In the News

Southland Times, Issue 24823, 15 August 1942, Page 4

In the News

Collection of Rates

The amount received in rates at the City Council office yesterday was the second highest daily total since the collection of rates for 1942-43 began on August 3. The amount collected that day, £2079/9/10, is the highest to date. The total yesterday was £1825/14/9. The amount collected since August 3 is £13,903/12/-, compared with £8869 14/4 for the corresponding period last year, an increase of more than £5OOO. New Y.M.C.A. Hut

Permission has now been received from Wellington for the construction of a Y.M.C.A. hut at the Base Training Depot. It is expected that the work will be started shortly as a tender has already been let. The new hut will no doubt be greatly appreciated by soldiers and Y.M.C.A. workers, because since the depot was established the association has had to carry on its activities there in makeshift quarters. Visit by Minister

The Southland Council of Primary Production decided yesterday to, invite the Minister of Primary Production for War Purposes (the Hon. W. J. Polson) to visit Southland s(s soon as possible to discuss fertilizers and other questions. Mr G. Stevenson said the Minister had said he would like to visit the south in the near future.

Alert Taxi-Driver When Clifford Douglas Keane, aged 27, after being sentenced in the Supreme Court at Auckland made a dash for liberty on Thursday, it was stated that the police enlisted the services of a passing taxi-driver, who caught a glimpse of Keane. After the search the by taxi had been abandoned the driver was proceeding down Anzac Avenue when he saw K4ane entering a motorcar. The taxi-driver informed the car driver that he had an escaped prisoner in the car and advised to drive to the police station. It is understood Keane had rushed into a business premises stating: “I’ve had a motor accident and am suffering from concussion. Can someone drive me to the hospital?” One of the firm’s travellers entered at that moment and readily agreed to drive to the hospital. When warned he drove to the police station, a friend in the hack preventing Keane from leaving the car.—P.A.

Superphosphate Prices A price order issued by the Price Tribunal and Gazetted last night fixes the price of 44/46 superphosphate, sacks included, for delivery to South Island main centres as follows: To the user exclusively for wheatgrowing, £4/2/9 a ton; for any other purpose, £4/4/-; to a storekeeper, £4/1/10; to a merchant, dairy company or farmers’ organization, £3/18/6.—P.A.

Parcels for Soldiers A statement that everybody was fairly treated in the distribution of patriotic parcels is contained in a letter from the Middle East by Captain A. £■■ Yeoman, M.C., to his mother, Mrs M. Yeoman, of Taneatua. “You may have heard stories of unfair distribution or of wild orgies on the parcels of men who are too far away to know they have a parcel on the way,” he says, “but you can discount that as the vapourings of a distorted mind. There have been cases of men doing things they should not with parcels, but if and when caught they are very severely dealt with. Parcels in the mail addressed to a certain man go to his unit. If he is not there to receive it is given to his mates to be divided up. Parcels sent through the patriotic committees go to a certain organization we have here for dealing with them. The officer in charge of this unit is a man I know well. He was wounded in Crete and is now unfit for front-line service. It is his job to see that every man has a fair cut at whatever is sent in the way of gifts and he makes a good job of it.”