CENTRAL OTAGO.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20536, 11 October 1928, Page 5

CENTRAL OTAGO.

QUEENSTOWN NOTES.

(From Our Own Correspondent.! QUEENSTOWN, October 10. CRICKET. Last Wednesday the Cecil Peak cricket team commenced their annual round or matches with a game against Queenstown. However, heavy rain compelled stumps to be drawn shortly after play commenced. Next, day the team went to Lowburn, where they scored a victory against a home eleven. Hawea was visited next day, with a like result. The match against Wanaka on Saturday had to be abandoned on account of continuous rain. So the tour has been dogged by bad weather. On Wednesday evening the visitors were entertained at a dance in the Town Hall by the local club. TENNIS. The annual meeting of the Queenstown Tennis Club was held during the week. The report and balance sheet disclosed quite a satisfactory financial position, chough the membership has not been as strong as it might be. The fees paid by visitors for the use of the courts helped very considerably to keep the finances buoyant. On the other hand, very little was spent on repairs. An expense that will have to be faced in . the coming season is the erection of a pavilion of some kind, the one that has done duty for some years having now been demolished. As far as play was concerned, the club had no luck during the season, only one match played under the auspices of the Vincent Lawn Tennis Association having gone in its favour. The election of office-bearers resulted as follows: —President. Dr W. A. Anderson; vice-presidents—Messrs A. H. Cooke, J. P. M'Bride, and W. H. Berry; joint secretaries and treasurers. Misses L. Simpson and N. Davia; General Committee —Mesdames Mann and Overton, Messrs Overton and Stoop; Match and Handicap Committee —Misses L. Simpson, M. Davis, and Mr Stoop; Tea Committee —Mesdames Anderson, Mann, Overton, Misses E. Davis, B. Farrant, and E. Fraser. The opening day was arranged for October 17, and subscriptions were fixed at 10s for ladies and £1 for men; girls under 14, ss; boys under 14, 10s. The meeting was not in favour of affiliating this season with the Vincent Subassociation, but the final word on the subject was left to the president and secreIt was resolved that the Central Club, Invercargill, be invited to play a match at Queenstown on Labour Day. New members proposed were Misses M. Naesbitt, E. Fraser, Messrs F.- Enemy, and Syd. Stevens. ■ ... . The General Committee was instructed to get quotations for the erection of a new pavilion. GUN CLUB. A 10-aside clay pigeon shooting match was played during the week by teams representing the Gun Club and Cecil Peak. The former registered a win against the visitors by 16 to 13. Considering that the latter was composed mostly of tyros, they did well to score as they did. 1.0.0. F. The installation of officers of the Wafcatipu Lodge, N. 120, took place on Friday night, the ceremony being conducted by P.G. Bro. Wilkinson, grand secretary of the New Zealand Grand Lodge, and D.D.GJtf. Bro. Nehson, P.G. The following is the list of officers: —1.P.G., Bro. A. A. Burns; N.G., Bro. W. Kavanagh; N.G., Bro. J. Ryall; financial secretary, Bro. S. Gray; recording secretary, Bro. D. F. Macdonald; treasurer, Bro. H. Davies; conductor, Bro. W. Stevenson; warden, Bro. A. Scheit; chaplain, Bro. W. Miller; R.S.N.G., Bro. Nelson; L.S.N.G, Bro. Walsh; R.S.V.G., Bra. Munro; L:S.V.G., Bro. T. Hamilton; N.S.S., Bio. Mackie; L.S.S., Bro. F. Anderson: 1.G., Bro Davies; 0.G., Bro. D. F. Sutherland. At the conclusion of the ceremony the grand secretary gave a brief outline of

the progress of Oddfellowsbip in Central Otago and in the Dominion in general. CLIMATOLOGICAL STATION. The Borough Council recently approached the Meteorological Department with a view to its granting the establishment of a climatological station at Queenstown. It is felt that the records made—of the sunshine in particular—would be valuable from a tourist and health point of view, as Queenstown does enjoy its full share of sunshine and possibly more than that, pretty well all the year round. The various other records that would be made would also be of considerable value. A reply has now been received from Dr Kidson, director of the department, stating that, provided the council can see its way to conform to certain conditions, there would probably not be any difficulty in securing authority for the necessary expenditure on instruments, screen, etc., and the printing of the records. The chief conditions enumerated were: (1) That the council set aside for the purpose a suitable area in a permanent public reserve; (2) that the council enclose the site by means of a suitable fence so that the instruments will be protected fi’om interference and damage, the area of such site to be not, less than 40 feet by 50 feet; (3) that the council undertake to have the observations made regularly and continuously by a suitable person. The council has appointed the Mayor and Cr Anderson to confer with Captain Herbert (Government Forest Agent) and Mr H. 0. Barker (postmaster), regarding the project. The suggestion has been made that the park or public gardens will offer the most suitable site for the station. BOROUGH COUNCIL. The usual volume of business came before the monthly meeting of the Queenstown BoYpugh Council on Thursday even--ID%he Main Highways Board representative on the District Highways Council No. 16 (Mr F. S. Dyson) wrote stating that an authority had been issued for a subsidy of 30s for £1 for expenditure on the main highway running through the borough. The length of this is 70 chains, but it is not intended that the whole of that shall be put under repair this season. It was decided that the work should be proceeded with at once. The Valuation Department notified the council that it was intended to revise the values in the borough as standing in the books of the department at March 31 lasf The Mayor and Crs Rutherford and Gilkison were appointed a sub-committee to confer with the railway authorities regarding the projected change in the summer time table as it will affect the Dun-edin-Queenstowu, via Gore, service on Thursdays. . T It was resolved that the Lake County Council grader be engaged to finish up the grading of the streets, the first section of which was undertaken last spring. A small sub-committee was appointed to inspect the motorists’ camping ground and report on desirable improvements, such as the provision of cold showers and additional conveniences, etc. The necessary resolutions covering the bringing into force of building by-laws were passed, as several building permits applied for were referred to the chairman of works (Cr A. Scheib) to be dealt with. The deputy chief inspector of explosives advised that the appointment of Mr H. J. Robins as dangerous goods inspector was satisfactory to his department. The Minister of Lands advised that the council’s application to have the peninsula vested in the borough for afforestation purposes had been referred to the Tourist Department, as it was the controlling authority. R. S. Cree Brown, consulting engineer, Dunedin, advised that he was now busy preparing plans and specifications for the proposed Brewery Creek scheme for augmenting the supply of water to the borough, and that as soon as they were completed the council would be in a position to approach the Loans Board in regard to the money required to be raised for carrying out the work. GENERAL. Certain mining interests in the Upper Shotover have been purchased by Messrs Bates and Richardson, of Oamaru. The full particulars of what these are have not yet been disclosed. The bridge across Wye Creek, on the new Queenstown-Kingston road, has just been completed, so that traffic may now proceed to a point some three or four miles past this creek, in which direction the men have been working. There are about 80 at present employed on the road. _ . , . The opening of the rifle shooting season on the Skipper’s Range, which has been arranged for this wemc, has had to be postponed on account of the slip on the main road in that locality. The strange phenomenon in the northern sky that is being recorded in other parts of the island was also evident here on Saturday afternoon. It was feared the heavy copper-coloured pall would break in a terrific storm of thunder and lightning, but happily we were spared that experience. The only sequel to the occurrence was the rusty deposit with which everything was covered next morning. Housewives have been finding that the discolouration which resulted in clothes hanging on the lines cannot be got rid of, even when the garments are boiled. The deposit would seem to have had some chemical quality, for it has been noticed that it has taken the surface off paint that was newly laid on, necessitating the work being done over again. PERSONAL. Mr W. O’Malley, of the railways staff at Port Chalmers, who has just been across to Australia for the Eucharistic Congress, has been visiting Queenstown this week. Mr O’Malley was formerly chief clerk in the local railway office. Mr and Mrs J. W. Smith, of Invercargill, and their family, are holidaying in Queenstown. Mr and Mrs Critichfield are visiting their home town, Invercargill, at the present time. Mr James McDonald, of Dunedin, and former!}’ of Cromwell, who has purchased Mr J. W. Miller’s farm property at Wharehuanui, has now arrived in the district. Mr J. Hatton, who is attached to the Postal Department at Wellington, spent last week in Queenstown revisiting the scenes of his youth after an absence of 24 years. Mrs H. Parata and Mrs A. H. Cooke are both visiting Dunedin at the present time.