NEW ARRIVAL?

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26708, 1 March 1948, Page 4

NEW ARRIVAL?

A RUMOUR RUNS RIOT BIRTH DURING DISPLAY Was there a baby bom in the Hancock Park area during the great display? That was a major question arising from Saturday night and for hours yesterday the Daily Times endeavoured to track down the rumour. The story was first heard by a reporter before the show had ended and by yesterday morning it was common gossip in the city. But, like so many rumours, it was easy to hear, hard to pin down —and it was proved to be false in the end. The St John Ambulance post was the first contact. Did they know anything? They did not. There was no record of the new arrival having checked through the association’s casualty posts, but the officer on duty had heard the rumour. The police had also had unofficial word of the event, but no constable had reported with embarrassment that midwifery had been added to his routine duties. The officer questioned had no doubt, however, that in such an emergency a constable would be equal to his task. The Public Hospital was questioned and while word had seeped into the inquiry office that the .city s birth statistics had been amended during the evening, the hospital records stated there had been no admissions made for any such reason. Queen Mary maternity hospital reported with weary harassment that they had quite enough worries of their own bringing babies into the world last evening without having an outsider “ rung in.” None of their charges had checked in carrying a rocket and the nurse was prepared to stale that, while the hospital was as modern as any, rocket-propelled babies were not yet to be seen at Queen Mary. The three doctors on duty at the park during the evening were each called, but none had heard of the event. One had been forced to stay close to a telephone as he htid been expecting one of his own patients to be confined at any moment, but this had not occurred when he was questioned yesterday. Any unscheduled births were definitely “ news ” to the doctors.

The chairman of the Publicity Committee, Mr M. S. Myers, was equally surprised, but rapidly growing familiarity with the management of major centennial events had convinced him that almost anything could happen at them.

A senior member of the St. John Ambulance organisation had heard nothing of the rumoured birth. It had not been reported from any of the casualty posts. Another contact suggested whimsically that the story might have grown out of the missing set piece depicting a kiwi laying an egg. A dozen other hopeful telephone calls all produced the same result—the rumour had been heard, but nothing definite was known. Late last night, however, came a sufficiently authoritative assurance that the story—which must remain one of the most intriguing of the centennial period—must be regarded as the product of a vivid imagination