COUNTRY NEWS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XVIII, Issue 5998, 7 February 1881, Page 3

COUNTRY NEWS.

WHATAWHATA.

Much sympathy is felt for Mr. Hindle, who has met with a serious accident by falling from his horse. ' The dog tax which is being collected in the district is intensely unpopular, it being a direct tax upon the settler, who is already over-burdened with taxes o£ one kiud and another, which, combined with the low prices of produce, makes it a hard matter for settlers to live.—[Own Correspondent, January 25.]

PAPAROA.

January is the month par exccllencc of annual meetings. We have had our share of these troublesome necessities. In the first place, the teachers of the Sunday-school held their yearly conclave on the 15th January. The attendance of teachers was good. Various reports—financial aud general —were submitted and approved, and votes of thanks accorded to the office-bearers of the past year for their good conduct and diligent attention to their duties. The management for the ensuing year were elected as follows : — Messrs. Trounson and G. Cliff; Secretary, Mr. Oliver G. Hames; Treasurer, Mr. J. R. Cliff.

Annual Householders' Meeting.—Pursuant to advertisement, the annual meeting of householders for the election of a school committee' took place on Monday last, January 24. Mr. G. Nield was voted to the chair. Mr. Hook, the secretary to the outgoing committee, read the balancesheet, and gave a brief report of the past year's doings, especially directing attention to the greatly, reduced capitation allowance. The balance-sheet was as follows :—Receipts : Balance in hand, £4 10s SJd; capitation allowance to 30th September, ISSO, £17 15s ; ordinary grant from Ist October, ISBO, £1 5s : total, £23 10s Sid. Expenditure : Cleaning school, &c., £5 ; repairs to buildings or furniture, £1 4s ; furniture, 17s; stationery and stamps, 3s 4d ; miscellaneous (fencing, &c.), £8 9s 7M : total expenditure, £15' 13s llid. Balance in hand, £7 16s 9d. Total, £23 10s SJd. Some discussion took place on the reduced average attendance of children. A number 'of the older scholars had removed from the district at the commencement of the past year, aud some of the little children whose names had been entered on the books lived so far away that regular attendance was scarcely impossible, especially in the winter. Referring to the balance-sheet, Mr. Skelton thought the Board of Education treated some of the country districts very badly. While they could build fine schools and handsome teachers' residences in some places, they were going to cut this committee off with only a sum of £5 a year with which to meet all the many calls enumerated on the form supplied by the Board for the balance-sheet. The report and balance-sheet were unanimously adopted. The following gentlemen were proposed to serve .on the committee for the coming yeai\ and, being the number required with none over, they were declared elected, viz., Messrs. Skelton, Hook, Trounson, G. Cliff, T. Nield, Slater, and Hobley. A vote of thanks to the chair closed the meeting.

Public Library.—The annual meeting of subscribers to the Public Library was helcl ou the evening of the 24th inst., Mr. Hook in the chair. The attendance was small. The Secretary, Mr. Luther flames, gave a verbal report of the past year's proceedings, from which the following facts appeared. The library had been incorporated under the Public Libraries Powers Act, at the commencement of the year, and had since been in receipt of the privileges consequent thereupon. Fifty-eight volumes, of a value of £11 Is 9d, had been added to the library during the year, making a total of 329 volumes. Of tlicoc, -00 Trolumco Wl l>oon- pv\roliaood ljy the committee, at a cost of £5 Is 3d ; 25 volumes, value £4 18s Cd, had been granted by the Board of Education ; and 13 volumes, value 21s 6d, had been donated by Mr. Ariell. In addition to these, 29 volumes had been loaned from the Mauncaturoto Library. Subscribers to the library, IS. The issue of books had been small and fluctuating ; only 370 books had been taken out during the year. The treasurer's statement was as follows :—lncome : Balance from last year, £2 17s Sid; subscriptions, £4 os; donations, £1 3s 6d ; sundries, Is ; total, £S 7s 2id. Expenditure: Books purchased, £6 2s 9d ; freights, Ss lOd; expenses re incorporation, 7s; stamps, stationery. &c., 3s Sd ; miscellaneous, 4s 9d ; eaish in hand, £1 Os 2id : total, £S 7s 2Ad. The balance-sheet was unanimously adopted. The following were elected a committee for the ensuing year : —Messrs. Hobley, Wilson, Cliff, Ariell, and L. Hames. Mr. Hobley was re-appointed librarian, and Mr. L. Hames secretary and treasurer. Mr. Slater was also appointed auditor. Annual Children's Treat.—New Year's Day seems to be a favourite time with the promoters of Sunday-schools in both town and country for the holding of the annual festival, or children's treat. Departing from the general custom, we chose the 17th inst. for our Sunday-school celebration, and an unfortunate choice it proved. A quiet drizzle fell through the day, only breaking a little at noon—long enough to entice the more courageous part of the population out, and then re-commencing. The annual report showed tlie affairs of the school to be generally prosperous. Two days later the day proved light and breezy, and all the children of the district, both old and young, gathered themselves together to enjoy the adjourned amusements. The place of rendezvous was the Fern Hill —so called. Everybody enjoyed themselves to the full. —[Own Correspondent.]

WHANGAREI.

On Wednesday evening, the Presbyterian clioir, assisted by several friends, gave an entertainment of sacred music on behalf of the funds of the Sabbath-school. It was in every respect a success, and the funds of the school will benefit to the extent of a little over £5. The choir have been requested to repeat the entertainment, on behalf of the Kaurihohori Sabbatli-school. Mr. H. H. Smith, of colonial oven notoriety, is here at present with an exhibition of dissolving views. On Wednesday evening next, the whole of the Sa.bbathscliool children will be treated to an exhibition gratis. — [Own Correspondent, January. 31.]

WAIPU.

The weather has been very fine for the last few days, enabling the settlers to get in their crops of oats and wheat. Mr. Donald Fraser has reaped two acres of splendid wheat. His crop of oats and potatoes would do credit to any farm, and shows what can be grown in the North when proper means are used. The holidays are over,' and the schools have recommenced. So many contracts have been taken for roads, &c., by the young men of Waipu, that the place seems quite deserted. Almost every youngster who can use a pick or handle a shovel has been engaged. The Public Works Department has made a stir in this part, at atiyrate. No caterpillars have been seen this year in the district. One or two diminutive crickets have been noticed. How different to former seasons, when large crops of oats were eomi pletely destroyed by them. The sparrows,

&e., have been destructive in some measure • but how about the absence of caterpillars ?— [Own Correspondent, January 26.] On Saturday evening last a very fair audience gathered in the Public Hall to hear a lecture by Mr. Alilerton, the subject being "The Condition of Wliangarei County, politically and otherwise, during the past five years; also its present state." On the motion of Mr. D. Jlunro, seconded by Mr. K. McDonald, Mr. H. Rowlands took the chair. Mr. Alderton, while dwelling on the different points of his lecture, received frequent applause. He referred fully to the part he had taken in obtaining the Kamo Railway, and recommended tliem to go in for a tramway to Wliangarei harbour. It was their best, their only outlet. They could get a cheap wharf at One Tree Point. He would back them. The Union Company would back them. He stated that it was a shame for a district containing 1200 people not having an outlet for its produce, and that the settlers should have to pay such heavy sums for cartage. That if a committee were formed to carry out the project it would be a success. That the amount paid for cartage to and from Marsden Point would pay interest on the money. Reference was made to opening the entrance, but met with 110 favour; whilst a motion, made by Mr. Munro, seconded by Captain Jacob, " That a committee be formed to ondeavourto obtain a tramway to the Point, "was unanimously carried with much applause. Mr. K. McLennan proposed, and Mr. Murdoch Fraser seconded, "That Captain Jacob, and Messrs. H. .Rowlands and Ruddell, with power to add to their number, be a committee to endeavour to get a tram." Carried. The following gentlemen were afterwards added to the com.nittee Messrs. M. Fraser, D. Munro, K. McLennan, and K. McDonald. A vote of thanks to the lecturcr was proposed by Mr. M. Fraser, seconded by Mr. K. McLennan. A vote of thanks to the chairman concluded the business. Mrs. JohnMcLeod, of Big Glen, died on Monday, after a short illness. The deceased lady was mucli esteemed, as was manifested by the large number attending the funeral on Tuesday last.—[Own Correspondent, February 2.]

WAIPU CENTRAL.

Ox the 25th inst., in the central school, the Rev. W. Mcßae delivered a very instructive and entertaining lecture, before a very full house, on the "Formation of Character." The rev. gentleman at the beginning explained that the subject he had chosen was too comprehensive to be treated exhaustively in one lecture. His treatment of several of the points touched on, therefore, would not be as explicit as he would wish. He appeared to agree with those who hold the opinion that people who are to become great in the world must be born with a certain form and volume of brain; that unless nature supplies that it is useless expecting great philosophers, great statesmen, great poets, great preachers, or great teachers ; but that, nevertheless, education and culture had much to do in the formation of what is good and excellent in character. Character, he thought, depended very much on both climate and marriage. Cold climates, he said, produced the more robust races of people, lience the more energetic, and energy he . thought was almost everything. In regard to the influence of marriage on character, he thought the question of marriage should receive more attention than was generally given to it. He strongly disapproved of near relations getting married, as it tended to deteriorate the character of future generations. Next following these was the influence of the mother and the home. He heard a great deal in these days of women's rights, but he thought that women should strive to instil good principles into the minds of their children, that they enjoyed now an immense power, having the moulding of the character of the future rulers of the world chiefly in their onn hands. The lecturer, at the conclusion, referred to what he called " the surrounding limuences," some of which. he thought were of a nature to most surely deteriorate the character of the young of the district. He very earnestly urged the literary association to raisea counter influence and he thought the Waipu Literary Association utterly unworthy of its name if it did riot create and foster those influences ; and so, if it would be more than a name, let it exert itself in the formation of character. The. lecturer on resuming his seat was loudly applauded.—'Mr. K. M. McLennan proposed a vote of thanks to the lecturer, which was passed by acclamation, as was also the votes to the singers and to Mr. H. Matthews, the chairman.—The lecture was given in aid of the Association's building fund. The amount taken was £*1 10s. Mr. H. Matthews will give another lecture for the same purpose on the 14th of February. Subject : " What I saw on the opening of one of the cave dwellings of the first inhabitants of Ireland."—[A Correspondent. ]

MANGOXUI

As showing the progress of the Oruru Valley, 011 Saturday last, Mr. Joseph Williams, of Pakaraka, took away 94 head of cattle from two farms, viz., from Messrs. Garton and Wilkinson. It speaks well for this place when two farms can fatten such a mob of cattle in the year, besides carrying nearly 2000 sheep.—[Own Correspondent, January 27.] On the arrival of the lona on Wednesday morning, about 1 o'clock, an accident occurred, which might have proved a serious one.' As the passengers were being landed, Miss IS*. Chapman fell off the wharf into the water. Captain Stephenson and Jones, one of the sailors, immediately jumped in and, rescued her, apparently nothing the worse for her immersion, though she appeared considerably shaken. On Wednesday, the 2nd, the annual excursion was given by the owners of the lona, to the inhabitants of Mangonui and surrounding districts. About one hundred availed themselves of having a sea outing. The lona east off from the wharf at nine o'clock, and with a good breeze crossed over Doubtless Bay to the Rangiawhia peninsula. The passengers were landed in boats. A game of cricket was played between the men of the lona and Mangonui, resulting in a tie, with two wickets to spare, for the lona people. Racing and jumping was indulged in, on the sandy beach. The steamer arrived safely at the wharf, about seven o'clock, when three cheers were heartily given for Captain Stephenson. During the return trip, a number assembled in the cabin, and drank the health of Captain Stephenson and owners of the lona. —[Own Correspondent, February 2.]