NEWS OF THE DAY

Evening Post, Volume CXXX, Issue 128, 26 November 1940, Page 6

NEWS OF THE DAY

Harbour as Bird Sanctuary. Advice has been received by the Whangarei Acclimatisation. Society from the Minister of Internal Affairs (Mr. Parry) that the^ Whangarei Harbour is to be declared a bird sanctuary. The proposal for the sanctuary as a Centennial memorial was first brought forward by the Whangarei Harbour Board and met with general support, the only objection raised coming from the Acclimatisation Society. The Minister visited Whangarei last month and fully discussed the scheme. The president of the society, Mr. S. J. Snow, said that although his society had been against the proposal it would do all it could to assist. Chase in Queen Street. A lady making her way through Queen Street crowds in Auckland on Friday afternoon met a soldier who broke into a run as he passed, dropping at her feet a Post Office Savings Bank book from which emerged several bank notes. Picking it up, she turned and ran in pursuit, and what must have looked like a "stop thief" chase ensued. The soldier, having\ a considerable start, was seen to dash into the entrance of a block of offices where, after some inquiries, he was located and handed his book and money. Neglected Lyall Bay. The large number of bathers and other holiday-makers on Lyall Bay' beach yesterday indicated the possible fulfilment of hopes that the petrol restrictions will bring back to the bay a considerable degree of its former popularity. This being so, it seems a pity that something is not done by the civic authorities to remove the appearance of neglect in this easily available city playground. ATo one could claim that the beach is improved by the rows of bathing sheds and other structures on it, but their appearance would be made much more attractive if they were painted in gay colours. Coal and its Price. Notwithstanding increases in the price of coal, coal-mining is not always profitable to shareholders. Brunner Collieries. Ltd., is a case in point. Permission was sought by the company, states its report, to raise the price, but the Price Tribunal refused. Subsequently the Government mitigated the effects of this decision by granting a subsidy of Is 6d a ton in order to meet the extra cost of increased wages. But the company, through not being permitted to raise its price, incurred heavy loss. "So serious was the situation," states the report, "that a notice was posted in the mine in February last, when a stoppage occurred owing to a labour dispute, that the mine would remain closed as the directors did not feel justified in continuing operations." The Minister of Mines made a special appeal for reopening and further Government advances were made with Government supervision. So the mine carried on, but the directors still report "the position is difficult," and they report a loss of £13,000. Mutton-birding. The fact that 4000 mutton-birds were caught this season gives some idea of what this industry means to those enterprising Maoris who shift camp and cast off the shackles of civilisation to revel in a carefree existence for a week, states a Whakatane correspondent. The birds are protected until the, season opens and then may be hunted only by Maoris, who transplant whole families to the island, situated seven miles from the mainland, opposite Whakatane. Women accompany the men, cooking and attending to other "chores" about the simple camps while the men engage in their thrilling sport. There is no haphazard method of hunting the mutton-bird, for the Maoris have adopted a system and style all their own. At 7 a.m. the hunters assemble and at a given signal the parties rush to the various plots. These, of course, have previously been held in mind, but it is the lucky first arrival who can legally claim the rights to any particular spot. It is a literal application of the adage "first come, first served." Then commences the business proper. The burrows of the hapless birds are sorted out and sticks of tea-tree are thrust into the hole and entangled in the fluffy down of the plump and helpless nestling. The youngster is drawn up and quickly dispatched. British Hearts Beat Firmly. The unshaken spirit of the people of England during the present critical days is emphasised in a letter received by a Wellington resident from his sister in Oxford, England. "I can well understand how you all are with us in your minds and hearts during these perilous times," she writes, "and it is that knowledge and the fact that we are working together for a common cause that gives us added courage and strength. I thought earlier in the war, when first one and then another of the European countries were overrun by Hitler's hordes, that our hearts would never recover from the shock. I soon realised, however, that these same hearts take a lot of knocks and go on beating firmly again after a little rest, and now I think they beat so high and proud that we are upheld to go on. I am not alone in being glad to have lived in this age and to belong to the British Empire." The food supply Britain was the subject of comment by the | writer, who said that unlike the last | war there was no such thing as people waiting in queues for butter, sugar, and so on. Everyone had plenty of the essential type of food, for the ration system worked admirably and fairly.