NEWS OF THE DAY.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVII, Issue 218, 14 September 1936, Page 6

NEWS OF THE DAY.

Why the Notice? "Public notige is hereby given that any person who drives a vehicle or allows cattle to stray on this footpath is liable for each offence to a fine not exceeding' five pounds ( £5). —By order, Masterton County Council." "And there isn't any footpath," commented a recent visitor to the district. Snow on Kapiti. The unusual sight of snow on Kapiti Island (off Levin) was witnessed on a recent morning. According to local legend there is snow on Kapiti Island once in seven years. Snow also covered the ranges at the back of Levin, and other hills in the vicinity which are well below the regular snow area were covered. An Outlaw Gander. A new type of marauder which has preyed to a considerable extent over the past few weeks on newlv-born lambs has been discovered on a farm in Turakina Valley (states the "Wairarapa Times"). It is an outlaw gander, which is credited with having killed as many as 10 lambs in a single night, and to have eaten part of the carcases. The bird has so far eluded all attempts to catch it. Sensible Men. When touching upon the control of credit during his address at the Parish Hall, Ellerslie, on Saturday evening, the Minister of Education, the Hon. P. Fraser, used the term "currency cracks." At question time he was asked whether his remark applied to those of his colleagues in the Labour party who were social creditors. Mr. Fraser: "Oh, no, certainly not; they are sensible men." A Family Touch. The Papakura League football team which met Manukau at Papakura last Saturday had a decided family touch about it. There were three Burgess brothers, two brothers Francis and two Taylor brothers. The Burgess boys were a string of backs from second five-eighths to wing-three-quarter, and the Taylors worked together in the forwards. The other two were far apart, Cliff Francis being full-back and W. Francis in the forwards.. The Theresa Ward. "The Bluff Harbour Board's veteran tug Theresa Ward, which was sold to a Sydney firm, is still doing good work," said an Invercargill man who has just returned from Australia. "At Circular Quay one afternoon I saw her assist the Union Company's trans-Pacific vessel Makura from her berth. The old tug did her job well, and got the large vessel out in the middle of the stream without any fuss or bother. She is kept in first-class order, and when I saw her was fresh from the hands of the painters." Tilt at the Weather. > A jocular expression of envy at the good fortune that enables Aucklanders to feel justified in describing a day like yesterday as bad, whereas Wellington people would say it was a gloriously fine and sunny day, and also of the Harbour Board's flair for hospitality and its financial ability to provide it, was expressed by the Hon. Peter Fraser yesterday during a Harbour Board outing at which he was the guest of honour. During a luncheon, which was a most luxurious one, the chairman .of the board, Mr. C. G. Macindoe, made a conventional apology for the weather, which, considering the season of the year, was not at all bad. In Wellington, said Mr. Fraser, people would call it a beautiful day. Alluding to fhe meal, Mr. Fraser said that he had the greatest admiration of the Wellington Harbour Board, of which he is a member, as an administrative body. They had a lot to learn from the Auckland Harbour Board in the way of hospitality, however, and he would tell them so. Motuihi Sports Ground. A promise that he would do all he could to assist the City Council's attempt to obtain from the Government an area of about 4J acres, for the purpose of a sports ground, between the two top beaches at Motuihi Island, was made by the Hon. Peter Fraser, Minister of Health, in answer to a council deputation which waited upon him during a Harbour Board picnic trip to Motuihi and other parts of the Hauraki Gulf yesterday. The land that the council hopes to obtain is situated above the northern end of the beach on the ocean side, and it is the council's intention, if its request is successful, to level the land, to lay out a sports track, and to provide other amenities, at a cost of about £1500. At present the area is under the control of the Minister of Agriculture, the Hon. W. Lee Martin, and Mr. Fraser explained that he would have to refer the matter to his colleague. So far as he himself was concerned, his jurisdiction extended only to the quarantine area. New Zealand Grace Darling. That the famous Maori chieftainess who was knwwn as the "Xew Zealand Grace Darling" once visited Auckland was disclosed by Mr. George Graham at the query evening arranged by the Auckland Historical Society last night. Known after her marriage as Huria (or Julia) Matcnga, she was a member of the Ngati-Toa tribe and a close kinswoman of the famous Te Bauparaha. Huria visited Auckland about 1000, stated Mr. Graham, and he himself, acting as guide in company with several local chiefs, escorted her to see the site of her grand-uncle's old home in the Auckland Domain. The ruins still stood at that time of the residence of Te Wherowhero in the 'forties, which had been provided for him by the Government. Te Bauparaha was his guest during his enforced stay in Auckland as a prisoner of State. Huria, who at the time of her visit was an elderly womanshe was born in 1839 —indulged in the customary tangi for the memories (mahara) of the past called up to her mind by the sight of the historic spot. The site of Te Wherowhero's house was marked on early maps, but it had disappeared as a house long before the time of the visit of Huria Matcnga. Grave of Pioneer. The occurrence this week of the anniversary of the death of Governor Ilobson draws attention to the fact that in few cases are the graves of pioneers marked with an adequate memorial. One notable pioneer's grave which has fallen into disrepair lately is that of one of the earliest settlers in the Bombay district, Mrs. Mary Martyn, which is in the old cemetery just above the cairn which marks Bishop Sehvyn's favourite resting place beneath the great puriri trees, a well-known halt for motorists at the foot of the Bombay ridge. A "Star" representative who inspected this historical burial ground a few days ago found that the recent unusually severe weather conditions had had a markedly disintegrating effect upon the curious thick slaty stone covering the tomb. Two graves together are surrounded by a rusty wrought iron railing, but only that of Mrs. Martyn has an inscription on the flat stone. So badly flaked now is the slate that it is with difficulty that one deciphers the inscription: "Sacred to the memory of Mary Lyne Martyn, the beloved wife of John Martyn, Helland, «Ramarama, who departed this life on the 17th day of December, 1800, aged 55 years. Her end was peace." Mrs. Martyn, with her husband and family, arrived in the 'fifties, and narrowly escaped being in the midst of the first engagement of the Waikato Maori Wars, for this took place, on their land at the foot of the hill (now v motor camp). Warned by Bishop Selwyn, who was a frequent visitor to the farm, Mrs. Martyn and her children removed to the safety of the redoubt at Drury the day before the ambush occurred. It was some time before they could return, as their homestead was occupied by troops. The Martyn family later were instrumental in bringing out the settlers by the ship Bombay, which gave its name to I the hill and settlement.