POSITION IN AUCKLAND

Otago Daily Times, Issue 25301, 11 August 1943, Page 2

POSITION IN AUCKLAND

SEVERAL ASSAULTS REPUTED (P.A.) AUCKLAND, Auf 10. While the position in Auckland does not appear to be as serious as in Wellington, there have been several reports recently to Taxi Services regarding attacks on drivers. In only one of these was the driver hurt. Most of the cases have occurred when the drivers have been unable to accept orders from certain servicemen. There lias been no reluctance on the part of drivers to undertake night duty through fear of attack. The managers of Auckland Taxi Services, Messrs A. J. Sinclair and F. I. Drumm, stated that as the result of one attack a driver’s arm was injured and he had to be sent to hospital. He resisted two visiting servicemen who attempted to take his ear. In another recent case two visiting servicemen smashed all the windows in a taxi and destroyed the door handles. All the leather upholstery in another car was slashed with a razor. Practically all the disturbances occurred fairly late at night. The managers are seriously perturbed at the damage being done to service telephones. They state that this has been considerable in recent weeks. Instruments have been broken, and in a number of cases the receivers have been torn off.