LOCAL AND GENERAL

Waikato Times, Volume 126, Issue 21038, 14 February 1940, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Insurance Dividend The directors of the Standard In- j surance Company, Limited, have de- 1 dared an interim dividend of Is 3d j a share for the half year ended December 31. The rate, which is unchanged, is equal to 12i per cent, per j annum. Street Meetings Cancelled The cancellation of its Quay ' Street meetings for the time being was decided on last night by the Auckland Provincial Committee of the Communist Party. The decision was announced after the meeting by the secretary, Mr Walter Ashton. Bobby Calf Improvement Many of the cruelties involved in the bobby calf traffic are being removed as a result of the system of pooling districts for the collection of the calves, said the Minister of Agriculture, the Hon. W. Lee Martin, in a letter to the Canterbury Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. The system is rapidly being extended and more committees are being set up. Coal Profits Drop The net profit of the Westport- , Stockton Coal Company, Limited, in 1 the year ended December 31, 1939, was £29, against £12,169 in the previous year and £10,630 in 1937. The balance from the coal account was £93,840, against £114,816 in 1938. No, dividend is recommended. The payment for 1937 and 1938 was 6 per cent on preference capital. Feed For Stock At this time of the year it is usual for the farmer to be faced with the problem of insufficient feed for his stock, but this season the reverse has been the case. Fat lamb quality is reported to be suffering from no : other reason than a surfeit of feed. ; Grass has grown too long for the j young lambs, with the result that j much scouring has occurred in the ! flocks with a consequent falling away in condition. Credit Expansion The view that Government requirements have been the chief cause of credit expansion is expressed in the latest bulletin on public finance and exchange control, issued by the Canterbury Chamber of Commerce, in consultation with the department of economics of Canterbury University College. The bulletin states that one cause of credit expansion was the necessity to meet withdrawals from the Post Office Savings Bank. Popularity Of Lake Applications by the Fairfield and Glen Massey schools to hold picnics at the Hamilton Lake were received by the Hamilton Domain Board at 1 its meeting last night and granted, i “I do not think the public realises : how much the grounds are used for this purpose,” said Dr. G. W. Gower. It was mentioned by the secretary, Mr G. Boyes, that 14 schools had been allowed to use the grounds last year, applications coming from as far afield as the King Country. Allocation of £IOO An allocation of £IOO towards the tree-planting scheme which is to be carried into effect in Hamilton during the Waikato Winter Show week, is to be made by the Hamilton j Domain Board. This decision was j made at a meeting of the board last 1 night, when the matter was raised ! by Mr W. H. Paul. The Centennial j tree-planting scheme entails the i planting of trees in various parts of | Hamilton by every pupil of the j secondary and primary schools. Letters to Dalmatia Under the war regulations Dalma- \ tians living in New Zealand have : not been permitted to write to thei. i relatives and friends in Dalmatia in | their own language. This regula- I tion has made it almost impossible ! for communication to be maintained. The Whangarei Chamber of Commerce took the matter up with Government and the chamber has been informed that brief letters written in a legible hand will be accepted in the Dalmatian language. Dots And Dashes As well as the latest systems of telegraph on display at the Post and Telegraph exhibit in the Government | Court at the Centennial Exhibition, a morse key and sounder, fitted with a flash lamp, has been installed. The morse key, placed in a convenient j position for operation by the public, is proving popular with many of the old time operators, who get great pleasure in demonstrating their speed in transmitting. It is but one of the many ways of interesting the layman in telegraph technique that makes the Post and Telegraph’s display of continual interest. Liverpool Mine Idle Probably accentuated by a fall of coal, heating was yesterday found to be again prevalent in the Morgan East section of the Liverpool State Mine at Rewanui, where fire occurred about 15 months ago. As a result the colliery has been idled. It is thought that the fire has come over the top of the sealed-up stoppings to No. 16 and is burning the latter out. The danger zone is being sealed off ; by a new line of stoppings, which j it is expected to complete to-morrow, j when the mines inspectors will make j an inspection. If the result is satis- ; factory the mine will resume on j Thursday. New Domain Area “There are the makings of a fine i park at the northern entrance to Hamilton in this area. I do not think we should miss it,” said Mr J. R. Fow, at a meeting of the Hamilton j Domain Board last night, when a letter was received from the Lands Department in which the offer was made of land along the Waikato River, immediately north of the Fairfield bridge. It was suggested by the department that the land should not be leased but put in order as soon as possible. The board decided to accept the area, members agreeing that a park should be formed when the land was cleared.

Confidence in Mr J. A. Lee Confidence in the future political career of Mr J. A. Lee. M.P., was expressed by Mr J. W. Munro, M.P., when introducing Mr Lee to an audience in the Concert Chamber of the Dunedin Town Hall. “I formed the opinion at least 12 years ago,” Mr Munro said .“that Mr Lee was one of the coming men of New Zealand. His name has been very much in the newspapers in the last year, and there have been those who say he will wreck —or should I say rock—the political boat. Don’t worry.” Mr Munro added. "He won’t rock the political boat unless it is time it was rocked, and, so far as I am concerned, I want to say I am willing to follow Jack Lee right to the limit.”