NEWS OF THE DAY.

Auckland Star, Volume LXXI, Issue 218, 13 September 1940, Page 6

NEWS OF THE DAY.

Memorial to Archbishop. The memorial stone to Archbishop Julius, to be placed in the outside north wall of the chancel of Christchurch Cathedral, will be unveiled by the 1 Governor-General on the afternoon of j Sunday, October 6. The erection of the I stone is preliminary to the major work of extending the chancel, which is the planned memorial to the Archbishop. It is of Timaru stone, and the inscription I is coloured bright red. A Happy Surprise. Writing to his wife, Private Cameron Smith, who left Tauranga with the Second Echelon, now in England, relates a remarkable coincidence. Private Smith had only been in New Zealand | two years, his home being in Edinburgh. When a troop train arrived at a suburban station in Edinburgh in July he walked over to a gate to look at some of the old familiar sights, but the most familiar one he saw was his own father standing just on the other side of tlie gate. Bullei Holes in Launch. Believed to be a schoolboys' escapade, considerable damage has been caused to a launch moored in an estuary of the Manukau Harbour near Papatoetoe. It is alleged that the damage was caused by shots fired from rifles which were removed from the Otahuhu Technical High School during the recent holidays. | Two of the :-ifles, which are fitted to i take .22 ammunition and are of the type used by school cadets in their training, j were found by a resident hidden in undergrowth near the foreshore. They j were handed over to the police, and as j tli" result of inquiries another twe j rifles and a. quantity of .22 ammunition i were found. j Anniversary of Quebec. On September 13, 1759, the notable Battle of Quebec took place. After besieging the French fortress for two months, General Wolfe, leader of the Enjrlish army, took a desperate chance to capture Quebec. The forces were landed in the darkness and led up the steep ■ liffs. Next morning found the British regiments forming up on the Plains of Abraham. The battle, which ended before noon was a decisive one. Wolfe fell in the moment of victory, and Montcalm, mortally wounded, did not live to see the surrender of his fortress. Jn the following year Montreal capitulated, and French dreams of dominion in Canada were brought finally to an end. Brigadiers * Choice. "Brigadiers on the pillion." Under the recent new army order issued in Britain all officers up to the rank of brigadier are required to become proficient in riding motor cycles, but should a brigadier, for any reason, not wish to ride, he is given the option of going on the pillion. This order is stated to cover all but a hundred men of commissioned rank in the British Army, those excluded being only generals, lieutenantgenerals and major-generals. While for ' many motor cycling is new, for large numbers of others it is an everyday experience. Experts providing the tuition have reported that the majority of their pupils are enthusiastic and--adaptable. As an example to those of lesser rank, the Director ol Military Training was among the first of the officers to renew his acquaintance with motor cycling. • Camp Under Storm Conditions. Every man of the Ist Battalion, Wellington Regiment, turned out on Tuesday night, when a general alarm was sounded in the mobilisation camp on the Wanganui racecourse as a result of threatened damage to marquees and tents by a heavy gale, accompanied by rain. ,The alarm was given at 6.45 p.m., when the large Y.M.C.A. recreational marquee, containing indoor sports and reading facilities, partly collapsed. The contents were removed and the marquee let down. The largest in the camp, that of the Salvation Army, and also the second Y.M.C.A. tent, were also let down as a precautionary measure, and the contents were removed to the permanent racecourse buildings. In. the heavy rain storm, which was a continuance of intermittent falls of the day, the men tightened guy ropes of the 150 tents in ca'mp by torch and hurricane light. Continual rain made parts frequently traversed into a mire. The troops rose to the occasion like seasoned campaigners, and got more fun than misery out of their experience.

Linen Thread Restricted. "The sale of linen thread owing to j the necessities of the war is 'being re- j stricted to the manufacture of army j clothing and boots and certain heavy industries. There is not a sufficient ; quantity to enable any allocation for j the s civil clothing or tailoring trade, and | the requirements for these trades or j domestic purposes will have to be filled j by cotton substitutes." This was the j answer received by a New Plymouth firm of importers to an inquiry of Dominion agents for a renewal of j supplies of these goods. "We regret," | added the letter, "that as all stocks of j linen threads are now subject to Gov- I ernment control under the Emergency | Control Regulations, and as the existing ; stock is limited to the restricted list, it i is not possible for us to deliver thread to you for civilian purposes." The re- j striction, it is stated by those con- j cerned, is a serious blow to the clothing j manufacturing business, especially the ' tailoring trade, bootmakers and all j leather goods manufacturers and sail! and tent makers, to whom cotton substitutes are of little use. "All In" War Effort Urged. Apathy toward community service in time of crisis was deplored by speakers | at the New Plymouth Hospital when certificates of service were presented to members of the Voluntary Aid Detachment. Emphasising the need for more recruits to the ranks of the Voluntary Aid Detachment, Dr. C. A. Taylor, medical superintendent, said they heard j of women giving up a week of their | time to train, yet when others were asked to serve they said they could not because the summer sports season was approaching. "That," commented Dr. Taylor, "is a very deplorable state of affairs. Bombing may not come to this country, but a crisis of equal urgency may arise through an epidemic. We hope not, but we must be prepared for it, nevertheless." "I am a New Zealander born, but I feel ashamed of my country to-day." declared Archdeacon G. H. Gavin in comparing the difference between the attitude of the people in the Dominion and in England. In England to-day, he said, the atmosphere was electric. Everybody was united in a common danger, and there were no sectional differences". Everybody had a. job to do, and all, without class distinction, were working in friendly cooperation for the common good.