THE COUNTRY.

Press, Volume LX, Issue 18241, 27 November 1924, Page 3

THE COUNTRY.

THE FREEZING SEASON OPENS ON MONDAY. Several of the local freezing companies notify that their works will open for operations on Monday, Deoembor Ist. Thi s is ten days to a fortnight earlier than usual, but it is expected that the favourable season will provide sufficient lambs to maintain steady operations until the holidays. There is keen anticipation as to what opening quotations will be. At yesterday's Addington market it was freely reported that up to 12} d per lb over all had been offered, and for wethers a good Bd. These figures, of course, are unofficial. METROPOLITAN SHOW. ADDITIONAL POINTS PRIZES. In addition to the points prizes in connexion with the, recent Metropolitan Show, tho following are announced:— The Diamond Jubilee Challenge Cup, presented by the South Island Branch of the New Zealand Pig-Breeders' Association for the exhibitor gaining most points in the Berkshire section, was won by Mr G. H. Barnett, of Leeston, who also won the certificate of merit given by. the New Zealand Pig-Breeders Association. Mr R. E. Alexander's Challenge Cup for competition amongst attendants of exhibits in the sheep, cattle, . and draught-horse sections (shepherds, stockmen, and grooms) who prepared the stock for the Bhow and had been in charge of them for at least three months, was won by Mr J. Linton. This makes the third occasion on which Mr Linton has won the cup, one of the conditions of its award being that it goes to the attendant whose animals gain the most points. The Canterbury A. and P. Association awards a medal to the winner, who has his name engraved on the cup and holds it for one year. .

FERTILISER EXPERIMENTS. WHAT IS BEING DONE IN CANTERBURY. Before the North Canterbury Executive, of ..the Tanners' Union yesterday afternoon, Mr F. E. Ward, Instructor in ' Agriculture, gave an interesting and instructive address, in which .he de-. scribed the character of the experiments in connexion -with fertilisers being conducted by the Department of Agriculture in Canterbury. Mr Ward said that the Agricultural Committee of the executive had asked for information as to the action of phosphatic fertilisers in Canterbury, and the Department was in the fortunate position of being able to state that experiments of ,the character referred to were in hand. Canterbury, was the only provincial district in the Dominion where such experiments had been undcrtaßen seriously. By means of charts Mr Ward described the . methods adopted and gave the quantities of. the various fertilisers used. The experiments in hand were as follows:—Pastures, 7 (4at Cheviot, 1 at Prebbleton, and 2 at: Tai Tapu); wheat, 8 (at Irwell, Spring, ston, Ladbrooks, Prebbleton, and Sockburn); rape, 2 (at Darfield and Eacecourse Hill)';, potatoes, 2 (at Coutt's Island and Prebbleton); turnips, 1 (at Prebbleton); and oats, 1 (at Cave). In explaining why most of the experiments wero not too far from the city, Mr Ward said that the stuff was small, and his district extended from Kaikoura in the north to Palmerston South in the south. His assistant, Mr A. W. Hudson had done the lion's share, of the work as far as the experiments were concerned. When the results were obtained they would be able to attach some importance to them. In the past numerous experiments had been made, but there was not a single result of which they could say: That is what you should do. At the conclusion of his remarks, Mr Ward answered a number of questions. . The chairman (Mr J. D. Hall) said that ie would like to see more experiments with turnips, and aksd if the Union could assist. ■Mr Ward said that if any of tlie members had paddocks of fairly even land, and if they would let him know the probable date on which they intended to sow, he would try to fit m expenmen by aec ] ama ti o n, was accorded Mr Ward.

LAST WEEK'S STORM. ] The rough weather of last week took some toll o$ shorn sheep. In the Ashburton district one.soldier settler lost 120 of his 160 ewes and there are other cases of 20 and more casualties occurring in small flocks. Reports from various country districts state that rust has developed very badly in the wheat crops. This is particularly the case on heavy land. In the lighter country the trouolo is noticeable to very little, extent. Hie quantity of rain since the beginning ot October has been abnormal for tins period of the year, and the comparative absence of drying winds made an outbreak of rust almost inevitable. Many oat crops which were badly "laid" as a result of last week's storm are now righting themselves, and it 'will only be the very heavy crops that will be affected. JOTTINGS FOR FARMERS. All the catalogued judges of the horse section at the Banks Peninsula A. and P. Show on Tuesday could not act, and a slight Correction of th« list in yesterday's "Press" is necessary. Mr W. Griffiths Smith judged cobs and ponies, Mr L. C Orbell light horses and hunters and Mr A. J. Keith harness horns". The wet weather of the earlier part of this month followed by hot weather has been responsible for the appearance of a little early blight on potatoes, Mr F. E. Ward, Instructor in Agriculture, told a reporter yesterday. Rust is also in evidence on cereals m many parts of the district, and if there is more heavy rain it is likely to deI velop quite pronouncedly.

Something in the character of a windfall was reported at yesterday's meeting of the North Canterbury executive of the Farmers' Union. This was the receipt, from one branch of the sum of £4O, representing three T ears' arrears. The treasurer's only complaint was that it did not include interest for the period.

LEITHFIELD. The Third Annual Meeting of tie Kowai Surf and Life-Saving Club took i place on Monday evening, Mr Ashby ! presiding. Apologies for absence were .received from Mr J. Fitzpatrick and Dr. T. T. Thompson. The aeting-sec- , rotary, Mr C. W. Brown, presented the . annual report and balance-sheet. The report stated that there had been a marked falling-off in Ihe numerical strength of the active membership of the club. The finance, however, was in a healthy state, there being a credit balance of £l4 6s 9<l. Mr C. W. Brovvii moved that the Kowai Surf and Life-Saving Club amalgamate with the Leithfield School Swimming Club, with a recommendation that £lO of the money to be handed over be set aside to improve the dressing sheds at the Ar ™ T hc motion was seconded by Mr H. May and carried. Votes of thanks to Mr F. Ashby "(chairman), to Mr P. Smith, who, on his recent removal to Kirwce, relinquished the secretarial duties, and' to all out-going ofiicers, were carried unanimously. At a meeting of the Leithfield Swimir.mg Club Committee held on Monday night, there were present Messrs C. «;. Brown, J. Fitzpatrick, F. Mav, L. O Malley. H. Mav, C. Hadley, K Stace. Misses A. Mandor and A. C Llovd, Messrs D. AV. Palmer. AV. Hobbs D. McLean, F. Trail, and J. AV. Sarich (secretary). A letter from the Kowai Surf and Life-Saving Club, offering to amalgamate with the Leithfield School Swimming Cbrh. was received. It was proposed by Mr D. AV. Palmer that the two clubs amalgamate on the conditions set down—viz.. upkeep of reel and improvements to the dressing-sheds at the { beach. The motion was seconded bv I Air H. May and carried. Mr E P. Shier, Amberlev. offered a medal as a prize in the club's competitions. It was decided that the official opening day take place on December 6th. SEFTON. The Sefton junior cricket team plaved liobiirii at Lohurn, the game resulting 11V 1 tvw -P°infc win for the former. Sefton, batting first, made 170 for 5 wickets and declared, while Loburo made 114. For Sefton the chief scorers were:—L: Hales 43. G. Smith 43 not out, E. Miller 28, L. Huglics 29, while for Loburn C. Pail ley 24~ T. Dawson 17, M. Fitzgibbon 17 and D. Hill batted best. For Sefton 0. Smith took- 4 wickets for 12 runs, and L. Sullivan 3 for 11. Chambers and Greenwood, took the wickets for Loburn. _L;ist week a concert in connexion with the. Sefton Methodist Sunday school was held in the Rink Hall, the Rev. A. Foote presiding over a fairly large audience. Recitations were contributed by Misses Evans and Eraser and the Rev. C. Blair, of Rangiora; songs by Misses Fraser and Evans and Mr Harold Ford, and duets in character bv Misses Fraser and Evans. During the evening the prizes won by the ohildren during the year were presented by the Rev. C. Blair,- special attendance prizes, presented by .Miss Ashworth, bein<r gained by Edna Topp and Stanley Topp. A report on the year's work was furnished by Mr P. J. Thome, the superintendent. At the conclusion a very hearty vote of thanks was accorded the performers and also ■_, the teachers, after which supper, provided by the ladies of the congregation, was handed'round. ' RANGIORA. A meeting of the.Rcngiora Branch of the Plunket Society wa.s held yesterday, afternoon, the president (Mrs A: P. Strang) presiding. It was decided to send a letter of sympathy to Mrs 1 L. R.. Ellis, of Loburn. a member of the committee, -who has not been well for some time. It was resolved to make the £.50 loaned to: the North Canterbury Branch a gift.. Miss V. Hill, the'Plunket nurse, made the following report for the month: — Twenty-nine visits had been to homes and there were thirteen new 'cases, seventy-nine adults had visited the ' Plunket room, c.leo sixty-nine .babies, and nine ohildren. _. A . few babies have had measles this fmonth, but none .very-seriously. Yesterday Mr A. D. Dobson, consulting engineer, visited Rangiora in connexion with the three water schemes before the Council, viz., the gravitation, tower and well, on which he-is* to report. He was" met by the Mayor and several members of the Council, and after discussing the schemes, a visit of insnectiori was made to the suggested intake, of the gravitation schemes at Wilders Cieek at the Ashley. Mr Dobson also nwde a thorough, inspection of the borough.

ASHLEY BANK. . At a meeting of the local tennis club it was decided to open the new courts on Saturdav. The" Mayor-of Bangicra. will perform the opening ceremony. Ideal weather conditions are. at present prevailing for shearing, which is now in full swing. OHOKA. One hundred and forty persons having now signified their willingness to contribute, the rural" mail delivery may be looked upon as a certainty. The local tennis players who went to Kaiapoi on Saturday to play a scratch team went down to the tune of M games to 88, the only Ohoka player to bring off a win being Miss Nancy Newton who played fourth among the ladies. A return match has been arranged for about Christmas time, when the second local court should be completed. AKAROA. Mr and Mrs T. LewitWwho are ieav'inc Aliaioa this week, were viitertuinedbv tne citizens at a complimentary social gathering on Tuesday evening. There was a crowded attendance. lne Mayor (Mr Geo. Armstrong) who presided, said the gathering alone was sufficient indication of the respect in which their guests were held. Mr and Mrs Lewitt had lived amongst tliem tor twenty-two years, during which time they had been closely identifaecl with every movement that tended to the welfare of the town and its people. Air Lewitt had served for a number ot years on the Borough Council, and had been a prominent and active member of practically every institution in the town, j During the war vears he was one of the most energetic officials of the Peninsula Patriotic Sceiety. Tlio Mayor also re-, ferred to Mr Lewitt's connexion with the Horticultural and Beautifying Society, the War Memorial Society, various clubs, and to th? Presbyterian- Church. In speaking of Mrs Lewitt the Mayor wnrmlv eulogised her for the splendid influence- she had had at all times on the vounger people. Her activities were manv, her homelife an example and a pattern to all, while her disposition and personality had endeared her to the whole community. The chairman s remarks were endorsed by the Benr. A. H. Julius, Messrs C. W. Leete, C. Hall, and P. E. Taylor. A presentation of a wallet of notes was then made to the guests. The rest of the evening was devoted to cards - and music. Those who contributed to the musical programme were Mesdarnes F. G. Armstrong, A. J. Allom, Misses Curtis, Julius, McKilloo, and Keegan, and Messrs F. C." Newton, F. G. Armstrong, and E. Donuell. On the previous evening Mr and Mr 3 ! Lewitt and Miss Lewitt were formally fare welled by .the congregation of the j Trinity Presbyterian Church, and pre- ' sented with tokens of regard. Mr Lewitt made feeling acknowledgements. , Mr' arid Mrs Lewitt and family leavo I Akarpa to-day for TVoodend.

BURNHAM. Mrs A. A. Benslcy, representing the Methodist Missionary Society of New Zealand, gave a very interesting address on the work of the Methodist missionaries in the Solomon Islands. At the close of her address Mrs Benslcy was cordially thanked." Beautiful sunshine greeted the children and parents of Burn-ham for the annual school picnic, which was held at New Brighton. Over eighty left by the morning train for Christchurch. At tho Christchurch railway station a special tram-car awaited the party. On arrival at' New Brighton some of tho children were soon on the sands', while others patronised tho ice cream parlours. During the afternoon sports were held, which were under' the control of Miss Wright, Messrs Stone, Lewis, Popple, Ealam, and Shaw. The different events were keenly contested. Results were as follows: —Infant girls; Nancy Alexander 1, Freda Robinson 2. Infant boys: Allan Badger 1, Joan Smith 2. Junior girls: Dorothy Stewart 1, Doreen Popple 2. Junior'boys: Billie James 1, Keith Parker 2. Senior girls: Beatrice Janies 1, Phyilis Popple 2. Consolation race: Girls, Ina Ealam 1, Betty Alexander 2. Babies' race: Douglas James 1, Gordon Badger 2. Married women's race: Mrs McGlashan 1, Mrs Popple 2. Men's race: Popple 1, Stone 2. Single women's race: Miss Twist 1, Miss M. Robinson 2. The picnickers left New Brighton on their return journey at 3.45 p.ni., and.arriyed safely at Burnham at 5.30 p.m., ali happy, and bright, after spending a most enjoyable time.

Mr W. Wilson, Y.M.C.S'. secretary, has .returned from Matarae and Dunodin. He will be presient for the New Zealand Permanent Force camp of the Southern Command.

The Sunday School anniversary, which had to l»o unavoidably postponed on account of measles, is now to be held on December 6th.

Members of the New. Zealand permanent Force of the South Island are now in camp at Burnham, and will be under canvas for fourteen days. After the camp the officers will go to Springfield for a three days' course of tactics. ' HALKETT. At a meeting of the newly formed branch of the New Zealand Farmers' Union the following officers were elected: —Chairman, Mr B. S. Eoper; vice-chairman, Messrs J. W. D. Hall and M. Wilson; secretary and treasurer, Mr J. D. Henderson; committee, Messrs J. and G. Calder, J.-Thompson, A. Manson, D. L. ■"Wilson, C. Page, G. Davis, B. Henderson, and W. F. Turner. It was unanimously decided not to.support the Dominion Executive's resolution that the Government should bo urged to remit the duty on fowl wheat up to one million bushels imported into the" North Island during 3925-26. '.Meetings will be held on the fourth Monday of each month. HINDS. The annual meeting of members of the Hinds Tennis Club was held in the Hall, Mr J. Cook presiding over a fair attendance. The balance-sheet showed a credit balance of £l2 7s 2d. The following officers were elected:—President, Mr J. Cook; vice-presidents, Kev. J. Hay and Mr A. McKenzic; secretary, Miss McKenzic; captain, Miss Cook; committee, Mrs Cottam, Messrs D. T. Paterson, V. Nichols, F. Hill, and W. Tilby. It was decided to open the season on Saturday afternoon, as the court has been repaired, and topdressed.

MARONAN. A very successful concert in aid of the school fund was held in the schoolroom. The children, who had been trained by their teacher, Miss C. M. ■ Armstrong, successfully carried through, the varied programme of songs, recitations, action songs, and a musical dialogue, entitled "The Hat Shop," Miss Elsie Addis playing the accompaniments. Misn Addis and her sister also played a duet. A guessing competition for a beautifully decorated cake, made and given by Miss G. Husband, added considerably to the school funds, the competition being won by Mrs Murphy and Mrs Stone. A generous' supper was served in a supper room erected outside, after which the schoolroom was cleared for dancing, music for which was supplied by Mr and Mts D. Paterson, and Mr McCartcn (Hinds), extras being played by Miss Maisie Higgs and Miss Violet Addis.

Rome is at last to hava its underground railway. The capital of Italy is now approaching 1,000,000 in population, and the room in its narrow, tortuous streets for tram and motorbuses has become entirely inadequate. The proposals to construct a, metropolitan railway met with prolonged opposition, especially from" the archreological point of view, and conservative people dreaded the . idea of. disturbing the foundations of the ancient waifs and temples. But modern. progressive ideas seem about to prevail at last, /and the preliminary terms of a future concession have been signed.