chicks were nlilc to run about and to make their dehlit in front of tlie .public yesterday. The old liird showed great solicitude in guarding them, and re-ented any attempt to approach them closely. He will continue in charge of them until thev <ue ahle to fend for 1 liemsch <>-:. Thff hen liird and last year's chicle will remain in a separate enclosure until the danger of jealousy leading to any eoit of family trouble is past. Our Drinking Habits.

Adverse criticism of Kpw Zealand's licensing laws was made by Mr. Lifter F Moller, Otajro Rhodes Scholar of 19U.1, who ha* returned after three yearn at Oxford University, reports tlic "Star's" Punedin correspondent. Our licensing laws wore anti((liatcd and out of dnti\ ho said. They had a much better system in En«rhin<l. lintels there v. ere open ;i t different hours, in wimc cases friiiii 10 a.m. till 2 p.m., and then from f> p.m. till 11 p.m. "By the working man in particular the hotels in England are looked upon us clulis where he c<lll meet his friends and on joy such •fiimes as are provided in the l>ar. When a man knocks off work at p.m. or after he does not rush to the liiir and attempt to drink as much as lu> can liefore closiii" time, as is the m«i« here. Init he poos down leisurely in the evening end enjoys himself in a harmless manner. Very few of these men have more thati two i>r thro* , jrhi*ses during the night, the intervening time hein-r spent in conversation or in the pliiyinjr of sanies. I saw very few cases of drunkenness, far fewer in the whole time T \v;h uwoy than T used to see in a week in Dunedin." Mr. Mullor criticised the olvservance of dry areas in certain parts of Xew Zealand as ahsuvd. "It is onlv an evasion," ho wjiirl. "and encourages drinking which i« called illeenl."

Sportster 'Plane for Te Kuiti. A machine for the Te Kiiiti Aero Club is expected to arrive in Te Kuiti in November if suitable accommodation can be arranged. The machine is a Rearwin Sportster and is of Canadian manufacture. It is a dual-control. cabin monoplane with a !>0 h.p. radial engine. The aeroplane lias a crui>injr speed of 103 miles an hour, and a landing speed of 38 miles an hour.

The Opening Cannonade. "Machine-jjnn fire? Armed pnnjjstere attaekiiif* a city bank?" Passers-by in one of Auckland's busiest streets this morning might have been excused if they htul jumped to either oil these eoncliisii.ns. There was nothing serious the 'natter, however. It was merely one of the lirst firework cannonades of the. season. The "jfloriinis fifth" is only a little over a month away, and, though tiieir elders may have forgotten the fact, the younjrster* eertainlv have not.

British Farmers , Enterprise. Annoyed by the millions of Hies which hovered over manure beds on mushroom farms. British farms, have devised a clever mi thud of converting the nuisance info a pnyiliL' crop. A liuue -net inn fan is used to draw the (lies over refri»emtiiiif coils ivliicli chill them, and'they are (liupped dorni.int into larfte (■•■ ins. The canw arc then scaled and the flic* are shipped to Fiance, where they are sold to frop raisers as stock feed. Some English mushroom grow r< earn os much from their tiie-. as from their mushroom*. Land Compensation Claims.

The hearing of compensation claims by the Lennox Trustee-; and Joseph Zaiubucca in respect to land in Pitt Street taken under the Public Works Act for the purposes of a new fire brigade station was concluded in the Supreme Court yesterday afternoon before Mr. Justice Fair, sitting with the TTon. J. Alexander, M.L.C.. and Mr. W. H. Lunn as assessors. After having heard addresses by Messrs. A. K. North. H. P. Richmond and V. R. Mere<lith on bclmlf of the parties, his Honor thanked them for a clear pri^entution of the cases, and said the Court would take time to consider its dcci-ioii. "Budgie" Steps Out.

The unusual habit* of a pair <>f budgerigars are the eause of interest ;it Mr. X. I). McXair's residence at I'apatoctoe. During tin' (lay the birds , trt , nut ca'j.-d. !>nt they seldom venture fiir frutn tlir house, and alway> return Mt meal times. La-t «ea«<i||. at lie-till" time. l!u> female disappeared, returning some wee b< later with ii pair <>f Hi-ilulni-j-s, This season the |Hiir were watched more clo-ely, am] it was found that they made a nest in the cleft of two iron 'telegraph poles adjacent to the railway line, and in sight of Mr. McXair's home. The female is at present witting on a liiitc-h of eg<;s. being fed at regular intcrVtiN by the maltf. The ehickw brought home by the hen la*t season ventured abroad too soon, and it is believed that they were disposed of by a cat. Canadian Professors Abroad.

Almost an "invuMou" of New Zealand by Canadian professors and educational Icadcin will take place during the next two or three weeks, when tin: majority of the members! of the delegation fl'om Canada to tins second ISritUh Commonwealth Relation* Conference in Sydney will spend a week in the Dominion. The visitors will include I'rofivsor (J. K. 15ritnell. professor of political sci, nte in the. I "tiivcrstity of Saskatchewan; i'i oiV-ssor W. H. iirittain, dean of the faculty of agriculture and vice-principal of McDonald College, Me(;ill University; l'roiV*sor K. 11. Sowanl, professor of history at the lliiversily of British I'olumbia; l'loui-sor K. W. Taylor, prof.-ssor of McMaster I'tin ersit \ , Ontario; I'rofcsrior P. K. forbett, dean of the faculty of law. Mcfiill I'liiversity-; X. A. M. Mackenzie, professor of internaticinal law. liiivcrsity of Toronto; Mr. (•]. .J. Tarr, K.( .. Winnipeg; Mr. V. .1. Hm-ehell, K.C., of Halifax, Xova Scotia: Mnjor-(ietu>ral \V. A. Griesliach. a senator, of Edmonton; ond Mr. J, S. McLean, of Toronto. It is expected they will arrive at Wellington, and, after through the Dominion, will pail from Auckland. Not Entirely An 111-Wind.

Damage of a minor nature was done throughout Taranaki by the hiyh wind that, accompanied by torrential ruin, thunder and lightning, swept the province during Sunday Power and telephone servicits were dislocated in many part* of central Taranaki, which suffered most. In one unusual instance the wind served a good purpose. The last section of roofing on an old building which is being demolished to make wav for -New l'lvmouth's new post oflice was lifted in one hllfri" piece .".((ft by £m't and cairie<l on to a iiei-n- - action. This «ecti»n of was It'll «m l>y the contractors as shelter for their oflice in the old building, and, as they did not expect a wind <.f any serious velocity from the v\i«t, no special prewi lit ions were taken to make it fa>t. Tliev were startled next morniujr to find the roof lying in one piece on tin- ground. Their task now remains a simple one, as all that it- necessary is to lift, the strips of corrugated iron o'ff the beams. At Hawera two Inr-ro wute.i- tanks stored in a plumber's yard were bowled alon«r by the wind and finished their career on the road maliy yards away. Daninpe to telephone' lines in the district was spreud over a wide area.