NEWS OF THE DAY

Auckland Star, Volume LXXIV, Issue 164, 13 July 1943, Page 2

NEWS OF THE DAY

Eating Argentine Meat "1 have been amazed to find that the Home Guard is being fed on canned meat from the Argentine," said Mr. A. P. O'Shea, Dominion secretary of the New Zealand Farm-, 1 ers' Union-in Wellington. "I have been shown a 61b can of Argentine meat, and -was assured that similar cans had been distributed to the Home Guard. This surely calls for an explanation from, the Government." I All "Confidential" The threat of the Minister of AgriI culture, Mr. Barclay, that he would take other measures against primary ■if ' production councils which refused to comply with his request that reporters should be excluded from their meetings has evidently been put into effect. At a meeting of the North Canterbury Council this week half a dozen or more official letters ' were received. They were all marked "Confidential," and were consequently dealt with in committee. I High Charge for Coffee The high prices people are prepared to pay these days for meals, under certain circumstances, are illustrated at an Auckland night club. T-bone steaks, with a small helping of either dried or tinned peas, fetch up to 5/ a portion, and a cup of ordinary coffee with a few fingers of jj toast sells at 1/6. Admittedly these •meals are served at an hour when most restaurants, except the allnight ones, are closed, but the profit on the coffee alone must be exceptionally large. On a Saturday night the clientele is roughly SO per cent American, and so far as is known no complaint has ever been made about the prices by those who pay them. Air Service for Inver car gill? The possibilities of getting the Auckland to Dunedin air service extended to Invercargill were recently discussed by the Invercargill City Council, and the finance committee was requested to consider the matter The committee reported to the council that an inspection of the Invercargill aerodrome had been arranged for July 20. One member said a number of citizens had expressed approval of the action of the council in taking up the question of getting the air service extended to Invercargill. A good many Invercargill men used the air service and more would do so if the opportunities were more favourable. It was f M . difficult at present to connect with the service. Some people had said that an air service to Invercargill would not pay, but that aspect should not concern the council, as any loss should be made up by a Government subsidy. if*

"Marvellous Soldiers" The pakeha soldiers back from the Middle East have warm praise for their Maori comrades. "They were marvellous soldiers," is the way one summed it up. The Maori casualties had been heavy, but that was only to be expected in the fighting they had undertaken. The spirit of the whole battalion was epitomised in the late Lieutenant Ngarimu, V.C. Soap Took Paint Off When an Auckland "housewife picked up a bar of washing soap which she had left on a table in her kitchen, she was astonished to find that the paint had been taken off. A large white mark was left where the soap had been. The bar had been wrapped in paper, but evidently the caustic had been so strong that the paint could not resist it. "Royal Wedding* , Tree Planted just 80 years ago to commemorate the marriage of the Prince of Wales, later Edward VII., to Princess Alexandra of Denmark, in 1863, art oak tree on the north side of the Avon River, to the rear of the Public Hospital, is the oldest tree in the Christchurch Botanic Gardens. It is in a healthy condition, stands 60ft high, and has a spread of 90ft. Great celebrations were held in Christchurch at. the time of the Royal marriage, and the planting of two oak trees, named "Albert Edward" and "Alexandra," was a central feature of the occasion. The superintendent of the province presided at the planting of the trees, one of which is the tree at present standing. "You See, I've Had a Telegram ■ It happened in a suburban bus when a woman entered it with a baby. The driver waited for her to tender heer fare, and then said, "Where is It you want to go?" She paused, and said, "Really I dont know where I want to go.' And then it came out in a rush of words: "As a matter of fact I've just had a telegram saying my husband is arriving, and, you see, he has never seen this baby!" Happiness shone in her face as she said it. It was contagious. Everyone else looked pleased. Throughout the Journey rhe and the baby were the centre of interest, and as other passengers passed her on their way out they all had a word of congratulation to say to her. Where was she going? Obviously it didn't matter in the least. Giant Weighbridge As a result of complaints by farmers about discrepancies between railway and mill weights of wheat, there is being installed at a flourmill in Ashburton a giant weighbridge. A combination road and rail bridge, it will have a larger deck than any other weighbridge in New Zealand.