Shannon News TUESDAY, AUGUST 7, 1923.

Shannon News, 7 August 1923, Page 2

Shannon News TUESDAY, AUGUST 7, 1923.

The Post Office is handicapped at present, three of the staff being laid up with influenza. The fortnightly meeting of the Borough Council will he held this evening.

Mr McMinn, of Levin, has submitted to the Memorial Committee a neat design lor a Soldiers’ Memorial, which is now under consideration.

The sports bodies will meet this week and make final arrangements for carrying out the caraiyal lor raising funds for improving the recreation grounds.

Mr Stewart, secretary of the local Public Works Department branch, is leaving on transfer to the South island. Owing to the amount of influenza in the district, it has been decided to postpone the Miranui ball from Friday night to Thursday, August 23rd. Holders of invitations are askea to accept this intimation. A motor lorry driven by Mr Simpson went over the bank at Manganao yesterday morning. Mr Simpson had a miraculous escape, only receiving injuries to his back, which might mean his being off duty for a few days. Mr Ken. Gardner, who met with an accident on Friday through falling from his motor bicycle, has been discharged from the hospital, but is compelled to take to his bed owing to an attack of influjelnza.

Yesterday morning, Mr Huggins, Health Inspector, paid a visit to Shannon, in connection with the influenza, epidemic. He interviewed Mr,' Murray, chairman of the school com- \ mittee, who is wiring the Board 1 about the closing of the school. Every I resident is advised to use Jeyas’ Fluid ! when cleaning the floors, and places i of amusement are asked to keep win- j dows open and to be sprayed. I

The Mayor (Mr Murdoch) is in receipt of a letter from! Mir Clutha Mackenzie, chairman of the Sir Arthur Pearson Fund, in which he states the fund continues to make steady headday and now stands at over £33,000. He says he thinks there 1 is no doubt the fund will be subscribed, if not over-subscribed in Shannon, and that he will be sincerely grateful to all in this district for all they do to help in raising funds.

At a Chelsea wedding the top tier of the bride’s cake was used by her parents at their wedding 25 years ago. Mr A. Dinniet, engineer of the Public Works, 'attended the opening of the Otira tunned and returned home on Monday.,

In view of the approaching match against Palmerston North the local golf players are getting in some useful practice.

The staff of the local post office has been depleted by the ravages of the “Flu,” four of the members being absent yesterday.

Thei many friends of Mr P. Thompson who underwent a serious operation in the Pahn.ers.ton North Hospital last week, will be pleased to hear he is making steady progress towards recovery.

Opening the 80ft wide Eltham bypass road for traffic out of London through Kent, Colonel W. Ashley, Parliamentary Secretary, to thej Ministry of Transport, Baid that unless similar roads were, made the outlets of London would be completely blocked in 10 or 15 years. The vitality of French agriculture and the hal'd work of thei French peasantry since the war are illustrated by official figures just issued, which show that there are 1,250,000 more cattle in the country than in 1918, 1,200,000 more pigs, 900,000 more Bheep, and 400.000 more horses.

With the coming of spring, activity is becoming noticeable in the apiaries. The bees are already out procuring pollen, which will be. mixed with honey to formi bee-bread for the young bees which will shortly emerge from the cells. The Queens have already commenced laying and. the attention of the beekeeper is directed from now on until the middle of October, to getting his hive as full of bees as possible in preparation for the summer flow of honey, and preventing the formation, of queen cells, which, if allowed to bring out a new queen would result in a swarm, with a consequent weakening of strength of tho hives.

A Chinaman named! Kwong Fore was fined £5 'ait Wanganui to-day, with costs, for being in possession of spring balance scales not weighing correctly. The severity of the influenza epidemic in Waipukurau has caused five business houses to close down. ' Picture theatres have been closed for 14 days.

Artillery Rpokie (about to take his first lesson in, horsemanship) : ’‘Sergeant, please pick me out .a nice gentle horse.” Stable Sergeant: “Have you ever ridden a librae before?” “No.” ‘‘Ah! Here’s just the animal io; . He’s never been ridden be- .. . ’ „ u can start together.” been found that during the pasi eight years at Motumaoho, near Morrinsville, the cows have come in earlier each season, the farmers evidently realising that the. best results are attained before. Christmas. This season is no exception, and early-Sup-plies are general throughout the district' The milk is now coming in in good quantity, and cheesemaking has already commenced. The Mayor of Grimsby (England) believes in carrying nut his various municipal duties in fitting fashion. According to the Daily Sketch he opened the local baths, in a novel manner. Instead of wearing official dress and 1 making the usual speech, he appeared in bathing costume, accompanied by his wife, and the pair swam a two lengths’ race. The Mayoress won. “It seemed to me the only proper way to open the baths," said the Mayor. “We have both been swimming-club members for years.”

Proclaiming the virtues of the Dairy Farmers’ Union at tire close to a deputation which .waited upon Mr Massey last week, Mr Linklater, M.P., told tne Prime Minister that it was a really representative organisation of primary producers. lie. himseii was a member, and so also was nis colleague, Mr Nash, M.P., and they, thereiore, could plead the: cause oi tne organisation. Thus encouraged, the organiser of the Union, suggested membership to Mr Massey, “iou say that jokingly,” was the quick response, ‘but I am quite prepared to join—l mean it,” and thus the Union enrolled Mr Massey a member.

Many people possess a certain amount ol that ingredient in the human make-up known as “cheek,” but some, possess it to a much greater degree than others. The lact is vouched by a Tirnaru greengrocer who is in a good position to judge. He had a very large cauliflower—an, unusually fine vegetable—which he proudly displayed in front of his shop. The cauliflower attracted too much attention. Someone,, took a great fancy to it, and it disappeared. The greengrocer, in the course of the day, wandered down the road for sympathy from his .brother-in-trade, the butcher. “Why.” said the wort-hy when the sad tale had been told, “a woman came in here to-day with a large cauiliflower. She said she had bought it from you and you were too mean to give her the paper to wrap it up in. I wrapped it up for her myself.” Mr C. Skitrop, consulting engineer, writing to the. Morrinsville Borough Council, stated that it was a mistaken idea that a bituminous 'asphalt road , was worn out sooner than a concrete one, but he pointed out that pure bitumen being a universal product did not perish or lose its adhesive and water proof quality > with age. All that was necessary to keep the street good indefinitely was to keep the wearing surface renewed as required as was also the case with concrete, which had to be covered with a bituminous wearing blanket. He quoted the following costs for a road one mile long and 18yds wide: Formation and scarifying, 10,560 square yards, at 9d, £396; broken metal four inches thick, 1174 cubic, at 15s, £BBO 10s, metal chips 360 cubic yards, at 17s, £306; Union asphalt, 13,200 gallons, at Is 3d, £825; rolling, £176; total, £2583 10s; average cost, 4s 103-d square yard: The above-mentioned estimates' ‘ included all material and labour. ;

Letters of naturalisation have: been granted to eight foreigners as published in the “Gazette” yesterday. There were three Serbians and one each Russian, Greek, Danish, German and Norwegian. What was probably the largest life insurance policy taken in Wanganui was written last week by one of the local insurance offices. The amount was for £15,1)00, and was taken out for probate purposes. “So many shovelfuls ol coal go to the cwt., according to the coal dealers’ reckoning,” remarked a member of the Masterton Chamber of Commerce. “Yes,” stated another member, “and as the) day proceeds the shovelfuls grow smaller.” / “1 propose that the word ‘patron’ be dele-bed,” moved a member of the Selwyn Athletic Club, .Wellington.- “It is really like an extra saloon passenger.” -he concluded. “I’m, not so sure of that,”' returned a member of different mind,” it might be worth a Aver when you get him!”

Mr W. J. Poison has been re-elected Dpminion president of the Farmers’ Union., Mr H, A. Nevins was appointed, unopposed, as Dominion treasurer. Thei advisory committee) consists of: North Island, Messrs A. A. Ross, G. L. Marshall, and J. Livingstone; South Island, A. C. Leary, W. W. Mulhollanl, amt .1. G. Ande’soo. It is not generally known that the seeds of laburnum are delrlly poison, but a child of Winton had a very narrow escape during the past week (reports the Record). Having eaten some of the seeds, he was in a short time in a state of collapse, and, but for the prompt attention and untiring efforts of the local doctors, would soon have passed away. A Welsh correspondent of the London Grocer predicts a cheese famine in the near future and suggests that the British Board of Trade communicate with the Argentine Government and ask them if they can inaugurate dairies for the marketing of cheese from their countless herds of cattle; and send England that food instead of a surfeit of beef.

Four Sydney buildings that axe-to dominate their immediate surroundings and constitute new features in the skyline, are the Oddfellows’ Memorial Building in Castlereagh and Elizabeth streets, the Sydney “Morning Herald” office, at the corner of Pitt, Hunter, and O’Donnell streets, the Commercial Bank, in Barrack and George streets, and the Government Savings Bank, in Castlereagh street and new Martin place. The “Herald” office with its tower, will be the most picturesque building. The two banks will have a commanding appearance, suggesting vast wealth, though at the same time causing thie 1 accommodation seeker to feel more like a worm thaii ever 1 - , : 'V Finality has beenYeacfrefi; at’last in the long-drawn-out litigation relative to railway sorting charges. Back in 1918 proceedings launched 'to- test the validity of bf £ charge by the Railway Dep&ttrnerit on goods handled on the wharves, but the case did not.come on for hearing by the Supreme Court 1 until the following year. Not content' with the judgment of that Court, Messrs liatrick and Co., of Wanganui,-with whom other merchants- wiere-associatedv took the case first to the Appeal Courtxand thence to the Privy Council. That tribunal, which is the highest Court of Appeal in the Empire), gave its, decision against the . Government some months ago, since when negotiations, for a settlement in terms of the Privy Council’s judgment have-.been, in progress. Messrs, Hatriclc and Co. have now received advice that the Government had agreed to rebate all sorting charges levied up to the day on which the decision of the Privy. Council was announced*

A story of a stock agent’s wild ride in. a motor car drawn by four galloping bullocks comes from the East Coast. A Te Araoa dealer was on his Way to town for the races at Gisborne, and when approaching Tolaga Bay got bogged on the other side of the Manga,tuna bridge. The services of a draught horse failed to shift the car, and a, couple of span: of young oxen were hitched to the machine. At the roar of the engine, however, the animals becamei panicky, and they pulled the car at a hand, gallop around the small flat. Three or four circuits of the flat were made, the motorist desperately guiding his machine around stumps and deep hollows, while the lad who wg§ to have driven the bullocks urged him excitedly to ■jump for his life, as the car appeared doomed to he hurled oveir the bank into the river.- The. motorist, however, placed more reliance, on the advice of the older man, who, from thei saddle of his horse, yelled to him to “stick to the ship.” Finally the bullocks .were turned across the bridge, and the rise oh "the* bther hausted their energy.

Of India's teeming millions of population, 50,000,000 were what wero. known as out-castes. Those* out-castes, for the most part, farm labourers, ••ruid. a man: for a full day's work received 4d., and a woman. 2d., and a. well-growit , boy lid. As a result of these low wages, the people were poverty-stricken, undei fed, underclothed, .frequently heavily in debt, and .dived, as a ..consequence, lives of great, degradation,, Yet these poor people were of the same religion as their betters—the peoplo of cast. They were Hindus, yet were forced to live ' in such wretched conditions. Christianity was endeavouring to pierce Hinduism at its weakest point in that it aimed at bettering the conditions of the on-castes. When converted they were greatly uplifted and made better workmen, the change for the better being .acknowledged even by their proud employers pf ;T caste. Tlvesc poor people were supporting their own teachers of Christianity in their own villages whenever they found the iselves able.