Shannon News TUESDAY, JULY 30, 1929.

Shannon News, 30 July 1929, Page 2

Shannon News TUESDAY, JULY 30, 1929.

The Ohau schoolgirls' team visited Shannon on Saturday and played a basketball match against the local schoolgirls, the result being a win for the visitors by 14 to 7.

Among this year's allocations by the Board of Governors of the T. G. McCarthy Trust is a grant of £ls to the Shannon branch of the Plunket Society. .

The usual fortnightly social and dance will be held in the Parish Hall on Friday evening. There will be numerous musical items and novelty dances, whilst the music and supper will be all that could be desired. Those who wish to spend a pleasant evening should not fail to attend.

The dance held' on Friday evening in the Moutoa Hall by the Shannon Druids drew a large attendance, visitors being present from/' Poxtoir and the surrounding district. The hall was v tastefully decorated with pink and gold streamers and the floor was in splendid order. A Foxton orchestra supplied the music, whilst the duties of M.C., were shared by Mr V. Shailer and Mr W. Guy.

The average pay-out for the past season of 22.7 d is claimed by the Waitoitoi (Taranaki) Co-operative Dairy Company as a Dominion record. The geason 's make of about 300 tons of eheese was sold at 9$ per lb.

The New Zealand News, an informs tive weekly journal published in London for the benefit of the New Zealand colony there 'and Dominion visitors, says surprise was expressed by many of the 500 guests present at the High Commissioner's reception that there were so many New Zealanders in London. Yet those present necessarily represented only a fraction of the total number of New Zealanders living in Britain or visiting it this season. The number of New Zealand-born people in England exceeds 7000, and there are many other people with close connections with the Dominion who were not born there. The number of visitors this season will probably be about 3000, and, even if a very conservative estimate is taken of the average expenditure of each the total amount spent on visiting Britain must considerably exceed a million pounds. This vast expenditure from a population of about one and a-half millions is but one more proof of the-attachment of the poople of New Zealand to the Mother Country. A visit "Home" is the great ambition of a very large number of them.

According to an announcement by the Dominion Bureau of Statistics, Canada's population is 9,796,000—an increase of 38,000 compared with 1928, and an increase of 1,000,000 during the past eight years.

As a result of the visit to New Zealand of two Australian members of Parliament the striking miners over there have already received £4,000 from the New Zealand workers, who have also promised to contribute from £6OOO to £BOOO monthly. So at least the delegates reported when they returned to Newcastle.

It is estimated that the Knox Home for Incurables at Mount Wellington will benefit to the extent of between £20,000 and £25,000 under the will oi the late Miss Ann Ellen Harker, who died on July 10th. After providing for a number of bequests to friends and relatives, totalling £25,300, Miss Harker has bequeathed the residue of her estate to the Knox Home. For probate purposes the estate has been sworn at under £60,000.

"Koad Closed for Traffic!" or words to that effect on a sign at the intersection of the Foxton-Levin road, which has been nailed up for three weeks, has caused motorists much annoyance. As a matter of fact, the road is not closed, though during flood time a fortnight or so ago it was unsafe for traffic. Seeing the sign, many motorists have turned towards Shannon, and an extra eight mile? have to be traversed to Levin.

The disparity in the prieetj of fertilisers in the two Islands was dis cussed at a deputation from the Far oiers' Union which waited on the Hon. G. W. Forbes (Minister of Agriculture) and the Hon. J. G. Cobbe (Minister of Commerce), says a Press message from Wellington today. Mr Forbes undertook to go into the matter with the manufacturers and see if the South Island could be placed on an equality with the North Island in respect to quotations.

The unusual spectacle of herrings by the ton was witnessed at Devonport when the water was let out of the Capliop'e Dock after the docking of the ferry steamer Torea. Driven in, evidently, by some larger fish, a shoal of herrings had, on the removal of the water, been left stranded. Workmen at the dock estimate that the catch weighed between four and five tons. They were there for the taking, a quivering silvery mass of small fish, covering the floor of the dock for a distance of between 40ft and 50ft. from the entrance. Shovelled into baskets and hauled to the land level by means of a small crane, many of the herrings were distributed free. The quantity then remaining was placed in a pit dug by trainees from H.M.S. Philomel, there to decompose and later to be used to fertilise the native trees and shrubs which have been-planted this year near the dock.

Owing to the Manawatu and Canterbury A. and P. Associations altering their dates, and thus holding their Shows one week later, the Wairarapu Show will now be held on 30th and 31st October.

Twenty-nine whales have been captured by the Perano party up to the present," this season (says the Marlborough Press). The whalers have been exceptionally busy during the past week.

A dog picked up a bone in Main Street, Foxton, on Saturday morning, says the Herald, but its owner compelled it to drop its find. On arriving at the residence of its owner a short time afterwards the dog died. Evidently another case of poisoning.

The secretary of the Post and Telegraph Department advises: "Arrangements have been made whereby Aero Clubs and aviators may foiward felegrams to any Postmaster requesting information regarding the state of the weather.''

The membership of the New Zealand Farmers' Union now stands at 18,815. This information was imparted at the conference yesterday by the Dominion treasurer, Mr. R. S. Chadwick,' of Dannevirke.

"I spend half a crown a- week on drink," said a judgment debtor, in reply to a question from Mr. Or. T. Baylee in the Dunedin Magistrate's Court. "And do you get drunk on that?" asked Mr. Baylee. "Yes, I do," replied the witness. "You're very fortunate," commented Mr. Baylee, dryly.

Mr and Mrs F. L. Lawrence, residents of Alfred Stieet, Onehunga-, on Thursday celebrated their diamond wedding. This unique occasion is of peculiar interest to Cambridge and Waikato settlers, owing to the fact that this couple were married at the residence of" the bride's mother (Mrs Thos. Beresford), Alpha Street, Cambridge, on July 25th, 1869. Moreover, MiLawrence was a member of the 3rd Waikato Regiment, which was operating in the district, with Cambridge as its base, in the 'sixties. Mr Lawrence is probably the sole surviving member of this well-known Regiment.

It is the intention of Mr. C. A. Wilkinson to ask the Minister of Industries and Commerce whether, in view of the reported potato famine in Australia, where potatoes are selling at £2O per ton, he will immediately endeavour to bring about a better understanding with the Commonwealth authorities in the direction of having the embargo on New Zealand potatoes removed. "It might be suggested," he said in the House of Representatives in giving notice of the question, "that when the market price in either country reaches an agreed price potatoes should enter both countries free of duty." -

The major portion of New South Wales is experiencing one of the most severe droughts ever recorded. There is not a blade of grass for hundreds of miles in the western division and stock is being kept alive by handfeeding. The intense cold is killing the sheep and cattle. The wheat farmers are everywhere in dire straights and are being forced to ask the Government for help to tide them over the difficult period. The Government is now considering a scheme for general relief of needy farmers and pastoralists.

Mr Wi J. Poison, M.P., was' unanimously re-elected as president of the New Zealand Farmers' Union at the, annual conference of the Dominion Executive. Messrs It. I). Duxfield (Horotiu), E. H. Murney (Tapanui), and H. B. Stuckey (Damicvirke), were re-elected as vice-presidents; Messrs A. E. Harding (Mangawhare), W. Morrison (Maxwelltown), 11. M Eushworth, M.P. (Opua), J. D. Hall (Christchurch), J. Preston (Flag Swamp), and D. Dickie (Gore) were elected to the Advisory Committee. Mr B. S. Chadwick (Dannevirke) Avas re-elected as Dominion treasurer, and Mr J. Pow as Dominion secretary.

According to a statement inade by Archbishop Averill at the annual meeting on Wednesday of the Mothers' Union, there are not so manj Bible in Schools sympathisers in the House of Representatives this Parliament as last, and in the circumstances it had been considered inadvisable to introduce the Bible in Schools Bill. There would be a meeting in Wellington next month of the Bible in Schools League, said the Archbishop, when a policy would be drawn up for the future. It was no use trying to force a bill through Parliament- with a hostile majority. The League had no objection to the Nelson system, but could sanction nothing that did not include the backbloeks children, who had not the same opportunities of religious instruction as the children in the towns. A system fair and helpful to all was necessary.

Strong opposition to the proposal tj observe a- universal half-holiday on Saturdays was made by Mr G. O'Halloran at a meeting of the Waitemata County Council. Thursday was the present half-holiday in most portions of the county, Mr O'Halloran stated. His objection was made mainly on behalf of the small store-keepers at the holiday resorts along the East CoasL. "Saturday is the only day on which they can make a living and to enforce a half-holiday on that day would mean taking their living from them," ho said. With the exception of Mr A. E. Diprose, member for the Kaukapakapa Biding, who stated that his district would not be affected, Mr O'Halloran's received the support of the council, which decided to send a telegram to the Government, protesting strongly against any change to a universal half-holiday on Saturdays,