COUNTRY NEWS.

King Country Chronicle, Volume V, Issue 334, 4 February 1911, Page 5

COUNTRY NEWS.

Own Correspondents.

Tangitu.

Fire:; are still raging' in this part of the world, no less than three camps belonging to Messrs Zimmtrman, Good and Hopkins, being burnt to the ground. Mr J. Smith, our popular road overseer, had a rather lucky escape from what might have been a serious accident. He was endeavouring to stop the fires from spreading from oil the road to a saw-pit, when all of a sudden there WdS an explosion, and he received what he thought to be a shot in the shoulder, but on making enquiries he found that somebody had left some detonators at the foot of a tree which had caught fire and on examination of the shoulder it was found to be only a slight wound. Mr R. N. Saunders, who has a section near our township, is reported to be about to open up a store on his selection and intends carrying on business on the strictly cash system. I wi3h him every success in his new venture. The Taranaki Land Board are paying their annual visit to the block, and are very pleased with the progress made since their last visit of January, 1901. The settlers of the Mangaiti Valley are applying to the Education Board for a school which makes the second application form here, and I would like to know what the Ivlokauiti settlers are doing that they have not made a move in the same direction. We also had a visit from Mr Murray, resident engineer or the Public Works Department, a lew days ago, and we have every hope that the road works will be pushed 0:1 with vigour before the coming winter so as to enable the settlers to get their stores in a little more reasonably than they did last winter. Building is going on fairly well. Messrs Banfield and mate have commenced pit sawing and intend erecting a dwelling house on Mr Banfield's Nikau farm before the coming winter. Messrs McAuley and mate are busy pit sawing for the Public Works Department, who are erecting a cottage for the foreman of works at the junction of the Waipu and Otamati roads.

The Lands Department are also about to erect a shed to store grass seed, etc., at the same place. Quite a number of settlers are enquiring for timber, but as we have as yet no roads that timber can be carted on, we have to rely on pit sawyer 3 and at present they are very scarce. Mr Messenger arrived here a few days ago with a line of sheep, and I believe he intends as soon as they are in good enough condition to supply settlers with some fresh meat which will a boon to the majority who have to "at present" exist on what is termed "bully beef." Mr Binns' manager reports good business at his 'newly-erected store at Tangitu. In fact, things generally have a very prosperous appearancel for the year 1911.

Maticre. Our roads are anything but pleasant to travel upon just novv and clouds of dust herald the approach of man or beast. In fact, one wishes for a shower as fervently as a Te Kuitian for a licensed pub. The Matiere sale constituted a record in the matter of prices for cattle, some beasts not over IS months being sold up to £4 us, and other pens of cattle went at equally high figures to eager purchasers who evidently have no fear of the bottom falling out of the beef market. A slight interlude enlivened the saleyards before the sale commenced, when two settlers decided the disputed earmarks of some cattle by a bout of Johnson-Jeffries. A peace loving J.P., however, intervened after a few rounds, and beyond a few abrasions and contusions, no harm was done. A neat office has been erected by the Farmers' Auctioneering Co. at the local yards and a large quantity of timber and posts is on the ground in readiness to erect additional sheep accommodation.

The majority of the settlors have been busy with matches lately, and the columns of smoke have obscured Phoebus himself and rendered the locality "a country of gloom." To those who, with Burke, consider the age of chivalry as past, I would like to say that some shreds remain even in this district. A lady school teacher left on her holidays, and before doing so purchased a milk white steed. Some of our young men with a laudable desire to conserve the lady's property drew a large cross, ass wise, on the beast's back, no doubt as a kind of tapu mark. In addition they labelled the animal with the owner's name, along the ribs. In view of the shortage of porters in the railway service no doubt we shall later be able to supply our quota from this locality of artistic label stickers. I notice large supplies of timber are being drawn from the mill at Matirakau and it would seem that a fair amount of building is in progress. Messrs Waite and Taylor have both fired recenly and appear to have had I very clean burns indeed. I A Hying visit by the Commissioner I of Lands and members of the TaranI aki Land Board took place last week, J their objective being the new settlement at' Waimiha. While here the I Commissioner was approached with ! regard to defining the cemetery site, I and promised to do all the work at the first opportunity. A couple of vehicles came to grief here recently. Hattaway's coach, in negotiating the turn off to the post office, came round too sharply, and capsized in the ditch, but wan got out without damage to any of the equipage. Mr JR. Bench, was not, however, so fortunate, as somethingstartled a young horse he was driving in his factory cart with the result

that the animal jumped up the bank j and upset the trap and cans, twist- | ing the shafts off. Mr Bench, beyond a few bruises, escaped injury, j I learn that Mr McLaughlin, of \ Waitangata road, has disposed of his j farm to a Mr Brown, of Rangitikei, j at a satisfactoy figure. j A nice line of store wethers went out this week en route to a Te Kuiti grazier, and were preceded by a smaller line to the same destination. ; All stock are in first-class condition | and no doubt will "put on their best j bib and tucker" in view of the ap- j proach of the first Ohura show. ! Mr J. L. Ryan is busy filling and : levelling round his accommodation | house, converting an unsightly hollow j into what we may hope to believe is j the nucleus of a bowling green. j

To anyone of a few years' residence here, it comes as a striking comparison ot note the increase of the wool freights which pass toward the rail. It is really astonishing the amount of wool that has been trucked from here this season, and is a safe indication of the immense strides made by settlement and the improvement of the widening acreage of grass land in the valley.

The oat crops now being harvested in the district arc fair, but a slight tendency to smut is noticeable.

I learn that Mr Demler, who has purchased Mr Hardy's property at Otangiwai, is coming to settle shortly, accompanied by his family, and intends to at once set about a house site and clearing the frontage. At the Matiere Court recently, before a bench of J.P's., four civil and one other case constituted the whole of the business, and were all disposed of in the forenoon. Pio Pio. Things were all astir on Tuesday morning, the excitement being the removal of the old post office from Messrs Green and Colebrock's store to the new one erected by that, firm adjacent to their business premises. The new office will be much appreciated by the public and postmistress alike.

Another "shift" was the removal of school furniture from the native hall owing to the committee having received notice that the natives required the building. We are having very dry weather and smoke and dust are the order of the day.