IN TOWN AND OUT

Southland Times, Issue 25312, 15 June 1935, Page 6

IN TOWN AND OUT

NEWS OF THE DAY Express Delayed. After an extremely, rough crossing , the Union Company’s steamer express ! Maori arrived at Lyttelton one hour behind time yesterday morning. As a result the express for Invercargill left Christchurch 32 minutes late ana reached Invercargill at 9.30, instead of 9.5, last evening. »•» ■ * Options Over City Sections. The owners of vacant sections in the heart of the city have recently received inquiries from a North Island syndicate which has an eye to the possibilities of license being restored after the .general election. Options have been secured over some of the sections. The inquiry for a suitable courthouse site has also heartened property owners.

Earthquake Relief Fund. Tn aid of the Red Cross earthquake relief fund a collection is to be taken up at the India-Southland match by a number of hockey enthusiasts this atternoon. The Indians are also selling autographed photographs of themselves the proceeds of the sale to go to the relief fund. The price of the photographs is 1/- autographed and 6d unautographed. ♦ » ♦

Clearing of Gorse. A decision to ask the Railway Department to clear gorse on its property was reached by the Southland County Council yesterday. Councillor L. A. Niederer declared that the department was the worst offender in this respect. Councillor W. M. Norman remarked that the farmers had responded magnificently, but there were still parts that required attention.

Unfair Credit Alleged. The action of a farmer in thanking the Automobile Association (Southland) for having a gorse hedge lowered and so improving the visibility at an intersection was commented upon, by Councillor A. S. McNaught at yesterdays meeting of the Southland County Council. Councillor McNaught said that a report submitted by the county inspector showed that action had been taken in connection with the matter long before the Automobile Association had been communicated with and it was unfair that that body should get the credit. * *

Educational Week Concludes. After a profitable and entertaining five days in the city, the 80 girls attending the Educational Week arranged by the Women’s Division of the Farmers’ Union will return to their homes to-day, the official part of the week concluding with a social last evening. Yesterday morning the girls were taken on a'visit of inspection of Messrs H. and J. Smith’s kitchen. Later they were given a practical demonstration of first aid work by Dr Moana Gow, of Winton. The girls took a keen interest in the lectures and demonstrations arranged for them and their store of knowledge must have grown considerably as a result of hearing addresses by experts on various cultural subjects. There seems no doubt that the venture will be repeated with even greater success next year. » * * * Bluff Granite Quarry.

In connection with the proposed closing down of the granite quarry at Bluff a large and representative meeting of Bluff business people was held in the office of Messrs Nichol Bros, last night to consider the matter. Mr T. F. Doyle, who was elected to the chair, stressed the seriousness of the position, his remarks being supported by Mr E. H. Nichol. After a general discussion it was agreed that the matter be brought under the notice of the Minister for Employment, urging the necessity of keeping the Bluff works going by a subsidy if necessary. It was farther agreed that .a deputation, consisting of the Mayor (the Rev. A. E. Waite), Messrs T. F. Doyle, E. A. Nichol, and the Town Clerk, Mr H. A. Ferguson, should wait on Mr P. A. de la Perrelle, M.P., soliciting his support in the matter. * ♦ Fit for the Antarctic.

A Times reporter was recently shown a suit of underwear which he at first belived was designed particularly for Antarctic exploration or at least for the winter months at the Bay of Whales. The person in whose possession the clothing was seen had a much simpler explanation. It appears that an American tourist who made the Milford Track trip during the summer months received serious warnings in the North Island concerning the severity of the Southland climate and was advised to take south the warmest clothing obtainable. A splendid suit of underwear was duly purchased and carefully packed in the tourist’s knapsack to be immediately available when the climate necessitated such thick clothing. The underwear was discarded after the first stage of the walk. Throughout the season, as in other years, walkers made the trip in the lightest of clothing with light rain coats for wet weather. An Informative Lecture. What Mr C. A. Stewart (principal of the Southland Technical College) characteijzed as "a masterly discourse on the history and development of physical training and education” was given to the assembled pupils yesterday afternoon by Mr Harbail Singh, a member of the visiting All India hockey team. Mr Behram Doctor (manager) and Mr Singh, who is director of physical and health education in Khalsa College, Amritsar, Punjab, were welcomed by Mr Stewart, who introduced the visitors as representatives of a great and wonderful country and as members of an amazing team. Mr Singh held the rapt attention of the 600 pupils for half an hour while he spoke in excellently chosen English on his subject. From the earliest days the peoples of India attached the greatest importance to physical strength and fitness, and made this a matter of thorough training, he explained. After the vedic age, 3000 B.C. to 1300 B.C. came the epic age of great men and high achievement. The people of India claimed that their system of physical training inspired, or at least strongly influenced, the system of ancient Greece in her Golden Age. Tracing developments down to modern times, Mr Harbail Singh deplored the emphasis on mental training at the expense of harmonious all-round development that had followed the British ocupation of India. Only now, he declared, was a real effort being made to regain the lost harmony of intellectual strength with physical health and fitness. At the conclusion of his address, Mr Singh was accorded a very hearty vote of thanks by acclamation.

Study of Economics. • The Society for the Study of Economics held the first meeting of its 1935 session last week, when there was an attendance of twenty members and the president, Mr William Macalister, was in the chair. In accordance with the programme agreed upon Mr R. G. Webb, M.A., gave the first of a series of eight lectures in which he will cover the general subject of economics. It has been the practice of the society to select for study a book by a writer of standing, but this year, by way of a change, the members decided upon a systematic course on economics under a qualified tutor, and were fortunate enough to be able to induce Mr Webb to undertake the work. In his first lecture Mr Webb dealt with the definitions of the subject, explaining the

precise meaning of such familiar terms as “wealth,” “production,” “consumption,” “law of diminishing . utility, “consumer’s surplus,” “elasticity of demand” and so on. About these terms the man in the street, who uses them freely, has a hazy idea, but he would be hard put to it to define their leaning clearly and accurately. Mr Webb closed with a brief sketch of economic evolution. The lecture was interesting as well as enlightening, and the few words of appreciation spoken by Mr D. J. Wesney at the close were endorsed heartily by all present. The society is open to all who are interested in the study of economics and economic questions and who would like to join as members and follow Mr Webbs course. The next meeting will be held on Tuesday evening in Messrs H. and J. Smith’s lounge and Mr Webb s lecture will cover such subjects as the historical development of industry, machinery and employment, large scale production, and the importance of capital.