DISTRICT NEWS.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 261, 14 April 1915, Page 3

DISTRICT NEWS.

TARIKI. (From Our Own Correspondent). Tlie many friends of Mr. Len. Walker will be pleased to hear that in a letter recently received from him by his sister, Miss Ida Walker, written just after the Turkish attack on the Suez, that he is in the best of health and spirits. In common with a number of his comrades, he was disappointed in not seeing more of the ''scrap." He expressed great admiration for the Gurkhas, who arc camped near, and says that they are the sort he would ! much prefer fighting with than against, i He mentions that at the time of writing rumors are abroad that they will soon be on the move to an unknown destination, but that they are all glad of the prospect as the monotony of the saudy ily-'blown camp life is beginning to pall. Amongst those he mentions as having seen, are Will Jakes, C. SI. Allen and the Nicel brothers. His brother, Harry, who was taken ill on his arrival at Alexandria, and sent to the hospital, is well on the road to recovery. Considerable local interest is being ovinced in the co-operative '--""iivj works, and it is generally c ic?" a that their establishment in Nori,',i TaranaKi

would be most beneficial, not only to the graziers, but also to the small farmeiby increasing the value of their cull stock, and probably, too, of weancrs, and reducing the price of artificial manures. It is curious to note that as, in the flotation of nearly all co-opera-tive ventures that concern farmers, though it may have the hearty support of those who are recognised as ieading men, and no sound adverse arguments are forthcoming, there is a strange reluctance on the part of many of the farming community to support it by taking up shares. Very few farmers would hesitate for an instant in expending £5 on an agricultural implement or anything else that they considered necessary for working their farm. Why, then, this shy diffidence in investing in an undertaking that is so obviously in their best interests? The harvest thanksgiving services i were held in the Anglican Church on Sunday last, when the edifice was beau-tifully-decorated. In the evening there was a very large congregation, and numbers were unable to find accommodation. The Veil. (Archdeacon Evans preached an impressive and beautiful sermon, the text being " Thou visiteth I the earth and blesseth it." In the course ! of his sermon the Archdeacon mentioned' his deep interest always in the' Tariki Church, having been present at ■ the laying of the foundation stone and also at the opening services. j The appearance of our township has | "been considerably enhanced by the' erec-1 tion of the new stationroaster's house | at the corner of Surrey road. The | building is now nearly completed, and though of simple and unpretending design, must be considered very satisfae- I tory from an architectural standpoint. • Though the work throughout is of a ! substantial and solid nature, no useless money has been wasted on unnecessary ornamentation. The same re- I marks apply to our new goods shed,! which is generally allowed to be a mod- '< d of economical building. j At a recent meeting of the Horticultural Show Committee, a member voic-' e<l his appreciation of the services rendered to the society by Mr. T. Lamsan, of Stratford, whom he designated a " staunch patriot." Mr. Lamsan respondod readily to the Society's appeal to auction the gifts on the evening of the show, and after a hard evening's work, walked back to his home at Stratford, j The speaker said that this incident had j only come to his ears purely accidentally. Now Mr. Lamsan had thought I nothing of it, 'hut he (the speaker) considered it showed a verv fine spirit, a sentiment that was endorsed by the other members of the committee. Even in this favored locality we have not escaped the ravages of ' influenza, and many of our residents have been "down." One of its worst features is that it is so very infectious. I am told that it i R quite possible to convey the germs in letters, in which case you must not be surprised, sir, if the unfortunate member of your stair, to whose lot it falls to decipher these notes, wakes up the next morning with more than just ordinary "head." For obvious reasons, I felt it best to conclude rather than commence with this little par.