NEWS OF THE DAY

Evening Post, Volume CXXVIII, Issue 1, 1 July 1939, Page 8

NEWS OF THE DAY

Lack of Water for Stock. An interesting point in connection with the sealing of the main highways was raised by a speaker at a meeting of the Feilding branch of the Farmers' Union, Mr. D. L. Younger, who drew attention to the elimination of -watering places along the roads through the country on which stock were driven, states "The Post's" representative. He said that he felt that the Main Highways Board and the local bodies had quite overlooked -the importance of making provision for watering. places for livestock. Today, for example, there was scarcely a watering place between Waituna West and Feilding, one of the large selling centres of the North Island. It was decided to draw the attention of the authorities to the matter. Music and the Centennial. The Government, said Mr. W. M. Page at the meeting of the Wellington Provincial Council of the Centennial Organisation yesterday afternoon, has set up a National Centennial Music Committee to organise a programme of musical and dramatic events during the winter months of 1940, and the Minister of Internal Affairs, the Hon. W. E. Parry, had suggested that provincial councils should appoint committees to work with the central music committee. The plan included the bringing to New Zealand of a conductor of great eminence and. four principal singers, and the formation of an orchestra, the services of which would be available in the four centres. Messrs. H. R. Searle, S. G. Creswell, C. Atkinson, G. H. Swan, and P. E. Fattrick were appointed members ,of the Wellington committee, with power to add to membership "Almost Completely Defenceless." "There is no getting away from it— we are for practical reasons Almost completely defenceless," said. Commander Roger B. Gibb, R.N. (retired), in an address on sea warfare and its effect on New Zealand and its shipping at a meeting organised by the Southland branch of. the New Zealand Defence League. "At the best, Singapore and America are very far away," stated Commander Gibb. "The difficulties ,of moving the American Fleet over to our help are almost insuperable. An American attack upon Japan is equally difficult, and we cannot, hope for more than a single battle squadron for Singapore. Everything, then, seems to point to our doing all we can for ourselves. If we do not we shall continue in a defenceless state should warbe declared." Kilts tor Scots College Cadets? "I have been;told that a suggestion has been made that there should be a development of the kilt in the cadet corps at, the college in order to bring it and Scotland closer together," said the Governor-General, Lord Galway, when speaking at Scots College yesterday afternoon, before presenting the Earl Roberts Cadet Trophy for rifle shooting to the college rifle team. "The idea would have my sympathy, although I am not able to offer to the college a tartan, as Sir Charles' Fergusson did when he was in New Zealand." His Excellency "thought that something more attractive in the way of uniforms would not be inappropriate for the cadets of a school of that name, and that the authorities might see a way to grant the request if it were brought before them. Rabbits Die of Starvation. , The novel experience of seeing rabbits actually dying of starvation because, of, their great numbers and- the lack 'of. feed was described to a reporter of the "Press" by a well-known Canterbury runholder on Thursday. In twenty-five years' experience of Central Otago he said that he had never seen the country looking so bad: The shortage of feed after the dry season, together with the large number of rabbits swarming over the country, had reduced, areas almost to the state of a desert. Those runholders who could do their own rabbiting were keeping the plague in check on their own places, but those who were forced to employ labour had completely lost control, the i price of rabbitskins being so low that men could not earn a decent living and were thus not available for the work. The topmost' branches of matagouri bushes he had seen completely stripped of bark, while practically every shrub in cer' tain areas was chewed. It was a long time, he said, since such conditions had obtained in the South Island, Invercarelll Trams. A petition demanding a poll of Invercargill ratepayers on the scrapping or continuance of the< city tramway system, states the "Southland Times," has been prepared, and signatures will be sought during the next three weeks. The petition has been organised by Mr. H. J. Farrant at the request of a number of ratepayers, and he said.that efforts will be started immediately to secure the signatures of 5 per cent, of the ratepayers, the percentage necessary to ensure a poll being taken. At a recent meeting the Invercargill City, Council decided to apply to the Governor-General far orders authorising it to discontinue the tramway service in such a manner as it considered fit and to abandon the maintenance and use of the lines and rolling-stock and plant, and dispose of the undertaking. The council expressed the opinion that the present tramway system was .being run at an everincreasing loss out of all proportion to the value of the service given to the public. In view of the age of the rolling-stock, and as the sleepers and original rails in use were approaching the end of their useful life, it was contended that a - very heavy outlay for renewals was necessary in the near future. v Only Heart Timber Wanted. Because of the unsaleability of nonheart timber, all mills on the West Coast will close on two days this month. The decision was made by the West Coast Sawmillers' Association at its monthly meeting in Christchurch on Wednesday, the general opinion of members being that the disorganisation of the industry was attributable to the policy laid down by the Housing Department and by the Government, states the "Press." The mills will close on Friday, July 7, and Friday, July U, In the event of this reduction of milling failing to improve the position, the mills would have.to be closed every Friday, said Mr. J. W. Callwell, chairman of the association. The next meeting of the association had been specially advanced to July 19 further to consider the situation. "The figures before us disclosed that there was quite an accumulation of non-heart timber, for which no market is to be found at the moment," said Mr. Callwell. "Several remedies were suggested, and it was finally decided to place th© association's views before the secretary of the Dominion Sawmillers' Federation for communication to the Hon, H. T. Armstrong, who, besides being Minister for Housing, is Acting Commissioner for State Forests, and is therefore interested both ways." The estimate was made by the association that the accumulation of nonsaleable timber was at about the rate of 500,000 feet a month, equal to about two days' production by the West Coast mills. It was considered that the suspension of work for two days a month—the mills work a five-day week—would account for this quantity. I

Thousands Learn First Aid. Altogether 4000 pupils, both senior and junior, have joined the first-aid and home nursing classes organised by the Auckland St. ( John Ambulance Association since September 30, states the "New Zealand Herald." For the whole of the last financial year the total was only 1800, and there are still three months before the current year expires. By the end of next week it is anticipated that every one of the 4000 will have passed through the courses they have been taking under instruction from St. John officers. Provincial History. A brief report was madp to the Wellington Provincial Centennial Committee yesterday afternoon upon the progress made in the preparation of the provincial history, which, with the motor- camp at Miramar and the lookout on Mount Victoria, will be one of the Centennial memorials for the province. Dr. G. H. Scholefield said that the history, which is being written by Mr. A. M. Mulgan, was going On very well. It was proposed that it should be entitled "The City of the Strait: Wellington and Its Province." Dr. Scholefield said that good progress had also been made with the compilation oi the provincial roll of pioneers. Interest in Mobile Hospital. The mobile hospital trailer presented by "the Happiness Club to the Auckland St. John Ambulance Association last week has aroused a great deal of interest, and since last Monday there have been about 40 visitors daily to the ambulance- station, in Rutland Street, where the unit is housed, states the "New Zealand Herald/ Doctors have been especially interested in its equipment, and have expressed their satisfaction. Two Americans who arrived by the Monowai on Monday morning said they had seen nothing to equal it in their own country. The Profit System. "Profits are just as soundly earned as. anything else, and the profit system is designed, better than any other I know, to give the community, what it wants," said Professor A. H. Tocker, professor of economics at Canterbury University College, in an address on Thursday, reports the "Press." "The whole^rice and profit arid loss system is designed to turn commodities where they are most wanted, and everyone with sixpence to spend has a vote on the way production is directed. I can't think of anything fairer. The thing has all sorts of leaks and lags and inequalities. But where it has been replaced/ by something else you usually have a lower standard of living." In some ways, in Italy and Germany, the system was better, but on the whole, living standards were lower, and people had lost the liberty that made, the old system worth while: .