PATEA MAIL Established 1875. CIRCULATION nearly 600 COPIES. Average circulation last year, 510. Friday Evening, Sept. 15, 1882

Patea Mail, 15 September 1882, Page 2

PATEA MAIL Established 1875. CIRCULATION nearly 600 COPIES. Average circulation last year, 510.

Friday Evening, Sept. 15, 1882

Delivered on Monday. Wednesday, and Friday Evenings by mounted messengers— at Hawera by 7-30 o’clock, at Normanby by 8-15, at Manaia and Waimate Plains by 8-30, and Southward at Waverlcy (for train) by (> o'clock.

Mr and Mrs Norman have returned from their wedding trip to Auckland. Some remarks in this issue on land to be leased near Pa tea will induce a more hopeful feeling of confidence in the place. The new Post and Telegraph Office for Manaia is to cost about £550, that being the amount just voted by Parliament. The new Court House for Hawera is to cost about £BOO. This amount is only half as much as some people in Hawera have been expecting to see voted by Parliament, The Hawera Star is about to be published daily. This is a striking indication of the growth of the northern district since the Plains were opened to settlement. What will be the effect of the Roads Construction Act in this district ? Local bodies are empowered to levy a special rate for any particular road work, and the money can be borrowed from Government at a low rate of interest. The Normanby-to-Manaia road needs a large sum to complete the gravelling, but Government refused to treat it as a main road, and no vote has been passed for it. This will be a case for rating the district to cover a loan. The Coast road is to be finished as a colonial work. A sum of £4,250 was voted in the Estimates for roads and bridges in the unsettled portions of Patea and Taranaki districts. This is in addition to £IO,OOO voted for opening lends before sale ; namely, £3,642 for roads through bush behind Waimate Plains; £1,376 for bush roads near Patea ; £2,000 for roads through the Continuous Reserve (to be leased) near Manaia; £1,884 for bush roads between Stratford and Ngaire ; £SOO for bush north side of New Plymouth. A local invention which deserves to be widely known will be found very useful where steam is used as a motive power. Mr Haycock, of the Patea Wood and Chaff Mill, has perfected an ingenious yet simple arrangement by which the steam-engine’s speed can be regulated from a distance; so that a man working the chaff-cutter in a separate room can control the speed by touching a handy lever, or a man at the circular saw can do the same withoutmoving from his bench. The simplicity of this new regulator of speed is a great merit, while it meets a difficulty and avoids a danger which can be appreciated by those who understand the risks of chaff-cutting and sawing firewood. Mr Haycock’s “ notion ” is worth a patent. Since our previous mention of this invention, he has extended its use by connecting it to the chaff-cutter on the upper floor. Gentlemen of the Borough Council, will you be good enough to lay your wise heads together, and consider whether the revenues of the borough are equal to the expense of a watering-cart for dry windy days. Some of you said last season that the winter was too near; and you didn’t provide the watering-cart. Now you have the fine weather all in front of yon, and there’s no excuse this time. So just sit down and consider about the municipal dustlayer. Having men on day-wages, the expense qf laying the dust in the main thoroughfare for shopping will be very small, in comparison with the daily comfort which your judicious expenditure will confer on a dusty community. “ And your petitioners will ever pray ” —etcetera. N. B : Don’t put the cart before the horse—put it before the Mayor,

Wonder where all the horses come from that wander about the borough streets after dark. It is almost as great a mystery where they all go to in the morning. It is certain they don’t go to the public pound. It is just about time that a stop should be put to this nightly nuisance, as per bye-laws. Mr H. F. Christie has just sold one of the farm sections which he bought at the land sale last week. We believe Mr M’Kae is the purchaser, and intends to settle in the Waimate district. Public money will be spent to a large extent along this Coast during the next . twelve months. We find from the votes passed by Parliament that about £116,000 arc to be S| ent on various public works between Wanganui and Stony river. The greater part is to complete the railway and station buildings. A coffee-palace company in Auckland has proved a failure. This is a rar* instance, as the success of- these refreshment “ palaces ” in large cities has been remarkable. A vote of £3,000 is passed for completing the gravelling of the Coast road between Manaia and Opunaki; and £1,500 is voted for a bridge over Stony river. A “ sick man ” at Hawera complains that neither the Borough nor County Council will pay the expense of sending him to a hospital. His doctor says be needs several months’ treatment for chronic sore throat. What is to become of him ? If left to get worse, he may become a helpless burden. About twenty thousand more acres of bush land behind the Waimate Plains are expected to be surveyed for settlement before next winter. The Chief Surveyor says this will complete all the available land between Waiugongoro and Taungatara (near Upunaki.) There will also be the leasing of the Continuous Reserve, a belt running behind the Plains (with small slices taken out as a penalty for sedition) ; and this belt comprises the most attractive portion of the bush, being next the open Plains, and having many beautiful clearings and open indentions. This large extent of Continuous Reserve (not quite continuous now) is about equal in area to all the open Plains which bad been sold for settlement prior to last week’s sale. It is to be hoped the official Trustee who is entrusted with the leasing of native reserves will lose no more time by sitting in Wellington doing routine office work, but that he will come into the district and arrange with the natives about leasing. A telegram on this subject says action is to commence at once. Quite time it did ! Normanby is claiming new impoitance as being the nearest railway town to the Upper Plains. The large prices given for sections at and near Okoiawa are a strong indication that population will soon be numerous in that district. 5 The great barrier against Normanby trade has been the shocking condition of the road from the township to Manaia. Hardly one-half this length had been metalled before the early winter set in; and a bridge was wanting between Okoiawa and Manaia. The question still remains : who is to find the money \ for metalling and bridging that road ? Normanby people will neglect their best interests if they do not try at once to put the new Act into operation, by inducing the proper local body to levy a special rate and borrow the money.Mr Jeff’s lecture on “inventions of the period ” was rather more of a trade advertisement than seemed desirable. That is to say, it ought to have been so described, and advertised on its merits. It seems to us that if traders want to push their wares by means of a free public lecture, they need not induce people to expect a scientific discourse instead of a trade speech. Mr Jeff has many interesting articles to sell, and a capital mode of promoting sale is to give a free lecture. We object to advertise trade lectures gratis.

Mr Skeet, dentist, is announced to visit Patea next Monday till Wednesday. The new pilot for Patea, Captain Flowerday, arrived here to-day, and has entered on duty. Parliament was prorogued this afternoon. A list of the bills passed appears in this issue. Mr W. Cowern will sell to-morrow at his yards, dairy cows and heifers on behalf of Mr A. Wood. The N.Z. Clothing Factory invite attention to their cheap clothing for juveniles. A fancy dress ball for children is proposed at New Plymouth. Mr Gower, chemist, invites attention to specialities just received, as advertised . Captain Barry has started on another lecturing ramble, and is funnier than ever. He is to visit this district from New Plymouth, and has taken up a claim on the Te Aroha goldfield. A now Act for protecting copyright in news telegrams will come into operation to-morrow. Every message published under the protection of this Act shall bear the dale and hour of its receipt. at Christchurch says he has been levying distress warrants at the rate of 20 a week during the winter. This discloses a bad state of things in and around a large city. The sale of Messrs Nicholson Brothers’ stock at Waverley yesterday was largely attended, and all were sold at high prices. The horses sold for Mr A. Aiken also fetched improved prices. A large number of properties and sections belonging (in a sense) to the late Mr Raise, chiefly at Waitara, have been sold by auction. The ss Wakatn arrived at Nelson at 11 p.m. on Wednesday, and reached Wellington at 9 this morning. Rough Weather is reported from Wellington. The underwriters have demanded the docking of the Wakatn, with a view of ascertaining damage. She will probably not be able to leave Wellington till to-morrow. The Rev. J. L. Keating, who recently held the position of Incumbent of St. George’s Church at Patea, has been appointed to the charge of the North East Valley, Dunedin. This rising suburb is at present connected with “ All Saints” church in that city, but it is intended to erect a church in the new district, and to form a separate Anglican parish in North East Valley. The Rev. A. Thomson has arrived in Patea to take charge of the Presbyterian church. He has been educated in a theological college at Glasgow, and this is his first charge. ' He may expect a cordial reception in this district, and the Presbyterian body will doubtless grow more rapidly than hitherto, with the advantage of a resident minister. He is announced to preach his first sermon next Sunday. The first general meeting of the Patea Oil and Fibre Manufacturing Co. (limited), now duly incorporated, is announced for Saturday week, the business being important. The directors appointed prior to the formal registry of will doubtless be re-elected a* this first general meeting. The question of a site for the factory may bo mentioned at the meeting, hut the actual selection of a site will be the first important duty of the new directors.