HALCOMBE NOTES.

Rangitikei Advocate and Manawatu Argus, Volume XLV, Issue 11763, 25 February 1919, Page 4

HALCOMBE NOTES.

From Our Own Correspondent, , The Halcnmbe Sfnnway branch of» the Red Cross Society held their second meeting of the new yettf on ' Wednesday afternoon. The attendance of ladies was again very poorin fact, so few workers turned i, p that it ia estimated fiat the year 1927 will have arrived, before the material the Guild hah ou hand will be made up if no more shirt.; makers get busy than was the cateon Wednesday last, by which time all our wounded soldiers will either have recovered or gouet'o one ,|q( those places where shirts, especially fiauuel shirts, would be either a superfluity or an eucumherance, There are limits to human endurance, more the less definite because that endurance appears illimitable. With the object of raising a f ew shillings for school prizes, a euchre party and dance was held at Stanway Hail on Wedne=r!ay eveuiug last. There was not a big crowd present, the season being apparently too early for dancing, but those that did attend had a good time. Mrs J. Clark won the ladies' prize for, scoting most points in the card games, and Mr Archie Marshall the ; men’s. Local bandsmen have no r'cvaise to complain of the.way they are treated by the people of the district. Ou Sunday afternoon the Band was entertained by Mr and Mrs 0. H. Managh, who livs on the main road between this village and Feilding. and the gracious and generous welcome the Baud received 'speaig well for the popularity ot the musicians. The music over, members had afternoon tea, Mr Managh made a speech, thanking the Band for coming over. He and Mrs Managh were delighted to have the Band, and he hoped it would not be the last time. The Bandmaster replied, Mr Managh made a very generous contribution to the funds :of the Band. As one ot the younger baudsmen remarked -“It a stumiing time.” , .

A fair number of sports went to Wanganui on Thursday morning to try and pick winners but came back in the evening looking as. happy as grave diggers, and another crowd—or it may have been the same lot—came home on Saturday evening looking more hilarious than the Thursday mob. There is money in racing, of course—for racehorse owners.

On Tuesdaj 7 last the Halcombe Territorials and Cadets paraded under Sergeant-Major Shepherd for shooting practice. Tbe rifle range, as everybody knows, is on Mr A, Peifet’s farm, on the Stanway Road, and on the day of the shoot Mr Peffer was getting in a line crop of oats from a paddock, part of which' is behind tbe target. As soon asi the cannonade startad it is hard hr say who were the most startled—the men or the horses. Neither tbs. bipeds or the quadrupeds had over beeu uuder fire before, so when the bullets commenced to whistle by and the high explosives to make its deafening crash, the harvesters; and their teams stampeded for shelter, and remained in thfir dug-oats’ while Mr PeSers arranged an armistice with tbe gallant major and his warriors. The future defenders of our heritage eventually landed in an old brickfield, and by evening, had shot away more ammunition,with more or less good results, than 1 would have sufficed to have aunihijated m fU’Siy eftrpa. We are going to have a wedding in Halcombs someday sonn. Two young people of cur village dlfi 4 covered some lime ago that they cared a great deal for each other, and all the formalities luviiig been settled the happy couple ara now receiving the congra'ulatinns of their friends. Miss Elsie Wishnowsky, tbe bride el:ot, the third daughter of Mr Otto V/ishnowsby, an old and liighly-rqsptctcd settler in this district, is as charming » yonng lady as one would wish to meet. The lucky and happy man )• Mr Emile Johnski, fourth eon of the late Mr F. Johnski, and This chief claim to notoriety is that he plays a big brass instrument in the local band. Both parties to the matrimonial contract were born in this district, and have lived here ever since.

People who travelled by rail «0’ Wanganui on the race days complain’ of the time taken by the morning train in getting to its journey’s’ end, and at being kept so long on the homeward trip. Three bouts' and a half does seem a long while travelling to Wanganui, but four hours less ten minutes seems a great deal longer when one is coming home. However, perhaps we should he glad we cau travel -at all these “hard times.’’ Certainly if it hadn’t been for several bright and festive spirits, one or two of whom were suffering from that infirmity once poetically described by Bobble Bnrns as “a wee bit drappie in their een,’’ the journey on Saturday night would have seemed eternal, if not longer. One of onr local motor bike champions having declared the other day that a motor cycle could lose a car in a race, here is an item for him to puzzle overH A. Parsons, ofViotoria, riding a 7-h.p. travelled from Melbourne to Syd, ney, 565 miles, in 20 honra 58 min| utes, beating the hike record put up by F. Berry in March last by 1 hour’ 22 minutes. The motor oar record between the two cities belongs to Boyd Edkius. who did the distance in 16 hours 33 minutes —4 hours 25 , minues better than the hike Onr champion onght to sign the pledge, j