NEWS OF THE DAY

Evening Post, Volume CXX, Issue 115, 11 November 1935, Page 8

NEWS OF THE DAY

Aii Army of Candidates. Though the official number of candidates for the General Election will j not be known until after nominations I close at noon tomorrow, an unofficial list shows that a small army is already in the field. According to available records there are now no fewer than 263 candidates busy with the electioneering campaigns throughout the country, and they represent 17 different parties. After there had been some last-minute withdrawals and readjustments, a total of 189 candidates went to the poll in the 1931 election, and in 1928 there were 212. The Heavy Work of Conferences. Considerable discussion ensued when the following remit was before the adjourned annual meeting of the Auckland Justices of the Peace Association last week:—"That all social functions in connection with the annual conference of the federation be held over until after all conference business is completed." The mover, Mr. Tjll. Guthrie, pointed out that at a recent conference in Dunedin, the delegates only sat in the mornings from nine o'clock until noon, and the conference lasted three days. Other members pointed out that the social side had to be considered. ' An amendment that all social functions between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. be held over was moved by Mr. J. B. Paterson, but both this and the motion were lost. Tickets at Elections. A proposal to make the distribution of cards or tickets outside polling booths at municipal elections legal provided they'contain no directions as to voting has been approved by the Auckland City Council as a remit to the next Municipal Conference, states the "New Zealand Herald." In sug-i gesting the amendment to the law, Mr. P. Carr said that such an alteration would remove the difficulty electors now had in selecting the candidates they desired to vote for from the long list of names which were customary in the election of. bodies such as the Auckland City Council. It was suggested by Miss E. Melville that a better way would be to prohibit all literature on election day, thus placing all candidates on the same footing. The council, however, approved the remit. Canterbury Provincial Buildings. The announcement by the Prime Minister (the Rt. Hon. G. W. Forbes) that the use of "Bellamy's" in the old Canterbury Provincial Council buildings in Christchurch would be granted the Canterbury Pilgrims' and Early Settlers' Association was welcomed by that body which had long hoped for the permission, but the question has now been raised whether the Government has power to grant the request. Under the Canterbury Provincial Buildings Vesting Act, 1928, the buildings are vested as a trust in a board consisting of the Minister of Lands, every member of Parliament representing constituencies in Canterbury and Westland, and every member of the Legislative Council permanently resident in Canterbury or Westland. The Prime Minister made no reference to the provisions of the Act in announcing that the association might make use of the buildings, nor did he state that the permission of the board had been obtained. Goods on Footpath. A problem which promised to become a municipal election issue in Morrinsville—whether the Morrinsvilla Borough Council was right in enforcing the bylaw which prohibits shopkeepers from displaying goods on the footpath in front of their shopshas been settled for the time being says the "Auckland Star." After considering for a month a petition signed by 26 shopkeepers praying the council not to enforce this bylaw, which was alleged to be a hardship to retailers, the council decided with only one dissentient vote to endorse its previous decision. As a by-election was pending, the petition had been held over so that it could be considered by a full council, and ■ the newly-elected councillor, Mr. A. L. Waters, was the only one to vote in favour of relaxing the observance of the bylaw and allowing shopkeepers to put goods on the footpaths. Councillors who thought the council should keep to its previous decision said that the shopkeepers had kept their goods off the footpaths for two months already, and had apparently suffered no hardship. Bees Go To School. A swarm of bees on the wall close to the main door caused the children of the Havelock School (Marlborough) to spend the first hour of the afternoon one day last week working in the grounds, as the head teacher considered that a large number of children passing so near might annoy the bees and cause some of the children to be stung. The bees had become quieter by two o'clock, and work wont on as usual. At the end of the afternoon the. swarm was still clustered thickly at the peak of the gable. Postal Business. The cash value of the transactions handled by the Post and Telegraph Department during the last financial year amounted to nof less than £205,000,000, according to the Prime Minister (the Pwt. Hon. G. W. Forbes) when giving a short outline of the amount of business transacted by the Department in his address at the laying of the foundation stone of the new Post Office at Rangiora on Friday, says the Christchurch "Star-Sun." It was an accepted fact, said the Prime Minister, that the volume of business conducted by the Post and Telegraph Department was a reliable barometer of the economic conditions of the Dominion. It was pleasj ing to be able to affirm that the business traversing the various Post Office channels showed a definite improvement in practically every branch. This favourable turn of affairs had enabled many recent concessions to be given to the public, particularly in telephone rates and the charges for telegrams. In every possible direction facilities were extended to.meet the incrciiying needs o£ the public.

I Not On The Map. It is no unusual thing for New Zea-j landers to return from trips abroad with stories of the people they niet who had exceedingly vague ideas as to the whereabouts and nature of this place called New Zealand. But the worst slight of all comes from Germany, which' country publishes an astronomical almanac called the "Berliner Astronomisches Jahrbuch" which I omits New Zealand altogether from its j map. This map is drawn for the annular eclipse of the sun which takes place next Boxing Day, and which will be partially visible- ir\ New Zealand in the early hours of the morning. Alf though New Zealand is one of the ■few inhabited countries in which this I eclipse will be visible, the South Pole getting the best view of it, yet New Zealand is invisible on the map which purports to show the eclipse's path. This is probably an omission due' to ignorance rather than to a legacy of hate engendered by the war, but it is | obvious that the' fame of the All Blacks has not as yet penetrated into astronomical circles in Germany. No Fads For Children. Dr. Elizabeth Gunn, medical officer of schools for the Wanganui Education Board, when lecturing recently under the auspices of the Plunket Society, said there appeared to be a wave of hysteria in the Wanganui district. She said she did not object.to adults following starvation cures and having meatless days, vegetable days, and other "less" days, but she did object to children being put on such treatment. She would like to. impress 'on parents the necessity for giving children fresh milk, meat, vegetables, bread and butter. She had found some children attending schools and trying to do a day's work on an orange, half an apple, or a lettuce lunch, and being sick in school, and falling ill and fainting. "Beware of fads for children," she said, in emphasising the value of milk. She suggested that farmers, when sending cream to a factory, should provide a gallon of skim milk daily for distribution among children in the towns. By doing this it would be found.in six months that people got so used to plenty of milk that they would not do without it, and children would materially benefit.