SOUTHLAND NEWS NOTES

Otago Witness, Issue 2736, 22 August 1906, Page 48

SOUTHLAND NEWS NOTES

(Fmu On Ohm CoMosspoirßMiT.) » INYEBCARGILL, August 18. TCh«re is no change to report in the oat Insarket, as merchants ar« doing no selling a-nd ph*t cato are going away bßveb Rye principally *©en those sent to Auckland in the OassaKauka, more tiutn half of which were on conPenment. These were principally low grade, nark in colour, but »weet and sound. The *>*l«nce of her cargo was made up of old •«« made some considerable time ago. The ■looks in Bluff stores are now reduced to •bout 50,000 sacks in all. A l«rg» proportion fc* these are held on farmers^ account, the farmers not being inclined to sell at anything lik« the present market values. Very few oats m» offering from the country. Farmers who nave some still to cart are expecting over 2s net bushel, which at present is not to be got. JThe present market quotations can be placed fct 1b lid (f.0.b.) for B grade, and le lOJd for f.a.q. on trucks at country stations (bags extra). Hiere i« stil' no word of any bn&iness having been done with the Afric?n market and it is (difficult -to get a freight quoted definitely unless a Bumciem quantity is offering to induce m, boat to come to the Bluff. There is nothing Boing with Ausrtra'ia, and. as said before, the (North Island market is bein;? supDlied principally with low grade a* an average price of 2a Br (f.0.b., sacks in'). Chaff is «til! very firm, especially for prime Huality, which commands £3 en trucks at country stations. There is not a great deal offering at preeeni. and what is being bought %b being railed to the Dunedin market. Local Requirements are being supplied at £3 10s per 10-i (ex stores, Invercargill). ' Wheat is exceedingly firm, but the quantity available in Southiarrd now is very small indeed. Prices for " prime can be quoted at JBs 3d on trucks at country stations, and fowl /wheat commands 2a 9d to 2s lod. ' Seed lines of potatoes are very keenly" ■ought after, especially the Up-tc-Daie variety. fFhese are fetching £11 10s on trucks at country ptations, while fcr ez*ra prime £12 bss been jpiven. The inquiry for Derwents i? still very gocd. especially from the North If-land. Table^ ports are being shipped there every week, and* Quotations ru'c from £3 10s lo £9 15s ou trucks fct country stations. Very little linseed is now offering, and prices lo farmers remain at 5s 9d to 6s. Owing to the ease in the sheep market very Utt'e businef3 has bean 'done during the last •reek. The mod* inquiry is for ewes, and these are selling— *wo and four-toothe. np to Bos; gound-mouth. afts '.o 21s; doubtfulmouthed, from 14s 6d to 15s €d. These are ■,11 in lamb, pnd in some quarters lambing pt>9 commcjcei though it is not expected that it will be genera? for another fortnight or , three week"-. The general opinion seems to be j lh*t. -given fine wepuher. Southland will have Jinother record lambing this year. Fat wethers Me not co much sought after owing to the j freezing buyers having- ptopped operating. A lew odd lines are. however, ■itil 1 selling- at from p» 6d to 21s. Hcgge<s are now lievng quoted ft IBs 6d to 16s tid. the latter on.lv being given lor real'y nice lire* of mixed sexes well Woolled. There is % very k^n demand for cattle. (Specially for forward-^ondi'ioj.ed °oo s , and iesei are being placed free'y at £6 lo £7. A rcrv nice line of '250 hesd cf fotir-year-o'd bu locks were sold during Jl ie week at £6 ss. It 0 ' understood that these ivero bought by a lorthern buyer. There is a good inquiry from &c north for this cl»ss of cattle, ard several Juyeis are operating in Southland. Dairy bows, to calve in tinia for the factories, are |iow commanding attention, and thebo are selling at £6 10s to £7 10s. the latter price being fciven fo-r extra good well-bred sorts. Poorer tows are quoted at from £4 10s to £5 10s. L'at cat*!e £e*ni scarce in Southland amd jutchers are buying practically all that are available. Prime bullocks can easily command Sli 6a, though an average price would be SlO to £10 15i. Beef can be quoted at 29s Gd :o 30s per 1001b. Younger cattle are also being ooked for. as owing to the sheep market being bone too lively farmers, wrVta feed, are paying j&ore attention to cattle this yesr. There is no- change to report in flax. It is feard to sell, and "the quantity offering is very kmall. The mi He are gradually resuming Work, but the bulk ef them will net be in >peration till well on into September. j August 20. "Mr Stewart. Invercargill manager for John fCumond for the last fcur years, has been transfered to Diujedia, and is succeeded by Mr N. Armour, who ha» been the firm's couirtry tra- i roller for the last two year«. Mr Faterson iiakes Mr Armour's place in the meantime. On Thured^y a number of young fellows were pi* before the court here charged with drun|te!:ness. One youth named O'Shea. was fined Wa and costs; another, named Gourley, £10 and costs ; and a thiid — a mere boy in knicker* — 20s and costs. On Wednesday morn- • pig they bought a keg cf beer at the depot £t Gladstone, sat, down witii it on the bask f the river, and swilled till the keg was , empty an-d they were drunk. Whitebait have been on «ale in Invexcargil! fluring the last week. Thin is extremely early, Itnd points to on early spring. The election of members- to the local Borough Council on Tuesday last resulted in the return l>f Duncan. M'Farlane (460 vote*; and F. G. Etone (435). The- other candidates polled as follows:— R. B. M'Kay. 328, I. I*. Petrie 229. 3 A. Ekensteen 187, T. J Lumsden 50. Mr fmmsden has applied to the council or a. pctuxn of his deposit of £3. It has been definitely decided to opem the pe<v theatre and town hall on October 23, Iphen the Governor, Lady Plunket, and the Premier and a number of members of the Ministry are expected to be present. At laot meeting of the Council of the Southland Acclimatisation Society Mr J. Fnend waa ke-appointed laaiger, axi'd tie members geneiblly expressed the^r satisfaction at the manner ie which his woTk bad l>een dene. \lr Trist Seaiell. organist of St. Paul's •X asfeyan Church, has been appointed conJB.'ctor of the Invercurgill Garri6on Band. Jarrj Leigh, who came into prominence in c< .nee lion with the charges against Mrs Si Auliffe of selling sly grog, was :ast week (charged with obt*iniosr money under false jpretenoes and supplying liquor \a a. prohibited jperson, and was sentenced" ou the first count Jo six months' imprisonment and on the olher jcpunt io one month. Tbe Southland Highland Society heW i<3 annual gathering on Friday evening, when a jrery long concert programme was submitted, ffhe attendance was most gratifying, and from »T«7 point of view the reunion was a great success. Th» annual report aad balance sheet of toe Invercargill CjcKnfi Olpb indicate continued progress, tbe memberafeip having increased by B>, Eotwithstandmy that 4ft of the members fd»d, for various reasons, disappeared from th« The new rooms ax* proving v«rs UttMctive, their central pcsitiwi and good appointments makine tbem Terj popular. One t& the rules is that neither gambling- nor i&e B<te of intoikanis is allowed on the premises. XI {fee annual meetes* of ike Southland

Temperance Reform Council last Morn Hay Mr J. J. Wesney was elected president. The report submitted showed that of the convictions for drunkenness recorded einea the advent of no-license, the liquor iv all but two cases had been obtained outside the no-licenss- district One speaker said that socially and' morally the town had greatly benefited from the carrying of no-lioense. He himself had not seen, one diunkcn man oa the streets since the baia ■were closed.

The uniou of the Y.M.O.A. and the Y.M.B C.U may now be regarded as an accomplished fact, the new constitution drawn up by Mr T. M. MacDoDald having been adopted at a- meeting of delegates held last week, and there can be no doubt that members will confirm their action. No profession of religious belief is necessary for admission to \nembership, any person of good mora-1 character being- eligible, bu+ only professing Christiana may become members of the Board of Management The work is to be carried on in four sections — (1) The evangelistic section : (21 the Bible Class and literary section ; (3) the athletic and recreation section; (4) the junior section. At last mearting of the Borough Council the union made application for the use of the Council Chambers at a. nominal rent, offering, in return, to provide "a free leading loom for the town. The application was opposed by two members of the council en tlie ground that the association is sectarian, and the matter was referred to the Finance Commit'iee.

My Frank T. Bullen arrived in Invercargill by die express on Thursday aftenoon and was met by lb« Mayor and the president and secretary of the local bianch of -the Navy l.»agus. Mr BuHen's lecture—" The Way They Have in the Navy," delivered at tlie Zealandiu. Hall on iiie same evening — v:a-» splendidly attended an-d should have the effect of stimulating interest in the league.

For the interprovincial Rugby fcciball match Otago v Southland, the only mterprcvincial match to be played here this year tbe weather on Wednesday afternoon was eimply splendid. The ground, however, was not in very gocd order, rain having fallen, earlier in the week, with the result that en« patch on. tbe east side was about ankle-deep in mud. The game, although sti-enuous throughout, v.as not a very interesting exhibition and ended in a draw, Otago scoring three points for a try by Spiers, and Southland 1 the same number of points for a go*l from a penalty kick by Hamilton. The attendance wag larger than usual, sls evidenced by the takings— JE'Bl.

The electors of Matatira ertertained their member, the Hon. R. M'Xab, at Gore la 9* week to mark their satisfaction at his elevation to Ministerial rank. The Town H»'l, in which the banquet was held, was well filled, among those present beiug members of Parliament, lepre^entative'* of tbe \arious local bodies throughout Southland, and prominent Government officials.

On Tuesday, before proceeding with a, maintenance case, Mr M'Carthy, S M , announced ■that he h?d received from cne of the parties a letter threatening to romttamicate with the Minister of Justice if he did not take tbe courpe suggested m the letter. Mr M'Carthy said that he vast frequently pestered with tin-cits of thi3 sort, but so long a« he occupied the bench he would pay no attention to aucii a communications, and wished those who made such threats' of political influence to know that they would not have the slightest effect on him.

Private information was received' here last week of the death in the Auckland Hospital of Mr W. O. Duthie. at one time aohooimaater at Higbcliff and Hooper's Inlet, Otago Peninsula, and Evan's Flat. Mr Duthie left the •mploymeut of the Otago Board many years ago, and was appointed by the South 1 and •Board to Quarry Hills, near Waikawa, -where ho did good work for a long time. About three years ago he resigned to eogage in flaocmilling. but be-ing unsuccessful in this, he, about a year ego. accepted a position under the Auckland Board at Mlei«uri Bay, in the Whangarei district It is understood here that tfeath resulted from a ma'ignant growth in. the breast, or from an operation to remove it. Mr J. Fisher, of Otautau. has been awarded l>y tbe Eoya! Humane Society an "In Me-mo-liam" certificate, hi recognition of the heroic conduct of his late wi-fe when she met her death m the bathing fatality in the Jacob's Hiver at Riverton about three years ago. The people of Metaura, are- agitating for * new tailway station, and have asked their member tbe Hon. R. M?lCal*. to press the matter on his colleague, the Minister of Railways. A pioflosal has been made to tbe Town Council by the Invercargi.n Cycling Club that it should Bubsidioe pound for pound money that the club might raise as the result of a carnival to be held at a future date and to ba called the " Good Roads Fa-ir,' 1 The object, as th« title denotes, is to lay down cycle paths throughout th«%_town. Mr T. O'Bryne. the new secretary of TheSawmill Workers' Union, has almost completed his tour of tha mills and claims to have enrolled 230 membsrs and collected £112 15» 9d during his visit to the various mills, and he reports that greater interest than ever i» being' taken m the welfare of the union. Some enthusiasts have for * considerable time been urging that a young- Son inland runner b? sent to Melbourne this year to represent Soutlihmd at the big events held there. There are pevoral young fellows welt able to fill the position, and at a meeting held through the -week it was decid.ed that Southland Ix 1 renresented. and a test match will be held in tbe Queen's Park on Sentember 19, when all who are considered to have a lien on the trip will be present, tind after trials tbe runner will be eho u e-n.

Only a few moiithi back a draughts club ■was formed here, and under the giudauce of Mr Janws Mulvey. well known in draught circl«3 throughout- the co'.ony, it has made rapid orogress. During that time two matches have been pkyed -with Gore Club, which is recognised aa possessing good talent, and both times. Invercai-giU has been victorious. This lias h&4 the effect of making the younger members of the team apply themeelves more diligently, and now a match against Winton ie being looked forward to. Rev \V. Hewitaon. of Kuox Church, Dunedm, preached in Firat Church, Invercargill, morn.ng and evening yesterday, a. id had very large congregations On Tuesday evening the Invercar<pll Garrison Band gave a. vny enjoyable concert m the ZeaJonaia Hall The programme, in addition to the usual band items, included a. trombone trio and bass quai tet. The playing of the band wan «xoe!'ent, and the porfoiniauce was ranch enjoyed by % large gathering. The V M.C A. Brass Band has had. the misfortune to loae o:>e of its best cornet players, Mr R. Walker Mr Walker lias gone to Nelson to play for the- Garrison Band. Or. Friday evening. Mr D. Brown, on behdlf of the members of the baud, presented Mi \V?Iher with » handsome travelling bag. The Municipal Band, under the baton of Mx J. Glennie, is settling down, to hard practice. Th« band, has also commenced; drill practice under Drum-major J. Mair, in v.ew of the Christohurcl* Exhibition content.

Mr R. Trist Searell has accepted tbe conductorsbip of the IsTercar^iU Garrison Band.

Mr Seircll hss hac] a. large experience with brass Lands bo 4 h as conductor and judge, and he conducted the Christchurch Garrison when it was one of the Leading bauds of the colony. (