OKATO NEWS

Taranaki Daily News, 6 July 1929, Page 11

OKATO NEWS

increasing production

(From Our Own Correspondent). The statistics, so attractively arranged in Monday’s Daily News, showing tne remarkable production of the past season, is a valuable record of the great advance made in Taranaki dairying of late years. The local companies, the Okato, Puniho and Oxford Dairy Companies, will, with payments to be made at their annual meetings this month, have averaged about is per lb, which is a very satisfactory figure. The management of these two companies has shown wonderful economy, the f.o.b. expenses in each case being under 3d per lb, a result which must be very gratifying to both the managers, Messrs S. D. Hall, of Okato, and 11. H. Davis, of Oxford, and also the suppliers. The increase in production at Oxford for the season just ended was 20 per cent. Now that the contractors have finished the Katikara bridge they are concentrating on the Stoney River structure, which is rapidly taking shape. There is still a very large amount of earthwork to be done at the Katikara before the deviation is completed. The improved weather conditions will be welcomed by the opossum trappers, who have had a very trying time lately. So far the catches have not been as good as anticipated, but the quality of the skins seems to be quite up to that of previous years. Through being knocked down by a motor-cycle on Saturday night, Mr. E. H. Gibson is confined to his bed, suffering from painful head injuries. The football team will feel the loss of Walter Julian, one of their best forwards, who had the misfortune to have his leg broken in the Clifton match on Saturday. Favoured by a fine night, the ping pong club had a largo attendance on Tuesday night. Considerable keenness is being displayed by the local tug-of-war teams, in preparation for next week's tournament, and some good pulls should result. Among tho visiting frontiersmen at the Haw-era conference was Sergeant Dan O'Neill,-of Taihape. Miss Paul was again the prize-winner at Monday's euchre, the men’s prize going to Mr. J. Shaw.