LOCAL AND GENERAL

Chronicle (Levin), 5 March 1946, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Marriages Increase 'liit; vitai statistics recorded at Levin by the registrar (Mr. H. J. Henderson) for' February were as follnwf, the fienires for the same month of 1945 being given in j j parentheses : Births 12 (4), deaths j 16 (7), marriage licenses 10 d), and ; marriages by registrar 1 (nil) . Methodist Guild Ihe Levin Methodist Ladies' i Guild held its monthly meeting recently, Mrs. A. C. Kennerley presiding. The proceedings opened ; with a singing of a hymn, followed : 'oy a scripture reading and prayer. J Arrangements were finalised for the garden party and a missionary letter was read by Mrs. V. Hudson. Afte1 ncon tea. served by Mesdames ; Tomlinson and Plaster, concluded j the gathering. "The Mother Parliament" "Parliament in Britain is affec- j tionately known as the Mother j Parliament. From some of the j names I have heard Parliament in New Zealand ealled, I have often j wondered whether the Mother Par- , iiament was ever married," declared the Dominion president of the N.Z.R.S.A. (Mr. B. J. Jacobs) , amidst. laughter, when proposing a toast to "New Zealand Pe^ar-^nt" at the civic luncheon to Sir Patrick Duff, K.C.B., K.C.V.O., High Commis- ! uoner for the United Kingdom in the Dominion, and Lady Duff, held in Palmerston North yesterday. Supply of Gumboots XXA.U-LlGL4v^Tl ,o generally will | be in limited supply until the world j production of rubber and cotton fabrics returns to normal, the quan- ' tity available this year is likely to oe larg^r than during the war ; years, says Consumer News. Import : iicences are being issued to permit the importation from Canada of an I estimated total of 25,000 pairs of i children's gumboots. It is not 1 expected that the present restriction • on the sale of adult's gumboots will be lifted until supplies i exceed the needs of essential users [ such as farm and industrial work- | ! ers.

j 20,000 Telephones Wanted I About 20,00.0 people in the Dom- \ inion at present want telephones. j Indications are that many of them j nave to wait for some tyme ! yet owing to the shortage of I exchange switching equipment, | telephones and skilled traciesmen. to ' instalL the equipment. - Preference 1 is, of course, being given to those who urgently require telephones, and fariners and business people have priority. Where there is no congestion on an exchange resi- . dential subscribers will be connectI ed as soon as more telephones are available. Ail our telepnones and most of the exchange switching equipment have to be imported from overseas. During the war the urgent demands of the Armed Services meant that the manufacture of telephone equipment for civil use wao not possiole. The shortage which has resulted, therefore, will oaxe time to overcome. However, the necessary supplies have been Oxdered, ana ail ehorts are being nade to obtain them as soon as possible. Honey Prospects Some disuiou. in New Zealand are likely to be well supplied with noney this season, says Consumer News. In Canterbury the crop, when reported on half-way through •he season, gave promise of being the heaviest for some years. Other districts, however, such as Auckland, Waikato, Manawatu and Marlborough, reported only average nrospects; while Nelson and the East Coast of the North Islanc xji jmised a very light harvest owing to continued dry weather. During the war years beekeepers' were required to send a large proportion of their honey to the Internal Marketing Division blending plant in Auckland. This provided a pool from which military and overseas calls could be met, and whatever was left distributed through the less-wjfljsupplied areas in New Zealand.' Now that this war-time controk has- beeen lifted it is uncertcin how much honey beekeepers will choose to supply to the blending plant rather than sell in their own areas.

Hospital Domestics becamp The domesuic staif crisis resulting from the, lifting of declarations of essentiality became acute in thei Marlborough Hospital Board's institutions on Friday. At the Holmdale Maternity Home- the whole domestic staft left, and the home is now being staffed by Women's fnstitute volunteers. At the nurses' home at the Wairau Hospital nine of 11 domestics left, and volunteers are also meeting this demand. At Wairau Hospital itself there have been no defections, but the hospital has been contending with a serious staff shortage for many months, and there is no sign of-the position being relieved. A largelyattended meeting of 22 women's organisations, convened by the Red Cross Society, agreed to make every effort to provide relief staffs. Machinery for this has been established for work on the basis of three-hour shifts from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.