NEWS OF THE DAY

Evening Post, Volume CXXXIII, Issue 87, 14 April 1942, Page 4

NEWS OF THE DAY

The Use of Tin Hats. The Lower Hutt City Council last evening authorised the purchase of 500 "tin" hats for a section of the Lower Hutt E.P.S., on condition that the supply would not jeopardise supplies to the military authorities. Exempting Plumbers. The Lower Hutt City Council gave unanimous support last evening to a recommendation by the health committee to appeal for the exemption from military service of a number of plumbers in the district on the ground that they were necessary for the maintenance of the health of the city. 35,000 Native Trees. Plantings of trees alongside Wellington's highways and in the several beauty spots around the city undertaken by the Wellington Beautifying Society now total over 50,000. Allowing for an estimated failure of 30 per cent., there are now, remarks the annual report of that society, 35,000 young native trees growing in the district as the result of the society's work. Happiness in Service. "Whatever your various vocations may be, strive at all times to do well in them," said the Governor-General, Sir Cyril Newall, in an address at King's College, Auckland, on Sunday. "Success, if it comes from hard work, is always commendable, but it does not bring happiness automatically. Happiness does not come from having an easy and a well-paid job. It comes from service—service to your fellowmen, to your country, and to your Empire. My generation " often forgot this." Forest and Bird Protection. "The fact that membership of the society has shown a marked increase during the past year, and that this increase has, moreover, come about not only without any personal canvassing, but also at a time when our very national existence is endangered, necessitating the concentration of public effort and its financial resources on its own preservation, surely presents remarkable and conclusive evidence of a desire on the part of the majority of the inhabitants of New Zealand to save the unique flora and fauna of this land," states the annual report of the Forest and Bird Protection Society. The annual meeting of the society has j been convened for Monday next. | Medical Fees Refunded. Payment warrants issued by the Department of Health in respect of claims accepted for medical practitioner attention totalled 15,023 in the Wellington health district for the first five months of the operation, of the medical benefits scheme. These warrants mainly involve refunds of the 7s 6d charged for single visits, specialist fees not being taken into account. Many of the forms of application for refunds have had to be sent back to those submitting them, because of irregularities in filling in, or not filling them in at all. This, apparently, is because people have failed to familiarise themselves with the requirements of the medical benefits legislation. Though a special staff deals with the applications for refunds, it has experienced difficulty in keeping up with the work, despite working a considerable amount of overtime.