Lessened Business.

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 1, Issue 191, 6 April 1932, Page 4

Lessened Business.

There can he hardly any doubt that the raising of the minimum letter postage to twopence has lessened the volume of post office business in New Zealand, says the Dunedin Star. The Postmaster-General will probably admit that as a fact should the question be raised in Parliament. In Dunedin many business firms and bodies replied at once when the increase took effeet by instituting methods of personal delivery to addresses within easy reach by messenger, and that practiee is beeoming more general as a measure of economy. No doubt it is the same in other centres. A suggestion emanating from Dunedin is that the existing system should be modified by the Stata to the extent of inaugurating penny postage locally within a prescribed radius of each chief post office, but so far that request has not taken definite form. Reminder of Tragedy. A mute reminder of the reeent tragedy in the Harman Pass was provided hy the blanket sleeping bag of Bernard Robbins, found by Canterbury Mountaineering Club climbers a few days ago. Robbins was the member of the party who fell over the cliffs. Members of the club had intended to erect a memorial cairn near the- scene of the tragedy, but found no suitabie place. Both the gorge and surroundings are swept hy avalanches.' Thefts from Orchard. Cases of thefts from an orchard at East Taieri are reported by the owner, whose livelihood partly depends on her profits from the crops. Recently a well dressed woman drove up to the orchard in a ' motor car, and calmly proceeded to help herself to the fruit, and even started to argue when the owner expostulated. Another time a party of motorists drove up to the house, and, while one of the members was at the door asking the owner the price of the apples, the others were busily filling a reeeptacle in the orehard. Other cases of despicable thefts have taken place in the same orchard, and the owner has been advised to take the numbers of the cars in future.