Levies Reduced.

Manawatu Standard, Volume LX, Issue 122, 22 April 1940, Page 6

Levies Reduced.

The Grey Hospital Hoard • has reduced its levies on local bodies by more than £3ooo.—Press Association. Call For Parliament. A decision to urge the calling of Parliament together at the earliest possible moment was arrived at by the Hawke’s Bay Electorate Committee, comprising delegates from the Hawke’s Bay branches of the New Zealand National Party. Exhibition Visi'ors. The rush of final fortnight visitors to the Centennial Exhibition set in on Saturday with an attendance of 31,759. The crowds far exceeded the ordinary week-end attendance, and Exhibition authorities reported that the evening was one of the busiest the Exhibition had experienced. Police Transfers. *

Constable J. Kennedy, of Rongotea, is at present under transfer to Howiek, in the Auckland district, where he will replace a constable leaving the force on superannuation., Constable A. Edo, now at tile Bulls station, is to be transferred to Rongotea to take Constable Kennedy’s place, and Constable T. Donovan, of Hawera, will replace Constable Ede at Bulls. Hussifs for Soldiers.

'l’lie secretary of the National Patriotic Fund Board (Mr G. A. Hayden, Wellington) said last night that instructions to cease work on the Imssifs at present being made by women for soldiers overseas, were issued by the hoard on Friday. It had been discovered, lie said, that the materials, which were supplied already cut, were too small, and though they could be made to hold the outfit for which they were designed they would be somewhat inadequate. The materials would not be wasted, however, as they could he used as covers for .paybooks by the troops.

The Early Manawatu Council. Referring to the work of local bodies, at the unveiling of the Mt. Stewart memorial, oil Saturday, Mr W. E. Barber, chairman of the Manawatu County Council, said that the council, constituted in 1876, was the major body and prior to its advent the country’ was controlled by the Provincial Government with local boards to deal with township matters. When the county came into being its operations extended from as far south as Paekakariki, to the Tararuas in the east, to the Rangitikei River in the west, and to as far north as it was possible to see. Actually the then Manawatu county comprised the present counties Horowhenua, Kairanga, Oroiia, Kiwitea and Pohangina. The first meeting of the Manawatu County Council was held on January 4, 1877, and many of the councillors had to ride 40 to 50 miles to attend that meeting.

Birthday of Princess. In honour of Princess Elizabeth, whose 14th birthday fell yesterday, flags were flown on public buildings in the city to-day. Railway Mishap. Through the trailer of a passenger train on the AVellington-Johnsonville lino becoming derailed about 9.30 o’clock yesterday morning, train services were held up lor a considerable portion of the day. No injuries were caused. Battalion Exercise. Part of the training of the Maori Battalion consists of the carrying out of tactical exercises, and to-day most of the battalion took part in a tactical scheme in the hills behind Massey College. Detachments from the battalion on their way to take part marched through the town in full war kit this morning. Fruitgrowers to Seek Help. A deputation from the Hawke’s Bay Fruitgrowers’’ Association, together with Mr Cullen, M.P. for Hawke’s Bay. is to wait upon the Minister of Marketing (Hon. W. Nash). Messrs D. S. McLeod and G. Joll will represent the association, and they will press the urgent need for relief lor growers whose fruit suffered damage by hail. Badges For Maori Soldiers. Members of the 28th (Maori) Battalion have now been issued with colour patches, the distinguishing badges for units of the Second New Zealand Expeditionary Force. Each unit has different colours by which its members may be readily distinguished. Those for the Maoris are a two-inch red patch with .an oblong khaki strip on it, above which is a three-quarter circle rod patch. Great assistance lias been given in the big task of sewing on the badges by 20 or 30 women who have been helping with this work at the camp. Royal Navy Reinforcements. Reinforcements of naval personnel being sent from New Zealand to join the Royal Navy for the duration ot hostilities were announced last night by the Minister of Defence (Hon. F. Jones.). The draft, said the Minister, would include about 250 "officers and men ol the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve, some 50 technical ratings specially entered for the Royal Navy, and over 80 Imperial ratings who had been replaced in the New Zealand Naval Forces by reserves. In addition ton yachtsmen had been selected for commissions as sub lieutenants in the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve for service overseas. Interpretation Problem.

The question of whether the regulation requiring a motorist to give way to traffic approaching from the right applies to a T-intersection similar to that of George and Main Streets was the subject of consideration in the Palmerston North -Magistrate’s Court to-day, when a motorist was charged with a breach of file regulation. Mr T. M. N. Rodgers (for defendant) stated that two or three decisions had been given under similar circumstances, these varying from each other, and the matter of interpretation proved difficult. The Magistrate (Mr LI. P. La wry) reserved his decision pending an examination of these iindings. Poor Attendance. Outspoken comment oil the extremely poor attendance at the patriotic concert held in the Opera mouse on Saturday night was passed by Mr W. B. 'lennent when returning thanks to Miss Marie Moffatt, who arranged the concert, and the performers. There were only about three hundred persons present. Mr Tenneut said he thought it was a disgrace to tiio city, considering the size of Palmerston North and the surrounding district, that there was such a poor attendance. Such a small attendance to enjoy so hue a programme was indeed to be deplored, and he hoped that in future the city would show its appreciation to a greater degree. Lessons From the Past. One outstanding feature of the early scttlemejit of the district was the help the Maoris gave the pioneers, said Air J. Linklater, at the unveiling_ ceremony at the Mt. Stewart memorial on Saturday. “We arc proud of the fact that our Maori brothers are coming forward freely lo fight shoulder to shoulder with the pakeha in this fight for freedom and liberty. We have with us to-day in this gathering some who have nobly played their part in the early settlement of New Zealand. AN e honour them for what they have done and extend to them a warm welcome to the ceremony. Jt is the duty ot the younger men of New Zealand to carry on the good work so nobly done by them and build wisely upon the foundation they have so well and truly built. Much remains to be done in order to make this land produce its fu’l quota. I believe this land is capable of producing twice the amount of produce it is doing at the present day.’’