SAFETY FIRST

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 640, 17 April 1929, Page 14

SAFETY FIRST

BAFFLING BURGLARS The question of making the house secure against unauthorised entry when the family is away is one to which it is wise to give leisurely consideration. Not much can be accomplished in this direction in the bustle of departure for the summer holidays. It must be said at once that there is no such thing as making the ordinary modern dwelling burglar-proof. The vulnerable points in a house are, of course, its doors and windows, and the whole of these must receive attention if the building is to be made reasonably secure against unauthorised entry. Outward opening casements, properly fitted with good hinges and locks, cannot be opened from the outside without being smashed. Hung sashes, however, are sometimes fitted with fasteners which can be slipped back with the blade of a knife. It is easy to buy a sash lock which can be operated with one finger, but which will draw the two sashes so firmly together that no tool can be inserted between them, and with a mechanism which prevents the latch from being released except by a turn of the thumb-piece. A simple method of making hung sashes secure when a house is to be left unoccupied for a time is to drive a stout screw into the upper saslies immediately above the meeting rail. The hole made by the screw will not be noticed when the latter is removed. Where doors are concerned, it is easy to add considerably to the degree of security given by locks. The fitting of a neat metal bolt or two will add greatly to the difficulty of opening a door from the outside. So also will a piece of tough wood nailed or screwed to the floor just behind the door.

Vinegar will safeguard raw meat and fish in summer; kill all insects in vegetables; add brilliancy to blacklead; mixed w r ith methylated spirits and olive oil will improve the appearance of furniture; remove rust, and take the odour of onions and fish from cooking utensils.