NEWS OF THE DAY

Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 49, 26 August 1931, Page 8

NEWS OF THE DAY

Yesterday in Parliament.

• Although main interest in the politi-cal-situation is now centred on the pro* eeediiigs of the special inter-party Committee,. there were fairly full galleries in the House of Representatives; last night, when the debate on the Budget was. resumed. The speeches were rather colourless, apart from that of the United member for Wairarapa' (Colonel T. W. M'Donald), who caused a mild stir by making, some frank remarks on the subject of America's attitude on the debt repayment issue. He was asked by Mr. Speaker to refrain from reflecting on a friendly nation., Colonel-M'Donald also made an appeal, for the formation of a National Government^ urging New: Zealand to follow; the example of Great Britain. During the evening a Bill to postpone the; licensing poll was introduced. Hutt River Channel. Reporting -to the Hutt: River Board last night, the engineer (Mr. H. Sladden) said that generally the impression gained-of the river during recent general inspections.had been one of satisfaction. Tlie channel alignment throughout the nine miles of the board's jurisdiction was at present nearer to the lino of the "ultimate channel, than... it.. ha,d . ,'eycr.. 'been, though 'in' some ■ reaches' wheroiTvillows had hot yet been established some difficulty' might be experienced in holding the* alignment. .' -■■■ ',■•'■'."■ ! A; Dangerous Road. ' ' >; ~'The road between Khandallah. and thie:'boundary of JohnsonvjUe js said: to be in a particularly bad condition, and at a meeting of the Khandallah Progressive Association last week it was decided to approach the Works.Coinmitteo of the City Council to see if the road could not be improved. Many school children, it was said, used the voad/ which in some respects could be regarded as dangerous. The Tenant on Top. '''■■'■ A warning to landlords is provided in.a,case brought under the notice of the,?' Sydney Morning Herald." The facts showed that a tenant had not. paid rent for, three months. The- landlord called and informed him that he would allow him to remain a few weeks longer on. condition that ho kept the promises in good order. Later the landlord received a summon? demanding a substantial sum as caretaker, and actually had to pay for such"-service, the tenant stating the landlord authorised him.to take,care of the premises. "Another case recently occurred at Manly. A landlord received information that a good deal of hammering had taken place at a house owned by him. He decided to investigate,' and found that every door in the house had been chopped up for firewood, the woman in the house remarking, 'Wol] you didn't expect us to bo cold, did you?' What little furniture the tenant had was immediately bundled into the street. '

Maoris' "National Game."

About a hundred years ago the pakeha took-away our national game. The North Islanders at that time came down here and carried out their favourite sport," stated the Hon. Sir Amrana Ngata, Ministor of Native Affairs and chairman of the Maori Eugby Advisory Board, in a stirring address at the dinner to the North and . South island footballers on Saturday nijrht (•reports the "Christchurch Times'') fair Apirana's reforence to the former national sport of the Maori evoked .much laughter. He said that tho fiorco fighting made great men, but nowadays New Zealanders deprecated the kind of banquets the Maoris had in the evenings. The national game referred to had been supplanted by tho game of Bugby football, which served as an outlet for animal spirits. "It took tho Maori some time to realise that' ho could not go back, but must go forward," continued Sir Apirana. "Many of the traits which made our men great in tho olden days are now wanted for the Eugby field. Tho quickness of eyo .and/alertness are needod. Nothing i n the last.hundred years has brought tho' pakeha and Maori together better than Eugby football. Racial differences are difficult to overcome, but where thoro' is quality and respect the peoples are brought, together. We respect the pakeha, and we hope tho pakeha will' respect us. Tho greatest help that tho pakeha can give to tho Maori is to hold out the hand of sympathy, because the Maori is not so well equipped to carry on the present-day fight. There is nothing better, however, than a man-to-man fight on the football field. Even if there is a depression there is one thine* that is brightening our national life", and that is our national game. I hope that tlie spirit of the Now Zealanders will not be broken by the slum]). Tho New Zealander is one of tho finest of God Almighty's . product.s on this enrth."

A No. 5 Scheme Job? It -mis stated at the meeting of the Wellington Unemployment Committee yesterday afternoon that about 100 relief ..men had been employed in the exhumation of tlio body of Phillis Symons at Hataitai, and that tho men had been paid out of tho sums allocated to the Unemployment Committee, ilr. F. D. Cornwell raised tho point that this was not strictly an unemploymenf relief job. Somebody would have had to be engaged by the police to do tho digging, but the police had apparently taken advantage of cheap labour under the No. 5 scheme. Tho funds of the committee had been depleted to the extent of the wages, which should at least bo refunded. Use for Deer Hides. Nothing contributed more to the disappearance of rabbits in New Zealand than the price set upon their heads in the value of their skins. It seems as though tho same is to apply to a certain extent with deer, the hides of which are proving useful for footwear, gauntlets, etc. "We are trying to do what is possible to cope with the deer menace," remarked the Minister of Internal Affairs, Hon. P. A. do la Perrelle, when interviewed regarding an exhibit of dressed deer skins which will be displayed at the Winter Show. "Our trouble has been to exterminate the pest of which the farmers have complained. I think it will be conceded that the Department of Internal Affairs, with the 'drives' it has made on the deer herds doing such damage particularly in the South Island, has not in any way slackened in its efforts to lessen an - agricultural and forestry evil so apparent to-day. In my opinion the work now undertaken in-providing a market at fairly good prices for deerskins for useful commodities'will tend to help in the destruction of a-pest so widely complained of." ; . Cycles Need Good Brafies. At the conclusion of an inquest in the Magistrate's Court to-day on the death of a cyclist who sustained injuries from which he died as a result of his bicycle colliding with a motorcar, Mr. W. E. Leicester, who appeared for the driver of the car, suggested to the Coroner that attention should be drawn to the number of bicycles in Wellington that did not have brakes or were not equipped with efficient brakes. In the case in question the bicycle was of the racing type with a fixed wheel and had no brakes at all. Mr. Leicester said it was the second case within a fortnight where an accident had occurred through a bicycle not having any brakes. On making inquiries he had been informed that the number of bicycles had increased in Wellington lately, ana many of them were of the racing type. He thought that if. attention was drawn to the fact that bicycles should be equipped with efficient brakes many* accidents wouia ? sprpbably be avoided. Mr. J. L. .M'JDuff, who appeared for the relatives of the deceased, saia that comment of that nature might be prejudicial to the interests of relatives"in case of any claim arising.out of an accident. The Coroner (Mr. I. Salek) said he was not prepared to: make any comment upon the usVof bicycles, as that was not the subject of the investigation. '.■•. Music in Schools. ' " " "The music in the training colleges throughout the country is inthe hands of four extremely capable men, ana I have every confidence in its future," said Mr. Douglas' Tayler? Director of Music in Schools, at Dunedin on Friday (reports;. " : The Star")/ Mr.-Tayler' is paying his last 6 official visit-to the centres, and has spent a few days in Dunedin.' "In some directions it is inevitable that progress should be slow. It takes two or three years to train teachers in the colleges, aha when they go out to schools they must take subordinate- positions, in. charge of one class only. Several years are also required in the training of children in music, and consequently it is a matter of many years before the full fruition, of the work now being done in the training colleges is attained." Mr. Tayler remarked that good progress had been made" during" the past five years in improved methods of teaching music to infants:,': The secondary, schools' had also inade,great strides in musical organisation. School orchestras ;ana instrumental classes had increased in

number, and much more attention was being given to musical education amoiig senior boys. •'■ '~<:.■■■'

Shipping Mutton to Canterbury. .'; ' ft Can't we get the mutton in Canterbury?" asked Mr. G. Maginness at Monday's meeting of the Christcliurcli Unemployment Committee when a letter was'read from.the Mayor (Mr. D. G. Sullivan, M.P.) setting out that the Minister of Health had advised him that 500 carcasses of mutton would be dispatched from Wellington on 26th August for the Christchurch relief depots (states the Christchurch "Press"). A member remarked that they could not feet the mutton in Canterbury for nothing. "Why not purchase the mutton in Canterbury and help our farmers and spend some Government money in Canterbury?" Mr. Maginness asked. A member suggested that ii "was coiisidered that the sea air improved the mutton. The committee .decided to thank the Mayor for his efforts in "getting the mutton and the Government "for sending it.