THE HOT LAKES CHRONICLE AND Tourists' Journal. WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 7, 1896.

Hot Lakes Chronicle, Volume 4, Issue 201, 7 October 1896, Page 2

THE HOT LAKES CHRONICLE AND Tourists' Journal. WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 7, 1896.

♦ The poundkeeper inserts a notice in regard to certain horses. Mr and Mrs J. H. Taylor will return to Rotorua for a few days next week. It is notified in another column that a sale of suburban lots at Taupo will take place on November Cth next. The native land court has been engaged during the week in dealing with succession orders, and the partition of the Paeroa block, Waiotapu. The Horohoro cases will be taken on the 15th.

Mr Ma'colm Fleming of Fleming's Freehold, accompanied by a prospector, passed through the other day on his way to Tauno. Mr Fleming states that he is arranging for a party to visit the Urewera country. Mr C. Malfroy, who has been confined to his house over since the last meeting of the Town Board, is now, we are glad to state, able to resume his attendance at his office. The Whakatane-Te Teko road is now advanced to within fivo miles of the Tarawera river. The construction party is now working about two miles to the westward of Rotorua and Rotoiti-paku, between which lakes the road will pass. Mr W. Hemes has been busily engaged during the past week prosecuting his candidature for the district in view of the coming election. On Wednesday last he left for Taupo, returning on Friday night, remaining in Rotorua till Monday when he departed homewards, purposing to stop at Mamaku on the way. Due notice will be given of his public appearances. Electors who may have removed to i his district and whose names appear on the roll of the district from which they have come are advised to have their names transferred either by filling up Form No. 2, procurable at any post-office, or by making a fresh claim for enrolment on Form No. 1 and notifying the registrar of their former district of the change. A cablegram from Sydney states that Messrs Mounsey and Austin, the two Sydney tourists, who wore wrongfully arrested in connection with the robbery at the Rotorua Post Office in March last, have been compensated by the New Zealand Government. They simply asked for and received their legal and personal expenses amounting to about £3O each. Mr J. 11. Kirby, who recently assumed the proprietorship of the Morton Mercury has suffered a severe loss by the destruction of his offices and plant by fire. We offer our sympathy, but feel assured that the Mercury having passed through the ordeal will rise reinvigorated and rejuvenated. Mr Kirby is one of the most versatile journalists in the colony, full of interesting reminiscences which he narrates to advantage, and ombued with a spirit of camaraderie which gains him the good-will of his brothers of the grey goose-quill Messrs T. Cook and Son send us a few copies of their neat little pamphlet containing information as to the sailings and rates of passage by all the principal lines of steamers from the colonies up to the end of the year. They are for gratuitous distribution and may be had at the CHBONICLE Office. The highly mineralised atmosphere in this locality has a most deleterious effect on the delicate mechanism of watches and enquiries are frequently made as to what watch is best adapted to withstand the sulphur fumes. Mr Kohn, watchmaker of Auckland, whose announcement appears in another column, supplies a particular make of stem-winding watches—both ladies' and gentlemen's—which are warranted impervious to the influences in question. To our own knowledge they have been tested here and stood the trial unimpaired. The close of the football season will be marked by a ball under the auspices of the Club to take place in tho Pukoroa Hall, on Friday of next week. The arrange ments will be of a more than usually complete nature and the caps, for which the local teams have been competing, will then be presented to the winners. The natives assembled in largenumbers at the Mourea settlement during the past week to take part in the tangi over Tiwhana Awakohuku whose death was recorded in our last issue. In the course of the tangi a dispute arose as to the place of burial. The Rotorua chiefs had one opinion and the Ngatipikiau, led by Major Fox, had another. The latter wanted the body interred at Rotoiti. After much discussion it was at length determined that the remains should be buried on Kangiwhakakapua, a hill which is tapu, and lies between the two lakes. The body was accordingly conveyed there on Thursday afternoon. The funeral service was conducted by the Rev. Ratema Awekotuiiu, brother of deceased and her son, Mr W. K. Tait, who is a student of the Theological College. Gisborne. The latter preached the funeral sermon from Rev. 14, v. 13. " Blessed are the dead that die in the Lord." The tangi is still proceeding, as natives from Tauranga and other places are expected. After the funeral services had been duly performed at the Mourea last Thursday the natives present engaged in a tug-o'-war, the teams pitted against each other representing Rotoiti and Rotorua. The tug was a willing one as a recent dispute gave strength to the muscles of the contestants. Aided by the native clergy the Rotorua men won. The Prospecting Association held a meeting on Monday night to receive reports from the prospectors who have been at work at Horohoro and in the neigh l borhood of Tapuaeharuru. on Lake Rotoiti. Tr> regard to the former locality Mr Macdonald stated that he had found nothing which would indicate tho presence of gold. What the Maoris reckoned was quartz was simply a conglomerate of volcanic matter. He had. bottomed the holes which had been sunk but had come on nothing that gold would live in. He had been on both sides of the range and had tried the open country between Horohoro and the Paeroa ranges. Mr Macdonald will remain for a day or two in Rotorua and afterwards try the country between here and Te Puke. A highly successful tea and social took place in tho Schoolhouse on Wednesday evening last in aid of the funds for the erection of the Presbyterian church. Tho festivities commenced at 6 o'clock when a good number sat down to an excellent tea. At its conclusion games were indulged in, and a well-selected programme was submitted in which Mesdames Cross, Wilson, Misses Murrays, Cross, Cossey, Griffiths, Thomson, Scott, Reeves, Messrs Samson, Webber, Willacy, O'Connor, Cross, Graham, McArthur and young Purcell took part. Tho accompaniments were played by Mrs Keir and Miss Cross. The tea and supper tables were presided over by Mesdames Cross, Murray, Hoyes, and Purcell, assisted by Mrs McArthur, Misses Murray, Thomson, Cossey Dougand Hawksworth. The proceeds amounted to £5 exclusive of expenses.