HOSPITAL BOARD MATTERS

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 7, Issue 85, 27 June 1944, Page 4

HOSPITAL BOARD MATTERS

THE delicate nature of the situation which has arisen at the outset of the Whakatane Hospital Board's new year, will be closely watched by those ratepayers and others who have been interested in the loan controversy. Pledged to carry out a £45,000 building programme which the majority of the Board does not, on principle favour, the position has now been doubly aggravated by the, refusal of the most obviously member, to take the chair. Mr Puddle's action in making this stand can be fully appreciated, but the truth remains that the situation becomes most Gilbertian, in view of the fact that he has now by his own choice becomes a mere spectator to the costly and important plan which- he sponsored for so long, and apparently is prepared to see another person of directly opposed ideas, father the job and see it through. Granted his position would be an invidious one, but it would be more so to insist upon a person opposed to the programme, seeing it through. The upshot of the whole question to our minds is that differences of opinion should be dropped in this connection, in order to best serve the interests of the public (whether it deserves it or not) in the carrying out of the project to which the Board is now definitely pledged.

"She Saw Egg Shells !" Samuel Butler once said that a hen is only an egg's way of making another egg, but there are at least half a dozen eggs -which now will never produce a hen to produce in its turn,, more eggs. At the corner of Commerce Street and Domain Road on Friday morning many townspeople of Whakatane hurrying to work were seen to cast dismal glances at five or six "hen fruit" lying scattered in many pieces over the. road. Rumour has it that some/ of them were merely bent but for want of concrete evidence we prefer to disbelieve this. From all appearances they were permanently ruined as regards human consumption

Local Air Squadron's Success No. 35i Squadron (Whakatane) of the Air Training Corps lias again scored the honour of topping the list of percentage marks gained by cadets who have been on N.C.O. courses. Eleven cadets have now completed courses of instruction and the total marks gained reach 94 per cent of the. possible, placing them at the top of the Auckland wing. With the marks of the next placed squadion at 84 per cent it is evident that f the Whakatane boys are well ahead of their nearest rivals and judging by the standard already shown should be capable of maintaining this position if the same wholehearted enthusiasm demonstrated in the past is put into their future work.