LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 47, 25 February 1914, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

There were six County Councillors at yesterday’s meeting at Midhirst am! Mr Hathaway, who had spoken., * ' . 1 J on a variety of subjects not very closely connected with the toll-gate question, issued an imitation to any ratepayer to open up any matter on "Inch he had a grievance. “The most ol us are hero,” he said, “and you may never get so good an opportunity again.” However, no grievances not connected with toll-gates were aired.

It is estimated that Toko’s first show, held on Thursday last, will show a profit of £lO. A London cablegram states that The Times is reducing the price of the paper to a penny. The Stratford Mountain Club is Laving a great run, the membership now numbering sixty after only a few weeks’ existence. The Chairman of the County Council was very decided at yesterday’s meeting at Midhirst regarding the bridge rate, giving his voice against it. He quoted the case of the Mangaehu Riding, where the ratepayers had " built their own bridges and still bad to pay the bridge rate, which could be used for bridges in Ridings where tho ratepayers did nothing towards making their own bridges. At last night’s meeting of the School Committee a highly interesting report on the work of the school, was presented by the Headmaster, Mr E. Tyrer. A short discussion took place on a proposal to widen the school swimming bath, and a number of other important matters were discussed and dealt with in the surprisingly short space of half an hour; and if the committee keeps up to this standard they will earn the reputation of being the most businesslike and expeditious public body in the town. Or Smith told yesterday’s meeting at Midhirst that lie had not come I prepared for a set speech $ but he managed all the same to produce a tabic of figures from Ins pocket. Quoting therefrom he got a little mixed. “In 1901,” he said, “the West Riding’s debt was £479, in 1911 it was £l9Ol, in 1999 it was ■” The general laugh here interrupted him. He then explained that in 1912 the debt was £1999 and in 1913 £2230. The spy-glass reported recently as having been lost* on the slopes of . Mount Egmout has bqen found by a member of the Stratford Mountain Club, and the article is now in the possession of Mr Williams, the energetic caretaker of the House. One of the boasts of members of the Club is that they will find anything—except money—so it is not strange that the two single pound notes said to have been lost on the same occasion have not been discovered 1

•According to a local resident who has known the conditions of the climate here for the past fifteen or more seasons, there is more snow on Mount Fgniont at this s'easbxi of the year than comes within his recollection. Our informant ptlts this down to the abnormal spell of real dry weather as opposed to the same temperature prevailing with an occasional shower or two. And under these circumstances, he stated further, the new track to the summit from the Mountain House is peculiarly well situated. !t is possible to ride right up to the moss line— an undertaking which, it is understood, cannot be undertaken from either of the other hostelries. Yesterday’s meeting of ratepayers at Midhirst was called for the purpose of discussing the toll-gate question. The toll-gate question, ' naturally, opened up the whole question of loads and bridges. And the question of roads and bridges, naturally, brought in the question of the general finances of the County. Therefore, the meeting really resolved itself into , a conference between the County f% - Council and the North Riding ratepayers. In the “Post” report of proceedings, appearing on page 2, no attempt has been made to separate matters not wholly geynain to tollgates, and as matters of universal interest were discussed, ratepayers all over the County will find something of interest in the report. The annual concert by the children

of the IVlumgamomona school took place in the Whanga Hall on February loth, when there was a crowded house. The acting and singing of fclie children (states' a correspondent) evoked rounds of applause, and the tableaux would have done credit to adults. Much praise is due to the teachers, Mr S. M. Mills and Misses Hill and McMeekan for the success of the evening. Th programme was as follows;—Ballad, “Hunting Song,’’ children; song, “The Passion Flower,” Mr E. Hill; recitation, “A Xmas Visitor,” Infants; song. Miss Perrott; recitation, “Murphy must not Sing To-night,” Mr T. A. Bradley; song, “The Parrot.” Infants; song, Mrs Milburn ; song, “The Motor Car,” Mr Sandon ; dialogue, “Paddy’s Mis- . take.” Children; song, “The Cotton Fields,” Children; recitation. “Fmpn” (encored), Mr D. Brown; song. Miss Bertha Perrott ; recitation, Miss Proffitt; song, Mr Hanson; cruet, Walter and Gwen. Perrott ; song, Hiss F. Hill ; song. Mr Milburn; song, Miss Gladys O’Connell; cantata. “Rose of •Toy,” Senior Boys and Girls. At the conclusion of the concert, the Chairman, Mr T. A. Bradley, made a presentation to Miss F. Hill on the occasion of her approaching marriage, and made reference'to the good work accomplished by Miss Hill during her connection with the school. He also read the Education Board’s report, which was very flattering to the teachers of the school. The evening concluded with an enjoyable dance.

The Dominions Commission lias arrived at Capetown and will sit for a fortnight, states a cablegram.

On Sunday there was a good number of visitors at the Stratford Mountain House, and as many as sixteen reached the summit, included in the number being half a dozen lady members of the party, of whom Mrs T. Marshall (Stratford), and the Misses Bryce (2), of Auckland, may be mentioned as having accomplished this feat. ' The following rinks representing the Stratford Bowling Club will (weather permitting) leave the Post Office at 8 o’clock tomorrow morning for Pihama and Opunake, where they will play matches with the local clubs: Reid, Sharp, King, Smart (skip); Jackson, Porritt, Wright, Skoglund (skip); Masters, Martin, McMillan, Sangster (skip). • “At one time 1 had an idea to have a kind of moveable cottage,” said Mr Hathaway at yesterday’s toll-gate meeting at Midhirgt, “so that the gate could be shifted to wherever we found most effective; but 1 understand that once a gate is established the legal process of getting it shifted is very difficult.” “Couldn’t you put it on skids,” interjected a ratepayer, who mistakenly understood the diffictdty to be physical and not legal; and. the idea of putting a legal process on skids to make it “gee-up” moved the North Riding ratepayers to hearty merriment.

“Perhaps,” said Mr Hathaway at Midhirst yesterday, “you saw in the press a letter signed ‘1). Maxwell’ about illegal expenditure by the Council on building cottages. The strange thing is that when the first cottage was built Mr Maxwell was a member of the County Council »»ut voted in favor of it. It is unreasonable for Mr Maxwell to complain now.” Mr Hathaway asked if the Council was expected to call on its men to live in Stratford and ride out to their work, perhaps fifteen miles. MiMaxwell tried to make his readers believe that the cottages cost £450 or so. As a matter of fact the whole of the cottages erected had cost no more than £220 each. In the case of the cottage at Toko, the Council had secured five acres of land in a good position for £IOO. The man occupying the house paid rent equal to 6 per cent, on the capital expenditure. Mr Maxwell was merely quibbling with words to catch the ears of unthinking ratepayers. He had heard, though he could not vouch for the statement, that Mr Maxwell owned about twenty cottages in Toko. ,Cr Smith said he was not on the Council when the erection of cottages was decided on, but he thought the Council took a very wise step. There were about 200 miles of metalled road in the County. Men had only a certain amount of energy, and if they expended some of their energy in getting to their work, it followed that they could not do so much work as otherwise. The cottages' were a convenience to the men, but they were also a good thing for the Council.