PROVINCIAL CENTRES.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 992, 6 December 1910, Page 2

PROVINCIAL CENTRES.

(From Ocr Sroclal CorroEDondenteJ ■ ■ _ .., ;"' ,■ CARTERTON.' A cliaiiEO in Salvation Army officers is tnkiii"? place in Carterton. tnis week, Captain JCeuclip replacing Adjutant Cook, who is going to South Wellington. -The latter officer conducted farewell services on Sunday. On Wednesday evening he will bo publicly farewelled. following wore the successful tenderers for the grazing rights of the borough reserves:—Football reserve, 4S. acres, G. W. Deller, .CO Os. Od. per annum; adjoining reserves, 2A acres, S. >S. Skelley, £3 7s. Cd. The Auckland Central Mission Hand is to visit the Carterton district this month, under the auspices of the No-Liccnso League. : The Gladstone Men's Society have presented the TCev. L. Thompson with a. beautiful office chair as a token of their appreciation and esteem. A Jfo-Licciise demonstration is ■to bo held on the showgrounds on Boxing Day. At a meeting of the Wairarapa. -Ritlo Association it wa.-i resolved that shootiuff shal conmiiMice on tho Tuesday beforo the Trentham meeting. Alterations weio made in Die programme. , Entry fci>9 were reduced, and ,E2 10s. was added \ff the prize-money in., .each match. A sweepstake hutch of .£25 was added, pver ranges of 500, IiOO, and 803 yards. PAHIATUfI.

A team of' Mastcrton bowlers—Messrs, W. Praguell, C. ,T. Hose, W. Keid, and 0. Pragnell (s.)—visited Pahiatua on Saturday, as a result of a challenge thrown out by them to the holders of tho Dixon Cup-Messrs. J. Hughes, W. Eaiisom, W. . M'Bratuey, and W. Wakeman. Pahiatua went away with the lead, anil, on' tho seventh head, it seemed as if the holders would not be troubled, the score being then 12— I. The green was a little too keen for the ;!fasterton quartette; but they gradually mastered it. and,"playing solidly, were even with Pahiatua on the nineteenth lip ad. On the twentieth and twenty-first heads tho holders scored three and one respectively, and won,the game by four points. . There was a record attendance on the green, including -many ladies, and great interest was evinced in the game. Pahintna has now beaten Terrace End, Woodville, and Jlasterton ■in succession, and have arranged to play Dannevirke on." Wedehsday next for the coveted trophy. Capital eutries liave been Teceivcd for the Mangatairioka Athletic Society's sports, and the gathering' on Boxing Day promises to eclipse any previous sportr meeting yet held in the Forty-Mile Bush district. Within the, last few days donations and? trophies exceeding one hundred, pounds! in value have been collected towards the prize fund of the Pahiatua-Akitio Agri-. cultural and Pastoral Association's forth- ,, coming show, . HASTINGS. The weather has remained fines during the past week, and. a commencement' is being . made with harvesting'the 'early crops. The" yield is likely to be small, though it. is too soon to speak definitely;

The vital statistics' for November weresS —Births, 19; deaths, 0; marriages,- 40. ■

The Heretaunga Clnb, which has no* been in existence for four years, has mark-*' ed an event in its history by moving into* a new suite of-rooms in. a ferro-concreta-' structure built in the main street. ThiS( was mude the occasion of a coniplimcn- , tary gathering last week, which was'at-' tended by about 150 ladies and gentle-j men. The president, Mr. Matthew John-4 son, Mrs. Johnson, and members of; the* committee, received the guests, who were , entertained at afternoon tea. In'.the evening the billiard-room was-opened , by i. match between teams representing, the Heretaunga and. Hastings Clubs, the former winning by five'games ito ojie. .; Tho people of Hastings' take a yeryj I:een interest in Napier liarbonr inatters, and on Tuesday night a meeting oi members of the Hawke's Bay: Harbour Ratepayers' Protection Association -war held. The object of the meeting was to consider the question of selecting inees for the' next- Harbour . Board tion. It was, however, considered thai;:-. ■as.":tka'jel.eefion will not take: ;place...foff several months it was premature to seleejjf , candidates in the meantime. ■ An anii' mated discussion followed, during which? it was apparent that the association is. more enthusiastic than ever in-the advcA cacy of an inner harbour. Now that the recent borings'have shown that the rockji bottom (said by tho t opponents of the.in-* Her.harbour to be present) -does not'exist,; the , inner harbour advocates have beenS placed in a -stronger, position than ever.J fhere is a very pronounced feeling both,' in Hastings' and Napier that' the' worlrafc'' the present breakwater represents wastedi money,- and that a deep-water harbour should be constructed at the Port. It ia( quite possible that a vote 3* the rate-' payers taken at , the present time wouMj show a majority in favour of Mr. George} Nelson's scheme in this respect, but Mr* Nelson himself v.ery moderately contents; himself bv asking that candidates at nexfcl election should pledge themselves to. al full investigation of the question. : On Thursday evening St. ' Matthew's! Hall was filled by a large gathering,, which assembled for the purpose of ivel--coining the newly-appointed vicar, thes Rev. J. B.'-Broeklehurst, and Mrs.- Broc-, klehurst. Mr. George Ebbett,' people's; churchwarden," presided.. Bishop Averill, extended a welcome on behalf of'the dio-i cese, and Archdeacon Kuddock also', rnador a brief speech. .'■ -.'*.. ■The first annual meeting.of the ladies' branch of the Pioneer Swimming Club was held on Friday night, the Mayoress. Mrs.' J. A. ■ Miller," presiding. Officers were chosen for the ensuing year, whicbj promises to be the busiest yet known iff switaming circles. V ' ..._•: _FEILDING. .„._ . ' To-morrow is to be a great day in !Feild-> .ing. Lord Islington is'to pay an official visit to the town, and will see the boy scouts' sports on the racecourse. The Wanganui 'District Synod of the Methodist Church will also Ire in session with! some fifty or sixty delegates present, and the oratorio "Elijah" is to be given in the evening by the Choral Society,-with Mr. John Proiise in the leading part. Hares are reported to be fairly prevalent in the vicinity of Waituria West, and some farmers are complaining of their depredations among the young crops. The" weather has been very favourable for shearing lately, and a good many of the settlers have now finished. The majority of them are- well satisfied with their crops, which compare well with those of previous years. Every.day sera large loads of wool on the roads.

Haymaking is already commencing in,; the back-country, and will keep nil hands busy for some time to come. It is intended to .'hold a meeting of those interested in the erection. •of an Anglican-church in Beaconshclu. Uo meeting will be held in Hie Beaconsfield schoolhouse on Saturday evening next. OTAKI. A ■■team of bowlers.- : consisting of Messrs., Stevens, O'itonrke, Smith, and Brown (s.), journcved to Levin on Saturday, and defeated "representatives of tho local club bv one point for the KiiiiiOmrgh Feathers The "reeu was in favour, of the • home team, but the visitors proved superior in all-round play. ; •U the Otaki Methodist, Church on Snn-d-v- ■mnivor«ary services were held, when the attendances both morning. and evenat the .-Anglican Church,' the . Rev. 0. Smith during an earnest discourse, -dwelt briefly upon the Church of England Men's Society. Ho stated that its growth in New Zealand had been v'erv marked. Smee .1 branch was formed in Otaki it had progresseu rapidly, and would doubtless do. much rood. ' At the conclusion of the service seven more memlwrs were enrollecl, bringing the membership to about thirty.- -At the next monthly meeting of this branch the burning topic, "Bible .in ' (schools, , , will be discussed.