THE Hauraki Plains Gazette With which is incorporated THE OHINEMURI GAZETTE. Motto: Public Service. MONDAY. WEDNESDAY. & FRIDAY. WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 7, 1929. LOCAL AND GENERAL

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXX, Issue 5458, 7 August 1929, Page 2

THE Hauraki Plains Gazette With which is incorporated THE OHINEMURI GAZETTE. Motto: Public Service. MONDAY. WEDNESDAY. & FRIDAY. WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 7, 1929. LOCAL AND GENERAL

• The public debt of New Zealand at March 31 amounted to £264,191,983, a net increase of £12,795,731 for the financial year. The debt is classified as follows : Ordinary, £151,488,052 ; war, £70,881,269 ; discharged soldiers, £8,287,656 ; State advances, £33,535,006. A start has been made with the building of some cottages on the flax company’s property at Awaiti. While motor-cycling on the TurnaKerepeehi road on Sunday evening Mr Phillip Innis, of Kerepeehi, struck one of the numerous horses which fre quent the roads at night, with the result that he now has a broken collarbone. The book “All Quiet on the Western Front” is not to be placed in the Wellington public library for circulation. The Hamilton library, however, has decided to accept it for circulation among adults only. It is stated that there are several hundred names on the “waiting list” for the book. The military camp at Hopu Hopu, which for the last five years has been in the charge of the Public Works Department, will be handed over to the Defence Department shortly. Construction work is finished, and 30 men are now employed completing details, and will leave within 10 days. The total expenditure on the camp has been about £130.000. The health inspector, Mr G. C. White, arrived in Paeroa yesterday from Coromandel to attend to the funeral rites of the deceased cow lying in the Rotokohu drain that has been causing all the worry. After four days of fine weather rain commenced to fall last evening, and continued, with intervals of heavy showers, throughout the night. In connection with to-night’s boxing tournament, it is interesting to note that Corporal Brant’s reach is 21 inches longer than that of Tuv.ney, erstwhile world’s champion. Brant stands 6ft 2in, and Frear 6ft 21in. Of the chief meteorological stations in New Zealand Waihi had the doubtful honour , of recording first place for rainfall during April, 13.21 inches being registered there. However, for that coast from the North Cape to the East Cape Mautotara, Whakaangiangi, shows the most rain, with 21.72, and thoroughly deserves it with a name like that. The highest total in the Dominion goes to Pakihiroa, North Island, with 26.43 inches. Throughout the North Island there was considerably less rainfall than in the South Island. Of the chief stations Te Aroha had the highest mean maximum temperature, 70.8 deg., although Auckland, showing 61.9, gave the highest mean in the shade.. At the bottom with the mean minimum was Ophia (35.1), and Manorburn Dam, with the mean in the shade, 46.6, both places being in the South Island. ..I

At the Paeroa Police Court this morning, before Messrs E. Edwards and P. Williams, J’s.P., two first offenders were charged with being drunk while in charge of a horse in Paeroa last evening. Both accused pleaded guilty. Police evidence showed that accused were very drunk. They had a considerable amount of liquor in their possession, and with their mounts constituted a serious menace to motor traffic by then’ dangerous riding. The Bench took a serious view of the case in consideration of the amount of motor’ traffic these days, and fined each accused 30s and costs. Nothing has been added, up to the time of going to press, to the £l5B Is 9d acknowledged in Monday’s issue, in connection with donations to the earthquake relief fund. A deputation representing Waitawheta settlers waited on the Ohinenruri County Council at its last meeting with proposals as to roading in that district, and an offer to raise a special rate for their furtherance. The council was fully sympathetic, and promised to go into the matter fully, at the same time congratulating the settle-s on their initiative. Settlers served by the Kerepeehi rural mail delivery service consider that now the service car arrives eai’lier than it did when the service was organised, the delivery should be made in the afternoon instead of during the following morning.

A contract for additions in brick and concrete to the Hamilton Hotel has been let to Mr G. H. Edwards, of Auckland, at £17,305.

Of the towns in the Thames Valley Power Board’s district Paeroa, with £3414 0s 4d, took the most electricity during July. A reduction of £274 4s lOd for the first three months of the year, as against the same period in 1928, was recorded in factory and industrial consumers in the board’s area. This was caused, according to the manager’s report, presented to the board at its meeting yesterday, by the Public Works Department’s dredge being out of commission, the revenue from that source being over £3OO per quarter.

According to the Financial Statement, the revenue for the past year amounted to £23,599,676, of which £17,836,235 was derived from taxation and the balance of £5,763,442 from interest earnings and sundiy, revenues and recoveries from various State activities. The revenue from taxation includes £1,243,577 on account of petrol tax, motor license fees, etc., which are specially earmarked for highways purposes, so that the revenue from taxation for general purposes amounted to £16,592.657.

“Speed, speed, speed,” said the Reading coroner, Mr J. Martin, when holding an 'inquest' in London into the death of a motor-cyclist killed in a collision. The coroner continued : “There is a race of maniacs at large on our roads. It is a perfect misery to go on the roads when these men are about. It is no good my wasting my breath warning them. I have wasted enough already. Let them kill themselves. It is a kind of suicide while of unsound mind. They are maniacs and you cannot cure them.”

The Thames Valley' Power Board anticipated that the installing of meters in- its area would have commenced on the Ist inst., but owing to the non-arriva! of the first main consignment it is not expected that a start will be made until September 1.

No less than half-a-dozen petitions to the Minister of Health, the Hon. A. J. Stallworthy, urging an alteration to the boundaries of the Waiiri hospital district, are in circulation. The ratepayers of the upper Thanr.es district, the Ohinemuri County, aaid adjacent areas now rated by the Thames hospital district are asking tha t step's be taken to extend the Waihi district to include Katikati, Waihi Plains, Waikino. Waitawheta, Wait ekauri, and Whangamata, and the ’tettiers have .made a splendid response, the campaign, instituted some weeks ago, being now just about coirpletx* The petitions will in the course of the next week be forwarded to the Mini:'•ter. The proposal was initiated by the farmers about Waihi, and the canv ass has been conducted by some of :tbe leading settlers.

Mr F. W. Platts, S.M., expressed himself strongly in the Children’s Court at Thames the other day on the* subject of children’s matinees at picture theatres, .r emarking : “I think that children •should be discouraged from going to picture matinees. They' should not be. cooped up in theatres when they should be outside playing oi’ doing something useful. It is quite obviously bad for their health, apart from the m oral aspect altogether, and I consider nt should be checked.” Turning to the press representatives, he requested, them to give publicity to these viei.vs.

At the Power Boards’ Conference at Wellington the Minister for Public Works stated that the Horahora scheme showed a loss on the year of £15,291, largely due to a dislocation of the plant during the fire, and by the flooding and silting after "the Arapuni diversion. Horahora shovred revenue, £125,51.1 ; operating costs, £76,231 ; balance, £59,280. • There had to be paid £53,045 interest and .£21,527 depreciation, showing the loss mentioned.

“The Gamble of Life,” for jyrinces or clods, Is losing the stakes in talcing the odds. “The Gamble of Life”' is scram ble and strife, Hustle for dollars and p'eas'ng wife. “The Gamble of ’Life,” as seasons come round, Is greeting the weather in lang 'uage profound. “The Gamble of J u ife” brings us a olds to endure,, Then comes Wockls’ Great Pepperni mt Cure.