NEWS OF THE DAY

Evening Post, Volume CXXIV, Issue 59, 7 September 1937, Page 10

NEWS OF THE DAY

Record Membership.

There are at present 7519 financial members of the Automobile Association (Wellington), and this figure represents an increase.! of 1515 on the membership at August 31 last year. This year's membership is a record. A total of 220 new members was elected at the' monthly meeting last evening. The roll was purged at the meeting, and 122 members were written off, and so the record figure of 7519 represents a financial membership. "The finances this year are unprecedented^ satisfactory," remarked the chairman (Mr. E. A. Batt). Religion in the Home. On^ of the fundamental causes of the present unrest in the world was due to the neglect of the home,' not only in this but in all other countries, declared Rabbi Solomon Katz at yesterday's service in the • Terrace Synagogue on the occasion of the Jewish New Year. The neglect of home had tended to bring about an indifference to religion and all that it stood for, wi|h the; inevitable result that there was chaos and misery in the world. There could be no reconstruction of a better world, suggested the Rabbi, without religion, for a. happy, peaceloving, and understanding world needed homes built upon a religious foundation. , . ■ • , Pensions Payments. As a result of the Labour Government's action in amending the pensions laws there had been aft increase in the number of recipients from 60,000 to 73,500 at the present time, and the amount paid out, including invalidity pensions, had risen from £2,370,000 to £4,127,000; said Mr. R. McKeen, M.P. for Wellington South, at his presesslonal meeting at Newtown last evening. "This increase in pensions payments represents a higher standard of comfort for thpse copcerned and is an advance of which the Government can justly be proud," he added, amid applause. £234,000 at 31 per Cent. The greater part of a city j.-epayment loan, covering several items and totalling £234,000, has been arranged at 3J per cent., mainly among a large number of comparatively small holders, the Mayor, Mr. T. C. A. Hislop, stated at the meeting of the City Council last evening. The cost of raising the money was very small and did not exceed £250, for brokerage had had to be paid in only a few instances. A councillor remarked that the City Treasurer was to be congratulated upon his success upon placing the loan as he had done. "Look at That!" A comparison with the accommodation provided for spectators at Lancaster Park, Christchurch, and the Basin Reserve, Wellington, was made by Mr. J. Reid at the annual meeting of the Wellington Cricket Association last night. Mr. Reid said he had been very impressed with the photograph of Lancaster Park with its fine grandstands published in "The Sports Post." He suggested that it would perhaps be a good plan if copies were distributed among city councillors and local members of Parliament with the suggestion "Look at that and do your best!" "Mr. Reid forgets that Lancaster Park is a private ground," smilingly replied the president, Mr. M. F. Luckie. "It is the votes of the ratepayers you have got to stir yourselves to get." Housing Problem. There was a shortage of between 40,000 and 50,000 houses in the Dominion and of at least 5000 houses in Wei-, lington alone, said Mr. R. McKeen, M.P. lor Wellington South, in his presessional address at Newtown last evening; The Government was doing all that could, humanly *be done to remedy the shortage as quickly as possible.' The sum of £5,000,000 had been set aside for that purpose, and was being expended as rapidly as labour and materials could be made available to construct the houses required. "Of this sum £1,500,000 has been made available to local bodies to enable them to co-operate in the construction of the houses," Mr. McKeen added. "The Government has the programme of building so arranged that it will take the next ten years to complete, using the most expeditious means to overtake the shortage of houses, schools, hospitals, and other urgently needed buildings." It had been said that the houses at Miramar had taken a long time to complete, but two great difficulties, had been the lack of skilled labour and seasoned timber. Whatever the obstacles placed in the way, the Government was making an-honest effort to solve the tremendous problem of housing. Offer Accepted. The importance of swimming in the after-treatment of infantile paralysis was mentioned at a meetingoopf p the council of the New Zealand Amateur Swimming Association on Friday evening (states the Christchurch "Press"). A suggestion that the Director-General of Health (Dr. M: H. Watt) should make arrangements enabling swimming clubs and centres throughout the Dominion to provide instructors to undertake this work was contained in a letter written by the secretary of the council (Mr. B. O'Neill) to the Health Department in Wellington asking whether the association could be of any assistance in the after-treatment of infantile paralysis, and offering to provide honorary swimming . instructors anywhere in New Zealand. The council recently received a letter from the Director-General accepting the offer. It is intended that the swimming centres should work in conjunction with the New Zealand Crippled Children Society in the treatment of these cases., Prosperity in South Africa. No sales tax, no unemployment tax, and income tax beginning at £400, with £100 deducted for each child. That is the position in South Africa, according to Mr. O. R. Nel, a member of the Union of South Africa Parliament (states the "Star-Sun"). "We are undertaking capital expenditure totalling £20,000,000 this year," he srid in an interview. "Furthermore, we are not borrowing a penny of it. During the past two years £17,000,000 has been paid off our national debt and we have paid off all our1 war debts. An amount of £5,000,000 has been set aside for a housing scheme this year," Mr. Nel added. "In cases where the people for whom the houses are being built are aged or infirm, the money is placed at the disposal of local authorities at 15s a £100 interest. In addition, these infirm people receive £2 10s a month from the Government," ,

Warning: Signal.

The Eailway Department has advised the Automobile Association (Wellington) that it has approved the installation of an automobile warning device on the railway crossing at the north end of the Khandallah Bailway Station, and that the work will be put in hand prior to the inauguration of the electrified train service. Pedestrian Crossing Wanted. Motorists regard that portion of the Hutt Road in front of the Wellington Woollen Mills with displeasure because of the large number of employees who cross the road at random. Consequently, the Automobile Association (Wellington) last evening decided to ask the. authorities to install a pedestrian crossing in the vicinity of the mills. ' ■ ■ • • Lighting: Experiment.' An experiment in road lighting is to be carried out by the Hutt Valley Electric Power Board, which proposes to erect a stretch of sodium lighting— from the" Hutt Station to the bridgesimilar to that used on the -well-known "pearly way" leading from London to Croydon. The board is also to experiment with another stretch a quar» ter of a mile long from the intersection of Railway Avenue back along the main road. The Automobile Association (Wellington) has contributed £50 towards the cost of the experiment. Basic Wage Criticised. "I was on my way home from attending the International Labour Conference at Geneva when I learned of the Arbitration Court's announcement in New Zealand of a basic wage of £3 16s a week for adult males, based on the maintenance of a man, his wife, and three children, and £1 16s for females," said Mr. R. McKeen, M.P. for Wellington South, in a pre-sessional address at Newtown last . evening. "I was astounded at the pronouncement of such an inadequate basic wage," he added. "I know, of course, that most workers are receiving more than this under awards and agreements. Nevertheless, it is far from what I consider a reasonable basic wage." Upper Hutt Half-holiday. On a show of hands, the following motion, moved by Councillor G. H. Guthrie, was lost when put to the meeting of the Upper Hutt Borough Council last evening: "That the Minister of Labour be ; asked that, owing to a large number of business people in the Upper Hutt Borough suffering a great hardship through the changingover of the weekly half-holiday from Wednesday to Saturday, would he permit those who wish to close for the weekly half-holiday on Wednesday to do so and open all day Saturday." Maidstone Park Wickets. At the present time the demand from town clubs for wickets at Maidstone Park exceeded the supply, reported the park superintendent (Mr. H. W. Dalton) to the meeting of the Upper Hutt Borough Council last evening. The wickets on No. 1 ground had been forked, turfed, and top-dressed, and, weather permitting, they would be available for play about the second week in October. The wickets on No. 2 ground would receive the same attention during the present week, and if time permitted an additional wicket would be formed on the Association football ground. The Deputy Mayor. The deputy Mayor (Councillor M. F. Luckie) is known to Wellington cricketers as a former player, and a keen.and enthusiastic supporter whose interest in cricket has taken him beyond New Zealand to be present at important matches. One of the functions he performs each year is to preside at the annual meeting of delegates to the Wellington Cricket Association, and for so many years has he acted in this capacity that his absence would cause delegates to ask questions. At the conclusion of the annual meeting last night Mr. P. B. Broad, a former chairman of the management committee, paid tribute to Mr. Luckie and his services. As far as his recollection went, he said, Mr. Luckie had presided at the annual meeting since 1920. In acknowledging the vote, of thanks accorded him Mr. Luckie said it was always a pleasure for him to preside. Delegates owed him nothing; he owed delegates something for giving him the opportunity of occupying the chair. Mr. Luckie incidentally was re-elected president Jof the association. ( Cricket and 40-hour Week. The introduction of the 40-hour week in many avenues of employment was something which he knew the executive would be taking into serious consideration with a view to catering for ■ the extra leisure, said the president (Mr. M. F. Luckie) at the annual meeting of the Wellington Cricket Association last night. If the association was unable to provide cricket on Saturday mornings or allday cricket on Saturdays if required, Mr. Luckie suggested that the association would begin to find that it was losing a large number of young members of the community who would go out of town for the weekend. "We have got to provide some inducement to keep these boys' in town and it doesn't do to keep them in town on Saturday, mornings and expect them to play good cricket on Saturday afternoons." (Laughter.) Mr. Luckie added that this observation might also apply to a good many more than purely_the younger members of the community. Fed to Pigs, Fed to People. For'fifteen minutes last evening the City Council discussed a proposed alteration of a bylaw to direct that collectors of pig swill should complete their business and be out of the city by 9 a.m. It was agreed that the limit should be 10 a.m., and the question was practically disposed of when Councillor A. Black asked whether there was not another and a more important question than whether the collection constituted a nuisance. ."The question," said Councillor Black, is where1 this stuff goes to after it is collected in the city. The fact is that this stuff is fed to pigs and that pigs are fed to human beings. Some of the filth that goes out of this city is not fit to be fed to pigs, whether humans are to consume them or not. Several councillors: "Hear, hear! Councillor P. M. Butler remarked that there was little doubt that the cutbreak of swine fever which had occurred in the Wellington district had had its origin in filth which had reached pigs from a ship in port. Fewer Meetings Requested. A request for fewer council meetings was made by the Town Clerk (Mr. B M Wilmshurst) in his report.to the meeting of the Upper Hutt Borough Council last evening. Mr. Wilmshurst said that at present practically all his time was taken up attending to minutes and correspondence, and this also necessitated extra typing and expenditure in stationery, etc. Now that the major schemes for the year were under way, the financial side of the borough required.a good deal of attention. The council agreed to the suggestion of Councillor F. P. Keys that the council meet. once every three weeks instead of fortnightly as at present. Councillor Keys said that the council seldom rose before midnight or the early hours of the morning. When it was considered that Lower Hutt and Petone, which were much larger boroughs than Upper Hutt, managed to get through their business by 10 o'clock, it was obvious that something was wrong locally. One of the main causes was the fact that once the council had made a decision it was not allowed to rest at that, but was brought up time and time again.