COUNTRY NEWS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22709, 23 October 1935, Page 12

COUNTRY NEWS

KUROW NOTES Valedictory There was a large gathering at Kurow on Friday evening, when the Rev. A. H. and Mrs Nordmeyer were entertained at a farewell sociai. The Rev. J. T. V. Steele, of Duntroon, who occupied the chair, said thai he believed Mr Nordmeyer was resigning the charge because he honestly thought he could give better service to his fellow men in other ways. The Rev. S. D. Baird, moderator of the presbytery, spoke of the esteem in which Mrs Nordmeyer was held by the ministers who had been associated with him. He had been a member of the presbytery for 10 years and was admired for his clarity of thought and expression. The Rev. H. T. Blair, in the course of his remarks, expressed sympathy with the congregation which was losing Mr Nordmeyer's services as minister after a long period. The Rev. D. Rennie, of Herbert, Mr A. M'lnnes-, on behalf of the church Management Committee, and the Rev. J. Anderson also made complimentary references to Mr Nordmeyer's services. Mr H. M'Gregor then presented Mr and Mrs Nordmeyer with a silver tea service, and Mr J. L. M'Phail presented them with a cheque and with a gold bangle tor their little daughter. In reply, Mr Nordmeyer said it had required considerable thought before he decided to leave the calm security of the church to enter the bustle of politics, but he believed he was taking tlie right step. He thanked the congregation for their gifts, and the speakers for their remarks. During the evening the speeches were interspersed with a number of items. Mr Harry M'Gregor, Mr W. M'Lean, Mrs Ray Smith, Miss M'Phail, Miss Rene King and Mr W. M'Culloch contributed vocal solos, and Mrs Campbell and Mrs Ray Smith and Rene King and Margaret Davidson sang duets. Mrs D. E. Neave and Mrs M'Gregor were the accompanists. Mr James Provan, superintendent of the Y.M.C.A. Sunday School, Waitaki Hydro, was met by the teachers, parents and children recently who gathered to say farewell to him before his departure for Christchurch. Mr H. M. Tomlinson spoke of Mr Provan's sterling qualities both as a citizen and a Sunday school officer. On behalf of all parents and scholars be wished him success and happiness in his new work. Mr W. Stenhouse, on behalf of the Y.M. Bible Class, and Mr R. Jeffs, Y.M.C.A. secretary, also referred to the work Mr Provan had done. Miss P. Webster, a member of Mrs Provan's class, presented her with#a book of poems, and Mr Tomlinson presented Mr Provan with two books, one from file Y.M.C.A. and the other from the Sunday school teachers and Bible class members. Mr Provan suitably replied. Musical items were rendered by Misses C. Mulligan, P. Webster, V. Herbert and Masters C. Herbert and J. Webster. Mrs F. Mulligan and Miss J. Webster were the accompanists. Busy Bees The Busy Bees met on Friday for the final meeting of the season and also to bid farewell to Mrs Nordmeyer, who had taken a very keen interest in the bees and their work. The Queen Bee, Joyce Watkins. presented Mrs Nordmeyer with a crystal vase as" a token of the affection in which she is held. Mrs Nordmeyer suitably replied. Lecture A second lecture dealing with a further portion of his recent world tour was delivered by Mr R. H. Packwood, of the Public Works Department, to an interested audience at Waitaki Hydro last Sunday evening. The lecturer spoke of his experiences in India and Palestine and at the conclusion was accorded a hearty vote of thanks. PALMERSTON Jubilee Banquet The jubilee celebrations of the Palmerston Presbyterian Church were brought to a close on Monday evening, when a banquet was held. The toast list opened with the loyal toast. The Rev. S. D. Baird, moderator of the Presbytery, after conveying the blessings of the Otago Presbytery to the Palmerston Church, proposed the toast of "The Church." The Rev. W. Potts (Waikouaiti) replied. Mr J. Craig congratulated the Rev. Mr Badcock on the enthusiastic and wholehearted manner in which he had worked in the various branches of the church, and in sport. The toast of " Our Minis ter" was then enthusiastically honoured. Mr Badcock replied with an interesting dialogue entitled "Ministers." The ceremony of cutting the jubilee' cake was then performed. As no foundation members of the church were present, the two oldest members—Mesdames Flora M*Laren and Mary Cameron—jointly cut the cake. Mrs J. Craig and Mrs Ballin gall, representing the wives of the senior elders, and Mrs Service and Mrs Clearwater, the wives of the senior managers, also assisted. Mr Mawson, proposing the toast of' " The Office-bearers" referred to the excellent services rendered by them. Mr R. Cameron replied. Other toasts were: "The Visitors," proposed by the Rev. 11. T. Blair and replied to by Mr Grant (Wanganui); and " Present Members," proposed by the Kev. J. T. V. Steele and replied to by Mr W. Hopkins. Messages of goodwill and congratulation were tendered by Mr J. A. Macpherson. M.P., Mr G. Ross (chairman of the Waihemo County Council), and Mr W. B. Galloway (Mayor of Palmerston). The Rev. Mr Badcock. in a brief address, referred to the harmonious way in which every committee member had assisted the church's cause. He stated that jubilees such as the one being celebrated aided greatly in maintaining the strength of the church, and he thanked the committee and the secretary (Mr D. M'Knight) for their endeavours. Card Evenings Final There was a good attendance at the final evening of the Palmerston Women's Bowling Club card evenings. The following are the prize winners for the season: —Aggregate prizes: Ladies, Mrs P. Walker; men, Mr Hurley. First prize: Ladies—Mrs A. M'Gregor, consolation Mrs Neill: men—Mr Sheppard; consolation. Mr P. Roberts. Lucky seat prize, Mrs Crockett. Lucky cup prize, Miss M. Froser. Miss M. Moodie gave two recitations. WAIMATE County Council Meeting At the monthly meeting of the Waimate County Council the chairman (Mr H. B.b. Johnstone) presented a financial statement for the six months ended September 30, showing the following items, the corresponding totals for 1934 being shown in parentheses:—Receipts £13,207 •?s lid less £B'2S7 10s Id balance at April 1, 1935 (£14,220 8s 9d, less £9256 10s lid, balance at April 1. 1934); general expenditure £8853 (£5541); general account allocation for year ending March 31 193 G £17.242; balance unexpended allocation £8389; riding expenditure to September 30, 1935, £2641 8s Id; riding allocation for year endmg March 31, ]o;3(j £10.254; balance unexpended allocation £7612 lis 11(1; main highways expenditure £G233 7s 8d (£4530 4s): secondary highways expenditure £1774 17s (£lslO 18s 2d) ; estimated general revenue for year ended March 31. 1936, £38,797; rates collectable and outstanding at April ) 1935, £19,740 8s Gd (£11)46 3s 7d) ; rales collected to September 30. 1935, m 9 Is 5d (£136 14s 9d) ; rates outstanding to'Scptember 30, 1935, £19,491 7s Id (£OOO 8s lOd) ; total rates collectable and outstanding since April 1,. 1929 £23.089 Is lOd; rates collected since April 1, ]9'>o £829 lis lid; rates outstanding at end of period April 1, 1929, to April I ]035. £22.259 O.s lid. The Finance Committee s statement was ■-,<-' follows:—Debit balance at bank in October, 1935, £0653 lis lOd (1934, debit £3117 10s 4d): accounts presented £3824 Us lOd: receipts £443 Is. Lower Wailijio water race account—Debit balance it bunk in October £3O 9s 7d, with £3OO on fixed deposit, leaving on actual credit balance of £269 10s 7d (1934 £230 lis 10(1); accounts presented, £2O lis.

The South Canterbury highways traffic group half-yearly statement of receipts end expenditure showed that the debit balance at September 30, 1935, was £5 17s Id, making it unnecessary to levy on members for the half-year. It was decided that the engineer should prepare specifications for submission to the Main Highways Board for tar-sealine a mile and a-half of the Station Peak voad. A committee comprising Messrs H. B. S. Johnstone, H. M. Whatman, W. Lindsay, and N. A. Rattray, was appointed, with power to act, to consult with the engineer when the specifications came to hand. The engineer was instructed to confer with the Borough Council in the matter of tar-sealing Par sen age road.

Valedictory About- 20 members of the South Canterbury branch of the Waitaki High School Old Boys' Association gathered at an enjoyable card evening to bid farewell to Mr D. S. Chisholui, rcuov of the Waimate High School and formerly second assistant at Waitaki School, who has received an appointment as rector of the new South Dunedin High School. TEMUKA Irrigation Schemes Work on the two South Canterbury irrigation schemes is proceeding steadily. In the Levels district it is expected that water will be available for farmers m the spring of 1936. At Redcliff, further south, the work is so far advanced that, if required, water will be available before Christmas. Both the winter and spring in South Canterbury have been exceptionally dry, but fortunately the long spell was broken on Saturday last when 41 points of rain were recorded. The varying weather conditions have induced more farmers to take an interest in irrigation, but there are still some who are decidedly averse to the scheme. As far as the Levels scheme i 6 concerned that area is for the most part dry country, where irrigation should make a great difference in the carrying capacity of the land for grazing purposes. MIDDLEMARCH Young Farmers' Club The monthly meeting of the Middlemarch Young Farmers' Club was held on Thursday evening. There was a good attendance and Mr P. Howell was in, the chair. Two new members were duly elected. After the business meeting was concluded Mr Robertson gave a talk on " The Care and Management of Dairy Cattle," which was attentively listened to. As showing the interest of members many questions were asked and satisfactorily answered. Moving a hearty vote of thanks to the speaker, Mr W.' Glover, who has recently returned from a tour of the North Island, made interesting reference to the extensive dairy farming operations which he saw during his tour. The.president.of the local branch of the Farmers' Union (Mr John Elliot), who was present, intimated his intention to present two prizes for the best papers handed in by members in the district survey competitions. The chairman thanked Mr Elliot for his donation and for his interest in the club. It was decided to accept the invitation of Mr Andrew Carruthers to meet at " Netherton " for the next meeting of the club. Mortality in Lambs During the past fortnight serious losses in lambs have been reported which have been caused by pulpy kidney. During the previous two seasons there were no serious losses in this district, but this year, when there is no surplus of feed, the losses are heavy. The Weather The weather still remains dry, and a good rain is anxiously awaited. With only 19 points since September 12 and persistent winds, the ground is very dry. Turnip-sowing is being delayed on this account. RANFURLY Presbyterian Church The annual congregational meeting of the Mount Ida Presbyterian; Church, was held in the Ranfurly Church on October 15. ' The moderator (the Rev. R. A. Chisholm) presided and there was a large attendance of members and adherents. The session report was presented by ] the moderator. This showed that the work had gone on steadily throughout the year. The moderator stressed the great need for strengthening the session by the addition of new elders, and urged.larger attendances of members at the half-yearly com-. munions. The balance sheet revealed a deficit on the year's working. During the discussion the need for some special efforts to reduce the deficit was stressed. _ AH the retiring members of the Committee of Management were re-elected with the addition of Mr Fleming. After the business had been transacted a lecture dealing with his travels abroad was given by Dr J. D. Salmond, Presbyterian youth director. This was much appreciated by all present. Before commencing his lecture Dr Salmond commented briefly on the session report, and urged the congregation to take steps to strengthen the session at the earliest opportunity as the proper functioning of the Presbyterian system was dependent on the eldership.

Cricket There was a good attendance of members at the meeting of the Central Cricket Club held on Thursday last. Mr W. Bandy occupied the chair. The following ofiice-bearers were elected for the ensuing season: —President, Mr T. Mitchell; vice-presidents, Messrs T. Forrester and R. A. Long; secretary, Mr SWilson; committee —Messra T. Mitchell, T. Forrester, R. A. Long, J. Hanrahan. L. Perriam, and E. O'Malley; delegates to the association, Messrs L. Perriam and R. A. Long; auditor, Mr G. Wilson; club captain, Mr R. A. Long. The club has had five cricket bats presented to it, and all the necessary gear has been purchased. Weather A fairly heavy fall of snow was experienced throughout the district on Saturday morning. The high-country received a heavy coat, but on the plain it did not lie for very long. Sunday was an exceptionally fine day. During the past three months only about one inch of rain has fallen. Lawn Tennis The association secretary advises that all clubs will adhere to the draw for tho first and second rounds of interclub matches. The games which were postponed from Saturday will be played at the end of the second round. Personal Mr H. Halstead, of the Post Office staff. Ranfurly, has received notice of his transfer to Tnvercargill. His place will be taken bv Mr S. T. Arson, of Takaka office. Mr E. Hammond, of the Post Office staff, Ranfurly. will be relieving the post master in Naseby (Mr Berhrens) for ft few days. Euchre An eniovable euchre tournament was held in Ranfurly on Friday night. There was a good attendance of players. The prizes were won by Mrs G. Bell and Mi E. Hammond. Badminton Owing to the inclemency of the weather on Saturday preventing outdoor activi ties, several members of the Ranfurly Badminton Club took the opportunity ot conducting a tournament in the hall. The winners were Miss E. Forrester and Mr R. Gibb. WAIPIATA Presbyterian Church The annual congregational meeting ot the Waipiata-Patearoa Presbyterian Church was held in the Waipiata Public Hall on October 14. The moderator (the Rev I. G. Borrie) was in tho chair, and there was a large gathering of members and adherents. Thp session report- was presented by Mr J, Hastie. and it disclosed a satisfactory year's work. The balance sheet was by the treasurer (Mr G. F Scott). It revealed a healthy state of affairs there being a credit balance on the year's work of £2O. Reference was made to the special appeal made during the rear, and the generous response made bv the congregation. The work of the choir and of the Sunday schools was also reported on. The retiring mem-

! bera of the committee— Messri J. Blakely, ! J. Thurlow, L. Tregonnmg, G. F. »•••* and H. Wardell—were re-elected. Mr H. Weir was added to the committee. i Mr R. Gibson moved a hearty vote of j thanks to Mr Borrie for his service* i throughout the year, especially commend- ! ing his work among the young people. 1 Atter the formal business had been dis- ' posed of Dr J. D. Salmond, director of youth work of the Presbyterian Church, gave an illustrated lecture entitled " My Travels in Soviet Russia and Palestine." • This proved both interesting and informaI tive, and those present showed their apI preciation in a vote of thanks, which was carried by acclamation. I _ I ROXBURGH

Teviot River Irrigation and Power In the early hours of Sunday morning the final stage in the construction of the Teviot River tunnel was completed, and the water was turned in. In order to avoid any dislocation of the power service, the work of making the change over from the pipe line to the tunnel was commenced at midnight on Saturday and by 5 a.m. the task was completed. The tunnel takes the place of the pipe line which for many years has done service for a mining company with which the late Mr John Ewing was associated, and for the . last Hi years it has been supplying water for the Teviot Power Board and for irrigation. During the past few years its condition has been causing a certain amount of concern, and, after consideration, it was decided by the Public Works Department that the only satisfactory wav of replacing it was by the construction of a tunnel. The preliminary work t was commenced about two years ago. The \ tunnel, which is for the most part through i solid rock, is concrete lined and is 5100 i feet long. The pipe line is 5680 feet long. : It has a carrying capacity of 100 heads, ; which is a great deal more than the capacity of the races it will supply. Its con- | struction did not present any difficulties, but for the men engaged on it it was laborious work, and credit is due to them and to the engineering staff of the Public ! Works Department for the excellent job they have made. Obituary Another of Roxburgh's early residents, in the person of Mrs Uren, was laid to rest on Saturday. Mrs Uren was a daughter- of the late Mr and Mrs John Tamblyn, of Coal Creek, and widow of the late Mr S. Uren. With her husband she lived at Coal Creek until several, years ago, wl*en Mr Uren disposed of his orchard and retired to Timaru. ' There i they spent several years of retirement j until the death of Mr Uren in 1929. Both ; the late Mr and Mrs Uren were.fvery staunch members of the Methodist Church, and the service at the graveside was eonducted by the Rev. "Mr M'Arthur, of Timaru, and the Rev. Mr Hames, of Roxburgh. '..'.'.. . '. ..'.' Personal Messrs H. L. Gibson, district 'traffic manager, and C. D. M'Kenzie, district commercial agent, New Zealand Railways Department, were in the district during the past week. Messrs Hamoh and Furlong, Government audit inspectors, are at'present'conducting the audit of the accounts ol the various local bodies of the district. CROMWELL Cricket ....... Heavy rain set in early on Saturday morning and all Vincent Cricket Association fixtures were cancelled. _Ai mid-day the weather cleared, and Cromwell and Lowburn played an unofficial game. This resulted in a win for Lowburn by 3|S runs. Cromwell scored 58 (Oldfield 20, Harvev 14), and Lowburn replied with 96 (F. Partridge, jun., 30, R. M'Donald 16, M. Partridge 15, B. Gateby 14). Bowling from Cromwell, G. Chalmers took six wickets for 26 runs, and M. Partridge", 'six for 12, was the most successful bowler-for > Lowburn. - . Children's Health Camps '• • ; • There was a fair attendance at the meeting called by the postmaster' fMf H. T. Wilkinson) to .consider assisting in the Children's Health Camp Campaign. Those who addressed the meetix&a were Mr H. T. Wilkinson, the Mayor (Mr C. W.: J. Roberts}. -Messrs Barnes Ritchie;; D. S. Middletori, and W. Jelley (Hospital Board), and G. Burrows. Mr Ritchie explained that, while it-was at first proposed to establish a camp in the Vincent Hospital district this year, that had now been cancelled in the meantime. A general committee of 17, including representatives of all local organisations and_ sports bodies, was elected, and an, executive committee which includes. Messrs Roberts (chairman), W. Jelley (vice-chairman ).y L. J. Anderson, S. C. Gibb, Mrs Webb, Mrs Burrows, and the postmaster.. ,Mr J. P. Garden is the-secretary./;.Various methods of • raising - , money have I been adopted. A permit for an, art union is being applied for, and it is expected.tha: the prize will be about an ounce of gold given by the subsidised miners to the extent of one- «rain of gold each. The Nevis Scheme The latest development in connection with the proposed mining, irrigation, and hydro-electric scheme of tunnelling the Nevis River through to the Bann.ockbum area is a petition in favour of the scheme forwarded by a number of signatories. The Weather After several warm days a change came on Saturday morning and for several hours heavy rain fell. This gave the coun- . try a beneficial soaking, but with it snow fell low down on the mountains. Before evening the weather cleared and there wa* a comparatively hard frost for this period of the year. On Sunday there was a return to warm weather, followed by another cold night, but without any degree of frost. CLYDE Rifle Club Tuesday's shoot was a return match against the Ex-servicemen, which was won easily by the Clyde Club, nine out of the 12 shooting 70 or over, as against five of the soldiers. The following are .the scores:—Club: C. J. ,Davidson 78, H. Tattersfield 77, W. Tattersfielu 75, T. Stevens 74, R. Sinclair 73, H. Macdonald 72. W. Thomson 71, B. Laine 71, J. L. Davidson 70, F. Lindsay 68,. J. Ross 67, A. Iversen 67; counted out—J. Aitken 66, R. Holden 64, R. Treleaven 61, C. Waldron 58, D. Ross 56, R. Hanning 54.. Exservicemen: R. Forrest 76, Ralph Wilson 76, D. Macdonald 76, R. Robertson 71, G. Orr 70, W. Waddell 69, G. Miller 69, E. George 66, Dawson 66, L. Naylor 62, A. Harris 57, A. Haig 57; counted out—P. Cotter 54, R. Collins 53, G. Dickie 48, C. Blankinsee 44, T. Holden 44, G. Burghess 43. On Thursday night the final shoot and presentation of prizes was held. Snap shooting and a sweepstake were fired, R. Sinclair winning the snap shooting and B. Laing the sweepstake. Prizes were given for the best average off the rifle. H. Tattersfield (77.5) was first and »C. J. Davidson (74) second. In the average, with handicap, competition, W. Thomson was first and F. Lindsay second. Mr W. Thomson, president, presented the prizes, and congratulated the winners on their good shooting. ■}■' Euchre The bowling pavilion was Well filled for last week's card tournament. Prizes presented by Dr Moir were won by Mr H. Faulds and Mrs Larking. Croquet Mrs C. Hanning, president of the Croquet Club, welcomed the members and visitors, of whom there was a fair number, to the opening of the lawns, and the afternoon was spent in competitions. Weather After another dry week, with nor'-west winds, on Saturday morning early rain fell. This immediately turned to snow on the mountains, and lay low down in the gorge. The fall eased off about midday, and most of the snow had disappeared before night. Only 20 points of vain were registered. Cricket The cricket season was opened on Saturday with a friendly match between Clyde and Alexandra at Alexandra. The home team put up 203 (Mount 102 not out Pierce 45), and Clyde replied witr 117 (M'Avoy not out 46, Wood 15, Dor--12, Hanning 11). Mount and Aitken a« counted for the majority of the Clyd" wickets. M'Avoy and Hanning each), Wood (two), and Dore (one) ing against Alexandra.