Stratford News

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LV, Issue 180, 17 December 1912, Page 3

Stratford News

From Our Resident Reporter,

STRAY PARAGRAPHS Dense clouds of smoke rising in tie east tell of bush burns. For a couple oi seasons past very few farmers liave obtained satisfactory burns. Some shake their heads and say that it is early yet to start, bat possibly the fear of a wet spell is hurrying up matters. Out in the eastern country everything is looking well. The wool clip is better than ever, the prices for wool are good, ' and the fine weather makes it possible t,) get the bales to the railway. At present the wool is coming forward too rapidly for the railway facilities. Only a, few seasons ago it had to be carted many miles which are now covered by the railway rolling »tock. Estimating the possibilities and potentialities of this district, a local professional man stated to me yesterday that as very little of the land within a fifteen miles' radius of Stratford was producing up to its full capacity, and as it was an accepted fact that land beyond ! that radius out eastward was capable ' of trebling its present production, he was confident that in ten years Stratford must be a town of 5000 or 600* people. Let us hope he is right. The induction of the Rev. J. Pattis«n

to St. Andrew's Church takes place on Thursday. There ig a possibility that the ordination of Mr. J. L. Robinson will take place at the church on that day. Such an arrangement should prove conivenient to the church dignitaries, and would be very pleasing to Mr. Robinson's old friends and schoolmates, who would be glad of an opportunity to see him well launched into his profession. His steady and unfaltering determination in his work, and his successes year by year, have made Stratford people proud of him. He preached at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church on Sunday to good congregations, and his fluent and forcible utterances were greatly appreciated.

The open-air concert given by the Stratford Municipal Brass Band on Sunday was enjoyed by quite a fair gathering of the public, and 'from the expressions of appreciation which followed the successive items o«e would judge that band concerts in the open-air might bo given, more frequently without satiating the public appetite. Mr. Marshall, the conductor, deserves great credit for the. manner in which the band has improved, j the young players particularly showing the result of careful and clever tuition. The collection taken up in aid of the hospital funds netted £3 15s 2d, which, with the Government subsidy of 24s in the £, will give the Board £8 os. Mr. S. Clarke Johnson, inspector of the New Zealand Loan & Mercantile Agency Company, who has been paying his official visit to the Stratford branch,. completed his work on Saturday. The local manager, Mr. W. A. Hewitt, motored him to Dawson's Falls Mountain j House on Sundav.

Please add two more fine days to the list.

Mr. Ewen Jackson, who recently returned to New Zealand from a trip to ! tire Old Country, has decided to take up : liis residence again in Stratford. Quite a lot of house property has changed hands lately. That nodding goat in Mr. G. W. Mills' fancy goods window takes the kiddies' faney. House agents are pestered with enquiries for houses to let. They are scarce—the houses, not the enquirers. The Public Works Department will' run a time-table service from Kohuratahi to Pohokura as from the beginning of the year, connecting with the Railway Department's trains. From Mangare road onwards is the horse-tram, which is ever so much better than the old waggon and coach service by road, fur it is available in all weathers.

BERNARD'S PICTURES The fallowing is a brief outline of the story con-eyed by the star drama, "The Insurgi... Senator," at His Majesty's Theatre to-night, and on Tuesday and Wednesday. A young senator from the "back woods" finds himself opposed to the methods of the leader, and his particular henchmen in the matter of a certain Bill which is being put through in the interests of a group of financiers; Finding him difficult to deal with, they offer him "a slice of it," and find that they have only made matters worse. The leader then tries the social bait, inviting him to his own home, introducing him to his daughter, wife and friends. Of course he promptly falls in love with the beautiful daughter, but even with this subtle influence they are unable to win him to their way of thinking. As a last resort they'draft a suppositious letter charging the girl's father with treachery, and revenge in ease the Bill fails to pass. The leader takes care to leave this letter where hie daughter will find it, and, feeling that her father's honor is at stake, she at once goes to the young senator's office to plead with him not to make his speech against the Bill. The remainder of the plot is grippingly pourtrayed, and the drama is an excellent one throughout. Some excellent'scenic, comic and topical films are also included in this evening's change.