NEWS IN BREEE

Dominion, Volume 37, Issue 124, 21 February 1944, Page 4

NEWS IN BREEE

Loose Meat Coupons

It will be permissible to tender loose meat coupons to butchers and in restaurants and hotels, thus obviating the necessity of people carrying their ration books with them and perhaps preventing the collective use of the family ration books to buy butter or some other household commodity, says a statement issued by the Food and Rationing Controller’s Office. This provision will take care of persons in-business who may not be able to go home end must take a hot meal in town. •

Fire in Vivian Street. Four machines from the Central Fire Station, 'Wellington, attended a fire cail at 8.46 p.m. on Saturday to a twpstoried shop and dwelling building’ at 113 Vivian Street. A kitchenette and living-room occupied by Mr. W. Gnostis had caught fire and the contents' were damaged. Willows Sustain Stock.

A Raglan County farmer in whose locality there was less than an inch of rainfall in the last two months, spent all available time lopping the small and bunchy branches of willow trees along the creek frontages to sustain his stock till such time as rain Livened up the pastures. Flying Officer’ at 19. Pilot Officer Walter Jay, has been promoted to the rank of. flying officer at the age of 19, according to advice received by his mother, Mrs. M. B. Jay, of Tirau. Flying Officer Jay was commissioned as a fighter -pilot at the age of IS, and he was then sent to Britain, where he trained on four-engined bombers. El Alamein to Tunis. The annual magazine of St. Patrick’s College, Silverstream, “Blue and White,” makes a feature of “From El Alamein to Tunis,” a well-illustrated article by the former college sports master. Father J. Kingan. S.M.. M. 0., now a chaplain with the 2nd N.Z.E.F. This feature is so interesting that it gives the magazine a much wider field of appeal than pupils, old boys and friends of the college. Quick Result. A Norwegian sailor who was recently rescued from drowning in the Lyttelton harbour owed his life partly to a constable who had learned to swim only two weeks before. This was reported at a meeting of the Royal Humane Society in Christchurch. Both Philip J. Howe and Constable G. A. Brewer, in going to the rescue of the man, ran the risk of being caught and smashed between the ship and the piles of the wharf. A framed certificate from the society is to be sent to each rescuer.

Stamping Out Diseases. ‘T am prepared to say that hydatids and tuberculosis could be stamped out of this country in 20 years if authority were granted to go ahead,” said Dr. J. Leslie Will at a meeting of the Red Cross Society in Christchurch; He said that secondary school children should be taught to know the causes of these two diseases, and that the teaching of both fell under the work of the Red Cross. “Unless children can be educated in hygiene when they are young, we cannot look forward to a race that can eventually rid itself of preventible diseases.”

Need for Drama. New Zealanders during the war have to a large extent been deprived of creative art in such living forms as the drama, music and ballet. Au indication of the need which the public feels for such cultural entertainment was shown by the crowded eudiex.ee .which attended a recital in AuekTand. One woman was heard to cr/stantze it in words. Glancing over the enthusiastic, chattering throng, she said, “You can see how starved people are for this sort of thing. There’s a big need in this city for plays and symphonies and ballet, if it could only be satisfied.”

Malaria Patients. Instructions had been received through the American Army authorities that no cases of malaria should be admitted to the hospital, the chairman, Mr. J. A. S. MacKay,' explained at a meeting of the Whangarei Hospital Board, when a member said he had been unable to obtain admission to the hospital at night for a serviceman obviously suffering from malaria. The chairman said that a doctor was on duty at the hospital all night and that no sister had the right to refuse admission vithout 1 his first being consulted The explanation given for the action* - iu refusing admission was considered satisfactory.

Tomatoes “Dumped.” An example of the meaning of the word “dumped” in a report that quite a few tons of tomatoes had n.een dumped by Thompson and Hills, Limited, was made by the manpower officer’s representative, Mr. AV. A. Leggett, before tie Auckland Manpower (Industrial) Committee. IJ had been understood that the tomatoes had been thrown away, but since ' the report had been published >it had been explained that the word “dumped” was a trade term used at the factory to indicate that the tomatoes had been put into a pulverizer and made into sauce due to the shortage of staff needed to tin them.

Demand for Meat. The imminence of meat rationing is already refleeted in an increased demand for meat, AVellington butchers report. New Zealanders, reputed be the world’s greatest meat eaters, are evidently determined to make”hay while the sun still shines. Ever since the announcement of rationing last Wednesday night buying has been noticeably brisk, though it does not yet amount to a rush. That is expected toward the end of this week as households prepare for a weekend feast —with. perhaps a few basketfuls over to soften the blow during the first few days of austerity diet. Hoarding, however, is something that in this case the authorities do pot need to’worry over. Free Danish Ships. Danish ships sailing for Britain are now permitted to fly their own national flag, the Dannebrog, in place of the Red Ensign, according to advice received in Auckland by the Danish Association in New Zealand. The granting of permission was marked by a flag ceremony in London, at whiqh the Danish Minister, Count Reventlow, expressed his people s thaiks and recalled how Danish seamen on April 9, 1946, immediately volunteered for British service when invited to do so by the British authorities. Since that period 145 Danish ships have been added to the British register. The total number of Danish officers and men serving m Britain is 3000, a considerable number of whom have been decorated for bravery while serving under the British flag.

New Zealanders from Italy. Ninety-one notifications concerning New Zealanders from Italy have come through during the last week, states the Prisoners of AVar Inquiry Oifice. Transfers to Germany numbered 89, one prisoner had escaped to Switzerland and one to the Allied lines. The number of transfers to Germany to date now totals 2328. Eighty-six men have escaped to Switzerland, and 195 are safe with Allies. There are approximately 980 New Zealanders yet to be accounted for. Of the transfers from Italy, 33 have been from P.G. 57, 31 from P.G. 107, 5 from . P.G. 106, 4 from P.G. 29. and the balance were spread over an additional six Italian camps. There are still approximately 440 men to be accounted for from P.G. 107, 256 from P.G. 57, and 64 from P.G. 106.

Tobacco Shortage. Welluigtonians for some mouths past have regarded themselves as short of tobacco and cigarettes, but, compared with the residents of some small towns in the north, they have little to complain of. In AVellington the shortage has resulted in little more inconvenience than the inability to get a favourite brand or more than one packet at a time. In some northern towns, however, there has been from time to time a virtual tobacco famine. The question everywhere is not, “How are you?” but “How are you off for tobacco?” A recent visitor to a rather isolated East Coast settlement arrived with supplies exhausted and found that the local store bad literally nothing to offer in the way of either cigarettes or tobacco. Every shred was jealously guarded by local inhabitants, who had reached the point of re-rolling their used butts.