NEWS OF THE DAY

Otago Daily Times, Issue 25566, 20 June 1944, Page 4

NEWS OF THE DAY

T|'OR depth of sincerity and spiritual insight, the message of his Majesty the King, broadcast at the commencement,of the invasion of Europe, had surpassed all previous royal messages, said Archbishop Averill in a sermon delivered at All Saints’ Church, Ponsonby. It was a message which had come at the right time and not a moment too soon, for we were all in danger of losing the clear vision of a divine meaning and purpose behind all that was so earthly, sordid and degrading in war, just as we were in danger of losing the keen edge of our ideals.

Magisterial Recount The magisterial recount of the votes cast at the City Council election was commenced at the Town Hall last evening. It is expected that the result will be made known to-morrow. About 120 clerks are engaged in the work. A Praiseworthy Effort A particularly praiseworthy effort was made on Friday last by the pupils of the Kaikorai School in response to the appeal by the Allied Nationals’ Committee in Dunedin for funds for the relief of distress in occupied territories. As the result of a copper trail, the pupils collected: a total of £4 Is in pennies, and also handed over to the committee four boxes of pickles, jam, and other preserves, to be sold on behalf of the fund.

Jurymen’s Intelligence “My experience is that most jurymen have as much intelligence as counsel,” said Mr Justice Blair in the 'Supreme Court at Auckland when re? buking a solicitor for repeating in question form answers which had been given toy a witness, and for occupying too much time. His Honor pointed out that counsel frequently repeated evidence given by witnesses and this was a procedure he would not tolerate. Only when witnesses could not be heard clearly might it be necessary to repeat evidence, his Honor remarked. Sale of Army Biscuits The army'has advertised for sale as poultry, pig, and dog food 300 tons of army biscuits, which are described as “ more or less broken.” Biscuits are used in the army as an alternative to bread, chiefly when troops are in the field, and the ration is 12 ounces a day for each man, the quantity for sale representing well over a year’s supply for 2000 men. When the question of the disposal of such a large quantity of biscuits was referred to Southern Military District Headquarters, an officer was not able to give any reason. He had received no information on the subject. Anonymous Complaints

An intimation that in future no notice would be taken of anonymous complaints regarding the transport services was given by the chairman of the Transport Committee, Cr J. McCrae, at the meeting of rihe City Council last night. Some people thought it sufficient, when they had complaints to make, to write anonymous letters to the press, but in fairness to the men and to the transport manager (Mr W. H. Mackenzie) the regulations should be observed. These provided that complaints must be made to the manager in writing within three days of the occurrence. Migration from England Speaking at Auckland recently on the need for more population in New Zealand, Mr J. Abel, chairman of the National Organising Committee of the Dominion Settlement Association, said that New Zealand was not alone among the members of the British Commonwealth in requiring more settlers. He instanced Southern Rhodesia as a country with great resources which had its eyes on Lancashire’s 5,000,000 industrial workers as potential migrants. New Zealand, the speaker maintained, should be alive to the situation and take steps to attract its share of these workers. Grant to Museum The St. Kilda Borough Council last night made a grant of £75 to the funds of the Otago Museum. The Mayor (Mr N. D. Anderson), who brought the matter before the council, said that many people still had the idea that the museum was merely a place where there were fossils and stuffed birds. When he paid a visit there recently, however, he was surprised to find the excellent work that various school classes were doing there. Mr Anderson said that the City Council made a grant of £750 a year, and he thought St. Kilda could well afford a tenth of that sum. Domestic Work “ I do not see why domestic work should be considered by many as an inferior position,” said Mr R. C. T. Raine, chairman of the Nelson Primary Production Council, recently, when a circular on domestic assistance on farms was being considered. “Perhaps it is because we are men and we consider the home is the place. for women,” he continued. “ I see no better place for young women than the home—if not their own home, then in the congenial atmosphere of someone eise’s home. The objection is probably a sign of the times, and is one of the most serious stumbling blocks to getting help.” St. Kilda Town Hall “I want to see this building brightened up,” said 'the Mayor (Mr N. D. Anderson; during a discussion at the meeting cf the St. Kilda Borough Council last night on the condition of the Town Hall. He thought it was imperative that something should be done to provide adequate heating facilities. He realised that no major work could be undertaken at present, but something should be done to put the building in , a reasonable state of repair. Cr D. J. Simpson suggested that if the hall was made more attractive the council would probably obtain more revenue from it. It was decided, on the motion of Cr J. W. Pearson, to place the sum of £250 on the estimates for improvements to the building. Shortest Days of Year To-dqy and to-morrow will be the shortest days of the year, and from Thursday onwards the sun will rise earlier and set later on each succeeding day until the maximum amount of daylight is reached, six months hence. Although this week can, therefore, be considered the true midwinter period, it is not usually until the next few weeks that the coldest weather of the year is experienced. This is accounted for by the fact that in the early part of the winter there is a considerable carry-over in the earth’s temperature of the summer and autumn warmth, and it is not until after the shortest day that the- full effects of the mid-winter cold are felt. Similarly the warmest weather of the year occurs after the longest day, when the earth has fully absorbed the spring and early summer heat. Young Naval Stokers

A scheme which is designed to accustom prospective naval stokers to work in front of the furnaces of coalburning ships has befen arranged between the navy and the Auckland Gas Company, Each day a group of seaman boys goes to the gasworks to gain experience under heat conditions similar to those existing in front of the fires in ships. The boys, whose ages range from about 16 to 18 years, have beep able in the past to receive training'in shovelling and handling coal, but in many cases their first experience in front of furnaces has been when they have been posted to a vessel. The arrangement under which they assist the fire cleaners to stoke the fires at the gasworks is expected to accustom them more gradually to the type of work which will become their regular vocation and to give them valuable experience before they have to begin their duties in ships. The beys are not required to work a full shift in the gasworks and they do not relieve any of the regular employees of their duties.