FIT MEN IN INDUSTRY

New Zealand Herald, Volume 80, Issue 24536, 19 March 1943, Page 2

FIT MEN IN INDUSTRY

STATUS OF 40,000 STATEMENT BY MR. FRASER (S.R.) WELLINGTON, Thursday A denial that there were 'IO,OOO single men in industry as stated by some Opposition speakers was given by the Prime Minister, the Bt. Hon. P. Fraser, in the debate on manpower in the House of Representatives to-day. He said it was true that 40,000 men of military age were left in industry, but 27,000 of them were married and 13,000 were single. He was informed that the single men were all doing essential work. Mr. W. J. Poison (Opposition—Stratford): Are they A grade men? Mr. Fraser: Yes, all of them. Replying to Mr. H. E. Combs (Government —Wellington Suburbs), who had asked during the debate whether the forces could he reassembled from industry in adequate time to meet a sudden danger, Mr. Fraser said this could be dono. The Home Guard had done a great job, the Prime Minister said. It was looked upon as an integral part of the country's defence. Tlio members of the guard were doing eight hours training a month now and they would probably be asked to do 16. which was a fair quota of training. In some cases they had come extraordinary distances to drill and he did not think that that strain should he placed on them now.

GUM STORE BURNED

LANDMARK IN THE NORTH MUSEUM EXHIBIT LOST (0.C.) DARGAVILLE, Thursday A well-known landmark at Babylon, Marriner and Company's gum store, was destroyed by fire last evening. Stored in the building were about £'soo worth of kauri gum, a quantity of new sacks, 16 tons of manures, wool packs and hay. An irreplaceable loss was a piece of kauri gum recovered from Sutich and Company's gum workings at Redhill which weighed 21Glb. and which Marriner and Company proposed should be handed over to the Auckland War Memorial Museum. It was awaiting shipment. The total loss is estimated at nearly £IOOO.

MANY FIRE CALLS

BUSY NIGHT FOR BRIGADE Auckland firemen had a busy night on Wednesday, as alarms were received from 11 p.m. until 5 a.m. yesterday. The first call was answered by four machines and a largo ladder, but it proved to be a false alarm. At 2.38 a.m. a call came through that (ire had broken out in the premises of Winstone, Limited, in Synionds Street. The flames were soon under control. Machinery and timber were damaged. Fire broke out in the rear of the Commercial Parking and Service Station, 99 Albert Street, at 3.10 a.m. The outbreak occurred on the Federal Street floor and spread to cars parked below in tho garage, damaging four of them. Two engines and an electric ladder from the central fire station, and one machine each from the Western Districts and Parnell stations attended and tin' (ire was extinguished without much difficulty. A detached wash-house of a house in Charlotte Street, Eden Terrace, was damaged by fire soon after 5 o'clock yesterday morning. Two machines attended tho outbreak. The brigade was called to three small outbreaks in the city later yesterday. HONEY FOR MARKET REFUSAL BY BEEKEEPERS (0.C.) CITniSTCHURCH. Thursday Because they contended that the Government's stabilisation order was not being honoured, members of the Canterbury Beekeepers' Association who met at Tiniaru, decided to "flatly refuse to supply any honey to the Internal Marketing Division." A resolution was passed demanding that Canterbury producers be left out of the marketing regulations because they had found difficulty in marketing their produce. The text of the major resolution was as follows: "That this meeting disagrees with the proposed Price Order 121 whereby 70 per cent of our Canterbury honey would, under the proposed commandeer, return the producer approximately 5Jd. which is considerably less than the price received it; the last Few years. "This order clearly breaks the stabilisation order of tlie Prime Minister. the Rt. Hon. P. Fraser, whereby the future prices for wages and goods were to renin in the same as last year, and until the Prime Minister's stabilisation order is honoured we flatly refuse to supply nnv honey to the Internal Marketing Division." £5,000,000 FOR LOAN BIG SUBSCRIPTION BY A.M.P. SYDNEY, March 18 If was announced yesterday that the Australian Mutual Provident Society had made a subscription of Co. 1)00,000 to the Third Liberty Loan. This is the largest subscription yet announced. Genera! Douglas Mac Arthur, Com-mander-in-Chief of the South-west Pacific area, subscribed £SOO to the loan yesterday, the first anniversary of his arrival in Australia. MR. NASH'S PLANS irtnrd 1.5 p.m.) WASHINGTON, March 18 President Roosevelt gave the New Zealand Minister to the United States, the Hon. W. Nash, who is shortly returning to the Dominion, messages lor the Prime Minister, the Rt. Hon. P. Fraser. Mr. Nash expects to return to 'Washington in May*