Shannon News FRIDAY, OCTOBER 27, 1922.

Shannon News, 27 October 1922, Page 2

Shannon News FRIDAY, OCTOBER 27, 1922.

Mr Taylor, successor to Mr Roskruge, on the staff of the: Bank of New Zealand, took up his duties on Wednesday last.

A case of diphtheria is reported in Shannon, the sufferer being the small son of Mr R. Hayes, Who has been removed to the Palmerston North Hospital.

On. Tuesday evening next the windup social of the fortnightly euchre and dances that have been held in the Parish Hall wiJJ take place. These socials have been particularly popular, and a record attendance is anticipated. Euchre will be carried on until 19 p.m., when the winners will be declared for the season’s play, dancing will then he indulged in and carried on until a much later hour than usual.

Last Friday evening at Tokomaru a church, social, in the form of euchre and dancing, was held. Although the night was boisterous there was a good attendance, and those present spent a pleasant evening. In the euchre competition Mrs .McT.aggan was the successful lady, Miss (1. Kelly taking the consolation prize. For Hie gents, Mr Lnmberg was the winner,

Mr Parr getting the consolation prize. Dancing 1 was kept np until alter midnight, Mr N. Whyte acting as M.C. The refreshments provided by the ladies was all that, could be desired. It, is the in lent on of the cornimittee to hold a hard-up social on November 3.

Alter thei recent experience in regard to their artesian being silted up and holding up the working ol the factory, the Toltoniaru Co-operative Dairy Go. have decided to put down another artesian to ensure having a plentiful supply of water in the future. The work has been let to Messrs. Brown and Rasmussen, the well-known well borers of Palmerston North, who are making a start on the work next week.

During one of his Sydney seasons Mr Allan Wilkie was invited to a garden party at Darling Point, and he was presented to a rather haughty lady from Melbourne a« a “celebrity.” The actor-manager evidently made a. favourable. impression, and presently the lady asked, “Pray, Mr Wilkie, wha.t is your profession?” “I’m an actor,” said Wilkie. The visitor, possibly in a moment of mental aberration, exclaimed, “Dear me! in Melbourne, actors do not go into the best society.” Before the last word had left her lips Wilkie replied, “They don’t here either.” .

A new ground for divorce nas been found in wireless telephony, which has smitten all classes in the United States. The new craze was a source of annoyance to Mrs Elizabeth R. Tibbs, wife of .T. Fletcher Tibbs, of the Southern Railway, according to the petition for a 1 limited divorce filed in the district of Columbia Supreme Court. Mrs Tibbs alleges, among other things, that her husband spends all his time reading books about his invention, and all his spare money buying radio outfits, to the exclusion

of herself and child in so far as en-

tertainment is concerned, and to their complete seclusion so far as having any money to support them is concerned.

One of the many storks which annually return to the neighbourhood of the village of Liskau, in Germany, from distant southern zones to rebuild nests, was seen to be carrying something aibout- his neck which only human hands could have placed there.

Repeated efforts to approach the bird failed, until one of the villagers finally lured the stork down and first learned that the bird carried a little feather case in which a note was enclosed. The note showed that- the

stork had come all the way from East Africa, where a German colonist, William Bucha, has his farm. Bucha must have anticipated that the bird spent its annual vacation in his native land, so he wrote: “Just a greeting to the Fatherland,” and used the stork to convey the message. The latest form of foolishness in London is a game entitled beaver! It cannot be played without insult and annoyance to a number of quite respectable members of the community, but this in no way deters its enthusiastic exponents. The players start at zero when they walk abroad! The score the record of the number of bearded men accosted (score book in hand), with the exclamation “Beaver!” Highest score, of course, wins (unless assassinated first). A gentle-

man going down to help make yet

more laws for us was startled out of a. profound reverie outside Westminster by a grubby urchin’s dirty pointed finger and shouted “Beaver!” says

a correspondent. He resented it. keenly, and was in no way satisfied by the explanation of the constable on point duty. But. it is not only

little boys that do this sort of thing. Young women, who should know better, are just as bad. Thus in Bond Street, a red-bearded man was empurpled to inarticulate fury by a

fashionably dressed and excited young la/dy who rushed at him with these words: “King Beaver, six sets and game!” The death is reported from Foxton of Mr John Hillary, aged 79. The late 1 Mr Hillary was horn in England in 1843. He joined Her Majesty’s Navy in 1859. In 1862 he joined the merchant service, in which he continued for four years, and traided in the Baltic and Mediterranean Seas to Africa, and twice to. New Zealand, landing on the last occasion in January, 1867. Mr Hillary was appointed ferryman on the Manawatu Riv.er by the Wellington Provincial Council, where he continued till the coach ran between Wellington and Wanganui, and during the five years hei made many improvements in the ferrying service, for which he was compensated by the Council when that body took it over. He was engaged to refit the Lower Gorge ferry in 1880, which had been destroyed by a. flood. In 1881 he was successful in obtaining the Foxton ferry for a lease of three and in 1883 he erected a new ferry at Wiro-

kino, which' he worked in conjunction with the Foxton one. On the completion of the Wellington-Manawatu Rail-

way the traffic fell off so considerably that the Foxton ferry was closed in 1883, and the plant was removed to Wirokino and there used the Wirokino plant being subsequently fitted up by Mr Hillary at a place chosen by him for Ihe shannon people; He

conducted belli' ferries for a time until he retired. As a ferryman tie was Known far and wide in the eaily days. The late Mr Hillary was unmarried, and leaves no relatives in New Zealand.

Mrs Albert Judd, of Makerua, left on Thursday for Napier on a holiday. Mr David Marshal, who died at the Palmerston North Hospital at the beginning of the week, was an employee at Mangahao. The deceased, who had been ill only a few days, succumbed to an attack of pneumonia. The Wanganui Chronicle understands that certain scriptural diffi-

culties are besetting the Ratana party in their efforts to win the Western Maori seat for Toko Ratana. Unless these difficulties can be cleared up (and we believe they relate to a serious degree to Rat-ana’s religious views) it, is just possible another candidate will require to be chosen if the particular seat is still to be contested this election.

The Hamilton-Cambridge “express” established what is thought to be a record, travelling the distance, less than fifteen miles, in just under two hours. This on a holiday, when an extra number of people, were travelling! Is it any wonder that people prefer to travel by motor car or cycle, or even by push bicycle, in preference to the train? And the Government wonders why the railways do

not pay!—lndependent. Parliamentary elections ate in sight in different' parts of the Empire today, and political stories are accordingly receiving extra prominence. The following appeared in a recent issue of an English paper: When Lord Palmerston was Prime Minister

and Disraeli was his chief opponent, a dog got into the House of Commons one day and began to bark just as Palmerston rose to speak. “By what new opposition am I now attacked?” exclaimed the veteran statesman, with a scornful glance at the Opposition members. “By the member front

Barkshire,” retorted Disraeli, and the roar of laughter was so great- that Palmerston, who was supposed to be cool enough for any emergency, was disconcerted.

Extraordinary dexterity and quickness of eye and mind have been displayed by Miss Nina E. Holmes, who at the Detroit Post Office the other day sorted and distributed in eight hours 20,610 letters. Miss Holmes, who is 20 years old, claims to be the champion mail handler of the United States, and no one contests, her right to the title. She is 'wondering whether any post office employee in England can go one better, and whether she is not champion of the world. “It’s a sporting proposition,” says Miss Holmes. “Let any Englishman or woman see how many letters in eight hours he or she can pick up, and after deciphering the addresses, put in their proper places for sending to their destinations without a mistake.”

It is not generally known that the Indians of British Columbia and Alaska obtain their butter from, a fish known to scientists as the ooliehan. it is from six to eight inches long and very far Every summer this fish comes from the ocean up the rivers to spawn like salmon. Millions are taken in nets. First they are thrown into rough bins made of cedar logs, where they lie for a few days to soften in the sun. Then they are placed in great cedar vats of boiling water, the latter being heated by hot stones which are dropped into them. This primitive method of heating has been found to produce better butter than when the fish are boiled in the more orthodox fashion. As the oil rises to the top it is skimmed off. It hardens quickly and has the appearance of lard. Beautifully white, it is not easy to detect it from butter, there being not the slightest odour of fish about it. The Indians pack it in water-tight cedar boxes, making enough of this fish butter during the summer months to last them throughtout the year.

A serious rival to hemp and flax has been discovered. The new fibre is called arghafi. Tt is indigenous to South America, but is said to be readily adaptable and easily cultivated. Experiments have, been conducted in the Malay States with surprising results. Both the Ceylon and Indian Governments have decided to promote its cultivation on a large scale, and necessary preparations are now under way. The plant, hais broad leaves, which, without de-gumming or setting, split up into innumerable long pearly-white and silky fibres. The average length of the fibre is 6ft. They are not affected by sea water, and rope made from them is said to be 50 per cent stronger than hemp; in fact, the British expert declares that, the rope is as strog as steel bands. Manchester textile manufacturers are displaying a keen interest in the new

fabric, which readily takes dye permanently. It. is understood that the Agricultural Department intends to thoroughly investigate the practicability of cultivating the plant in Australia, with a view to establishing its ■ production on a commercial scale. Ex- J periments in other countries show j that arghan is cosmopolitan in its tastes, and will flourish ecpially well in temperate and sub-tropical zones as in the tropics.