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Otago Daily Times, Issue 23691, 24 December 1938, Page 10

Care on the Roads An appeal to the people of Dunedin to exercise every care when using the roads during the holiday season was made yesterday by the Mayor (Mr A. H. Allen). The Mayor said he had been advised by the Commissioner of Transport (Mr G. L. Laurenson) that during the five days of the ChristmasNew Year holiday period last year 15 persons were killed and 100 injured in traffic accidents, and he hoped that this year all road users —motorists, cyclists and pedestrians alike—would, co-oper-ate in trying to reduce the toll on the roads. Broadcasting Information From to-day onwards Dunedin people who are on the railway station should not be surprised to hear a loud, booming voice coming apparently from nowhere and offering advice and instructions to them. This will be the effect of the installation, which has been in progress for some, days, of a public address system similar to those in use on the Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch railway stations. Information concerning' the departure and arrival of trains and all.sorts of other railway announcements will be made, and the directions will be issued to the public by an operator speaking into a microphone at the control desk, which is situated in the station master's office. Six speakers distributed under the roof of the platform will carry the operator's voice to the public. French Canadians Although the French Canadians are intensely patriotic, they tend to live a life unto themselves, said Mr V. MacHutchen, of Montreal, who is at present visiting Christchurch. French Canadians, he said, were, much more apathetic towards the European crisis than their Anglo-Saxon neighbours. They recognised no ties with France, and generally speaking were loyal Canadians, although symptoms of a separatist movement might occasionally appear. Practically all the big businesses in Quebec and eastern Canada were owned by American and British Canadians, and this tended to rankle in the minds of some of the French. As in all Catholic countries, the Church wielded great influence and was ■ opposed to Communism. A form of unofficial censorship operated, and workers were encouraged to deal with their employers through unions f6stered by the Catholic Church rather than those of an industrial and Socialist nature. This acted as a stabilising force, Mr MacHutchen thought. No Strained Hearts .'..'-"•. "I think we ought to kill this bogey that rowing is a very strenuous sport," said Mr B. Walker, representing the Avon Rowing Club, at a meeting of the Canterbury Rowing Association this week. " Recently there appeared in the Wellington papers an account of how the Petone Club, wishing to get rid of its "fours," offered them to various schools free, with a view to fostering the sport, but the offer was refused because rowing ' was liable to strain the boys' hearts.' That leaves an impression of strained hearts in the minds of the public, and so long-as this impression of rowing exists we can make little progress,". said Mr Walker. ..■? British Influence Nothing short of Bedlam would reign in the world without British influence, according to Mr T. 8.. Castellow, a member of the United States Congress for many years, who is at present visiting Invercargill. Mr Castellow was a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee of Congress, and he has been in close touch with the European situation.. He said that Americans fully realised that their country might be affected by European happenings. He was impressed with what Britain had done and was doing. " Europe is like _a brick house and, the English influence in world affairs can be likened to mortar," he said. "Remove the mortar and what a sorry mess there would be. There would be no shape at all." The reaction of. the. people in America to the international crisis in October was one of was a tense moment, he said, and they realised that they probably would have been drawn into .a conflict. And it would have been very difficult for America to keep out, he added.

A Beer-drinking Generation The demand in Invercargill for ale. wines and spirits during the past week has (the Southland Times says) exceeded that of other Christmas seasons. Wholesale merchants have been very busy dealing with orders from all parts of Southland, and it is expected that the deliveries of orders will number many hundreds. "There is a greater demand than ever before," said one wholesale merchant in answer to a question. "We have been working long hours this week trying to keep up with the orders and it looks as if the rush will continue." Asked if preference had been shown for a particular class of beverage, the merchant said the demand was for ale. The rising generation, he said, was a beerdrinking generation and most of the orders received were for beer. There was not the same demand for spirits, although the usual orders for Christmas wines had been received.

The driver of a small sedan car (painted brown), who narrowly escaped collision travelling north on the hill corner south of Clinton about 7 p.m. on Thursday, December 22, is requested to communicate with the chief traffic inspector, Transport Department, Dunedin, with a view to assisting him. The Railways Department advertises in this issue particulars of train arrangements in connection, with Christmas and New Year holidays. The Railways Department will run a popular day excursion from Dunedin to Timaru on Sunday, January 1. Particulars of the trains and the special cheap fares are advertised in this issue. _ , The National Broadcasting Service has completed arrangements for a series of talks by the world-famous writer, Mr H. G. Wells. These talks may be heard from Station 4YA on the following dates:—December 29 (9.40 p.m.), "Fiction About the Future : January 8 (11.15 p.m.), "The World as I See It"; January 19 (9.40 p.m.), "Utopias"; January 22 Gl p.m.), "The World As I See It," part 2 The Way to World Unity." It is felt that listeners will welcome the opportunity of hearing the viewpoint of Mr Wells, author of some of the most outstanding and challenging plays and books of our 1 Mr Isaac Selby, who left Dunedin 56 years ago but has periodically revisited New Zealrnd as a lecturer and Christian minister, is announced to lecture in January on " The Pioneers of New Zealand," in the Early Settlers' Hall. He is now secretary of the Old Pioneers' Memorial Association in Melbourne, and is interested in promoting in Australia the "Back to New Zealand" Movement during the Centenary celebrations. The Dunedin Starr-Bowkett Building Society, owing to the holidays, will accept subscriptions on January 4. A. F. Anderson, dentist, visits Middlemarch, Waipiata, and Patearoa, Thursday, January 19, Ranfurly, Friday, January 20, Oturehua, Monday, January 23—Advt. Foi ali youi requirements in Fishing Tackle Electrical Appliances. Electrical Repairs Contracts and Jobbing call at Barth Electric Ltd 36 George street Dunedin Fishinp Cataloptjes >til) available -Advt A. E. J Blakeley and W E Hagley, dentists. Bank of Australasia, corner of Bond and Rattray streets. Teleohone 12-359.—Advt