JUNE 6.] THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE. 1579

MINISTER'S DECISIONS UNDER CUSTOMS ACTS—continued.

Minister’s Order No. 7.] GEO. CRAIG, Comptroller of Customs.

Notice to Mariners No. 28 of 1929.

Marine Department,
Wellington, N.Z., 30th May, 1929.

A TTENTION is drawn to paragraph (4) of Notice to Wireless Telegraph Operators, No. 3 of the Year 1929, issued by the Board of Trade, London, 14th March, 1929; a copy of which is published hereunder for general information.

G. C. GODFREY, Secretary.

BOARD OF TRADE NOTICE TO WIRELESS TELEGRAPH OPERATORS.

No. 3 OF 1929.

(Masters are responsible for the supply of these Notices to Wireless Operators; and wireless operators should see that a complete file of current notices is kept in the wireless office and should ask the master to procure copies of any missing notices.)

(4.) MISUSE OF THE DISTRESS SIGNAL.

Attention has been drawn to difficulties which are being experienced through the misuse of the distress signal by vessels which, though not in imminent danger, have utilized the S O S signal for the purpose of obtaining tugs or other assistance.

The use of the distress signal S O S except in cases of imminent danger, in which immediate assistance is necessary, may result in insufficient attention being paid to really urgent calls, in the belief that they are sent out by vessels not in any real danger.

Where the transmission of the distress signal is not fully justified use should be made of the urgency signal (X X X).* This signal has priority over all other communications except distress, and should be quite sufficient for the purpose of obtaining assistance by means of tugs, &c.

Mercantile Marine Department,
Board of Trade, London, S. W. 1.
14th March, 1929.

• The urgency signal is defined and its uses described in Article 19 of the “International Radio-telegraph Convention of Washington,” 1927; and in section 103 of the “Handbook for Wireless Telegraph Operators licensed by His Majesty’s Postmaster-General,” as follows :—

103. (a) The urgency signal consists of several repetitions of the group X X X, sent before a call. Care must be taken to separate distinctly the letters of each group and the successive groups. The signal indicates that the station calling has a very urgent message to transmit concerning the safety of—

(i) The station which sends it, or
(ii) A station within sight, or
(iii) A person on board, or
(iv) A person within sight.

(b) In the aircraft service the signal P A N is used as the urgency signal by either radio-telegraphy or radio-telephony, when an aircraft wishes to give notice of damage which compels the aircraft to land without requiring immediate assistance. In radio-telegraphy the three letters must be well separated so that the letters A N are not transmitted as P.—(R. 19. 22(1).)

(c) The urgency signal has priority over all other communications except those of distress, and all ship, aircraft, or coast stations which hear it must avoid interference with the urgent message.—(R. 19. 22(2).)

(d) As a general rule the urgency signal may only be employed in a call from a ship or aircraft station to a specific station.—(R. 19. 22(3).)

(e) Ship stations which hear the urgency signal must listen for a period of three minutes. If at the expiration of this period no urgent message has been heard, ship stations may resume their normal service.—(R. 19. 23(1).)

(f) Nevertheless, coast stations and ship stations which are in communication on authorized waves other than that used for the transmission of the urgency signal and of the call which follows it, may continue their normal work without interruption.—(R. 19. 23(2).)

(g) The urgency signal may be used only on the authority of the master or person in command of the ship or aircraft station.—(R. 19. 24.)

(M. 25/2227.)

Incorporated Societies Act, 1908.—Declaration by the Assistant Registrar dissolving a Society.

I, HAROLD BEANLAND WALTON, Assistant Registrar of Incorporated Societies, do hereby declare that, as it has been made to appear to me that the Albert Club (Incorporated) is no longer carrying on its operations, the aforesaid society is hereby dissolved in pursuance of section 28 of the Incorporated Societies Act, 1908.

Dated at Auckland, this 28th day of May, 1929.

H. B. WALTON,
Assistant Registrar of Incorporated Societies.

Officiating Ministers for 1929.—Notice No. 15.

Registrar-General’s Office,
Wellington, 4th June, 1929.

P URSUANT to the provisions of the Marriage Act, 1908, the following names of Officiating Ministers within the meaning of the said Act are published for general information :—

The Presbyterian Church of New Zealand.
Mr. Robert Ashton.

The Church of Christ.
Mr. William Campbell.

The Assemblies of God in New Zealand.
Mr. J. M. Roberts.

The Apostolic Church.
Mr. Alexander Wright.

W. COOK, Registrar-Genera