BLOOMS PILFERED.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIX, Issue 228, 27 September 1938, Page 4

BLOOMS PILFERED.

■ RIVER BANK BEDS. . AREA ALMOST STRIPPED. I CHBIITORVRCH COMPLAINT. (By Telegraph.—Own Correspondent.> CHRISTCHURCH, this day. Referring to the pilfering of flowers along the river banks, the Superintendent of Park* and Reserves (Mr. M. J. Barnett) said that on a recent afternoon, when passing an area planted with daffodil bulbs along the bank of the Heathcote. he had to check a boy and a girl who had no fewer than 120 blooms in their possession. Again, on another afternoon, two girls were stopped when busily engaged in picking every bloom they could find. Mr. Barnett explained that during' the autumn several thousand daffodil bulbs were planted in the along j the left bank of the Heathcote between ; j the Wilson's Road and Tennyson Street ! bridges. During the past fortnight many j of those bulbs had commenced to flower, j but during the past few day* the whole area had been practically stripped of blooms.

As far as could be ascertained the destruction was done by irresponsible children, who were more intent upon I gathering the flowers than on carrying j out wilful damage. There was a ! natural hesitation to prosecute children ; for such offences, but he was going to ! suggest to the City Council that the head- i masters of the local schools he written I to. asking them to point out to the : children the seriousness of the offence, and the necessity for showing due regard for public property and the efforts for beautification carried out by local lwdies. Drawing attention to the display made by the hyacinths in Cathedral Square. Mr. Barnett said it was regret- ! table to notice that a considerable i number of those blooms had been taken J when they were at their best. Pilfering i by children along the river banks was j excusable, but the thefts of hyacinths > in the Square were done at night, and j were certainly not the work of children, i