WHANGAMAMONA.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XXIV, Issue 59, 21 February 1902, Page 2

WHANGAMAMONA.

(FilOM oua OWN oobbespohoent),

We have had a record of about ten days without rain. We are aggrieved, * however, by the failure of the Gorern- * ment to fulfil the promise made to J continue the papa, metalling this sum- ' mer. It is still a mile short of the c j dairy factory on the west, whib there 6 [is none on the east. This curtails the ' I time of milk suppliers by three or four ' months ann>ially. Government work j i j now in general so f«r off that settlers ' cannot profitably engage in it; yet it is 1 ! shown that five months supply to the ' factory is insufficient to enable a settler 1 'to subsist for twelve months. It is 1 . bow known that there will be no road 1 work here until March at least has {gone. Tbe state of tha ro ids also is a heavy handicap on children attending ( the school, an<f consequently on tbe i i teachers, the nearest metal istwo mil's .off—just about the distance within! (which tbe penal dailies apply. The| children now attending are mostly j 1 very young, and quite unab!e for more i than half the year to wade through the. almost bottomless mud. 1 Brooking's sawmill is in full s»ing., I am sorry to hear the plant is to be, : shifted from the settlement about April. In the meantime it is kept ' very busy. | | Mr Gell has nearly cnmplvted a very '! handsome iiew residence, and Me*>rs 1 Ourle, Ooxhead, atid Jennings are preparing to erect commodious dweliims. j There is every prospect of a Fab io 1 Hall being ereoted this summer at tbe I township. As the committee has de- - cided to close the school to smoke con-' ' certs and dances a hall should pay w-11. The original suppliers to the dairy. ) factory are arranging to purchase the - building and plant from the propriat tors and m«ke aco op, concern. It is ' new paying well, and under the effi- ( > cient management of Mr Di rnbusch the. - factory butter is now second to none. The best attended (unction we have ' seen for some time was tbat of the 23rd >, ult., when a banquat was given to Mr j Joseph McOluggage in recognition of - his great servioes to the settlement I About 60 person were present, and s. many mora would doubtless have been i there but for the severe weather. ■ Apologies for absence were read from Messrs Hall-Jones, Hursthouse, W. G. • Malone, Liardet, Arndt, W. Nathan, f F. Brooking, Temp'er. N, King and staff, and Dr Saunders. lhe first toast was "The King," followed by tbe National Anthem. Song, Mr Cleaver, "Save the flag;" enore, " The Old Lig Oabin in the .• Dell." Song, Mr John Seott, "Jems, Ahead," encore, " Scotland yet." " The e guest of the evening" was than pros posed by the chairman, Mr A, 0, y Ourle, in very felici'ous terms, Song t by Mr Grant, " O'Fltnagan and g McCarthy," encore " Vanity." Mr y MoOlugg ige replied in feeling Wrms; e giving a sketch of the difficulties nut y with in the early'days in catering for is the settlers. Song, "The Museil- > laiss" by Mr F. Frsmbeau. " New d Zealand" was proposed by Mr S. M. it Scott. Song, " Close" by Mr P. J, r, White, en<oie, "Mr Hooligan," d "Local Industries" by Mr Rjdgers, n responded to ably by Messrs Dornbusch, e Grant and King, for buttwr, birch, and n bricks. Song, Mr MoDavitt, "A c Sailor," encore, " Woolloomooloo." io "The Seddon Government" was proII posed by Mr Duncan, and responded etoby Mr Becnett. Sing by Mr D. >a Wildermoth," Molly Reilly." A highly r. eulogistic address was then read and •- presented to Mr McOluggage, who resd ponded feelingly, M ssrs G r ant, Blair, a Dornbusch, and others epoke io praise ;s of Mr McOluggage, Song, " Maori y life," Mr Carroll. Song," Soldiers of ir the King," Mr John Scott. "The ■e McOluggage Brothers" was given by Mr Curie in glowing terms. Reci-

tation by Mr Rodge s. "Fiizjameshnd Roderiok Dhu." " The Visiiors," proposed by Mr Blair, responded to by Mr Molvor and Grubb M The Ro*ds Department," proposed by Mr P. White. "The Pre s" by Mr Ssott, and "The Chairman," by Mr Bennett concluded the toast list, The sudden death of Mr Jweph Hewett was s'ated by Dr Saunders to be due to meningitis - inflammation of the brain. He -attended the banquet, and when that ended ab midnight, he and others remained about ih» premises or grounds, as is generally done here, waiting fordaylight. The teaohers residence is part of the building, and: the teacher Mr Scott was in bed asleep when Mr White, who had charge on behalf of the banquet committee awoke him at 4 o'clock, giving him the key of the school. Mr Scott trots and found

the school lamp* ati'l burning, he opened the school aud en'ered, tving ft llowed alinost iramidi tely by M"Bs. a joyie, (Ju> tin, and Hawett. The brawl thin occurred between Joyce and Hewetf, and was over five minutes after the school was re-oppnad. Th« men only exchanged blows once.' This

{should correo*; many erroneous state- | ments which have found their way in|to the Press. Mr He wet t was vary popular. His funeral which took plaoo on the 29ih inst. was largely a'tended. The service at the acoor ing to the rites of the Anglican Church, was rend by Mr S. M. Scott.