NEWS OF THE DAY

Otago Daily Times, Issue 25560, 13 June 1944, Page 4

NEWS OF THE DAY

rPHE principles being followed in the I authorisation of prices for starchreduced bread are defined in a statement issued by the Price Tribunal. This class of bread, marketed under a number of trade names, had hitherto been sold in fancy loaves of varying sizes, many of them less than the standard weights. Regulations now in force require starch-reduced bread to be baked to standard weights of 16 ounces for the small loaf and 24 ounces for the larger loaf. To comply with the regulations some bakers will need to increase the amount of bread provided, which will involve an increase in cost to the baker. The tribunal states it has adopted the principle that no increase in price can be approved which is not proportionate to the additional amount of bread provided. If the price hitherto has been 3Jd for a starch-reduced loaf weighing 12J to 13 ounces, working out at approximately one farthing an ounce, the provision of an additional three ounces would compensate for a |d increase in the price to 4d. The buyer would pay more, but would be compensated by receiving an additional quantity of bread. The tribunal states the application of this principle applies only to starchreduced bread and does not affect other types.

Borer in Kauri The belief that borer will not attack kauri is not sustained by Mr W. H. Price, a property valuer for the Crown. Giving evidence before a sitting of the Urban Land Sales Committee in Christchurch, Mr Price said that a coalshed at a property under discussion, built of kauri, was absolutely riddled with borer.

Magisterial Recount Mr H. W. Bundle, S.M., has fixed next Monday, June 19, as the date of the magisterial recount of the votes cast for the City Council candidates at the recent local bodies elections. The application for the recount was lodged by Mr M. Silverstone. The counting will commence at the Town Hall at 10 a.in.

Invitation to City Council It is the custom for the City Council to attend divine worship at the church of the Mayor-elect, as soon as possible after the municipal elections, and accordingly the Mayor (Mr D. C. Cameron) and the members of the City Council have accepted the invitation of the Methodist Central Mission to attend a service there on Sunday evening. Hotel Bathrooms The need for better bathroom and washing accommodation was commented on by Mr H. Morgan, S.M., at a meeting of the Temuka Licensing Committee. He said that an amendment to the Licensing Act was needed to enable licensees to know what standard was required. The present regulations did not stipulate any bathroom, but the committee made a strong recommendation that licensees should bring their premises into line with modern standards by providing more bathrooms, washbasins, and lavatories. Return to Coastal Trade

It was reported in a bulletin issued by the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce that at the instigation of that organisation the Associated Chambers had made representations for the return of six coastal vessels. These vessels had been used for defence purposes and for some time had been tied up at New Zealand ports. A reply from the Marine Department stated that discussions with shipowners would probably have the effect of placing four of these ships in use at an early date, and that the recommissioning of the other two vessels was also receiving the attention of the department. Plea of Illiteracy In defence of a deserter tried by district court martial at Trentham the court was asked to consider the army life of a soldier who could not read. There were, said the defending officer, orders on the notice boards and various matters which every soldier was supposed to know and could only ascertain by reading. Illiteracy was very rare in New Zealand now, and the accused’s diffidence about confessing his inability was understandable. As a consequence of it he was always getting into some trouble. Moreover, this illiteracy resulted in the accused having a very limited knowledge of the issues involved in this war or in any matters which the normal person did know.

Railway Restrictions The opinion that, with the anticipated increase in coal production in New Zealand during the next two months,'the removal of restrictions on rail travel was in sight was expressed bv the Minister of Mines, Mr P. C. Webb, who is at present on a tour of Northland. He said that under the open-cast method of winning coal which was now being used on new fields, he anticipated that within the next two months an additional 2000 tons of coal a day would be produced. Mr Webb said that officers of the Mines Department were in the North Auckland area investigating the possibilities of opening up new coalfields under the open-cast method. “If coal can be found in payable quantities in Northland you can rest assured that the Mines Department is anxious to develop it," said Mr Webb. Title of Chief Magistrate The election of a new mayor (states the Dominion) has brought the usual crop of references to the holder of this office as chief magistrate and conjectures as to what this title means in the legal sense, as distinct from or compared with that of stipendiary magistrates, the members of the minor judiciary in New Zealand. In fact, the title of chief magistrate, as applied to a mayor in New Zealand, carries no judicial powers other than those of a justice of the peace which he exercises under this clause of the relevant Act: “The mayor, not being the holder of a publican’s or an accommodation licence, shall be a justice of the peace during the time he holds the office of mayor.” A person elected mayor may already be a justice of the peace and therefore have no greater judicial power than before.” Disposal of War Assets “The setting up of a War Assets Realisation Board to dispose of surplus materials which are no longer required for war purposes is timely, and provided the assets are disposed of through normal trade channels and without the creation of additional and unnecessary departmental machinery, the expenses of realisation should be satisfactory and reasonable,” said the president of the Wellington. Chamber of Commerce (Mr Frank Wilson) at a recent meeting. “ Furthermore, the measure of the board’s success will to a large degree depend on the extent to which it utilises the services and advice of experienced businessmen, both of which are freely available, it is only fair to mention, that this policy has already successfully operated with regard to certain released supplies, and now that changed circumstances will permit of a more general release, of army surplus assets it could with advantage be extended.” Rehabilitation Loans With the object of decentralising control and expediting the granting of rehabilitation loans, a system will be introduced in Auckland shortly by which applications by ex-servicemen can be dealt with on the spot. The Auckland plan will be in the nature of an experiment, and the system will later be extended to the other three main centres. If it proves a success, it is hoped to operate it generally. Announcing this, the Minister of Rehabilitation, Mr C. F. Skinner, said the personnel of the executive body to operate this system would include the district rehabilitation officer, a representative of the State Advances Corporation and of the Lands Department and several members of the Auckland Rehabilitation Committee. It was pointed out to Mr Skinner that the long period which frequently elapsed between the time an exserViceman lodged an application for a loan and the receipt of a reply from the Rehabilitation Department had* been the subject of numerous complaints. Mr Skinner agreed that if the local rehabilitation committees and the State Advances Department saw eye to eye on the matter, the applications should be dealt with at once.