GENERAL ITEMS

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXXIII, 10 June 1939, Page 8

GENERAL ITEMS

Beer Supply at Parties I The admission made by a husband in the Supreme Court at Auckland that he had occasionally got a one-gallon jar of beer for a Saturday night party attracted the interest of Mr Justice Callan. who presided. His Honour asked if there had not been odd bottles brought to the party, and was assured there had not. “Was it not sometimes a twogallon jar you got?” he inquired. “Never once,” said the witness. “Then they must have been very slow evenings.” commented His Honour. Disabled Soldiers’ Pensions ! “It is the duty of any Government i to foster the activities of the disabled I soldiers.” staled Mr E. J. Anderson at | the annual reunion of the Dunedin ! branch of the New Zealand Expeditionary Forces Amputees’ Association, "and if any Government or outfit tries to submerge the activities of disabled soldiers, it will meet with the opposition of all returned soldiers’ organisations.” Mr Anderson (says the "Otago Daily Times”) was referring to the \ proposal to merge returned soldiers' pensions in lSr social security scheme, and he urged a review of the whole of the returned soldiers’ pensions scheme. “The Pensions Act. 1915. should be made the Pensions Act, 1939.” he concluded, advocating an immediate review of present legislation. “The terms should be worthy of services rendered to the country and suitable to the con- ' ditions under which we exist to-day.” Heavy Killings of Lambs Unexpectedly heavy supplies of fat lambs at the end of the season have . prevented the closing of the freezing works in Southland, which were to have ceased killing on Thursday. Full ] boards of slaughtermen are working at present, and supplies are sufficient t to keep them fully engaged. Killing 1 will be continued to the end of the r week and for two or more days next . week at two or more of the works. The j good feed position throughout Southland has enabled graziers to fatten s more lambs than they expected earlier * in the season. These lambs are now ' ready for drafting, and growers have > been waiting for the end of the season r before drafting, so they they could send » away the maximum number of lambs.

Warrants of Fitness for Trailers Under the traffic regulations a trailer is classed as a motor vehicle and as such requires a warrant of fitness. This decision was given in the Magistrate’s Court at Blenheim by Mr T. E. Maunsell, SM„ who had held the question over for consideration, and a man named J. M. Kelly, who was charged by Traffic Inspector Mills with having no warrant of fitness for his trailer was ordered to pay costs, amounting to 10s (reports the "Express”). The magistrate commented that in ordinary parlance a trailer would not be regarded as a motor vehicle, but he had looked into the matter and it was clear that under the regulations it was so regarded. It was not generally known, he thought, that a trailer required a warrant of fitness. Garden Valley A Brightwater resident, Mr H. Murcott, wrote lo yesterday’s meeting of the Waimea County Council requesting the Council to cha. *e the name of Tea Pot Valley in Wairoa Gorge to its original name—Garden Valley. Owners of land in the Valley were agreeable to the change. It was resolved that the request be acceded to. Shame as Incentive An Auckland parent has joined the national defence reserve as a means of persuading his son to join the Territorial- but he puts it more bluntly than that (says the “Star”). "The reason why I signed up was to shame my boy into playing his part,” the father declares. "1 mean that. I believe young men of to-day would go to fight if a war was on. and in fact they would have enrolled had the crisis in Europe remained grave, but very few of them realise that training is most important. They won’t train, some of them, unless they are shamed into it. in spite of the fact that none of them would be backVVur Pensions “A returned soldier drawing a war pension of 30s a week cannot get a Social Security benefit to bring the amount up to £2 10s. but a retired public servant getting the same amount in superannuation can get the benefit.” said a member of the Wanganui R.S.A. at the annual meeting. "If the public servant can get it. why not the returned soldier?” he asked. The president. Mr W. H. Cannan. said that the position was not fair. The matter would be discussed at (he annual Dominion conference of the R.S.A., he added.

Deferred Import Payments Importers who arc seeking the authority of the Customs Department to import goods prohibited under the licensing schedules by arranging for payment without recourse to New Zealand’s exchange funds, arc unable to obtain an assurance from the Government regarding the future transfer of the funds (states the Auckland “Star”). In one instance an Auckland import- | ing firm, which had arranged with its | overseas principals to allow the proceeds from the sale of the imports to accumulate in the Dominion, has received advice from the Comptroller of Customs that favourable consideration will be given to applications for permits to import on a deferred ~-y-ment ment basis, on the understanding that no remittance is made within two years of the date of importation of the goods, but remittance after that time must be subject to the availability of exchange. New Zealand Man in the Street Dr. F. H. Spencer, or London, wno visited New Zealand in 1938, says in a report just published by the Carnegie Corporation: "The man in the street, of both sexes, is pleasant, courteous and relatively well informed. His speech is noi unpleasant. Some people have tound him dull and slow. But these critics are from those lands of brighl sun and effervescent atmosphere which may account for their own flamboyanl and excessive heartiness. An Englishman. however, finds this absence of unintermittent talk, this relatively quie and reserved bearing, the inclinatior to abstain from sapping a new ac quaintance too mstantaneously and tor heartily upon the back, by no mean: strange.” . Linoleum Shortage The influence of import restriction was indicated in the explanations give) ’ f on behalf of hotel licensees before th> Auckland Licensing Committee in re | spect of unfinished improvements re quisitioned by the committee. Fre quently it was stated that work wouli • have been completed but for th 5 licensees’ inability to obtain suitam linoleum to cover floprs. In one in stance a letter from an importer wa read to show that linoleum for thre hotels could not be supplied.

Centennial Bowls Although practically every branch of sport will be represented in the events to be held in Auckland next January during the progress of the New Zealand Centennial Games, it has not been possible to make any provision for a bowling tournament (states the "Herald”). In describing the scope of the games the Mayor. Sir Ernest Davis, said that the Auckland Bowling Centre had been advised that, owing to the fact that the New Zealand Bowling Association's tournament would be held In Wellington during the period of the games, no other tournament could be held in New Zealand at the same time. However, it was hoped that in view of the special nature of the games, and the fact that a great number of bowlers would be unable to attend the tournament in Wellington, satisfactory arrangements would be concluded with the’New Zealand Bowling Association to enable bowlers to participate in the games. Billy-Goat Wears Pants It was a great indignity for a billygoat. who knew no master, lo be put forcibly into a pair of sawn-off dungarees. but he deserved it (says the Auckland “Star"). Fences were no obstacle to him. and his herd of "nannies." whose liking for vegetables was fatal to the horticultural ambitions of an outback farmer endeavouring to raise his own supply of greens. At last the harassed man. meeting the herd in the open when on horseback, rode down and roped their leader. Billy looked too tough for meat, and in any case was useful in grazing down the young gor.se. The farmer spared his life, but subjected him to the indignity of trousers—old dungarees cut short to reach about half-way down the goat’s hind legs, and roped securely around his middle. He careered round the paddock, and eventually cleared out to the hills. Neither he nor any of his consorts has since been seen round the homestead. Films of Maori Life In an endeavour to raise funds lo enable him to accept an invitation from Lady Ilaig. widow of the famous general, to visit Scotland this year with films of Maori life. Mr Hemi Bennett, a son of Bishop Bennett is at present entertaining Dunedin primary school children with instructive moving pictures of the arts and crafts of the Maori (states t “Otago Daily Times”). When Lady Haig was in New Zealand a few years ago she was deeply interested in Mr Bennett’s efforts to preserve by means of films various aspects of Maori life before the arrival of the Europeans, and she invited him to go to Scotland to show his films in an endeavour to raise funds for the relief of destitute children and war widows. Mr Bennett has been showing his films all over the Dominion, and will visit Australia with them next month. He hopes to raise enough money to pay the exnenses of a party of eight Maori boys to Scotland. He deplores the fact that so little of the arts and crafts of the Maori is being preserved for future venerations, and he has tried in vain to induce the Government to take films to be kept in museums' for screening

when there are no longer old Maoris left to demonstrate ancient customs and enact old legends. Mr Bennett may film one or two Maori legends in Otago before he leaves for the north.