Reporter's Diary

Press, 19 August 1977, Page 2

Reporter's Diary

Why wry? MENTION of an Auckland ornithologist’s research into the ways of the wrybilled plover on the Rakaia riverbed inspired Brendan Wilcox, aged 11, of Mayfield Avenue, to pen this drawing, and his mother, Jill, to write this verse: “Why is the wry-billed plover wry? Why is his beak askew? The wry-billed plover wonders why and so do I — do you?" Mother sought A MYSTERIOUS advertisement in the “Personal’’ column on Saturday turned out to be associated with a growing social phenomenon — the desire to help adopted children know the identity of their natural parents. “Would the person who gave birth to Rikki Coulder, 7.10.56, at Alexandra, please ring 87-091, Upper Hutt,” the advertisement said. The advertiser is Rikki Coul-

der's adoptive mother. She says she knows of several cases where finding out by chance has been a great and tasting emotional shock to adopted children and she has promised her adopted son that she will try to find his real mother. ■ The young man. who has grown up with a different name, will be 21 in October. Could not help ONE Christchurch motorist was particularly interested in the report of the local truck driver who brought high tension power lines down, then suffered a shock when he got out of the cab. This man had a similar experience when driving in the North Island. He had been driving all night, dozed off, and crashed into a power pole. Tne pole snapped and lines came down around the car. Realising the risk of leaving the safety of his insulated, rubber-tyred ve-

hide, he just sat there waiting for help. A farmer soon came along and suspecting that the motorist was in a state of shock, said, “I’d make you a cup of tea, but you’ve cut my power off.” Boundary clash THE declaration of a 20km territorial sea zone for New Zealand will not only force pirate radios and floating casinos (if we ever have any) further out to sea but it could also lead to boundary disputes between some catchment boards. Their outer boundaries are the limit of the territorial sea and the arbitrary introduction of a 20km limit would cause an overnight change in their boundaries. The Marlborough Catchment Board’s district would overlap that of the Wellington Water Board in the middle of Cook Strait. Stewart Island would fall within the Southland Catchment Board’s district and Great Barrier Island and other islands of the Hauraki Gulf would be defined as part of the North Island. At present, soil and water control for the islands is the responsibility of the Ministry of Works. O.P.E.C. again THE SUCCESS of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (0.P.E.C.) in achieving higher prices for oil is encouraging other Third World commodity producers to think along the same lines. The latest could even use the same initials if they liked. The pepper producing countries are being urged by Mr Mohan Dharia, India’s Commerce Minister, to adopt a collective approach and evolve a joint

marketing strategy to stabilise pepper export prices at levels “fair and remunerative” for growers. India, Indonesia and Malaysia account for more than 70 per cent of the world’s production of pepper. Other producers not to be sneezed at are Brazil and Thailand. Backlash? AT LEAST one reader was alarmed when he heard recently, on the radio news, a statement by “the senior Government whip, Mr Birch.” 4 uthor’s returns IF MR MULDOON’S new book, "Muldoon" sells as well as his first, he will be well up among New Zealand’s financially successful authors. “The Rise and Fall of a Young Turk” went into three impressions and sold 35,000 copies at $5.50 each. If Mr Muldoon gets the customary 10 per cent royalty, he must have "made $19,250 out of it. Advance orders for "Muldoon” suggest an initial print run of 20,000 and, even if that is all, Mr Muldoon will make another $ll,OOO in royalties at the very least. Not a bad sideline for a man on a salary of $36,000.

Hindsight “SORRY, madam,” said a man whose trolley bumped into another customer at a supermarket yesterday. "I’ve just heard the news that Elvis Presley is dead.” The woman immediately forgave him. His distress was understandable, she said, but personally she had always thought that Elvis’s health would never stand up to all that movement. —Garry Arthur