NEWS OF THE DAY

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26853, 18 August 1948, Page 4

NEWS OF THE DAY

Preventing Congestion The Otago Harbour Board, by adopting a new by-law at a special meeting to be held on August 26, hopes to prevent congestion of cargo in its sheds and on its wharves. Under the by-law, Ihe board will be empowered to serve notice on consignees or others concerned that their cargo must be removed from the sheds within 24 hours of a time specified by the board. If this is not done, the board will charge penal storage rates. New rates of storage on transhipments and overlanded cargOjjwill also be fixed. The board, it is jjfederstood, is planning to adopt because of the serious congestion that occurred on several occasions earlier this year.

R.S.A. Trust Fund The Dunedin R.S.A. has received £4OO as interest from the estate of Cecil Fenwick Mitchell, to be used in trust for the alleviation of distress among all servicemen, merchant navy men, and their dependents.

Saving of Power The quantity of electricity used in Dunedin last week was only 0.19 per cent, above the allotted quota. This was an improvement of 6.10 per cent, on the amount used in excess of the quota during the preceding week. As a result, the Electricity Emergency Committee did not meet yesterday afternoon. “ Horse Sense ”

We recently had an inquiry from a correspondent as to the-origin of the term “ horse sense.” Here is an explanation from the Wall Street Journal, New York: Texans claim to have originated the expression “horse sense.” and they say it developed from the fact that horses do not bet on people.

Male Sagacity “ Men may not say very much, but do not be too sure that they do not know quite a lot,” said Mrs J. Henderson when discussing the importance of sincerity in the home at the Home and Family Week exhibition in the Town Hall Concert Chamber yesterday afternoon. Her large a'udience laughed thoughtfully when she added, “Most of the men I know are pretty shrewd.” Replacement Needed

A new term to replace the old word “ colonial ” is badly needed. This opinion was expressed to the Daily Times yesterday by Sir Alexander Mackenzie Livingstone. “These countries are not colonies any longer and there is a need for some concise word to express the forty-second cousin relationship among the peoples of the Commonwealth nations and the Home Country,” he said. Local Interest

“ I have an interest in Dunedin closer than the fact that it is a Scottish city and I am from Scotland,” Sir Alexander Mackenzie Livingstone told the Daily Times after his arrival here yesterday. “An uncle of mine, Thomas Livingstone, came out here about 1870 and I would like to know what became of him.” Sir Alexander said that he had already encountered several more distant relatives during his tour of this country. - Broken Homes

To-day in New Zealand about one home in every five had been broken, said the Rev. S. C. Francis, of Christchurch, in a talk on “ How to Bring Up a Family,” given at the Home and Family Week exhibition in the Town Hall Concert Chamber last night. In one Christchurch school a third of the children came from broken homes, while one class alone contained 29 of these unfortunate children out of a total of 45.

Might Get Hurt Reporting on the fact that Mr F. P. Walsh, of Wellington, chairman of the Stabilisation Commission, would be the guest speaker at the annual meeting of the Dunedin Chamber of Commerce on August 25, the chairman, Mr A. C. Stephens, told the council of the chamber last night that Mr Walsh, when accepting the invitation, had said if he came he would speak the truth. Someone might get hurt, but he could not help that. Mr Stephens said Mr Walsh was the driving force behind the Aid to Britain campaign, and his talk on stabilisation should be very interesting. All Requirements Met

The Railway Department had met all requirements in so far as demands for trucks for lime were concerned, stated Mr S. G. Howie, District Traffic Manager, at a meeting of the Dunedin Qhamber of Commerce last evening. In fact, more trucks had been supplied than could be filled, either for lime, coal or fertiliser. He made this statement when the" chairman, Mr A. C. Stephens, made the amende honourable for a statement which originated from the chamber that farmers were experiencing difficulty in getting trucks for lime cartage. Debtors’ Obligations “ What do you want to ask me that for? ” protested a witness who was being examined by Mr G. T. Baylee in a judgment summons case before Mr H. W. Bundle, S.M., in the Magistrate’s Court yesterday. Witness, who was showing some reluctance to answer counsel’s questions about his earnings, was told by the magistrate that he was bound to give the court the fullest information on the subject. Nobody had told me about that,” witness exclaimed, but the magistrate pointed out to him that his obligation in this respect was endorsed on the summons he had received.

Essay Competition Details of the essay competition to be conducted during Animal Welfare Week in Otago by .the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals were completed at a meeting of the committee of the society yesterday. The titles approved were:—Junior (competitors up to‘ 10 years of age), “My favourite pet and why intermediate (10 to 13), “What animal do you consider the most faithful and why? senior (under 16), “Describe how you could help or assist in preventing cruelty to animals.” First and second prizes in money will be awarded in each class. The entries will close towards the end of October. Shortage of Washing Machines

There were washing machines outside New Zealand in the sterling area, but no licences could be obtained to import them, said Mr W. C. Burton at a meeting of the Ashburton Power Board after a letter from a New Zealand manufacturer had been read stating that the manufacture of washing machines was limited by the acute shortage of steel. Mr S. P. Taylor said he could not think of any more important amenity for women. He added that the matter should be taken up with the' Government. It was decided to ask the engineer-secretary to communicat? with the importers to see if the board could assist in pbtaining licences for British washing machines. Sartorial Note

“ That is the only tie he will wear, and I cannot think of a more expensive one,” commented Lady Livingstone, indicating the tie which Sir Alexander Livingstone was wearing to a Daily Times reporter yesterday. “Do you know what it is? ” asked Sir Alexander. The reporter admitted that he was baffled by the design. “If you play golf you should know it” said Sir Alexander, disclosing that it was the tie of the world-renowned Royal and Ancient Club, of St. Andrews. “Now that my husband cannot play ■'olf, his tie is about his only return for membership,” said Lady Livingstone. “It makes it a very expensive tie.” Lady Livingstone was wearing a kilt of the Livingstone tartan, and she said that she had seen a fair number of kilts in New Zealand. Somewhat hesitantly, she suggested that the cut of the New Zealand specimens appeared to be a fair distance from perfection.