Local and General

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 2, Issue 107, 8 January 1940, Page 4

Local and General

Summer Weather. After a period of intensely sultry weather Whakatane has been experi encing the real Summer variety, beautifully sunny (lays and fairly cool nights being the order. "Echelon" " 'Echelon'! That word annoys me," said the Minister of Justice, Hon. H. G. R. Mason, who passed through Whakatane on Friday. "There seems to be no sense in it and there is ecrtainly no justification for its use." No Comment. The Minister of Justice, Hon. 11. G. 11. Mason, was asked about the dismissal of Mr J. A. Lee from his position as Under-Secretary lor Housing. "The Hon. Walter Nash made a statement," said the Minister, "and Mr Lee published an explanation. There is nothing I can add to those two statements."

Rainfall at Edgecumbe. The rainfall at Edgeeumbc during December measured 4.32 inches against 4.72 inches for the same month in 1938. The total fall for 1939 was 43.92in5, barely two-thirds the fall for the year before when 66.32 -were registered. The wettest year occurred /in 193G when rain measured 74.98 inches. The driest twelve months was in 1939. A Lucky Strike. A half sovereign bearing the date 1856 was dug up in his garden by a Wailtiwi resident. As he was turning over a shovelful of soil he noticed a small brown object, which lie cleaned and examined, but could not determine what it was. However, it was not long before he was assured that he; had found a half sovereign. An offer of £1 for it was rejected. Many Births. During the last quarter of 1939 there were eight marriages, three deaths, and 34 births registered at the Te Puke Post Office registration department. A comparison with figures for the other quarters of the year shows that there were twice as many births during the last three months as in any other quarter in the year. There were fewer deaths last quarter, the most being during January, February and March with six. In the second quarter there were five, and in the third quarter four. An increase in marriages over last quarter which only had three is also shown, the highest number being in April, May and June, with 11 recorded, and eight in the first three months of the 3 7 ear.

Hundreds in Bathing. The week-end saw hundreds of bathers making the best of the fine settled weather, by enjoying a dip in the brinev. At the Heads yesterday there were a surprising number of children, while the Ohope foreshore near the motor camp was literally black with people. A Warm Tribute. A visiting party of motorists from Wellington are loud in their praises of Whakatane, its environs and particularly Ohope Beach. Mr V. H. Tourell one of the pa rty, stated that the beauties of the beach were a definite revelation to him and he regretted that he had not heard of the place before when lie would most assuredly have visited it. Ohope Beach in his estimation was deserving of far greater publicity. Good Shipments. The Northern Steamship Company's Clansman arrived at 2 p.m. on Friday with a cargo comprising benzine and general goods. Some benzine drums and sundries had to be left when the vessel sailed on Saturday afternoon as a full cargo was shipped. A particularly large consignment of dairy produce, 55M7 boxes of butter, 523 crates of cheese and 25 bales of wool, made up the bulk in the holds and 350 benzine drums added to the shipment. Just Follow the Trail. A Rotorua motorist returning from Maketu recently noticed a shoe lying in the middle of the road a short distance on the Rotorua side of Paengaroa. He stopped and picked it up, and continued on his way. Within the next seven or eight miles, however, a four-gallon petrol drum, a funnel and pipe for filling purpose, another four-gallon drum, and a bundle of tent Hies were found on the road. It transpired that the articles had been dropped from a motor car going in the opposite direction. They had slipped from the luggage carrier one by one unnoticed by the occupants of the car.

Displays of Flowers. Freshened by the rain at Christmas. the gardens of Whakatane are presenting bright displays. Last year, when a particularly dry spell was experienced at this time the growth was not good. Now the majority of gardens are extremely at- | tractive. Vespers Cargo. Arriving at 2 a.m. on Friday, Messrs Parry Bros' Vesper brought a cargo of benzine and general merchandise and sailed again at 2 p.m. with wool, benzine drums and general. Included in the deck cargo was the Auckland-owned sedan car which was involved in the accident on the Ohope road on Wednesday afternoon. The trailer was also aboard. Dinner for a Crowd. Some idea of the quantity of provisions needed to provide dinner for the large crowd present at the Maketu Centennial celebrations on Tuesday last may be gathered when in the Commissariat department, 8 sheep, 3 pigs, 1 bullock and 8 sacks of potatoes were prepared. There were also several sacks of cabbages and pipi. hundred of loaves of bread 1501b of plum pudding (cooked in the hot springs at llot.orua, and taken to Maketu), a large quantity of bananas, oranges, apples and numerous packets of jelly crystals. Out of the Urewera Wilds. Four Maori children, whose ages range from nine to 15 years, are at present taking their first journey into the land of the white man. They have come out of the heart of | the Urewera Country, where for months on end the only pakehas they sec are their three school teachers. Having learned beforehand of the white man's wonders, however, they are taking everything in their stride and enjoying it immensely. In Palmerston North they had their first train ride, had their first ride in a lift, saw their first talking pictures, spoke and listened for the first time over a telephone, gazed in fascination at, to them, the fairyland of electric lights. Later they will go to Wellington. The children are accompanied by their school mistress, Miss I. D. Paulger, who, with two other women teachers, are the only whites at Maungapohatu, 12 miles back from the Wai-roa-.Rot.orua highway, and approached only by walking or riding over a track that traverses valley and! ridge. Old Maori Workshop. While exploring in the sand dunes on the west coast between the Hokianga Harbour and Whangape Heads, Mr L. T. Frost discovered an old Maori workshop recently uncovered by the wind. Attention w r as drawn to the spot by a number of specially hard boulders, which evidently had been used as anvil blocks cm which implements Avere fashioned in the rough before being polished. Napping hammers were found lying among the larger boulders, and main" flakes of stone (split off the process of axe making) were also lying about. Greenstone implements had evidently been fashioned on the spot, as fairly lalrge pieces of this stone were picked up. Obsidian Hakes and drill points were numerous, and an obsidian haircutting implement was also found among the debris. Various curios found included stone axes in the rough, drill, points, the shank of what was apparently *i stone fish hook, a very small highly-polished chisel, napping hammers, some good samples of grinding stones, and a small greenstone chisel.