GENERAL ITEMS

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXXII, 24 November 1938, Page 8

GENERAL ITEMS

Social Security Plan “We have no further action of any kind under consideration at present.” said the president of the New Zealand Branch of the British Medical Association. Dr. J. P. S. Jamieson, yesterday, referring to the social security scheme. "It is entirely a question for the Government.” he added, "and I have received no hint of any move from them seeking action on our part.” New Dress Uniform Arrangements were made some time ago to equip Territorials with a blue dress uniform, and the type of blue dress uniform to be worn by officers has now been decided upon. The uniform will consist of a blue felt hat with band and badge as at present, a blue serge tunic with stand-up collar without badges, khaki pantaloons when mounted and blue overalls (semitights) with Wellington boots when dismounted. Takaka Aerodrome "The Mail’s” Takaka correspondent learns on good authority that the Takaka Aerodrome is now practically completed, and should in the near future be officially opened. Coming in direct from the sea with a delightful landing, this pretty little aerodrome should commend itself to air pilots, and is surely a credit to the district, and will prove a great acquisition in the linking up of Takaka in the not very distant future. A Shortage of Steel Although the contract for the new Invercargill Post Office provided for its completion in March next, it is likely to be some months after that date that the building is ready. Constructional work has been slowed down (the "Southland Times” says) because of difficulty in securing the steel required from Australia. Stone work on the front of the building was also held up J until the colour of the texture to be used had been determined. The stone is not expected to be ready for about a | fortnight. Excavation work on the Post Office site was begun a little more than a year ago. During the first six months the contrxactors were able to keep to schedule, but as steel did not arrive until nearly 12 months after it was ordered the same rate of progress could not be maintained. Between 30 and 40 men are employed on the job when operations are in full swing. The contract price for the new building, which will contain three storeys, was £74.000. Work on the new courthouse in Invercargill has also been held up because of the non-ar-rival of steel ordered from Australia For Garden Party Wear.—Smart Georgette Coats in navy, edge-to-edge styles, with tucked collar and revers. Sizes S W. to O.S . 49/6 at McKay’s* Alfred Gould advertises an auction sale at Lower Moutere, at 1 p.m., on Thursday, the Ist December, of household furniture and effects. Wizard Light plant implements, etc., at the residence of Mr Thomas Ching. Attractive Frocks in gay Romany stripes. These frocks are smartly tailored in quality Art Silk Crepe de Chene. Sizes S.S.W. to W.X., 39/6, at McKay's.* White Hats in fancy straws, trimmed corded ribbon, large shady brims. All head fittings, 17/11 at McKay’s.*

: Girls’ College Garden Tarty 1 * The annual Garden Party of the ! ' Girls’ College will take place on Satur- j : | day afternoon next at 3 p.m. Invitation I ■ : cards are not being sent in the usual s ! vvay, but the Principal and staff invite . ! the parents of present pupils, all old ! ’ 1 girls, and the many friends who have i ’j an interest in the life of the school, j ! i There is little doubt that the guests will j ' j appreciate the drill and dancing dis- j • j play, which is both novel and spectacu- i r j far. There will be the usual exhibition of i arts and crafts, which this year will be j arranged in the Western Wing The 1 Gymnasium ar.d Art Room are to be j converted into afternoon tea rooms, to which admission will be one shilling, j Given favourable weather conditions. ! ' Saturday afternoon’s function promises j i to be as successful as in previous years, j L Scrub Fires at Takaka On the hills adjoining Waitapu, \ ■ Takaka, this week a fire in gorse and : scrub threatened several houses and . only the fine services of the Fire 1 . Brigade prevented considerable damage ’ (writes “The Mail’s” Takaka corres- j pondent). i Sydney Harbour Bridge Figures recently taken out in connection with the Sydney Harbour 5 bridge revealed that after all commitr ments had been met a substantial - surplus of revenue over expenditure ■ was shown for the year 1937-38. The capital cost of the structure was [ U 9,500.000, and the charges which had ( to be met during the year were j £377,524 representing interest, sinking ; fund and exchange, and £43.000 for j - maintenance, including wages and ; l painting The revenue for the year! : was £479.000, and after provision had [ been made for the charges referred ■ to, there was a surplus of revenue . amounting to £58,476. Provision is made on the bridge for 128 trains, 6000 vehicles in each direction on the road- : way, and 40.000 pedestrians an hour. : During 1936-37 there were 38,457.000 I passengers over the bridge (including : rail, tram, and road), and the average daily total was 105.362. In the same . year motor vehicles using the bridge aggregated 6.180.000, the average daily total being 17,000. ' i Rain Needed in Golden Bay | Farm lands in the Golden Bay district are showing the effects of dry south--1 westerly winds during the early part of the week and a good fall of rain 1 would be welcomed (writes "The » Mail’s” Takaka correspondent). Union Secretary’s Action - Describing it as a piece of imperi tinence, members of the Hawera Hos- : pital Board expressed indignation at [ a meeting this week when their attention was drawn to a letter that had been sent by the secretary of New Plymouth Hotel and Restaurant Em- : ployees' Industrial Union to a member | of the staff of the hospital. The letter ' was one in which the employee concern- , ed was taken to task for expressing > her political views, apparently the opL posite to those of the Government. Afr ter brief consideration the board dej cided to forward a copy of the letter to the Minister of Lubour, the Hon. H. T. Armstrong, together with a letter of : protest. A similar letter of protest will be sent to the author of the letter. “I think we should send a copy of this letter to the heads of the Government,” said the chairman, Mr A. L. Campbell. "The secretary seems to have overstepped the mark in writing such a tough letter. At the same time I think we should advise the girl that the board is ’ quite satisfied with her work.” The view was also expressed that the Government l would not countenance such action on ■ the part of union officials. r Second Tig Shoots Himself By pulling the piece of piano wire " attached to the trigger of a .303 rifle ' placed on a wire fence on the Macfarlane Downs estate, Clydevale, recently, a large killer boar brought about his own death. The method for destroying the animal was devised by ; Mr Robert Aitken, who informed the ? Otago Daily Times” that a second vic- ? tim had proved the efficiency of the ; trap. On Tuesday morning a shepherd - found the body alongside the fence, t and, when measured, it was 6ft sin long i from snout to tail and 2ft 11 in high. ! “Not Tlaying the Game” “1 have recently had people come to 1 me and ask me if I can get money out of the country for them,” said Mr W. Machin, at a meeting of the Economics Society s n Christchurch. "Frankly, 1 t look at those people with a certain - amount of contempt. It seems to me i that they are announcing their belief ~ that the ship is sinking, and as they l have probably made their money in 1 New Zealand, I don’t think they are ; quite playing the game.” Mr Machin l said that of course the desire to get 1 money out of the country traced back i to the actions of the Government to a r great extent, but the movement of capital was likely to be embarrassing to New Zealand. In its own defence the community might consider making it difficult for capital to leave the country because of fright especially in view of J the loan of £17,000.000 that would j. mature in London next year and would ( most likely be offered for conversion. Professor A. H. Tocker agreed that P there was much to justify the feeling j that as much of this money was made ; in New Zealand, New Zealand had some claim on it. However, the ordin- ' ary market rules should apply in due course, and interest rates rise. The more sharply the country suffered now, the more quickly would the ordinary rules apply. Karamea Harbour Works The final gap in the river protection stop-bank, and one of the most important phases of the Government’s £70.000 harbour improvement scheme at Karamea, has just been completed. The work was done under the supervision of Mr B. Halley, Public Works engineer. The bank has been constructed on both sides of the river and back to Market Cross at the point known as , the overflow, where the greatest danger existed at the time of floods. The embankment almost makes a direct road from Market Cross to Karamea. the surface being 2411 wide. The foot : of the wall is 20ft through, and 5500 ’ cubic yards of material was used to 1 fill the gap of 150yds 1 Members of the Loyal General Cameron Lodge. M.U.1.0.0.F., Brightwater. j will hold a dance in the Brightwater j hall to-night. No effort has been spared to ensure all patrons of a most enjoyable evening A free bus will leave town at 7.30 p.m. from the Oddfellows’ Hall. Mr H. Williams will supply the music. The supper will be provided by Fernlea House, and the dance programme will be in the hands of Bro. G. L. Housiaux, M.C.

Praise tor Dominion Admiration for farming methods j j practised in New Zealand was express- j led this week by Mr Lionel Massey, son j of the Canadian High Commissioner in London who has been spending several ' ! weeks in the Dominion. Mr Massey ! ; said he had been particularly impressed j with the method of top-dressing used ; jin this country. He thought it must * |be the finest in the world and was ! certainly a lesson for farmers in i 1 Canada. Progress in Takaka ! Mr W. Birdsall. Takaka Service Sea- j j tion, says “The Mail’s” correspondent 1 is erecting a fine new garage on the i I site of his old premises. This should j prove an acquisition on this prominent ; j corner of the street i Tourist Cruises from Australia ; Cruises arranged from Australian ports to New Zealand have become ini creasingly popular, according to Mr II R. Cummins, passenger superintendent for Australia and New Zealand of the | P. and O. Steam Navigation Company. : who was present in Dunedin this week in the course of a visit to the company’s agencies in the Dominion (states the ‘‘Otago Daily Times”). It was not pos- ; sible, however, for the schedule! of the ships to be extended! because only a limited time . was available between regular voyages { for the ships to undertake cruises, he j said, and although his company was not J : unmindful of the attractions of the I South Island, it could not at present in- \ ; elude southern ports in the itinerary. ; i The visits to New Zealand of cruise ; ! ships provided a wonderful advertise- ! ment for the country because the vessels brought large numbers of tourists who would doubtless influence their friends to make similar trips. The four ships coming to New Zealand this sum- j mer would bring nearly 4000 tourists, : said Mr Cummins, and even allowing ! for a very modest expenditure by each J person the contribution made by the j ; passengers to New Zealand’s tourist trade would be a substantial sum. Ability of Maori Girls The lack of a school for training Maori girls as domestic servants was i deplored by Dr. H. B. Turbott, district health officer at Hamilton, when , addressing Ihe Hamilton Rotary Club ' , this week. "They make excellent do- ( ; mestic servants,’ he said, "and with' ! proper training an avenue of employ- \ ment would be opened up for a large number of girls.” Such a scheme had j been organised by Sister Nicholls, of the Methodist Maori Mission, Dr. Tur- ' bott added. He thought that it could | be employed on a wider scale to secure useful and congenial work for Maori | ■ girls. A Curious Restriction Restrictions on the sale of petrol at week-ends in Victoria are now in force, j , | stated Mr H. Black, a well-known Wei- | lingtow golfer, who has just returned ' from a visit to Australia. He said that | a new law enforced the closure of all petrol stations in Victoria from 2 p.m j on Saturday until Monday morning That meant that the motorist who intended to tour during the week-end would have to purchase all the petrol he though he would need before ? p.m. on Saturday, and if he ventured too far into the country and his tank I ran out he would have to borrow a ! supply or wait where he was until i Monday. It would be illegal for any i station to make a sale during prohibited hours. A reason given for the j .action was the growing congestion at week-ends on the roads of Victoria. Whether it would lessen that traffic, Mr j Black said, was doubtful, as such: action might induce people to purchase spare supplies in tins and carry them in their cars, thereby bringing about another potential source of danger. One Year Afterwards On the way to the Dunedin Summer Show a year ago a motor-truck containing several members of a travelling show and performing monkeys accidentally went over a bank on the Upper Junction road. Tlie vehicle was badly damaged and the occupants injured. One of the women of the party had six gold rings among her belongings on a hair-pin. and these, with other things. were lost when everything in the vehicle was thrown over the bank Last Sunday (“The Post’s” Dunedin correspondent reports) another party, friends of those who met with the accident a year ago. stopped at the scene of the accident, and, leaving the car, found traces of the smash at the foot of the bank. Noticing something sticking out of the ground, a young lady pulled it up and, to her surprise, it was the hair-pin with the six rings still around it. An examination showed that two stones were missing from one of the rings and a further search resulted in those being found.