efforts he has made on ships to drift with the current towards the North Pole. "Never again," he said, "will I attempt the voyage by sea. This occasion means that I will get there by air.’’ A copy of the programme left with the Government authorities has underlined in red ink a part in which he states that he will land exactly at the Pole within 10 hours of setting out from Danskeof.
In an interview Captain Amundsen said: "I have all that can be desired in material, men, and money. My faith in my success is of the deepest. The journey may hold terrors in the rarefied atmosphere, of which the scientist explorer is unaware, and which may be insurmountable; but if I fail something will be added to the sum of human knowledge. If I succeed, a new vision may be opened to the world of a great new trade and passenger route laid round the neck of the earth."
Harry Holland’s tribute to PM
Reference to the illness of the Prime Minister was made by Mr H.E. Holland, Leader of the Parliamentary Labour Party, in an address at Ashburton on Tuesday night. No one more sincerely wished Mr Massey a speedy recovery than he, Mr Holland said, and men of political leanings would feel the same towards the Reform Leader.
Abe Munro welcomed back
In the men’s dining ball at Messrs R. Hudson and Co’s factory last night a smoke concert was held in honour of Mr H.G. Munro, the All Black, who is chief engineer at the factory.
Mr W.H. Hudson presided. Mr T.G. Brickell, in proposing the toast of "Our Guest," said that it seemed only a few weeks since they said farewell to Mr Munro. They had predicted that Mr Munro would be a credit to his province and that the team would uphold the honour of New Zealand.
They did not expect such a glorious record, but they knew that any team which left New Zealand would give a good account of itself, for if there were anything New Zealanders were fond of it was work and play. They had been greatly disappointed when they had heard of their guest’s accident. They had hoped that he would soon be able to play again, but, unfortunately, the injury had proved serious. The speaker would let them into a secret which had never been told before in New Zealand.
The captain of the team had said, "Abe, we want you to be fit for the tests. Look after your knee." Mr Munro had tried to look after it, but, at the first match, they had found him down on his knees praying for success. That made his knee worse. However, he had acquitted himself well. The speaker had been given to understand that some of the things Mr Munro had done had happened in the scrum, and nobody had seen them. (Laughter.) The All Blacks' record would never be beaten.
In conclusion, the speaker said that they were delighted to have Mr Munro back, and they trusted that he would be able to don the blue jersey this year. Mr Munro, in reply, gave a brief account of the tour.
Hospital shake-up likely
The public is an interested party in respect of any changes that may be brought about in the hospital system of the dominion. The attention which the system is receiving from the Board of Health and the Provisional Executive of the Hospitals Association seems likely to result in the formulation of some definite proposals to effect a change in familiar features of the system. With the emphatic verdict of the Board of Health against the subdivision of hospital districts it is easy to be in perfect concurrence. There are at present as many as forty-four hospital boards in the dominion. Of subdivision of hospital districts there has already been too much, and it cannot be reasonably disputed that, as the Board of Health affirms, it is amalgamation rather than division that is calculated to increase the efficiency of hospitals and promote public health. — editorial — ODT, 2.4.1925
Compiled by Peter Dowden
