LOCAL AND GENERAL

Wairarapa Times-Age, 5 October 1938, Page 6

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Overseas Athletes. A tour ol the Dominion by Australian or other overseas athletes in 1940 was agreed upon by the council of the New Zealand Amateur Athletic Association last night. At the same time the Otago centre was granted permission to conduct its own tour by the Victorian athletes, Blackhcuse and Best, subject to the furnishing of an itinerary and details of other arrangements. The period indicated by Otago was September 14 to January 14. The president, Mr W. McVilly, was in the chair.

Optimist Club. A most interesting address on the Western States of America was given by a Mormon missionary, Elder A. M. Handy, at the weekly meeting of the Masterton Y.M.C.A. Optmist Club Club last night. Elder Handy traced the history of the Western States, and gave some interesting information about the scenic and industrial wonders of the territories. A hearty vote of thanks was accorded the speaker for his address. The final meeting of the club’s, season will be held next week, when' plans for next year will be discussed. Art Union Winners.

“It is the first time we have ever won anything like this,” said Mrs F. R. Heath, 30 Church Street. Ponsonby, one of the holders of the winning ticket in the “My Lucky Dream” Art Union, which was drawn in Wellington on Monday night. “We were not expecting it, and it came as a bit of a shock.” The second holder of the ticket was Mrs Carson, Sandringham, daughter of Mrs Heath. The ticket was purchased by Mrs Carson from a stationer in Ponsonby Road. “It came just at the right time,” continued Mrs Heath. “We are not certain what we will do with the money, but I think I will take a trip with my share.” Mrs Heath said she and her daughter had been taking a ticket in art unions regularly, but this was the first in which they had had any luck. A New Award.

A new award for metal workers’ assistants in the Wellington industrial district has been issued by the Court, of Arbitration. A 40-hour week - will constitute an ordinary weeks’ work, of which not more than eight hours may be worked on each day from Monday to Friday inclusive, and between the hours of 7.30 a.m. and 5 p.m. The award is to cover blacksmiths, strikers engineers, boilermakers, and moulderers’ assistants, machinists not covered by other awards, and range fitters, but will not cover workers employed in the measuring, cutting, bending, placing and shaping of steel for reinforced concrete. Wages are to be paid weekly and not later than Thursday. The minimum rate of wages has been fixed at 2s 7d an hour. Workers actually employed doing oxy-acetylene or any form of electric welding other than assisting, must be paid Is 6d a day extra. A wage scale has been drawn up for youths under 21 years of age. Imports and Exports.

A substantial fall in export values and indications of the decline in imports are the features of the overseas trade returns for August, issued yesterday by the Customs Department. Exports during August were valued at £3,823,000, as against £4,458,000 for the corresponding month of last year, a decrease of £635.000. Imports were valued at £5,063,000, as compared with £6,008,000 foi' August, 1937, a decrease of £945,000. They were, however, still £1,066,000 in excess of those for August, 1936. For the eight months of the calendar year ended August 31, exports were valued at £44,913,000, as compared with £51,382,000 for the corresponding period of last year, a decrease of £6,469,000, but were still £2,852,000 above those for the eight months of 1936. Imports for the latest eight months were valued at £36.783.000. as against £36,579,000 for the corresponding period of 1937, an increase of £204,000 and £9,346,000 in excess of those for the eight months of 1936. “There Will Be No War.” J

“There will be no war between the nations of Europe,” said an eighty-year-old Maori chief at Waitotara on Wednesday of last week at a time when the latest dispatches from London indicated the blackest of outlooks, says the “Taranaki Daily News.” How the old chief formed his prediction is an intriguing story of Maori lore. At the end of July, 1914, the planet Venus was in proximity to a crescent moon. As the nights passed the two came together until Venus appeared to move within an arc of the crescent. Almost immediately there followed a war that involved the world. For some nights this week the chief watched Venus and the crescent moon slowly coming together. Wednesday, he was aware, was the day on which the fate of the world would be decided. If Venus descended into the arc of the crescent, as in 1914, war between the nations was inevitable. Venus sank in the heavens —but the brightness of the planet shone from behind the shoulder of the moon. Choice of Rhodes Scholars. The reasons why few New Zealand Rhodes Scholars returned to the Dominion were discussed by the Rev. Marlin Sullivan, of Te Awamutu, at the Hamilton Rotary Club luncheon recently. He said one reason was that there was not sufficient scope or opportunity in New Zealand for men of outstanding ability! Mr Sullivan asked whether the best men were being chosen as Rhodes Scholars, and added that during the period from 1904 to 1928 only one or two of the selected candidates »ad proved to be exceptional for qualities of leadership. “It appears that Cecil Rhodes’s chief aim, the selection of men having exceptional qualities of moral worm and leadership has been overlooked.” said Mr Sullivan. There was also a weakness in the system under which the candidates were examined by the central selection committee in Wellington. A candidate who had all his goods in the front window in the form of an impressive personality had a better chance of selection than a more worthy but more retiring competitor. He knew several instances where the best men offering had not been selected.