West Australian (Perth, WA : 1879 - 1954), Friday 9 April 1937, page 22


NEWS AND NOTES. 1 Warm temperatures over west and south-west coastal areas are forecast for today. The maximum shade temperature at the Perth Observatory-yesterday was tadio tismenrs' ences. During March the number of radio listeners' licences held in this State increased to 57,410. Altogether, 1,152 new lctoces were paid for and there were 2,754 renewals and 430 cancellations, representing an increase of 722. Ten new free licences were granted and 12 were renewed. SWFPs New Studios. The Perth manager of the Australian roadcasting Commission r. C. Charlton) announced yesterday that Perth national station (6WF) would commence broadcasting from the new studios at Stirling Institute, St. George's-terrace, on May 2. The official opening of the studios would take place at a later date. Tabour Day Proceeon. A decision to commemorate labour Day (May 3) by a street procession was made at last night's meeting of the Metropolltan Council of the Australian Labour Party. It was stated that a number of unions had signifled their support of the project. A committee of 15 members of the council was appointed to organise the processaion. tat-ears for This State. It was announced recently that a complete body and two of the five chassis for the Diesel electric car, ordered from England by the Railway Department some months ago, had been shipped on March 23. All were without engines, but a railway oficial stated yesterday that it was hoped that the engipe for the completed body would reach Premantle with the remaining three chassis, which were espected to be shipped from England in June. - Parkrg n ing's Park-rs..ad The Perth City Council is about to .spend £1,550 to provide a parking space on the northern side of King's Park-road, between Havelock and Thomas streets, a distance of a little over half a mile. The parding area will be between the footpath and the northern side of the road, and will serve tradesmen's vehicles and other cars which may be stopped in front of any of the residences in that seetien. The grolund selected for the parking area is now in a very unkempt condtn, overgrown with weeds in the winter and disfigured by dry grass in the summer. Unattractive Park Entrance. A proposal by the University of Westan Australia, that the section of Winthrop-avenue (formerly Ferdinand-street) between Stirling-highway and the Ctawley entrance to King's Park, a distance of about 230 yards, should be laid out attrasctively, is unlikely to be adopted by the Perth City Council unless the Subi co Municipal Council agrees to pay half of the cost. Winthrop-avenue runs north from the entrance to the University, and the boundary of the two municipalities Is on the western side of the road. The estimated cose of the work is £1,100, which the Bubiaco Municipal Council, it is understood, has declined to share. The King's Park Board has asked the Perth City Council, which had plans prepared in 1934, whether the work could be undertaken at an early date. The Vice-chancellor of the University (Professor H. E. Whitfeld) wrote to the council in November urging that something should be done to carry out the work. Visitors from overseas, he said, stopped to inspect the Hackett buildings on their way to Perth And many of them entered the city through Winthrop-venue and King's Park. The City Engineer (Mr. H. G. Atwell) reported that the plan that had been prepared for the layout of Winthrop-avenue was similar to that adopted in ?ing's Park-road. The cost would be £1,100, but as it was a boundary road the Sublaco Municipal Council should pay half. Winthrop-avenue is an unattractive place. It has a bumpy road that has been patched and is bordered by sand and scrub on each side. Gren Green Debunked. The romance associated with Gretna -Green marriages is severely handled in the report of Lord Morison's committee on Scottish marriage law, which has Just been issued in England. The re... port shows how a legend can be fostered uatil it becomes accepted tradition profitable to those who have a vested interest in it. Irregular marriages were stopped by law in England in the eighteenth century, but eloping couples often r ossed the border into Scotland, where marriage could still be contracted without serious formality. Gretna Green was one of the many places convenient for such ceremonies and there were several other ces In the town, including a public house under the sign of an anvil. The famous "smithy" was not among these, but in the 1890's a shrewd Scot built a "museum" and blacksmith's shop in Gretna Green for the express purpose of carrying on the marriage business tere. In 1932, it is stated, the income from this business amounted to over £2,000. The report points out that behind the romantic facade of Gretna Green marriages a very hinsatisfactors state of affairs exrists. As the "marrlages" are not preceded by notices norI followed, in many cases, by registration1 before a competent aoffimal, many of the contracting parties are left In the unataisfactory position of not bnowing whethe their marriages are valid or not, The report recommends a suppression of this marriage traffic by confining the " celebrrion of marriage to p-onerly qualtned offcials and by extending the righ to the princpal church bodes In Scotland.