LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 49, Issue 79, 14 January 1929, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

A statutory first offending inebriate who was arrested yesterday, was this this morning fined 10s, the amount of his bail, by Mr R. Galbraith, J.P. Following custom, the Fairfield Freezing Works Picnic Committee has forwarded to the Ashburton Hospital six free passes for the picnic to Timaru and six lpnchwil passes for th© US© of nurses.

An area of five acres in the Spaxton Survey District, reserved as a gravel pit, has been vested in the Ashburton County Council.

Fair progress is being made ivitli the erection of the new office block at the County Hospital. Inclement weather in the earlier stages of the erection of tho block delayed the work a good deal, but the opening will take place at an early date.

“He no speak right,” was the comment of a celestial as he gazed at the Post Office clock when it chimed at 10.45 yesterday morning. The striker had evidently missed its pedal and A\as a quarter-hour behind schedule. Beyond causing a few to tip-toe into church, little inconvenience was caused.

Seasonal greetings anil wishes for prosperity and good health were* conveyed to members of the Ashburton Hospital Board by telegraph this morning by tlie Hon. A. J. Stallworthy (Minister of Health), who will shortly make a tour of the South Island.

Though most farmers recognise tho value of tractors as time-and-money savers, it is not everyone who can purchase a tractor. The difficulty in one case, on a farm in the Longbeach district, was got oyer last week ivlien tho occupier hitched a hay-rake to tlie back of his motor-truck, and rows were made in record time.

Only about 20 trout weighing up to four poundo ivere caught at the mouth of the Ashburton River during the week-end, one angler landing 11. The river during the week was running high and was discoloured, hut later cleared and was the only one suitable for fishing. The Rakaia and Rangitata Rivers remained dirty.

Two small boys, Avho Avere bathing in tho Rakaia River on Thursday last, had a narrow escape from drowning. They were Availing and had hold of the band of their mother, ivlio stumbled, the children being sivept away by the current. They 7 Avero carried a distance of about 100 yards before a young Avoman jumped in and brought them both to land.

“I don’t think the public realise the number of families in Ashburton whose Christmas Avas considerably brightened by donations of good things as a result of the special collection,” said Mr W. T. Lill at the meeting of the Hospital Board this morning. It was stated that the sum of £32 15s was expended in assisting families Avho were in indigenous circumstances during the Christmas period.

Members of St. Stephen’s choir gave a fully choral service at St. Aidan’s Church, Mount Somers, last evening, with the object of forming a choir at the church. In addition to the hymns, the anthem, “lfejoice, the Lord is King,” was gi\-en (soloist Mr S. M. Cassidy), anil for the Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis, Bunnett’s setting in F Avas sung. At the conclusion of the. service the visitors were entertained at supper. The Rev. J. W. Dwyer thanked them for their assistance, Mr Cassidy 'replying*

Appreciation of the action of the children of the Tinwald and Allenton schools in presenting funds for the purchase of cots for tlie Children’s Ward, and' of the Railway Picnic Committee’s action in donating a cot, was expressed by tlie Ashburton Hospital Board this morning, and it Avas decided to send a letter of thanks to the children and to the committee. The Tinwald cot will mark the school jubilee, which falls this year, and the funds for the Allenton cot were raised by the gift of pennies at the Aveekly saluting of the flag in the past year.

A lad. Id t-eaus of ago, came before Mr R. Galbraith, J.P., in the Ashburton Child Welfare Court this morning, charged with ha\ r ing boon found drunk. The police stated that the lad’ was arrested on Saturday evening, when lie was in a A'ery bad state. His condition arose out of his companionship Avitli certain undesirable individuals in the toAvn. The lad Avas convicted and discharged, a condition being made that he does not again consort with tho men referred to, and that he leai T es the toAvn anil goes to* work in the country.

A large number of school teachers from different- parts of New Zealand passed through Ashburton to-day by the morning and afternoon expresses en route to Oamaru, where the fourth session of the teachers’ summer school will he held, commencing to-day and continuing until Thursday, January 24. Tlie Waitaki High School has been placed at their disposal, and the majority of them Avill occupy the school dormitories. The Governor-General, Sir Charles Forgusson, who is patron of the summer school, will address the gathering on Wednesday.

With the warm weather during the last feiv days, many of the crops in the County have ripened, and in several districts crops are being cut. There has consequently been a good demand for harvesters, many of whom hai r e been given employment. With the continuation of the warm weather, harvesting ivill soon become general, and all tlie available labour ivill be. absorbeil. Owing to the comparatively late haiwest, and tlie fact that farmers hai 7 e been helping each other, the casual harvester has been later generally in finding employment than was the case last year.

“ Christmas and New Year passed by in a very happv manner,” stated Matron E. J. Watt to the Ashburton Hospital Board this morning. “Apart from the heaps of good things to eat, everyone was well entertained with musical evenings. The tasteful decorations and beautiful flowers helped to create a jolly and care-free atmosphere. All this was made possible by the splended selection taken up by Mesdames M. Keeley and W. H. Amos and willing assistants. I should like the public to know how much I appreciate their generosity. Apart from the money collections, gifts of flowers, fruit, books, sweets and cakes were received, in many cases no names or addresses being given, and therefore could not bo acknowledged. It is a great pleasure to me to ho connected with an institution where there are so many very grateful patients. After paying all Christmas accounts there remains £43 in hand.”

Farmers having combined Grain Drills of any make with unsatisfactory Turnip, Rape, Mangold or Lucerne Sowers, should write to us. We can fit our plate or Bristow Pattern to almost anv of tliery when perfect sowing of the above will be obtained without the labour of mixing the seed. P. and D. Duncan, Limited, Ashburton and 196, Tuam Street, ChnstcJnirch.—Advt.

An application for a subsidy toward the purchase of a gramophone for the Methven Maternity Home was received by the Ashburton Hospital Board this morning, but after discussion the Board decided to reply that it could not agree to tho granting of a subsidy.

Over 60 passengers left Ashburton for Timaru by the special excursion train from Christchurch yesterday morning, which left here at 10 o’clock and returned shortly after 7 o’clock last evening.

This year will mark tho Jubilee of the United Fir© Brigades’ Association of New Zealand. The annual conference will be held at Hokitika, commencing on February 27. The Ashburton Fire Brigade will l>e represented at tho conference by a delegate to be appointed at the Brigade’s next meeting.

There was a good attendance of the music-loving public at the .Domain Oval on Saturday evening, when tho Ashburton Silver Band, under the supervision of Lieutenant W. Tucker, was put through its first practise of the quickstep, in which it has been entered at the Band Contest which opens at Wanganui at the end of next month.

In the mysterious way in which these tilings happen, two expensive bottles of scent disappeared from the shelves of an East Street shop last Friday. The shopkeeper handled the bottles in the morning, but by evening they had vanished from the shop, some quick-fingered person having appropriated them, apparently during a brief absence of the shopkeeper in the rear room of his premises.

The Ashburton police have received advice that two lads named Park and Morpeth left Hokitika last Monday with the intention of climbing the ranges via Browning’s Pass on their way to Canterbury. No news of the lads has been heard since last Tuesday. It is thought they took the wrong crossing at the Wilber force River leading to the Rakaia Fork. Parties have been searching for the lads for some days past.

Alterations to the Ashburton Post Office were commenced on Friday to enable the different departments to handle the increasing volume of work under better conditions than has formerly been the case. The mail room is being enlarged, and a new strongroom' constructed. The Postmaster (Mr G. Clark) has removed his office to the second floor, and his old room is being converted into a money-order and savings-bank office. A landingstage will be constructed in the mail room to obviate the necessity of taking the mails across the footpath.

Bridges were washed away, electric lines broken, and tourists held' up by heavy drifts of snow during a storm which visited the Mackenzie Country over the week-end. People on the way to the Hermitage, at Mount Cook, were stranded at Tekapo, and those at the Hermitage were unable to leave. An Ashburton motorist had an unenviable experience in getting out of the Mackenzie Country on Saturday. Besides swollen rivers and deep snow, lie had to contend with lightning, which he declares was the most terrifying he has over experienced. The flashes were of the “fluttering” type, lasting up to two or three seconds, and the lightning seemed to enter the car and run round and round the fittings, to tho consternation of his passengers. Fortunately, he was clear of the backcountry before the worst of the snowstorm began, otherwise he would have been held up on the road.