LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVI, 31 January 1927, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The Rawer a School Avill re-open on Monday next, February 7. The local railway staff have received information of the prospective arrival in IlaAvera on February 15 of a party of tourists, Avhich is due to arrive in Auckland to-day, and Avill be ; conducted through the Dominion under' the auspices of the Pacific Tours Ltd. A cadet and territorial rifle meeting will open at- New Plymouth on Saturday next, with the territorial series of matches. On ttie following Saturday the cadet swill commence firing. Entries are coming, in freely. It is reported that one day last Aveek practically the whole of one train Avhich left the Ohau district for Wellington was loaded with \-egetables. SeA-eral search parties, Avho Avere out OA-cr the A\-eek-end scouring the Kaituna district- and the Tararua range in that vicinity, failed to find any trace of Harold James Crewe, a young man who has been missing from the Kaituna district since Thursday afternoon (states a Masterton message). Arrangements have been made by the Tourist Department for the immediate replacing of the huts at Sandfly, Milfoid Sound, which Avere destroyed’ by fire on Wednesday. The necessary timber and stores will be sent from the Bluff.

As proof of the volume of the motor touring traffic, the proprietor of the Awakino Hotel informed a Hawera resident that during the Christmas and New Year holidays no less than three thousand motorists visited his house, twelve hundred cars providing the transport. New Zealand is accustomed to buying many tools from the United States but it is at least unusual for an American to send an order to the Dominion. An Auckland business man was, thereto!e, greatly surprised the other day to receive an order, accompanied by cash from Berkley, California, for a certain type of trowel which, the American explained, could not be purchased in his own country. A Gisborne Press Association message over the week-end state that the position of the Northumberland is much improved, and pumping work has been reduced. Operations on board are now being devoted to getting the ship in readiness to steam to another port, but- to which port is not yet known. The vessel is now floating in a much improved position, due largely to the patching of the hull and pumping work in No. 2 hold. The sea still remains calm, and from present indications it appears as if no further lightering of cargo will be necessary. Eight infantry officers who have attended the camp at- Burnham became airmen for a brief period last Tuesday, says the Lyttelton Times. They were given trips over the city in ’planes from the Wigram Aerodrome. The annual refresher course for airmen officers will commence at Sockburn on Monday. It will be attended by airmen from all over the Dominion. They will arrive in batches of ten, and will it ay for ten da.y.s each. There will be five or six batches. The survey of the Hanmer locality for purposes of the Forestry Department, which work has been done by aeroplane, is progressing. About half of the map work is complete. The man who fired Britain’s firstshot in the Great War, Mr. M. A. G. •Jenkins, was among the 615 arrivals by the Pakelia who have come to try their luck in New Zealand. He brought with him his wife and their year-old baby Patiicia. While he holds no decortions other than his service medals, he ex-gunner of the Royal Horse- Artillery who has this unique honour possesses a remarkable record. Besides giving Von Moltke the first indication that Britain meant

he probably fired more shells than any other British gunner, for he serv--1 throughout the war without receiving a wound, and entered Germany during the Rhine occupation, remaining there until the end of 1919. Only three days to go - The El Dorado (Taranaki’s own) Art Union. Get your tickets right away; £2OOO first prize and 148 others.—Advt.

It is understood that an insect, which has a destructive effect on ragwort has made its appearance at Strathmore and that the attention of the' Agriculture Department has been drawn°to the matter with the result that particulars have been transmitted to Wellington. The insect is said to bore- down the stem of the plant to the root- which rots away.—Stratford Post.

Bathers in the popular -swimming pool in the Waingongoro River at the Oliawe Beach over the week-end used for the first time a new ladder which had been provided there. Mr H. R. Kemp recently donated a car chassis, to Avliich he had rivetted several axles to provide rungs. The ladder was erected on Saturday by Mr B. Haybittle. Bathers have expressed their appreciation, and say that the new ladder is a vast improvement on the previous one.

The Hawera Amateur Athletic Club’s annual picnic has become an event to which the members and their friends look forward Avit-h much interest. This year the picnic fell so close to the date of the West Coast Centre Championships that some of the members had not sufficiently recovered to lie present. The function, held in Te Ngutu Park, Avas a pleasant one. Motor ’buses took out the picnickers in the morning, and brought them back at the close of a strenuous day. The committee |>la.yed a cricket match, against all-comers. There were races of various kinds, and an ample provision of provinder.

In conversation Avith a folloAver of Ratana it Avas learned that it was not on account of Ratana appearing before the Court recently that the embargo has been placed on Wanganui tradespeople, stated ' the Wanganui Herald. The embargo has been brought about, it -seems, through certain firms Avho have done Avell out of previous transactions with Ratana suddenly refusing credit. The Ratana movement-, notwithstanding its merits and demerits, lias influenced . the trad© of Wanganui \ r ery considerably for the past fetv years, and, while it Avas agreed there Avas no reason Avhy the tradespeople concerned should not pro-tect-themselves, it is alleged that the offending ones Avere unduly abrupt in their methods. The loss to Wanganui during the present gathering alone amounts to thousands.

The first meeting for the year of the Women’s Christian Temperance Union Avas held on Friday afternoon. Mrs Exley presided over a fair attendance. Various .matters of business -were dealt with. A committee was formed with the object of gaining new subscribers for the union paper, “The White Ribbon.," Mrs Hayward was elected as delegate to the forthcoming convention to be held an Auckland during March. Frances Willard Day will be celebrated next month, taking the form of a garden party to be held at the residence of Mr and Mrs Corry, Glover Road. Two new members were enrolled at the close of the meeting. That a Avonderful thing can be made of radio in Ncav Zealand is the opinion of Mr J. L. Prentice, A\-ell known as “Uncle Jack," announcer for 2BL, Sydney, Avho is at present touring the Dominion as chief adviser to the New Zealand Radio Broadcasting Company. He is here, he says, to do his best to make wireless success in NeAv Zealand an outstanding reality. The Lyttelton Times says that Mr Prentice is on his first trip to (Christchurch, and speaks highly of the local plant. To a reporter Mr Prentice remarked that, although as general conditions Avent New Zealand Avireless' AA r as excellent, there Avould always be difficulty in arranging programmes, since there Avere comparatively few artists in the country. One of the speaker’s chief ideas Avas to make Avireless a public utility, and he thought its greatest benefit Avould be to the country dweller, avlio Avould be enabled to receive an elaborate neAvs service and full Aveather and market reports, in addition to the less important concerts. Entertainments, he thought, ultimately Avould be a secondary consideration in AA T ireless broadcasting.

New Zealand is famous all over the world for its brown trout, and acclimatisation experts are exercised at the present time over the question of keeping them up to standard. This has promptd Mr. D. Hope, curator of the Christchurch Acclimatisation Gardens, to carry out experiments with inanga, or whitebait. The inanga is peculiar to New Zealand, and is the ideal feed for the brown trout. Whitebait are rapidly dying out for want of protection, and very few shoals are getting to the upper reaches of the streams. The result is that the trout suffer on account of the fact that there is nothing to take the place of whitebait. Mr. Hope has been engaged in developing specimens of whitebait from their smallest size until he now has a specimen six inches long, and an inch thick, with other samples showing growth from three weeks to fifteen weeks. The largest is two years old. Mr. Hope considers (states the Christchurch Press) that in view of the fact that the Government has protected game birds, whitebait should receive the same attention. “The whole secret in the maintenance of the progress of trout fishing is to be found in the feed,” he said, “and the only way to ensure that the quality and condition of the fish are kept up to standard is to supply them with the feed which is peculiarly adapted to them.”