DISTRICT NEWS.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1792, 3 July 1913, Page 3

DISTRICT NEWS.

JOTTINGS FROM ALL SOURCES PALMERSTON NORTH. Tho new school at West End was opened on Xuesday with 199 pupils, and it is anticipated that 250 will ha in. attendance flt tho .end of the week. ~/ n connection with the opening of tiic nest 1/11(1 School, a "social'' was held in the building on Tuesday evening. The programme wa.s as follows:—Piano duet Misses Perrott; song, Miss J. Gunsta<;; piano solo, _ iliss Hodder; "Aunt Betty's iteau," Mr. Olliver's party; song, i?ev.' Kosher; recitation, Mr. Olliver; cornet .solo, Muster Jack Prentice; song, Miss liurges; recitation, Misses S tevens, M'iVilji.), and Jamieson; -song, Miss K Hockiug; recitation, Miss Jamieson; recitation, Master David Stevens; reading, Master Perrott; song, Mr. J. Young, jun.; lightning sketches, Mr. S. Clark; addresses, Messrs. Hodder and Buchlcr. During an interval dainty refreshments were' handed round by the ladies. Constable L. ~W. W'atters, of the local police, who is resigning from the force and leaves for Auckland to .take over a hotel there, was entertained by his . comrades on Tuesday evening. On their behalf, Detective-Sergoant Ijuirke presented Constable Watters with a silver tea-service. The vital returns for the quarter just ended are as follow:—iiirths,-Ml; deaths, ■13; marriages, 39. For the month of June the.figures are: 50 births, 22 deaths, 13 marriages.-. NEW PLYMOUTH. During {ha past month there were 28 births, 11 marriages, and 7 deaths in the district of the iNew Plymouth liogistrar (Mr. J. S. S. Medley), 'ihe figures for the corresponding month of last year were 30, 8, S., News was received in New Plymouth on Tuesday of-the death, at the age of 76 years, of Mr. W. : 'Monk, for many years a well-known settler at B-?ll Block, hilt latterly of Kaiterangi, Hokitika. Mr. J. P. Murphy, who has had chargo of the is'orth llgmont Hcstel during the last season, • has > severed his connection tt'ith the house, and the committer have made aiTangenients whereby the services of Mr. and Mrs. Graham, who have for four years had chargo of the Dawson's Falls House, . have, btien secured. WANGANUI.. The Wangaiiui Borough Council on Tuesday night decided to adopt, a by-law prohibiting the wearing- of unprotected hatpins in tramcars. A somewhat unusual position has arisen as a result of what appears to have been a misconception, on the part of registered plumbers, of' the provisions of the Plumbers' Kegistration Act, passed last session. In tiie belief that the passing of the Act relieved them automatically hoin the necessity of renewing their licenses, they failetl to do so, and in consequence the Borough Engineer, after consulting the board's solicitor, hus reported to the council that all plumbing work in the borough since April 1 last has been done in contravention of the by-laws. The' council has referred the matter to its Works Committee to decido what course to pursue. The spiij r.l St. Paul's Presbyterian Church, \ itLjiia Avenue, a fifty-years-old landmark, ilisnppeared yesterday, being pulled down in the course of the demolition of tho church, the site of which has bean leased for building business premises. A fortnight ago the Wanganui Em. ployers' Association wrote to tho Borough Council urging it to join the former body, but the council turned tho .proposition down. On Tuesday evening the association sent another letter, pressing tliu council to reconsider its decision, which somo councillors seemed disposed to do. Tho Mayor and several others spoke strongly against having anything to do with the association, pointing out that it had its own expert oiticer for conducting labour disputes, and contending that as the council represented both employers and workers, it would be unwise to ally itself with either side. Finally it was resolved that the Finance Committee consider and xeport upon. ■ tho matter. . The Railway Department was severely condemned by members of the Borough Council on Tuesday evening over its level crossing policy. The Te Awamutu Chamber of Commerce- had forwarded a letter suggesting united action on the part of local bodies j in passing a resolution drawing the Minister's attention to the loss of life at I level crossings, aud •suggested means of ensuring safety. r The,council -gave its support, the Mayor stating that no town wanted more relief in tins matter than Wanganui, which had been hemmed in on all sides by railway lines, with numerous level crossings, .some at very busy points. The couicil and local Chamber of Commerce again and again sought relief from the Department, which had- always turned their requests down, and unless relief was given thero would be loss of life sooner or later. HASTINGS. The number of entries for the Hastings Poultry, Pigeon, and Canary Show total--850. - - . The attendance at the Hastings District High School on Tuesday constituted a record, the actual roll call being 895, including 30 Jiew pupils. i iteliuing the appointment of a successor to Mr. AV. H. Cook, late Town Clerk and ehgineor, the duties of. ff«wn Clerk are being oarried out by 'Mr. W. G. Callendar. The Hawke's Bay Fruitgrowers' Company, Ltd., or Tattier a new company to be kiiown as the Hawkie's Bay Frlfft, Produce, ami Cool Storage Company, propose electing a cool store and packing-sfleds. A section of land with railway siding accommodation has already been purchased by tho company. \ The vital statistics for Hastings for tho month of Juno were:—Births 27, marriages 11, deaths 5. Mr. C. L. Mackersey presided at a meeting of the Hawke's Bay Amateur Boxing Association Committee last night, when it was decided that the president (Mr. A. L. D. Fraser), tho chairman, and two members of the committee (M-essrs. 1/llingham and Gregory) should proceed to Wellington to witness the "Hock" •Kpys-Hagorty fight, _ with power la arrange a match witli either or'both the dontestants to come off. at'-Hastings at a later date. , Mr. Lindsay J. Mackersey, son of Mr. 0. L. Mackprsey, made his first appearance in Court this morning as a solicitor. /.During June, 28 building permits were issued in Hastings, including nine new dwellings and three brick shops, the total value of the building additions, etc., is .£8693. ' The borough electrical engineer (Mr. H. J. Rogers) reports that for the month of June 59 new consumers' have been connected to' the electric supply mains, making" a total of 401 to date. 1 , l'lie present winter has been an extremely dry ono for Hastings and the surrounding district. Thero has been little rain -since last spring, and famjem arc anxiously looking for substantial downpours daring the next two months. MASTERTON. Twelve old age pensions were renewed and three fresh pensions granted in Masterton during the month of June. A sum of JJ3 2s. 9d. was collected in llastorton on St. Barnabas's Day in aid of the Melanesian Mission. A confirmation service is to be held in 1 St. Matthew's Church on September 22. The Bishop of Wellington will conduct the jervlcc. The Lansdowne School Committee has decided to nominate Mr. A. W. Hogg for re-election to tho Wellington Education Board. Mr. J. Deiulmun, who lias been farming at Mauriceville for some years, has dispell of ! his property at a .satisfactory figure, and has taken up land at Ohukunc. The second shoot under the auspices of the Masterton 'Miniature Kilte Club took placo on Tuesday evening. In the "A" class, F. Minton and J. E, Perry tied for first place, and in the "B" class H. B. Liddle was tho most successful shot. It is reported that the Bank View estate, containing between 4000 and MOO acres, about fifteen miles to the south-east of Masterton, is under otter to the Government, .and that valuers have already been over it. The farm of At r. D. Douglas, at Te Wharau, has been purchased by Mr. K. Jl'lu'imo. DANNEVIRKE. Last June was one of the driest, months experienced iu D.innevirlw district tor years, in fact, is wine carta theia was

almost a drought. The total rainfall for the month was only 1.43 inchcs. Quarterly returns in connection with the business transacted at the Dannevirko Magistrate's Court for the period ended June 30, 1913, are "as follow Criminal plaints issued, 51 males; summonses issued, 33 males; persons criminally charged, summoned, or apprehended, 84; civil fees collected, iiß3 lGs.; criminal fees and fines collected, ,£6l 16s. Gd.; plaints issued, 162; cases dealt with, 79; aggregate amount sued for, A 2457 Is.; aggregate amount recovered, .£763 10s. sd. The Danuevirke Knox (Presbyterian) Church held a large congregation on Monday evening, the occasion being fare, wells, and presentations to Mr. Inglis, the home missioner, and Mr. G. Halliburton, a member of the choir, Iwtli of whom are going to Wellington. Mr. Ingiis received ,i travelling-rug, a set of razors and strops, and a set of brushes, and on behalf of members of the choir, Mr. Halliburton was presented with a set of military hair brushes. Games and competitions, interspersed with 'vocal contributions by Miss ICeay. Sirs. Morison, Mr. Jensen, and Mr. D. Priugle, together with a pianoforte sojo by Miss Crallan, assisted to pass away the evening. PAHIATUA. No bankruptcies have been recorded in Pahiatua during the past six months. The last estate was filed in October, 1912. Mr. John Hall, who was a pioneer settler of Pahiatua, and after whom the Hall Estate is named, celebrated his 83rd birthday on Monday. Mr. Hail is now Jivjng at Levin, and there was a gathering'of iiis relatives at that place to celebrate the occasion. A start has 'now been made with the protective works at. the Mangatainoka River. Five groynes are to be constructed, over a distance of about ten chains, just below, the borough traffic bridge, j These, it is hoped, will prevent further encroachment ot the river on private property. ... The annual meeting of the Pahiatua Brass Band was held on Monday evening, [ Mr. J. Mills presided. 'The balancesheet disclosing a fair credit balance was considered satisfactory. Officers were reelected as follow:—Conductor, Mr. J. Tresize; secretary, Mr. A. East; treasurer, Mr. J. Gibbons; custodian, Mr, C. M'Cardle. Mr. J. Mills was appointed bandsergeant, and the following committee was set up:—Messrs. J. Mills, C. Burt, J. Gibbons, C. Hansen, and A. East. Mr. J. de A" Howard Was appointed auditor. FEILDING. "The Geisha," under Herr Bcrger, is to be stayed by the Feilding Operatic Society about the middle of October. It is probable that a Herd Testing Association will bo formed in the Cheltenham district. A larger proposal that the association should extend its operations oyer the Rongotoa and Bunnythorpe' districts, with Foilding as the headquarters, has also been proposed. Mr. Singleton, of the Dairying Division of the Agricultural Department, phid a visit to Cheltenham on Tuesday on the invitation of the- Cheltenham Dairy Company, and gave an address to an interested group of dairyman on the subject. Mr. J. Bruce presided. A canvass is now to be made for members. Mr. J. W. Poynton, S.M., ruled yesterday morning, in a reserved judgment on the question, that stables at the rear of the hotels' in Feilding are not legally part of the licensed premises. The'case arose out of a recommendation of the Licensing Bench that the matter should bo tested. The police proceeded against ontf Rinkin, who was charged with being on license'd premises, while the subject of a prohibition order. In his judgment, the magistrate said: "It was stated by tile police at the last annual licensing'niceting-that grave evils are resulting from this system of divided control, and hotelkeepers would do well to check them, otherwise the committee will be forced to take some drastic action in the matter." As a proof of the excellent practical work being done by the boys in Air. O. A. Banner's agricultural class connected with the Feilding District High School, it is worth recording that last week the boys' pruned and sprayed a large number of the small orchards in the town and its immediate vicinity. Altogether nearly 600, trees have been pruned, and more than that number sprayed. The boys' mixed the sprays themselves, and applied them to ; the trees, and, in all cases the owners were perfectly satisfied with the work done. Several donations were received by the class to meet the cost of the pruning hud spraying outfit. ' Rain, which will be welcomed in the country districts, where tho tanks were running dry, set in yesterday afternoon. EKETAHUNA. Eketahuna is another town which is suffering from the dry spell, many residents being without water for household purposes. The contractor for installing the high-pressure water has commenced work with a gang of men in the centre of the town, and the several installations hare already been effected. Mr. and Mrs. AA". Crocker's infant son .died on Monday. Mr. Henderson, .who up till tho end of the present season acted as manager at the Kongokokako cheese factory, has accepted an appointment as manager of the AA'oodlands (South Island) butter and .cheese factory, for which place he will 'leave iiext month. ELTHAM. There was a satisfactory attendance at the Theatre Royal on Monday evening, when a euchre party and dance was held in aid of the fundtJ of the forthcoming Catholic Church bazaar. Tho prizes in the euohre tournament were won by the following :—Ladies' prize, Sirs. Kilbride; ladies' booby prize, Mrs. AA'right; gentleman's prize, Mr. F. AA'alsh; gentleman's booby, Sir. Lerihard. The Al.C.'s for the dance were Messrs. N. Reardon and T. AA'alsh,. while the music was supplied by Mrs. Eggers. During an interval Father Cahill presented Sir. and Mrs. Craig, of the Jlangawhero Road, who are shortly leaving the district for Tariki with a silver-mounted oak tea-tray. Messrs. Halpin and Bellingham sang, a couple of- songs during the evening. « OTAKI. Owing to friction with the Horowliemia Hockey Association, the three local clubs (men), who are leading for the championship, have withdrawn from future' contests. The association decided during the week to regrado the clubs into "A" and "B" sections, allowing each to retain the points won tluring the first round. Without a notice of motion the association have now decided to cancel the points for the first round, aud place all teams on an equal footing for the coveted honours. The New Zealand Association is to be asked to take the matter up. The local ladies have also refused to play on account of the association's inactivity to acquaint them with the fixtures of the second round, which commence this afternoon. 8 GREYTOWN. Mr. Sinclair's barn at Moroa was burned down yesterday morning. The cause of the fire is at present a mystery, and the matter is in the hands of the local police. , A farewell social was given to Mr. E. O. Turner in the Foresters' Hall on Tuesday night. Sir. Turner has been in the Bank of Now Zealand at Groytown for some considerable time, and has now Ijeen transferred to the AVellington head office. ' . ______