DISTRICT NEWS.

Taranaki Daily News, 14 December 1917, Page 3

DISTRICT NEWS.

DURHAM" ROAD. (From Our Own Correspondent), A social, at which the presentation of school prizes will take place, is being arranged to be held in the Durham school, on the evening of the 20th inst. The welcome rain on the lith inst. has caused a triuisforma'tion in the appearance of gardens and pastures; the faces of the farmers also brightened up, for the continued dry spell at this time of the year would have had far-reaching detrimental effects if continued. I am pleased to report that the child belonging to Mr. T. Blanchard (manager for McEwen Bros.'), which was severely bitten by a dog a week or so ago, is out of hospital and making rapid strides toward complete recovery. One of the luckiest escapes from serious accident happened recently to the boy driver of Mr. Louis Marsh's milk cart. It appears the boy had to get out to open the gate on to fhe road, leaving the horse stand the. while. On resuming his place in the cart the animal backed the whole concern over the bank into the creek, a drop of 10 to 12 feet. The driver managed to jump clear, the animal escaped unhurt, a bent axle 'fo the cart *nd taw Joss of two out of five cans of milk summarises the whole affair, but everyone's luck was in that day apparently. ' I Those Durham folk who'attended the concert, and dance in the Norfolk school on Friday evening last are loud in their praise of the. excellent production put before them by the pupils of that school, and the master (Mr. R. Thomas) is to j he highly commended for the evident care lie has devoted to the youngsters' training. A very large crowd attended from nil parts of the district, Tariki and Intrlewood being well represented, and the fund for wounded soldiers, to which the proceeds are to be.devoted, should be the gainer by a few pounds. These sort of entertainments arc of double value, for besides providing healthful amusement for both jld .nil young, they also tend tc develop latent talent in the latter, fitting them to fill gaps in communities later on whore entertainment of some kind or other helps break the. monotony of country life. It seems a pity, that parents, in many <ascs, both past and present, do not seem to appreciate that fact. The improvement called "making )\tc in the country attractive," so much talked about by politicians, does uot get the encouragement it deserves, for If it did, a system of reward would be initiated whereby the masters and pupils of country schools could benefit, and Idle production of entertainment as the ';ne under notice would be ot more frequent occurrence.

Tn my last contribution a "mix up •' has romehow occurred in regard to defining tin' district nffoctcd 'by the recently formed patriotic committee for MakeUiwa. As clashing with other areas i?. unnecessary and to be avoided, it posRible, tho district mentioned includes Dudley road, Durham road, Norfolk road, and the stretch of Mountain load lying between the first and last named roads. [ should like this made clear so that residents in the locality named can devote Ibeir energies and spare .asti lo assisting (he district executive'in all endeavors ta swell the Hinds ,>y which, our soldiers will receive benefit. IE KIRT. (From A Correspondent). On Friday evening last the Te Kiri Hall was filled by an enthusiastic audience who had assembled to hear, tho Red Cross concert given by the local school children assisted by I Ik- Opnnake Quartette. Mr. F, Tindle. chairman of school committee, presided. Solos were given ,iy the Rev. Papakakura, Miss I. Edwards, Miss Ruby Spirst, and Mr. Andrews, and Mr. Hurst recited. Unfortunately Mis.- Cameron was prevented at the last moment irom being present-. Pianoforte ducts were given by the Misses Edwards and Keir and the accompaniments wer* jhyed ?>y tile Misses Edwards and Mr. <j»innel. The sweetness ind purity of tone in the rounds and choruses given by the school children Sniprised and delighted the audience, and all were agreed that the recitations deserved the excellent mark given to thein by the inspector at the recent examination. The following children recited individually: Myra Morris, Jean and Willie Bremner, Staneey Keir and Ruby Hurst. Thelma Lorkin Erie Machray and Willie Woolford, and there were several fine collective recitations. The sash drill was very pretty and several dialogues were given in a most spirited manner. At tho 'lose of the concert Mascfield's "Gallipoli," given by the head teacher, was presented to Master Percy Gaten'>v for his good work in collecting funds for the concert, and a large box of sweets was given to Miss v'iladys Burrows for her work in the same cause. All present agreed that they had spent a delightful evening and a hearty vote of thanks 1 was passed for the Opunake Quartette and Miss Isabelle Edwards, the head teacher, who was warmly congratulated upon the excellent work shown. After a splendid supper, provided by the ladies of '. the district, a gift, auction wa.s conducted by Mr. Hurst, the only regret being that a separate night had not been set aside for the sale, so generous had bean the response to the appeal for help. Buttonholes and home-made sweets in dainty baskets were sold in the. intervals. 'The evening wound up with a dance, for which Mrs. and Mr. Arthur. Collins played in their usual able manner, kindly giving their services free. On Wednesday evening next, a public meeting >is to be held in the school room at 8.30 when a balance sheet will ho presented. The sum of £ls 0s W aa realised by the concert, and it is expected that the nett results will be about ' £2n. A list of subscribers will be published later on.