WESTPORT NOTES

Grey River Argus, 24 November 1944, Page 8

WESTPORT NOTES

[Our Own Correspondent]. WESTPORT, November 23. The Kaimai sailed to-day, for Wellington. The Totara sailed to-day for New Plymouth. The Te Aroha is loading 'timber for Wellington, and is expected to, complete and sail tomorrow. The Kartigi is due to-mor-row from Auckland to load for Auckland. Mr G. Morey, of Blenheim, has joined the staff of the Friendly Societies’ dispensary. Mr and Mrs J. McDonagh left this morning for Christchurch, where they are"to reside. Mrs R. Beck, of Carter’s Beach, has been requested to attend a reception at Christchurch on Saturday, to receive from the Governor-General the Distinguished Flying Medal, won by her son, the late Pilot Officer Richard Colin Seddon Beck, R.N.Z.A.F. A case, in which discrimination by the manpower authorities against a particular firm was alleged, came befpre Mr A. A. McLacnlan, S.M., here yesterday. A female clerk, an employee at the store of Martin O’Dea, had been directed to undertake the nursing of mental patients at Hokitika Mental Hospital, and he was charged with having continued to employ the clerk in question after hetdirection to the mental hospital. Counsel stated that defendant, who pleaded not guilty, had done everything possible to replace the clerk. She is in charge of the office at his •store. Defendant, in evidence, stated that he had been subjected to discrimination. He had been singled, out from other employers. He outlined the effect that manpower shortagc■bas had on his business, explaining that many of his- employees are serving with the armed forces. In spite of that, however, the manpowerauthorities, he said, had set about directing the remaining members of his staff, and in fact they had directed to other work every female employee of direction age, with the exception of his sk-ter. who is medically unfit. The Magistrate said that regulations might seem to be hard. War services, however, particularly nursing, must be maintained, and people were called upon to carry out this- important work. The clerk might have given a 1 month’s trial to the nursing. The defendant would he fined £lO. If the defendant failed to obey the order of the Court, there would be further action taken against him. Before Mr A. A. McLachlan, S’.M., in the Magistrate’s Court yesterday, Edward Hawkins, on two charges of having carried out sanitary work in the Buller County prior to July 3, 1944, without being licensed as- a drainlayer, and two charges of carrying out sanitary work without a permit, was convicted and ordered to pay costs on each charge. Two 19-year-old youths, Felice William Mereu, a clerk, and James Caral Midgley, a bootmaker, pleaded guilty and elected to be dealt with summarily, to a charge of having boarded the s.s. Totara at Wellington without having obtained a permit in compliance with the Shipping Safety Emergency Regulations. 1940. Sergeant T. Matthews said the youths were seen in town in the morning, and as their behaviour was suspicious-, they had been interviewed by the police. They claimed to be seamen discharged from ships in Wellington. Thev could not produce discharge papers. Subsequently thev admitted that , they had not worked on boats-. Midgley, in reply to the Magistrate, said that he had' been to the manpower authorities in Wellington. He had been told to look for a job. and he thought he would come to Westport. Mereu said that he had heard there would bf> a vacancy on the Totara. The Magistrate said; “There should be plenty of work in Wellington without boarding ships to look for it. In view of your age, and with the hone that you will cause the police no. further concern, I propose to convict and order you to come up for sentence if called upon within 12 months. See that you get into no further trouble.”