Shannon News TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 1926.

Shannon News, 12 January 1926, Page 2

Shannon News TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 1926.

The first of the fortnightly meetings of the Borough Council since the holidays willl be held in the Council Chambers this evening.

The advance payment for butterfat supplied to the Shannon Go-opera-tive Dairy Co. for the month of December will be Is 4d lb.

Among local residents who have visited the Duriedin Exhibition are Miss W. Pickleg and Master Jack Pickles, who have 'been spending the Christmas hodidayis in OMeftchurch and Dunedin.

On Saturday ■ night between '7.30 and 11.30, burglars entered the residence of Mr Jay,, at Mangaore. Evidently the intruders were disturbed while engaged in' their work 'of ransacking the- rooms, and removing the mattresses from the beds, as nothing has been found to' be missing;

A pleasant meeting took place last week on the arrival in Shannon. of Mr Bob. Thomson, of Merryweathers, Newcastle, Australia, on a visit to his •brothei!, our well-known townsman, Mr Fred Thomson,'the two.■'brothers not having, met for 34 years. Mr Bo'b Thomson was* accompanied by his sister, Mrs- Stewart, of Riccarton, whom he had not seen for 45 years. . Scarlet fever is reported to be prevalent at Mangahao. From one family three children have been removed to the Palmerstom North Hospital for treatment.

A local farmer showed a r.epreseritative qf the News a splendid crop of hay, which he stated was the 'result of following the advice hi the articles on top-dressing which have appeared in this paper. A portion; of the paddock which was not top dressed showed' no sign.'qf clover, while thait part Avhlch had been treated carried an exceptionally heavy crop, which it was estimated would yield over two tons to the .acre. The farmer in question is ' so pleased with the result, that, although his land is some of the best in the Dominion, he intends in fu-. ture to top dress extensively.

A public meeting is being convened by residents'of Kopuifcaroa for the purpose of discussing the advisability ol urging the Horowhenua County Council and the Main Highways Board to construct the road linking Up Koputaroa with Shannon. A great deal of interest is being aroused among those interested, who feel that if they can get a fair measure of outside support, there is. a possibiMty of them yet winning out. The Shannon Chamber of. Commerce has been written to asking for their support and that representatives from that body be present at the public meeting to be held in the Koputaroa Hall, on Thursday, January 14th.

At the railway station' on Friday afternoon on the arrival of the 2.40 train from south, two young men named Herbert Rowland Crawford and Thomas Moynihan, both strangers to this district, who hiad arrived by the Napier express, and Who wore in an mehriated state, w ; anted to fight the railway officials, expressing themselves in disgusting language. One of the Jack Dempseys, after removing his false teeth and carefully wrapping them in his handkerchief, announced that he Was ready for action with anyone who Avould ciare'to step out. Much to his-sur-prise Ganstable Shannon was the person who came forward and he quickly settled any argument by conveying the two stoush artists, to the Police Station, and after allowing them time to think, things over, on Saturday morning he brought the two of them before Messrs Murdoch and Gunning, T.'sP., when they were charged with using obscene language, and being drunk and disorderly fit the Railway Station. * On the charge of obscene language they were each fined I?,, in default ft days' ■ imprisonment, while on tars' other charge they were each fined £l, in default. one week's imprisonment-

Mrs J. Hennessey entered a private hospital in Palmersiton North last j week to undergo an operation. Her ( many friends join in wishing her a j epeedy recovery. 1 Mr Les. Scott has. finished iaie Shannon Gazette which he took recently and % trial run shows that it is a remarkably fine picture. It will be screened in' Shannon shortly at a time to be arranged W.tfh Messrs Wilkinson and Hyde. A meeting pf all members alid intending memlbers of the Shannon Amateur' Athletic and Cycling Oub ■ will be held in the Council. Chauijiere on Fniday evening at 7.30 p.m. for the purpose of electing officers tod making arrangements for holding the. next meeting. The chairman of the Manawatu . County Council (Sir James Wilson) had a practical demonstration of the risks taken in crossing the Manawatu river by punt at Mouitoia yesterday. In -company with Messrs Phil- : lips and J. K. Hornblow, of the H,os- ' pital Board, Sir James "was en route <-to Shannon to attend a conference with the Mangahao medical assocration. On arrival at the ferry the party was informed that the punt would only convey the. oar to wiling abouit 2Qft of the opposite bank. It was decided to take the risk. The car bumped heavily on to the punt and the ferryman turned the hand 'windlass, which hauls the punt, ' imeanwhlle refusing an offer of assistance from the genial -temn. EThe punt grounded' about 30Jt ft om the opposite bank, leaving about 20it of running water with a depth ol (about 18 inches from the ledge of i the ipunt to be negotiated by the car' before' reaching the opposite bank The chairman suggested the use of the boat to effect a crossing, - tout was assured that the river botftom was firm and the "Lizzie" Was • put v to it With a ncse dive of 45 degrees from the punt. The car was launched,, with a spiash and : suocess- ! fully' propelled its way to the ojppoi sit' and precipitous bank, wh'idh was successfully negotiated, much to the : (relief, of all • concerned. While in i Shannon the chaiinilan conferred AVltti Mr Monk (chairman of taie Horowheniuia County .Council),, re the 3 ferry service and the installing of - an engine pn the P unt.—tFoxiton Her- - aid.

During last year 2309 patients were admitted to the Palmerston Hospital the daily average (137) being 20 above that of 1&24.

On Saturday afternoon a large bottle-nosed wh'ale was stranded on tile south side of the Paitea river ■entrance. The whale, which. was secured to the breakwater, was 32 feet long and .10 feet in girth.

Large numbers of wild pigs are to be seen in and around Waikaremoana, and are becoming not only a nuisance but a grave menace to tourists. In former years the increase in these animals was. greatly checked by the natives making periodical hunting expeditions, but these have fallen through for 'the time being.

Tiie Horowhenua County Council's Ranger reported, as follows to Saturday's meeting'of the Council; "During Uie month I have impounded 59 cows and "20 horses, riiost of which were secured at night. At present Mi ere are 22 informations to lay before the Magistrate's Court on the 21st imst. There are some stock which have not yet been claimed and are still in the pound."

Kalitangata, in the South Island, is famed for its rhubarb. A- resident of Levin who paid a visit to the southern town has returned to Levin with some remarkable specimens of the ittiubarb genus. Some of the stalks weighed as much as three-and-three quarter pounds each, and grew to a height of nearly three feet six inches. . That the South Island grower has worn many prizes for his rhubarb growing is not surprising.

There is no more popular feminine figure at the big tennis tourney at Palmerston than Miss Dulcie Nicholls, of Auckland, the New Zealand junior champion. , As a daughter of Mr Sid Nicholls, formerly of Petone, a famous Rugby player of the late 80's, Miss Nicholls is, of course, a sister of the three All Blacks. The secretary of the - PaJinerstoui.- North Lawn Tennis Giuib had pointed her out to some friends, on Saturday and was ra'thcr surprised how quickly the news got round the court. For within five minutes a boy (not a small one cither) arrived breathlessly tq enquire, "Please, will you show me which is Miss 'Mark' Nicholls!''—Times.

I A recent New yqik message stated i that Theosophists all over the world believe the reincarnation of Jesus \ will occur at Adyr, near Madras, in India. It is promised that the Christ will be identified as J. Krishnamurta, aged 30, who recently sailed to India from New York. He is prominent in Theosophical circles for his writings, which purport to bring Divine messages. . According to Theosophists, the aura of divinity will descent upon him withta five months. Krishnamurta, who is expected to become the Messiah, receives a salary of £IOOO a year from Theosophists. "Bishop" Leadbeater, with •fifty-believers, left Sydney by - the Oronsay on November 14 for Adyr, where they expect the Messiah to be revealtfd. *lt is distinctly stated that no miracles will take place.

Some years ago the English wood • pigeon was introduced into the Patea district, and it appears to be spreading along the coast. In time to come the bird may offer some attractions to sportsmen, but on the other hand farmers may discover that it is just as big a pest as some of the other imported birds. The sight of three nurses sprinting in full uniform in a certain street in Wangahui the other day aroused the curiosity of those in the vicinity. It transpired that there was an elderly i man heading the field further up the ' street in pyjamas, and as he swept round the bend he was overhauled bv the fleet-footed nurses. Then after a little kindly persuasion heads were turned once more for home.

\ Christmas .-.gooes story comes from Takapuna. ' After the manner of its kind, the bird went missing ere it was due to get the chopper. By advertisement the lady informed the residents of the locality that she would be glad of its return. She spent a gooseless Christinas. Imagine her indignation on arising one morning last week, to discover on her front lawn, a gleaming array. The bones of her goose I

"It's like this, your Worship: I had gastritis, and the doctor 'told me to take whisky! and castor oil. I couldn't get the oil, so I took the whisky." That was the excuse for drunkenness which a first offender made to Mr H. Y. Widdowson, S.M., at the Magistrate's Court at Christchurch. "You stick to doctor's orders in future," said the Magistrate, when he fined the defendant 10s, in default 24 hours' imprisonment.

' When Mrs Kate Elephant, wife of a Southend hairdresset, applied in the Divorce Division for ( a divorce on the ground of the .husband's misconduct, Mr Justice Bateson called attention to the fact that the marriage certificate was in the name of "Elefand." Mrs Elephant: Oh, it was like this. I did not like the name of "Elephant," so I asked my husband to oblige me by spelling it "Elefand," and he did.

Following the southerly wind on New Year's Day, and on Saturday, the atmosphere was keen and slightly frosty on Saturday night; and in some parts of the Cambridge district—more particularly about Monavale, .and also, in Roto-o-Rangi--a slight frost was experienced,' sufficient to curt whole paddocks of pumpkins, and other tender crops planted for fodder. In a few instances quite a considerable amount of-damage was done by tins most unseasonable frost.

At the present rate of progress it would seem that before many years have elapsed every fifth,person in New Zealand will be the possessor of a motor vehicle, of some description. Since the end of June, when the total number of motor vehicles was 106,449, there has been a general monthly increase v of between 2000 and 3000 registrationsV and at the end of last month the total stood at 121,558. The increase last month exceeded 3000. The North Island figures are still well ahead of those for the South.

Probably no one could be more eloquent in his advocacy for good roads for New Zealand than was Mr J. T. Worry, who has just returned to Wanganui, when he told a reporter yesterday that he had o-nily one puncture whilst in England, although he had covered approximately 5600 miles by motor. This experience contrasted strikingly with that when he returned to New Zealand, for, on the jqurney from Wellington to Wanganui, he had no less than six punctures. At Levin he bought two new tyres, but before he had proceeded twenty miles, each one was punctured.—'Wanganui Chronicle.

There is an unwritten law regarding the wearing ol headgear in the United States,which decrees that any man in New York found wearing a straw hat after September 15, which is the, official termination of summer, is liable to have it taken from his head and crushed underfoot (says an Australian correspondent). Nowhere is the wearing of straw hats more' noticeable than at tennis tournaments. It is a strange tiling to visit the Stadium at Forest Hills on September 15, \yhen almost, every man present is. wearing a straw hat, and to come again the next day and find hardly a straw ha* in the whole attendance, each man present having changed into a felt hat.

That the vogue for' Chinese characters as ornaments of dress among the fair sex has possibilities little dreamed ,of by many of those who embroider these fascinating symbols on their garments, has been realised by a certain resident of Te Kuiti. She was purchasing some fruit in a Chinese shop when she noticed that the boy who was serving her was staring open-mouthed at some Chinese embroidery on her frock. Then tie suddenly burst out laughing and continued to laugh so that he could scarcely put the fruit in its bag. Much astonished, and not a little annoyed, the lady left the shop and continued on her round of marketing. A little later she passed the Chinese lad,. who still stared in a fascinated way at that queer writing in his own tongue. Needless to say, fine lady has become exceedingly curious, as to the meaning of the mysterious inscription she has been so unsuspectinghr displaying to the world.

There were. 4000. natives at Ratana's Christinas and New; Year celebrations. Large numbers went •from'the Auckland province. Easter will see another trek of natives to Ratana'e. settlement, when it is anticipated that their' numbers will eclipse those at the recent gathering. Preparations are already in tram for their reception.

A local motorist who recently passed through the Manawatu Gorge, says a wonderful improvement has been effected there by the Gorge reconstruction and development scheme. The old-time bends have now lost a good deal of their terror to motorists, the road is considerably wider and straighter than it was hitherto, all of which means an increased margin of safety for, and a Lesser strain on, tire car-driver.

\ story is told of a certain wellknown farmer .in the Kihikihi district, states the Waipa Post. A few days ago he was mowing blackberry on his farm, but the hot weather induced him to leave the horses attached to the mower while he enjoyed a few minutes' swim in a nearby stream. He dived off the bank with a loud splash, which latter so startled the horses that they bolted. The swimmer heard toe clatter of horses hoofs and the rattle of machinery so he hurriedly scrambled out on the bank and essayed to recapture the I errant steeds. The sight of the farmer careering round the paddock clad only in a righteous indignation, and the horses more frightened,than ever at the- unusual spectacle of a naked man chasing them, was indeed a remarkable one: The farmer had the satisfactfion ultimartely of stopping trie runaway without damage, but he tias since, according to the story, been very busy removing blackberry prickles from his. feet and lege.