Local and General

Waipukurau Press, Issue 304, 5 September 1908, Page 5

Local and General

& . 'The bell for 1 the loeal Catholic Church has arrived and the belfry is in course of erection. The bell will be a most valuable adjunct to the church and is yet another mark of the onward progress of Waipukurau. At Thursday’s meeting of the Patangata County Council the following grants to local bodies for road works . were made: — Porangahau Road Board, £75 ; Wanstead Road Board, £66; Tamumu, £7OO. Mr C. W. Seymour announces that he is holding a great sale of boots and shoes at his emporium. The sale will continue for three weeks. The vital statistics for 1907 show that Sydney with a death rate of 11 per 1000, leads the world in the lowness of mortality figures. Mr G. Pirie, whose long illness has caused his loss to be much felt from local sporting circles, is now in Napier convalescing. Mr Pirie expects to resume work on Monday week, the 14th inst. On Thursday, Hugh Thomas, a plumber employed by Mr T. Slatford, while assisting to start a hotair engine used for pumping water to the Tavistock Hotel, had his hand caught in the wheel, fortunately no bones were broken, but the second and third fingers of the right hand were badly lacerated.

Evidence of the durability of some New Zealand timber was found at Lyttelton the other day during excavations in connection with sewerage works, a log of ribbonwood, about 12in in thickness, being cut through at a depth of about 4ft. The wood is supposed to have been buried for half a century and yet it is in excellent preservation. A progressive euchre party and social was held in the Oddfellows’ Hall on Thursday evening. There was a large attendance and keen competition was shown in the games. The ladies’ prize was won by Miss Pollington, and the gentlemen’s by Mr Wynn. A number of musical items were rendered after the contest,, to which the following contributed : —Piano, Miss Hannon, Mr J. Bailey ; songs Mesdames McKenzie and Sharpin; Miss Mitten, and Messrs. Arthur, Brophy, Carroll, and Cain. Horses that eat gates and rail fences are something of a rara avis, but there are quite a number in the snow country in Central Otago. When at. Hawkdun Station a “Times” reporter was shown the remains of wooden fences where only the ends of the rails weie left ; the remainder had been gradually gnawed away by station horses. A Gimmerburn man owns half a dozen horses which were in a distant paddock when the snow fell. When, a fortnight later, he visited them he found that about all that was left of the large gate leading into their paddock was the ironwork; the horses bad eaten the rest. It seems that the animals develop this peculiar habit when in a country where snow has lain long on the ground, and they are more or less hungry. The manager of Hawkdun stated that the horses on his station, which ate his bluegum rails, had as much food as they could eat, yet they turned away from-their mangers and gnawed the fences and gates. As for wit and Humour good, Bet a bit and Back Tom Hood! And as Hood’s great Humour’s pure. .So is Woods’ Great Peppermint Cure,

Mr D. F. O’Reilly, who is opening a boot and shoe business in oue of the new shops near the Bank of New Zealand, announces a grand sale for one week, commencing on Monday. A coi respondent of the Nelson “Mail” says: “I saw a return the other day for 25 cases of Rhymer apples at 9s per case, and the grower assured me that they were picked off one tree. On mentioning this to another orchardist I was informed that he had picked from one tree S 3 cases of the same variety. Both of my informants are reliable, so that there is little wonder that extensive planting is going on.”

One of the first indications of spring has arrived in Central Otago (says the “ Daily Times ”), in the shape of the dotterels, which have distributed themselves all over the high lands during the past few days. This little grey bird is of migratory habits and leaves these latitudes for Northern Asia every autumn, returning regularly at the approach of summer. One gentleman, who had closely observed them during the past few days, remarked that they ran about on the frozen snow as if puzzled ; he wondered if they thought they had somehow got back into Siberia again.

A case of a steamer’s fireman delaying in town till the last moment and rushing down the wharf just as his vessel was swinging out is related by the Auckland “Star.” He belonged to the Lord Sefton and arrived at the berth just as the steamer was moving out. The steamer was too far out for him to be able to jump aboard, but this did not disconcert him, for he stood gazing at her, humming “ We parted on the shore.” Suddenly he was galvanised into action, and called for a rope to be thrown to him from the steamer. Placing this round his wrist, he jumped into the water. On rising to the surface he discovered the loss of his cap, and asking for “more rope,” swam after it and secured it, after which he was hauled on board the steamer.