THE OHURA DISTRICT.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 64, 4 August 1914, Page 6

THE OHURA DISTRICT.

(From Our Own Correspondent.) Since my last letter to you, there lias not been anything of a startling nature in our district. Tlu: weather lias just been (missing word, please); but the optimist says it is seasonable, so that, I presume, settles it. We have had a round of social enjoyments, the best being the Rille Club s ball. This was a real smart affair, and the town ball was just lovely (that is how the females expressed it), the decorations and the champion shields being very tine. To let } l; u benighted folks cooped up in towns know that we get , a good deal of fun out, this way, let me I quote the reading of recent two adver- ' tisements:— "Nilio Nilio anniversary ball.Come and be cured of the Blue?. During the evening a local agriculturist will read a paper on the 'Best Methods of sowing Wild Oats.' Bachelor's Ball, Ohura. .Bachelors, invite all ladies and married guests to attend ball 011 August 7. Bachelors, lSs> admission." The Tata Settlers' Association ihcld their annual meeting lately, when Mr Currie and Mr F. A. MeKenzie were re- ' elected chairman and secretary. Com- [ plaint was made of the neglect by the ( Public Works Department of the main iOleura road between tlic Paparata saddle [and Ohura, about 12 miles. The coach service between Ohura and Whangamomona had to be discontinued owing to its dangerous state. A' teachers' residence ia to be erected as early as possible, so the School Committee has been informed by the secretary of the Auckland Education Board.

Matters educationally arc on tin; upgrade in the King Country. A High School is to l)e oncncd at To Ivuiti on August 3. The master appointed is Mr J. Crabbe, M.A., formerly of Paeroa Higifo School and Wanganui. Our popular school teacher for some years at Niho Niho, Mr A. Mossman, who is leaving the district for the purpose of taking up the legal profession, was presented by the scholars with a lijindsome dressing case. The Mossman family have been some years in the district, thu father purchasing Mr Bennett's land at Niho Niho about six years ago for £8 an aire. lie lias recently sold the samo land to Mr Bruce, of Ohura, for £2O per- acre. A question being discussed ihere, owing to circulars being received from the promoters, is whether it is practicable to join in the proposal to have-a King Country shipping port at Kawliia. As to which is to be the ultimate shipping port lor tiir King Country, the future will reveal. It looks nice on paper to react that settlers' lands will be doubled in value, and the air-.- and optimistic reports of committees ::s to the cost of constriction of the ' : n>* and the distance uii.i •.asfineovm" ilir.c.ilties are very cheering. Nothinj; like living in liope'l One of our nosiinists here savs he has been earefu'lv noting all the demands recently mailt l for railways and roads on the Government alone, and it would require twenty-live millions and fifty thousand working men to do justice to tin; requirements of the progressive crowd. Tile troub'e with the r. .1 wo r k in the Chura this year is the lateness in getting to work. Winter was well started before -any notes were able, and now the v ork is in I'nil swii-/. contracts having 1-. n let o:i the Ton:;:;-porutu-Mangaroa. T.ikorinsa ttSuv:> nintraets) to Kururau. Waikaka (two contracts) Matiere to Mirolmia 'three ~,m - tracts. tracts. The crowning follv i, lhe iMftimr of culvert timber by tile Public Wor.;s on our winter roadn.

The Hon. Mr Frjtscr has been dccrving tin; County Councils for not protecting their roads by prohibiting or regulating heavy traliic; yet wo. have liis officers destroying our roads in inid-wiii-tcr carting timber not for ?uiviM*U to be put into position now, but for culverts til at will not be put in till next summer.

Timber is being parted from the railhead, Ghakukura, to the Ohura stream at Opatu and stacked tlier? preparatory for next summer's work, and the price given for carting was 10s for lOOfeet. It is carted via the Oliura road to T.itu. tlien via the Harvey-Tokirima road to Opatu. On this road (lllarvcy-Tokirima) the settlers have laid burnt papa on the worst phu-es with. » width of eight feet. The places where it was laid are mostly curves in the read, and the timber waggons 'have in some places cut the papa and destroyed the metal.

The district engineer (Mr liaker) has pumiced a part of the main Oliura road. He put it down at lirst without faeines, and though the County Council protested, it was informed that Mr liaker fully understood the position; and lie dispensed with facines only where (in his judgment) it was not required. However, the rain came, and the waggons went through the pumice, and the water washed it away. After this experience. they had to facine the whole road. Mr I'aker now says that the pumice was inferior. Bo that it may. it acts alright with faeinc under it except on the steep grades. On the, Okahu-Kura road, they have rel-.iid- the pumice three times, and have three teams constantly repairing. The brick works are a faiiure, and as far as I can judire. will continue to be flo. I am speaking as one who has had experience! in several brickyard working. First, the clay i.s not a good brick clay: secondly tile climate is too wet to dry the bricks when r:ade; thirdly the y;ir! is on a river .flat, where even in dry weather the mist at night will prevent the bricks dl". in 1 . The only svstein to work this clay si, as to run on a fairlylarge scale is to instal a dry-pressed brick plant. In this, the day is iirst dried in kilns, then crushed and pressed into bricks and burnt—the clay being dry. Is compressed into a fairly good brick. A sample of thi> :s at work at (Queenstown, Tasmania, making bricks for tinMount Lyell copper smelters. In Sydney these machines are used but they do not dry the material, as it is crushed rock and doe« not hold waters like clav™.