NEWS OF THE DAY

Auckland Star, Volume LXXII, Issue 187, 9 August 1941, Page 6

NEWS OF THE DAY

Escorted Greek King A report from a private source that Private J. W. Sanders, of Thornton, VVhakatane, is a prisoner of war, recalls that he was a member of the New Zealand escort for King George of Greece during the evacuation. , Private Sanders was Later posted missing, but a letter from a friend who escaped states that the writer saw Sanders under a guard of German soldiers. Roads Blocked by Snow A fall of snow at Tuai, Waikaremoana, interrupted the passenger service from Rotorua this week, but it is expected that the connection will be made to-day. The Desert I Road, near Taupo, was blocked by snow for several days. From Rotorua to Ruatahuna the road is in fair condition, but it is blocked on the higher ranges to the eastward. Although still open to traffic, the main highway between Rotorua and Taupo has not been in a worse condition this year, according to motorists who use it frequently. Caught by the Tide A visitor to Whakatane, Mr. Lewis, father of Mrs. A. G. Hultquist, whose husband, Lieutenant Hultquist, M.P. for Bay of Plenty, is now on active service, had an unpleasant experience when caught by the tide while walking on the beach round the Whakatane Heads. In attempting to climb the cliff face to escape the tide, Mr. Lewis fell to a ledge which was awash, but managed to avoid being washed off, and eventually got to safety. He was] much shaken, and had to go to hospital, but was not seriously hurt. A Saw miller's Protest The recent order that all cheese factories must purchase crates from the Dairy Produce Board is quoted by a Catlins River district sawiniller in Otago, Mr. J. R. Wilson, in making a protest against Government interference with private enterprise. He declares that the Government has created a monopoly for itself in the silver beech trade which has resulted in increased prices to the user, and that the interference in cheese crate supplies will have a like effect through the elimination of competition. To his mind, he said, it indicated the Government's ultimate aim of socialising the timber industry of New Zealand. Whahatane Maize Saved Reports from Whakatane indicate that the special measures taken to deal with the labour shortage that threatened to loa\c the maize crops unharvested in the district have been successful. Some of the crops left until the last have suffered slightly with the few days of rough weather, but not to an extent that will cause any appreciable loss. The work has been done rapidly bv the local labour assisted by Maoris from the East Coast. The difficulties at first feared regarding the European farmers' crops were overcome and the harvesting completed without many acrcs being abandoned

Carrying On Further instance of the way that England is standing up to the Hun attacks is contained in a letter from an Englishman to an Auckland friend. He relates how, after an exceptionally heavy "blitz," all the windows of the city's largest hotel were shattered. The proprietor, however, was equal to the occasion and placed a placard on his front door, which read: "Draughty? Yes! Windy? No!" Rationing in Britain An indication of how the people of Britain are faring for food is given in a letter from a woman in Dundee to a friend in Auckland. "We get no fruit, and you in your country have so much and to spare," she writes. "Our ration of meat for a week is 1/, and mutton is 1/8 a lb so it is a job to make it go round. I have to stretch it a bit, but I sup pose we could be a lot worse off, anc! maybe we will be yet." Whitebait Season The whitebait fishing season offi cially opened throughout the West I Coast on Saturday last week, states the Wellington "Post." Many fisher men took up positions on the bank; of the rivers, but it is not expectei that any substantial catches will b< made for at least some weeks. Then has been an absence of severe flood; during the winter, and it is con sidered by many experienced fisher men that this will have had a bene ficial effect on the spawning, ant will have ensured a good season Because of the restrictions on tin import of canned fish it is expcctec that there will be a strong demanc for whitebait this year, and the can ning factory at Okuru has alreadj been made ready for an early start ai? increase of almost 100 per cen has taken place in the price of white bait netting, in common with othci cotton goods, and only limited quan tities are available. Students' Magazine Distinguished by a two-coloui cover design, by studies in variou: styles of impressionistic black anc white sketching attractively repro duced on art paper, and by a diver sity of subjects in prose and metre "Rostrum. 1941," the magazine o the New Zealand University Students' Association. makes ; worthy addition to the list of th< . year's publications. Technically it: i production is exceptionally good I There is creative as well as artistii I merit in the ink and pencil work o j the sketches. Throughout the diver I sity of the literary content, madi j interesting by contrasts of style anc j nimble-witted craftsmanship, show, | a general purposeful desire to havi the University identified with th< people as a centre of culture in tin truest sense. It is not a magazin< of college smartness, but from thei "Rostrum" the students discourse ii a lively manner on the fundamenta problem of real culture for th' people through the University.