WELLINGTON TOPICS

Hokitika Guardian, 8 October 1928, Page 2

WELLINGTON TOPICS

DAYLIGHT SAVING STILL IN THE AIR. (Special to “Guardian”.) WELLINGTON, .October 4. At the time, ofojwritmg there still is talk of sorne forSi ofsVday!ight saving” during tlie’ approaching summer being instituted hefeye 'the prorogation of •porters of permanent legislation oh this subject are not particularly thrilled however by some “half loaf” mcnsp-i-e/dxMiigCoffered to them. They a" local option system lini i ted to ex tension of ‘‘Summer being of much less val than was the full hoiitfwopld prejudice their efforts, Hp : 4ei'ure . a" permanent national system:! next year. They regard it, '.indeed, sop to Cerberus tlnown put; witli the object of weakening the, i demapd ( * fori the larger concession. Witli these daylight savers it is the hole hog or nothing ’at all. Meanwhile there/ are a considerable number of employers, however, who are facilitating a’ half-hour system, by which their employees will begin work at half past-eight in the morning and be free at half past four in the afternoon-. na , ■

RAGGED TACTICS.—That both the friends of the Reform Party and the friends of the Labour Party are considerably perturbed by the' recent consolidation of the United: Party may be judged from the!derisive anonymous letters that are appearing in their respective • newspapers. , ‘.“'When I got along there,” a writer says in describing a visit to the United quarters,' “I naturally asked my old Liberal friends; but the youth in charge did not seem to know what I. wanted—appeared never to hare seen or heard of a true Liberal in his short span of life. I asked for information, but all 1 eould gather was that all the Liberals seemed to have left the show. First the chairman of the executive and the Wellington organiser, both Liberal, had retired.some time ago, so he said; the secretary (another Liberal) had resigned. ” And so op and ‘so on. : Such effusions are not yery-edifying; but they appear to be passing for humour in many quarters jpst now. . , -

OPTICIANS AND OCULIST. —The Hon. J. A. Young, the Minister of Health, is. to lie congratulated upon having piloted through the House of Representatives a Bill which discrimi-nates,-between ppth-i’aiis and oculists. New Zealanders, -are. among the most bespectacled,.nsbpjq. -in the world, and this probably .is tp the fact; that coniparativ-eTy'; adequate car® of’‘their'.eyes. Li-mov-ing the sepphd- reading of his Bill Mr. Young said that some " members of the medical profession seemed to have misgivings concerning the recognition extended to opticians. They Were under a misapprehension, however as. to the nature of the measure. The opticians admitted frankly that they were not qualified .to deal with diseases of the eye, and the purpose of the new legislation was to make a distinction between the two professions. It made it an offence for any person other than a medical practitioner to describe him self as an oculist. The Bill is before the Legislative Council to-day and in due course will confirm the contentions of its author.

“SNOBS.”'—Wellington is tatting some little interest in the c-omroversy that is going, on ‘in G'uiatehurch in regard to the'desecration of Cathedral Bq aare by the erection of what a section of citizens regard as undesirable buildings. The controversy has’' prevoked the Mayor into referring to the protestants as ‘snobs’ and the “Post” has taken the reverend gentleman to task. “The private individuals may be right,” it says. “They have at least, the right to submit their views and to use whatever legal remedies they can. It is always open to the Council to test public opinion by a poll. The Labour majority,of the Christchurch Council, however, has declined to do this,. though the refusal appears at variance with Labour professions. In 'view of these facts it is not wise 'forthe Mayor to designate the opponents ias ‘snobs’ obsessed with their own supeKjMptyv” Occasional visitors from the NiirtK:'-who in many cases have a- warme appreciation of the beauties City than have its' <%it bpeojde} are unanimously with tlie bsimbsL '