Shannon News TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 1925.

Shannon News, 29 September 1925, Page 2

Shannon News TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 1925.

The proprietors of the Maoriland Theatre have booked the Denis Kelioe Dramatic Co., playing “Mother Machree” for Shannon on Tuesday, Oct. 6th. The company has just finished a successful season in Wellington.

Mr W. Cochrane, taxi proprietor, notifies in this issue that he is still carrying on his taxi business at the old premises in JBallance Street and that messages will receive immediate attention.

The Rev. and Mrs Farnell, who have been visiting the South Island, are returning home to-day. Rev. Farneli’s health has improved very much as a result of the holiday and lie will be resuming his duties immediately.

It is not generally known that the new dam now under course of construction at Mangahah, when completed, will have the enormous holding capacity of eleven hundred million gallons of water, which is equal to the Arapeti and river dams combined.

In reply to a question as to the cast of the hydro-electric scheme at Mangaliao, the Prime Minister said the expenditure to date amounted m £1,750,000. Of this there would be a transfer of over half a million for transmission. The upper dam at, Mangahao was estimated to cost £150,000 —or even £200,000, including extras.

Tire Maori Ball, which in past seasons, has been such a success, will be held in the Druids’ Hall next Friday evening. Larkin’s'full orchestra have been engaged to provide the music, and with the specially prepared floor dancers are assured of being well catered for. A first class sit-down supper will be provided and everything points to the ball being a most enjoyable function.

Hie junior football match between Shannon and Foxton, set "down to be played at Shannon on Saturday, did not eventuate. In reply to a telephone message Foxton stated they had not been notified that a match was to be played and therefore no team would bei arriving. It is understood that the Shannon team kicked off and claimed .the game. It was reported that the Foxton Club intend entering a protest.

Mrs E. MacDonald, of Palmerston North, whose singing so delighted tin? audience at the Choral Society’s concert on Thursday evening, lias decided to open a class in Shannon for the teaching of voice production and singing, providing sufficient inducement offers, visiting Shannon one day per week. Intending pupils may be interviewed on Thursday next at Mrs CronquesPs residence, Vogel street, or ring phone 92.

In the past the different companies that have been running the sawmill in the Arapeti Valley have experienced a great deal of difficulty in getting their timber out. The new company, which has taken over the mill, are now haying, erected an aerial to 'Overcame this. The aerial is being built on a grade of about t> in 1, the distance covered being fourteen chains, and it is estimated that it will land a load containing 1501) feet of timber in the record lime of two minutes. Mr A. Thompson has charge of the erection of the aerial, which we understand wifi be the only one of its kind being used in the timber industry in New Zealand.

The Minister for Finance states that the Department is now engaged considering applications for advances to settlers and workers to huild houses that were received in February, March and April of 1924.

The 70tli anniversary of the opening of the Green Island School, Dunedin, will be celebrated on February 12, 13, and 14. Arrangements being made for a re-union of exteachers and ox-pupils, who are scattered over the Dominion.

It has just been disclosed that in the war a sentry at Paekpool Fort, near Hyde, placed his rifle against Ihe sea wall while he went to get a drink. The rifle was observed through a searchlight by the authorities at Portsmouth, five miles away.. A telephone message was sent to the fort. Ttie sentry was court-martialled and sentenced to fifteen years’ penal servitude.

Japan lias now adopted the metric system of weights and measures. Auckland’s latest joke; “1 see they have round the leopard 1” “Oh, where?” “In one ot' the hotels looking lor another ‘spot’!” A young albatross, an infrequent visitor to these parts, was found on one of the main roads near Levin this morning. There are no marks to indicate how it met its death, but it is thought that, being young, it missed' it bearings and was unable to find its own sustenance. Because members were being troubled by telephoned complaints, the Ashburton Electric Power Board made arrangements with the Post and Telegraph DepartmeUt for country telephone bureaux to accept complaints from consumers, and pass them on to the Board’s office, the cost being charged to the Board. Stock being allowed to graze on the highways is always attended with danger to nocturnal motorists. A car coming from Paekakariki recently en route for Palmerston, was about to pass a cow when the animal turned in the wrong direction and an acciwent ensued. The result was a broken headlight, a crumpled mudguard, and a severely injured cow, to say nothing of wfiat might have happened.

How easily a mistake can be made was exemplified on Saturday when a young man informed the police that the two escapees from prison at Auckland were at Ohingaiti. He even selected the two photographs from among a dozen or more in the Gazette. The police made all arrangements and arrived at Ohingaiti to arrest the two escapees,. only to find that both were respectable travellers with no resemblance to the wanted men.

A report presented to a meeting of a local body in Canterbury last week was delightfully ironic (says the Press). “Although it is only five weeks since the. Main Highways Board had been written to with reference to obtaining a stone crusher,” stated the report, “a reply was received from them asking for what purpose the crusher was required. It was decided to take them into, the council’s confidence and admit that a trial was to be made to see if it would crush metal.”

The Halcombe correspondent of the Wanganui Chronicle writes:—Many residents were surprised to receive notices the other day for their share of the expense incurred by the Oroua Babbit Board. One would look for a month of Sundays in this / township for a rabbit, but in some parts of the country “there are millions” —which means to say that if two men went shooting with dogs, and ferrets, and nets, they might, with good luck, secure hall a dozen in a full day. A few years ago there seemed to be a few on the river flats, but to buy a rabbit now —why, they are more expensive than butcher’s’meat.

A novel competition in tlie production of freak eggs seems to be in progress among the feathered occupants of poultry yards at Kaponga. A White Leghorn pullet belonging to Mr N. C. Davies, of that town, recently produced an egg of extraordinary dimensions, weighing 6|ozs. —approximately three times the average weight of 2 to 2Jozs. (the Star .reports). The other extreme appears to have been aimed at on Tuesday, when a Buff Orpington, (owned by Mr C. Tomkin, of the same locality, laid an egg which turned the scale at 147 J grains, or a little more than a quarter of an ounce. It is of the usual brown colour, and in size is only slightly larger than a thrush’s egg.

When under water, the Foxton road near the Wirokino Bridge is very dangerous to motor drivers .who are not acquainted with its position in respect to other land marks. On Saturday night a motor lorry with a heavy load of timber came to grief the other side of the bridge and cannot be removed until the water has receded. To those who know the road well it will be easily seen that strange motorists would be misled and take the road to be between tlie row of trees on one side and the fence on the other with even distances on each side. This is evidently what has happened for the motor lorry is dn the deep drain on the side and it will be no easy task to have it restored to the road.

In an accident at the Ashburton Power House the running engineer, Mr A. Saunders was badly injured and the Diesel plant put out of coinmission. This left Ashburton dependant on the Epke Coleridge supply. While the Diesel plant was taking the load, the Coleridge power being cut off, two valves 'blew, out and the top of the engine wag wrecked. Mr Saunders, who was working near the engine, was struck on the right forearm by a flying fragment, sustaining a compound fracture. - Such was the force of' the explosion (says the Guardian) that two large pieces of the engine were blown through the roof of the power station and landed quite three chains away. Fortunately no one was in their path.

A recent accident near Dannevjrke, when a Napier car capsized over a small bridge, taking the bridge rail with it, had curious consequences. The following day, when a motor truck was operating in an endeavour to haul the car from the creek, a. motor cycle and side car reached the bridge, and the driver of the cycle became so. interested watching the proceedings that' he neglected to steer and went over the bridge himself. The dual catastrophe attracted the attention of another motor-cyclist, who put his machine on the stand, and offered help. A strong wind and uneven ground then raised the tally of misfortunes to three, for the next thing that happened was that the unattended motor cycle toppled over into the creek.