NEWS OF THE DAY.

Auckland Star, Volume LXX, Issue 73, 28 March 1939, Page 8

NEWS OF THE DAY.

" Week's Bright Spot." A letter signed by 15 bovs in Ward 23 requested the Auckland Hospital Board last evening to reinstate the Sundav school at the hospital. '-Every boy in this ward to-day who was a patient when the Sunday school was conducted here misses it," stated* the signatories. "It was the bright *;>• t of The week." The board decided to defer consideration of the matter for four months. Chapel at Hospital. On the recommendation of the finance committee, the Auckland Hospital Board decided last night to advise the Auckland Council of Christian Congregations that it would receive a deputation to consider the inclusion of a chapel for patients and nurses in the proposed new hospital building scheme. In a letter to the board the council expressed the opinion that the question was one of extreme importance and merited serious consideration. The Lizards at Te Aroha. Efforts to capture a specimen from the strange lizard colony on Te Aroha Mountain are hampered to some extent by the attention of amateur hunters, who visit the area and thrust sticks into the burrows in an effort to dislodge the inhabitants. Although a watch is now kept on the place, it is difficult to stop the natural curiosity of residents. Mr. .T. 1). Cummiiigs. who captured the first specimen, stated that he had been offered £100 by an Auckland collector for a live lizard of' the larger variety. Waikato River at Low Level. Evidence fl the prolonged rainless spell is noticeable in more ways than in parched pastures and dry gardens. The Waikato River is at a remarkably low level, and in many places sandbanks have appeared. Residents who have lived near the river for many years say it is a long time since such large banks have shown. They have become a popular haunt for wild fowl of various kinds. The swampy areas near the river are also considerably drier than is usual at this time of the year. Farmers and Dry Season. With pastures parched and withered owing to the prolonged dry spell, many farmers in the Waikato face serious losses. Rain has fallen on only one day since February 12, half an inch being recorded on March 12. One farmer, when interviewed, stated that the dry spell was more serious than that which occurred last year, because the dairying community was only just recovering from the effects of the facial eczema epidemic, and further losses through lack of feed would spell ruin for some farmers. "The position is very serious as regards feed for stock." he said. "We arc urgently in need of rain. It is one of the worst periods wo have had for years, and production is declining all over the country." It was stated to-day by one of the officials at the Ruakura Farm of Instruction that the dry spell was even more serious in other parts of the country. Tim was particularly the case in the (iisborne and Manawatu areas. Irresponsible Cyclists. Many boys and youths on cycle-', either going to school or to their employment in the mornings and returning home in the evenings, are a menace to motorists, and seem to resent even the tooting of a warning horn. Car drivers complain about the conduct of these irresponsibles, who, despite the regulations, ride three and four abreast and keep to the middle of the road instead of to the sides. Drivers state that those who offend are not in the majority, but they are in sufficient numbers to cause much inconvenience on the roads, and it is only by the vigilance of motorists that more accidents do not occur. Another source of dancer is the cyclist who makes every down grade a speedway, to the terror of pedestrians. The Xew North Road between Mount Eden Road and Dominion Road is a favourite racing track for home-ward-bound youths, while other equally steep gradients have their full quota of "racers" between 4.30 p.m. and fl p.m. On the inward journey the same youths cause some trouble by their zig-zagging tactics in negotiating the grades. Maori Adze Workshop. What is claimed to be one of the most important developments in the Thames Valley so far as Maori history is concerned was the chance discovery of a'complete Maori workshop at Ruakaka by Mr. C. E. Jennings, of j Rata Street, states' a Te Aroha correspondent. The site is a level piece of land abutting the mountain side, and a brief search yielded no less than (10 adze-heads in all stages of construction. Many arc still in 'their rough state, while others are nearly finished, the smoothing process having all but obliterated the rough outline of the raw stone. The adzes, in the main, are of a dark, flint - like stone, which it is surmised was brought from some distance, in view of the fact that the rock formations on Te Aroha Mountain are of the grey, granite Iype. Piles of flint chips in the locality tell of the patient toil of the workers who shaped the stones. A workshop of the dimensions disclosed suggests a progressive, community which demanded n steady supply of implements and weapons of war. It is considered that it is at least 100 years since the workshop was in use.

Enthusiastic Rugby Clubs. A plea for "hard" football was made by Mr. A. A. Baker, at the annual meeting of the Rugby Union last night. Mr. Baker asked delegates* to tell their players to keep the ball in play and the pace going. "Don't misunderstand me when I say 'hard' football," he added. "I mean willing play, not dirty play. I have been round to a number of the clubs, and everywhere I have met the same enthusiasm. The number of junior players seems to have increased, and the promise is for a bumper season. Let the play Ira bright." Hospital Power Change-over. Acting on a recommendation by the building committee, the Auckland Hospital Board decided to change over the electric power from direct current to alternating current at the hospital, excluding the li'-s, and application is to be made to the Minister of Health for approval of the proposal. It was also decided to ask the Auckland Power Board to contribute £4~>o towards the cost of the change-over, being Cue approximate value o? the saving to the Rower Board arising frr.m the use of alternating current. Teachers' Refresher Course. Because teachers in the Auckland city and suburban area will be undergoing a refresher course, all primary schools in the metropolitan area will be closed to-morrow. Thursday and Friday. About 000 teachers will be attending the Auckland course, and they will be divided into three groups, which will assemble at the Auckland Training College, the Auckland Normal Schooi and the Famcll School. Similar courses have already been held at Te Aroha, Tauranga. Hamilton, Te Kuiti, Whangarei, Kaikohe and Dargaville. Social Security Offices. Until the fitting up of the offices for th Social Security Department, on the gronn'! floor of Nathan's Bond Building, in High Street, is completed, during the latter part of April, the activities of the Department, in Auckland will be divided between the offices of the Tensions Department, in Chancery Street, and the employment branch of the Labour Department, on the upper floors of Nathan's Building. The construction of partitions, counters and oflice space will be held up for several days by the intervention of Easter. He Picked a Good One. At one of the suburban clubs' athletic meetings a competitor in the shot put was showing special aptitude and outdistancing his opponents. One of the club oflicials was heard to inquire as to who the competitor was. etc. The remark of a bystander that lie was a recent arrival pictured to the official a new member of outstanding ability. Drawing him aside, a few guarded questions elicited the fact that the shot put artist was a representative from another centre to compete in the junior championships, which created much merriment to those in the immediate proximity. The nfKeial's retort was, "Well, I picked a good 'im, anyhow."

Goods Transport in N.Z. The North Island's predominance over the South Island in goods transport is strikingly revealed in figures recently compiled by the Transport Department. These, show that, of the £3,(i.V2,000 capital invested in goods services on the roads in the vear ended March, 1038, £2,42."">.000 was the North Island's share and £1,227.000 the South Island's. The mileage travelled in the North Tslaud was .10,000,000, compared with only 20.000,000 in the South. Operating costs for the whole Dominion were £3,105.000. and revenue was £3.583.000, giving a profit of £42.">.001». Operators totalled 2530. and licensed goods vehicles 4859. The average capital investment of each operator was £1200. Lesson Not Heeded. Motorists Awhosc business takes them to the precincts of the Magistrate's Court are usually punctilious in their observance of traffic regulations. Yesterday, for instance, a woman manoeuvred her car for ten minutes to park it in a vacant place parallel to the kerb while she transacted business at ihe Hospital Board's office, this lasting exactly 45 seconds. Tn marked contrast, however, was the behaviour of a youthful female driveV, who left her car, with engine running, in the "fairway," while she dashed into the Court building. Inquiries made later elicited the interesting information that her business was the paying of a fine for a minor traffic breach. Fortunately for the driver, her second lapse was not officially detected. Bohemia — Cockpit of Europe. The tragic reply of the Government of Czechoslovakia to the virtual ultimatum of the British and French Governments that Heir Hitler's demands relating to the Sudeten Germans should be met had never been published in New, Zealand, said Mr. L. K. Monro in an address to the Auckland Rotary Club yesterday. "The mutilation of the country will sooner or later throw it under the absolute control of the Gorman Government, and will produce serious consequences to other States, particularly France." was a section of the message. How prophetic these words had proved, said Mr. Munro. M. Daladier had stated only n few days ago that France was standing with her back to the wall. Furthermore. Hitler was in control of Bohemia, and Bismarck had stated that the master of Bohemia was the master of Europe. Hitler had learned the lessen well.