NEWS OF THE DAY

Evening Post, Volume CXXXVIII, Issue 82, 4 October 1944, Page 4

NEWS OF THE DAY

WEATHER FORECAST

A weak anti-cyclone covers the south Tasman, but a depression is developing west of Auckland. ' Forecast until 5 p.m. Thursday:— Moderate sputh-westerly winds. Weather dull and cold with occasional showers. Further outlook, still Unsettled. Temperature at 9 a.m., 48 degrees. . New moon, October 17. High Water.—Today, 6.40 p.m.; tomorrow, 7.5 a.m., 7.42 p.m. Sun sets today 6.29 p.m.; rises tomorrow 5.49 a.m., sets 6.30 p.m.

Ice-cream Champions? Juveniles are well-known consumers of ice-cream, but it may be, doubted Whether many of them can exceed the capacity of two children who attended a fancy dress dance at Blaketown last week, states the "Christchurch StarSun." One of them, a boy, put away seventeen ice-creams during the evening, and the other, a girl, was apparently satisfied with fourteen. The after-effects, if any, have not been rer ported. Property Dealing. The. present indications are that Otago deals in property have dropped by 25 per cent, as the result of the operations of the Servicemen's Settlement and Land Sales Act, states a Press Association message from Dunedin. For several years before the Act applied some 4000 property transfers were handled annually. The total nuniber during the first year of the new Act is likely to be less than 3000. The total reductions in the selling price of properties since the Otago committee first sat last November is £27.272. Day in Parliament. A wide variety of subjects embraced by the operations of the Education Department were discussed in the House of Representatives yesterday afternoon and evening, when several hours were occupied with the estimates of . that Department. These estimates, totalling £4,967,066, were passed, and the House also put through the estimates for education buildings (£500,000), the Department of Internal Affairs, and the vote for tourist and publicity activities.- The House adjourned at 11.30 p.m. until this afternoon. 1 Art Union Profits. '" The vie^ that the profit on raffles and art unions was not high enough, was expressed In the House of Representatives last evening by Mr. A. S. '. Sutherland (National, Hauraki). The • gross sales were £251,000, he said, but ! the net profit was only £97,000, and i he hoped the Minister would look into , the expenses. The lottery duty of . £25,000, for instance, could go. The ' Minister of Internal Affairs (Mr. . Parry) said that the profits were con- : served ahd watched carefully and . were devoted to helping organisations ■ that were unable to assist themselves.

Night Medical Service. The Wellington division of the British Medical Association, the Wellington Hospital Board, and the Wellington Free Ambulance are working oh a scheme to, provide a night medical service for Wellington. The idea is that persons desirous, Of obtaining the services of a medical practitioner in.an emergency, at night, and during holidays and weekends will telephone the Free^Ambulance, who will give them the name and telephone number of one or two doctors who will be available in the suburbs or the city area. It is hoped to have the scheme in operation by the beginning ,of November and the new issue of Wellington telephone books will contain a notice advising the public of the new arrangement. The service Mil operate on the roster principle, but'-is not expected to come into operation before the issue of the new telephone books. Extra Maize Subsidy. A further subsidy of 6d a bushel on all maize grown and marketed through the Maize Marketing Committee during 1945, was announced last night by the Minister of Agriculture ,(Mr. Roberts). The total subsidy for the 1944-45 season will, therefore, be Is a bushel. Maize Was of vital importance to the .poultry industry/ said the Minister, and because the stock food position in Australia was serious it was necessary for New Zealand to be as self-supporting in maize production as possible. The objective for the current planting season was 10,000 acres, and the Government was sure that when maize growers realised the seriousness of the position they would make every endeavour in the principal maize-growing districts of Poverty Bay and Bay of Plenty to increase maize production to the maximum.

Navy League Presentation. To mark the attaining oft 100 members by the college's branch of the Navy League a Union Jack, the gift of the Picton Navy League, was presented to "Marlborough College at a ceremony last week. Captain A. D. Boyle, R.N., Naval Officer in Charge, at Wellington, addressed the pupils and urged them, as the future rulers of New Zealand, to see that this country was adequately 'defended, for strength was vital'to peace.-a The Union Jack was a symbol of unity. If we had no unity we could not exist, he said. There were about 900 officers, men, and Wrens in the Royal New Zealand Navy, many of whom were serving overseas, and he had heard at first hand from many captains that there were no better seamen in the world. That was because they had been brought up in good schools*and homes and because, as an island people, they knew and loved the sea. Eggs "Switched." What he said was "rather a mean trick to play on a bird" was described by Major G. A. Buddie during a lecture on "Bird Life in Outlying Islands," at a meeting of the Auckland Institute ' and Museum, • states ' the Auckland "Star/* Major Buddie related how he and other members of a party,- making investigations on one of the islands in the Hauraki Gulf, discovered a bellbird sitting on three newly-laid eggs. As the party had only ten days to spend on the island, and they wanted, if possible, to see what newly-hatched bellbirds looked like, they transferred the eggs from the nest and replaced them with three others from elsewhere on the island which were in a more advanced state of incubation. The manoeuvre was successful and the birds , were hatched. No doubt the first bird was surprised at such quick results to her sitting period, while the bird from whose nest the other eggs were taken was also surprised—but unpleasantly so, said Major Buddie.