LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Thames Star, Volume LXIII, Issue 17679, 2 September 1929, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Most of the business houses of Thames report that they have been doing increased business during the past fortnight.

On Sunday the visiting Mt. Eden hockey teams were taken for a run down the Coast and were entertained to a feed of mussels by the ThamesHauraki Hockey Association.

The first attempt to cross the Tapu-Cbroglen Road since the beginning of the winter was undertaken to-day by the Thames Fisheries' lorry, which left for Mercury Bay this morning. It is said that though parts of the remaining clay formation are a bit wet a continuance of the present fine weather will make the road passable for motor traffic within a week or so.

There has been an increase in the number of weddings performed at Thames this year. Tn all, so far, 34 have been registered compared with 28 last year. Five couples faced matrimony in this August, whilst six took the step last August.

The quarterly meeting of the Thames Licensing Committee will be held to-morrow in the Courthouse at noon, when a< number of hotel matters will occupy the time of the members. The Si,S; Rangitoto made a very quick trip* down from Auckland with the football excursion on Saturday and Captain Wann brought her in 20 minutes before her scheduled time, a remarkable fine feat of seamanship when the state of the tide is considered.

Advantage is being taken of the school holidays by the members of the Thames district schools committee to tidy up the grounds of the Central School and the asphalt playground is undergoing a. tarring and patching treatment.

In comparison with August, 1928, there have been very few deaths in Thames last month; Last year there were no less than 17 people passed away during August, whilst this year only 4 have died. There have been 54 deaths during the eight months as against 59 in 1928.

One of the remarked upon things in Thames by a number of Auckland people was the beauty of the Thames War Memorial, many expressing the thought that with all its population. Auckland had nothing ,to show which in any way approached the local memorial.

In so far as house property is concerned there is practically no demand at the present time in Thames, but the demand for small farming areas is still unsatisfied and buyers are inspecting properties further afield in the Peninsula. \>

Many remarks were made yesterday bv visitors who travelled down the Coast Road at the beautiful scenic effects. Particularly was this the case near Puiu where a number of fruit trees are now a mass of blossom. .

On the natural increase basis the population of Thames is steadily, increasing since there have been 36 more births for the eight months of this year already past than in the previous year. Last year the figures were 91 for the period, as compared with 127 for the present year. The comparative months were 18 for 1929 and 13 for 1928.

The action of the Thames Rugby Union in erecting a barrier of scrim on the Sealey Street end of the High School ground on Saturday drew unfavourable <pmment from one disgruntled wouid-be tree spectator, who remarked, "Just like the Rugby-ites—-hanging out their dirty' washing in public." However, he was noticed inside the ground later, so presumably he parted up. .. / The coastal portion of- the main highway, between Coromandel and beyond Kerita, is reported to be in bad condition, consequent upon the activities of the Main Highways Board's operations. The work of cutting off points and widening the road is causing slips to occur,, and motorists have difficult\ T in getting through, states a contemporary. As a matter of fact a Thames Star reporter was over the same road yesterday and found it to be in particuarly good condition.

A Stratford resident states that he saw a unique sight while travelling from New Plymouth to Stratford one afternoon recently. The sun was sinking below the mountain and had thrown a clear outline of Egmont on a bank of mist, which shrouded the hills to the east. He also stated that it was a common sight to see the . mountain outlined in the clouds surrounding it.

A firm of tailors wrote to the Te Aroha Borough Council offering to quote for a Mayoral robe or a town clerk's gown. Cr. McMahon: I 'think we should get a. wig for the Town Clerk. Cr. Kennedy: I When we go into our new offices you should have the robes, Mr. Mayor. The Mayor: What about a cap and bells at the same time?

Tn his report to the * Hamilton Beautifying Society at its last meeting, the foreman reported that a number of bulbs had been stolen from Memorial Park. The footprints were those of. a lady, he said. In making the request that the press take special note of this, a Society member remarked, "Put a question mark after the word 'lady.' "

"Cold!" remarked a Christchurch visitor who has been spending a few days in Wanganui. "AVhy, jour climate is worse than ours. As a matter of fact," he added, "the willow trees in Christchurch are showing much more leaf than they are here. Bo you always have this sort of a spring?"- he asked.

The stopping of three days' pay from the salary of a master at a Wellington college because he had been absent on a Friday and Monday to attend the diamond wedding of his parents was characterised as a "very petty" thing at yesterday's meeting, of the college board of governors.

How often are people with electric light bills of 7/- or 8/- heard bewailing the size of the sum which 'they have to pay! It may be of interest to know that one theatre in Wellington nays £3OOO a year to the City Council for its lighting, and two hotels in the same city are billed for £250 pemonth.

Probably no other district in the north shows a more remarkable response to. the genial spring weather of the last two weeks than the Hauraki Plains. A rich growth is to bo observed over most of the farms, and in some cases, already 50 per cent of the herds are under milk. The present month is recognised as of critical importance to Plains' farmers so far as weather is concerned, and given a continuance of recent mild condition, the opening season promises to be one of the most favourable the district has yet experienced.

Frequently people in sheer mirth shed joyous tears; but to be unable to stop crying is a feature of a peculiar case which came before a Yass (New South Wales) doctor the other week. A girl having no inclination to cry, could not help it. The doctor, unable to diagnose the case at first, sent the girl to a dentist, w hy by X-ray found a growth pressing against that mechanism in the human body which makes peorsle weep. Apparently an operation will be necessary to stop the" girl's tears.

A tribute to the efficiency and smartness of the Napier police is paid by a party of Auckland commercial travellers. While in Napier recently, they purchased some petrol and emitted to receive the change for a £5 note. As it was their' first visit to Napier and they did not knoWv the name or locality of the firm, they communicated their loss to' the Napier police About three days later they received a money order telegram from the sergeant of police at Napier for the balance of the money, £4/8/6.

A golf club has been formed at Ngaruawahia, and a writer in the local press thus speaks of prospective happenings: "Now .that we have a golf club (one made up of human beings; not the inanimate one used either to knock, the little ball above, excavate hollows in the . earth, or wound the bowels of the air), the weird, mystic, and wonderful golf language will resound in our streets, and such terms as slice, bogey, stymie, divot, birdie, shall be as familiar in their mouths as household words. Golf was once a game; then it became a science; now it is an obsession."

When the Diomede sailed from Lyttelton last Monday she left behind one of her compilement who had come out to the Dominion from England with the ship. A notification and full, description of the absentee were sent from the warship on her arrival at Pidton, and as a result of inquiries riiade by the harboua-master (Captain T M. Hunter) the deserter lias been located in the vicinity of the Harbour Board's No. 5 shed, where he had, doubtless, been attracted by congenial Companionship. However, .he has so [far evaded capture, but when he is rounded, up he will be crated. and retjurned to his ship, on which he is probably described as a '.'cat; tabby, Tom, Persian, first class."

."The high prices looming on the horizon at the beginning of test season enticed' a number of suppliers to butter factories to change over to c'heese, and, unfortunately for them, their expectations were not realised," said a prominent dairyman in the course of a few remarks on prices and . prospects > a day or two ago. Continuing, he said that some, of course through 'a possible misunderstanding went to other butter companies, while others stopped milking altogether. This changing over from one company to another is a very serious detriment to the industry today, and is a loss to the farming community of many thousands of pounds annually. '

: When lecturing at Wellington about the damage done to buildings in the area affected by the recent earthquake, Mr. A. S. Mitchell showed on the screen a .slide of one building which had been damaged but not shaken down. An investigation of this building, one of fair age, had reveaJed that in its constft*uction practically everything that should have been done had been left undone, and that most of what had been done should not have been done. "There are only two reasons thajb I can think of why this building has ever stood up at all for aft these years," remarked Mr. Mitchell. "One is that it has stood so long from force of habit and the other is that it has stood by the gi'ace of God'." Busy people along the banks of the Wanganui River the other day reaped a harvest by gathering firewood. One. enthusiast secured a birch log sufficient to last him for a week or more and left his prize on the bank while he proceeded further upstream in search of more. On his return he found a youth in the act of rolling the log back into the water. "What's the game?" he demanded. The youth thus appealed to vouchsafed the answer that he had seen so much debris floating seawards that he imagined the City Council workmen were cleaning up the banks. "I was only giving them a bit of a hand," he added. What the hard-worked wood-gatherer thought about the matter, has not been revealed.

A decision was come to recently by the Wanganui City Council to increase the charges to motorists for the use of the Aramoho Park camp. The Wanganui Automobile Association is of opinion that the action of the council is unwarranted and points out that a bed for a , night at three or four boarding houses in Wanganui can be obtained for 2/6. The parking fees for a car and tent hire at Aramoho, under the new scale, would be 6/6, against 5/6 for bed for two people at a boarding house. The association further points out that if the proposed charges are insisted on, Aramoho will be the second dearest camping site in New Zealand, one in Auckland, which is privately owned, being dearer. The co-operation of the Chamber of Commerce and the Development League is being sought, and it is likely that a deputation of all three bodies will wait on a meeting of the Council's reserve Committee. •

A very heavy fog was experienced over the northern end of the Plains and in the gulf yesterday. The fog lingered long during the morning and was seen later in the day lying- off the islands at the mouth of the Firth..

The fierce barking and growling of a deg in Invercargiil the other afternoon, made passers-by think a. dog fight was in progress, but a glance in the direction of the noise showed that a boy, a dog and a bicycle were entangled. Obviously the boy had run into the dog with* disastrous results to both. The fox-terrier, however, was not content to regard it as a pure accident, but determined to have its revenge by biting the boy. As the latter tried to rise and extricate himself from the bicycle, the dog barked, growled, and snapped at him. The boy was feeling sore from his fall, but was sorer still at the dog's action. Even when he did rise to his feet the dog made fierce rushes at him. A "shopkeeper came out to sympathise with him. but-still the dog kept xip its attack's. The shopkeeper's daughter thought it time she displayed sympathy of a more practical form, so she came forth armed with a broom and held the dog at bay while the boy dusted his clothes and pulled himself together.