IN TOWN AND OUT

Southland Times, Issue 21650, 11 March 1932, Page 6

IN TOWN AND OUT

NEWS OF THE DAY. Youthful Athletes. The express last evening brought to Invercargill some twenty athletes from the Waitaki Boys’ High School who are competing at the secondary school championships to-morrow’. The Otago Boys’ High School, McGlashan College, Mosgiel District High and Christian Brothers teams arrive to-day.■ * * * * Thrift Penalized? “It looks as if the boards that had lived within their income were being penalized,’ remarked the chairman of the Southland Hospital Board (Mr H. E. Niven) at the meeting, yesterday when the board was discussing the action of the Government in making large grants to certain hospital boards, which others received nothing. “It’s the same with the unemployed,” said his Worship the Mayor (Mr John Miller). “Those who have nothing get the assistance. Those who have something put by receive no help.” * * * • Invitation Accepted. At a meeting of the Council of St. Andrew’s Scottish Society, it was decided to approve of the Chief (Mr J. L. McG. Watson) accepting the invitation of the Scottish Society of Dunedin to conduct the monthly meeting of the northern body on the 19th inst. It was also resolved that Chieftains W. R. Ronald, W. Falconer, T. Y. Penman and J. Robertson should accompany the Chief. This will be the first occasion during the past 18 years that officials of the local society have been invited to Dunedin, and the honour now accorded them is much appreciated. The Invercargill body intends, in its turn, to reciprocate in the near future by arranging a return visit of the northern Chief and chieftains to this city. * * * * Lake Hawkins. In the course of his post-presidential address at the annual meeting of the Invercargill Chamber of Commerce yesterday, Mr D. Rutledge made reference to Lake Hawkins. “You will have noted,” he remarked, "the several discussions on this subject at the meetings of the City Council, and it will probably be thought that I am going out of bounds. We are, however, all payers of rates and any extraordinary expenditure by the council is therefore a matter'which we at least have a right to express an opinion on. To my mind Invercargill is well equipped with parks and playing areas and to add to them is in the nature of luxury. But especially in the present state of the country’s finances to expend money unnecessarily, is an economic sin. If the plea is to find work for the unemployed 1 have no doubt the council can find work better worth doing. Even if it were back in 1925 or thereabouts one would find it hard to justify expenditure on such a project where the ground is only just about estuary level with no surrounding scenic beauty to aid in attracting people to it. It should, I think, be left to the mudlarks.”