LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 8, Issue 447, 4 February 1919, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The Franklin County Council gives notice by advertisement in this issue that a penalty of ten per cent will be charged on all rates not paid by the 28 th inst. Messes J. I- Stembridge ami Co. advertise particulars or entries for tho usual weekly sale to be held at their Pukekohe auction mart next Friday. A Swede, who was last week arrested by Constable Horan, of Mercer, on a charge of having criminally assaulted a married woman in the Maramarua district, has been remanded in custody to appear at the Mercer Magistrate's Court on Wednesday of next week. A Fukokohe " boy" with the forces in Palestine once again bears testimony to the fact that the "Pukekohe Times " goes far afield. Writing home he mentioned that he regularly receives copies of tho paper and that the contents aie eagerly read not only by himself but by other Pukekohe soldiers. The attention of picture patrons is drawn to the screening of "The Oross Bearer,' to bo shown at the Premier Hall, Pukekohe, on Saturday night next. This is a remarkable story of the war taken in Belgium, and centering round Rheims Cathedral. Montague Love plays the part of Caruinal Meiciei. A display of photos announcing the picture may be seen in Mr Lusher s window. —(Advt.) Tho great event of tie year in Pukekohe—namely, the annual show of the Franklin A. and P. Society i« duo to take place on Friday and Saturday, February 28th and March Ist The Society has this week opened its new office in Manukau road, Pukekohe, adjacent to the railway bridge, and the Secretary (Mr D. R Hamilton) is now there daily in attendance, the telephone number being 57. Entries close on Tuesday next, the 11th inst. As will be seen from the Society's ad v-ertisement in this issue, a new c'ass has been added to tho schedule - viz., for rive hanks of best-dressed N.Z. hemp. Lack of interest in local doings for some reason or other is very apparent in Pukekohe and onco again last night an attempt to revive the activities of the Pukekohe Chamber of Commerce proved fruitless owing to only half a dozen persons attending a meeting that had been 'convened. It is, however, recognised that in various matters outside the scope of a Borough I ouncil a Chamber of Commerce is an asset to a community and so that the Pukekohe Chamber should not be allowed to become defunct a further endeav(,ur w ill be made to so,;iue a representative attendance at a meeting to be held in the Borough Council Ch unbfrs on Monday, the 1 <th inst. The Franklin A. and P. Society has ju-t come into possession of the District. Court Shield, valued at •".<» 1 guineas, which was one of the trophies competed for at the Auckj land wid'.c no longer hold. Tho shield was donated to the Aookhnd \ and P Association ! I,y tli-- Auckland Filters' Freezing I Cov. as a pt i/e for the best country | ..listr.i t bay, tho distr.et wnmsng 11 niosf occasions over ten years to boj t'omo tho possessor. When the winter slows ceased Franklin bad w n twice and < »hm.>mtiri and Whaiigaroi once each. Whaiigarei wor*" 1 tho latest holders. Ihe shield nas in tlm meantime remained wiMi ! them but at ln« r Franklin's claim for actual ownership by right of tho „T".tvr number of wins has beou recognised by the Aui-k'.niid A uud I'. Association The raising of at least i'son by means ol 1 t'O donations of £.> apiece | (.) srreui'tlivii the lin on- of the Fiaiiklin A. and 1' S x i'ty is in objoc.tivoof a campaign just entered upon by throe of the Society s m ist zealous members, viz. Messrs James Koulston, J P-tter, and L. Allen. Already most one mraging support has boon received t » the scheme, which seems in a fair way o; being realised Indeed in one instance three members of a family so r<cog nised that the Society was deserving of assistance that the trio promptly subscribed £'> each. The canvassors aro makiug a systematic round of tho district, and it is to be noped that their efforts will be rewaidcd with success.

Particulars are advertised in this issue of the entries for Messrs Dalgety and Co.'s sheep fair to be held at Tuakau next Friday. A reminder is given of the sale of household furniture and effects to be oarried out by Messrs J T. Stembridge and Co. on Thursday next on Mrs Brown's farm, Puni road, Pukekohe. Writing from Palestine, Trooper H. H. Dell, of Pukekohe, says, " There is plenty of good land going to waste here. The Bedouins only scratch it over and never farm it. There should be plenty of money to i be made out of the land here soon, j The Pukekohe Tennis Club opened for the season on Saturday last. In spite of the inclement weather a good many members were present. Afternoon tea provided by the lady [ members in the pavilion was enjoyed by all. It is hoped that a good attendance of members will be secured next Saturday, weather permitting. At the meeting last week of the Wanganui Borough Council an account for £33 9s was received from a trading firm in respect of a broken plate glass vindow. The circumstances were peculiar, the damage being caused by a piece of road metal thrown up by the wheel of a passing motor car. The Borough Council decided to disclaim any liability. One Councillor naively suggested that a sister local body might be liable as the offending piece of stone originally came from outside the Borough. That the Dominion gift parcels sent by the Womens' Patriotic League are appreciated by the "boys" is testified to in a letter just received from Trooper H. H. Dell, of Pukekohe, who is serving with the troops in Palestine and he mentions the interesting fact that in Jordan Valley whilst in the company of a friend of his in the 4th Wai kato Regiment the latter was handed a parcel, the sender of which was Mrs Zinzan, of Mauku. Some of the champion oniongrowers of Pukekohe have had their eyes opened lately as to what can be done in onion culture on the "poor gum land " at Awhitu, provided a little treatment be given it. Mr W 11. Colbeek, at Awhitu, this year had a fine crop of very large onions, and a visitor from Pukekohe brought back with him three onions which together weighed ">lbs -lozs. These three orsioi.s have been on exhibition in the window of Mr W. T. Jones, saddler, and have attracted a good de«l of attention. The secret of their splendid growth is that they were grown upon ground which was formerly used as a hen-run, and was consequently full of nitrogenous manure. The many local friends of Miss Violet Redmond, who was formerly a resident of Tuakau, will ba pleased to hear of her recent marriage at St. Mark's Anglican Church, Remuera, to Lieutenant Robert Joseph MacKenna, of the Auckland District Headquarter's Staff. The bridegroom has had an interesting career, comprising fourteen years' military service in various corps and in several parts of the world ; he has borne arms in England, Canada South Africi, Egypt and New Zealand. He first oame to this country at the conclusion of the Boer War, throughout which he served —first in the Canadian Mounted Rifles and afterwards in the Imperial Yeomanry. On the outbreak of the present war, Mr MacKenna, then a schoolmaster in the Thames district, enlisted in the 'Tain Body and served with the 6tli Haurakis till invalided late in the following year. Though there are in New Zealand several families of a similar name, Mih MacKenna has not a single relative, in the Dominion. The outbreak of inlluenza in Australia will not be welcomed by Pukekohe potato-growers or Auckland merchants, as it (combined with the restricted shipping available) may be expected to check a promising open ing for trade. A vessel was despatched to Sydney last week with about 500 . tons of potatoes on consignment from Auckland and Pukekohe merchants, but the development of the " flu " in Sydney leads to the expectation that the boat will be quarantined, or that die wharf labourers will make difficulties as to her being worked, i'otatoes are selling at from £ls to £ 1 fi per ton in Sydney, so that, wore cotditions normal, a much-needed benefit would be conferred upon the local market. As things are, however, the market at present is fully supplied, and potatoes aro slow of sale. The Southern crop is reported to be a little late, and in any case no groat quantity can bo received from there for over two months yet, so that, as was the case last year, an improvement in price towards the autumn may bo expected. Prompted by the high prico prorailing last autumn and winter for chaff, a great many farmers throughout the district have grown oats for dialling purposes this season, and practically without exception very line crops have been secured. The cool werther and the series of regular showers which fell during the growing season have contributed largely to this result Some surprising weights aro being claimed for the various crops as they aro cut and stacked, and while in some cases these may orr on tho side of gener osity it is certain that tho crops on tho average aro heavier than they have been for many years past. The Karaka has kept up its reputation for growing heavy and good quality oats, and claims aro advanced for .several crops of three tons to the acre Whether tho machine will endor-n these claims remains to be coon Owing to the quantity of chaff available, and the prospective easing of shipping with the end of the war, the price of chat! is expected to show a substantial reduction from the winter's level. Recent «a'es of local chaff for prompt delivery have been made at £lO per ton on trucks, but with more general cutting promising ia the next week or two, consumers are inclined to reduce their figure to the neighbourhood of £8 per ton.