NEWS OF THE DAY

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26042, 4 January 1946, Page 4

NEWS OF THE DAY

Good News for Smokers Good news for smokers is contained in the statement of a Wellington wholesale firm which imports manufactured tobacco and cigarettes. Operating on unexpired import licences for last year, it will be able to land a fairly large consignment of American tobacco and cigarettes late this month, or early in February. Cold Spell in Wellington The nine days from December 25 to January 2 furnished a colder spell in Wellington than any corresponding period since 1928, though immediately preceded by two hot days. The cold spell had a chastening effect upon holiday-makers, even the west coast bays, which are usually much sunnier than the city, being chilly and dull. It was the coldest December since records were begun 82 years ago, except in 1904. Unemployment Anticipated Plans to combat a possible male unemployment problem in some districts of New Zealand next winter are reported to be being made by the National Service Department and the Public Works Department. At present ’■ (states the Dominion) there is a large demand for labour, but it is expected that some workers will be without jobs as soon as the seasonal work is finished. No official statement on the position is available.

Elderly Watersiders The average age of waterside workers employed during the war years was estimated at over 50, states the annual report of the Waterfront Control Commission. Because a number of young men joined the armed forces and because the commission did not admit men subject to military service, the average age must have increased considerably during the war. A large number of waterside workers had served many years in other industries before joining the wharf union, and even before the war the average age was high. Some alteration in the recruitment of watersiders was needed to obtain younger men. A number of elderly men who would normally have retired carried on during the war, and the commission expressed appreciation of their effort. Lucky New Zealanders

“There is no mistake; we are very lucky in New Zealand." In these words a Dunedin business man who is at present in London sums up, in a letter to a friend, his impressions of conditions in Britain. Writing on Christmas Eve. he said: “Food in England is poor, and it does seem a shame after what the people have been through that, six months after the war is over, food and clothing are as bad. and even worse, than they were when the war was on. Prices are verv high, and there is little to buy. There is a 75 per cent, sales tax on everything but foodstuffs. I lost my pipes the other, day, and hunted London for hours before I found some. I bought three and they cost me £1 16s each; they were not worth ss. Tobacco costs 5s lOd a tin, and cigarettes are 2s 8d for 20. The black market is rampant, and turkeys are selling for £l2 each, with chickens at 10s to £l. Miserable toys, worth about Is, cost 10s." Appointment Opposed

Dissatisfaction over the appointment of Mr G. S. Nicholson, of the Transput Department, as the new chief city traffic inspector in Christchurch has culminated in the Local Body (Other than Clerical Workers) Union invoking the disputes clause of the award; but it is understood that the Christchurch City Council has refused to appoint delegates to the disputes committee. The union had previously protested to the council that the award made it necessary to appoint one of the council’s own staff to the post, or that preference should be given to the staff with due regard to merit, length of service and qualification. “ We hold nothing against the appointee personally.” said the union’s secretary, Mr D F. Ayers. “ but we feel that his ten years as a borough inspector and also as a rural inspector do not qualify him for the position, as four members of the present staff of 20 have 18 years' experience as metropolitan inspectors, and one has been assistant chief inspector for five years.” Occupied Beds in Hospitals ,A startling increase over the last five years in the number of occupied beds in the hospitals is noted in the New Zealand Nursing Journal. These have risen from 5331.8 in 1940 to 7935 in 1945. Nursing personnel has correspondingly increased. Student nurses in 1940 numbered 2219, and in 1945, 3400. and registered nurses over the same period have increased from 908 to 1500. This proportion of staffing shows an average of one nurse to 1.6 occupied beds and one registered nurse to 2.27 student nurses. In order to carry out an eight-hour day with a day off a week without undue overtime. it is not possible to staff satisfactorily on a smaller basis, and with a number of special departments a proportion of one registered nurse to two student nurses is necessary to ensure proper supervision. There has been a progressive increase over the five years in the number, of maternity nurses trained; registered nurses, from 232 to 316, and 18-month trainees from 44 to 61. But the number of midwives qualifying shows a decrease, 60 in 1940 and 55 in 1945.

Strain on Old Cars While the number of serious motoring accidents in and about Auckland has been much smaller during the holidays than was the case in the two preceding Christmas periods, a leading garage (says the New Zealand Herald) reported an unexpectedly large number of mechanical breakdowns. Broken back axles have been particularly common, one firm having to tow in at least 20 cars for this reason alone in the last three or four days. Other transmission troubles have been frequent, and it is considered that the cause is the overloading of cars that, by prewar standards, would be old, and also the longer distances travelled and the consequent strain upon worn parts. Engine failures have not been frequent. Experience in Auckland indicates that tyre troubles have delayed a proportion of motorists. One garage reported that its staff had been mending punctures at the rate of about 20 a day, which was similar to the demand a year earlier, but that blow-outs, which might have been expected on account of the generally worn state of tyres, were not particularly frequent in the city.