NEWS OF THE DAY

Evening Post, Volume CXXII, Issue 36, 11 August 1936, Page 8

NEWS OF THE DAY

Hutt Park Rates. Agreement to pay its share of the rates on Hutt Park, amounting to £58 13s 2d, was reached at the meeting of the Petone Borough Council last evening, on the recommendation of the finance "committee. It was said that last year Petone decided to pay its share of the rates on Hutt Park, pro-, vided other local bodies did the same. Councillor D. M. Dickson was the only dissentient. , All the Difference. : "I think we'll toast the dairy farmer," said a well-known Papakura man, who was in the chair at a function on Tuesday evening (reports the "Auckland Star"). "When he gets Is 3d alb for his butterfat he'll be in the box seat," he added. Just then one of the company, who had rushed out to inquire what the guaranteed price was, came in breathless. "Mr. Chairman, the price is one shilling and 9-16 d," he saidi "Gee whizz!" exclaimed the disappointed one, "I think we'll make it three minutes' silence." Hutt Baths Custodianship. The conditions under which . the Lower Hutt Borough Council is" calling for applications for a baths custodian were criticised by Councillor P. Dowse at. last night's meeting of the council. He alleged that the conditions were such that suitable persons would not apply. It was not so much that the sum of £7 was too little for a custodian and his wife, but that the hours of work were too long. It might pay the council to pay less and provide more assistance. Under present conditions the custodian might be required to work 80 hours a week. (The Mayor: "Nonsense.") The Mayor (Mr. J. W. Andrews), in reply, said there were many weeks when the custodian would not work 20 hours, and all wet days were free days for the custodian. The committee had carefully investigated the question and had ascertained what was done in other places and he was sure the conditions were as good as in any other place and better than most. Woman Football Secretary. The only woman secretary of a football association in New Zealand is Miss Margaret Way, of New Plymouth, who recently assumed the responsibilities of looking after the affairs of the Taranaki Football Association when the former secretary retired. Appreciation of Miss Way's keenness was expressed by members of the Council of the New Zealand Football Association when at their meeting last night, a letter was received from her advising the council of her new position. She said she was taking the place of Mr. G. Littlejohn and that Mr. L. W. Sturmey had been appointed president in place of Mr. T. Smith. •, Both of the retiring officials, had rendered yeoman service, she said, and the council decided to send them letters of, appreciation. Petone Council Hours.,. When the 40-hour week comes into operation after September 1 the Petone Borough Council office will be closed on Saturday mornings, but the hours on other' days will be extended from 4.30 to 5 p.m. When this matter was brought up at the meeting of the Petone Borough Council last evening, Councillor J. Cumming stated that the closing of the office on Saturday mornings might cause a certain amount of inconvenience to the public The Mayor (Mr. A. Scholefield) said the object of the legislation was to give staffs the whole of Saturday free. The Town Clerk (Mr. H. Firth) stated that the council's action would be much appreciated by the staff. Visibility of Traffic. The works committee of the Lower Hutt Borough Council reported last evening that it had investigated the question of the visibility, of traffic approaching the Lower Hutt Bridge from Victoria Street and was of the opinion that as the speed in the locality was restricted to 15 m.p.h., there was no necessity for altering the parapet or the bridge. .Councillor Rainey said he agreed with the report, but considered that a danger existed at the eastern approach in regard to traffic coming off the bridge and proceeding down Ward Street. The Mayor said that if the bylaw was observed there would be no danger. No action was taken. ; Petone Rugby Gymnasium. The Petone Borough Council decided last evening, on the recommendation of the reserves committee not to sell or lease the land opposite the premises of General Motors to the Petone Rugby Football Club for the purpose of erecting a new gymnasium Councillor J. Huggan said that the council might need the land in the future for reserves purposes. It was felt also that the nearness of the gymnasium to North Park might mean that Rugby players would dominate the park, to the detriment of olher codes.

Stellin Cup for Acrobatics. From a field of senior pilots of the Wellington Aero Club SquadronLeader G. L. Stedman has awarded the winning points in the annual aerobatics competition for the Stellin Cup to Mr. E. Livermore, 71 points. Mr. R. Couchman gained second place with 67 points, and Mr. A. Morphy ran a close third with 66 points. Two members of the club, Messrs. G. Martin and C. Feme, secured their licences as pilots in tests conducted by FlightLieutenant T. Denton, of the Royal New Zealand Air Force. Objection to Census. It was impossible to tell exactly how many people there were in the countries over which the Anglican Bishopric in Jerusalem had juriscfiction, said Dr. I G. F. Graham-Brown, Anglican bishop there, in a sermon at St. Matthew's Church, Auckland, on Sunday (reports the "New Zealand Herald"). Certain of 1 the Arabs, who formed a large proportion of the population, objected to being numbered, and so a census of them could not be taken. Describing the climatic peculiarities of Palestine, Dr. Graham-Brown said it was possible to j find even when there was snow in Jerusalem that in the Jordan' Valley, three-quarters of an hour away, ■ the climate was still sub-tropical. Duties of Drivers. "If you would take such a risk when rounding a bend, you had better not come before me," said Mr. E. D. Mosley, S.M., in the Magistrate's Court today to a passenger who was justifying the course taken by his driver in swinging to the incorrect side of the road in taking a bend. "The Motor Regulations must be strictly interpreted, otherwise we will never reduce the big casualty list," continued Mr. Mosley. There was a special duty upon drivers in taking, bends at 3 o'clock in the morning as they thought they had all the road to themselves. Cars come on tl/j intersection in a matter of seconds. The law was framed in such a way that drivers could be charged with driving in a manner that might have, been dangerous whether in the circumstances it was dangerous or not. Traffic Blockages. During the last few Sundays traffic blockages have occurred on the Lowry Bay Road and in other parts" of the road in that vicinity owing to motorists parking on both sides of the road in order to see fishermen pull in their nets. With over a hundred cars drawn up in a comparatively short stretch of road, and two streams of cars trying to pass down the middle, it does not take long for a traffic blockj age to develop, especially as the road is not a wide one. The services of a traffic inspector on this particular stretch of road during weekends is an urgent need. Whippet Racing-. Evidence has been supplied to the Lower Hutt Borough Solicitor with a view to taking action against the parties responsible for holding a whippet race meeting in the borough on i Sunday, August 2, a permit for a meeting on that date having been refused. The bylaws committee advised the council last night that it had refused a permit for a meeting on August 16. Celebrating the Centennial. A review of the arrangements made to date to celebrate New Zealand's centennial in 1940 was given by the Mayor (Mr. A. Scholefield) at the meeting of the Petone Borough Council last evening, but councillors did not favour the proposal that pieces of statuary should be erected. Councillor J. Huggan expressed strong disapproval of statues as memorials, and Councillor R. W. Toomath said that one had only to travel through the country to realise that many of the war memorials were mistakes. He favoured the erection of a clock tower in Buick Street. The Mayor said that the landing of the 'early settlers on the Petone beach should certainly be recognised by a memorial. ; , • "When the Minister Gets to Work—" A motorist whose car was described as being in a dilapidated state was given a warning by Mr. E. D. Mosley, S.M., in the Magistrate's Court today. "You know what to expect in the future," said Mr. Mosley. "When the Minister of Transport gets to work, look out!" Money for Rabbitskins. A cheque for a surprising amount for the sale of rabbitskins was displayed the otherdayby a large land owner cf Whatawhata, who explained that as a man and two boys on his property had j nothing of importance to do, he put them to work rabbiting (states the "New Zealand Herald"). In ten days they caught over 1060 rabbits by poisoning them, and with their skins averaging Is 2£d each, a cheque was received for £64 13s Id. This result was achieved'in 10 days with a great deal of broken time on property that was not considered) by rabbiters to be overrun with the pests. "The unemployed are always complaining that they cannot earn money," he commented. "This is one way, in which, if they were ■ energetic enough, they would make some healthy cheques."