HERE AND THERE IN NEW ZEALAND

Taranaki Central Press, Volume IV, Issue 309, 15 December 1936, Page 3

HERE AND THERE IN NEW ZEALAND

GLEANINGS OF DOMINION NEWS.

Crippled Children. A suggestion has been made that ithe control of the Wilson Home for 'Crippled Children, the gift of Mr and Mrs W. R. Wilson, following on Lord Nuffield’s gifts, should be taken over by the Auckland Hospital Board, the Auckland business men’s committee (having decided iChat the funds available are not sufficient to administer the home.

Air Service. A decision .to take no action in the meantime was reached by' the Council of the Dunedin Chamber of Commerce after consideration of a re-' quest by the Auckland chamber for support of its measures to obtain a one-day air service between Auckland and Dunedin. Mr A. W. Jeavons stated that he could see no advantage to Dunedin, and the only effect would be •that the air mail would arrive in Dunedin two hours later.

' Pocket Money. “I do think that parents should give .their hoys less pocket money. J .do not think they’ quite realise how much they do give them,” said the .retiring headmaster, the Rev G. McKenzie, in addressing parents at the prize-giving ceremony in connection with the Cathedral Grammar School, Christchurch, recently. “In the school’s own little tuck shop the boys. spend an average of one penny a day, and how much they spend in addition. at .the pictures and other tuck shops F don’t know,” he proceeded. “I alway’s thiqk that it is 'not generosity, but- only pride. You want the other boys with whom your boys! associate to think you are a little bit wealthier than their parents. This I is only inverted pride. I do wish y'ou could bring your boys up with a little more idea of. thrift and economy, and refrain from giving them so much pocket money. It is a constant source of trouble in every school.”

Industrial Efficiency. The chemists of New Zealand will be among the first industrial groups ito organise and plan their operations collectively' under the provisions of •the Industrial Efficiency Act. ;For some time they have been organising themselves in accordance with the recommendations of the Parliamentary committee which investigated their operations last session, and when their industry is brought within the scope of .the Industrial Efficiency Act there will be statutory power to enforce any approved scheme for economical and efficient conduct of .t|ie service they' give to the public.

League’s Work. “It was useful, encouraging, and entirely right to have our Dominion Government make a frank and courageous statement of the , principles on which the league rests,, and it was a great tonic .to those at Geneva at that tipie,” said Dr J. B. Condliffe, of the economic section of the League of Nations secretariat, when speaking in the Caledonian Hall, Christchurch, recently. Dr Condliffe said he had omitted reference to the League Covenant, because he did not consider it was the problem facing the league. While it was a good thing to have the fundamental principles restated, the problem lay in t,he foreign policies of the powers, great and small. The collective force of the . small powers, such as New .Zealand, was a powerful factor in shaping international . opinion. “Peace and war will be decided by what people think here and in other countries where their influence can be brought to bear.”

Empire Crisis. “Even we Hn New Zealand, far though we are from the scene, must take our share of the responsibility 'for the unsatisfactory political state of Europe” said Dr. J. B. Condliffe, when lecturing on the League of Nations in «the Caledonian Hall, Christchurch, recently. The Dominion Governments, he said,- must take the blame for the failure to make the league 'mandate system a reality, for it was they who had refused to allow the system to be developed to its normal completion. Had they acted differently the vexed question of colonies might now have been close to settlement through the impartial channels at Geneva. Another thing he attributed to the Dominion Governments was the addition of the “last Straw” in the reparation conditions imposed on Germany namely, by 'the inclusion of pensions in the amount to be paid, thus placing an insupportable and impossible burden on Germany,

On the Volcano’s Edge. When cycling home at midday on Saturday last, a Gisborne cy’clist noticed a case drop off the back of a lorry as the vehicle turned quickly out of one street -into another. On being stopped, the lorry-driver discovered to his consternation that it was a case- of gelignite that had fallen off. Although the case had broken open as a result of the crash on to ithe roadway the gelignite had remained intact, in its packing. The cyclist noticed that there was a second case on the back of the lorry.

England’s Child. New Zealand is the favoured child of England, among all her children, is the view of Professor H. G. Denham, who returned last week from a tour abroad. There were two reasons for this attitude, he said. The first was the extraordinarily fine reputation left by the New Zealand forces during and after the war. The second reason was that New Zealand .producers had -established such an excellent name right throughout England, The result was /that the Englishman had come to link up the name of New Zealand with everything that was best. Strangely enough' that extended even to the climate.

Music for the Blind. “I think that music is the most suitable profession or recreation for ■the blind, but they must make an I early start to cover all ihe ground,” said Mr Inglis Todd, a blind musician, in an address to the Timaru Rotary Club. Mr Todd said that apart from learning the notes, it was necessary for the blind, when studying music, to learn Braille, as it was impossible to progress far without such knowledge. The speaker said 1 that he had learned to play’ the card game of five hundred with the aid of Braille, and had progressed also with bridge, .the cards used being marked on the backs with the Braille system.

New Zealand Papers. The high standard of illustrations in New Zealand daily and weekly papers wap remarked, on by Mr Henry' Wisdom, of London, in an interview recently. Mr Wisdom said that he had had 60 years’ experience in illustration work on '[he “Illustrated London News” and the “Sphere.” The newspapers and periodicals published extremely good photographs, although naturally lack of a large circulation hampered them from improving St-ill further. Although the ■photographs were not as well produced as those in the British, papers, they compared more than favourably with those published in South African journals and periodicals. The subjects chosen -for photographs in the daily metropolitan newspapers in New Zealand were excellent, concluded Mr Wisdom.

Farm Labour. Discussing at Auckland the farm labour shortage,* the Minister of Labour (the Hon 11. T. Armstrong) said it seemed to him that farmers would have to train men for the jobs, but that course would not meet their present difficulties. It was suggested to him by some farmers that they should receive assistance from -the State to help them in their troubles; but that course would involve difficufties. His own opinion was that .the best assistance that could be given would be' to give farmers a better share of the guaranteed prices. If tthe present prices were insufficient, steps would have to be taken to remedy .the situation when the new season’s prices were under review. Hallowed Hotel. After having but one owner for 36 years, the Empire Hotel in Main

Street, Palmerston changed hands this week, Mr W. Devine •relinquishing it to Mr J. L. Bennett. It is stated that a very satisfactory price was paid for the building, which is one of .the most familiar landmarks of the city. The hotel occupies a site which was originally that of the first school in Palmerston North. The licensed premises were established in 1890 by Mr Dureen, so .that they have bec<n in existence there a little short of half a century. The building at first was one of 15 rooms, but it was extensively altered by Mr Devine in 1901 and 1907, and now has over 70 rooms. The purchaser has acquired the hotel and its site, but the remainder of the area itJiere, including the Empire Hall and surrounding land, remains in the ownership of Mr Devine.