LOCAL AND GENERAL

Waipukurau Press, Volume XXVIII, Issue 61, 6 March 1933, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Onga Onga Dance A dance is to be held in the Onga ' Onga hall on Monday, April 17. Alleged Gaming-house Police visited the National Club, in Wellington on Saturday evening. It isunderstood that as a result two men will appear in the Police Court this morning to answer charges relating to the conducting of a common gaming house. Gale at KairakaU A very severe gale was experienced at the beach recently.. The wind swept along the beach, carrying clouds of sand and small stones and levelled a number of fences, also outbuildings, doing a considerably amount of damage. Fortunately there were not fnany in residence or considerably more damage would have been done. Conversion. Offers Plentiful A special staff is working at. the Treasury day and night to cope with the ever-increasing volume of work connected with the conversion of the Government’s internal debt of £115,000,000. Up to late on Saturday night offers of conversion were still streaming in, holders of securities .valued at nearly £24,000,000 having signified their willingness Io acept the lower rate of interest. Rich Lands “How many sheep to the acre would the good land in Ireland run?” was a question put to Mr J. S. Lacey by a Wanganui Chronicle reporter during a talk on Ireland recently. Mr Lacey, who has recently returned from a nine months’ trip, said that X much of the land was too rich for sheep. In New Zealand terms it would be 10 to 12 sheep-an-acre country. Instancing its production, he said that some of the land had been unturned for 15 or 20 years and even then the farmer took 10 to 12 tons to the acre of hay off it. In New •*’ Zealand a good crop was three and a-half tons. The only manuring the ground would have was about six weeks’ growth of “after grass” following the cutting of the hay. Some of the hay was auctioned in the field and would fetch £8 to £l2 an acre. The farmers were very loth to turn the ground as it took several years for the bed of grass to develop again. Teaching the Maori “Handwork in the native schools has suffered from the belief that the Maori is gifted with an inherent ability in manual skill,” states the report of the chief inspector of native schools. He admits that the Maori has good hands and that he can do remarkably good work when suitably instructed, but urges that this instruction must be graded and continuous. It is wasted time unless well planned and organised. In a few schools a beginning was made a year ago in the revival of Maori arts and crafts. This has meant the enlistment of the eldei- Maori to assist and that has been found one way of more closely welding the schools and the kainga. Native schools number 139 and their pupils over 7500. They are praised officially for their “most creditable” attendance record. Lawlessness in China A well-known New Zealand missionary in China writes to a friend in Dunedin: “There is a good deal of distress in China;, in fact it is a wonder the country keeps going at all, for lawlessness is the order of the day, so that life and property are quite uncertain quantities. The Communists continue to make headway, and they have got control of large areas of country. The troubles up in - < Manchuria get more aggravated as days go by. The Japanese are finding that they have undertaken a bigger task than they bargained for, when a year ago they started military action against the existing regime. Groups of so-called Chinese volunteers are harassing them in a persistent way, apd there is constant 1 fighting without any result except to add to the misery of honest citizens. In spite of all this lawlessness and Wickedness, missionary work is operating in a wonderful way in various parts of China. ’ The authentic display of autumn and winter fashion goods is now on view in our showroom? The latest-interpretations of what is being shown in London and Paris will be on view . Ensembles of the latest wool materials, in newest ’ colours and styles. Frocks that are 1 ' chaining and distinctive. Hats that'iare different, at . MATHEWSONS, Ltdq Parker’s Chambers, Hastings Street, JJTapitfr. ’Phone 747.