LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 48, Issue 79, 13 January 1928, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The maximum load at the Lake Coleridge power station for the week ended last Sunday was 15,440 k.w., which was recorded between 11.3 p a.m. and noon on Friday. The lake level was at 1666.10 ft, and the average inflow from the Harper River was three cr.secs. Judgment for plaintiff by default in the case of W. F. Tilson (Hinds) v. D. Anderson (Willowby), claim £lO 10s (costs £1 13s) was given in the Ashburton Magistrate’s Coux-t this morning by Mr W. H. Rundle, J.P., and Mr R. Clark, J.P. The sitting lasted less than a minute. When the East Coast-Auckland railway connection is made within the next 12 months, the fat lanxb and frozen meat enterpi'iee genei’ally ill the Bay of Plenty district should receive a powerful stimulus, as it has been necessary in the for owners to arrange for the driving of their stock long distances to the nearest railheads at Rotorua or Waihi. Apart from the expense involved, the loss of condition on long drives has caused a considerable net loss upon the killing. For the past few seasons the position has been made worse,by the closing down of the works at Whnkaia e.

The sole right to cut cocksfoot on the roads in the Mt. Hutt Road district ivas disposed of yesterday by Messrs Dalgety and Co. for £59 10s.

A number of Methven farmers who are shareholders in the Canterbury Freezing Works, fLaiapoi, availed themselves of the opportunity to visit the v.orks yesterday.

While the general quality of the sheep being received at the Tokomaru Bay freezing works is stated to be good, it is reported tbat tlio animals have been a little lighter than usual this season (states the “Poverty Bay Herald '). There are evidences now, however, that the carcasses will be more weighty for the remainder of the season, and already there has been an improvement in this respect.

The live births registered for urban areas during December totalled 979, as against 1173 in November, a decrease of 194. Deaths in December were 564. an increase of 11 compared with the pre-. vious month. Of the total deaths, mal.s contributed 289, females 275. Si.-ay -three of the deaths were of children under five years of age. being 11.17 per cent, of the whole number. Forty-six of these were under one year of age.

The members of St. Stephen’s Boy Scouts and Wolf Cubs, to the number of 28, will go into camp at the mouth uf the Ashburton River to-morrow afternoon. The troop will leave by motor-lorry at 2 o’clock. The boys,. who are in the charge of Scouter and Mrs Arnst and Mr H. McElrea, will remain in camp until Saturday, January 21, during which time they will work through a full programme of scouting activities.

A visit will be paid to Ashburton on January 21 by members of the Main Highways Board who are touring the South Island for the purpose of inspecting the main highways and familiarising themselves with local conditions. An invitation is being given ,to the members to stop in Ashburton for morning tea, when a deputation from local bodies will place before them a request for a subsidy of £4 for £1 on the cost of the new traffic bridge over the Ashburton River.

A small oil painting which must have been executed many yeans ago has recently been discovered and is at present in the possession of a Wanganui resident. The painting depicts the original Putiki Mission Church, with the pastor .and people leaving the church after worship. The building, which apparent; ly stood closer to the plantation than the present one, was much larger, as was necessitated by the larger number of Maoris then congregated at Putiki. The artist, whose name is not decipherable, has pictured his subject delightfully.

No instructions have yet beeni received by registrars of electors to put in hand, in case where the boundaries of their electorates have been altered, the work of transferring electors affected by the change in the boundaries. When the transfer is made all the electors concerned will receive notification. In some instances, notably in respect of the new electorate of Mid-Canterbury and the altered Riccarton electorate, some field work by tlie registrars of electors will be necessary in order x o make sure regarding the electorate to which residents in, or near, the boundary belong.

Mysterious and sinister noises in the dining room awakened a Blenheim resident at an early hour the other morning. Leaping to the conclusion that burglars were in the house, he glided downstairs with greatest stealth. Reaching the door of the room, he listened breathlessly a moment, and. as the sound continued, felt for the switch and flooded the room with light only to surprise a modern Bill Sikes in the form of an opossum which >vas oerched on the table eating jam with considerable relish. A grand chase followed, and finally' the furred marauder was caged.

Since the commencement of the shearing and the freezing season, there has been an appreciable decrease in the number of “swaggers” on Hawke’s Bay roads. This, state of affairs., however, apparently does not obtain in all parts of the Dominion, for a Taranaki motorist who has been on a. 1000 miles’ tour of the North Island, says he met an unusual number of “swaggers” on the road. Some were of the ‘‘fewn and out” order, bub a number were young, able-bodied men who appeared to be genuine triers. Some of the latter say there is not the harvesting work being done this summer as in previous years, and that farmers are managing with less labour in other directions. A party of five Eurasian girls who reached Auckland yesterday by the Sussex in charge of Miss J. E. Earl, are to take up domestic work in the Dominion. Parties of Eurasian girls have been coming to this country at intervals for the past three or four years and have given every satisfaction. Last year eleven came and the year before about eleven. All told, about 36 have taken up their homes in New Zealand since the war. The work is a fine attempt to deal with a delicate question in our great Indian Empire, for all these girls are the daughters of either English, Irish, or Scottish fathers and 'lndian mothers, and in many cases would be neglected if they were not taken in hand and given a chance in life. ! Two men and two women have just made the journey down the (Patea River to the sea (says the “Eltham Argus”). They were Mr and Mrs W. Stanners and Mr and Mrs A. W. Peppered, and the women were the first to brave the risks of the rapids on the river. The weather was fine. A few eels were speared, but no wild pigs were seen. It was not until the party had travelled some 20 miles that they met a human being, and he provided afternoon tea and strawberries and cream for the travellers. The river on the whole was low, and at times the rapids proved troublesome to the boat, which was a flat-bottomed one, 16ft long and 4ft t wide. Neither was the journey wanting in incident, for lively moments ensued at one period when the boat listed and began to- fill, and two of the party were well wet before it was set to rights. But memories of the delightful trip will remain for years, while snaps of river bush, and camp adorn the homes of the adventurers.