NEWS OF THE DAY

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20054, 28 September 1939, Page 4

NEWS OF THE DAY

Tokata Native School Grant The Minister of Education, the Hon. P. Fraser, has advised Sir Apirasva Nga'ta that a grant has been approved for additional accommodation at the Tokata Native School.

Hillside Slipping Slips on the Coast main highway at the Sugarloaf and Kopuaroa hills have not occasioned much delay to traffic, but caution is advised when passing these points, for the hillsides are still liable to a creeping movement for some time after the rain ceases. This advice was made available to-day by the district engineer, Mr,, O. G. Thornton, who stated that there was no danger of the road being blocked.

Emergency Committee At the request of the Government, members of the general public and representatives of local bodies and associations in the Waikohu County are invited to attend a meeting to be held in the Parish Hall, Te Karaka, at 7.30 p.m. to-morrow. The meeting has been called to put into operation the emergency precaution scheme drawn up by the Government for rural areas.

Penguins at Kidnappers Cape Kidnappers is known throughout the Dominion as the home of the gannets, but the fact that the caves under the cliffs on the mainland are also a popular breedingground for penguins is not so widely known. The honorary ranger, Mr. D. G. Williams, has reported that .he had recently discovered a penguin sitting on eggs in one of the largest caves, and that was by no means an isolated case. This bird is being closely watched and, if it is possible to do so without disturbing it, he hopes to take several photographs, which should prove of interest to naturalists.

“Penalties Too Light” The opinion that the penalties usually imposed by magistrates for failure to carry warrants of fitness on motor vehicles were too light was expressed by Mr. R. P. Furness, Marlborough, at the annual conference of the South Island Motor Union in Christchurch. “A fine of 5s is imposed for failure to carry a warrant of fitness, but for riding a bicycle on the footpath or exceeding the parking limit a fine of 10s or more is imposed," he said. He contended that, considering the menace Of an imperfectly-equipped motor ear, a more rigid penalty should be favoured. New Coast School A single classroom open-air school is to be built shortly at Mihiwhetu, which is situated on a branch road that leaves the main East Coast highway 20 miles from Gisborne. On similar lines to other small schools built in the Hawke’s Bay Education Board’s district recently, the building will measure 32ft by 21ft Gin and will have a verandah 7ft wide covering the front of the school. On the sameside there will be large folding glass doors, which, when opened, will expose practically the whole of one side of the classroom to the fresh air. The classroom itself will measure 21 ft Gin by 24ft, while in addition there will be a cloak-room’ and a store-room. From the verandah there will extend a concrete assembly ground, 15ft by 33ft.

Cyclist Comes to Grief Cries of “Help! Help! I can’t stop!” and the sound of a crash on a footbridge just 'beyond the northern end of the Kaiti esplanade yesterday afternoon attracted the attention of a neighbouring resident, Mr. T. Kn'ox, who found that a cyclist had come to grief -at the bottom of the steep track. The cyclist, Mrs. Maude Ki.ppenberger, of 7 Albert street, was riding down the track on to the narrow footbridge when her brake failed to act. Her machine struck the railing and shp was thrown over the bridge to the creek-bed below. Mrs. Kippenberger suffered a severe gash on her leg, as well as abrasions. She was assisted from the creek by Mr. Knox and after being attended by a doctor was conveyed to the Oook Hospital. Her condition this morning was fairly comfortable.

Snap Decisions Snap decisions were made by the Minister of Public Works, the Hon. R. Semple, when he made a recent tour of inspection of Burnham military camp, Wigram aerodrome, and the coastal defences. “Two hundred boys died at Trentham last time because of bad camp conditions,” he said. “Th’at is not going to happen this time. Every road and pathway at Burnham will be tar-sealed in the summer. There will be no mud and slush this time.” Asked by military authorities for a railway loop into Burnham camp, Mr. Semple, after being told it was essential, gave immediate instructions for this part of the work to be carried out. When he realised that some men were living in tents at coastal defence stations, he gave instructions for more huts to be built next week. “This is a time for action, not words,” he said.

Praise for the Maori At the commemorative dinner celebrating the arrival of the pioneer sailing ship Tory at Petone, many tributes were paid to the courage and vision of the early settlers, but when Mr. Justice Blair proposed the toast of the Maori race he humorous-; ly challenged the justification for those tributes. He conceded that the voyage of the Tory was “quite a good performance," but he said it was a Cook’s tour. A far better performance was Kupe’s trip from Hawaiki, with no sextant but a calabash with a hole in it, and no chronometer but the skies. “That was a very much greater performance than that of any of you people who boast, and have been boasting all night, of what a wonderful performance it was taking the risk of coming to a country that was already settled by a very much better people than those who came to settle it,” said His Honour.