NEWS OF THE DAY

Otago Daily Times, Issue 25802, 24 March 1945, Page 6

NEWS OF THE DAY

rFHE current tea and sugar coupons, -I Nos. 21 to 24, will remain valid until April 15. The value of each is 2oz for tea and lOoz for sugar. The special allowance of sugar for jam making, amounting to 31b per ration book, which is available on production of coupon Y 8 from sheet 15 of the new ration book, will expire on March 31. Butter coupons Nos. 21 and 22 will be negotiable until April 1, the value of each being Boz. Meat coupon No. 21 will be available until April 1, and No. 22 will be negotiable from March 26 to April 8. The value of the meat coupons is Is 9d in the case of adults and lid in the case of children under 10, the value of the H coupon being 6d and the J coupon sd. Expectant and nursing mothers and those holding priority certificates are entitled to three eggs on surrender of coupon No. 22 for the week ending April 1. Hosiery coupon XlO3 will expire on March 31. The current petrol coupons, Nos. 9 and 10, are worth half the face value, and will become valueless after April 30.

Many Local Bodies Comment on the multiplicity of local bodies in the Dominion was made by the chairman. Mr R. McKeen, at the Gisborne sitting of the Parliamentary Committee on Local Government. Although New Zealand had a population of a little over 1,500,000, there were 527 local authorities, exclusive of harbour and hospital boards, he said. The total included 125 county councils. Appeal Board Sittings The No. XI Armed Forces Appeal Board, which will hold sittings in Central Otago next month, has altered its itinerary, which is now as follows: April 4. Mosgiel; April 5, Outram; April 6, Middlemarch; April 7. Macrae’s Flat; April 9, Palmerston; April 12, Alexandra; April 13, Wanaka; April 14, Cromwell; April 16, Omakau; April 17 and 18 Ranfurly. Sittings will be held in Waikouaiti on Tuesday morning next, and in Oamaru on Tuesday afternoon, Wednesday, and Thursday.

Easter Holidays Housewives will require to make careful plans for the long Easter weekend, which will commence on Thursday night. From then until the following Wednesday morning—a full five days—no butchers’ shops will be opened. Bakers, however, will be at work on Saturday morning after a non-baking day on Good Friday, but no bread will be baked between Saturday and Wednesday morning. It will therefor be necessary for housewives to purchase three days’ supply on Saturday. Audacious Burglary An audacious daylight burglary of a house in Canongate was committed yesterday by a man who, although detected in the act, made his escape, taking with him nearly £ll in money which he had stolen from a wallet. A young married woman living in the house found the man ransacking her room, and when he rushed past her to make his escape he knocked her down. She called for help, and two passers-by pursued the intruder down the Canongate steps leading to Maclaggan street, but he had too good a start and disappeared. The police are investigating. Research Laboratories

The construction of the laboratories at the Ruakura animal research station is at present being supervised by scientific personnel from the chemical clinical laboratory in Wellington, who are to carry out research laboratory work in connection with the station s experiments. The work of this special staff will be under the control of the chief agricultural chemist for the Dominion (Mr R. E. R. Grimmett), who will arrive shortly to take up his new appointment. A building at the Colonial Ammunition Company’s factory at Hamilton east will be used as a laboratory in the meantime. The work of 'fitting out this building is proceeding. Municipal Organ Recital

Mr L H. Goddard, L.R.S.M., organist at the Waitaki Boys’ High School, will give an after-church recital in the Town Hall to-morrow evening, when an interesting and varied programme of organ music will be presented. The following compositions will be performed:—Allegro from the “Firework Music” (Handel), Adagio from Clarinet Concerto (Mozart), Prelude and Fugue in C minor (Bach), Pastorale in F (Quef), Elegie (Vierne), Variations and Fugue on the National Anthem (Max Reger), “Before the Image of a Saint ’ (Karg Elert), Serenata (Nolck). Aubade (Oliver King), Christmas Suite (Siciliana Minuet, Fughetta, and Bourree) by Rowlay. The following tunes are used in this Suite: —“ The Holly and the Ivy,” “The Cherry Tree Carol,” “ The Little Room,” “On Christmas Night,” and “ The Moon Shines Bright.” The programme will conclude with a Nuptial March by Duncan. There will be no charge for admission. Air Tours at Rail Fares A project for holiday air cruises over Britain third-class rail fares has been mentioned with approval by Lord Swinton, Minister for Civil Aviation. Speaking in the House of Lords he described this proposal by United Kingdom Railway Companies as a “looking forward attitude one likes to see in a fresh and vigorous industry." The use of the speciallydesigned Bristol freighter “ air coach ” will make this scheme an economic proposition, writes the Daily Mail. With a full load of 40 passengers and flying in short hops of no more than 100 miles at 120 to 150 miles an hour, these air-borne coaches, it is estimated, would make a profit of 3£d a mile. The idea that Bristol freighters be adapted as ‘‘flying charabancs” was first put forward when members of the British Railways Air Committee visited one of the Bristol Company’s factories and saw the “mockup ” of freighters which were expected to come off the production lines early next year. Choice of Occupation

Returned from the Middle East after four years’ service in Greece, Crete, and Libya, an employee of the Post and Telegraph Department, H. V. Bevington, successfully appealed against a direction by the man-power authorities that he must return to the department’s employ. The appeal was heard by the Auckland Man-power (Industrial) Appeal Committee, sitting in Whangarei. Bevington said that he had been returned to New Zealand in a replacement draft against his own wishes, as he had desired, like many other servicemen, to continue to serve in Italy. He now desired to go farming, and not return to his pre-war occupation of exchange clerk in the Whangarei Post Office. Another objection was that in the exchange be would be working under a female supervisor. The deputy man-power officer in Whangarei, Mr L. J. Kiley, said the direction was in accordance with the policy of directing returned category A men to employment in a position where they could release category A men, held on appeal, for service with the forces. The committee allowed the appeal.

The Land Sales Act “ The only way to deal with those persons who are trying to circumvent the Servicemen’s Settlement and Land Sales Act is to put them behind bars for six months,” said the Minister of Rehabilitation (Mr C. F. Skinner) when he replied to a question at a public meeting in Christchurch. At present, there was a lot of money in circulation, said Mr Skinner. House property had a sellers’ market, and money was being found by purchasers out of the bank or by cheque payment in a day for transactions so long as the property was a good proposition. Similar conditions applied to the small business market. The f irmer serviceman, he admitted, was up against it. “We have tried to get the co-opera-tion of land agents, and in theory we have it,” he said. “Their institute tells us that they will notify the Rehabilitation Department as soon as businesses come on the market; but many are not doing so.” He had heard many sinister stories, but they were difficult to prove. The penal clause in the Land Sales Act had been broadened considerably, and it was even an offence to suggest ways and means of circumventing the Act. The Government would not hesitate to use to the utmost the powers given by the Act.