COUNTRY NEWS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LII, Issue 15930, 29 May 1915, Page 10

COUNTRY NEWS.

[FROM Oim OWN CORRESPONDENTS.] . TAURANGA. HOSPITAL SHIP FUND. 'As a result of a meeting held to assist in. equipping the hospital ship the sum'of about £130 had been contributed up to Thursday afternoon. The Mayor, Mr. C. E. Macmillan, explained at a meeting that what was required were immediate caste contributions and lata gifts of material and equipment. Captain Bucknill appealed to the people present to give as generous) of money and material as Tauranga had, given men. If every town in New Zealand had sent away the same proportion} of men for its size as Tauranga had done New Zealand would now have at least 40,000 men at the front. Mrs. Humphreys has presented an antique gold brooch, which will be sold by auction, the proceeds to go towards the fund. Other interesting donations are promised, and the town is to be canvassed by a large body of lady collectors. There has during the past week been increased activity in the registration of recruits, and about a dozen men have left for Trentbam.

OTOROHANGA. HOSPITAL SHIP FUND. The meeting called by the Town Council to consider ways and: means of raising funds for the hospital ship was well attended, Mr. John Ormsby being in tin chair.' It was stated that the Hamilton; Patriotic Committee had given effect to Otorohanga's suggestion that the district's patriotic contributions should go to the Hospital Ship Fund. The chairman said three ladies—Mesdames Pettit, Outfield, and Foster—bad already collected over £60 for this fund. He invited suggestions as to the manner of raising money. Mr. W.' J Worthington moved that an entertainment similar to that held at the opening of the ball be arranged. This was carried. Ladies will be invited to assist, also to make sheets, etc. A committee comprising the following was elected:— Miller, Worthington, Taylor, H. Clarke, Hendry, Vomer, Benner, J. A. and J. Ormsby, Walshe, Arrowsmith, H. Osmond, 0. Phillips, with F. O. Phillips as secretary. The advisability of holding a sports tournament to assist the object was left to the decision of a meeting of athletic bodies. The Town Council was authorised to take charge of and control all moneys received. The marriage of Mr. Wm. Henderson; of Mangaorongo, Otorohanga, to Miss Gwen. Nichol, of Otorohanga, was cele- 1 brated at the Anglican Church, Onehunga.' The officiating minister was Canon Hazel dean. On returning to take up their residence on Mr. Henderson's property the happy couple were the recipients of* the good wishes of their many Otorohanga l friends. Nows of the death of Captain Biuck at the Dardanelles was received with great regret here, where he is well known. The amount cleared for the building fund! by the recent Roman bazaar is expected to be about £100. The' stallholders were Produce, Mesdames Rhodes and Carlyle; refreshments, Mesdames Tay-~ lor and Heaps; jumble, Mesdames Walker and O'Brien; cushions and pictures, Mrs. O'Sullivan and Misses Quin; sweets, Miss Casey; fancy stall and fishpond, Mrs. Worthington and Miss Naughton; shooting gallery, Mr. C. R. Taylor. The secretary, Mrs. H. Forster, was also indebted for valuable assistance to Misses Cardon; K. Worthington, B. Johnson, W. Clarke, Mrs. Moore, Messrs. F. Vemer, W. Worthington, McLean, Rhodes, Hendry, J. A. Ormsby, and others. The competitions, for which prizes were offered, were keenly contested. The door prize was won by Miss M. Worthington, and a' sheep went to Miss M. Benner. A musical programme was contributed to by Misses ' Benner, Casey, McGittegari, and Mrs. Quia, accompaniments heing played by Misses E. Mooney and J. Claridge. '•>-.,

' MANUEEWA.-,' - . MUSICAL SOCIETY. The Musical -Society gave its opening concert on Wednesday evening. Bight from the National .Anthem to the close of the concert keen interest was displayed in every item. The society's members, some 39, under their conductor, Mr. H. V. Burton, rendered six part songs, the items "Anchored" and "Sweet and Low" being particularly fine. Other performers were :— Miss Jessie Bartlett, who sang "The Lavender Room" and "The Bird and the Rose," and as an encoro ''An Enlisting Song." . This latter was a splendid rendering of a patriotic song. Miss Warner sang a ragtime song and was thrice. recalled; Mr. Tom.Harris gave' recitals on several patriotic subjects that particularly pleased the audience. The Rev.. Wood, president A /the society, announced that;the.ladles of the district would meet as at working bee for the hospital ship. • The Road Board is convening a meeting for the same purpose. Manurewa raised considerably over £100 for the Belgian Belief Fund at one gathering. >'•/ On the occasion .of" the opening .the Papatoetoe post oface the Prime Minister was interviewed relative to a better train service. It was shown that, despite the progress of the district, there was a better service twelve months ago.-' He promised' Ito interview the Minister for Railways on the subject. The improvements to the railway line' :in the vicinity of the station, and also building operations in various parts of the district, speak progress despite tfi*e war. Mr. Le Petit,, of Birkenhead, has purchased a farm on-tbe Weymouth Road. It is the intention of the family to take up their residence here. "

CAMBRIDGE. ROAD BOARD. At the first meeting of the newly-elected Cambridgo Road Board Mr. George Booth was re-elected chairman and Mr. E". Veale secretary and' treasurer. The treasurer, read the balance-sheet for' the past financial year. The receipts totalled £1140.' After providing for every expenditure,' there remained a credit balance vof £168.' A general rate of a half-penny in the £ was struck for the ensuing year. It was decided to. apply to the Government for a) grant of £300 for the French Pass Road.' The Cambridge Co-operative Dairy Com pany's request for gravel supplies from the board's pit on the Hamilton -Road was agroed to. It was agreed to proceed at) once with the work of forming the devia-< tion at McCann's Hill. " , Thirty-four applications were received by the Cambridge Co-operative Dairy. Company for the position of head creamery manager, rendered vacant by the resignation of Mr. Alex. Beange. Mr. !p. ft H. l Petersen, at present manager of a' factory" near Patea, was appointed. The Cambridge company has completed arrangements for the erection of a cheese-' making station at each of its creameries.

A concert organised by Mr. and v Mrs.> (Jyril Towsey, of Hamilton, was given ire the Town Hall. The excellence of the musical programme and the object—that of raising funds for the Navy Leagueaccounted for the large attendance. The net result will bo over £20. The contributors to the programme were:—Mr and Mrs. Towsey, Mrs. H'. C. Ross, Miss Kathleen Hally, Messrs. E. N. Wright and A. Joll. The Mayor (Mr. M. Wells)' thanked tho performers for their kindness. The annual meeting of the local branch of the New Zealand Farmers' Union wag presided over by Mr. J. S. Fisher. The secretary Mr. E. Veale, submitted th<* balance-sheet, showing a credit of £16 5s sd. The secretary remarked that of 1501 members only £8 had'paid their subscriptions. The election of officers resulted as under:—President, Mr. W. J. Andrews-vice-president, Mr. A. A. Potts; auditor Mr. F. J. Brooks; secretary and treasurer Mr. E. Veale; committee, Messrs. H w' Mackereth (Gricedale), F. Pembertoii ( A K^ a ? l ; 9- cHand (Moftavale), A.N.Macky (Pukerunu), H.Tyler (Brunt-

LjIJIIIJMIIMfcUWMIMM'W"'" ■»■ 1 Mm»,tmtmmmm* ;. :V= wood), J.' Cowling (Whitehall), R. Sew* -;;•(.,- combe (Pukeroro), J. W. Garland (Fen* • court), J. M. Scott (Maungatautari), J. S. 1 .'1 j Fisher (Monavale), E. H. Hammond l .f;v/ (Tamahere), R. Fisher' : (Pukcrimu), !).• >J|f|f Caley (Kaipaki), and H. C. Bertieserf (Roto-o-rangi). Mr. Pemberton considered' there was room for improvement in profit wm cial affairs, instancing the fact that many l ' %£ recommendations from list years confer* J'M ence had not since been heard of. The l '*t| president said the main cause of trouble' "A appeared to be the inaction of tb« proving '.W cial executive regarding the Graziers' As-" ■ „$M scciation. Members agreed that when the >| freezing works were established in the" 1 Waikato the graziers would then, and not ~( till then, get a fair hearing. At present! -'■'.< they were being seriously hampered owing; *<s to lack of freezing space, and stock was | deteriorating in condition as a consequence*

CLEVEDON. AGRICULTURAL' INSTRUCTION'. A series of lectures is being given by Mr. A. V. Donnan, agricultural instructor, in the Public Hall. The subjects which have been already discussed are "ArtifiejaJ manures and fertilisers of all kinds, their • various uses, proper methods of mixing same, and correct application to different kinds of soil;" "Cattle, improving the breed of stock and their general treatment." Much valuable instruction and advico on these matters has been given. The Bible in Stato Schools Sewing League met on Tuesday. Miss Thorp presiding. A very large'quantity of useful clothing was received and prepared for* Sister Esther in Auckland for general distribution there as most required. A letter of commendation has been eceived from tho Royal Humane Society and presented 10 Mr. Leslie H. Brown-) for his promptitude and pluck in rescuing a visitor in danger of drowning at the picnic at' Cowos' Bay, Waiheke, on January 6. Mr. J. McCrystal has disposed' of his farm, ou the Clevedoa-Maractai Road to Mr. Gibson, of Manawatu. The family have now left the district, from which theyi carry general good wishes, having ranked amongst tho earliest pioneers of ever 50 years ago. Fruit harvesting is continuously and steadily going on in ail the largest local orchards, where tfio crops this year hire 1 been fully up to previous standards, despite the unusual season. Large consignments of apples and a few late pears are transhipped bi-weekly for the local markets., The latest varieties of apples will bl gathered from now on until early in Jur.o and placed in cool storage for future! markets and winter use.

The Basketball Club had an excellent meeting on Saturday in lovely weather.! The Blues won the first round and the Leds the second.

The fine spell of weather seems broken, and boisterous wirds, with light showers and considerable mistiness, prevail.

DARGAVILLE.

LEADERS IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT.

[0 Enlarged framed photographs of paati . [0 chairmen of the Hobson County Council ' ? ai now adorn the county chambers, which '.V f . are considered to be amongst the most up* , J t to-date of their kind in the Dominion AI 'v 4 't record tablet containing the names of past if if . chairmen and their periods of office convey v i a 'historical summary of northern local '*% s government.. The, list includes the names , of Messrs. D.Balderston, W. W. Ariel], s P. W. Matthews, Hugh J. Coutte, H. T« W •r Smith, W. M. Woodhead, A. E. Harding} y r W.A. Spiers, E. Harding, T. Bassetti T.|. 'p% . Webb, F. J, Dargaville, H. J. Slade, and | s V. Trounson. The names of the first tiro' ; are _perhaps not familiar to the present a ,: | _ Wairoa generation, but they were proniii. „ nent sett-tern of Otamatea when that dis-t vf? I trict was incorporated in Hobson County. • *$f. , A matter of importance which claimed! , attention at the annual 'meeting of the! . Kaipara Telephone Club was the pro-. '%§ . .pool to "link up the Wairoa system). , with that of' Otamatea, as only soma - two and a-half miles separate tha/VM r two sections. It was stated that the Mi t connection would benefit 200 .residents iri > 5 Otamatea, (and the executive of the cluW 'V ( is now endeavouring to meet the wishes of " v . Eastern Kaipara. residents. ' r> X • ? The population of.' Mangawhare, the ■ j suburban area of Dargaville, is steadily increasing, and residents are now asking! for a State school to ,be established in theiif iS locality to accommodate 52 children. - > A further petition to the Government praying that, the proposed State sawmill bd established in Dargaville is being circm ; la ted by the Kaipara Chamber' of Com-' l?r?l » men», and ia" being largely signed. ! ' i. The Legion' of Frontiersmen made a fin<| '*■ '•)» i show ,on Sunday last as they marched!; : I® i through the town- en v route for the ocean! • beach. . Captain Hemphill was in charge i. of 45 men, who were put through; * ; manoeuvres -by Captain-Instructor 74 "Xim • Blanc. . . ' > - » , The ; funeral of Mr. Hugh Hodges, son' | § 1 of Mr. , F. L. Hodges, licensee of thef ■ ; Northern Wairoa Hotel, was largely at* •. tended. 3 -" The deceased met his death bjifKl ! accidental ' drowning. jp§| v ' " y ~ * - ROTORUA'. §1 i 1 > ' '' _ L • -. j' * SOCKS FOR SOLDIERS. ■.'The "sock' afternoon" promoted by theflill ladies of the War Distress Relief Guilcfffiil resulted in 395 pairs 'of socks being addei&Sf to the collection of those articles made by the guild, making the total -in hand orefMM 500 pairs. It has been decided to send 3OOM#S pairs to the Sew Zealand troops at thd Dardanelles and 225 pairs to the Maoris at)'> ■ Malta. The socks are to be sent through' the post, each parcel stamped with thd words, "Gift from the ladies of Rotorua.'' > The guild decided.that hand-knitted, socks! should be reserved for use in the hospital# glftl and that some pairs of fine texture, umuit-k- ~r able for use in the field, should be senfl«|t|§j to the Belgians. .. The members arranged! to hold a " hospital ship afternoon' .* shortly, when each guest will be expected I J ! V to bring some article likely to be u'sful irj M connection with the work of the ship. ''s'M The committee of the Rotorna Belgian! Relief Fund met last Tuesday night, when it was' reported that the Bank of New Zealand had,undertaken to open an account for : the fund free of charge. A cheque foil ' £13 4s 6d was received from Mr. G. Mc- "M Dowell as the proceeds of sundry gifts to the fund sold -by auction. It was decidecf that, owing to the appeal from the Cover-' -Hm nor for funds to equip a hospital ship, tha committee should take no active measures . • - ( at present to rtise money for the Belgian! -jt is Fund. ■ ° ~0% An ordination service was held in the! i|i a Maori Mission Church at Ohinemutu, the# - * Rev. Eruini Ereatara, who is to act as ' Maori curate at Rotorua and Galatea,' SSjjsl being admitted to the priesthood. Tiiero was a large congregation, including manjtEuropean visitors. The service was con* '• ducted by the -Anglican Bishop of Waiapu, who was assisted bv the Revs. F. A:Bennett, R. Wikinwbj, and W. Id ;;|| Waaka. The sermon was preached bji, Mr. Bennett. After the service the* bishop and other guests were entertained' .-few at luncheon in the wharo kai (dining hall), .. and his lordship then left by motor-cai' zjos for Napier, via Taupo. '-0 A highly-successful patriotic "rally"' jV'rl was held by the Rotorua boy and girl' ';ffS scouts in the King's Theatre. The build-' 'IJS| ing was crowded, and a .programme of ;J|fi patriotic songs, recitation?, tableaux, and' "|fj camp scenes was given, to the evident -Si|| satisfaction of the audience, under the direction of Captain Prictor, district commissioner, the sroutmistress, Miss Young-, and Scoutmaster T. C. Hawkins. It had been intended that the proceeds should ':H aevoted to the Belgian Relief Fluid, but' v&S the audience, on a suggestion that they* 01| should .be diverted to the Hospital Ship Fund, unanimously agreed. It is expected' that the net proceeds will bo about £40. A meeting of subscribers to the Seddon?" Wm memorial clock fund was held, in the Vie-" .'" t' toria Institute, the Rev. F. A. Bennett, fs. chairman of the committee, presiding* £•'«; It was reported that, after paying alt ex j penses in connection with the clock, now J, §| erected in ,tho tower of the new post) v ;|l office, there was a balance of £32 6s Id J;4li in hand, and it was decided to grant' £15 to the Hospital Ship Fund and £151 to the Belgian Relief Fund, to apply tir the committee of the Patriotic Fund for* a subsidy of; 10s in the £ on the latter 'l&S sum, in accordance with* the motion! '=fS| passed _by the subscribers 'to the Patriotic : Fund to subsidise donations to .' % the Bplgiai Fluid. ; The small balance left! S is to bo used for various minor expenses, V-■ V- :ksilS