THE Shannon News TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 1922.

Shannon News, 17 February 1922, Page 2

THE Shannon News TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 1922.

A number of local. residents visited Levin on Wednesday evening to see the circus.

The Shannon Dairy Co. are advancing 1/ per lb on butteri'at supplied in January.

.Mr R. Edwards has prepared the water scheme for Shannon, and is going to elaborate it before the Council on Tuesday night. It is quite on the books that the ratepayers will soon be called on to sanction a loan.

Mr ,1. Feetham met wilh a painful accident on Tuesday last, while unloading; transmission poles lor the Public Works. One slipped and crush-ed-his loot badly, it will be some time before Mr Feetham is able lo resume work.

Why did the grasshopper hop? An unusual golf incident was recorded recently on the course at Kirkfield, Ontario when a match was decided on the last green in a totally unexpected manner. P. McGregor and 11. Dowic were all square going to the home hole in the final round, McGregor needing to sink a Jong putt to win the match, lie played the hall cleverly, .hut it rolled around (he lip of the cup and apparently missed. At the same instant a large grasshopper landed squarely on the hall from a distance, and the impetus of its flight caused the rubber core to drop into the hole and decide the match in favour of McGregor.

Mrs Digby, .ol' fipiti, is at present I visiting Airs Feetham, of Shannon, i

Tlie cemetery is just now being cleaned up, the grass and weeds being clipped from between the graves, and already the ground is looking much better in consequence.

Tbe newly-formed Shannon Orchestra is making good headway, and expects to appear in public in about a month’s time.

On Wednesday about 8.30 p.m. a house in Margaret Street, occupied by Mr W. Brown, was noticed to be on fire. The neighbours, on hearing ttie cries of Mrs Brown, were quickly on the scene, and the prompt action ol one of them in pulling down the curtains Irom the window and smothering the flames prevented the house •from probable destruction. Tbe only damage was the loss of tbe curtains and some burnt wallpaper.’ Tbe curtains .evidently became ignited irom a candle, and in tbe excitement.' one of the household opened the window and the breeze fanned the llames. \lr Gray, in running to the house, fell heavily and received a severe'.shak-

ing. . A Press correspondent calls attention to a quotation from a Wanganui paper to the effect that English crockery prices have been reduced 25 per cent. The correspondent points out that a reduction in prices was notified by manufacturers to operate as from 13th December, and amounts to rty per cent on china and 15 per cent on earthenware. “This was made possible only. through the employees agreeing to accept a reduction of 2U per cent in wages, which, together with selling prices are now stabilised until March, 1323. To illustrate the extent oi the reduction, the ordinary white and gold breakfast cup will, cost the importer lid less at the works and the New Zealaiid housewife perhaps 3d less.” ' ’ The obstacles which adult trout and salmon can clear at a jump have been objects of wonder on many occasions, but that the young idea could .emulate tlieir parents is not. so well known. The little fish in the holding pond at Ashburton Domain furnish an example. They were put in as fry m the spring of the year, and now average from 4in to 6in in length. Decently they have shown that they can leap clean out of . their pond into die water-race that feeds it, a height ol 16in irom water to water. The curator says the little fish appear most active at this form of sport towards evening, and he has watched their repeated leaps, one'being successful every now. and then in reaching the running water above.

A remarkable incident' during a grouse shooting expedition is reported by a Highland gamekeeper, writes the Liverpool Daily Post correspondent at Aberdeen. The gamekeeper had used all his cartridges, and was walking home, when a hare started from its bed and made off at full speed. When about 30 yards from the man the latter levelled his empty weapon at the hare in order to- take an imaginary shot. To his astonishment the hare went heels over head. The gamekeeper walked to the hare and found u

dead, but without a mark upon it. Mr Jopn Macpherson of Inverness, who received the animal for preservation, says when it was skinned no mark was found on the carcase. What was the cause of death?

Mr R. E. Lucas, of Levin, who has just returned from Australia, spent part of his holiday in .Sydney and part, on his brother’s station, 500 miles, west of the capital. The railway runs most of the distance, but a short motor trip was necessary from the. railhead. This line is bfeing pushed westward to link up with Broken llili, whose outlet is at present to the southward. It was rather a surprising thing to the visitor to find the whole of his brother's 60,000-acre properly, accessible by motor-car. The vast plains were most impressive anil with a plentiful rainfall there* would be no country in ihe world like it, as it was s however, the run carried only 1-2,000 sheep. When the rare rainfall did occur the grass freshened and grew with great rapidity until it was again dried up by tlie blazing sun. The The average temperature in the day during the last, few weeLs had been 03 degrees and yet people were in the habit of remarking: “V, hat. -a lovely cool summer we are fraying!'’ R was no unusual thing iuv twelve months to pass without an, appreciable rainfall, but when rain did come it was very intense and torrential. Extensive dams were seoopeal out to store the surplus and the SAuprising thing was that this water kept wholesome for years.