Local and General

Waipukurau Press, Issue 321, 15 October 1908, Page 5

Local and General

The monthly meeting of the School Committee will be held at 8 o’clock to night in the schoolroom. The train arrangements in connection with the Hawke’s Bay Show on Wednesday and Thursday next are advertised in this issue. The sculling race between C-I-p nr o’a

Labour Day was not generally celebrated in this district as a holiday, though many workers had the day off in accordance with the provisions of the Factories Act and the awards affecting their trades. The shops, however, kept open during the morning, closing at 1 p.m. for the weekly half-holi-day.

News to hand of intertribal fighting at Ponape, one of the Caroline Islands, a group sold by Spain to Germany in 1899, is to the effect that in response to the request of white residents for protection, the German authorities in New Britain sent a punitive expedition of a hundred police. The expedition had a light with the natives and a number of the hitter were shot. The German East India Squadron lias arrived at the islands, and peace is now assured. It is reported that the natives at Roffie Islands, belonging to the Neu Pommern Group, for some unexplained reason massacred thirty of their womenfolk. A punitive expedition will be sent. In the Arbitration Court, sitting at Auckland, Mr Justice Sim gave judgment in the case in which the Union Company was charged with a breach of the waterside-workers’ award by failing to pay travelling time to workers engaged at Auckland to work cargo at other ports. The chairman said the object of clause 3 was to compensate workers for time occupied by them, in travelling, which might otherwise have been spent in earning wages. In the present case the workers did all their travelling outside working hours; they, therefore, were not entitled to any payment for travelling time.

The district has been visited by a splendid soaking rain. On Tuesday afternoon and night several showers fell, but yesterday morning broke fine and gave promise of a summer’s clay. The day had not far advanced, however, before clouds came up and rain commenced to fall in earnest. The fall during the last two days has been a little over half an inch, 12 points being registered at 9 a.ni. yesterday, and 42 points at 9 a.m. to-day. The barometer has risen steadily since Tuesday, and at 9 o’clock this morningstood at 29.58.

Everyone wants to know the date of the general elections, but this is still unsettled (says the “ New Zealand Times.”) However,’this much is certain, that they will take place not later than the first week in December, and more probably the last week in November. An i important

The Hon. W. C. Smith, M.L.C., returned to Waipuknrau yesterday. An entertainment will be held in the Hafuma schoolroom to-mor-row evening, under the auspices of the Good Templars. The Foresters’ and Oddfellows’ Lodges held a crib tournament last night. Seventy-seven games were played, the Oddfellows winning forty-four and the Foresters thirty-three. After the tournament a number of songs and recitations were rendered, and Mr.A. Staines gave a selection of phonographic items.

A meeting of the Committee of flic Sports Club was held last evening, Mr D. Annand presiding. On the motion of Mr B. J. McCormick, seconded by Mr F. W. Gore, Mr J. W. Elliott was appointed secretary. It was decided on the motion of Mr Shepherd, seconded by Mr McCormick, that the secretary should write to the Waipukurau Brass Band, asking them to submit terms for supplying music on the sports day, the tender to be in by October 23rd. The names of Messrs McCormick, Gore and Smart were a'dded to the Programme Committee.’ 3 Mr Barrie was elected the club’s delegate to the annual meeting of the Hawke’s Bay Centro of the New Zealand Athletic Union, to be held at Waipawa. It was decided that the Programme Committee should meet on October 23rd, and draw up the programme, for submission to the meeting of the General Committee on October 26th. Mr Butler was appointed to interview Mr J. J. Bailey with regard to the use of his ground.