COUNTRY NEWS.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume L, Issue 59, 21 March 1907, Page 4

COUNTRY NEWS.

I STIiATI'ORU. j Last week with a week of joy and sorrow and meditation. doy nl beiiitr >o line during race time, and lmv- | iui;- such gooj lielils nml v-.-suHa al this , meeting. Some joyed an:! some sorrowed at \viimin._r, and Mime losing: and all meditated as to how well they should have dime if (hey had dene what they knew so well alier the event. Ah. well! It was always so. follow Your own opinion, aud never miiiil what' the other chap advises you to do. As a lesnli ol' the trots a match has been made between Yom>;,< Victor, winner of the second day's trot, ami All -Night. winner ol' the t'rot the lirst day; .Coll aside. Each horse has main* favorites, and when it is all over tlul old adage of certain people and their money easily part will be again proven. An addition, and also an improvement to our town, is the large and cumnui(lions store, just completed hv M-ssrs. Boon Bros.. Imihh'rs. lor MeWs. Youm;. Hobbs. and Co.. who have latelv bought out the old and well-established (li-iTof .Messrs. Stuart and Cornwall, auctioneers. The new linn, since trkiiu over the business, have put a lot of c;i".gv into it. with the usual rc>u!t, ih.ii they have found the old premises too small, and. with an enterprise deserving of success, have built the commodious premises alluded to. The dimensions are: Length ol building, 7li!'t tiin x liift wiile, with a 12tt stud. As you enter the .trimt door on the left-hand are two unices, where the clerical work is carried out. The Ikmv lias a gradual slope, has channels for draining, and will lie used for the new firm's skin and hide sales, which have become so popular. The firm have made Stratford the headquarters, and. although holding sales at their yards at Eltham, Kaponga, and Strathmore, find that Stratford is most central.

Last night,'independent of the very inclement weather, the Catholics held their annual and popular social with success.

Last week there passed from us, by the hand of death, Mrs. F. S. Pollock, who for many years has held a place of high respect in the mauy hearts of those, whom she came in contact with. ■ Little acts of kindness, unknowingly performed, build the best memento we can leave behind us. Mr. Pollock has the sympathy of the whole of the district iu his bereavement. TOXUAPORITU. The Tongapoautu sports of 1907 are a thing of the past. This is a coast of sports. Sports at Uruti on the 7th, at Awakino on the !Hh, at Tongaporutu on the 12th, sports at Urenui on the 21st, and a regatta at Mokau on Easter Monday. It ought to satisfy the most fastidious. The auctioneers, with sheep fairs, horse fairs, and cattle fairs, are nothing to the sports committees. The pro" grammes, 100. Rve nil tliu same—numerous events and small money. The slice]) driven through here within the last few weeks must number near twenty thousand. More than a thousand have come to Tongapoiutu, and between here and Mokau more than live thousand.

WiIAXGAMO.UOXA. Picnic.—The annual St. Patrick's Day picnic eventuated at Kohuratahi 011 the 15th inst., and there is a consensus of opinion that it was the most successful yet held. The weather was ideal, and the attendance. T believe, a record.' The dresses of the ladies reminded 11s that summer has not quite left us, as the display of colours by the fair sex was of the gayest and prettiest. Visitors rolled up well from outside places, including a large contingent from Whanga. The programme was an assortment, the children especially being well catered for. Games and 'races were indulged ill by the large majority of those present. Cricket.—A rather important fixture, is to take place at Whanga during Easter holidays between teams competing for tile cup presented by .Mrs. I)ean, of Whanga. .Strathinore, l'uraii'ii, Mnngaroa, and Whanga have been invited to compete, but up to time of writing only the two latter have responded. Should the other teams fail to put in an appearance the two teams mentioned will plav off. llumor lias it that Mnngaroa isbringing a strong team "without a tail."

"Taranaki Daily Xews."—This journal is now quite a familiar object here. Six months ago there was not a copyin the place; now one sees it evervwliere, and it seems to be appreciated, especially since the little dillieulty over regular delivery has been surmounted.

Departure.—it is with general regret I have to report tile departure of Mr. and ilrs. Worthington from amongst us. Mr. Worthington was the enthusiastic president of the local rifle club. He will be greatly missed by the members of that body. However, we can console ourselves with the fact tlmt our loss will mean others gain. We wish them every success in their new sphere. General.—The eountrv looks as fresh and green as ever. Whatever else this papa country is, there is no question about its grass-growing qualities. When the rest of Australasia lias been browned and parched up, this district has retained its freshness right through the summer. _ It is probably due to the mois-ture-retaining papa and the exceedingly heavy dews prevalent here. The weather at present is everything that could Le desired.

KOHUKATAHI. Hie Kohuratalii St. Patrick's picnic was held on Friday, 13th inst., in Mr. McLoughin s paddock. Tin- picnickers were blessed with a line«lav, and alar"e crowd assembled and enjo.ved themselves thoroughly. The baiiv show was a great success. There were a large number of entries, and the judges, Messrs. Slattery and Bennett, had hard work to place the winners. Mrs. Augustouelli's baby was first, Mrs. Schnieder's second, and Mrs. Muir s third. The race for the cup kindly presented by Masters and Son, Stratford, was keenly contested being von by D. Davis, with Clelland second. The married woman's race was -won by Mrs. uoues, who ran in great style, with Mrs. (Jarlick second. Ihe single girls' race, for a pair of vases, presented by Mrs. Hills, was won bv Miss (i. Nhewerv. Miss Davis second S. White won the IUU yards handicap, Quinnery second. Numerous children s races were held, and ran od' verv satisfactorily. Mesdamcs .Taniicsou and •Jones looked after the tables, and are to be highly complimented 011 the manner 111 which I hey performed their duties. 1 lie energy displayed bv the lion, secretary. .Mr. Buchanan, greatly contributed to the day's success. A dance was held in the evening. The hall'was packed, about 150 being present. The MX Mr MeLeod, kept things going in K«od style until the "wee snia' hours." ■Splendid music was supplied by Messrs. •1. ih'jnias (piano), Schnieder and Ale JJonaUi (violins).