Dominion News

Greymouth Evening Star, 2 August 1949, Page 10

Dominion News

Registration Of Roses The National Rose. Society of New Zealand decided this evening to register internationally the names of all new pedigree roses grown in New Zealand. It. was stated that all rose names registered in New Zealand henceforward would be registered in Britain and the United States, thus avoiding duplication. Unregistered roses would be barred from shows.' — (P.A.)

Bookmaker Fined . . In the Magistrate’s Court at Christchurch yesterday Thomas James Burns, aged 42, who pleaded guilty to a charge of carrying on the business of was fined £5O. De-tective-Sergeant G. W. Alty said accused had admitted having taken bets to the amount o'f £ 50, mostly in small amounts. Council said accused was not a “bookmaker baron,” he did not do business over a telephone, and had been operating in a small way. The Magistrate warned the accused that a second offence might not be met with at fine.—(P.A.)

Bellona’s Exercises Postponed The sailing of the cruiser, Bellona for a month’s exercises in the Hauraki Gulf, has been postponed indefinitely. The ship was to have left Auckland today after a four months’ major refit. Difficulties in the lubricating system of the main engines have, caused the delay. Lubricating troubles some times occur when oil that has been in use for two years or more, is replaced by new oil. Captain D. Ham-mersley-Johnstone broadcast an announcement of the postponement to the crew at midday yesterday to avoid speculation or rumour. (P.A.)

Note Circulation There were 182,000 more £o notes in circulation in New Zealand on the last Wednesday of March, 1949, than on the same day of last year. This is shown in a table in the annual report of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand. < In 1948 the value of £5 notes in cir- i culation was £23,117,000, which in- | creased this year to £24,021,000. The value of £lO notes in circulation increased from £4,087 000 to £4,990,000, and of £5O notes from £1,98/ ,000 to £2,086,000. Smaller increases are ; shown in the value of 10s and £1 notes in circulation. There are still £359i',000 worth of trading banks’ notes, which have not been issued since the Reserve Bank was set up in 1933, in circulation.

Work At M'artha Gold Mine . Underground work at the Martha gold mine in Waihi is continuing, although it was announced on June 9 that the closing of the mine would be begun immediately. The extraction of ore may be carried on for another month or more. About 400 tons of payable ore a day has been mined for the last six weeks. When the closing of the mine was announced no definite date for the completion of the work in hand was given, although it was the closing of the mine itself might take about four weeks. A few workers were dismissed the day after the announcement but since that time very few men have been paid off. ’ Some have left of their own accord.—(P.A.)

Scottish Scholarship Winner lan Rettie, sixth winner of the Otaki Shield, will arrive at Wellington today on the Rangitiki. The shield was presented to the Robert Gordon College, Aberdeen, by the relatives of the late Captain Archibald Bissett-Smith, V. a former pupil. The award is made to the pupil of the college who has proved pre-eminent in character, leadership, and athletics, and entitles him to a tour of New Zealand. lan Rettie has specialised in mathematics and science and on his return will study at the University of Aberdeen for an honours degree in mathematics. The Minister of Internal Affairs (Mr W. E. Parry) said at Wellington last evening that an itinerary had been arranged to enable lan Rettie to. see as much as possible of New Zealand. — (P.A.)

Australian Liquor Wanted The chairman of the Invercargill Licensing Trust (Mr Hugh Ritchie) and the general manager (Mr L .E. Raines) will leave Auckland by air on August 11 on a month’s visit to Australia. Their main object is to buy spirits and they hope to obtain direct agencies, enabling the trust to buy on better terms. “We intend to. investigate prospects for rum, gin, brandy, wines, and whisky,” said Mr Ritchie yesterday. “It is recognised of course, that the quality of Australian whisky has not been satisfactory, but we have heard it is improving and for that reason we are investigating the position.” Mr Ritchie said that whatever quantity of Australian whisky they bought it would hot affect the trust’s purchase of Scotch. —(P.A.) Gold Bought By Reserve Bank The value of gold held by the Reserve Bank increased by £430,834 6s 5d in the last financial year, according to the annual report of the bank. “This increase,” says the report, “is due to the bank’s acquisition of New Zealand-produced gold and of sovereigns in terms of Regulation 5 of the Finance Emergency Regulations, 1940 (No. 2).” This regulation required all gold producers to offer their entire production to the bank for purchase. Acting through various branches of the trading banks situated in the goldproducing localities, the bank had purchased all gold offered at a uniform price of £8 8s 6d a fine ounce. “This price, which is based on the official price in London, provides the bank with an expense margin to cover various costs incurred in handling the gold and shipping it overseas for refinement.”

Plunket Society And State A forecast of Government assistance for Karitane hospitals was made by the Minister of Health (Miss M. B. Howard), when she addressed the Opunake branch of the Plunket Society. “The Government is closely tied up with the Plunket Society, for it pays a very large amount _ from public funds to enable the society to carry on and in the near future it will, I think, be helping with Karitane hospital buildings, too,” Miss Howard said. “But I do feel that never must the Plunket Society lose its identity. I do not think it. should ever become a Government institution, for, if it did, I think we should lose the real spirit of Plunket.” Miss Howard.said she had enjoyed her term as Minister of Health, for it brought her for the first time into, close‘contact with women and children. “It is largely a Ministry where you can do things without political bickering,” she added. “In health matters the political side doesn’t-come into it.”— (P.A.)

Farmers’ Decisions A conference representing the Wairarapa, , Makara-Hutt, Manawatu, Wellington Central, and Wanganui districts of Federated Farmers at Palmerston North considered the report- and recommendations of the Sheep Industry. Commission. With reservations, the conference approved the r.rinrlpel of th® formation of a

Sheep Industry Board. The conference was not open to the press, but a statement issued afterwards says delegates viewed the subject of fertilisers in the light of the need for immediate action to sustain production on hill country particularly and heard an official report that ample supplies of superphosphate were now available. The conference supported the principle of a standard price on the farm, believing this would prove a valuable contribution towards increasing production. It agreed immediate steps should be taken to implement the principle in the Commission’s recommendations. Delegates unanimously agreed with the proposal that land tax be abolished and also supported the extending of deductable allowances for income tax, with a recommendation for the inclusion of expenditure on building workers’ cottages on farms. The commission’s finding on the subject of land values and its opposition to fixing these values at 1942 prices met with unanimous agreement.—(P.A.)