LOCAL AND GENERAL

Wairarapa Times-Age, 31 March 1939, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Doing Without Luxuries.

Discussing import restrictions in the Municipal Social Hall last night, Mr. J. Robertson, M.P., said, ‘‘ln the second six months I think there will be certain luxury lines which New Zealand will have to do without. The people, however, will not be left without necessities.”

Bicycle Allowance not Favoured. Because the liability of cyclist to accidents was greater than that of pedestrians, the Road Safety Council decided yesterday to oppose the granting of allowances by the Education Department to children riding bicycles to school.

No Compulsion. Mr. J. Robertson, M.P., told a meeting of constituents last night that as far as the Government was concerned there was no compulsion under the Social Security Act for employees to retire on reaching the age of sixty. The Government had no intention of interfering with the policy of local bodies on the question of retirement. Facial Eczema Outbreak. An officer of the grassland research station in Palmerston North is at present in the Gisborne district investigating a number of cases of -facial eczema among sheep. Contrary to the usual experience, the disease has made its appearance during a dry spell; no rain has fallen in the district for some time. Minister Suggesed as Chairman. Moved by the example of the Wheat Board, a section of the poultry industry desires that a Cabinet Minister be ■appointed chairman of the New Zealand Poultry Board. A Waikato remit, carried at the annual conference of the New Zealand Poultry Producers’ Federation in Wellington yesterday, asked the Government to consider making such an appointment. Ruins of Fire Smoulder.

Nearly 48 hours after fire broke out in the liftwell and rapidly spread to all parts of the building, debris in the ruins of Victoria House, Wellington, was still smouldering at 5 p.m. yesterday. Though many premises in the affected area resumed business yesterday and traffic was permitted to pass through Victoria Street at intervals, the Wellington Fire Brigade was constantly on duty and hoses were kept ready for any emergency.

Superior Knowledge? When welcoming the speaker for the day, Dr. C. D. Wilkins, at yesterday’s Rotary Club luncheon, the president, Mr H. H. Daniell, referred with pleasure to the fact that Dr. Wilkins’s parents resided ip Carterton. In acknowledging the welcome, Dr. Wilkins said he was glad Mr Daniell had mentioned Carterton as he was under the impression that the geography of the Masterton people did not extend further than south of the Waingawa bridge. Mr Daniell: “No, the Taratahi.” “Wfell,” replied Dr. Wilkins, “I will bow to your superior knowledge.” Fatal Motor Accidents. Since August, 1938, 111 fatal accidents had occurred in New Zealand, 126 persons being killed, stated a report on accident statistics submitted to yesterday’s meeting of the New Zealand Road Safety Council in Wellington. Twenty-eight of the 111 accidents occurred in the South Island and 83 in the North Island. Forty-seven of the accidents occurred at night and there were 56 fatalities, of which 18 were pedestrians, during hours of darkness. Seventy-eight of the total of 126 had been killed on the open road and 48 in towns. Liquor was known to have, been present in 22 of the accidents. Sacred Baboon Born. After the arrival of a baby son, there is an air of jubilation in the cage of the sacred baboons at the Auckland Zoo. The parents are extremely proud of the healthy youngster, which is probably the first of its species born in New Zealand. The event has wrought a marked change in the father. Formerly he was rather a bad-tempered fellow, who treated his spouse in a disgraceful manner. He was selfish, and when visitors offered delicacies through the bars he would chase his wife to the top of the cage so that he could gobble up everything himself. Now he has reformed. He regards his wife most affectionately, and even goes to the extent of handing her portions of his own meal at feeding time. Often he becomes very excited and ranges up and down the side of the cage, jeering exultantly at his neighbours, the drill and the mandrill, which have no family.

Rear Lights on Bicycles.

The question whether bicycles should be equipped with a red rear light instead of a reflector was discussed at yesterday’s meeting in Wellington of the Road Safety Council. The report of the subcommittee set up to consider the matter stated that there was insufficient evidence to justify an alteration, but that it was desirable that cyclists should be encouraged to fit rear red lights in addition to reflectors, and that the regulations should be more strictly enforced. The statistical records of road accidents compiled by the Transport Department indicated that while during the year ended March 31, 1938, there were 997 collisions between motor vehicles and bicycles, 274 of these occurring at dusk or after dark, in only nine instances was the lack of a reflector or the use of an inefficient one reported as a cause of accident.

Profit on Wheat.

A remit requesting the Government -to hand back to the industry the profits they are making on Australian feed wheat and barley and Java maize, of which they are the sole importers, instead of passing such profits on to the Consolidated Fund,” was adopted at the annual conference of the New Zealand Poultry Producers’ Federation in Wellington yesterday. The president of the federation, Rev W. F. Stent (Carterton) said there was a very strong suspicion that someone was making money by hoarding grain in this country. That should be cleared up one way or the other. The chairman of the Poultry Board, Mr A. E. Knowles, said he had been informed by a merchant that wheat in Australia could be bought at 3/4 a bushel, and the cost of bringing it to New Zealand was about 1/3 a bushel. A comparison of the landed cost here with what poultry producers' had to pay would show what profit the Government was making. When the price was fixed at 6/4 in the slings the price of Australian wheat was stated to be 5/4. When the price in Australia dropped considerably no offer was made to return some of the profits to the poultry industry.