General News

Press, Volume LXXXI, Issue 24581, 1 June 1945, Page 4

General News

Current Ration Coupons Meat coupon No. 30 will expire tomorrow, No. 31 the following Saturday, and No. 32, which will come into force on Monday, is current until June 16. Tea and sugar coupons 29 to 32 will expire on Saturday, June 9, and 33 to 36 will be available from Monday until July 7. Butter coupons 31 and 32 may be used until June 9. The current stocking coupon is XlO4. Batter and Meat Rations No announcement on the reduction 'of meat and butter rations in New Zealand was made yesterday, but it is expected that it will be made to-day. It is understood that the new ration will be of six ounces of butter for each person a week, instead of eight ounces; and Is 6d worth of meat a week instead of Is 0d worth. Statement on Coal Wanted “The simple fact is that there is no coal, and the Minister of Mines should tell us why and when the position will be relieved,” said Mr H. H. Wylie, general manager of the Hawke's Bay Electric Power Board, in a statement yesterday on the further curtailment of power supplies which, he said, was brought about by an acute shortage of coal. Mr Wylie said the electrical and gas industries were compelled to give indifferent supply. North Island housewives were being put to the greatest inconvenience they had ever experienced, and industry and production were being retarded. Yet the Minister of Mines had not made one statement of what was being done to relieve the position, and no one seemed to know when coal would be available. —(P.A.) Air School at Sockbum The early days of flying training in Canterbury were recalled by Group Captain G. A. Nicholls when he spoke at a wings presentation ceremony at Wigram yesterday. He said Sir Henry .Wigram was not able to obtain Government support for aviation as a defence measure, and It was left to private enterprise to form the Canterbury Aviation Company, which in 1917 began to train men for service with the Royal Flying Corps. Group Captain Nicholls said he was the tenth pupil. 28 years ago almost to the day. His course had a great disappointment when on the day they were to qualify, the first student crashed the aeroplane, so that their passing out was delayed until it could be rebuilt. The permanent air force was established in 1923, Wigram being the first station, with a strength of four officers and seven other ranks. Auckland Gas Supply Although it was expected that there would be gas available for the breakfast period to-day, the situation for the evening meal was by no means certain, said the manager of the Auckland Gas Company (Mr R. Worley) yesterday. There would again 'be no supply at lunch time. A consignment of 700 tons of coal from New Plymouth was expected this afternoon. This represented about four days supply on the basis of the restricted gas service. There were no further consignments in view, apart from the cargoes of the Kiwitea and Kartigi. which were still bar-bound at Greymouth. Shortage of Coal Hoppers Coal hoppers which can be used to take coal from the district mines are now In ■short supply at Greymouth because of the rough seas which have prevented vessels working the port. Yesterday there were 300 hoppers, containing about 2500 tons of coal, on the Greymouth wharf, and the few remaining hoppers were being used yesterday to bring coal from the mines. Much of the coal produced for the remainder of the week will have to be put into the bins at the mines, but L and LA waggons will be used in some instances where bins are not available. Wigram’s Part in Air Offensive “We have an admission from the German High Command that Britain's strategic bombing was. the greatest single factor in the collapse of Germany, and Wigram contributed a very material part to that-campaign,’’ said Group Captain G. A. Nicholls at a wings presentation ceremony at Wigram yesterday. . Group Captam Nicholls said that for the greater part of the war Wigram was responsible for the training of multi-engine pilots. More than 2300 airmen had graduated from the station, aircraft from which had flown nearly 41,000,000 miles, equivalent to more than 16,000 trips round the world. Wigram-trained pilots were considered to be as well trained as pilots from any school in the Empire. North Island Power Situation The demand for a 10 per cent, reduction in the electricity load over a 16-hour period was met in Auckland yesterday without any interruption in the supply. Requests By supply authorities for consumers to exercise most rigid economies in order to avoid the necessity of disconnecting supply areas met with a good response, and in neither of the two Auckland boards’ areas was it necessary to switch out feeder areas in order to bring the load down. Improved weather was also considered to have assisted the position. The electricity department of the Wellington City Council yesterday cut off city and suburban supply sections in turn for up to 30 minutes. The manager said the response to appeals to conserve power was good but the supply was still insufficient. In the Hutt Valley the consumers’ response had been so good that the power board was able to carry on without cutting off the power.—(P.A.) Dobson State Mine Idle The Dobson State mine was idle yesterday. On arrival at the mine the men held a stop-work meeting to discuss the question of the minimum wage rate and then decided to return home. Empire Air Training .Scheme The importance of the Empire Air Training Scheme was briefly mentioned by Group Captain G. A. Nicholls at a wings presentation ceremony at Wigram yesterday. He said it was berause of the pre-war planning of the Royal Air Force, under the guidance of Marshal of the Royal Air Force, Sir Cyril Newall, that the British Empire was able to develop the scheme. When it was first announced that it was planned to train 30,000 pilots a year, the public gasped. That figure was stepped up many times, but, because of foresight and planning, the British Empire was never short of the necessary air crew, except in 1940. There was never an occasion in New Zealand when there was a shortage of recruits for training, quite the reverse. When the scheme came to an end a reduction in personnel of New Zealand training Stations of more than. 5000 was made. Price Offences Convictions against traders obtained by the Price Tribunal from the outbreak of war to April 30, 1945, totalled 1432. Fines imposed' during the same period amounted to £8412. During April, nine traders' were convicted for price offences. Five of those were fined for not displaying copies of price orders, one was fined for profiteering, and the x-emainder were fined for not displaying price tickets where required. Music in the Community “For the welfare of this country, rightly understood, music is absolutely essential,” said Dr. T. Vernon Griffiths, prdfessor of music at Canterbury University College, in an address at a luncheon meeting of the Christchurch Businessmen’s Club. “Basically, music is something almost as elemental as the air we breathe, because music is the expression of culture. Culture is simply the way of life of a people, adapted to a particular environment. The simplest way of passing on a culture is through music, and unless we have true culture in a country we have nothing to express through music.” Dr. Griffiths said that humanity was on the rack to-day because the foundations of true culture had been undermined. Folk music was intimately connected with every-day. things and had been developed for singing by the people while they were actually at work. Supply of Umbrellas There may be more,umbrellas on the market within the next few months, says the “Consumer News," issued by the 'Economic Information Service. Supplies of manufacturing materials, which are now all imported from Great Britain, are easier to obtain. Taffeta art silk, and oiled cotton are used for the cloth section of umbrellas, and quantities of these materials arrive in New Zealand from time to time.