LOCAL AND GENERAL

King Country Chronicle, Volume XXV, Issue 3404, 15 December 1931, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Another large eel, weighing about 201b5., was caught in the Mangaokewa River during the week-end.

The profits from the New South Wales State lottery since its inception in August are £197,000. This is at the rate of over £500,000 a year.

"I don't think that there is such a jumbled up reticulation (water) in any town in New Zealand as there is in Te Kuiti," remarked the Mayor at last night's meeting of the Borough Council when discussing the town's water supply.

Reference was made at last night's meeting of the Borough Council by Cr. Douglas to uncontrolled noise in the borough in the way of motor cycles without exhausts. The town clerk was asked to get in touch with the local police on the matter.

In our issue next Thursday we will issue a coloured Christmas supplement, a unique undertaking for a country paper. Part of the supplement is devoted to scenic views, while the balance will be interesting reading matter, including a children's page. The advertising page contains some interesting information for Christmas shoppers.

An English lever watch found with the remains of Mr. G. T. Watson in the bush at Wakatapu when wound up ticked off immediately. As Mr. Watson disappeared on December 26, 1914, the watch had been there for 17 years exposed to the elements. This is a striking tribute to the thoroughness of English workmanship.

"The Government has practically decided not to alter the rate of interest, and we are simply beating the air if we discuss the subject further," said Mr. W. J. Black, at the last meeting of the Timaru-St. Andrew's branch of the Farmers' Union, when a proposal from the Dominion Executive was under consideration. "The Government is the biggest lender and the rate will never be reduced," was the opinion of another member.

Honey produced in New Zealand is rapidly becoming famous. The latest proof of this is forthcoming from as far away as Rotterdam, Holland, where New Zealand Imperial Bee honey is being advertised on the backs of tram tickets used in that city. Recently a resident of Wanganui received a letter from a friend in Rotterdam, enclosing one of these tickets and "drawing his attention to the advertisement, where amidst a maze of meaningless words to the average New Zalanders, appears "New Zealand Honing, Imperial Bee." In his letter, the correspondent goes on to say that in Holland it is cheaper to buy British goods than it is to buy Dutch, and that likewise in England it is cheaper to buy Dutch goods than English.

Assessments of tax on incomes for the year ended March 31, 1931, have been reaching local taxpayers during the past week, and it is no exaggeration to say that most of the recipients have been staggered by the increase in the amount demanded from them as compared with 1930. In view of the reduced earnings for the current year, it is certain that many taxpayers will find the demands difficult to meet.

Owing to the local squadron of the Legion of Frontiersmen carrying out a musketry practice on the Defence Club's rifle range, only a practice shcot was held during the week-end. The shoot carried out by the L.O.F. members proved very interesting, and a great degree of keenness was displayed by every man. The Defence Club will be making a start on the championship shoot next week-end, and some very good shooting should be the result.

Some of the unemployed men required spoon-feeding, said Cr. D. Brown at a meeting of the Inglewood County Council. He had actually offered a man who had been out of work for six months a day's work which would have necessitated travelling two miles each way. Before accepting it the man made it a condition that he had to be motored there in the morning and back at night, pointing out that as he had his best clothes on he did not like to ride a horse and, moreover, he wanted to get back quickly to attend some function in Inglewood in the evening.

Writing to a relative in Dunedin, a resident of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, expresses the opinion that the tide of adversity has turned, and that the world is on the up grade. At the time of writing (October 28) some tremendous steel orders had been booked in Pittsburgh, and furnaces which had been idle for over 12 months were being started that day. Several thousand men who had been working part time—many of them having been off for weeks—would go back to steady work. It was a glorious day for Pittsburgh.

When diving at the "Red Hut" Pool, near Lavington's, on Sunday, Mr. Jack Dinsdale, son of Mr. H. L. Dinsdale, of Te Kuiti, met with a rather bad accident. Mr. Dinsdale was with a swimming party at the pool, members of which jumped into the water in turn. Mr. Dinsdale was about to follow his companions, but instead of jumping into the water, changed his mind and half dived, being apparently unaware of the shallowness of the water and striking the top of his head on some object on the bottom. Mr. Dinsdale received a large gash on the top of the head a'nd was taken to a doctor, stitching being necessary. He is now making good progress towards recovery.

Inquiries made at the Hamilton office of the Labour Department last week show that there is a distinct disinclination on the part of unemployed single men to enter the camps provided for them. Only one application was received to invitations to join the single men at Ruawaro who are engaged on drainage work. There are at present 32 single men on the No. 5 scheme in Hamilton. It is possible that in the near future work under this scheme may be refused single men who decline to go into the camps.

"The tragedy of the teaching profession is that we are expected to turn out all pupils from the same old mould, and yet, thank goodness, some of them manage to turn out different," remarked the headmaster of the Berhampore School (Mr. B. Kean) when being farewelled on the eve of his transference to Miramar South. "We are expected," he said, "to set the same old proficiency examination, but parents should not be at all disappointed if their children do not pass this examination. There is no magic about it; it is just a foolish name for a very foolish examination."

"My old father shook me by the hand and said: 'Now I've paid your saloon, passage to New Zealand, and you can come home whe'n you've made your fortune!'" So said a Westmere dairy farmer at the calf-rearing demonstration at the school. As the speaker concluded he made for the door, the move prompting -the secretary of the school committee to ask whether he was "going home" now. "Yes, home to milk," said the farmer, intimating that he had been in New Zealand ever since his father's parting injunction had been given.

Thrift must begin with little sav- ! ings. An exemplification of the pro--1 verb was given at last week's meeting of the Board of Governors at the Stratford Technical High School by the chairman (Mr. H. Trimble). The discussion was on wages, and Mr. Trimble related a conversation he had once heard in a hay field in Taranaki. One lad remarked that he hoped to buy a farm some day, and his mate laughed at the idea. "When I came here," was the reply, "I had 3s. 6d. but now I've got £2O in the Savings Bank. I saved it out of my wages." Mr. W. J. Poison, M.P.: the right type of boy for New Zealand." Mr. E. S. Rutherford went one better. "I know a man who worked for wages on a farm until he was 28 years of age," he said. '-He was single and lived in a whare. It cost him only Bs. a week to live and he had saved £1800." A case was quoted of a farmer in a South Taranaki district who got the surprise of his life when he learned that a loan of £2OOO for him by his solicitor had come from his sharemilker-