LOCAL AND GENERAL

Te Awamutu Courier, Volume 64, Issue 4557, 8 April 1942, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Publication of a number of local reports is unavoidably deferred till Friday’s issue.

At both the Regent and the Empire Theatres the showing of pictures on Friday nights during the months of winter will commence at 7.15 p.m. sharp.

A reminder is given that nominations for seats on the Te Awamutu Primary School Committee will be received by the secretary (Mr J. G. Wynyard) up to five o’clock this afternoon.

There has been an unusual dearth of both native and introduced birds in and about New Plymouth this season. This is attributed to the late appearance of warm weather and the cold and wet of the preceding spring, which hampered nesting to a very large extent. Mr and Mrs Jim Sager and their son Kenneth, and Mr and Mrs A. Davis and their wee son, all of Auckland, were visitors to Te Awamutu during the Easter holidays. Aircraftsman Sager, who is a member of the New Zealand Royal Air Force ground staff, recently returned from overseas.

Splendid rain, though scattered, has been experienced generally throughout the district during the Easter holidays and has done an immense amount of good to the pastures. “It has been worth tons of money to the farmers and has helped materially to minimise the deficiency caused by inability to secure full supplies of manure,” declared one local farmer of long experience.

At the monthly meeting of .the Ngarua branch of the Farmers’ Union, held last week, it was resolved that as there was a national need for barbed wire for the Army it should be obtained by the Piako County Council by means of a levy on property owners. It was further decided that an immediate canvass of the district to ascertain the amount of loose wire available be made.

The Dominion Conference of the Manchester Unity, Independent Order of Oddfellows, now sitting at Nelson, decided that while' the war continues members may be admitted for funeral benefits only. Such members will not participate in the sickness benefit. The conference confirmed the principle that the members engaged on permanent service in New Zealand will get the benefit of the war members’ rule.

An appeal for books and magazines from people, public libraries and schools throughout the Dominion for the war library service was broadcast on Monday night by the Minister of Education, the Hon. H. G. R. Mason. The Minister appealed for good books, not rubbish. Books and magazines could be left at public libraries ’or offices of the Returned Services’ Association, and collections would also be made by schoolchildren. He urged schoolchildren to set out to collect 10 good books each in April. Mr Mason said an appeal was made earlier in the war and as a result 500,000 books and magazines had been distributed to the forces. But books became worn out and more and more men were joining the armed forces. Books and magazines were wanted for the men serving in New Zealand as well as those overseas.