THE Hauraki Plains Gazette. With which is incorporated THE OHINEMURI GAZETTE. Motto: Public Service. MONDAY. WEDNESDAY, & FRIDAY. FRIDAY, JULY 4, 1924. LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXV, Issue 4720, 4 July 1924, Page 2

THE Hauraki Plains Gazette. With which is incorporated THE OHINEMURI GAZETTE. Motto: Public Service. MONDAY. WEDNESDAY, & FRIDAY. FRIDAY, JULY 4, 1924. LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Preparations are now being made for the work of tar-cementing the approacres o£ the Ngatea bridge. The Ohinemuri County Council during last month issued 57 cases of explosives from its magazine and received 80 eases. Storage fees amounted to £2 5s Bd. A report tabled at yesterday’s meeting of the Ohinemuri County Council showed that 60 cows, 25 steers and heifers, 117 sheep, 4 lambs, 4 calves, and 8 pigs were slaughtered during last month. Fees totalled £5O 13s 21. Owing to an accident to one of the members of tlie Turua Concert Party the concert billed for last night to raise funds for the street lights was postponed until July 18. During rehearsals Mrs J. Mules slipped and fell on to the corner of a form, breaking one of her ribs. The Bucyrus dredge engaged 111 widening the Pulianga canal and forming a road has now arrived at the mouth of the canal. It is intended to widen the canal another 20 feet at the top, giving tlie bank a long batter The spoil will be deposited alongside tlie present road, making the stop-bank about 40 feet wide. During the West versus Netherton junior football match at Netherton on Saturday J. Verran, a West player, received an injury to his right leg ami had to retire. Tlie injured leg is stil very swollen' and painful, and Mr Verran was taken to the Waihi Hospital yesterday for an X-ray examination of the leg. Speaking of the improvement work that would be carried out on tlie Piako River in the near future, the I.anils Drainage Engineer, Mr E. Taylor, slated in an interview yesterday that tenders would shortly be called for the work of building up the stopbanks on the river and sea frontage. When completed the banks would be two f?et above the maximum height of the river and one foot above the heigh' of the abnormal tide that flooded Waitakaruru and Kopuarabi in April last. F'<r Influenza, take Woods’ Great Peppermint Cure.

A total of 5.29 inches was recorded at the Land's Office at Kerepeehi last month, rain falling on 15 days. The total for the half year to date is now 35.62 niches, which amount is in excess ol the totals for the years 1913, 1914, 1919, and 1921. The average for the first half of the previous twelve years is 20.6-1 inches.

The following rainfall statistics for June at Paeroa have been supplied by the local office of the Public Works Department, figures for the corresponding month last year beiug given in parenthesis ; Total rainfall for the month I'.lLin (6in). Rain fell on 13 days (27), the heaviest fall bqing recorded mi June 7 (19), when 1.95 in (.82) was registered.

Speaking of the recent flood, the Lands Diainage Engineer stated in an intervew yesterday that from rough calculations made it is estimated that from six to eight thousand cusecs (cubic feet per second) came on to the Plains from the Waihou River and about 5000 cusecs from the Oliinimuri River. Of water from its own ’"atershed the Piako was carrying about 5000 cusecs.

This week’s issue of the “N.Z. Sporting and Dramatic Review" is bigger than ever in its selection of up-to-date illu,st< aliens. The centre page 7 s com* prise a pictorial miscellany of topical happenings in England. America, and France, together with activities of the Royal Family. An attractive series is that showing girl athletes practising for the Olympic games, and there are numerous other illustrations devoted to phases of sport. A good .story is told of one of the members of a Gisborne revaluation committee anent a soldier who was asked to appear befq|p a land board and state why lie was not paying his arrears (says the ‘‘Poverty Bay Herald’)). The board members cross-ex-amined him rcagrding his finances, which were in a very unsatisfactory position. “Come, now,” said one of the members, “you must have taken something off the land. Tell us exactly what you’ve had off the land.’’ “Three pots of blackberry jam and six summonses,” replied the soldier. At the Power Board meeting at Te Arolia on Tuesday occasion was taken by Hr. reporters present to farewell Mr J. Cormick, of the Auckland Star, who is leaving the district for Taranaki. Mr A. J. Burrows, "president of the press gallery,” on behalf of the members presented Mr Cormick with a cigarette case as a token of the esteem in which he is held by his fellow scribes, and expressed hearty good wishes for his future welfare and success. Messrs V. B. Murray (Mornnsville Star), J, Thompson (Te Arolia News), H. Banff (Auckland Star), and W. L. Lawrence (Hauraki Plains Gazette) also expressed their sorrow at his departure and added their nest wishes for his future. Mr Cormick, wiio was taken by surprise, thanked the members for their valued token and assured them that he rnucn regretted having to part with sucn good ’.omrades.

The resolution passed at the recent meeting at Ngatea in connection with drainage matters asking the drainage engineer to explain the difference to the tide range during the flood was referred to Mr Taylor recently. He stated that there was always less tidal effect at Ngatea than at Pipiroa owing to its greater distance from the sea. When the tide fell during the flood period the upland water was able to come down quickly, so that it filled the river. There would be a greater tidal range at Ngatea if there were no bridge to obstruct the flow. This banked up the water, which did not get down to its level for a considerable distance down the river. The effect of the bridge olistruetton was noticeable at the Ngatea wharf gauge. At Paul’;: wharf, a, little lower down the river, the tidal effect was very much greater than at Ngatea.