LOCAL AND GENERAL

Waikato Times, Volume 128, Issue 21414, 7 May 1941, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Ballot Names S The names of men drawn in the latest ballot for overseas service are published on page 4 of this issue. Aero Club’s War Record More than 70 members of the Hawke’s Bay Aero Club are serving with the Forces. Ten have been killed. Injury to Hand A cut tendon in the hand was received by Ross Derrick Bamforth, farmhand, aged 15, of Te Miro, Cambridge. when an axe he was using yesterday slipped. Regular Contributions Post and Telegraph staffs have paid in the tenth instalment of their regular contributions to the funds of the Auckland Provincial Patriotic Council. A cheque for £75 has been received making a total of £565 from this source.

Military Service Sittings of the No. 2 Armed Forces Appeal Board have been held this week at Paeroa, Coromandel and Thames. Next week the Board sits at Matamata and Te Aroha on Tuesday, at Ngaruawahia and Huntly on Wednesday, and at Hamiltcn on Thursday.

Dickens Landmarks Damaged Dickens landmarks in England have been damaged in recent air raids, states the March number of the Dickensian, an English publication. No. 11 Ordnance Terrace, Chatham, where Dickens spent some of his childhood, has suffered considerable damage.

Hotel Burglary The sum of £lO7, mostly in notes, was removed from the office of the Metropolitan Hotel, Taupo Quay, Wanganui, some time between 2 a.m. and 7.30 a.m., yesterday. Apparently entry was gained to the office through

a window which was unlatched. Although there was a quantity of gelignite about the safe in the office from which the money was taken, there had been no explosion.

Transferred to Auckland Five soldiers (stretcher cases) who have been in the Wellington Hospital for observation since the arrival of the hospital ship, arrived in Auckland in a special coach attached to the express from Wellington this morning. They were met by military officials and relatives and were driven by ambulance to the Auckland Hospital. All are progressing well.

What Goes Up Must Come Down “It is not only enemy bombs we have to look out for in air raids, but what our anti-aircraft guns send up has to come down again,” said Mr W. Holmes, the visiting British trade union leader, in an address at Christchurch. “My son had one of our own shells come down and bury itself 12ft. m the ground beside his house. I have had several bits of our own shells come through the roof of my house.”

Changeable Weather Although yesterday was fine and sunny and a spell of similar weather seemed probable last night, this morning was cold and overcast and threatening conditions prevailed throughout the day. Unsettled weather is indicated by the barometer, which records 30.05in. with a falling tendency. At its highest reading yesterday the thermometer recorded 57 degrees but the temperature dropped at one stage last night to 43 degrees.

Change-over to Cheese To a question at the South Auckland Dairy Association meeting in Hamilton today, the Minister of Marketing stated that the Department of Agriculture had computed that the cost of providing additional accommodation for employees at dairy factories, due to the proposed changeover from butter to cheese, would be about £19,000. Additional factory accommodation would cost about £65,000. Costs on the farms would bring the total to about £335,000.

Assistance To Home Guard Great assistance was given the Hamilton Battalion of the Home Guard last night by members of the Women’s War Auxiliary Corps and members of the staff of the State Advances Department. Forty young women, using 20 typewriters, completed the recording of 1300 cards of the enrolled members of the Guard. These cards will have to be duplicated at a later date. The ready assistance given to the Guard by other services has already considerably assisted in the organisation of the Hamilton unit.

Impressment of Rifles In connection with the impressment of .303 rifles for the use of the Home Guard., Captain T. H. Melrose, Hamilton Battalion Commander, said today that many active guardsmen were apparently refusing to hand their rifles in to the police as they were under the impression that as guardsmen there was no necessity to do this. He pointed out that all rifles had to be handed in to the police. After they had been checked they would be given to him by the police and the Home Guard, by an internal arrangement, intended where possible to issue guardsmen with their own rifles. Penny a Week for Red Cross How successful the “Penny a Week” scheme of the Trades Union Congress of Great Britain had been in raising funds for the Red Cross was described by Mr W. Holmes, past president of the congress, in an address at Christchurch. Mr Holmes said it had originally been suggested to the congress that 6d a week contributions should be sought from workers, but it was thought that although contributions might be good at first, they would soon fall off. So the “Penny a Week” scheme was substituted. Already .£500,000 had been subscribed m this way, and the amount received was now rising to £20.000 a week. Not Favoured When asked if he would recommend the Government to make advance payments of 15 per cent of value of dairy produce after 42 days in store, the Minister of Marketing, the Hon. J. G. Barclay, told the South Auckland Dairy Association in Hamilton today that he was not prepared to do so. The Minister said the industry had had no difficulty in getting finance at present through the ordinary channels. Guarantees today were impossible, in view of the world situation, but if the produce was not shipped the Government would come to the aid of the industry. Its policy was to maintain a reasonable standard of living fo 1 : everybody.