NEWS OF THE DAY.

Auckland Star, Volume LXX, Issue 194, 18 August 1939, Page 6

NEWS OF THE DAY.

Endeavour's Pennant.

1 lie Inner white paying-off pennant fluttering ft "in tlie mast of the Admiralty survey ship. H.M.N. Endeavour, caaght the eye of passengers mi the ferries this morning.' The •stiong Mill - westerly wind tossed the pennant wide from tlie mast and kept it almost straight out trom the whip's side. After two years' survey work around the coast, the hndeayour is returning to England to-day. She will be replaced by a more modern vessel. School Holidays. Holidays for most of the primary and secondary schools in the Auckland district will begin this afternoon after the completion of the second term. Some of the private ■schools closed yesterday. Schools under the Auckland Education Board will for the first time open on Tuesday. September 5, instead of on the preceding Monday. The holidav period for the secondary schools "will be three weeks, the majority of them opening on Sentember 12. ° 1 Motorists See Stream Form. Evidence of the intensity of the rain in the Papakura district about midday yesterday. a small stream formed in a. paddock before the eyes of a party of motorists. The paddock, in the form of a* shallow valley, had a long gradual slope towards the road on which the party's car was standing. At one moment the paddock, to all appearance*. wa.dry. Five minutes after the rain began a small trickle started to run down the vallev, hut ten minutes later the trickle had become a stream some 2ft wide by some Sin deep. Musick Memorial Station. 'Jests are now being carried out at the M usick Memorial station to ensure the accuracy of the direction-finding apparatus, whicli will be used to guide the trans-Taxman aircraft on their regular flights. The shortwave apparatus, at the station is also being exhaustively tested. It is expected that communication will shortly be established with the aviation station at Rose Bay. Sydney. I ests have been carried out recently by Post and Telegraph officers at the station, who have tried out their apparatus by communication with several intercolonial vessels at sea. School's Fine Record. For a young institution with a roll number just approaching the 500 mark, the Owairaka School has an excellent record, both scholastic-ally and athletically. On the playing field the pupils of the school have been very prominent in recent times, being to the fore particularly in Rugby and in the primary schools' sports. At a meeting of the school committee this week it was reported hv the headmaster, Mr. A. B. Floyd, that seven of the school's pupils had been selected to represent the Auckland Central team in the Roller Mills' Rngbv competition to be held at an early date. Lmngholm Bus Service. A public sitting of the Xo. 1 Transport Licensing Authority. Mr. E. J. Phelan, will be held on Monday, August 28, when, among other matters, consideration will be given to aspects of the bus service to portions of Titirangi. At a recent sitting of the Authority. Mr. E. J. McQuoid withdrew his application for a license for the Laingholm service, and, as a result of this. Mr. Phelan made provision in the license of the Auckland Bus* Company to serve Laingholm on a tentative time-table. At the coming sitting, therefore, various representations in connection with this service will he heard, and it is anticipated that arrangements will be made with regard to the matter that are satisfactory to alt parties concerned. Not Interested. A pious resolution passed by the conference of the Federation of Chambers of Commerce of the British Empire was read to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce at an inauspicious moment during yesterday's meeting. The text of the resolution was that "in the interests of progressive trade with Xew Zealand this conference is of the unanimous opinion that the embargo imposed in 1923 on direct exports of live stock from Great Britain to Xew Zealand should be removed forthwith." Having just approved a remit describing the import licensing system as "irksome, complicated, costly, ineffectual and unnecessary," members were satirical when the phrase "in the interests of progressive trade" was read. "Send it to the Reserve Bank." said one member. And that was all the consideration the resolution received. §fidermty Benefits. Important changes in the conditions governing the work carried out by the St. Mary's Homes Trust Board have been made necessary by the operation of the maternity, benefits clauses of the Social Security Act. according to the annual report of the board. In the p*fffc the homes have provided a maternity and training home for unmarried mothers, the cost pf which has been met by payments .from inmates, subscriptions from the .general public, occasional grants from the Government, and income derived bv the board. Maternity benefits are now extended to all mothers by the Act, and so applicants for maternity benefits at the homes will not have to pay for those benefits. Each applicant will be asked, however, to make a nominal payment to cover cost of board and lodging for six months' training in useful homecraft work.

Forty-Hour Week. A decision to organise a ball for the purpose of celebrating the introduction of the 40-hour week was reached at a meeting last evening of the Auckland District Council of the Federation of Labour. The intention is to hold the function on a date as near as possible to the date on which the legislation concerning the shorter week was put through Parliament. A committee was «et up to further the project and to report back to the council. Gangways Down. To-day. as much as in the past, there are many people too eager to get on to the ferries and gain a seat in the sun -'to wait for the gangw-ay to tro down, but this morning at Bayswater the gangways were down and everybody stood waiting on the wharf. To cross the gangways then would' have been rather like walking the plank, for the wind had blown down the two on the Stanley Bay side, the ferry putting in at the other side and using the two there, which had stood up to the force of the wind. Bobby Calves in Thousands. With the approach of spring large numbers of calves are being born every day in the Auckland province, and thousands are beiijg sent to their slaughter. By motor lorry and train they are sent to the Westfield, Southdown and country freezing works, their arrival being the first sign of the passing of the slack season. When they are killed their carcases are "boned" and the meat exported to form the foundation of potted pastes and other meat products made at English factories. Never Say " Die " Slipping when jumping off the ferry at Bayswater last evening, a box' fell on his back on the lower deck rail. His bag and a parcel fell into the water, and the lad quickly scrambled down to a ledge on the wharf to tish them out. Hearing him splashing the water, passengers too far away to see properly on the crowded boat were under the impression that he had fallen in. There were unsympathetic cries of "What's it like down there?" and 'Ts the water cold?" However, the boy retrieved his suitcase, though the parcel was apparently lost, and jumped off the boat, this time from the lower deck, with the words, "Well. I'll have another try." Move for Dental Clinic. Considerable interest lias been aroused in the Owairaka district in a queen carnival which has been organised for the purpose of raising funds to erect and furnish a dental clinic for the local school. At the present time pupils of the school attend the Eden clinic, and this necessitates a considerable amount of travelling, especially for young children, which the staff and parents are anxious to avoid. People in the district are assiduous at all times in their efforts to improve the facilities at the institution, and recent additions to its equipment have been a picture plant and a wireless system, with speakers installed in every classroom. Empire Migration. Evidence of the keen Interest which is being taken in migration within the Empire is contained in a report of the deliberations at the annual conference of the Federation of the Chambers of Commerce of the British Empire. held la- t month in London, which was before the Auckland Chamber of Commerce yesterday. The conference expressed the opinion that a balanced distribution of population within the borders of the Empire was essential to the continued welfare <jnd security of the British peoples, but considered that present-day conditions demanded new methods to achieve that object. It advocated the Home and Empire Governments consulting as early as possible on the provision of ways and means, financial and otherwise, for the development of such schemes, so as to ensure that all migrants who left the shores of Great Britain would settle in the Empire. It was decided to place these views before the Governments concerned. Sailors' Home Improvements. Renovations effected over the past two years as funds became available, and costing £1300, have been completed at the AucklandSailors' Home and Club in Sturdee Street. Evidence of the improvements is to be found on all sides at the home, but it is in the bedrooms on the two upper floors that the major improvements have been made. The kitchen has been extended and repainted, and some new equipment has been installed. Renovations to the bedrooms have consisted of the provision of new blankets and bed linen, the laying of new linoleum and the covering of the walls with bright enamel paint. A similar colour scheme has been employed in the bath and shower rooms, so that the entire •pper portion of the building has a new appearance. Everything possible is done to ensure the comfort of the men who make use of the building, which each night attracts up to 36 visitors. Great pride is taken in the home by the manager and matron, Mr. and Mrs. H. Bailey, while an enthusiastic executive, with the Hon. C. J. Carrington, M.L.C., as president, has been responsible for the recent work. Yesterday Mr. Carrington and the secretary, Mr. T. E. Whitton, made an appeal for funds to cover recent expenses. Both expressed thanks to the King Oeorge Fund for Sailors. London, the Auckland Savings Bank and the Minister of Internal Affairs, the Hon. W. E. Parry, for grants, but regretted that financial support from the general community had been largely overlooked in recent years.