LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Franklin Times, Volume 9, Issue 652, 22 July 1921, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Owing to pressure on our space, several “Letters to the Editor” have been held over until our next issue.

In this issue the N.Z. Co-op. Dairy Co. invites tenders for the cartage of cream from Tuhimata to'* Pukekohe butter factory. We understand from the electrical engineer (Mr W. Wyatt) that the 13 miles of wire for the -proposed borough electric light extension scheme has arrived in Pukekohe. The Raglan County Council advertises in this issue that at its next meeting it intends to make and levy certain general rates in the various ridings. “ How is the financial position, your Worship?” asked Cr. Morrow, at the meeting of the Borough Council on Monday night. The Mayor replied: •‘Well' we are pretty well up against it, and will have to go very careful.” “ The straying cattle nuisance is as bad as ever it was,” said Cr. Kennedy at Mdnday night’s meeting of- the Borough Council. The foreman replied tha l as soon as he obtained a horse the whole matter would be attended to. i '• • “It is practically cert air. that as soon as the roofing in of the power house is completed, negotiations wil 1 have to cease there,” said the Mayor at Monday night’s meeting of the Borouglj. Council; when answering a .question regarding the financial position

Now that the Government’s loan of £5,000,000 is practically assured, local bodies may be in a position to obtain a little money for various works. At the last meeting of the Borough Council the clerk was instructed to write to the authorities to ascertain when the £SOO grant for Franklin Road would be available for expenditure.

With the object of reforming the Auckland Hydro-electric League, a meeting, convened by the Auckland Chamber of Commerce, will be held in Auckland. An invitation'to send a delegate was received by the Borough Council at Monday night’s meeting. The Mayor was nominated, but regretted that he could not attend, and thereupon Cr. G. H. Armstrong, chairman of the Electric Light Committee, was appointed to represent the Council. One result of the particularly mild winter we have had so far has been to put the birds quite out of their reckoning. During the fine sunny fortnight we had in June the sparrows were very busy carrying straw and feathers for their nests, but a few days’ heavy weather following caused them to adjourn building operations. But one enterprising bird seems to have persevered to the legitimate conclusion, for on July 4 a thrush was discovered sitting on four eggs at Mauku. At Monday’s meeting of the Borough Council the Mayor moved, and it was carried, that Mr E. Roo.se he written to for permission ‘to enable the Council to take the necessary steps of dealing with the question of clearing and cultivating the block of land known as Roose’s Bush. The Mayor pointed cut that there were certain preliminaries that had to be dealt with befoie the Council could take, the land over, and which may take a month to dispose oi. if permission- was obtained the Council could go straight ahead with the work, and make the bush att ’actable fvv the coining season.

In the very near future the Pukekohe borough wall be the p cots a possessor of a 24-hour electric light service. We understand that as soon as the Borough Council's additional electrical plant is installed, electric energy, will be available for Buckiand, Tuakau, Patumahce and Mauku.

Comparative tests of motor eycla efficiency, with and without silencers, have demonstrated that, .under all conditions of load and speed, the open exhaust does not necessarily mean any appreciable gain. Consonant with this the leading designers have managed to make thei/machines reasonably noise free, so that now, if a motor cycle is noticeable for the explosive sound of its exhaust, it is clear that the driver is at fault. Such drivers are popular neither with the public nor the rank and file of motordom.

Pig breeders will be interested to learn of the latest importation from abroad in the shape of a Berkshire boar and sow to the order of Mr R. Chilcott, and old-established stud breeder of Frankton Junction. Owing to the war and other difficulties, pigimporting has been dormant, and these are said to be the only two pedigree Berkshires imported' in many years past. They cost, “With expenses, £4OO, but arrived to a market hire of imported stock,' so that most Of the sow’s first litter, containing nine boars, were booked at good prices. The difficulty of importing pigs is increased by the New Zealand regulation which necessitates something in the nature of quarantining at each end of the journey.

Mr Massey is helping to make history at the Conference of Prime Min-, isters now sitting in London. He is evidently impressing his colleagues at the council board of the empire alike by his personality, his breadth of vision, and his sturdy patriotism. There have been some great imperialists among British and Dominion statesmen, but in years to come it will be admitted, if it is not so admitted to-day, that the statesmen who grappled with the problems of the war and crossed the seas from. tha remotest Dominions three years in. succession to meet their British colleagues in London, and those who have succeeded them, have not been the least worthy. Mr Massey is now on his fourth visit to London, and on each occasion it has. been his lot to attend either war cabinet sittings or Imperial Conferences, at-which fateful decisions were come to. and, if ~\ we accept the testimony of those who had the best opportunity of judging his worth, the value of his counsels, and the encouragement he gave to his colleagues *b> his own sturdy faith iir the future of the British Empire, 'otA has been on every occasion a tower of strength to his colleagues at both the council table and in the conference room. The following letter from Germany been received, by the editoi of the Daily Telegraph, Sydney, who publishes it under the heading “finy Applicants?”—“Dear Sir, — will please excuse the liberty I take in addressing you in the following matter: On account of the unhappy war, in which more than 1,800,000 Germans lost their lives, a still greater number of' young German ladies are deprived of the opportunity to find a husband. This calamity, if I dare call it thus, is still increased by the fact that, owing to the extraordinary dearness of household furniture and the scarcity of apartments, matrimony has become a luxury and a privilege of the rich in this country. In their distress, our young ladies look over to Australia in the hope of finding there the conjugal happiness, ; for \ which reason they appeal to all Australian bachelors, who cannot find a match over there, and who .are desirous to contract matrimony with a well-bred young German lady, to approach them on this behalf. The linguistic difficulties should be , no obstacle, as our ladies are mostly acquainted with the English language. The German ladies asked me to be their interpreter ir. assisting to find them an, Australian husband, for which reason applicants are requested to apply to my address. I should feel grateful to you for bringing this letter to the notice of the readers of your newspaper, and tender you my anticipated thanks.”