COUNTRY NEWS.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LX, Issue 17059, 11 August 1917, Page 5

COUNTRY NEWS.

ITEMS OF PERSONAL INTEREST.

AN ALLEGED ILLEGAL HORSE-

RACE

A SUGGESTION IN RESPECT TO WOMEN'S WORK.

Mr. and Mrs. M. J. M. R. de St. Laurent, of Hawera, celebrated their diamond wedding at Hawera this week. Mrs. W. Brent, of Hawera, has received advice that her brother, C. Ciochetto. who went away with the machine gun section of the Ninth Reinforcements, has gamed his commission. ~. Major Wylie, late of New Plymouth, now in charge, of one of the Britisli base hospitals, where he has been doing splendid work, has been created a Companion of the Order of St. Michael and St. Georete.

On June 27th last a horse trotting match took place between Rahotu and , Opunake in the Taranaki district, and as a result the two persons who conducted the race will appear before the ' Magistrate's Court on the 16th inst., on a charge of illegally conducting a horse-race contrary to the provisions of the Race Meetings Act, 1909. .Gunner J. T. Cuff, killed in action, was the youngest son of 'Mrs. E. Cuff, of Halcombe. Another son was killed at the front some time ago. Deceased was a member of J Battery, and went away with the Main Body. The Tararua Ranges are at present nenrily rapped with snow. No fewer than 28 distinct earthquake ' shock* were felt in the Wangaehu Val- - ley (Wairarapa) on Monday last. Regarding women's work in war time, Mr Moss (of the Efficiency Bonrd) has a suggestion to make. He said that a % great many women had expressed themselves as willing and eager to work on the land, hut some of them little \ knew what it meant, and were utterly "i imsuited to work under rough condi- j tions. The best way in which they could ' \ help would be by going to do workjn. ," country homes, thereby releasing'the ' strong and capable country women, who could tackle farm work with success. . :

As th© result of the earthquake at " MastertoJi, fissures have been caused ,'" on a number of properties to the east of the town. Several siips have also been brought down. There is a big demand at Masterton j for tanks, bricks, mortar, and brick- j layers, by country residents who sui- \ fered as a result of the recent earth- . quaKes. '

A Feilding farmer says that if he ' Cviild take any more stock on Jais tarm •' he would buy ewes in lamb. The prices for hoggets, compared with ewes, make ' * the latter easily the better proposition. ' It is further said that the only farmer who will be in trouble during the - coming season will be the one who has • been running round year by year from company to company to sell his stock. ~ i'Jach company will preserve' tho interests of its own clients first. The man -' wlio has i>een chasing after the last six- "- pense p«ir head each season, will now ? wet what is coming to him l'

Th c ltata Dairy Company's balance- . sheet shows that £59,094 had been re- ' ceived for butter fat > during the past season. Payments for butter fat amounted to £43,090. The Levin-l)airy Co. had a profit of £447 to divide amongst the share- ► holders.. . t'

Mr Benjamin Mansfield, a returned "Anzac," and one of the first men on ' > Gallipoli, well-known as a reciter of i- *' Ginger Mick" and "The Sentimental - Bloke," has been appointed secretary to "' the Palmerpton North Hospital and Charitable Aid Board. He has been ' since his ri»tnrn employed as cashier ■' by Messrs Dalgety and Co. At St. David's Presbyterian Church *' (Palmerston North) annual meeting, Mr Vernon said he considered that the ', large churches in the cities were Jone \ reason for tne fact that the people did } '• not attend so well. He strongly advocated smaller churches, and more of >

tnem —onurcnes to accommodate thi;ee or four hundred people,, where the ptople got to know each other and the minister could, keep in touch with all his flock. ■;■■■ •.

The difficulty of managing two farms , or more at a time, owing to their being \. separated by a lew miles, lias ofceu been emphasised at sittings of the Appeal Boards At Palmerston North, on' Thursday a young farmer was trying to show what could be done in that '

direction. He managed several thous- >. ands of acres, made up of different blocks of land. Starting with the homestead as a sort of root, the other

six farms sprouttsd out in all directions" —north, south, east anod west —with

various mileages between them. As the Board eudaavouifid to follow the perigrinations of the appellant from oue farm to another, the Chairman was' heard to murmur: "Here we go round; the mulberry bush." x |

The population in Taranaki counties - is made up as follows, and by way of comparison the Census of 1911 is ;' shown in parentheses: Clifton 2156 '?■ (2198); Ohura 2382 (1436); Taranaki 7100 (6245); Egmont 3264 (3264): , Whangamomona 1387 (1615) ; Stratford ~ J 5152 (5226); Eltham 3393 (3339); Wai- J mate West 2635 (2358); Hawera 459$ 1

(3659); Patea 3759 (3565). ' j At a meeting of the Hawera Bor- I ought Council, the Mayor, in reply- to $ a question, stated that the Council w.ereCf landlords and trustees of certain licens-$j ed premises in the town. A councillor^ then said : "1 will move that this Uouik^ cil ask the Rev. Mr Blamires to re-jv tract the statement made by"him when '] he said that anything that the Hunt (meaning the Germans) have done bariM be sheeted home to the liquor traffic.*' The Mayor: "The motion is quite out!; of our province; I will not accept any v such resolution. I will rule that the resolution is out of order."

OWr F. A. Law, of Hawera, has r«£ ceived advice that his second son, Pte; J. JI. Law, has been wounded and gasat cd. He went away with the Ninths,

and proceeded with the Anzac Owps '. to France, where he was through, the • Somme and Messines fighting. Appar- ' ently he was wounded in one of the counter-attacks following the battle of Mcssmes.

The Hawera Borough Council has aDpointed Cr. C. Cumming to be its vo-Ji prcaentative on the Hawera TechnieaTT College Advisory Committee. ■ _, Building permits to tne value of ■■ £1491 were issued by the Hawera Bor- ' ough engineer during the past month. The Waverley Bowling Club, at its .' annual meeting, decided that no liquor,> be allowed on the green except on match days. This is the rule which thb. Hawera club has generally observed , for several years past. , The mother of an ex-soldier, resi- i dent in the Manawatu, wrote to the'- 1 Taranaki War Relief Association re-' turning thanks for assistance, not now further needed.

At the Rahotu sale yards. Mr H. Stbnex's herd of pedigree Jersey cattle were disposed of by auction. The highest price obtained was 55 gns for a 7-, year cow. The 10-year-oM bull X gee 7th, by X.C.8.. was mirchased by, Mr.

,T. H." Street, of Bell Block, to head

his herd, at 34 gns

Lambs and calves are making- their appearance in North Taranaki, andvarious farmers "will have a busy time. as labour is so scarce. • '-