In Town And Out

Southland Times, Issue 22993, 12 September 1936, Page 8

In Town And Out

School Holidays Draw to a Close. The school holidays are drawing to a close even for those pupils who attend the secondary schools. Pupils of the Southland Technical College return to work on Monday, while High School pupils return on Tuesday. London Air Mails.

Tire Marama, which left Sydney on Thursday for Wellington, carries the London airmail despatched on August 26. The airmail despatched from London on August 22, which was being carried by the Imperial Airways liner Horsa ' when the machine made a forced landing near Bahrem, is now due in Sydney on September 15. Unusual Sight.

There is no limit to the attractions the Eglinton Valley has to offer the holiday-maker and tourist. An Invercargill party, which has just returned from a trip to the Homer Saddle, had the unusual experience of seeing a stag and two wild pigs on the road at the same time. They were separated from each other by only a'few and allowed the motorists to approach reasonably close before showing resentment of the intrusion.

Classification Discs on Highways. Advice that the highways in the Southland County now had the classification discs erected at all necessary points was conveyed to the Southland County Council yesterday in the report of the traffic inspector (Mr P. C. Watson). “A check will be made when possible to see that owners of vehicles exceeding the classification weight have applied for the necessary permit,” said the inspector. “A good deal of work has been necessary in order to administer the provision of the new Transport Licensing Act, and a number of complaints have been investigated.”

Sunlight in Schools. Appreciation of the modern design of schools which permitted the maximum of sunlight to penetrate tire classrooms was expressed by Mr A. S. Richards, M.P. for Roskill, at the opening of the new Panmure School in Auckland. “Many years ago it was almost a crime for a child to look out of the school windows, which were invariably tucked high in the walls,” said Mr Richards. “The inquisitive mind of the natural child was confined to the room which was denied the sunlight and sunshine essential to life.” Mr Richards congratulated the board’s architect on the splendid design and the incorporation of windows for the full length of the walls. Native Lands in Hokonui District. A request that the Southland County Council should ask the Minister of Lands to throw open for settlement certain bush lands in the Hokonui district was made on behalf of settlers by Cr W. M. Norman at the meeting of the council yesterday. Cr Norman explained that the land was really Maori land; it had been reserved for Maori settlers over 40 years ago, but there were no Maoris in the district, and the land, which had all the appearances of good productive country, was lying idle. He said that settlers in the Hokonui district were anxious to have it thrown open as soon as possible. The council decided to forward the request to the Minister. Parents Favour Homework. The principals of three Wellington colleges recently sought the views of parents of pupils whether homework was desirable, and of the replies received the majority were in favour bf some form of home study. In reports laid before the Wellington College Board of Governors all the principals expressed the view that homework, properly organized, was desirable. Of 661 replies to the questionnaire, reported Mr W. A. Armour, principal of Wellington College, 520 were in favour of some form and a certain amount of homework, and 141 were against the setting of homework. Mr Armour said the evils attending homework would be largely eliminated if the matriculation examination could be taken only after’ four years of post-primary study, and if it were used entirely as a test for entry to the university. The sooner the school certificate examination was separated from the matriculation examination the better.

A Film of the Rugby Test. It is not often that people in Invercargill are privileged to witness the filming of a Rugby Test match, which was played in New Zealand, or if they are so privileged they do not expect to see the film of that match for many weeks afterwards. However, one of the supports to be shown at the Majestic Theatre to-day is of the first game in the Bledisloe Cup series played between Australia and New Zealand at Athletic Park, Wellington, last Saturday. This picture was to be shown in northern theatres last evening. A Southland Times reporter saw a preview last evening and was agreeably surprised at the clarity of the photography. From the very first scene, with the huge crowds outside the gates and the presentation of the teams to Viscount Galway, one is given a clear impression of how the play went, what a number of mistakes were made, who played well and who played badly, and which was the better team.