THE Shannon News WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 4, 1922.

Shannon News, 4 January 1922, Page 2

THE Shannon News WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 4, 1922.

Miss Clapp, of Oringi, Hawke’s Bay, who has been visiting Shannon, has returned home. There were 19 births, two deaths and two marriages in Shannon for the quarter ending December 31. The year’s figures are: 60 births, 8 deaths and 10 marriages. Mr and Mrs E. J. S. Spencer left on Tuesday for a month's holiday in Dunedin, where Mr Roach will join them at the end of the week. Mt Spencer and Mr Roach will take part in the bowling competitions in that city. We regret to hear that Dr. Evans is indisposed, suffering from a septic throat. He is under Dr. Putnam’s care at Palmerston. Arrangements will be made for a locum tenens to attend to the practice in Shannon during Dr. Evans’ absence, and in the meantime local residents will wish him a speedy recovery.

Herrings are plentiful along the coast just now, and some good lots have been landed at different places during the last few days.

The Horowhenua A. and P. Association continues to receive applications for schedules and the prospects for an Increased entry l'or the forthcoming show are good. Entries close on Monday next, January 9. During the year no less 11 1 aii 20,000 fire-arms have been registered in the Palmerston North police district. Of these over 300 were automatic pistols, compensation having been paid on 110, which were surrendered under the Arms Act early in the year.

The Taranaki Jockey Club pays taxation amounting to £3991 8/, as the result of its recent, meeting. The two and a-half per cent levy amounts to £142 0/6, and the dividend tax £2565 8/. In addition to the above items the club also has to pay other taxation on gate receipts.

At the Australasian Athletic championships at Adelaide, Sutherland was second in the pole vault and in the javelin throwing. Webber was third in the mile championship. On the second day Taylor won the half-mile and Webber the three miles- running. These are all New Zealand representatives.

The Auckland races advertised for January 1,2 and 3, 1852, were on quite a modest scale (says an exchange) four races being run on each of the first two days and three races on the last day. Included in.the'programme for the second day was a Maori race to be run for by horses belonging to and ridden by “aborigiriees.”

A case of extreme mentioned to a News representative on Saturday. It was the case of a returned soldier settler who took up a dairy farm in the Manawatu at a cost of £l4O per acre. He had stumped and cleared 60 acres and got it in crop, but in face of the fall in dairy produce and the heavy obligations that were on him, he was compelled to give -up, and walked put during last week with nothing.

Two Canterbury women, Mary Wise and Emily Price, were wounded by the explosion of a Mills hand grenade. Believed to be harmless, the grenade, a war souvenir, was used as an ornament and was put in the fireplace during cleaning operations. It was forgotten and a fire was laid over it. Soon after the lire was lighted there was au explosion which wrecked the room and injured both women in the legs.

The New Zealand railways are not paying; but they are .by no means I singular in that respect. The Austraj' lian lines, as disclosed by the figures I for the y6ar ended June, 1921, are ap- ( parently in a hopeless condition finJ ancially. They all showed deficits, as j follows: New South Wales, £577,032; I Victoria, £651,635; Queensland, £1,418,- ; 473; South Australia, £561,304; Western j Australia, £418,370.

The country between Kopulaioa and Tokduiaiu still bore • evidence day of the heavy downpour of rain on Saturday. All the low-lying land was inundated and presented an unusual spectacle for the time of year. The main road Was clear of water, hut had been covered during the weekend. . The mile-and-a-half stretch between the Ihakara creamery and Potts’ Road suffered considerable damage from the flood, the surface being completely washed away in places.

“An unfortunate habit has grown up among school teachers of collecting former examination papers and getting their pupils .used to answering certain types of questions,” said Mr G. M. Henderson, inspector of native schools, at the Native School Teachers’ Association’s Conference at Auckland. This was a most pernicious habit of education, he added, and it was in the high schools that the effect of examinations was most visible.

A Parliamentary correspondent telegraphs that no official statement has yet been made regarding the result of the appeal by members of the staff of the Napier telegraph office against the punishment imposed as the result of the leakage of the Spring bok cablegram, A decision, however, has been arrived at, and it is freely stated that the three men concerned have been reinstated and have had the pay they lost refunded.

An authority on forestry says: The leaf is probably the most wonderful

and is certainly the most vital and indispensible factor in the world ol living things. Without the leaf, all life must perish. It is the one and only connecting link between the organic and inorganic worlds. It is the only thing capable of transforming the various mineral elements into available food mineral for plant and animal. The only minerals that man can take into his system and use are water and salt, but he can use only a litffited quantify of these. Every other element of food must come either directly or indirectly through the leaf..

A Waikanae settler informed a News reporter on Saturday that he recently disposed of a lini of wethers at 12/ which originally cost him 24/.

It does not pay to drive stock on the road after dark, unless by special 'permit, as a Carterton resident found to his cost at the week-end, as he will have to contribute largely to the repairs of a motor-car that ran into his stock.

South Australia proposes to put a tax on bulls—not to discourage the keeping of them, nor yet for the raising of revenue, but, as Mr Minister of Agriculture, told the Assembly, “if an owner has to pay 10/ a year for a bull, he may decide that it will be just as well to spend the money on a good animal as a bad one.” Eneil Chambers of Post Field, Fort Sill, Okla., broke what officials say is the record for high altitude parachute jumping when he leaped approximately 26,000 feet from an army 'plane. The stunt Was performed in connection with the American Legion flying meet, Sergt, Chambers' descent took IS minutes. He landed about five miles from the field.

The latest official returns show that there are now thirty freezing companies operating in the Dominion, which control 46 works, only four of which are co-operative concerns. Thirty of these works are situated m the North Island and sixteen in the South Island. The works have a total capacity for dealing with 4430 head of cattle and 148,400 sheep and lambs per day, with a total storage capacity of 7,062,000 601 b freight carcases.

Business at the Shannon railway station this Christmas compared very favourably with that of last year. There was a considerable falling oft in the passenger traffic, but this was more then made up by the increase in the goods traffic. At the post office there has been an increase in all branches, which, in view of-the times we are passing through, should be considered highly satisfactory, and naturally leads to the conclusion that we have reached and passed the lowest mark of the business depression.

“In San Francrsco,” said Mr Yardley, a returned Aucklander, “you never know when you are going to be stuck up. There are hold-ups nearly every day in broad daylight. -They tell you to hold your hands up, and if you don’t they don’t hesitate to shoot; you don’t get two warnings. The very day that we arrived in San Francisco there were seven motor cars held up at the point of the revolver, and the valuables of the occupants taken. Whatever the. original cause of these outrages, my own opinion is that the>authorities don’t deal severely enough with crime iir that country.” j

Dr. Jack, Professor of Physics at Otago. University, experimenting in wireless telephony, has obtained remarkable results. Gramophone music sent out from the Dunedin laboratory with only the low power of 250, was received so loudly at Roslyn that it could be heard over 70ft away from the receiver!. Mr A. D. Bell heard the music when standing 65 yards from the receiver at Shag Point. Dr. Jack received telegrams from Christchurch and Wellington announcing that his signals were taken at both places. He is of opinion that by doubling the power he could talk to Australia.

Many good stories are told of Mr Andrew Carnegie, and one is in regard to a winter visit he paid to Florida, where he attended a service in a little negro church. When the contribution plate came round Mr Carnegie dropped a five dollar bill upon it. After the contents of the plate had been counted the clergyman arose and announced, “Brethren and sistern, the collection this evening seems to figure up to 6 dollars 44 cents, and if the five dollar bill contributed by the gentleman from the north is genuine, the repairs on the sanctuary will begin immediately.”

Shark-shooting was an item in the amusements at Opunake on Tuesday. Three fairly large sharks, probably from six to eight feet iu length, were basking in the surf and remained circling round for more than a couple of hours. Crowds of people gathered on the rocks to watch the fish, and one of the spectators, who had a small sporting rifle had a few shots at them, but his efforts did not appear to inconvenience the sharks, which swam around for a long time. Another spectator threw out a line baited with a fish, but the sharks were not tempted to bite. Crowds of people were bath-

ing not very many yards from where the sharks were. The bathers mSy have been safe enough in the shallow, broken water, but those who went into deep water beyond the breakers, and many did, were taking a risk. Sea bathers should remember that at this time of the year sharks are numerous around the New Zealand coasts.— Eltham Argus.