News Briefs

Evening Star, Issue 26118, 4 June 1947, Page 4

News Briefs

All Blacks' First Match The All Blacks opened their Australian tour to-day with a match against a country team at Canberra and arrangements have been made to rebroadcast a summary of the play from Station. 4YA from 7 to 7.15 o’clock to-night. Fuller rebroadcasts are being given of the more important matches of the tour.

Removal of Burns Memorial Since the top ot the Rev. Dr Thomas Burns Memorial in the lower Octagon reserve was removed for safety reasons recently, the City Council has decided to remove the ’ memorial altogether from this site and not to re-erect it owing to the decay of the column practically throughout its length. In any case the council’s policy is not to have any more statuary in the Octagon, and it is this factor, together with the condition of the Burns Memorial that has influenced the Presbytery of Dunedin to approve of a plan submitted to it jby Deacons’ Court of First Church to erect a new monument in the church grounds, at the corner of Burlington street and Moray Place, the site to be ceded to the City Council, which will have the responsibility of maintaining the monument. Funds for the cost of providing the memorial and erecting it are planned to be raised by a combined civic and church appeal, and the entire scheme awaits the ratification of the Presbyterian Church Synod. Milking Delays at Shows

Unnecessary suffering caused to cows that were not milked before being placed in the ring at shows was strongly deprecated by Mr I. Grant, inspector of the Society for the"”Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, at the annual meeting yesterday afternoon of the New Zealand-Friesian Breeders’ Association. Exhibitors often delayed milking their animals until the conclusion of judging in order to enhance the prospect of taking prizes, Mr Grant said, and he added that he had been tempted to take action on several occasions. The inspector asked whether the association would recommend to societies conducting shows that cows should be milked at the normal times before the judging began. The outcome of Mr Grant’s comment was that the association is to consider framing regulations to combat this undesirable practice.

Visit to Mines During the vacation just ended the staff of the Otago School of Mines and 23 students inspected underground and open-cast coal mines and gold dredges on the West Coast in a week’s tour of the area. The .party travelled by bus from Christchurch through the mining district and studied the different types of mines and the methods of production employed. During the trip they were -addressed by Dr Jones, professor of mining at (Birmingham University, who is at present advising the Government on the problem of dust hazard in coal mines. The visit proved so successful that it is proposed to make it a bi-annual event, and on the alternate years the school will inspect Central Otago and Southland coalfields.

Better Reservoir Record The restrictions imposed on the use of water in Dunedin are having their effect, as, in spite of the fact that practically no rainfall has been recorded at the various reservoirs for the past six days, there has been a steady gain, that for the 24 hours ended 8 a.m. to-day being 910,000 gallons. The total storage now stands at 85,061,000 gallons.

Midway Battle Anniversary The crucial battle at Midway Island, in which American naval and air forces inflicted a heavy defeat on the Japanese, began on June 4, 1942, and lasted for four days. A Japanese naval armada of some 80 ships attempted to attack Midway Island, and at the end of the engagement the armada limped to its home bases minus four aircraft carriers, two cruisers, and three destroyers. The United States losses were a carrier and a destroyer. The battle of Midway, which .followed a month after the Japanese defeat in the Cqral Sea, was a decisive victory, since it halted a major Japanese effort to capture Midway and Hawaii.

Catalina Escorts Dakota •Sent from Mechanic’s Bay yesterday morning to search for the scow Haere, which is overdue at Auckland from Parcngarenga, a Catalina aircraft of the Air-Sea Rescue Flight was diverted early in the afternoon to escort back to New Zealand a Dakota flying on one engine between Nausori (Fiji) ana Whenuapai. The Dakota, from which wireless messages had been received reporting a defect in the port engine, completed its flight without difficulty and landed at Kaitaia late in the afternoon, and the Catalina returned to base without, however, sighting the scow. The Dakota, commanded by Flight-lieutenant L. J. McLean, had a crew of five, but was carrying neither passengers nor mail, being laden with air freight.—Auckland Press Association.

Deteriorated Land A recommendation that Massey Agricultural College should be provided with facilities for taking over a nucleus area of deteriorated land for developmental and research work was unanimously approved at a gathering of about 450 sheep farmers at the college, says a Palmerston North message. The intention behind the .recommendation is that extensive trials should be conducted with Cheviot sheep oil that type of country, following impressive returns’obtained from CheviotRomney blood on some deteriorated marginal hill country on the college property.—Palmerston North P.A. Winning Sequence

The first four horses in the opening race of Saturday’s programme at Ellerslie finished almost to their numbers. The race, the First Ranfurly Handicap, was won by the top-weight, Swift Fox, who was naturally No. 1; Aylesbury, No. 2, and Broiealice, No. 3, dead-heated for second, and the fourth horse, Trustful, was appropriately -No. 4. Old Bridge at Deep Stream

A landmark known to those who iourney from Dunedin to Middlemarch is the Deep Stream bridge—a structure that was erected in 1880, and is set in a picturesque spot on the Central Otago highway. It has now reached the 6tage where replacement is being considered, as many of its timbers are decayed. In a comparison with to-day’s costs, when a structure to replace it will run into thousands of pounds, the present bridge cost £1,750. This sum the county engineer states would only cover the cost of repairs. To repair it, he says, would be false economy. The Taieri County Council is conferring with the Public Works Department as to the best course to follow.

Yawl Reported Safe A small vessel, believed to be the American 27-foot yawl Alone, now overdue at Auckland from Suva, was sighted at anchor by an aircraft in Spirits Bay at the extreme north of the North Island yesterday. An aircraft, bound from Norfolk Island to Auckland had been asked to keep a lookout for the Alone, which left Suva for Auckland on May 2, in the course of a world cruise. The Royal Akarana Yacht Club, which has been advised of the yacht’s presence, has no knowledge of. anv other small vessel likely to be in the vicinity. Return of Troops From Japan Subject to there being no shipping delays, two drafts of soldiers of J-Force are expected to return to New Zealand about the end of this month and towards the middle of August respectively. The transport Dunera'will probably leave Kure next week with the (list contingent of the men of the New Zealand Brigade due for replacement by recruits, who are to proceed to Japan during the first week of July. These arrangements were announced by the Minister of Defence (Mr Jones! yesterday afternoon.