Untitled

Motueka Star, Volume I, Issue 28, 15 November 1901, Page 3

An “open letter” to the Chairman and members of the Nelson Harbor Board will appear in our next issue. Green peas are now being sold in Motueka at. the rate of one"shilling per peck. Strawberries are rapidly ripening and should he in the market shortly. The work of shifting the Horticnltura Society’s iron shed from the old site to Mr Tarrant’s section, lately leased Toy the Society, was successfully undertaken on Wednesday last, a team of four staunch horses having been employed. The removal of the edifice along High Street was watched with interest by spectators.

We learn that about three pounds ten shillings has been subscribed towards the memorial tablet to be erected in memory of the late Mr Arthur Bisley which is to be placed in the public school. A very ;• uitable design has been selected, and the work is to be entrusted to Mr C. J. Bartlett. Mr W. J. Moffatt ad vertises in this issue for an apprentice to the wheelright and coach building trades.

Messrs Neale and Haddow the well known produce merchants of Nelson intimate elsewhere are cash buyers of 100 sacks of good feed oats. The last series of dances, organised bv the young ladies of Riwaka was held in Mr Thomas Macmahon’s woolshed on Wednesday. There was a very good attendance and a most enjoyable evening was spent. Bight refreshments were provided by the fairsex.

The S.S. Lily leaves Motueka for Nelson on Saturday at 1 1 a.m., and also on Monday at 12.30 p.m. The usual monthly sittings of the Stipendary Magistrate’s court will be held on Monday next. His Honor the Chief Justice, Sir Robert Stout will preside at the Supreme Court sittings to be held in Nelson on the 20th instant. The S.S Man.-i.roa leaves Wellington fi Saturday for Motueka and will sail rect to ’Wellington on Monday morning. Shippers will do well to take note of this. In order to clear out the stock of last seasons potatoes Mr A. Manoy notifies that he has for sale a few sacks of prime varieties, to be cleared at five shillings per sack. The next visit of the American Dental company will be on Monday and Tuesday next. The representative may be consulted at Brougham’s, Post Office Hotel, where suitable rooms have been engaged. . The S.S Wairoa leaves Nelson, for

Takaka and Collingwood on Sunday at 10 p.m. She sails from Motueka to Nelson on Thursday next, at 3 p.m.

The Charles Edward will leave Motueka for "West Coast ports Monday at noon.

Mr G. W. Jenkins, secretary of the Cricket Association, has received word from Ngatimoti to the effect that the cup match betw-een the local club and Ngatimoti must be played at a later date than originally fixed, namely tomorrow. They are willing, however, to play a friendly game here on Wednesday next, and the challenge hasbeen accepted. Mr J. H. Page, of the Wheeler and Wilson Sewing Machine Company, notifies that he is prepared to give lessons in fancy work for which the Company’s machine is especially adapted. The use .of the appliances which accompany each machine are also fully explained.

Mr T. H. Hamer, private secretary to the Premier, has been granted six months’ leave of absence from February next. Mr and Mrs Hamer will pay a visit to Great Britain, travelli ng homeward by the Suez route. . Draught horses are now being taken to Dunedin from Gisborne as a speculative experiment.

At the late musical examination in Masterton, one six-year-old girl succeeded in passing the preparatory test.

The members of the Manawatu band decided to purchase new instruments to the value of <£226.

Neai-ly nine tons of Australian frozen rabbits were condemned recently at the Smithfield market, as unfit for human food, having been spoilt by some defect of the refrigerator. The amount of capital subscribed for dredging in New Zealand is equal to a contribution of <£3 by evex-y man, waman and child in the colonv.

The Wanganui School Committee has a credit balance of <£l4 13s 6d, as a result of a recent entertainment in aid of the funds for erecting an iron fence around the girls’ school-grounds. A breach of promise case in which <£soo damages is claimed from a returned soldier comes before the Supreme Court this month at Dunedin.

At St. Helena, recently, a Boer prisoner, being attacked by a large shark while bathing-, wrestled with it, and though he had an arm and a leg bitten off, he succeeded in dragging the fish into 3ft of water. The man was got ashore, but soon died.

It is currently reported in Southland that the Hon. Thos. Duncan will in the course of the next few weeks resign his office as Mininter for Lands, and be succeeded by Mr MoNab, member for Mataura.

At the last meeting of the Palmerston Borough Council exception was taken to an endorsement on the balance sheet, the Auditor Geueral objecting’ to the expenditure of <£4o 18s 4d, the cost of the Queen’s funeral drapery and the luncheon to the Indian and the Imperial troops. The Council considered the Auditor- had placed a -wrong construction on section 159 of the Municipal Corporations Act, and decided to protest against the endorsement, and to ask the Auditor- to, re-consider his decision, and if possible, to withdraw his opposition.. Nine Chinese who have made fortunes in this colony left by the Mokoia on Saturday aftei-noon for Sydney, enroute to China.

The number of horses according t o the last report of the Agricultural Department is put as follows :—18991900, 262,320; 1900-1901, 266725 or an increase of 4335.

Queensland has discoveread a new bowler, -who is looked upon as being a second Spofforth. He howls a ball like a loose thunderbolt. His name is

Henry, and he lives at a town named Bundaba.

Statistics show that in the last ten years and a half, with an average of thirty-six chilnren under four yeax-s belonging to Government industrial schools, thexe have been seven deaths ; while at px-ivate industrial schools, which have had an average of only thirteen, there have been ten deaths. The former are boarded out, the latter kept in the institutions. The facts therefore (says the Inspector-Genex-al in his last annual report) aff'oi-d strong evidence in favour - of boarding out. Boarding out from private "schools should have serious consideration ; it is the best and most natural way of treating infants. There were 25,972 swine in the colony at the end of the year cr an increase of 1224.

There is a decrease in the area under wheat this year in "Victoria, while the oat crop promises to be the largest on record.

In connection with the approaching retirement of Judge Mackay, of the Native Band Court, it may be mentioned that he lias been connected with native aft iii-s since the early and troublous days of the colony’s history. For some time he was Commissioner of Native reserves at Nelson. He managed the native reserves in the colony before the Public Trustee took over their management. As a Judge of the Native Band Court, and a member of the Native Land Appellate Court, lie has delivered some extremely important judgments, which were almost invariably upheld when appealed from. The expmt of frozen rabbits last season was more than a. million over that of the previous year. This incoming season it is not anticipated that there will be anything like as large a number exported. Whether the difference will be made up in skins depends a good deal upon the weather and the energy shown bv the settlers. At a meeting of the Waikakahi Settler’s Association, the President, Mr W. Beer, presiding, a discussion took place on a resolution passed at the Ashburton conference of the Farmer's Union, that the rebate to Crown tenants should he universal or to be abolished altogether-. The following resolution was passed :—“That this meetprotests against the resolution carried at Ashburton as being one of the most conservative and selfish resolutions ever formed by a body of men who put themselves up to forward the interest of farmers.”

Referring to the delay in proceeding with the erection of the new Town Hall, Wellington, a Councillor, at the lirst meeting of the Council, said it was time something was done, or somebody would be offering to buy the foundation stone.

Last month 58,900 tons of mud were removed by dredging ; ,t Lyttelton. In the past ten months 410,000 tons of mud have been dredged from the inner harbour.

An Auckland clerk, who had to seek the protection of the Bankruptcy Court explained that he had got in the hands of the money-lenders, and had been paying interest at the rate of no less than 65 per cent. Fourteen of his creditors were money-lenders. Mr H. G. Bagnall, of Fielding, had a very pleasant day's fishing in the Pohangina river a few days ago. Commencing about nine in the morninsr, by six in the evening Mr Bagnall had"landed no less than 47 trout. None of the fish were large, hut all were nice take able fish. All the trout were taken with a fly. A feature of the sharemarket at the present time is the position of shares in woollen mills, which show a slight decline, and are difficult to quit at prices s atisfactorv to sellers. For this state

of affairs labour conditions are said to be to some extent responsible. Amongst the principal amounts paid away over the Canterbury Metropolitan Meeting are : Mr G. G. Stead, <£3690 ;Mr Douglas Gordon, .£1240 ; Sir Geo. Clifford, £BOO ; Mr E. J. Watt, £450; Mr C. P. Murray Aynsley, £450; Mr F. Watson, £4OO ; Hon G. McLean, £305 ; and Mr "V\ Harris, £2SS. Altogether, the prize moneydistributed amounted to £9950. Mr R Logan, senr., of Auckland, has received an order for a new steamer from Mr Burford, of Nelson, work on which will be commenced shortly The new steamer is to be 111 ft in length- The craft is to trade on the Neison coast, and will make occasional trips to Wellington.

The United States torpedo boat Arrow, which was recently launched, has a bow as sharp as a knife blade, and one which offers the least resistance to the water. She is 130 ft long on the water-line, and has a beam of only 12ft 6in. She is modelled somewhat on the lines of the destroyer Bailey of the United States Navy. Her engines, made by Wright, of Newark, are as powerful as those carried by many ocean liners. They are quadruple expansion, and are of 2,000 horse-power each, and are expected to drive her 42 miles an hour, which will make her the fastest boat in the world. The Inglewood Record of a late date says :—ln another column we give a report, such as it is, of the Moa Road Board, but must point out in justice to our reporter-, that it is utterly impossible to report individual statements or opinions when such are given by three or four members at the same j time to no one in particular, and at ! times'through wreaths of smoke. For j such a state of affairs no doubt a chair - j man is primarily to blame, as to prevent such laxity is certainly his particular duty, but at the same time no member of a local body can hold himself guiltless who aids in such proceedings. Replying to a Wanganui correspon- ■ dent, the Sydney Bulletin says:— ■ Received your ignorant howl about how Democratic government has driven capital ont of Maoriland, smashed the farmers, and shut up the factories. Seeing that the employees in Maoriland factories have increased from 25,879 in 1895, to 48,938 in 1900 —the biggest increase in Maoriland history ; that it produces far more value of goods annually per inhabitant than New South Wales, Tasmania, South Australia or "Victoria; that it produces more value in crops than any other- State in Australasia ; that it has the two best-paying banks in Australasia (though one of them has a lot of old losses left over from the old ' Torv days to pay oft); that it has more savings banks deposits per head than any other State in Australasia ; that its bank deposits have increased five millions in the last ten years, while those of Australia have diminished—considering these and other things, you evidently don't know when you are well off.

News from San Francisco by the mail steamer Sonoma states that despatches from London say the health of King Edward is the burning topic of social and insurance circles. Newspapers mention that Lloyd’s lias advanced the rate of premium on the King’s life from 10 to 121, and finally ko 15 per cent. These dealings mdicate that the ordinary insurance companies ar e shutting down on policies on the Kings life, of which over- two and a half million pounds have been taken out during the last' month. Friends of the King continue to insist that he is only suffering from an aggravated case of “ smokers’ throat,” complicated by gout. 5