IN TOWN AND OUT

Southland Times, Issue 22013, 12 May 1933, Page 6

IN TOWN AND OUT

NEWS OF THE DAY Price of Eggs. The retail price of eggs has been reduced in Invercargill by twopence a dozen. * * * * Found Dead. Duncan McGregor, aged 58, a retired railwayman, was found dead last evening at his home in Eye street. He had been living alone and it is believed he had been dead for two days when found. An inquest will be held. * * * * Show Takings Decline. The admission takings for the third day of the Winter Show (yesterday) were £3B 15/- as compared with £62 5/- on the corresponding day last year. These figures brought the total up to £lB5 0/6 for the show, £69 18/6 less than last year. The guessing competitions showed an increase of £3 5/over last year, the sum of £l4 17/being taken. ajc ♦ * * “That Element.” “This is the last meeting of the present council,” said the president (Mr James Robertson) at last evenings meeting of the council of the Southland Acclimatization Society. “Some of us may not be present next time, so you had better be my guests at supper.” “ ‘That element which does not make for good working’ may not be present next time,” said Mr J. E. Cuthill amidst an outburst of laughter. * * * * A Windfall. “Who drew the horse?” asked the chairman of the Hospital Board (Mr T. Golden) yesterday when the secretary read a letter from the Hospital Board’s Association enclosing a cheque for £lO as the Southland Board’s share in the Danzig sweepstake. Tire secretary explained that the sum of £332 8/4 had by some means become available for distribution among the hospital boarcis of New Zealand, £lO being Southland s share. “Will we accept the money? asked Mr J. Miller with a twinkle in his eye. There were no murmurs of protest, a motion being carried that the secretary write accepting the money with thanks. ♦ * * » Among Wealthy or Poor? Is tuberculosis more prevalent among the working classes than those possessed of wealth? This point provoked a brief debate between the chairman of the Southland Hospital Board (Mr T. Golden) and the Mayor of Invercargill (Mr John Miller) at yesterday s meeting of the board. Mr Miller suggested that under-nourishment owing to poverty was responsible for many poor people contracting the disease. Mr Golden said he understood tuberculosis was just as prevalent among the wealthy classes. The two _ members were exchanging divergent views when Mr G. Whittingham’s remark “There are no wealthy classes to-day” ended the argument . » ♦ * ♦ Migration of Relief Workers. At yesterday’s meeting of the Southland Hospital Board the secretary reported that owing to the increasing number of registered unemployed relief workers who had removed from other districts to Invercargill, the Unemployment Board was taking a very definite stand in insisting that these men should return to their own districts as they would not be granted relief work in Invercargill. The Unemployment Board had asked for the co-operation and support of the Hospital Board in giving effect to this policy. The board’s relief committee expressed the opinion that no encouragement should be given to relief workers to leave their own districts. « » » » A Remarkable Escape. A remarkable escape from possible serious injury was the good fortune of Mr J. S. Shaw, of Balfour, his son, and four ladies while negotiating the level crossing at Branxholme in a motor car yesterday. At this point of the road the motorist’s view is more or less obscured, and Mr Shaw, who was driving the car, neither saw nor heard a train which was approaching until the engine and car had almost met at the crossing. The brakes of the car were applied with all possible haste, but the car had reached the line, and the locomotive, which fortunately had slowed down, struck the car heavily. The car was badly damaged, but the occunants escaped without injury. # * * ♦ Hospital Board Levy. When the secretary of the Southland Hospital Board at yesterday’s meeting was reading out the levies made on the various boroughs, town boards, and counties in Southland, the Mayor of Invercargill (Mr John Miller) mentioned that Invercargill City’s levy was slightly greater than last year. The secretary said that the valuation of the city was £30,000 greater. Mr Miller said he wished it made clear, to the people of Invercargill that any increase in the board’s levy was not due to the re-valuation of the city. It was not on the new figures that the levy was made, but on the previous year’s figures. The secretary said that the figures supplied by the Valuer-General were usually the figures of the previous year. w , * Danger of Antimony Poisoning.

The danger of antimony poisoning through the use of enamelled vessels of inferior quality was the subject of a circular received by the Southland Hospital Board from the DirectorGeneral of Health. The danger arises principally in the preparation of acid drinks, such as lemonade, in these vessels. Antimony oxide, the circular states, is widely used in place of tin oxide as an opacifying agent in the enamelling of hardware on account of its comparative cheapness. It had been found that in vessels in which lemonade had been prepared the enamel coating had been heavily, attacked and disintegrated by the acid and the lemonade itself had contained a large quantity of antimony in solution The circular made it clear that it was the cheap low-grade enamels which were the danger. « * * ♦ Waitaki Old Boys. More than thirty old boys of the Waitaki High School resident in Southland will leave for Oamaru to-day and to-morrow to attend the jubilee of the school. Included in the Southland contingent will be two who attended the school in its earliest years, and another who was the first* son of an old boy to be enrolled at the school. The programme of the celebrations is as follows: Saturday, May 13: 10 a.m., reception at school; 2.30 p.m., garden party at the school; 6.15 p.m., dinner at Scottish Hall; 8.15 p.m., smoke concert at Scottish Hall. Sunday: 1.30 p.m., motor drive to Waitaki hydro works; 8 p.m., evening church service in Hall of Memories. Monday: 9.15 a.m., official ceremony and speeches, roll call and photographs; 2.30 p.m., seven-a-side football tournament, aero display, and general athletics; 4.30 p.m., unveiling of window presented by Christchurch branch of the Old Boys’ Association; presentation for custody of Keddell Shield by representatives of the New Zealand Amateur Athletic Association; 8.30 p.m., Jubilee Ball. Southland Wheat Neglected. Speaking at the annual social of the Gore A. and P. Association Mr David McDougall, M.P., who returned from Wellington last evening, explained the object of his visit to the capital city. He said that an Otama farmer had

grown 350 bushels of wheat which the millers had been prepared to purchase, but the transaction required to go through the Wheat Purchase Board which would not sanction the purchase of Southland wheat. He had gone to Wellington to interview the Minister of Industries and Commerce and the chairman of the board who both had expressed surprise that such a state of affairs existed. The chairman had immediately communicated with Christchurch and in a few minutes returned to report that the wheat had been bought. “I told Mr Masters,” added Mr McDougall, “that if they would not •purchase Southland wheat they could put an advertisement in the papers or issue a Gazette notice that Southland was not a part of New Zealand, like Canterbury.” He concluded by reminding his hearers that while the Canterbury wheatgrower was given ample protection, the Southland grower of oats had absolutely no protection.