Shannon News TUESDAY, APRIL 11, 1922.

Shannon News, 11 April 1922, Page 2

Shannon News TUESDAY, APRIL 11, 1922.

A large quantity of concrete pipes have arrived for the Makerua Drainage Board. The cement for the Public Works Department will start to arrive in June, and will reach as much as 800 tons per month.

It is intended to build large workshops in Shannon to deal with the pipe work of the Mangahao scheme.

Miss Jessie and Freda Cameron leave on Thursday for a fortnight’s holiday in Auckland. The eighteen-months-old daughter of Mr C. O’Regan was taken to die Palmerston Hospital last week, having contracted diphtheria. Mrs Feetham, who'has been in the hospital for some time, returned home on Saturday.

The borough ranger has handed in a large number of names of owners of wandering stock, and prosecutions will follow.

“I know of no more pathetic sight,” said Mr Ayrton on Friday evening, “than that of decent workman tramping from place to place

begging of their fellow men the right to toil!” Several wild pigs wandered down from the hills recently and took up their abode on Mr Law’s farm at Ihakara. They were having a good time among his crops, and at first he thought they, were his own porkers. On investigation he found they were genuine “Captain Cooks.” He managed to capture three, and -they are at present fattening on skim milk instead of fern root, The balance made off towards the hills, and met on the road a settler from the Heights. An old sow and three porkers stood at bay and held the road, and it seemed for a time that they would gain the day. The settler’s dogs came to the rescue, however, with the result that their owner will have bacon for the winter. At the S.M. Court at Palmerston yesterday, Win. Gardner, who pleaded not guilty, was charged with unlawfully converting a motor car to his own use at Shannon on April 1, and also with driving on the footpath. ~ Evidence in support of the charge was given by Constables McGregor and Shannon. Defendant said the owner of the car was a personal friend of his, and he had considered that he was not exceeding his l’ights in borrowing the car, since he was in a hurry. In turning he had backed on to the footpath, and the constables then accosted him. The Magistrate said there was too much of this sort of thing going on. It certainly appeared as though defendant had borrowed the car without authority. He would be fined £2. For driving on the footpath he would be fined 10/. Costs £1 11/8 would also have to be paid. How easily even an experienced 1 bushman can go astray in the dense New Zealand forests was demonstrated this week. A deer-stalker left the Arapeti camp in the early morning, going south, and later turned east in order to keep. on Government land. Some time after that a southward course was struck for some miles. Heavy rain and fog decided the stalker to strike west for the open country, but the clearing in Arapeti basin was missed owing to the fact that the traveller had gone too far south. It was by this time getting late, arid a very wet shootist began to look forward to an unpleasant night in the wet bush. The surprise came when the hunter found himself out of the bush above Levin. By ihard travelling across country Shannon was reached .by six o’clock. The hunter, who is a Shannon resident, estimated that in his twelvehour tramp 26 miles were covered. Our reporter was assured by the hunter next morning that he was none the worse for his trying experience

The next issue cf the News will be published on Thursday instead of Friday. The Labour Party will hold a social and dance on Easter Monday night. Particulars are advertised.

“One of the catch phrases used during the war by the Tory and Liberal politicians was that ‘we were fighting to make a world fit for heroes to live in.’ Now we see these self-same people straining every nerve to secure a return of conditions that existed in 1914.”—Mr Ayrton at Friday night’s meeting in -Druids’ Hall.

An arrest made by the Napier police may probably solve some clothes-line robberies which have recently occurred there. On being searched at the watchliouse the man was found to be wearing several articles of ladies’ underclothing beneath his male garments.

Quite a gloom has been cast over Matamata by the death of Mr H. Moore-Jones, one of the unfortunate victims of the Hamilton Hotel fire. Mr Moore-Jones was on his way to attend the marriage at Matamata next day of his niece to Mr Leslie Bayly, and elaborate festivities had. been arranged. The wedding was proceeded with, but the celebrations were cancelled.

At a meeting of creditors in the estate of the late Mr H. V. Hammond, held at Wanganui, it was decided ito "submit' the properties to auction, and give the D.O.A. power to quit, provided he could come to a suitable arrangement to apportion the second mortgages and to arrange with the first mortgagees to allow the mortgages to remain on; and, if no workable scheme can be arranged, he abandons the properties to the mortgagees.

It is believed by the brokers that the bulk of the wool that was purchased at the Dunedin auctions is destined for Bradford and the Continent, whilst much of the crutchings will go to Japan (states the Star). The New Zealand mills representatives were not buying largely. The wool offered did not include much that suits the machinery of the Dominion mills, and, moreover, the fashion of the day in New Zealand—or shall we. say the fashion of the period, for it seems to be continuous!— is to wear garments made from.fine wool.

It is stated that a grower of lucerne in the Wairarapa desired to take a crop of seed, but was dissatisfied with the results. He was told that the crop wanted a fertiliser, and was advised to run a few colonies of bees near the lucerne. He got a friend to run about 100 colonies near the spot, With the result that the next' time he grew lor seed he succeeded far beyond his expectations.

It required 2-i bullocks, 4 pigs and 52 kerosene tins full of potatoes and kumeras to provide one meal at the Waitangi hui. All the food was cooked by steam in huge barrels, and all the arrangements were completely up-to-date, even to a . tramway to carry away the waste from the kitchen. • Electric light was generated by a dynamo driven by a kerosene engine.

The only discordant note struck at the Plunket lete at Alfredton, says the Eketahuna Express, was the use of spurs by a rider in one of the horse events. Some .of the ladies were almost in tears at the treatment the gallant little horse received. To “dash the rowels in his steed” might have been considered an heroic act in the days of “Marmion,” might even have been expedient as a means of escaping a falling portcullis, but to subject such a fine little animal to such a cruel rowelling as thatwitnessed on Saturday is not “cricket.”

A scheme that appealed to him as having several advantages in regard to .the auction sale of stock was mentioned t/dj a Chronicle representative by a Levin farmer, who has just returned from, a visit to Hawke’s Bay. While in Hastings he attended the principal sale at Stortford Lodge and noticed that on each pen a card was affixed giving details of the offering and the name and address of the vendor. With these particulars at hand he found his interest in what was going forward increased twofold. As he points out, prospective buyers are invariably interested lor obvious reasons in what class of country stock has come off, and in many cases the mj*ne of . a station is a recommendation in itself. Of course, if a vendor desired to conceal his idjentity no card was affixed. There was no compulsion about the thing, but naturally few would choose to make a pen conspicuous by the absence of the card, he remarked. I

Flowers or wreaths sent by country residents will be conveyed free by rail to Wellington for placing on soldiers’ graves after the service at the cenotaph on Anzac Day. Any such consignments should be addressed: “Flowers for Soldiers’ Graves, care R.S.A., Wellington.” Early one morning last monlh a farmer of Stockdale, Tasmania, was awakened from sleep by me ling something biting him, and found a snake dangling on the index finger of his left hand. He promptly chopped his finger off short with axe, but did not tie a ligature. loped 14 miles on horseback to me

nearest doctor, reaching there in a state of collapse. Cable advice has been received of the death at Mukti Poona, India, ;f Pandita Ramabai, head of the i.amabai Mission to the Child Widows of India, The Pandita had hem engaged on this mission work lor upwards of thirty years, and during that period trained thousands m child widows in-home-work and in various occupations, bringing them up in the Christian faith. New Zealand has assisted the cause in' numerous ways, bazaars (at which goods made by the child widows were sold) having been held in different parts by representatives of the movement. Miss McGregor, one of Ramabai’s mission staff, is at present in Dunedin, having been invalided home to New Zealand after twenty years’ service.

A correspondent whose, veracity the Taranaki Herald has no reason to doubt writes: “While at Marton on Friday last I was informed that there were some performing eels in a pond at the back of the Marton Hotel. Having a few hours to wait I visited the pond and was shown what the eels were capable of doing. Mr T. B. Nesbit, the licensee, who accompanied me stood on the edge of the pond, which is 35 yards long and 18 yards wide, and whistled four or five times, an ordinary straight whistle. In less than one minute five eels averaging 51b to 81b in weight came swimming towards him. He put a few small pieces of meat in his hand and they all fed out of it. He then held some pieces of meat four to six inches up the bank; they in turn would reach out of the water to get a piece of meat. He then put. his hand under them as they came round and practically lifted them out of the water. They would slip into the water off his hand and swim around for more. They did not at any time appear to be frightened.”

The Electoral Department has commenced its preparations for the general elections which take place next December. Its first duty is to complete rolls in the new electoral areas, and it has found this work easier than usual, as the changes made by the Representation Commissioners wdre well in line with the grouping of population. Protests against the altered boundaries were not numerous, but the Commissioners have made some slight adjustments, which will be reported to Parliament yvithin ten days of the opening of the June session. Within the next few weeks the Department, in co-operation-with the Postal Department, will commence to make enrolments in all constituencies and purge the old roll.