LOCAL AND GENERAL

Te Awamutu Courier, Volume 55, Issue 3930, 23 July 1937, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Te Awamutu district experienced one of the most severe storms yesterday afternoon that has occurred here for a long time. Exceptionally heavy hail fell, and soon there were small banks of piled hailstones alongside hedges and buildings. ' Happily the storm did not last long.

Runways half a mile in length are planned in the £2OOO improvement scheme now under way at Te Kuiti aerodrome. The present north-south runway, lying parallel to the road, is to be extended to 43 chains, and a runway of 40 chains is being laid down in a north-west to south-east direction.

Commenting on file bobby calf trade a district farmer yesterday remarked that some of his fellow farmers were

"inviting trouble” by placing immature calves at their gates for removal by tlie carriers. He said there would surely he prosecutions by the authorities, and in view of the publicity already given to the position the fines would surely be salutary.

Quite a large number of Rugby en thusiasts plan to visit Auckland tomorrow to witness the Soutli African football team in its first game of the New Zealand tour. The Railway Department has arranged for special tares and a special train which, however, leaves Te Awamutu at a very early hour. Its advantage to many is that tlie return journey is undertaken late on Saturday night.

Tlie financial statement presented to to-day’s meeting of the Te Awamutu Power Board showed the power fund account in credit £B3Ol Ils Id, the loan account in debit £3203 3s lid, and the consumers’ finance account in credit £792 9s Id. The total credit in all accounts was thus £5891 16s 3d. The amount due by the lor n . account to the power fund account for amounts advanced up to March 31st, 1937, was £2592 Us lOd.

An interested visitor to Te Awamutu was Mr E. S. Rails, of North Auckland, who, by the way, is a candidate for a seat on the electoral committee of the New Zealand Meat Beard, for which a postal ballot among sheepowners is now in progress. Mr Ralls said that there are five candidates for three seats, and he and Mr G. H. Jew, of Ngaruawahia, are the two not on the Farmers’ Union ticket. Asked what the procedure is, Mr Ralls said that the elected electoral committee would meet in Wellington at the end of next month to elect the Meat Beard, a candidate for which office was Mr H. Worsp, of Whangarei. He added that both he and MY Worsp were members of the electoral committee last year, being the only two nominated from the whole Auckland province, but this year apparently a greater interest s being shown, for there are five.

Accounts presented and passed for payment at to-day’s meeting of the Te Awamutu Power Board totalled £5869 19s 9d. ’ Revenue earned from the sales of current by the Te Awamutu Power Board during May totalled £3027 15s lid, made up of £1782 0s Id from lighting, heating and cooking, £llBO 5s from power, £35 10s lOd from penalties and sundries, and £3O from street lighting. In May, 1936, the levenue was £2769 16s 6d. The work of installing two new turbines at Arapuni is now rapidly approaching completion and within a fortnight a trial run of No. 7, the first of the two new units, is to be held. The completion of No. 8 generator will follow within a few weeks. When both are in operation the Arapuni s tation will be in a position to meet tlie increasing demands of the Auckland, Taranaki and Wellington provinces for several years. An announcement of tlie planned railway improvements tor lines in the Auckland province has been made. Survey work for additional bridges over the railway lines at Putaruru and near Te Awamutu was completed some time ago, and as the bridges now under construction are completed, more attention will be devoted to them. A sub-way is to be provided at the Puniu crossing near the Te Awamutu railway station. The local Fire Brigade turned out last evening to hose down the principal streets that liad_ been thickly coated with mud —due to tlie heavy storm and the exceptionally' heavy stock traffic to the saleyards. The brigade’s action was appreciated by pedestrians especially, but the improvement was only temporary, for this morning Alexandra Street was again well plastered with mud, due to carting of loose soil from the excavations being made, in rebuilding the Commercial Hotel.

Despite the very unfavourable weather prevailing yesterday, the paddy’s mai ket held to assist the Sports Queen funds in connection with the Catholic Convent Carnival proved very successful, an “army” cf salesgirls finding ready customers, and we understand a complete clearance was effected. Competition winners during the day were: Fat lamb, Mr H. O’Connor; turkeys, Sister Sixtus; hairpin set, Mrs Syme, Kihikihi; bag of flour, D. Wallace; seude table centre, V. A. de Coek; supper set, A. W. Skinner; cake, Mrs Newton, Mangapeehi.

The Department of Agriculture has to-day issued especial instructions to all officers to rigidly enforce the regulations concerning the sale and cartage of bobby calves. It is asserted that in many instances calves have not been fed from birth, ethers again are only a day old and still others are underweight. The officers have been instructed to be most vigilant in such matters and to institute' proceedings at once if this sort of cruelty—-for that is all it is—occurs. The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals are acting in conjunction with such officers, so a timely warning should be heeded by all concerned.

The Te Awamutu Cribbage Club held its usual weekly series of cup matches in the Oddfellows’ Hall last night, when there was the usual good gathering and play was very interesting. Three ladies, Mrs Blackburn Mrs Pous, and Mi’s Russell, dead heated, the play-off resulting in a win for Mrs Russell. Two men, Mr I. Sklenars and Mr H. Reed, also tied and the play off resulted in a win for Mr Sklenars. The supper was all that was required and, combined with a nice warm fire, made a very successful evening. The players are now eagerly looking forward to the match with the St. John’s Club, next Thursday week, when a good muster is expected.