General News

Press, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22072, 21 April 1937, Page 8

General News

Anchor Recovered Harbour Board workmen yesterday recovered an anchor weighing four tons which was lost from the tanker Bullmouth when the vessel was leaving Lyttelton on Saturday morning. Two launches were used and they towed a sweep. After four hours’ sweeping an object was located in the channel. The Harbour Board diver, Mr J. Canning, went down and found the anchor firmly embedded in the mud, right in the middle of the channel. A wire hawser was made fast to it and then the dredge Te Whaka lifted it with her grabbing gear. The Bullmouth, which left Dunedin yesterday for Balik Papan, was diverted, and will now call at Lyttelton early this morning to receive the anchor. Apart from the value of the anchor, its removal was necessary, as it would have interfered with dredging operations. Grant to Fruitgrowers Representations have been made to the Minister for Agriculture (the Hon, W. Lee Martin), who is visiting the Nelson district, about the distribution of £40,000-allocated by the Government to assist fruitgrowers who sell their fruit on local markets. A deputation representing Nelson growers suggested that the £40,000 should be distributed on a flat basis of 6d a case on all fruit sold locally. The Minister said he would discuss the matter with the departmental officers and give the request every consideration.—Press Association. The Dr. J. C. Bradshaw Fund After a sufficient amount of the Dr. J. C. Bradshaw Fund has been reserved to the Church Property Trustees to provide annual prizes for the choir-boys, the residue of the fund is to be given to the Canterbury University College Council to be used at the. council s discretion for loan, prize, or scholarship money for students of music all through the Dominion This decision was reached at a meeting of the Dr. J. C. Bradshaw Fund general committee yesterday afternoon. Dr. Douglas Anderson presiding. It was stated yesterday that more than £ 100 had already been received from subscriptions sent in, and the committee hoped that the total would reach at least £ 1000. The amount which will be set aside for the Church Property Trustees will be about £IOO. Shortage of Nurses “Colonial-trained nurses have no difficulty in obtaining posts overseas,” said Dr. J. Campbell McKenzie, Medical Superintendent of the South Canterbury Hospital, when referring toa report from the Acting-Medical Superintendent (Dr. M. S. Wells) at yesterday’s meeting of the board, which said that only 6ne repty held been received to sn sdvGrtiSGmGnt for applications for a maternity nurse for the Temuka and Fairlie Hospitals. Dr. McKenzie said that he had learned that 160 trained nurses had recently left the Dominion on tours abroad, the shortage to some extent being due to the Coronation. •Association Football Test Match By the generosity of the management committee of the Wellington Rugby Union which last evening granted the New Zealand Football Association’s request, the test between the English Association football team and New Zealand on June 26 will be played at Athletic Park It was explained that this was the omy ground where the association could get a good “gate,” and the use was granted as a friendly gesture to a sister code.—Press Association. Firms Under Twenty Awards Several businesses at. Wellington which employ staffs engaged in very different kinds of work are operated under as many as 19 or 20 different awards, according to a statement made by Mr T. O. Bishop, employers’ agent, at a meeting of the Conciliation Council in Wellington. This was very confusing for employers. A;more satisfactory arrangement, he considered, would be for large firms to have their own awards, embodying agreements between the employers and the various trades union secretaries whose unions were concerned. He intended to suggest this when an opportunity arose. Hospital Nursing Service “It would be morally wrong to hand over the. board’s nursing service to the St. John Ambulance Association,” said the chairman of the Auckland Hospital Board (the Rev. W. C. Wood) at a meeting of the board, when a letter was received from the Auckland Centre of the St. John Ambulance Association suggesting that it should take over the control of the hospital district nursing service. Mr Wood said it was out of the question to hand over the board’s equipment, which included several motor-cars, to another body. The scheme did not' have a single thing to commend it. The board’s nursing service was a home nursing service, which was widely different from the district nursing service conducted by the Ambulance , Association. After several members had also criticised the proposal, the letter was referred to the board’s special committee on district nursing.—“The Press” Special Service. Offer for Broadcasting Station The owner of the Southland broadcasting station, 4ZP (Mr R. T. Parsons), has received an offer from the Government for the purchase of the station, but when interviewed last evening he said that the offer was under consideration, and he was not yet able to say whether it would be accepted. In accordance with the policy outlined last year by the Minister in charge of Broadcasting (the Rt. Hon. M. J. Savage), officers of the department visited Invercargill about six months ago to make a valuation of the station. The offer to purchase was received about a week ago, and the owner was requested to advise his decision within a fortnight.—Press Association. * East Coast Railway Work on the East Coast railway between Napier and Wairoa, which is rapidly reaching its final stages, now consists merely of straightening the line where necessary and carrying out ballasting, a task which has already received attention over a distance of 20 miles from the Napier end. The remaining length of 20 miles to Putorino has to be treated similarly. This portion of the line, thought not in firstclass condition, is already in use by the Railway Department. The preparatory work be-, tween Putorino and Wairoa has been completed, leaving only, the straightening and ballasting of the line to be carried out. The entire section between Napier and Wairoa is expected to be in first-class condition by September of this year, although the portion to Putorino will be ready for regular use before then. Goods for Czechoslovakia New Zealand exporters sending goods to Czechoslovakia must in future mark them with the name of the Dominion, so that they can be identified when they arrive at their destination. The Government of the Czechoslovak Republic has ordered that all goods entering the country must be branded with the name of the country of origin, the reason for this order being that in the past Australian, New Zealand, and other goods have reached Czechoslovakia* through other European countries and trade statistics taken have not revealed correctly the trend of trade. News of this order has been received by the Canterbury Chamber of Commerce from the Czechoslovakian vice-consulate. New Zealand exports hides, wool, apples, fur, tallow? flax, and various other goods to Czechoslovakia. Maori Centenarian The hundredth birthday of a Maori woman, Mrs George Hetet, was celebrated at Te Kuiti pa recently. Her family of 10 daughters and one son are still alive, and her living descendants total 483. Among messages received was one from the Minister, for Native Affairs (the Rt. Hon. M. J. Savage). Mrs Hetet’s father went to the King County early in 1836, living first in the* Pirongia district. There he was married to a chieftainess, a relation of that redoubtable warrior, Rewi Maniapoto. Mrs George Hetet was born on March 24, 1837, a record of her birth being inscribed in an old family Bible still in the possession of the family. Her husband died eight years ago. She is in possession of all her faculties.