The Motueka Star PUBLISHED TUESDAYS AND FRIDAYS. "TE ORA MOTA IWI." TUESDAY, MAY 20, 1902.

Motueka Star, Volume II, Issue 80, 20 May 1902, Page 3

The Motueka Star PUBLISHED TUESDAYS AND FRIDAYS. "TE ORA MOTA IWI." TUESDAY, MAY 20, 1902.

A meeting of the Motueka Masonic Lodge will be held on Wednesday evening. There being a general opinion that, account of the Government having to observe a public holiday on Satulday next, the 24th of May, the anniversary of the birth of the late Queen Victoria, observed for so many years, will not be kept up on this oceasion. It has therefore, been decided by the Riwaka Athletic Association not to hold sports, as advertised. Tenders are inyited for painting and . .aperhanging the Methodist Parsonage, Motueka, which must be forwarded on v before the 30th of May. Last Friday evening, Mr G. W. Jenkins, secretary of the Motueka

Cricket Association, received a letter from Mr Haggitt, secretary of the Nel- ! son Association, stating that at a meet - held on the 15th, it was unanimously resolved that the Motueka Association be asked to co-operate with the Nelson Association with reference to the proposed visit of Lord Hawke’s team. A meeting has been called for the 28th instant to discuss the question. A Carterton shooting party reports that the roads in the Makuri and Forty-mile bush are in a terrible state. Last week a waggon and five horses were bogged and had to be dug out. Later a settler named Bren ton, while trying to rescue some of his sheep from the rivers of mud, was himself submerged, and would have perished had not assistance arrived at an opportune moment. Fruit growers and others who wish to secure strong, healthy, black currant trees are notified in our advertising columns that they may be secured from Mr F. W. Thorp who has a limited number of “Lea’s Prolific” for sale. The variety mentioned is an excellent cropper and thrives well in this district. To-morrow afternoon the conference between representatives of the School Committees and the teachers will be held at the public school, Motueka, to discuss the school attendance question. A meeting of the committee formed to arrange for the farewell social and dance, to be tendered to Mr Hurst house, was held on Friday evening, when there was an excellent attendance. A good deal of preliminary business was transacted and the following sub-committees were appointed : —- Concert committee, Messrs Gilbert, Can a van and Batchelor. Refreshment committee, Mesdames Rankin (3), Staples, Batchelor, Johnston and the Councillors’ wives. Hearty support was received by the ladies who w r ere commissioned to canvas for refreshments and everything points to successful, representative gathering. The committee will meet again on Thursday evening. sC A meeting of fruit growers was held on Monday evening, Mr Alexander in the chair. The canvassers appointed at a previous meeting reported the disposal of a number of shares. It was resolved, on the motion of Mr J. A. Guy, seconded by Mr E. F. Burrell, to make the value of the shares LI, instead or L 5, the amount of capital being the same. A prospectus submitted by Mr T. Pattie w T as adopted on the motion of Mr Burrell. At the close of the meeting the committee met and arranged for a further canvas of the ne’ghborhood. Tro >per Scott, of Riwaka, who left New Zealand last year as a member of the Sixth Contingent returned to Wellington with his comi-ades on the 14th. The Nelson men are ex*pected to reach home on Thursday. A team from the Nelson Club is visit ing Motueka, on Saturday, the 24th of May, to play a friendly game of football with the local Club. Particulars appear in our advertising columns. Meyrick Llewellyn Jones, of Little Wanganui, intends to apply at the next meeting of the Motueka Licensing Committee for the issue of an accommodation license for a house situate at Little Wanganui, containing, at present four rooms, exclusive of those required for the family. A slight accident happened to the s.s. Lily this morning, which prevented her leaving for Nelson. It is expected she will resume her running tomorrow. Mr C. Lillywhite, who was taken to England charged with having committed the Colchester murder, is at present in Tacoma (Washington, U.S.), visiting his friends. It is his intention to return to Wellington.

A notice is inserted* by Mr J. W. Taylor, cautioning persons from trespassing on ’ -his property, Greenhill Estate. It ,1s complained that people are in the habit of entering upon .the proderty, doing considerable damage, and in some cases shooting the sheep depasturing there ; consequently it has been found necessary to put the law in force should there be further trespassing. Speaking |before the Masterton branch of the Farmers’ Union, Mr Glass said it would be necessary to start a fighting fund in order to carry on the work of printing and ventilating various subjects. They would alto have to consider the question of paying secretaries for their services. The work was becoming very heavy, and the secretaries could not be expected to do it without remuneration. There is a good deal of feeling in Grey mouth consequent upon the bakers raising the price of bread to eightpence, butchers’ meat from sixpence to eightpence, and milk to fivepence per quart. The cost of living throughout the colony is going up by leaps and bounds. In almost every department of industry and trade there seems to be a mania for high / if not exorbitant prices (remarks the Timaru Post). Necessaries, as well as luxuries of life, are affected by the prevailing mania, and it is diffcult to foresee where the limit of high prices and public forbearance will be reached. It is freely alleged in many quarters that the sole cause of high prices is the combination of workers to secure higher wages, but this contention is not quite fail- to<, the workers. While it is urvderiiably true that prices have gone up in those industries where workmen have combined and by means of Unions secured higher reward for their labour, it is also true that in these same industries the increased charge for the manufactured article has been out of all proportion to the increase in wages. It is also the case that in industries unaffected by the labour cause the of the product has gone up. The Poverty Bay “ Herald ” says : “ Slowly but surely the sea is encroaching upon this East Coast of New Zealand Evidence of the erosion that has taken place is seen in the numerous jagged rocks that appear along the beaches, once the base and foundation of what must have appeared to the early aboriginals as substantial hills, The hills on the sea face are of a verv soft and slippery nature, and the maintenance of i-oads along them is no easy matter, whilst at several points, where the road skirts the base of cliffs, much money has been fruitlessly spent in endeavouring to protect the highway from the ravages of the sea.” TheOamarn Mail writes : —A plebiscite is being taken by representatives of the Protestant churches in town upon the question of Scriptural instruction in the public schools. Ballot papers are now being issued, and the platform adopted and upon which all adult residents are asked Yes or No is as follows . —(1) Repitition of the Lord’s Prayer, (2) reading of selected portions of the Bible in school hours, the teacher simply giving explanations from a text book to be prepared by a committee representing the various churches which have combined to secure this reform, (3) a conscience clause will be provided to admit of objectors withdrawing during Scripture lessons. There would appear to be a good market for apples in South Africa. . A late Canterbury resident saw the fruit sold by auction in Johannesburg at 3s (id per dozen, and subsequently he bought a couple at sixpence each. *** Subscription to MOTUEKA STAR: Three Shillings and Sixpence a Quarter, which may begin any time