COUNTRY NEWS.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXV, Issue 16582, 20 June 1914, Page 2

COUNTRY NEWS.

, Slr FARM HANDS AND EMPLOYERS.. Jv . - lG MARLBOROUGH WORKERS! DEMANDS. fO? The demands drawn up by the DlarlFarm and Station Employees’ 3 Industrial Union of Workers, which i" will be presented to tho Marlborough ‘' Sheep-owners’ Industrial Union of Employers at an early, date, will be of interest to Canterbury farmers and farm j ".workers. They are as follow : ;!•! The agreement will cover all general farm hands, including ploughmen, milk"*ers, rouseabouts, fencers, grooms, rabbit poisoners, waggoners, blacksmiths, .and station carpenters. .I;' The wages proposed are as foi-l-low Head ploughmen, 45s per week ;', other ploughmen, 40s per week and found. Where any ploughman is workhit ing more than four horses, he shall reibceive 2s 6d, per week for each .horse ’* over four. Ploughmen’s time taken goping to and from work shall be counted, ' one way. Milkers, or men who work ,4horses between milking times, 40s per a’iweek and found; fencers, 50s per week •and found; rouseabouts, 37s 6d per "pweek and found; grooms, 37s 6d per J “week and found; rabbit poisoners, 37s ■6d and found per week of forty-eight t ; D liours; waggoners, 60s per week arid * dound; blacksmiths, 60s per week and it found; station carpenters, local rates, •Ms 4Jd per' hour,; station gardeners, £3 ..T-and £2 and found. “7 The hours proposed are as follows: [Ploughmen, from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m., * with the following time off for meals: Breakfast, 7 a.m. to 7.30 a.m.; dinner, ■'-• one clear hour; tea, between the hours ’ ’of 5.30 and 6 p.m. Ploughmen shall 7 'not be compelled to do any work after p.m. or before 7.30 a.m., except the ‘ attention to the horses workj.iing.. Milkers shall not work more than Sfifiine hours per day, to be arranged to suit employers, except on Sundays, “when no work shall bo done except that ‘jVnecessary for carrying on tho industry; pother workers (rouseabouts, fencers, etc.), shall work forty-eight hours per tsCweok. The following clause deals with wages .Fund hours during harvest season:—Men ’4 employed driving reapers and binders or .« other harvest machinery to work from 0i.7 a.m. to 6 p.m., with the following ai?time off for meals: 6.30 till 7 a.m.; tone clear hour for dinner; two lunches ’..of half-hoin- each; tea between the F: hours of 6 p.m. and 7 p.m., Saturday p.m. Other harvest employees, in-w-cluding stackers, forkers, stookers, • assistants, to work from 7 j°'a.m. till 6 p.m., with the following :I *timo off for meals: Half-hour between \J starting time and dinner and tea for jg lunch; one clear hour for dinner; tea r ! between .6 p.m. and 7 p.m., Saturday 4 p.m. Reaper and binder drivers to receive £3 10s per week and found, or Is 3d per hour and found, for all time • worked from 7 a.m. till 6 p.m., except lyrical times; carters or drivers of other harvest machinery, £3 5s per week and F found; stookers, forkers, stackers’ assistants, £3 ss.per week and found; £3 10s per week and found, or if employed by the hour, Is 6d per .hour and found. Overtime may be ““ worked at the rate of time and a quar~ter for the first two liouts or part of that time; time and a half for all time worked over two hours and double time for Sundays. „ , . Mamed couples shall be supplied with house and fuel and double rations ofree, and no married man shall receive less wages than those stipulated above for the various classes of work lie may :~'be engaged to perform, and if his wife is engaged as cook she shall not rew"eeive less than the minimum fixed for •ooks. Cooks whose principal time is

taken up in cooking for and. attending on employees on station or farm, shall receive not less than,£3 per week and found for any number of men up to ten'; 2s additional per man for every man over * ten; and shall have one week’s holiday'every six months, or by arrangement,, but in no case shall tho number of holiday’s, be less than fourteen in each year. . ' "/••'••• ’ As regards holidays', a half-holiday on Saturday in eaCli week is proposed, but men looking after horses and cows must arrange with the employer to have the animals upder their charge fed and otherwise attended to. The statutory holidays, and fourteen days’ annual holiday are also proposed. The hours of Yvork proposed for day labourers shall'be from 7.30 a.m. till 5 p.m. on five days of the week, with one hour for dinner, and from .7,30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays. The minimum rate of wage shall he Is 3d per hf-rr and found, except when working in wet places, when the employer shall supply gum boots, or pay one shilling per day extra. All time worked beyond the hours mentioned shall bo paid tor at the rate of time and a. quarter for the first two hours, and time and a half thereafter. All tools , shall be supplied by the employer free of charge. Rations shall be provided by the employer, and where any employee has to cook his own food in camps or other places, an allowance of 5s per wek extra must' be added to his wages. Employers shall be' at liberty, to employ youths above the statutory' school age .and up to the age of eighteen years for not more than eight hour§ on any one day. The minimum wages for yovfths shall be as follows:—Sixteen years, 17s ■ fid per week, and.2s 6d per -week increase every twelve months until the “youth is twenty years'of age. Tn all cases the youths must be found in board and ■lodging. , KAIAPOI. The official opening of the handsome new Methodist parsonage;: at Kaiapoi, an eight-roomed ’ brick building, took place on Thursday afternoon. Owing to continuous rain, the attendance was not large..- The proceedings were opened by tire architect, Mr F. J. Garnett, presenting a golden key to Mr G. H. Blackwell, chairman of the Building Committee, with which to perform the opening ceremony. Mr Blackwell announced, the building open, and invited those present to inspect the interior, After the opening, afternoon tea was served in the Sunday'school room; Mr J. H. Blackwell,; secretary' of the Building Committee, read a statement of the financial' position; The receipts were Donations received £369 Is, donations promised £49 6s. bazaar £2OO 5s 9d, concerts, etc., £B4, sale of old parsonage £4O, sundries £2 15s; total £745 7s 9d. Expenses—Main contract £9BO, extras £47 17s Od, furnshing £IOO, sundries £l7 10s: total £1145 7s 9d; debit balance, £4OO. He thought the result was most satisfactory. The Synod Building and Loan Fund Committee liad agreed to lend the £4OO owing when funds were available, but he hoped that continued, efforts would be made so that the loan would not be required. The Rev 1 Mitchell, till recently minister at Kaiapoi, tendered his hearty congratulations on the success of the circuit’s effort, to which a big impetus had been given by the chairman’s gift of £IOO. He hoped the officers and congregation would go forward and provide a brick and stone church as well. The Rev A. Laishley (Presbyterian minister). Captain Hewson (Salvation Army); Pastor Jones (Baptist) and the Rev J. R. Clarke (Woodend Methodist Church) also spoke. The Rev P. W. Fairclough, who is now ministering at Kainnoi for the third term, made humorous references to the inadequacy of the old parsonage, and expressed

thanks for Mrs Fairelougli and himself for tho provision of the very handsome and complete homo provided for them, which he hoped would stand for a century. TUAHIWI. Several meetings have been held by tho Natives lately to consider various matters for the general improvement Of the village. The steps taken some time ago to put the, Native cemeteries of the Hiwi and To Ahuriri in order are likely to hear fruit when the present neglected “Wahi tapu ” will be cleaned up and laid out in something like modern order. Several meetings also have l>een held to discuss what should bo done with the money which the Natives expect to get as their share of certain sums due the Natives of the South Island. Several proposals were made. One was to build a more up-to-date and commodious Runanga Hall, another to purchase a section as a recreation ground, and another to furnish the local primary school with swimming baths. The last proposition, though by far the most useful and healthful, was not favoured, and most seemed in favour of procuring a sports ground. Nothing definite, however, has been done in tho matter. Ladies’ meetings have been held to discuss ways and means of providing tlie hall with a complete set of dishes and cooking utensils. The former have been ordered from England: they are to have the name ‘ Tualiiwi ” burned in. It is proposed to hold fortnightly programme euchre parties and monthly socials to raise the necessary funds, j RANGIORA. The anniversary of tho death of Mr T. E. Taylor is to be observed at Rangiora by holding an in memoriam service at the Institute Hall to-morrow afternoon. Mr J. M’Combs, M.P., will give an address. ASHBURTON. The employees of the Ashburton branch of the Now Zealand Farmers’ Co-operative Association, Limited, held their fifth annual dance in the Theatre Royal, Ashburton, on Tlnirsda.y evening. The building was decorated with evergreens and flags, and the stage was set out to represent a drawing-room. Despite the bad weather there were between eighty and ninety couples present; and the music was supplied by Terris’s Band. Messrs R. Elliott, E. Scales and F. Bfophy officiated as DLC.’s. The members of tho committee were:—Messrs R. Marsden, R. ■ Hodgson, R. Elliott and J. Brown (secretary). A committee meeting of the Aslibur-, ton Hakatero Club was held on Thursday evening, when Mr 11. R. C. Di’Elrea presided. The monthly statement was received and correspondence dealt with. Eight new members were elected, and accounts amounting to £2B 16s Id were passed for payment. • A meeting was held in St Andrew’s Hall,. Ashburton, on Thursday evening for the purpose of forming a Literary and Debating Society in connection with the Presbyterian Church. The Rev G. Miller presided. A short musical programme was submitted, and there was also a “question box.” Officers for the ensuing year were elected as follows:—President, Rev G. Miller; vice-presidents, Messrs IV. M’Allister and P. L. Orr; secretary and treasurer, Miss I. Bruce; committee, . Miss J. Lane and Messrs T. E. Watt and Jamieson. It was decided that the Society should meet fortnightly. At the Ashbfirton Juvenile Court yesterday, before Mr V'. G. Day, S.M., two local youths were charged with breaking, entering and stealing from the Ashburton branch of tho New Zea-

land Farmers’ Co-operative Association Stores. They pleaded guilty, and after admonishing the boys the Magistrate adjourned tho cases for three months,* stating that if they behaved themselves in the interval the cases would be dismissed. DUNSANDEL. The Dunsandol Pigeon Club held a live bird match on Thursday. There was a. good attendance, and til© match was well contested. In the £1 sweepstake Messrs A. H. Kimber, F. Framptom R. Claydon, F. Claydon and John Burgess each shot the possible, shooting nine birds, and divided the prize money. In the 10s sweepstake Messrs C. E. Brown, A. H. Kimber, E. 11. Rowell, F. Lemon. R. Claydon, F. Claydon, 13. Washbourne and James Burgess divided the money. HORORATA. A meeting was held at Hororata on Thursday to consider the best site on which to build a new school in place of tho one burnt down three months ago. Dir John Keltic, chairman of the School Committee; presided; and Messrs T. W. Adams (chairman of the Education Board), G. Rennie, J. Studliolme and H. Boyd, members of the Board, were also present. Messrs J. Hart, J. Wilson, T. Pearson and J. Hockeridge spoke in favour of building the school on the old site, Messrs 11. Oliver, Frank Crawford, H. Thorne and J. M’Hugh wished to have a central school near the township, and Messrs King and Poch urged that it should be built on' the Haldon Estate. The members of the Education Board are in favour of a school near the township, and it will most likely be built there, where it will be most central for all. At the conclusion of the meeting, on the motion of Dir J. D. Hall, a hearty vote of thanks was passed to the members of the Board and others for their attendance. WAIMATE. As several persons have narrowly escaped injury from rifle shots at Lake Wainono recently, it lias been decided to prosecute. any persons using rifles there in‘the future. The Waimate Brass Band will play a sacred programme at Waihao Downs on Sunday afternoon in Mr Richards’s grounds, kindly placed at the musicians’ disposal for the purpose. BALCAIRN. The second series of games of the Balcairn progressive euchre tournament were played on Wednesday night. There was a fair attendance of residents and visitors from the surrounding districts. In the ladies’ section Miss Hanna (Soften) won the first prizo and Mrs John E. Ashby (Balcairn) the second prize. In the men’s section Dir Parkinson (Saltwater Creek) was first and Mr A. Janies (Balcairn) second. At the end of the match the ladies served refreshments. The chairman, Dir C. Fitzpatrick, jun-, thanked the ladies and all nresent for their attendance and for making the evening such a success. EAST OXFORD. The annual Oxford ploughing match and dog trials will be held at Dir A. Baxter’s Ashley Gorge Farm, East Oxford, on Wednesday, July 1. Entries will close on Saturday, June 27. KAIAPOI. At the invitation of the Kasapoi branch of the Farmers’ Union, Mr H. S. Kyle, of Dlelbourne, last evening addressed a meeting of the Union on the diseases of sheep and cattle. About forty farmers were present. Dir Kyle spoke for over two hours on the subject, dealing exhaustively with tuberculosis,

pleuropneumonia, hydatids and other diseases and their prevention and treatment. He was accorded a hearty vote of thanks. Mr H. M’lntosh, president, announced the intention of the branch to arrange for further lectures, and invited suggestions from members. AKAROA. The Akaroa Borough Council met on Wednesday; present—Councillors Fvfe, Lewitt, Walker, Vangioni, Williams, Cantrell, Munro and Leete. In the absence of the Mayor Councillor Lewitt was voted to the chair. The Volunteer Fire Brigade wrote applying for 300 additional feet of hose until couplings. The application was granted. The Works Committee’s recommendation that Smith Street should bo opened up and graded was approved. The Lighting Committeo in its report recommended that a second cable from the powerhouse to Jolio Street should be installed to carry the greatly increased load. The report was adopted and it was decideu to call tenders for the work. The financial statement showed the receipts since last meeting to have been £147 . a «d. Accounts passed for payment totalled £4lB 14s lOd. It was resolved to procure two truckloads of drain pipes foi draining the recreation ground, and also a supply of pipes for stock. It was resolved that Arbor Day should be celebrated on Thursday, July 2, and arrangements for tree-planting were left in the hands of the Reserves Committee. The estimates of receipts and expenditure for the'year were approved after discussion, the total receipts being upwards of £2640. Isotico of motion was given that at a special meetring held on July 1 a general rate of lid in the £ capital valuation should bo 'levied on all properties in the borough. WOODEND. There was a large attendance at the Woodend Methodist. Schoolroom on Tuesday evening, when a complimentary social evening was tendered as a farewell to Mr and Mrs Marshall, who leave for Horrelville, and to Mr and Mrs Sills, who leave for Taranaki. Eulogistic speeches were made during the. evening by the Rev J. R. Clark and Messrs Barnett, Catchpole and Pateman, who referred to the many good qualities of the guests and wished them every prosperity in their new homes. On behalf of the congregation Miss Swift presented Mrs Sills with a Kaiapoi rug, and Mr Marshall was handed a similar gift by the chairman. Musical and elocutionary items were given by Misses Bowie, Cossgrove and Pateman and Mesdames Judson, Archer and Moore, and several rounds were sung by a party of ladies.