Local and General

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 4, Issue 308, 21 May 1941, Page 4

Local and General

May Ingleside. O'n Friday next the Whakatane Caledonian Society will hold its May Ingleside in the Winter Show Hail. The usual attractive and varied programme has been arranged. C«"*rseas Appeal Board. The sitting at Whakatane of the Overseas Appeal Board was to have been held on Wednesday and Friday of this week has been postponed until the same days of next week. May 28 and 30. Impressment of Rifles. The impressment of .303 rifles bv the Government revealed that shooting is a popular sport in this district, the local Police having collected a large nximber of these weapons. which are to be in future used by the Home Guard. Properties Changing Hands. A number of farm properties are changing hands in this district as may be noted by the advertising columns. One clearance sale was held at Paengaroa yesterday while- three others are to be held, one at Otakiri on June 4, one at Awakeri on June 19 and another at Thornton-Matata road on June 20. Boys' Band. Whakatane residents have already been given the opportunity of hearing the newly formed Boys' Band, in public and no doubt appreciated the work the officials and the lads have done. This task has not been an easy one,, for a number of reasons, one of the chief of which is the lack of instruments. The band is making the best progress it can under the circumstances but would appreciate help in the way of gifts of instru- [ ments if any lpcal people have any available. Tax Month. i This is the month which keeps Post Office officials "on their toes" and depletes the bank balance of John Citizen. Motor registration, Social Security tax and Income Tax returns must be made and contributions made to the country's coffers. Although in the past people have found that it does not pay to wait until the last few clays before Paying their visit to the Post Office it isi not likely that this year will find the usual congestion lessened during the last few days, of the month. Each paper, particularly for car registration, takes some minutes to complete and when, as is often the case, the queries are not correctly answered, the time is increased. So it may be realised that unless people endeavour to avoid the last few days, congestion and a great deal of waste time is sure to result. Abandon all hope (of stamps) who enter here (Post Office <n tax month).

National Patriotic Fund Board. List No. 40 of the National Patriotic Fund Board donation appeal sponsored by the Governor-General, reveals that the total has now reached £170,813 18s ;9d. In addition, over £1000 has been donated to the London Distress Fund. Shooting Licenses. In spite of the fact that many young men who arc usually amongst the applicants for shooting licenses are overseas seeking bigger game, licenses issued for this year's game season totalled a number equal . to that of last year. A. Whakatane Patent. Mr Dick Whittle, the w r ell known cycle shop proprietor has been successful in patenting a neat device for the purpose of serving, as a military kit-bag lock and grip. Complete with a rubber handle, the patent is simple and effective and will soon be in wide use. Mr Whittle holds the patent rights over the whole of New Zealand and Australia. A Regular At tender. The annual Presbyterian Mission Camp held at Ohope and which broke up on Monday, each year attracts Maoris from as far afield as Hastings, but one man who attended again this year claimed that he made the veeord. trip,, travelling from Palmerston North specially to attend the Mission as he did every year. No Soft Jobs. "'There is one thing which ha 3 been exercising my mind for a long time. I' have heard many appeals by farmers and I have not yet discovered who has the softest jobs on the farm," said Mr G. T, Thurston, a member of the Manpower Committee in Christchurch during the hearing of an appeal by a farmer. "Can you enlighten me?" he asked. With a grim smile the farmer replied | that Avere no soft jobs on the farm it was just hard w T ork all the time. Carriage of Liquor. A warning to taxi drivers who carry liquor in their vehicles for Maoris Avas issued by the president the No. 1 Transport Licensing Authority (Mr E„ J Phelan) in the course of a sitting in Tauranga. He stated that complaints w 7 ere repeatedly being voiced by magistrates and the police in connection with the carriage of liquor by taxi drivers, especially for Maoris, most of the trouble occurring in the north. The local bodies issued the licenses to drive but the authority issued the licenses to carry passengers, and he desired to warn all taxi drivers that in the event of any man being convicted of an offence of this nature the authority would have to take a serious view of it, and, if necessary, take steps to revoke the 'i cense.

Saturday's Auction Sale. Readers are reminded that the time of the auction sale at Edgecumbe on Saturday next is at 1 p.m, not 10 a.m. as previously announc ed. Dance at Edgecumbe. A number of local dancing fans attended the function held at Edgecumbe last night. The dance was arranged for the purpose of farewelling Aircraftsman Pearce, R.N.Z--A.F. Plunket Aids. A plan has been prepared in some districts for the training of women to be known as "Plunket 1 Aids," who, it is hoped, will be available, !f necessary, to assist in the care of babies and young children who might be deprived of their parents or separated from them as a result of war or other national emergency. Hard Work Side. "All I seem to get is the hardwork side of the bargain," said a Judgment debtor in explanation of his position to Mr W. H. Freeman, S.M., in the Te Awamutu Court. His ability to pay an outstanding debt was in question, and the debtor had advanced the idea that butterfat values were about to reach the vanishing point. "Everywhere I am told that we shall get nothing for our butterfat next season," he said, but the Magistrate cautioned him against heeding what irresponsible people said. "Tf that happened the bottom would fall out of everything" said Mr Freeman. "Just you carry on your work,, and realise that it will be time t<j meet such a catastrophe as predicted if it comes." Need for Blackout. The danger of showing a light in Britain, even ?n a country district, is referred to in a letter received in Dunedin from relatives in the Old Country. An extract states: "We get the 'Jerries' over here frequently, but they do not often, drop bombs, as we have been evacuated to the country. In any case, we have a lovely shelter and the children and I sleep there. There is an electric heater and a fan for ventilation, and it is as dry as a bone. It is lovely to get out of a town and to be able to sleep in real peace. We never bother here even when they are droning overhead for two or three minutes, because we know that they are taking their beastly loads to poor Liverpool or Manchester. They, hoAvever, dropped a land mine near here one night. It was very dark and I think they had seen someone's light showing ceaslessly. People have been more careful since they saw the crater. It gave a farmer 12 days' work filling up the hole."