NEWS OF THE DAY

Otago Daily Times, Issue 25937, 1 September 1945, Page 6

NEWS OF THE DAY

Current Coupon* Tea and sugar coupons Nos. 45 to 48 will become negotiable on September 3, and will remain valid until September 30. The value of each is 2oz for tea and lOoz for sugar. Butter coupons Nos. 45 to 47 will be available from September 3 to September 30. The value of each is Boz, the fourweekly ration being ljlb. This is the equivalent of 6oz a week. Expectant and nursing mothers and those persons who have reached the age of 70 years are entitled to an extra half-pound of butter for the four-weekly period ending on September 30 on production of coupon No. 47. Coupons may be used only when corresponding numbers in the ration book are available. Meat coupon No. 44 will expire on September 9, and No. 45 will be available from September 3 to September 16. The value of the meat coupon is Is 9d in the case of adults and Is in the case of children under lOd. The H and J coupons each have a value of 6d. Expectant and nursing mothers and persons holding priority certificates are entitled to three eggs on surrender of coupon No. 45 for the week ending September 9. Hosiery coupon XlO4 is still current. Petrol coupon No. 3, worth double its face value, will be available until September 30. Money Stolen

The premises of Messrs Little and Brown,'motor painters, Princes street south, were broken into on Thursday night and a small sum of money was stolen. Entry was effected through a back window.

Telegraphic Interruption About 11.15 last night telegraphic communication with the north was severed somewhere in the Palmerston district, and had not been restored at an early hour this morning. It is surmised that the high wind which prevailed for some hours may have blown a tree across the lines.

Opossum Season Extended Telegraphic advice has been received by the secretary of the Otago Acclimatisation Society (Mr L. Millar) that a notice has been gazetted extending the open season for the trapping of opossums in the Otago district until noon on September 15. Skins must be presented for stamping before October 15. City Building Permit#

During the month of August, 88 building permits, to the value of £86,832, were issued by the city engineer’s office. These included 18 permits for new dwellings, valued at £27,801, and nine permits for house units for the Government Housing Department, valued at £13,935. In August of last year 52 permits for work valued at £38,466 were issued. Canadian Wheat Arrives

A large shipment of over 2800 tons of Canadian wheat is at present being unloaded from an overseas vessel at Dunedin. This shipment, which has been brought into the country to relieve the wheat shortage, as a result of the poor harvest last season, will go direct to the mills in Otago and Southland and the flour will be blended with’ the local product before distribution to consumers.

Improvement at Post Office For some time past holders of private boxes at the Chief Post Office have complained of the draught in the lobby blowing letters back into the mail room when the doors of the boxes are opened. This has occasioned delay to the box-holders as the letters have to be re-sorted from the floor. In order to overcome the trouble a second set of doors has been constructed inside of the lobby, a few feet from the outer door. Gift to R.S.A.

The Dunedin Returned Services’ Association has received a donation of £SOO from the Dunedin Savings Bank for educational bursaries. This is to assist in the education of children of deceased ex-servicemen and in similar deserving cases. Since the association commenced this work some years ago, many pupils who have been granted bursaries, have shown their worth, and are now holding positions of trust in the commercial and professional world. Maori War Memorial

The street day held in the city yesterday in aid of funds for the Maori War Memorial resulted in the approximate sum of £550 being collected. The gratifying amount was forthcoming entirely from a street collection, there being no stalls, and there are still several promises to be redeemed. The memorial which is to take the form of a bay in the Centennial Memorial Hall at Otakau, will be a tribute to members of the Maori race who have served overseas in the defence of New Zealand.

Outsize in Eggs A correspondent from the Clydevale district informs us that one of her hens has just distinguished herself by laying an outsize in eggs—an egg about half as big again as one of the doubieyolk variety. On breaking it into a saucer, the correspondent was surprised to find that it was a “ trebleyolker,” each of the three yolks being quite as large as that in an averagesized pullet’s egg. Although it is uncommon for a hen to lay a trebleyolked egg, the occurrence is by no means rare, and can probably be attributed to the bird being in an overfat condition.

Ten Thousand Members With the enrolment of its 10,000 th member yesterday morning (states a Press Association message) Auckland R.S.A. set a new level for the Dominnon.. The new member who took the association’s roll into five figures was Miss Ruby Monteith, formerly of the 2nd New Zealand Hospital, who returned from the Middle East recently. With the present rate of influx the association anticipates a membership approaching 20.000 by the end of the year. The number of returned men from the present war who are on the roll now exceeds that of the Great War veterans.

School Library Service The School Library Service has 115,000 volumes and caters for almost 47,000 children in 762 schools, states the annual report of the Minister of Education, Mr H. G. R. Mason, for 1944. The service is becoming increasingly popular, and its expansion is limited only by the difficulty of securing books. After detailing the equipment distributed to schools, the Minister said that more equipment was needed for infant rooms and lower standards, and it would be provided as rapidly as the supply of labour and materials would permit. Libraries of films were being expanded, and were proving increasingly valuable.