General News

Press, Volume LXXVII, Issue 23482, 10 November 1941, Page 4

General News

Promise of £IOOO A practical example in leading the new national savings campaign has been given by members of the Kaikoura County Council, who have personally agreed to give £IOOO, spread over the next 11 months. There are 10 councillors The decision was made following an appeal for the council to sponsor the movement by the postmaster (Mr J. M. Sutherland). Speeches at Conference “As unofficial statistician to the conference I wish to report that during the conference 99 speeches were made about remits and that tne delegate who made the most speeches was Mr N. B. Spencer (Auckland). He ,„. m ® de . *9 speeches,’’ said Mr H. Anderson (Wellington) at the close of the annual conference of the Associated Chambers of Commerce of New’Zealand. “Wellington has been known as the windy city for so long that I am glad to hear that the name really belongs to a city farther north, said Mr A. L. Wall (Wellington). Face Value "In assessing damages for facia! disfigurement it must be borne m mind that this was less important for a man than for a, woman and less important for a middle-aged or elderly woman than for a young woman still unmarried ” said Mr Justice Callan during the hearing of a case in the Auckland Supreme Court. “For some reason, prospective husbands through the ages,” he added, “have been largely influenced by the face of the lady, which, as the years go by, they find among all things to be of least importance.” Model Canoe’s Trip A 2ft model canoe, which apparently sailed across the Pacific Ocean all the way frorn Fiji to a small island 25 miles west of Vancouver, British Columbia, will be sent on to a New Zealand airman stationed in Eastern Canada, to whom it was addressed. The model ship, believed to have been tossed into the Pacific near Suva, and carried to Valdes Island, in the Gulf of Georgia, where it was picked up, carried an inscribed piece of cardboard with markings almost indecipherable, reading: N.z. 412196 LAC-C.0., R.C.A.F., Jackson Building, Ottawa, Canada.” Found by Arthur Crocker, a fisherman, the model may have been floating in the ocean for 12 months, in the opinion ot Vancouver seafarers. Presentation of Anglers’ Flies The reputation as an angler of Mr R. H. Nimmo, president of the Wellington Chamber of Commerce, and one of the delegates to the conference of the Associated Chambers, preceded him to Invercargill. At the reception given delegates and their wives, the presentation of a dozen anglers’ flies was made to Mr Nimmo by the president of the Invercargill Chamber (Mr J. N. Armour). The flies weie “Nimmo Killers,” and were made in Invercargill. They are well-known anglers flies and were originally the invention of Mr Nimmo. Dry Summer Predicted A Wanganui Maori from up-river said that New Zealand would probably experience a long, dry summer. This belief was widespread among the river Maoris, most of whom had planted their potato kumera crops much earlier in the year than was their usual practice. The profuse flowering of the kowhai this year indicated that the prediction would come true, he said, just as it had proved that the spring would be very wet. The “kowhai flood m the river this year had been unusually heavy. \ Photographs of Bombed London A sum of £IBB 13s lid was realised from the exhibition of photographs of bombed London shown in Wellington. These photographs, which were on display for a fortnight, were sent out by the London Press Club. The proceeds realised will go to the Lord Mayor s Relief Fund. The photographs will be exhibited in Auckland'next and will subsequently be shown in Christchurch, Dunedin, and other towns. Soldier is Now a Sailor Prevented by a disability contracted while serving in the Middle East from continuing his duties as a soldier, ,Mr E. V. Morrish, of Whangarei, determined to do his bit in another way. Invalided out of the Arm*y and granted a small disability pension, he took up a position in Wellington to await the chance of joining the mercantile marine. His ambition was achieved, and his parents recently received a cablegram from him in England. He is believed to be the first New Zealand soldier invalided home from the present war to be back again in the war zone. Dried Eggs for Export Dried eggs are a commodity of which little is heard in New Zealand, but in Australia it is probable that in the near future eggs for export will be packed in this form. In a talk to members of the Dunedin Chamber of Commerce the Acting Australian Trade Commissioner, Mr J. L. Menzies, said that lack of shipping space had compelled the Commonwealth to experiment with dried eggs, and to this end drying plants had been secured from China. He realised, Mr Menzies said, that New Zealand did not export so many eggs as Australia, but it might be worth while for the new method to be considered. Its eventual success, he added, with a smile, would depend entirely on the reactions of the consumers. Shipment on Way for Two Years A consignment of 250 hand saws from a Swedish firm, which was ordered .by an Auckland importer in July, 1939, has just arrived at Sydney. The shipment was sent from Sweden to Finland and then across Siberia, eventually reaching New York. The Auckland firm had long given up the saws as lost, and it came as a distinct surprise to learn that they had reached Sydney. It is hoped the shipment will be landed shortly. Legislation For Leisure “If this war has taught us anything, it is that wars cannot be eliminated in the future and the only safe method of protection is to be adequately prepared for defence; but are we becoming a nation given over to leisure and pleasure and after the present war is finished will this undesirable attribute in our living increase?” asked Mr K. A. Henderson (president) when addressing the annual meeting of the Palmerston North Chamber of Commerce. “Can some of the blame for this method of living be attributed to the recent trend of our legislation? If this class of legislation and the people’s desire for more and more leisure increase, this Dominion will fall an easy prey to the first aggressor nation who wishes to invade and take possession of our country. A timely warning to our citizens in this connexion is very necessary.” No Pennies From Royal Mint No pennies have been struck at the Royal Mint during the last 15 months. Some 800 tons of copper a year, the officials calculated, could be saved by ceasing to make them, and it was more important to have copper for the munition works than for the pocket. Instead of pennies, far jnore yellow, 12-sided “nickel” 3d bits are being' issued. “Nickel” as a description for these small coins errs hardsomely on the side of generosity. The alloy contains exactly 1 per cent, of nickel, and the rest is a mixture of copper and zinc—that is, ordinary brass. The Royal Mint has reasons of its own for liking the 12-sided “nickel.” To-day all coin making is lucrative. A shilling’s worth of silver will make about 5s of coin. A shilling’s worth of bronze will make about 6s worth of pennies, but a shilling’s worth of nickel-brass alloy will make about 30s in 3d bits. Cost of Living “During the last war the Court in its judgments gave a definite bias in favour of the lower-paid workers, for reasons which it stoutly repeated in various memoranda,” said Mr P. M. Butler, in the Court of Arbitration Wellington, when presenting the claims of New Zealand builders, contractors, and general labourers for an increase in wages. “The reasons referred to by the Court then are real to-day also; in fact, the impact of the cost of living is more severe to-day on us, because of the colossal cost of house rents and clothing (which items loom largest in our expenditure) as compared with the first two years of the last war and the first two years of the present war,” said Mr Butler.