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Evening Star, Issue 25170, 9 May 1944, Page 4

Opposition was expressed at a meeting of the council of the Automobile Association (Wellington) to any -proposal to make petrol coupons non-trans-ferable, and it was decided unani : nuiusly to ask the North Island Motor Union to take appropriate action. The recent amendment of the Oil Fuel Regulations obliging motorists to tell where they had got coupons from was discussed. The chairman, Mr, E. A. Batt, said that interrogating motorists in the_ hope that the authorities would by this means check the misuse 'and abuse of license petrol appeared to be absolutely futile, for the reason that there were approximately 100,000 vehicles being' operated with license petrol, about one-third of all registered vehicles throughout New Zealand. " It is my belief that the increasing social disharmony and disquiet which have grown up in the last 20 years in Now Zealand are due very largely to the fact that our political leaders and statesmen have forgotten too readily that we are a British people and that freedom is the very breath of life to the individual. We find a disregard, more and more, day by day, of this fundamental .principle, and a tendency to interpret tolerance, which is a strong thing, for weak sirbmissiveness. What is it to pay reverence to the Atlantic* Charter and high-sounding principles of freedom if within our own borders the very freedom for which we are fightins as British subjects is in peril of being submerged," said Mr W. J. Sim. K.C., M.C., addressing members of the Royal Society of St. George in Wellington. His remarks, he explained, were made dispassionately, taking in review the last 15 or 17 years, and were not directed in any way towards party criticism.

„ The freedom of the City of. Loudon will be conferred on the Rt. Hon. Peter Eraser and the Rt. Hon. John Curtin at a ceremony to-morrow. The speeches will b. 3 broadcast by the British Broadcasting Corporation, beginning at 9.45 p.m. (New Zealand time). Special transmissions in the 25-metre band are being provided for New Zealand listeners.

The dangers attached to playing certain games, particularly Rugby football, are recognised and accepted by their devotees, but Captain W. Titchener, a former member of the Zingarj 'Richmond Club, in a letter written, from the Middle East to tho secretary of the Otago Rugby Union (Mr E. S. Wilson), tells of ah unknown danger, one which literally lay beneath the surface, which threatened the players in a match between representatives of two New Zealand units over there The ground was marked out for the ga.me, which was duly played, wrote Captain Titchener, but shortly after the final whistle had blown and the teams had " hip-ray'd " each other and gone off to fight their battle over again in their quarters, some American sappers came along, went over tho field upon which the match had taken place—and picked up five mines! " Perhaps," Captain Titchener added. " the Grounds Committee could accept this as a suggestion." The members of the Rugby Union's Management Commit/tee, to whom the letter was read at its meeting last night, probably thought that, in view of the existing shortage in man power, the suggestion was perhaps a little premature. Built to replace the Union Steam Ship Company's old oil hulk Flora, a 180 ft all-steel oil fuel barge arrived at Auckland under tow from Wellington early last Wednesday morning. Tho new barge was built by the Wellington Patent Slip Company. It has been named Hinuwaka, and will be used for the Union Company's greatly-increased fuelling work in Auckland. A similar vessel has been built for the Wellington Harbour. The Hinuwaka left Wellington towed by the Union Company vessel Kakapo on Friday afternoon, and was brought into the Auckland Harbour by a tug. With a gross tonnage of 82o" the Hinuwaka has three fuel tanks with a total capacity of 1,400 tons. The Union Company's old steamer Flora, which has been in Shoal Bay, Auckland, as an oil hulk, will be broken up. The Flora, which was bought from the Tasmnnian Steam Navigation Company, had been in the Union Company's service since 1891. She was well known as a coastal passenger steamer, and also traded in tho Islands

To members of the Bench, officers of the court, and other persons (not excluding reporters), lawyers are notoriously faulty in their estimates of the time cases will last (says the Wellington 'Post'). Cases set down foi two days have lasted a week or even longer, but that is not such a good example, because any case calling for a two-day fixture usually has the makings of protracted litigation. On Wednesday morning, however, after a case involving three accused persons was called, Mr Justice Blair said the Crown Prosecutor thought the case would end by noon, but he did not think that possible with throe defending counsel. One of the counsel engaged said he considered the hearing would last until 1 o'clock, and waiting jurors were discharged until the normal time the court resumes in the afternoon—2.ls. Tho hearing of the case certainly ended not long after nOOn —12.43 to be accurate—but it was the following day! The final touch to this thoroughly " short " case was that the jury returned eight hours and seven minutes after retiring.

The Minister of Education, Hon. H. G. 11. Mason, announced to-day that Mr W. H. Cocker, M.A., LL.B., president of the Auckland University College, had agreed to act as chairman of the educational conference to be held in Christchurch in August. The Minister said he felt that the appointment of an independent chairman would convince members of' the conference that the Government wished them to discuss education problems freely and impartially. Mr Cocker was well suited to the 'important task assigned him, and Mr Mason said he was hopeful of a successful and fruitful conference.

The following resolution was passed at a special meeting of the Waitaki High Schools Board of Governors yesterday:—" This_ board regrets the unwarranted publicity given to remarks made by members of the board at the last meeting, when no resolution regarding the admission of Fijian and Samoan boys to the Waitaki Boys' High School was passed. The board desired to obtain the advice of the rector (Mr F. Milner), and has now discussed the matter fully in_his presence. It has resolved to admit a number of such boys under the proposed scheme of the Island Territories Administration. Final arrangements contingent on accommodation must of necessity bo left in the hands of the rector and his successor." For the first time in 20 years on the Kaipara Harbour a white heron was seen last week by Mr A. G. Til'by, of the Fisheries Department, who is officer in charge of oyster cultivation. The heron is confused with the crane by the people of the Kaipara, he says. The blue heron is quite connmon, but the white variety is decidedly rare. Mr Til'by reports having seen a white heron opposite Toka Toka. It stood about 3ft at full height. Another was seen about a mile north of Helensville, on the river. Mr A. C. Powell, of the Auckland Museum, says a white heron was seen near the Riverhead wharf by Mrs Worsfold. White herons are uncommon in the North Island, and in New Zealand are mostly found in Westland.

That farmers will travel a long way to a clearing sale to obtain their requirements was emphasised at Kelso this week, when the attendance was the biggest at a sale in the district for many years, says the ' Southland Farmers were present from as far afield as Drummond in the south and Palmerston in the north. It was stated that the crowd was equal to that which usually attended a small agricultural and pastoral sho\v._ A feature was the high prices realised for implements. A tractor was bought for £I,OOO, a four-row ridger for £BS. a trailer for £55, a hay tedder for £7O, tandem discs for £63, a douible-digger plough for £9O, and a hay elevator for £7O.

Comment upon the lack of interest, shown by many parents in regard to the state of their children's teeth was made at Auckland by a school dental worker. Although careful _ treatment was given at the school clinic, she said, children came back a few months later, showing by the condition of their teeth that the parents had made no effort to carry on the good work begun 'by the clinic. It was remarked that somo parents seemed to think that three sets of teeth was now the natural order of things—milk teeth, second teeth, and artificial teeth.

Mr Justice Kennedy has granted probate or letters of arministration in the following deceased persons' estates: —William Harrison Craigie, farmer (Owaka); Jane Emma Whitlow, widow (Dunedin); Jane Batchelor Roy, married woman (Dunedin); Daniel Campbell, company director (Dunedin) ; Sarah Grace, widow (Oamaru) ; David George Aubrey, farmer and airman (Wanaka). At a meeting of the committee of the Dunedin Amenities Society Mr Rupert Fountain asked the assistance of the-so-ciety in securing a shelter and convenience at the corner of Forbury Corner (Kew). He said that he understood, the corporation had a suitable place to build one, and stressed the urgent need for its provision. Mr John Wilson said that in due coufse the shed would be erected next the entrance to the playing grounds. It would, however, be some time before the [corporation would bo able to carry out the work. Mr Wilson also stated that the contract for the provision of a convenience at the children's playing grounds at St. Clair had been let last November, but unfortunately a hitch had occurred, and the work had not yet beeifc completed. This was not due to any hold up on the part of the City Corporation.