LOCAL AND GENERAL

King Country Chronicle, Volume XXV, Issue 3372, 1 October 1931, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Some time ago children at Matau, Taranaki, found a cave which had a small entrance, but was roomy inside. They used it as a playground until an elder brother crawled in and found that the ceiling and top walls were covered with wetas, or New Zealand scorpions, which are reputed to have a poisonous bite.

A farewell dance to Mr. Arthur Horton will be given by the residents of the Aria district in the Aria Hall on Friday, 2nd October, at 8 p.m. Mr. Horton has made himself very popular during the time he controlled the motor service to Aria, and the residents desire to express their appreciation before he leaves the district.

The recent cold weather and shortage of feed in the Wanganui and Taranaki districts has been responsible for considerable mortality among dairy herds in Taranaki. The conditions also affected the milk supply. It was notable that many experienced farmers were caught without sufficient stored feed to tide them over the cold spell, which was unexpected at this stage of the year. The recent clays of sunshine and warm weather have done much to develop the growth of the grass and have enabled the herds to pick up condition again.

Speaking at a meeting in Wanganui Mi\ McFarlane said every penny less that the general price of wool fell meant £1,000,000 less for the farmers of New Zealand (states the Chronicle). Thus when wool fell from 16d to 6d per pound it meant that there would be £10,000,000 less coming into the country. One of the most hopeful signs was that the war reparation debts might be cancelled. If that were done it would be the beginning of prosperity coming again.

"Recently," writes a correspondent of the Waikato Times, "I met a woman who had been buying a pair of shoes for a child six years old. They were quite ordinary shoes, and the cost was 6s 6d. Next day I met a farmer who sent large woolly sheep skins to auction. I am writing to draw attention to the extraordinary anomaly, the farmer having to supply over 13 heavy woolly sheep skins to buy a pair of shoes for his little girl six years old."

"What the whole world should do is to constitute a holiday for all the people and simultaneously in every centre have a bonfire and bui*n the war debts, each country to acknowledge that it is bankrupt, get its clearance and start afresh. That is the only hope for the farmers." So declared a well-known Canterbury stock and station agent, who is in close touch with the position of the farmers. He said the practice of raising loans to pay the interest and pricipal of previous debts was only getting the country further into the financial mire. He gave instances where more than twice the amount of the equity previously held by farmers in their lands had been swallowed up by the fall in primary produce, and stated that the creditor nations of the world must wipe off a considerable porportion of their principal in the same way as farm mortgagees had had to write down their capital.

A commencement has now been made with the metalling of the Te Kumi road, which has been in a very bad state for some months. This section has been in a very pot-holey state and the announcement will come as good news to motorists and others.

From to-day control of the main Highway Hangatiki to Te Kuiti and Te Kuiti to Pio Pio is being taken over by the Main Highways Board. This will mean' that this section of highway will be under control of the Board, in so far as upkeep, management, etc., is concerned, though the question of payment by the county will remain as at present.

Writing to a Dunedin friend from Gothenburg, Germany, Dr. John Fulton makes some interesting observations on various matters which have attracted his attention. "The depression in Germany is very serious," he says. "There is no money anywhere, and it costs 15 per cent, to borrow it. Vague talk of a revolution is in the air, but we saw no signs of any unrest that would be likely to lead up to such an outbreak." While staying in Heidelburg in the course of his tour through Germany » Dr. Fulton saw some very good New Zealand apples for sale at 8d a lb.

To pay 8s 9d for a pair of children's imported shoes and ten days later to find the sole of one shoe completely worn through has been the experience of a Christchurch parent (says the Christchurch Times.) "Children are rather rough on footwear," he said, "but this would appear to be the last straw. The sole was stamped 'solid leather' but apparently was leather of sorts only/' He said that it appeared to present a good argument in favour of New Zealand-made goods and that he intended to bring the matter before the notice of local manufacturers through the Manufacturers' Association.

"Back to God's own country, and it really is that," said Dr. E. E. Porritt on his return to Wanganui from a tour abroad. He remarked that New Zealand was small compared with the rest of the world. He had just come through Canada, and realisation of the vastness of that Dominion made him more than ever aware of NewZealand's smallness. He'pointed out, however, that although New Zealand !was having a| hard time, matters were worse in Canada. In addition to prevalent economic difficulties, the country was facing a drought. The province of Saskatchewan was almost blowing away in dust.

Commenting on the heavy taxation paid by racing and trotting clubs to the Government and the necessity for some relief being given, Mr. J. R. Sceats remarked at the annual meeting of the Taranaki Trotting Club that though it had made a loss last year the club had paid £1298 in taxation. Members Were simply "putting in their time working for the Government and not for the trotting club." It was absurd that they should continue doing so. The Government was "on an absolute win" over the matter, as it took no risk. He considered that the racing and trotting conferences should make strong representations to the Government.

There are many ways, apparently, of catching business nowadays, and the methods adopted by a bottle dealer in Woolston have at least brought him publicity, if not hard cash (says the Christchurch Sun). For the past month he has been giving three bags of firewood in exchange for one bag of bottles, and the idea has certainly caught on among those people who need firewood and have no cash but many bottles. The bottle-selling market in Auckland is evidently in a better state than the Christchurch one, for this same dealer despatched recently several thousand dozen bottles to the northern city, and received approximately 6d a dozen more for them than if he had sold them in Christchurch.

Several residents with vacant sections in various parts of New Plymouth have offered to give unemployed men the free use of these sections for the purpose of growing vegetables, Mi-. P. E. Stainton, chairman of the Unemployment Relief Committee, reported at yesterday's meeting of the committee. If any members knew of any men willing to take advantage of the offer the committee would arrange the details. Mr. H. E. Blyde asked whether it was found that the majority of the unemployed cultivated their own sections, as by growing vegetable they could reduce the cost of living tremendously. Members pointed out that in some cases men were living in rented houses on which their rent was in arrears, and there was no incentive to grow vegetables when they were likely to have to leave at any time. Another member instanced a case where an offer had been made to supply a man with the seed and fertiliser and use of an eighth of an acre, but it was not accepted.

Great excitement was caused at Stewart Island some months ago (says the Southland Times) by the arrival of an aeroplane, the first that many of the residents of the island had seen, and further excitement was caused on the same day when Mrs? T. Ryan, the wife of one the. island fishermen, presented her husband with three baby girls. Recognition of this latter event has now been made by His Majesty the King, the Royal Bounty of £3 having been granted to Mrs. Ryan. The arrival of the three little girls was duly reported to His Excellency the • Governor-General (Lord Bledisloe) by the Minister of Internal Affairs (Mr. P. A. de la Perrelle), and the necessary formalities having been complied with, His Excellency has received advice that His Majesty has been graciously pleased to grant the Royal Bounty. It may not be generally known that the Royal bounty has been paid on several occasions fn New Zealand, four mothers having received it during the last five years. The bounty is paid to British subjects only, and only to married women. The children must all live and their birth must be reported within four months if the bounty is to be received.