LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Hawera Star, Volume XLV, 22 January 1926, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

An accident occurred on AVcdnesday evening on the tram lino between Alanunui and Ngapukc, near Taumarunui. when a horse-drawn truck, driven by B. El jive’ll, became derailed and crashed over a bridge. There were five passengers on hoard, one of whom, Air.:. J. Henderson, suffered somewhat severe i ii juries.

A service car went over the bank near tlie Tuai power-nouse, AVaikaromoana yesterday. The driver and ,i male passenger were injured but not seriously. The others escaped injury. The car was badly smashed.

A meeting of leseholders of the colliery and other reserves in "Westport was held in the Town Hall last night, when an association was formed for the purpose of urging the Government to give leaseholders the freehold of their sections.

Lex Squires, son of Air. AAG AY. Squires, dentist, of Nelson, was admitted to the Mastorton Hospital yesterday with a gunshot wound, the bullet having entered his chest and penetrated the shoulder blade. Squires was accompanying E. Hart, son of Brigadier General H. E. Hart, of Alasterton, on a camping expedition at AVhiterock station. They went hunting, being armed with .303 rifles. Squires was sitting on a fence, but slipped, and the contact with tin- rifle discharged it. His condition is regarded as serious.

A five-roomed house, owned and occupied bv E. Egan, farmer, AVhat’-.-whata (Waikato), was destroyed by lire early yesterday morning. Airs. Egan left a lire burning, after which she left the ‘house to muster the cows to be milked. The other occupants arose a short while later. Proceeding to the kitchen, they were horrified to find it ablaze. it is surmised that a spark flying out of the grate caused the outbreak. The only furniture saved was a dressing table. The house and the furniture were insured.

An inquest was held at Millertori yesterday touching the deatli of Join: Brown, who was killed on the previous day whilst working in the AVestport Coal Company’s AUllerton mine. Evidenee was given to the effect that, the deputy fired a shot and after examining tin* working face left on his rounds. Deceased was in the act of dressing the face with a pick when a lump of eo' 1 , weighing about one hundredweight, came away, falling on his head and I'racl uring his skull and neck. Death was instantaneous. A verdict of accidental death with no blame attachable to anvime was returned.

Victor John Hall, aged sixteen, a soil of Air. G. AV. Hall, of To Awaniutu, was drowned yesterday afternoon in the Mangapiko stream. A party ot eight boys went swimming, and after a quarter of an hour in the water, deeeased was observed by one companion to put ids head down as though attempting to swim with his head below the surface. Before any danger >vas realised, he disappeared. One boy dived immediately without result, and though a search was maintained all the afternoon, the body was not recovered. The site of the fatality is a deep hole at the junction of two streams. It is full of sunken logs and is a treacherous place.

Tin- lliirtl Wanganui wool »ule <it fit*' srasuii is sot down tor February In The closing date of the catalogue Is I'Voiuai v 9.

The AVaikouaiti is still held up at Lyttelton by the firemen, oil the grounds that the stokehold i,s hard to trim, so they are holding out for three extra trimmers, but the Union Company refuses to sign on the extra men.

The desirability of better traffic control on the Dawson Falls track was touched on at a meeting of the Wanganui Automobile Association this week. It was decided that, the Tan naki Automobile Association should 1)" written to, suggesting that an endeavour lie made to obtain some better measure of control, and that a timetable for use on holidays be made up. A orisoner at the London sessions, who was permitted to choose an advocate from four counsel in court, picked Sir Travers Humphreys, K.C., who, therefore, receives £1 Is as his fee. His colleagues are amused that Sir Travers, an eminent and ,highly-feed counsel, who is senior counsel to the Treasury at the Central Criminal Court, should be chosen in such circumstances. That 100 cars had been coming into New Zealand each day for the past six months, but that this high rate of importation could .not be maintained, were statements made by Mr F. W. Furkert, chairman of the Main Highways Board, when urging, at a conference with the Waipara County Council (South Island) on Saturday night, that the counties should make application for grants while the fund was in its present healthy position. In his report on the English Hospital system, Dr. C, E. Maguire states that an interesting fact reported at the Congress of the Royal* Institute of Public Health is that sunlight, either natural or artificial, may have a definitely beneficial effect on mental activity. It has been found that, children, who have been handicapped in their schoolwork by illness, and who have later been cured with the aid of sunlight, overtake and even outdistance their classmates.

A young man named Kerr was sentenced to two years’ reformative treatment for fraud by Magistrate Page at Wellington yesterday, says .a Press Association message. Accused was arrested at Bluff on the way to Melbourne. His method was to call at a residence during the day and claim intimate friendship with the male member of the family, and thereby .secure a sum of money till able to lift a supposed draft at the bank. The fraud was .successfully worked also at Wanganui, Palmerston ATo rth and Auckland.

A Management Committee meeting of the Taranaki branch of the Manchester Unity Order of Oddfellows was held in Stratford on Wednesday night, when delegates were present from all over the province. Arrangements were made for the quinquennial returns to be sent to the department before January 31. The district secretary reported that all lodge annual returns were to hand. The majority of these had been audited, and showed that splendid progress was being made. —Poet. The exclusion of sailors in naval uniform from attending certain weekly dances in Auckland hae given rise to no little discussion and surprise. It would be idle to suppose the matter is of small weight and significance (says an exchange). Both the officers and men of the warships in port feel indignant at what they regard an unwarranted slur on their character, and behaviour, and the opinion is widely held among the civilian copulation that the drastic nature of the action calls for a proper explanation. At 10.30 o'clock last night the people in the vicinity of Wakefield Street, Wellington, were startled by a terrific explosion. Investigation showed that an oxygen or compressed air cylinde. owned by Niven and Co., iron founder,., had exploded from some unknown cause. A fire also took place, but it was not ascertained whether the fire caused the explosion or the explosion caused the fire. Niven and Co.’s building had the roof lifted and the front blown out. The Opera House close b> felt the full force. The large audience was alarmed by the way the building shook, the windows being blown out of the dressing-rooms. Witn great pre - once of mind Dorothy Lena continued singing, which had a great effect in steadying the auoience. Only moagr • particulars are available. That the golden age of the West Coast is not past is proved by the returns from the electrically-driven dredge at Rimu Flat, near Hokitika, which is owned by an American company. Since the dredge commenced operations in September, 1921, the amount of gold won to date has reached 43,760 ounces, the total value of which is, in round figures, £190,000. This is roughly £45,000 a year, or nearly £9OO a week of the direct earnings. The company holds a dredging area on Rimu Flat of some 1200 acres. Since operations commenced the total area worked has been 80 acres, or an average of 20 acres per year. During the past year some 23 acres of ground were dredged to an average depth of 43 feet. About a million and a half cubic yards of material were handled in that time, and the gold won was 8714 ounces. The dredge employs some 40 men, and has become one of the immediate industries of the district and :i special show place for visitors.

At the gathering arranged by the New Plymouth branch of the Veterans’ Association held at Kawaroa Park on Wednesday afternoon to welcome Archdeacon and Mrs Evans on their return from the Old Country several sneakers spoke in appreciative terms of the practical interest taken in the veterans by Mr Finlay, of Hawera, and of the valued services he had rendered in various directions on their behalf and particularly in reference to the recent gathering at Ohawe (says the Herald). Special reference was also made to hie writings in the Hawera Star under the heading “Lest We Forget,” and Mr John Heslop submitted a proposal which met with the hearty aporoval of all the veterans present, namely, that the veterans of this district present to Mr Finlay a framed testimonial bearing the nnme= of all the veterans and expressing their appreciation of his many valued services on their behalf. Mr T^inlav. who was present at the gathering. said it was the first intimation he had had that anvthing in the nature of a presentation to him was nroposed. C bich a thing had not entered his 1 mind, but it was naturnllv pleasing to one to ’■enh'.sa that anv little service rendered had been appreciated. To see the evi',nrit nleasnre the veterans derived at Hawera a tew dnvs ago in meeting old v'unrsdns thev had not seen for perhaps oO o’- 60 venrs wn« ample reward for '•nvthimr had been able to do on their behalf

Owing to a similarity of names, a mistake, occurred in the report of the sports meeting licltl at Hawera on Wednesday evening. R. Wells was credited with second place in the mil? cvcle, whereas R. Wills, on 30 yards, finished second. R. Wells was amongst those who wore handicapped but he did not start.

Very good progress has been made by the contractor for Eltham’s war memorial, the ornamental gateway at. the Eltliam school on the Conway road (says the Argus). Mr Robinson stated that he hoped to complete his contract in four or five weeks’ time. Sir James Parr (Minister of Justice) has stated that the announcement of the appointment of Sir William Sim us chairman of the Prisons Board is absolutely incorrect. ' “The Government,” added Sir James, “has not yet even considered an .appointment.”

The number of motor vehicles registered in New Zealand up to December 31 was 123,396 —75,296 In the North Island and 48,100 in the South Island. The total registration gives, roughly, one vehicle for each 11 of the total population. In the highway districts in Taranaki and West Coast the registrations were: No. 7 district (Clifton, Egmont, Eltham, Hawera, Inglewood, Stratford, Taranaki. Waimate West, Whangamomona), 7217; No. 8 district (Patea. Rangitikei. Waimarino, Waitotara. Wanganui), 6031. The District Deputy Grand Master, Bro. A. G. Robertson, with his officers of Okaiawa Lodge. 1.0.0. F., were present at the Orange Lodge Hall on the evening of .lamiary 21 and installed tho officers of Huia (Hawera) Lodge. The officers installed were: Noble Gran.., Bro. Haseltinc; vice grand, Bro. Hardlev; recording secretary, Bro. Cooper, ILG.; financial secretary, Bro. Storm, P.G.; treasurer, Bro. Warner, P.G. All enjoyable evening was spent in the recess that followed, and the D.Du

wished the new officers a successful term.

Mr and Mrs F. Waddington, of Sydney, have been touring the North Island, and this week motored down the Awakino Valley, and on to Wanganui via New Plymouth and Hawera. “Delightful” was the term Mr Waddington applied to both the coastal scenery and the TaranakiWanganui roads in ' the course of an interview at Wanganui. But he could not understand why New Zealand allowed the roads round Rotorua to remain so bad, in view of the revenue extracted from motorists who tour the country in the vicinity.

When the Magistrate’s Court, which always attracts a large audience in Raetihi, particularly when a grog case is to be heard, opened on Wednesday and the crowd filed into Court, there was .a smile over; the faces of all members of the public who could get a glimpse at the barrels stacked up near the dock. As the out-come of a recent raid for .sly grog the police had taken into their possession a number of empty barrels and jars. These were, all arranged and comprised two 36-gallon, a 10-gallon, and three five-gallon vessels. There was a two-gallon jar placed on top and a half barrel of empty whisky bottles alongside. There was also a ease containing the. whisky nearby, but this was not visible to. the spectators.

Ktill there is no sign of an ebb in the .tide of visitors to the Dunedin Exhibition. Wednesday’s attendance of 24,063 brought the total up to 1,142,440. Over 2000 persons, on Wednesday night anxl again last night, heard the exhibition choir and the brilliant cast of imported soloists, give Tannhauser in the Festival Hall, which u r as filled to the doors on each occasion. Newspapers agree that it was the choir’s best performance to date.. Sir James Parr, who entertained the exhibition commissioners and directors and the local Parliamentarians in the Government pavilion, said the British Court was a great outstandng feature of the whole exhibition. It had meant to him a quickening of his Imperial sense, of his realisation of the unity of the Empire and of his love, for the Mother Country, which we had all .sprung from. l,t was a. fine old country and its history was well depicted in the beautiful frieze around the. hall of the Empire. He heartily congratulated the president, directors and all concerned on the great success that had attended the exhibition thus far. He- cordially wished them a continuance of that success to tlie end, and thanked the exhibition authorities for the £IO,OOO cheque they had already sent the Government in part payment of its loan to them.