GENERAL NEWS

Wanganui Chronicle, 14 December 1949, Page 4

GENERAL NEWS

Athletic Club’s Appeal. Further donations to the Wanganui Amateur Athletic and Cycling Club's appeal, and acknowledged by the club with thanks, are: Marist Football Club, £2 2s; Aramoho Boating Club, £2 2s; Aramoho Boating Club members, £4 2s 6d; Wanganui Junior Labour League, £2 2s.

Fate of Voting Papers. Voting papers and other material used in the recent General Election and licensing poll will be kept by returning officers for 12 months. This is in case the papers are required for a magisterial inquiry and at the end of a year they will be destroyed. The election papers are sent to the clerk of the House of Representatives.

Temporary Accommodation. While its office building in Victoria Avenue is being reconstructed, the Wanganui Education Board has taken Up temporary accommodation in the manual training building at the Wanjanui Intermediate School. The board’s monthly meeting was held yesterday at the Technical Collegeaccommodation being provided in the board room.

Scnool Yard Improvements An application is to be made to the Education Department for a grant of £3OO toward the cost of laying a hard surfaced area at the Parewanui School. In a letter before the Wanganui Education Board at its nionthly meeting yesterday, the school committee stated that £75 had already been raised toward the cost of the work. A recommendation made by the architect, Mr L. S. Barsanti, that an application be made for a grant of £3OO was adopted.

Subsidy Made Available Private schools may now obtain a subsidy of £1 for £1 from the Education Department for the purchase oli moving picture film projectors. This was stated in a departmental circular which was before the Wanganui Education Board at its monthly reeling yesterday. “This is the only thing they are subsidising, I believe,” said the secretary, Mr G. N. Boulton, who added that the £1 for £1 subsidy was in line with that granted public schools.

Christmas Cheer. An innovation at the Wanganui Technical College this year whs Charity Day, when pupils raised a sum in excess of £5O for the support of worthy causes. Donations from the fund had been made to Rewi Alley’s school at Sandan (China) and to Aid for Britain. Yesterday the balartce of the funds were distributed among old age pensioners. Six senior girl pupils visited six homes in the city and presented gifts as Christmas greetings from the school. Grants To County. Notification of authority for a grant of £3OOO on the basis of £3 for £1 for the renewal of the Manganui-Opo Bridge on the Waitotara Valley Highway was received from the Main Highways Board at yesterday’s meeting of the Waitotara County Council. Notification was also received of a grant of £1855 on the basis of £1 for £1 for the Rangitatau Road, provision for-wh'.ch has been made on the supplementary estimates of the Main Highways Board.

Trip to Chateau This evening a party of 33 pupils from the St. George’s Preparatory School and seven adults will leave for the Chateau Tongariro, where they will spend a week s holiday. If the weather is favourable it is hoped to climb Mt. Ruapehu. The party, which will stay m huts near the Chateau, will be led by the headmaster of the school, Mr E. D. Tyn-dale-Biscoe. Last year 16 of the boys visited Mount Egmont and ten on them made a successful climb to the top. The youngest boys in this year’s party are aged ten years.

Check on Brakes. A check on brakes carried out on the main north highway on November 3 resulted in 33 vehicles being tested, Traffic Inspector W. Wilson, reported to yesterday’s meeting of the Waitotara County Council. The brakes of 24 were found to be good and nine fair, no traffic notices being issued. A second check was made on November 10 when 41 vehicles were tested. Twenty-seven had good brakes and the brakes of the remainder were fair. “These figures speak well for the City testing station as practically 90 per cent, of the vehicles were tested there,” staled the inspector. Shortage of Teachers “Tile supply of post-primary teachers gives cause for much concern to boards of managers and principals,” stated the principal, Mr J. Dash, at the annual prize-giving ceremony of the Wanganui Technical College last night. “The profession is not attracting young people in sufficient numbers, and unless it speedily commences to recruit them then the position will become acute. The reasons for the failure of our schools to secure more teachers should be the subject for enquiry not on theoretical grounds at the highest possible levels, but in our sixth form classrooms. School teaching is a vocation for men and women endowed with the spirit of service. When the supply of such people fails our schools are going to lose much ot the excellent atmoshere which pervades them today,” said Mr Dash.

Collection of Refuse. This summer the Waitotara County Council proposes to collect refuse at the motor camp at Mowhanau Beach as the old method of depositing it in holes is considered unsatisfactory and dangerous. The engineer (Mr. W. I. Gardiner) told the council yesterday that the holes soon filled up with rubbish and when they were covered by sand the refuse soon decayed and the filling sinks. A dangerous hole is left which might cause tin accident for which the Nukumaru Domain Board may be liable. The engineer suggested that a small weekly charge should be made for each camp to cover this service and water. The council put the proposal into operation for the current season but not to make any charge.