Local and General.

Waipukurau Press, Issue 22, 2 March 1906, Page 2

Local and General.

:o: Usual monthly meeting of the Waipukurau Town Board will be held on Monday evening. Air Cold well, local chemist, is visiting Taranaki, Mr Harford acting for him here. Mr P. Gow is the owner of probably the largest deer’s head ever taken in New Zealand. Government borrowed the specimen for exhibition during the Duke and Duchess of York’s visit, and later sent it to the St. Louis Fair. It will probably be sought for the forthcoming New Zealand exhibition at Christchurch. There have been several enquiries for land in this district of late. A buyer late of Eketahuna who was almost persuaded at £23 per acre has speculated at Longburn at £4O. Mr Fox, registrar of dogs, has been busy serving out collars during the past week. He estimates there are about one hundred dogs to be registered within the town district.

Inspector Hill visited the local school on Wednesday.

“ Puck” writes : —“ Several Waipawa tradesmen — notably the butcher, the baker, and the perambulatar (fish) —do a good business in Waipukurau. That’s the way to push Waipuk ahead. My word !”

Barnard’s circus showed at Waipukurau on Tuesday night, there being a fair attendance. Had the management known that a paper is published here, the tent would have been full. The merits of the entertainment surprised those who witnessed it. The proprietor is missing a lot of money through not having an advance agent. Representation has been made to the authorities for a letter delivery at Waipukurau, but no reply has been received.

Mr J. A. Blom is offering exceptional value in up to date bicycles and sundries.

A contemporary has the following with reference to New Zealand’s famous Premier : —Dick Seddon, as an apprentice boy, ran away from Dalglish’s foundry m St Helens, and with 9s 6d in his pocket, tramped to Liverpool. There on the landing stage he overheard some sailors deploring the fact that one of their comrades, who had been engaged as “ donkey man,” had not turned up. The vessel was on the point of sailing when Dick ran forward and explained that he could work the donkey engine. He was at once engaged, and thus it was he managed to reach Australia. At Melbourne he left the ship, and took part in the rush to the goldfields.

It is believed that a show of some nondescript description exhibits here next Friday. It isn’t a circus come to work us into a state of wonder, but a variety gaff to make ’em laff, p’rhaps, by thunder! — Gobo.

.Extraordinary qualities are pos-sesi-ed by the River Tinto, in Spain It hardens and petrifies the sand of its bed, and if a stone lalls in the stream and alights upon another, in a few months they unite and become one stone. Fish cannot live in its waters.

The Waipukurau Library Committee has decided to get 250 new catalogues printed embracing a complete list of books in the library. The annual meeting of members will be held in two or three weeks’ time. is suggested to help wipe off the remaining debt of about £4O. On Wednesday Mr E. Pocock fractured his right arm through slipping on the slide while dipping sheep at Maungatara station. Dr Godfray attended. The animal meeting of delegates from the lodges of the Hawke’s Bay district of Oddfellows was held at Hastings on Wednesday, Bros. Bailey and Moffit representing ihe Loyal Tavistock Lodge. The Grand Master delivered an instructive address, during the course of which be mentioned that there were now 9657 members incorporated under the New Zealand centre, and of these 1246 were in the Hawke’s Bay district. A good deal of business was transacted. P.P.G.M. Bro. W. A. Chambers is one of three delegates appointed to represent the district at the biennial movable committee meeting of the New Zealand branch of the order, to be held in Nelson on Easter Monday. In the evening the delegates were entertained at a dinner by their Hastings brethren. The next district meeting will be held at Waipawa. The Waipukurau Library is now in a fair financial position, and a reasonable suggestion made is this: That the trustees raise a loan on the property and add two or three living rooms for the accommodation of a librarian, whose services could be got in lieu of rent; that a portion of the present room be utilised as a public reading room. This method has been apopted with success by several townships. Mr Carnegie’s offer of £13,000 for a free library at Bath has been declined. Send it alongto Waipuk, Andy ! A couple of weeks ago two men were arrested and locked up for assaulting the landlord of the Club Hotel at Martinborough. During the night some friends of the imprisoned men, it is supposed, broke open the cell and released the prisoners, who have not been recaptured, though a detective was sent irom Wellington to investigate. Implements to break open the gaol were borrowed from a neighboring smithy. At intervals a lawless lot congregate at Martin - borough—fellows who, when money runs short, would waylay and stun a person for half a crown ; who, on the other hand, when flush of silver would bash in the jaw of any man who refused to take a drink from them. These roughs are chiefly engaged in the backblocks as scrubcutters or flaxmill hands, and they occasionally swoop down upon the village and paint it red; then the local guardian of the peace, Constable Sheary—who, by the way. is a capable and courageous officer, but only human —has a sporting time of it, his free lodging house doing a “ roaring” trade, as well as the local fish saloon. Christmas in Martinboro’ is extra merry, and an additional policeman is sent to keep men on the loose off the Square. It is expected that when the Dry River estate is cut up there will be even more liquor consumed. The twenty-seventh annual meeting of the Hawke’ Bay District of Foresters was held at Hastings on Wednesday. The report and balance sheet showed the district to be in a good position financially. Bro F. Gay, Waipukurau, was declared to be the winner of a gold medal for securing the largest number of new members in 1905. A successful supper and social was held.

Manawatu A. and P. Association made a profit for the year of £742. Mr G. Pirie has been persuaded to remain in Waipukurau. The Government party which is to inspect the Clarence Valley, consisting of an area of a quarter of a million acres, in Southern Marlborough, mostly Crown land, with a view to closer settlement, is to start early this month. This valley would be tapped by the South Island trunk line. Mr A. W. Renall, of the Bank of New Zealand staff, has been promoted from Waipawa to Palmerston North. Mr Renall was temporarily in charge of the local bank some time ago.

During the voyage of the steamer Corinthic from Tasmania to Wellington recently, a second-saloon passenger, named Charles Field, was reported missing, and is supposed to have fallen overboard. There will be a parade of cadets next Wednesday, weather permitting.

Waipawa won the billiard tournament, played at the Tavistock room,, by three games to two. Pirie won a match with Jull. There was a large attendance of interested onlookers. The Wanganui Chronicle is in r formed that Mr Gregor McGregor has been appointed native land purchase officer for Wanganui, and at once enters on his duties. Arrangements are already in progress to purchase the Whakaihuwaka block of 56,000 acres, opposite Bipiriki, about two thousand acres of which will be reserved for the natives. The book “ Why the All-Blacks won” is on sale at Annand’s. Since the rain gauge was set at the school on 21st February, up till now, only one-hundreth part of an inch of rain had fallen. Up to 21st February a good deal of rain f. 11. To obviate risk of blood-poison-ing. Mr J. C- Simpson yesterday had a finger amputated by Dr Godfray. Mr Simpson is progressing well. 11 It will be remembered lie recently had a finger poisoned with a fishbone. A combined picnic of the Waipawa Anglican, Presbyterian, and Methodist Sunday schools was held on Wednesday at Mount Vernon. A very enjoyable day was spent. Lord Plunket’s family and attendants have arrived and taken up their residence at Mr S. Johnston’s house, Oruwharo. Mr Maurice Murphy is now opening up new winter goods. It is expected there will be a record number of marksmen at the Trentham meeting. It is probable the championship will be fired on 10th inst., when the meeting will finish. It is understood the local school committee does not favour a children’s excursion by train, as interfering with school work. 'The main street is getting a cleaning up. At a meeting of the Takapau branch of the Farmers’ Union Mr Brodie gave an address on sheep diseases. He spoke about worms, grubs, and paralysis, explained the cause of these complaints, and mentioned useful remedies. The address was attentively listened to. Mackay & Co. have a new shop to let. The handsome thing.—“ Yes, we elected Mrs Milyons president of the club, thinking she would give us something handsome—” “And —” “ She gave us this portrait of herself.”