NEWS OF THE DAY

Evening Post, Volume CXV, Issue 14, 9 May 1933, Page 6

NEWS OF THE DAY

Watercress and Sewerage.1 ilt was reported at last evening's meeting1 of'l the , Johnsonville Town Board that persons had been seen gathering watercress in the' Ngahauranga. Gorge, into which the effluent from the,Johnsonville septic tSnk is discharged. It was thought that the watercress-was being'rgath.ercd for use in city restaurants, and that people should be warned against the practice. Seven Grandparents! A little girl living in' the Owen Valley, Nelson^ - has just lost a greatgrandfather, but even now is in the position of-having seven grandparents. There are two great-grandmothers, one great-grandfather, two. grandfathers, and two' grandmothers, all living hale and hearty.' Winter Belief. < At last evening's meeting of the Joßnsonvillo Town 'Boaid a was received from the Minister of Unemployment (the Hon. A/Hamilton) in connection with the relief scheme inaugurated by tho Governor-General (Lord Blcdisloc) to assist in alleviating distress during the winter. The object of the -scheme is to collect goods and general produce for distribution to those in necessity. The Minister's communication ran:—"Until further definite 'detailed arrangements can be made, I should be grateful if you would co-operate with other local bodies in your district to receive, store, and hold, until advised-later re distribution, any produce or other goods donated to the Governor-General's Eclief Fund, with the exception of live stock, which I am flaking freezing companies to accept." It was resolved to use the Johnsonville Town Board's offices as a depot for the receipt of any goods which aro offered. Kindergartens at Primary Schools. .A proposal that kindergarten departments should bo attached to primary schools where children of kindergarten age may voluntarily attend was placed before the Wellington School Committees and Educational, Federation last evening by Mr. L. J. McDonald. A motion by Mr. McDonald to that effect pointed-out a deficiency in the education system caused by the withdrawal of the Kindergarten subsidies and the exclusion of five-year-old children from primary schools. Discussion took place as to the age at which children could attend such . attached Kindergartens, and the point was made that there should be no break between the Kindergartens and the school. The motion was carried without a definite ago stipulation. Aviation Scholarship. It is now several weeks since the second section of tho "Evening Post" Aviation Scholarship competition closed, but there has been so much bad and broken weather that it has not been possible to put all entrants through their first series of air tests. The waiting list on tho date of closing the competition was very long,' but has been reduced to six or seven competitors, and if such weather as today's continues they may be taken up by the instructor ,this week. The records of the hundred or so entrants will then be compared and the competition will move on to the semi-final stage, the six leading competitors being put through further and stiffer air tests for the selection of the section, winner. The Hawke's Bay "Herald" and "Tribune" have combined in launching a similar scheme in the Hawko 's Bay Aero Club area, the present intention being to carry the competition on until July ,30, " ' ■■-- ■■*-~ -.■■:, '_..!

The Only Way. "There is only one legal way for a person who is not a boarder, and who is having a meal at an hotel, to secure liquor, and that is in the dining-room during tho progress of such meal," explained Mr. C. R. Orr-Walker, S.M., in the Timaru Magistrate's Court recently, during the hearing of a charge against a licensee, sjtat.es the "Timaru Herald." "Because a man has a meal at an hotel i docs not entitle him to be served with | liquor in a sitting-room," ho added. Lunar Halo. Those who were out of doors or who looked out of their windows last night shortly after 10 o'clock had the privi-' lego of seeingl a very beautiful natural phenomenon —a remarkably clear lunar halo and corona. The halo had the usual radius of 22 degrees, and was , spectacular on account of its clearness | and completeness. The spectrum colours, red on tho inner edge and blue on tho out(;r, were very brilliant. The colours of tho corona were also unusually bright, ranging from red to violet. When tho colours wero pro-1 jected on the thin clouds which periodically passed over the faco of tho moon the colours showed up with re-, markablc beauty. The display lasted for the greater part of an hour, after which cloud began to increase. Teachers' Superannuation. "The most serious matter affecting teachers at the present juncture is, in my opinion, the question of superan- ■ nuation," said the president of the New Zealand Educational Institute (Mr. W. F. Abel) at' the annual conference to- | day. "The institute maintains, I believo- rightly) that' the present con- | dition of the fund is not" due to any i fault of the contributors.' That attitude has been adopted in attacking the proposed amending Bill. But I am afraid that is not enough. Our, chief concern now should be- the restoration , of the stability of the fund, and,in the ! present and probably long continued ' state of world affairs, I fear we shall | be compelled to accept some sacrifice I to bring about the establishment of that stability. Without a sound scheme | of superannuation, there cannot exist a contented and efficient service. To a large extent, it must be admitted the state of things is a legacy of tho past, and I trust that the proposed Bill will contain clauses recognising the liability of the State towards its servants and that thera will be some mitigation of the hardships which it was proposed to embody in the Act." Domestic Troubles. A poignant story of unhappy married life culminating in separation and maintenance orders being made by a Magistrate in her favour was told in .the Supremo Court yesterday afternoon by a well-spoken young woman at the hearing of an appeal by her husband. She said her husband had not given her the money to clothe herself and their child adequately, -nor had they had proper and sufficient food and bedclothing. At one time there was only dry bread' in the house, and she had lived on. that arid' tome '-jam given ■to her by a neighbour. Her husband's nncloanliness had led to some unhappiness in their early married life. '"He was dirty—not fond of water,"'she added. "I "tried to'reason with him, but he -would not listen He used to walk out and leave me." The case va» un-1 finished, and no evidence had been given by the husband when the hearing was adjourned'until later in tho weex.