COUNTRY NEWS.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 6132, 19 March 1898, Page 6

COUNTRY NEWS.

Holiday at Eangiora. — Next Thursday will be observed as a holiday at Bangiora, on the occasion of the State school excursion to Lyttelton. Bowling. — On St Patrick's Day three rinks of the Tinmru Bowling Club visited Oaniaru to play a match with the Phoenix Club, and for the first time beat them on their own green. The scores were: Timaru 59, Oamaru 53. St Patrick's Day Concebt. — At Ashburton the Oddfellows' Hall was crowded to the doors on Thursday night, when the St Patrick's Day concert was given. An excellent programme was provided, and was highly appreciated by the audience. Petty Laeceny. — A youth was convicted at Timarn yesterday of stealing bicycle material from two employers, cycle manufacturers, in turn; £L worth from Mr Gibson; and £2 worth from Mr Wood. The Stipendiary Magistrate gave him a chance by dismissing him with a caution, and ordering him to repay the value of the goods stolen by weekly instalments of two shillings and sixpence. The Late Band Contest. — The Timaru Garrison Band Contest- Committee, after squaring-up accounts connected with the visit of the Band to Oamaru, finds that it has a balance of .£65 12s in hand, the public having subscribed liberally towards the expenses of the trip. It was resolved to vote .£5 to each of the three secretaries, and the balance is held, for the present, to go towards tbe expenses of the Band's trip to Melbourne, or towards the cost of the new instruments. In Bankruptcy.— The first meeting of -creditors of J. D. Bennett, general dealer, Timaru, was held yesterday: The debtor estimates his deficiency at .£3700. In tbe course of his examination he stated that he would have been able to carry on and pay everybody but for having endorsed accommodation bills for David Owers, grocer (now bankrupt), to the amount of about .£350. He had asked Owers to endorse an accommodation bill for .£25 for him, and consequently when Owers asked him to assist him in the same way he could not refuse. Owers always assured him that he was safe, and that he had .£I2OO of good book debts. Although Owers came to him nearly every week to borrow a few pounds for a few days he did not suspect his financial unsoundness ; that had been a common thing in Timaru, he said, of late years.