Local and General

Greymouth Evening Star, 24 November 1943, Page 4

Local and General

A decision to concentrate on pressing for a five-day working week was reached by a meeting of about 60 persons in Greymouth, last evening, under the auspices of the Westland Retail Shop Assistants’ Union. Mr. T. C. Kiely presided and the meeting was addressed by Mr. P. M. Velvin, of Christchurch. By a unanimous vote it was decided to request the Shop Assistants’ Federation, in conjunction with the Federation of Labour, to submit the claims to the Prime Minister and the Government.

Christmas and New Year holidays this year will be shorter than usual for most people. Christmas Day and New Year’s Day both fall on Saturdays and the day following New Year’s Day, usually observed as a holiday, on a Sunday. The District Inspector of Factories at Greymouth, Mr. H. S. Hurle, stated to-day that there is provision under the Public Holidays Act, if Christmas Day or New Year’s Day fall on Sunday to move the holiday observance to Monday.. If they fall on Saturday, however, there is no provision for a change, nor is there any provision in the Act for moving the observance of Boxing Day or the day following New Year’s Day. Many individual awards, however, provide that should any of the holidays named therein fall on a Sunday the day fol>wing is to be named as a holiday.

Infectious diseases were notified in Canterbury last week as follows:— Scarlet fever 5, tuberculosis 6, septic abortion 1, hydatids 1, cerebro-spinal meningitis 2. There was one death from tuberculosis. Two cases of diphtheria were reported from the West Coast.

Last week 177 towns attained their quotas of National War Savings, and in sixteen of the eighteen postal districts the full district quota was reached. In the Blenheim and Westport districts, all the offices were successful.

A patient at the Old People’s Home, Peter McKendry, 'aged 56, was admitted to the Grey Hospital about 4.15 a.m. to-day suffering from abrasions to the right hip, believed to have been caused through his being struck by a train in the vicinity of the Hospital. His condition this afternoon was stated to be satisfactory.

Twenty-eight men drawn in the 21st Ballot have been examined to date at Greymouth, and a high percentage oi fitness has been disclosed. Of that total 22 were passed Grade 1, two Grade 2, and two Grade 3, while the grading of two men was deferred. The medical examinations have not yet been concluded.

An announcement that bakers and pastrycooks would be allowed to draw normal quantities of margarine was made by the Rationing Controller (Mr J. E. Thomas) yesterday. Mr Thomas said that the bakers and pastrycooks had made representations to him lor the restoration of cream, but the ban would continue to operate. Butter supplies would continue to be reduced by one-third.

A well-attended meeting of the Addington branch of the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants, held during the lunch interval yesterday, carried the following resolution: —“That this meeting of the Addington branch of the A.S.R.S. urges our national executive to demand immediately ' from the Government a definite reply to the protracted representations made for an increase in wages, and that, failing a satisfactory settlement, a national ballot of the membership be urgently taken to determine the strike issue.”

The extension of warrants of fitness for private cars to one year has raised the interesting question whether current warrants will run till the completion of a year from the original date, or whether the cars must be submitted for examination to. secure an extended warrant. The Minister of Transport (Mr. O’Brien), to whom this point was put, replied that current warrants would run for 12 months for private cars subject to the important qualification that if the mileage reached 2000, another warrant must be obtained— P.A.

Members of the executive of the West Coast Automobile Association, yesterday, inspected the approaches to Cobden bridge and expressed satisfaction with the improvements effected by the railway authorities in having the fence and poles painted yellow. The position of a number of buildings and scrub at the northern end of the bridge was viewed, members pointing out that they obstruct vision to some extent. It was decided to erect additional signboards in the vicinity as a further convenience to motorists.

The predatory instincts of the West Coast apparently are not as fullydeveloped as those of residents oi Christchurch if the experience of the Post Office is any criterion. The Christchurch office has lost from its postal counters six dozen pens in 10 weeks, and the telegraph counter has lost two dozen in two months, while in a month the money order office has lost an average of a hundred. On the other hand, Greymouth’s loss all round is only one a month. Up till six months ago pens were removed in numbers, but a noticeable improvement has taken place since then.

No change has taken place in the condition oj the Grey bar, soundings taken this morning by the Harbourmaster (Captain H. Moar) indicating that the depth at low water is still 10ft. A sft swell was operating this morning, and the spring tide, making further, registered 19 feet three inches at high water —an improvement on yesterday. Captain Moar commented that the position was still uncertain and that soundings would be continued during the week. Meanwhile the Kartigi, which should have left port on Monday, is still tied up with a cargo of coal.

The Christchurch Manpower Appeal Committee will probably experience another “field day” when it next sits in Greymouth. A sitting has been set down for December 7, and it will probably also be in session the previous evening. So far eight appeals have been lodged, but in view of the fact that directions to employment at the Grey Hospital as pupil nurses and the Hokitika Mental Hospital as probationer nurses are being issued by the District Manpower Officer at Greymouth the list is expected to be substantially increased. ''

A serious shortage of pickers and the rapid ripening of crops because of the hot spell is likely to result in acres of peas going to waste on the Waimea Plain, in the Nelson district. Large parties of pickers organised by the Women’s War Service Auxiliary travel from the city by bus daily, including pupils of the boys’ and girls' colleges, but even this additional labour cannot overtake the work. The local canning factory is receiving thousands of bags daily. Mr L. F. Berkett, the well-known trainer of trotters at Hope, who is a large peagrower, nas ottered nine acres of peas free to the public for the picking rather than see them waste.—P.A.

For a good clean job when having your chimneys cleaned, ring G. D. White, 576 M. 5/- per chimney to all. —Advt.

The apparently anomalous position has arisen in Greymouth of a 15-year-old boy seeking farm work on the West Coast and failing to receive replies to an advertisement to that effect, in spite of the contention that there is a serious shortage of farm labour on the Coast. An advertisement seeking a position, inserted in the “Greymouth Evening Star” on Monday evening failed to elicit a single reply. When the position was discussed with the manpower authorities to-day, they indicated that whereas there is practically no demand for boy labour for farms in the Grey Valley they have a list of yacanmes for boys for farms in South Westland.

Under the will of Mrs A. L. Parker, of New Plymouth, an immediate cash bequest is made to the New Plymouth Returned Services’ Association, which also receives the residue of the estate, estimated to be worth about £15,000, after the satisiaction of certain life interests. Officials of the association said that advice to tnem of the bequest had been received with great satisfaction. During the last war Mr and Mrs Parker made generous contributions to patriotic funds, and Mrs Parker aid so throughout the period of this V®. r clß , up , to time of her death. She had also been interested m the welfare of returned soldiers, lhe area in which the bequest will become available for the relief of distress among former servicemen vL ac £ s Practically the whole of North Taranaki, and conforms very largely to the boundaries of the Taranaki Hospital District.-r-P.A,