In the News

Southland Times, Issue 24164, 28 June 1940, Page 6

In the News

Technical College Patriotism

The part being played by students of the Southland Technical College in raising funds for patriotic purposes was mentioned by the principal of the college (Mr C. A. Stewart) at the meeting of the Board of Managers last night. Up to the present time the girls have knitted and sent forward the following articles from wool supplied by the pupils themselves, boys as well as girls: 84 balaclavas, 20 pairs of mittens, 8 pairs of sox, 2 pull-overs and 4 scarves. Work is now being done with wool supplied by the central depot. In addition the girls have collected £7 by the sale of bowls of soup at one penny a bowl, he added. One generous donor who preferred to remain anonymous had contributed several sacks of vegetables for the making of soup. Golden Mallard Ducks

Twelve American golden mallard ducks have been liberated in the Wyndham Domain lagoon by the Otago Acclimatization Society. There are many ordinary mallards to be seen in the lagoon, and it is hoped that they will cross with the, American variety and thus produce a bigger bird. The golden mallard is easily recognized by the bright fluffy plumage on its neck. It is hoped that the birds will not be molested and will be allowed to multitply. New Hall At Clifton

Constructed largely by voluntary labour at a cost of £6OO, the new hall at Clifton will be officially opened this evening. The ceremony will be performed by Mrs M. Kelly, who has lived in the district for about 45 years. The hall was built of bricks from the Woodend dairy factory, which was taken over by the hall committee when it ceased operations.' The building, which is 64ft by 28ft with a hall 54ft in length, has been erected on a section at the corner of Bain street and Avon road by Mr J. Pearce and Miss Pearce. Interest-Free Loan

The sum of £4OO is to be lent to the Government for the duration of the war and 12 months after, free of interest, by the Winton Trotting Club. This decision was made at a meeting of the committee of the club.

Ministerial Example During his week-end stay in Christchurch the Minister of National Service (the Hon. R. Semple), who made appeals for conservation of petrol during his stay, himself set an example in economy. Usually (states The StarSun) ministerial cars are employed to transport Ministers to the various places where their presence is required but Mr Semple walked to the several meetings he addressed. Then, again, when leaving his hotel for the Harewood Aerodrome to catch the Union Airways aeroplane for the north, he was seen to clamber into the back of a friend’s light car rather than use a heavy ministerial car for the run to the aerodrome. France’s Possessions Constituting one-sixteenth of the world’s land, with an area of almost 5,000,000 square miles, the French colonial empire encircles the globe. Only the British Empire and the Soviet surpass the French empire in area, while the population ranks fifth after the British Empire, China, the Soviet and the United States. Morocco, Algeria, West Africa and Equatorial Africa are France’s largest possessions in Africa. After the Great War she also had part of the Congo which Germany had ceded to her in 1911, the mandate over part of the Cameroons and Togoland, and the mandate over Syria and Lebanon. In addition to her extensive African possessions, France’s empire extends to the South Seas. _ There is New Caledonia, which is a proposed stopping-place on the Pan-American air route to New Zealand, and a number of other Pacific Islands. In the East, French Indo-China embraces over 285,000 square miles, with a population of more than 21,000,000.

Departmental Waste Immediate investigation of a complaint against departmental waste was promised by the Minister of National Service (the Hon. R. Semple) at a meeting of transport operators in Christchurch. A member of the audience declared that the Railways Department was operating a bus service between Dunedin and Port Chalmers which ran alongside the railway line and in competition with it, and often with empty buses. That was the type of waste that operators were continually “kicking against,” he said. “You must remember that I have only just taken on this job,” replied the Minister. “I will have this matter looked into at once.”