LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 7, Issue 380, 31 May 1918, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

In order to enable our staff to take full advantage of the public holiday on Monday, June 3rd (King's Birthday) there will be no issue of the Times on Tuesday next, June 4th,

Messrs Dalgety and (Jo., are to hold their usual monthly stock sale at Tuakau on Friday nest. Entries are invited.

The usual monthly meeting of the Franklin County Council has been fixed i for Friday next instead of Thursday as previously arranged.

Messrs Alfred Buckland and Sons are to hold a clearing sale on Thursday next on behalf of Mr Ernest Heard on his farm at Glen brook. For particulars see advt.

Particulars of the rates for the current year intended to be struck by the Pukekohe Borough Council at their meeting on Wednesday, June 19th, are advertised in this issue.

Eiderdown and kapok quilts in great variety, in keeping with winter requirements, form an attractive display at Messrs W. G. Shotbolt and Co's drapery establishment at Pukekohe.

Retrenchment as being carried out by the Pukekohe Borough Council has this week led to a'l of the Council's casual workmen being dismissed, the permanent staff alone now being employed. The present quiet time of the year as regards farm work has enabled farmers to journey to Auckland to attend the annual conference of the Farmers' Union and the Lower Waikato has accordingly been well represented thereat. Messrs Gallagher, Howe and Moore have another of the famous 6cylinder Oakland cars due to arrive this week at their motor garage in King Street, Pukekohe. Inspection of the same is invited, as also of the other makes of cars for which the firm are agents.

In view of the risk of accidents through vehicles and motor cars not being lighted or being improperly illuminated at night-time we are asked to state that it is the intention of the police authorities to strictly enforce the lighting regulations and all offenders will be prosecuted. The regulations, in the case of motorcars, include a provision for the rear number plate to be distinctly visible at night-time. Headlights must aho be carried by cars and by horse conveyances.

During the hearing at the Pukekohe Court yesterday of some cases concerning the registration of dogs the Magistral, Mr J. E. Wilson 8.M., commenting on a remark made by one of the defendants that he was not going to hunt round for the Dog Tax Collector, stated that it was the duty of owners to go to the Collector and he desired that such should be understood.

For failing to send his son regularly to school John Adams, farmer, of Pukekohe, was yesterday at the Pukekoho Magistrate's Court fined £ l (being 10s a week in respect of 8 weeks a mentioned in the information) and Ms costs. Defendant admitted that he had previously been fined for a like offence and the Magistrate (Mr J. E. Wilson S.M ) pointed out to him that he was endangering the boy's future career by not enforcing his constant attendance at school. Mrll S, Small (Truant Officer) prosecuted.

We understand that arrangements are being made for Mr J. E' Wilson 8.M., who now has charge of the country courts' circuit, to be gazetted chairman of the Franklin Licensing Committee in succession to Mr P. V. Fra/er S.M. If this is effected prior to the annual meeting of the Franklin Licensing Committee fixed for Thursday, June l;)th, Mr Wilson will preside on that occasion and will also take the Court on that day instead of Mr Frazer as previously arranged

Patumahoe is stiil in the illogical position of having a railway in its midst without any passenger trains being run thereon and with th«f line only being used for goods traffic once a week, namely on Saturdays—a day most unsuitable for settlers Protests against the Railway Department's neglect to give the district the facilities to which it is entitled are calmly ignored. Ground work is now, however, being carried out for the completion of the line from Mauku to Waiiiku, Slav labour being utilised for that purpose in pursuance of the Government's decision to commandeer the services of such alien subjects, and the bridging of the Mauku Creek will bo put in h ind as soon as possible. Apples aro fairly plentiful Usually at this season the better class apple, such as " Jonathan," is worth ol per lb retail. In these days of I soaring prices it is pleasing to tinl at least one necessary food commodity s lling at pre-war rates or as in this easo even less Elcerdegen's Fruit Stores, Pukekohe, rtre retailing Nelson grown "Jonathan" apples of excel left t 'quality (it a price which would be considered choap even in the height of the fruit season. There is 110 ijue.stion that the popular aople is deserving of oven greater popularity in view of the almost prohibitive prices for American dried and canned fruits and from present indications New Zealand fruit-growers have right here in the Dominion, ail almost unoxploited market worthy of attention in preference to Overseas. For Influenza take Woods' Great I'ejipprmint Cure. Never fails I <>,ti

The men of the 40th Reinforcements who went into camp on April 4th returned this morning on their final leave. Considerable headway has been made in the construction of the new central station at Drury and of the road approaches thereto, a big gang of men being continuously employed on the work. In the opinion of many persons, however, operations of such a magnitude and entailing heavy expenditure might without detriment or inconvenience to the Railway Department have been postponed until the conclusion of the war.

For supplying a bottle of Schnapps to a Maori at Tuakau on May lltti for consumption off licensed premises a Raratongan, named Tange Tiro, was yesterdav, at the Pukekohe Magistrate's Court, fined £2 and 7s costs, the defendant pleading that he was ignorant of the law. The Maori, by name Bob Tamero, was fined a similar amount for being a party to the offence. The penalties imposed were lighter than usual by reason of the good character given defendants by Constable Taylor.

The recent death of General R. H. Davies itcalls memories of the days of the Pukekohe Mounted Rifles when, subsequent to the Boer war, General (then Col.) Davies was the officer commanding the Auckland district and took great interest in the Pukekohe troop, frequently visiting the district. The Rifles at that time had the following commissioned and non-commissioned officers, viz., Captain, H. Dell ; Ist Lieutenant, A. Glasson (now Lieutenant serving in France); 2nd Lieutenant, A- jollier ; Sergt.Major, M. Crispe; QuartermasterSergt., " Monty " Wright; Senior Sergeant, W. J. Dil worth ; Sergeants, C. S. Schofield (now Major and officer in char«e of Motuihi Island), W. Adams, W. Turley (now Major and attached to the Auckland Military Staff), and J Patterson ; Corporals, A. Walker, W. Reynolds, J. Adolph, and Don Warden; Chaplain, Rev. F. B. Dobson. The Pukekohe troop, which was the strongest mounted corps in the Auckland province, took part in the reception given in Auckland to the Duke of York (now King George) on the occasion of his visit to New Zealand in 1901 and they also assisted in the reception of the Imperial troops, their horses being used bv the men of the Royal Horse Artillery on their march to the Domain. An interesting incident in connection with the latter event is worth recording. Henry Dell junr, who is now serving with the forces in Palestine and was then a boy of about ten years of age, was so enamoured with the military display that mounted on a little pony he followed his father (Captain Dell) in the procession and lent his pony to one of the Indian Lancers. Through an error the pony was lost but was afterwards found wandering on the railway wharf.

A good deal of time was occupied at the Pukekohe Magistrate's Court yesterday in a series of cases of failure to register dogs, the prosecutions being undertaken by the Pukekohe Borough Council's Dog Tax Collector, a Maori named Leonard Albert, who showed naive ability in conducting his cases and cross-examining the defendants. Clark Potatau, a native was fined 10s and costs 14s in respect of two dogs, his plea that there was no law for Maori dogs and that indeed the animals belonged to some of his relatives being set aside by the Magistrate (Mr J. E. Wilson). In a charge against Alfred Lakeman, represented by Mr J. G Haddow, that he had kept three greyhounds without registering them the defendant pleaded that he had only one greyhound and had registered it as a rabbit dog. Albert's evidence showed that the defendant had effected one registration, namely for a fox terrier, for which he paid 2s 6d. The defendant's explanation was that such registration was intended to be for his greyhound and that he had described it in a hnrry as a fox terrier when the defendant called on him* In reply to Albert, the defendant admitted that he had had the greyhound for three or four years, had not registered it last year, and had paid 10s for it in 191(1. A second greyhound he claimed belonged to a neighbour of his, Mr Jos. Elliott, but the latter giving evidence stated that he had given defendant charge of the dog as defendant had asked him not to send it away as he intended. The defendant was fined 10s and costs 7s in respect of the dog said to have been registered as a fox terrier and 58 and costs 9s in regard to Mr Elliott's dog, the Magistrate considering that the defendant was its actual custodian The charge respecting a third dog was dismissed. Jas Mitchell, similarly charged in respect of one greyhound, successfully pleaded that the dog had not reached the age of six months and the case against him was dismsssed -