NEWS IN BRIEF

Dominion, Volume 37, Issue 233, 29 June 1944, Page 6

NEWS IN BRIEF

Crash Landing

Two members of the Royal New Zealand Air Force engaged on a flying, training flight from a North Island air. station on Tuesday were slightly injured wheu their aircraft crash landed. 'they were Flying Officer Keith R. J. Coleman, D.F.M. Mrs. J. C. Coleman, 403 Eastbourne Street, Hastings (w.) ; and Pilot Officer, Kenneth J. Urwin. Mr. 11. J. Urwin. c/o Railways Department. Kaikobe, Bay of Islands (f.).

C. 0., Not O.C. “I am commanding officer ot the transport section, not the officer commanding, emphasized a New Zealand Army major when as a witness in the Magistrates Court. Wellington, yesterday, he was being cross-examined.

The Length of the Straight. When Mr. B. J. Jacobs, president, asked committees to report 'progress at the annual N.Z.R.S.A. conference yesterday, Mr. D. W. Russel) (Christchurch) replied that his committee was “coming up the straight.” Mr. Jacobs: "But it s a mug straight at Riccartou.”

Dummy Guns. A quantity- of timber in Auckland made up as dummy guns is being offered for sale bv the Army Department. An advertisement to this effect attracted attention and many readers made inquiries as to the purpose of dummy guns in wood. Their value for camouflage is web known.

His Best Prospect. “At least one person seeking a home is enterprising,” said the mayor of Auckland, Mr. Allum, in telling members ot the Auckland Rotary Club recently about the bousing problems brought to him. “When he called on me he told me that he did not bother about ‘To Let’ advertisements in the newspapers—be followed the obituary notices.” Tram and Car Collide. At 8.30 last night a Karori-bound tram leaving the stop opposite the Cenotaph collided with a sedan motor-car. Hie vehicles were travelling at a modeiate pace and the car received only superficial damage. Having been detached from the tram bumpers, it was driven away.

Gifts to Church Missions. An anonymous gift of £l4OO has been received by the missions committee of the Presbyterian Church of New Zealand, to be devoted to the mission activities ot the church. The committee has also received a gift of £6OO for the reduction of the debt on the Turakina Maori Gins College. More Rabbit Trappers. With the high prices for rabbit carcases and skins there has been a big increase in the numbers ofJ r . a PP cr s opiating on the Canterbury Plains with the result that there are fewer rabbits about now than there were at this time last year, stated the superintendent of the Selwyn Plantation Board’s reserves, in his annual report to the board.

Bluff Oysters Scarce. The Bluff oyster fleet has been severely handicapped by the stormy conditions prevailing in Foveaux Strait during the past fortnight, and consequently oysters are now in short supply in Invercargill. No oysters have been sent to northern centres for some time. The fleet had only one and a-half days’ trawling last week.

Minimum of Agencies. An ex-member of the 2nd N.Z.E.1., Mr. T G .Taylor (Wellington) at the K.&.a. Dominion conference yesterday advised against having too many committees dealing with ex-servicemen. Ihey did not want to reach a stage where it would be necessary to have an information bureau to direct an ex-soldier to the right one of a number of committees. The men ot the present war had had their fill of that sort of thing without .wishing for more when they resumed civilian life.

Frost and Sunshine. "As the days begin to lengthen , the cold begins to strengthen,’’ runs an old rhyme in which there is more than a grain of truth. Colder weather invariably follows the winter solstice, due to the Cooling of the earth, and the expansion, of snow-covered areas on the highlands. So far the coldest morning experienced in Wellington this winter was last Sunday, when 6 degrees of frost were recorded at Kelburn. There was another frost yesterday morning, when 3 degrees were recorded. A cloudless, windless day of brilliant sunshine followed.

Inauspicious Start. His first introduction to the It.b.A. was to be hooted off the platform at an early post-war returned soldiers meeting in Wellington, said Mr. Perry M.L.G., when acknowledging the gold badge ot life membership bestowed by the Dominion council of the N.Z.R.S.A. yesterday. This occurred, said Mr. Perry, when he spoke against a proposal to march - on Parliament grounds. However, he stuck it out, eventually became Wellington president and then New Zealand president for eight years till he resigned on being appointed a Minister. He recalled 1926-27 when the New Zealand membership shrank to under 7000; today it was nearly 54,000.