The Motueka Star. PUBLISHED TUESDAYS AND FRIDAYS. "Te Oranga Moti Iwi" TUESDAY, JANUARY 28, 1902.

Motueka Star, Volume II, Issue 48, 28 January 1902, Page 3

The Motueka Star. PUBLISHED TUESDAYS AND FRIDAYS. "Te Oranga Moti Iwi" TUESDAY, JANUARY 28, 1902.

The compulsory clauses of the School Attendance Act, passed last year, appeal- in another part of this issue of the Motueka Star. It will be noticed that every child between seven and fourteen must attend some public school (presuming such school is open five days during the week) not less than eight times, morning and afternoon attendances being ounted separately. The Act does not take cognizance of fruit gathering, hop picking, or any <.ther form if employment at. which children can be employed to advantage. The object of the law, ,tnd of the law makers, is to secure to our offsping the highest educational ad vantages obtn inable. Thet-ioveinment, thrc ngh the Education B.iard.-, provide t! e fuc.il - :t : es and parents are expected to make use of them. School Committees are, however, endowed with 'certain discretionary powers as to when schools shall be opened or closed, aud in view < f the state of. affairs which led up to the public meeting held last Friday evening, we are of opinion the time has come when, in the interests of both i>arents and children, the School Committees of Motueka, Riwuka, Lower and Upper Moutere, and Ngatimoti should meet together in some central locality and decide as to what must be done in the future. We agree with t,'ie opinion expressed by Mr William .-Joyce, that sooner or later the schools Avill have to be closed till after the 3.ops had been picked. It is not reasonable to expect that parent* (and particularly those who are cultivators < f small fruits,) will send their youngsters to school during the first quarter Hfc the year T —their harvest time—-

'wiien so much fruit has to be gathered and every picker is needed; it would be equally'unreasonable and impolitic to enforce- the compulsory clauses. To keep the schools open during the period mentioned would mean financial, loss' to the Committees and the teachers ; besides, those who kept, away from .school would retard theprogress of regular pupils and the result at the end of the year -would be most unsatisfactory. The High School, when in thorough workintr or-der, ought not to be interfered with by TOe breaks in the school day? we are now

having, ;k> the parent-; will see to ifc that edit .- tiouuj privileges obtainable are taken advantage of to the fullest extent. Let tLe schools'be kept open daily from t v .e end of March, a truant office'-, who "w'U carry out the law strictly and .impartially, appointed, and we venture to say the disadvantage teachers and Committees have labored under of late will be removed.

The Motueka Borough Schools reopened yesterday with an improved attendance. The High School classes were also started and it is gratifying to learn that a very fair number of pupils was present. When in thorough working order the High School i> sure to be -well supported not only by boys and'gnls in the Borough but by those from distant parts. Mr S. J. Fitch, assistant Government Pomologist, in company with Mi J. C. Blaekmore paid a short visit to this district. Mr Fitch inspected a number of orchards and small fruit plantations, and was most favorably impressed with the capabilities of the territory for fruit cultivation.

We publish the weekly fruit market report from Bunedin in this issue. It seems to take an unusually long time to get a telegram sent from down South. The message referred to was handed in at the original office at 9.10 a.m , on Friday and reached Motueka at 9.12 a.m .on Saturday, too late, of course, to ! e puM'shed in our Friday's issue. We are curious to know the reason of the delay. On Saturday last Mr C. Holyoake landed three very fine trout after a short spell of fishing at the Motueka river. The speckled beauties weighed 41b, 3±lb, and 21b. Mi- Jesse Piper, Chairman of the Kelson Hospital Board paid an offitral visit tj the Whakareua Orphanage On Monday. The visit, was an unexpected one, no notice having been given. MrPiper found everything in a, most satisfactory state and expressed himself highly pleased with the administrative abilities of Mr and Mrs Haycock. We have receivee from Messrs Baldwin and Ray ward, consulting engineers, of Wellington, a handsomely got up brochure, entitled " Hints to Inventors." This well known firm has branches throughout the colony and representatives in every country throughout the world ; therefore those persons who have an idea worth patenting cannot do better than place themselves in communication with this well known firm. The' book before us is full of useful hints aud suggestions as to the best way to.secure patent rights! The Motueka Borough Council invite applications on or before five p.m. of the 15th- February for the combined position of Town Clerk ami Overseer. Full particulars may be obtained from the Town Clerk, Mr Horatio Everett. A general meeting of the Motueka branch of the N. Z. Farmers' Union v\i'l be held in the Church of England Sunday school room on Saturday evening at eight o'clock, when some important matters will be discussed, including the question, of insuring farm workers, the local blacksmith's charges and other topics of interest to the members. In addition it is expected that Mr S. Wratt, the delegate to the late provincial' conference will furnish a report of the proceedings. A full attendance is looked for.

It is notified elsewhere that the dog registration'fees for tiie current year, within the Borough of Motueka is 5s and 2s 6d, and that fees must be paid forthwith to the Registrar, Mr E. Goodman..

An excellent opportunity of journeying overland to Nelson to .vitness the Jubilee celebrations is afforded by Mr Stanley Fowler, the well known Jehu, who notifies that a special coach will

leave heie on Sunday morning for It dimou'i, from which place arrangements w.ll be made to convey passengers into town. A number, of seats have already been secured, and it is ! fully expected theie will be a fnil Idad. A sight accident happened to the machinery of the S.S. .Lily last week. Repairs weie effected and the steamer resumed her regular trips on Sunday evening. She leaves here for .Nelson 011 Wednesday at 11.15 a.m.

Mr- D. H. Kirk has sold the trotting horse De Wet-to Mr H. Henden, at a satisfactory price. Mr W. Cann's Starlight, another winner at the late races, has also been sold since.— Takaka News.

A brass band is being formed at Collingwood. Mr J. S. Davidson has been appointed bandmaster, and is to 'procure quotations for the instruments required which are estimated to cost about .£IOO. Mr George Thorne, late of Motueka is acting as honorary secretary.,

The Golden Bay Argus says : Mr L. Sutton lost one of his pack-horses on Saturday last by an accident which happened very simply. The horses were returning from the camps at Bedstead Gully, when it appears one of them got off the track and fell into a watercourse which was hidden 03- a thick growth of scrub, getting in front feet first. In its struggles to extricate itself, which it failed to do, the animal sustained such severei njuries that it was considered best to shoot it, and this was done. The horse was one of the best of Mr Sutton's team, and the Joss is rather severe one.

Mr Herbert Langford, late temporal y headmaster of the Borough Schools, is now carrying on the Sarau School at the Upper Moutere during the absence of the master Mr William H. Arnold, who has had to go to the Nelson Hospital. The Stock Department has decided not to insist upon the dipping of sheep until the end of April. After April, however, owners of undipped sheep will be compelled to dip them forthwith. The penalty for exposing sheep undipped and affected with lice is* still in force. Never close a can of fresh milk that has not been aerated and cooled. Cover the can with cheese cloth until the animal heat is out. The gold, coal, and timber exported from Greymouth during last year was valued at £579,664. Of sawn timberthere was fourteen million feet, of "silver pine sleepers one hundred and thirty-eight thousand, of coal one hundred and eighty-four thousand tons, and of gold 96,666 ounces. The owners of the Aorere have given orders in 'London for the building, of a new iron boat for the Patea trade to carry 100 tons dead weight or 120 measurement oii 7ft water, twin screws, steam steering gear, and re - frigerated throughout. She is guaranteed to be ready in London in June, and will be here early in September—ready for next season's butter trade. She will have'2oft beam and be 94ft at keel, and have a speed of ten knots. Truth says that many of the debts contracted by Government with ChristcVmrch tradesmen during the visit of Royalty have not yet been paid. Bills presented six months ago have not been met.

The Wairarapa Star assures its readers that a farmer recently compromised a. claim under the Workers Compensation Act with a swagger who had cut his foot while doing a little wood-choppin.o-, by the payment of LlO. "A fool and his money are soom parted."

The chimneys shaken down at Cheviot by the earthquakes are nearly all re-built, and the place has now a more cheerful appearance.

The third local wool sale of the season was held on Friday last at Wellington, when some 1200 bales were offeied by the various brokers. There wa'js a full attendance of . buyers, and bidding was brisk. Messrs Levin and Co. report:-—The quality of the wool offered was poor, as most of the growers of better class wools have elected to ship this season and chance an improvement on the London market. In sympathy with "the Home market, prices to-day showed an advance quite eijual to if not greater than the reported London advance. All-round an advance of |d to fd may be recorded here. We quote—Superior .fine crossbreds, 4d to 4fd ; medium crossbred Romneys, 3 id to 4d.; coarse crossbreds and lincolns, 3d to 34d ; logstained and inferior, 2|d to 3d ; "pieces and bellies 2d to 2|d ; locks, id to l|d ; lambs, 3d to3.Jd. The fight for the heavyweight championship of the world, 'between J. J. Jeffries and Gus Ruhlin, took place on 15th November, before a crowd of 10,000 people in the ; Mechanic's Payillion. San Francisco. It was one of the most unsatisfactory fights everwitnessed, Jeffries defeating Ruhlin in the fifth round, and the latter quitting the ring. No one was more surprised than Jeffries, who assercs that he delivered only one effective blow. Ruhlin says that he received a chance blow, which utterly disabled him, and that Jeffries persisted in fighting low. He declares that he was unfairly handled and injured almost from the beginning. Ruhlin appeared frightened to fight. He was practically finished in the second round, when Jeffries landed a left-hand hook jam that took all the fight out of Ruhlin. Witnesses of the fight agree that it was one'of the most disappointing contests between heavyweights of reputation that ever took place. Ruhlin's managersays he decided to stop at the end & of the fifth round to save his man from i worse punishment, and he did not want a knockout. Jeffries says he had not started to fight when the sponge was thrown up. Ruhlin recovered quickly, and was not badly punished, there being little trace of heavy blows. He is, indeed, little the worse for wear. It is stated that the receipts at the fight, amounted to 35.000 dollars (L 7292). Jeffries gets 16,800 dol. (L 3500) of this and Ruhlin 5,600 dol. (LI 167). Jeffries, in addition will get a royalty of 25per cent on the kintoscope pictures. Saturday's Post says agents were wroth this morning owing totheir inability to secure labour to work on vessels in port. The Shaw, Savill and Albion Company required three gangs of men to labour on the Aotea, but was only able to procure one °-anoYesterday work on the Union Steamship Company's vessel Rotoiti was hindered from the same cause, and the agents of the Charles Edward were in similar trouble this morning. Employer's of labour state emphatically that although there are numbers of idle men on the wharves they will only work at their own convenience, and even when they do work they will put on their coats at the slightest provocation and leave their tasks.

A Petone resident writes to the Post a circumstantial account of what appears to have been a peculiarly disgusting and cowardly assault made upon him the other night by a party of troopers in a railway carriage, and afterwards by one of them at the Petone railway station. The Post says that the case as stated is one that demands immediate and searching enquiry. About-6000 cases of fruit were brought into, the Wellington markets on Friday morning, and auctioneers were busy disposing of it under the hammer all day. Prices were low.