NEWS OF THE DAY

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26198, 8 July 1946, Page 4

NEWS OF THE DAY

Repairs to Garrison Hall The scaffolding erected outside the Garrison Hall in Dowling street has aroused the curiosity of passers-by in the past few days, and information on the subject was obtained by a Daily Times reporter from the Public Woi-ks Department. It was stated that slight alterations are to be made to the top portion of the building to make it safe, in conformimty with the policy of the department. The roof will also be repaired. It is understood that some of the parapet on top of the building, overlooking Dowling street, is to be removed. Banana and Peanut Thief A bui'glar who visited a house in Auckland during the tempoi'ary absence of the owner one evening last week thoroughly ransacked rooms on both floors of the dwelling, but gained little for his trouble. In one bedroom he took two pounds in notes, from another some loose silver and a diamond dress stud, and from a third three golf balls, only one of which was new, and a bag of peanuts. Downstairs his search revealed nothing that he wanted, but he ate a banana, leaving the skin on the fruit dish. A gold pocket watch left on a dressing table upstairs was ignored—probably because it was not in working order. Drastic Methods Tiring of the more conventional methods of shooting and trapping, and using ferrets and dogs to achieve the destruction of rabbits, a group of youths in the Ashburton district has resorted to the much more drastic method of using gelignite. Although this procedure might well be frowned on by the dog-and-gun type of sportsman, these youths reported that it was being attended by considerable success. Startled rabbits running into burrows and gorse bushes are not safe from this method of attack, and small sti'ategically-placed quantities of gelignite swiftly disintegrate bushes and burrows. The youths were very nonchalant when taken to task about the risk involved.

Coal Thief’s Predicament Not being the owner of a motor car, a resident of Christchixrch keeps a plentiful stock of wood and coal in his garage, which he locks the last thing every night before retiring. One night recently he carried out the usual procedure, but when he came out ir. the morning was aghast to find that a sheet of iron had been taken out of the roof, leaving a gaping hole. Fearing the worst, he hastened to unlock the door —and received another shock to find his fuel intact and a rubbertyred wheelbarrow sitting beside his coal. The resident drew the obvious inference that when he locked the gm - - age he incarcerated a would-be thief, who had to force his way out through the roof, leaving his barrow behind. So fai\ there has been no claimant for the barrow.

Industrial Relations The results of several yeax-s’ penetrating investigation of industrial relations in New Zealand ai - e embodied in a report prepared by an English university man, Dr A. E. C. Hare, Victoria University College for research in social l-elations in industry. Published this week by the college, it is a bulky volume of 370 pages. Dr Hare shows that New Zealand, possibly through remoteness from great industrial centres, and through the small scale and scattered nature of her own production, has failed to keep pace with the social organisation of industry. He even goes far towards establishing that the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act, aided later by compulsory unionism, has retarded progress in ways that were never anticipated. His findings are of undoubted importance and deserve to be widely studied. Mail Bag Thefts Mail thefts on ships have become rife in overseas ports, judging by the losses in consignments unloaded at Auckland. Before the war and throughout hostilities this type of pillaging was rare, about one instance a year being reported, but the post office authorities stated on Friday that six cases had come under their notice in the last 12 months. Thieves who opened a mailbag on its way to New Zealand about six months ago stole a package containing gold watches imported from Switzerland. It was the biggest theft affecting a consignee in the Dominion, the watches being valued at about £l2O. When the freighter Sajncalia arrived from San Francisco, via Papeete and Rarotonga, a week ago, it was discovered that six mailbags had been rifled. Most of the articles stolen were gifts and souvenirs posted at Kingston, Jamaica. The theft is believed to have occurred at Rarotonga. The Achilles’ Record As a record mainly of the present commission of H.M.N.Z.S. Achilles, but partly also to her full war service, the ship’s company has produced an excellent book, which will be of interest to all who have served in the Dominion’s famous warship and to a much wider outside public. The book, published in Auckland and distributed by the ship, is admirably printed and well illustrated. Much has already been wi'itten on the Battle of the River Plate, but few accounts are as graphic or as dramatic as that now given by a wai'rant officer who assisted in directing the gunnery of Achilles dui'ing the action. Reference is made to the war-time service of the ship in the Pacific, her recommissioning in England in 1944, her brief period in the final stages of the war against Japan as a unit of the British Pacific Fleet, and the immediate post-war activities of her ship’s company in Japanese waters.

Imported Pheasant Eggs Forty pheasant chicks were hatched recently from eggs brought from England by air for the Auckland Acclimatisation Society. The eggs were bought in Surrey and were incubated as an experiment to prove that eggs could be transported by air and incubated in New Zealand, and to obtain a new breeding strain of pheasants. In a statement made yesterday, Mr F. E. McKenzie, president of the society, said the policy of the council to introduce new game birds from England, and, with the consent of the Department of Internal Affairs, from Asia and America, had been advanced a stage further. The 720 eggs purchased had arrived in three parcels, and were about 11 days in transit. They arrived apparently in good condition, as not cne egg was cracked. However, they had been put down three times in transit to allow priority goods to be taken. They lay in Australia for a full weekend.

Motoring Fatalities Road deaths during the first half of 1946 numbered 98, reports the Transport Department. This represents a considerable increase on the first Six months of 1945 when 58 deaths were recorded, the number of deaths approaching the 1941 figure of 107 killed from January to June. Prior to the war the figures had reached over 140 deaths during the first half of the year. Of the 98 fatalities this year, 41 were occupants of motor vehicles, 28 were pedestrians, 16 others were riders of motor cycles or pillion riders, and 13 were riders of bicycles. The 58 casualties during the first six months of 1945 were classified: Occupants of motor vehicles 27, pedestrians 19, motor cyclists (or pillion riders) 7, and cyclists 5. The increased hazards of the road at night-time were again illustrated by the' fact that most of the accidents happened during the hours of darkness. Only four of the fatal accidents happened in daylight, the remaining 14 deaths resulting from acidents which took place after dark.