NEWS OF THE DAY.

Auckland Star, Volume LXX, Issue 35, 11 February 1939, Page 8

NEWS OF THE DAY.

Water Colours on Display. So considerable lias been the interest shown in the collection of water colour sketches of early Xew Zealand from Mr. R. S. Abraham, of Palmerston North, that it has been found advisable to hang these in the print room of the Art Gallery. The collection, which numbers 35 pictures, is the work of Mrs. Abraham, wife of the first Bishop of Wellington, and the Rev. T. B. Hutton, a student at St. John's College. The pictures, which were done in the 'forties and 'fifties of last century, depict scenes about Auckland, the Waitemata Harbour, the coast and the Bay of Islands, before the many changes that have since taken place altered the appearance of the country. The pictures will remain on view for some weeks. Postal Thieves Active. Postal thieves are at work again. Five letter boxes in the Otahuhu and Papatoetoe districts were forced open and rifled of their contents early yesterday morning. Discovering a postal box at Papatoetoe broken open at 6 a.m.. a storekeeper informed the police, the • resultant inspection of other boxes revealing that two more in the same district and two in Otahuhu had been rifled. These boxes were last cleared at 4 p.m. the previous day. Inquiries made l>v detectives and postal officials yesterday showed that the number of letters stolen was not large. Later in the day a number of letters were found in the Papatoetoe district. The thefts recall an epidemic of postal box thefts about nine months ago. On that occasion the culprits were caught and sentenced. Right-about Turns. The frequent tradii: hold-ups that occur in Queen Street between Welleslev and Customs Streets owing to drivers of motor vehicles making the right-about turn, is the subject of comment by a correspondent, who suggests that the civic authorities should prohibit the practice. "The motorist who desires to turn around in the busy part of Queen Street is a distinct menace." says the writer. '"He is a danger to oncoming as well as to following trattle, and also to the pedestrian. His clumsy tactics are often responsible for the holding up of tranicars."' Tn many cities throughout tlie world the right-about turn is prohibited, concludes the correspondent, who expresses the opinion that in view of the increasing volume of motor traffic "something should be done about it."

" Wave a Flag to Him ! " Cricket strategy, which was not appreciated by some of the "hillsiders," was seen when Wellington were struggling to avoid defeat by Auckland in the Plunket Shield match. When Ell and Tindill were batting they frequently refused to run singles, and occasionally stood in the crease when there was a likely "two" in a shot. The reason was tliat Tindill. a left-hander, wished to continue facing Vivian, the left-hand spin bolwer, whose dangerous leg spinners became off spinners to him, and consequently easier for him to play. At the tamo time the procrastination, irksome to the spectators, was giving the wicket a chance to improve. Voices from the hill registered disapproval, but there was humour in one sally. Whitelaw had returned a ball from the outfield very wide of the wicketkeeper, and there floated over the ground the remark, ''Wave a flag to him!" Conserving Wild Life. Much biological research is needed .as a preliminary to the formulation of a correct and intelligent policy in wild life conservation, in the view of the executive of the Forest and Bird Protection Society. A great deal would be learnt about wild life, and •there would be much saving of waste effort and license-holders' money, when it was recognised that an expert biological committee was necessary to determine what were facts' and what were mere surmises in the struggle for existence, said the president, Captain E. V. Sanderson, in a recent statement. Illustrating the complexity of the problem, he added: "Some people say that hawks are the real enemy of all birds. They ignore the fact that hawks have lived in association with birds for ages upon ages. Other commentators specially mention stoats and weasels. The Forest and Bird Protection Society, which received reports from all parts of New Zealand, holds that by far the most numerous accusations are against man in the form of illegal shooting and other destruction." Helping the Postman.

The delivery of correspondence to private residences can be speeded up and the postman greatly helped by the provision of letter boxes inside front gates. A correspondent, commenting on this fact, points out the unnecessary distances that postmen have to cover, and states that recently he took the pains to provide a letter box at his gate. "The postman's sunny smile paid me for doing it." concluded the correspondent, who was in his own way dealing with a problem which gives constant concern to the Tost Office—that of unnecessary extension of delivery routes through the distances to be travelled inside the front gatr>s. The Post Office iff fortified by regulations empowering it to refuse delivery more than a, reasonable distance from the road—definition of "reasonable distance" being subject to reasonable interpretation—and also enabling it to refuse to extend a delivery to a. new house unless a gate letter box is provided. Where deliveries have to be made in lofty buildings, the postman is helped by a regulation that letters need not be delivered above the first floor unless a lift is provided. Most concerns meet this reasonable requirement by providing locked letter boxes

They Were Horses, Anyway. She was a very nice little lady of Victorian background, and she was being taken for a drive through the city. In the vicinity of Green Lane and the racecourse a paddock wa6 passed, in which a number of horses were grazing. The lady's attention was drawn to them. "Oh, yes," she said, "I 6uppose there are races on." They were draught horses. New Ambulance Building. Good progress is being made with the construction of the new St. John Ambulance Association building in Hamilton, and it is hoped that it will be ready for opening early in April. The building, wheh is being constructed on a site in Ward Street, leased from the Hamilton Borough Council, will cost approximately £4000. It will accommodate three or four ambulances and a resident officer and assistant. Pigeons' "Daily Dozen.'* Workers who come into the city in the mornings from Mount Eden and Three Kings are becoming accustomed to seeing a score or more pigeons enjoying their daily "workout." over the area near the Mount Eden railway station. Every morning without fail, between 8 and 9 o'clock, the flock of tumblers may be seen cavorting in the air. They invariably keep in close formation, although they tumble, turn and twist incessantly. There is always one out in front, with the others in arrow-head formation behind it. Busy Scene at Marts. Fruit and vegetables have been coming in freely to the city markets this week and keeping the auctioneering firms' staffs working at high pressure. With the harvesting of apples, plums and peaches in fill! swing, the floors were crowded with hundreds of cases yesterday, and the offering was more than the cosmopolitan collection of buyers could take. In consequence, prices were generally lower. It was much the same in the vegetable sales, for the sunshine after last week's rain has brought on large quantities of cabbages and cauliflowers, while carrots, which have been scarce until the last few days, are now plentiful. Vegetables from Ohakune arc now coming forward.

Objected to Lascars. Eight non-union waterside workers engaged yesterday afternoon to assist in unloading passenger baggage from the cruise liner Stratheden were discharged because they objected to working in association with Lascar seamen. Members of the crew of the ship took over their jobs. The usual practice was being followed, it is said, in that the crew were discharging tlie luggage, while it was the duty of the watersiders to take delivery 011 the wharf. The latter, however, raised an objection to the presence of Lascar hatchmen, and they were promptly put off. Their action has been contrasted with the practice of union labour, which is stated regularly to perform duties with crews of any nationality or race in similar circumstances. First Aid Folder. Numerous inquiries arc being received by the St. John Ambulance Association at Auckland regarding the first aid folder, which may be obtained from the ambulance station in Rutland Street. The publication is a compact, six-pose folder, which 6ets out the treatment for almost every conceivable accident, and is regarded as invaluable in an emergency. Mr. S. E. Langstone, secretarymanager of the association at Auckland, stated to-day that it was the aim of the association to see a folder issued with every driving license, together with a reliable first aid kit. If every driver, and particularly the drivers of passenger vehicles, were so prepared for emergency, a great deal of suffering, and perhaps loss of life, would be avoided, he said. Heat and Cold. The unusual experience, for a New Zealander, of motoring in a temperature 30 to 35 degrees below zero fell to the lot of a man who recently returned from a visit to Canada, writes our Te Awamutu correspondent. The motorist said he was not as cold as he had anticipated, explaining that it was a dry cold, with an almost entire absence of wind. When he was driving fast, however, it was bitterly cold, and he felt it severely. He had travelled fairly extensively in central Canada during December and January, the coldest months of the year, and out in the prairie country the snow was light and powdery, and the slightest breeze wafted it into drifts alongside fences, trees and buildings, or into hollows, and thus the roadways were leffr comparatively clear. By contrast, the visitor found that homes and places of business were mostly "superheated," and frequently the atmosphere was too warm for real comfort.

Aucklander in Rome. Owing to the Catholic Centenary and other circumstances, Father P. T. B. McKeefry, of Auckland, private secretary to Bishop Liston, and editor of "Zealandia," postponed a holiday trip to Rome last year. By deferring his trip, liis friends believe that he will be there for the historic ceremonies following the death of the Pope and the election of his successor. Leaving Auckland on December 27. Father McKeefry sailed for Italy on January 3. Realising that his Holiness was in failing health, and that the end might not be far off, he expressed the hope before leaving that he might arrive in time to he received in audience by Pope Pius, or at least to be in time for the ceremonies in the event of his death. It is thought probable that as a clerical visitor from one of the most distant dioceses of the Catholic Church, Father McKccfry will be allowed to have some part in the ceremonies, or at least to be granted special privileges as a spectator in St. Peter's. During his student days at Propaganda College, Rome. Father McKeefry learned to speak fluent Italian, and acquired an abiding affection for the Eternal City. I