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Western Star, 31 May 1904, Page 2

At the annual meeting of the Orepuki Band, held last week, the balance sheet showed that the indebtedness had been reduced from £64 9s 6d to £3B lls. Mr A. M. Dawson was elected president, and Messrs J. A. Adamson, A. M. Dawson, and W. Crowther appointed trustees. Mr N. K. McLean having resigned the position of conductor, Mr A, H. Abbott was appointed to the vacancy, Mr L. Prin'tz being elected loader. The Orepuki Cottage Gardeners Association have added an industrial section to their exhibition, and extended the district to Riverton. The exhibition will now, therefore, partake very much of the character of the Mataura exhibition, at which numbers of children in all parts of Southland compete in writing, drawing, etc. We have received from Mr G. N*

Pickett a photograph of the unveiling the Wallace Memorial to the fallen troopers. Mr Pickett is an amateur photographer, and we have to congratulate him on the excellence of the picture he has turned out. At the time the photograph was taken it was blowing quite a gale, and raining heavily, and it was as much as one could do to keep the camera erect, j The niinierpussprercoats and’ umbrellas in | use amongst the gathering suggest the motcpiadogicid conditions obtain- .1 ing during the course of the proceedings. I

The photograph was taken while Mr j. C. Thomson, M.11.R., was addressing the assemblage, and is the only record taken of the function. Copies of the photograph are on sale at Mrs Moore’s, Pal merston street. The Rev. J. T. Burrows, formerly of Riverton, and now of Dipton, has received a numerously-signed call to the Wallacetown charge. We would remind readers of the meeting to be held at Otautau on Friday f veiling for the purpose of promoting an agricultural and pastoral show to be held there. The exhibition held some years ago was a success, and the slock is in the district. All that is required is a little-

, enthusiasm. The promoters are Messrs , R. Guppies, D. Clark, J. King, J. B. For le and J. Garrick, I Tlie Japs have captured Kinchau, s wept I the Russians out of Talion wan, and coir- | pletcly blockaded the southern end of the Liaotung Peninsula. The Japs are

j now within twelve miles of Port Arthur, j where the women and children are taking i shelter in dug out caves within the inner fortifications in anticipation of what is I coming. In the recent engagements the j casualties have been very heavy. Owing the number of drifting mines, the

shipping of neutrals is being endangered, j and the Law Journal says the Powers ' should make representations to the hel- ) ligerents.

i Mr and Mrs Neil McLeod, who have resided at Heddon Bush for upwards of 25 years, were the recipients of a handsome illuminated address and a purse of • sovereigns on the eve of their departure from the district.

■ The Amateur Athletic Association of New South Wales has decided to cooperate with the New Zealand Association in bringing over a team of American athletes. The Victorian Association has similarly decided.

The Presbyterian Assembly of Buffalo (U.S.), by * majority of two to one, has prohibited its ministers performing the marriage ceremony between divorced persons.

On the disputed point whether a woman can serve on a school committee, the solicitors to the North Canterbury Board of Education point out that in the case of husband and wife, any qualification possessed by either of them is possessed by each of them, and that it therefore followed that if a husband was a resident householder so also was his wife, and she was entitled to be elected and to serve as a member of the committee.

At the annual ploughing match, open to all England, organised by the North Kent Agricultural Association, two of the 118 ploughs were drawn by motors, and were said to have done as good work as any horse-drawn ploughs in much quicker time. It is claimed that a motor can plough six acres a day.

Wednesday, the 13th day of July next, will be observed as a public holiday in the Government offices throughout New Zealand for the celebration of Arbor Day. The Gazette notice says : —ln order that the movement may be made as successful as. possible;- the : Government hopes that the Mayors of the various municipalities chairmen, of local bodies will place the matter prominently before the people of the colony, and do all they can to encourage the planting of public reserves and other available lands, both public and private, with trees suited to the locality. Speaking at an annual dinner of the several banks doing business in Wellington, Mr Stott, of the National Bank of New Zealand, said any bank inspector knew that where shortages of money were concerned investigation nearly always proved that betting was at the bottom of the practice. Ho also spoke in commendation of sport as a healthy hobby foe, men in sedentary occupations ; the ma,n who followed some form of sport generally went to work each morning in good health and with a clear brain. But sport should be followed for its own sake ; there should bo no betting in connection with it.

Says a Dunedin wire :—The position of licensing affairs came before Mr Justice Williams on Friday in the form of a motion for a writ of mandamus to tho Bruce Licensing Committee to grant the licenses applied for in June last or, in the alternative, to hear and determine the applications. Mr Adams, who represented the committee, other than the chairman, said that in the face of the Privy Council’s judgment, it would be useless for him to oppose the application. His Honour granted a mandamus, commanding the committee to hold a meeting within a reasonable time to hear the applications. ■ •

Mr Robert Guppies, who has recently sold his Terrace Farm to Mr A. Blatch, of Oiifden, holds a clearing sale on the Bth prox. It was announced that Mr Guppies intended making ‘ a visit to the Old Country, but Mr Guppies has so many attachments in this district that nobody here believes he will leave Otautau for any other place. Mr Thomas Cupples, who sold his farm a short time ago to Mr C. Cameron, of Canterbury, purchased a property last week in the Fortrose district. Mr and Mrs Cupples, ( the latter of whom has always taken a very prominent place in musical and social matters, will be very much missed by the Otautau people.— Times’ correspondent.

We have received from the Commissioner of Crown Lands a plan of several sections at Wakapatu which will be open I for selection on and after Tuesday, 14th June, under lease-in-perpetuity. I The mysterious epidemic called “ spotted fever,” which a recent cable stated : had been responsible for 456 deaths in New York, is a dangerous form of fever, 1 affecting the brain and the spinal cord. It occurs sometimes in isolated cases, sometimes in an epidemic form. In New Zealand we have only had it under the former type, and only a very few cases. Four serious epidemics have occurred in Europe and America during the last century, and then the fever extended over most of the continent of Europe, but it was never veiy prevalent in Great Britain. America has suffered worse than any other country in recent times. In its severe epidemic forms the fever is very fatal, the mortality ranging as high as 60 to 70 per cent. The causes that give rise to the disease are not well-known, but the infection germ is known and has been studied. The condition which seems most to predispose towards the fever is overcrowding, as its worst incidence has been in the barracks of. large garrisons. Although highly infectious, it is not contagious from person to person.

A curious feature of the best Tartar . sheep in Siberia is that they are fat-tailed, and they are reared for the fat on the tail. This fat grows through the summer, and a yearling will give 10lb of tallow. In the winter months the tail gradually disappears. It is a wonderful provision of nature. When no food is to be gut because of the snow, the animal guts sustenance by the gradual disappearance of the fat tail. When it is housed and fed in the winter .months the tail remains. This fat-tailed Tartar sheep is not, however, very good, for wool. Another inferior sheep is bred for the wool.

The movemeut to raise £20,000 in order to be able to take advantage of the bequest of the late Mr W Harrop (says the Otago Times) to build a new Anglican Cathedral on the site at present occupied by St Paul’s, was advanced a step when a representative meeting was held. It was decided to* form a Dunedin Cathedral Building Fund, and to appoint a commission of laymen with a view to ascertaining what measure of support might be expected. At the previous meeting ft was mentioned that £SOOO had been promised then, and the Primate announced that he had received two offers of £SO a year for an indefinite period. The Mayor of Dunedin informs us that he has received a cheque for £SO for the fund from Mr C. E. Greenslade.

At the Mauawatu Agricultural and Pastoral Association’s meeting on Saturday last Mr Wheeler said what truly accounted for the decrease in sheep was the increase in dairy cows end the fall in wool. The question of the number of sheep or cattle, he remarked, might safely be left in the hands of those who made their living by thorn. Jhe long spell of fine weather experienced of late in the country has allowed the roads to get into capital ; order, and taking advantage of this, farmers have been unusually busy carting grain. Owing to the low prices ruling, however, most of the grain is going into store, farmers not being disposed to sell.

The Wallace Mounted Rifles celebrate their third anniversary in the Good Templars Hall, Nightcaps, on Friday, the Prince of Wales Birthday.

Mr T. S. Mitchell, secretary of the local branch of the First Aid Society, has received a consignment of books, which members can obtain on application.

At the last Otautau sale a hue line of calves from Ermedale just off their mothers, realised £3 2s 6d per head. Some sheep bought at this sale, and which fetched a satisfactory figure for the seller, were disposed of at Wallacetowu the following week at an advance of 25 per cent. The high price of sheep shows that it will not do for farmers to leave the breeding to one or two.

. The Rose Casey arrived in port on Sunday, and after discharging cargo left at mid-day on Monday for South Cape to bring back the Colac and Riverton mutton birders. The weather having set in fine, and the wind being from the east, the embarkation may be effected to day, and the return of the steamer may be expected on Wednesday. The Rose Casey will take a cargo of timber from hero for Dunedin when she unloads the mutton birds, and is expected back with cargo from Dunedin on 13th prox. Entries of Poultry for the forthcoming W. D. A. and P. Association winter show must be made not later than Monday 13th J une.

In these days when rich people give a large sum of money to some object subject to a like amount being contributed, the following humorous sentence from Lorimer’s “Letters from a Self-made Merchant to His Son ” is worth reading ; —“But these millionaires who give away a hundred thousand or so, with the understanding that the other fellow will raise another hundred thousand or so, always reminds me of a lot of boys coaxing a dog into their yard with a hunk of moat, so that they can tie a tin can to his tail—the pup edges up licking his chops at the thought of the provisions and hanging his tail at the thought of the hardware. If he gets the meat, he’s got to run himself to death to get rid of the can.”

The contract has been let in Dunedin for the necessary alterations to the Rose Casey, so as to enable her to overtake the orders for freight which she is called upon to carry. The repairs and alterations will necessitate an outly of some £6OO.

Among the 150 stud sheep which Mr Alex. Saunders, of Otautau, is taking to the Transvaal per «.s. Suffolk are a number of Border Leiogsters from the flock of that well-known breeder, Mr David Roidio, of Gropers Bush. Some of the same breed were obtained from Mr John McOrostie’s, Waianiawa, ; and the Shropshires came from Waianiawa and Woodlands. They should afford a good advertisement for Southland sheep in South Africa.

Ploughing is being pushed on slowly in some districts ; in others it has not yet begun.

A branch of the Farmers Union has been formed at Ryal Bush. Miss Fairbairn has received the appointment to the Wild Bush school. The general opinion with regard to Heddon Bush Estate, which is now being cut up, is that the prices are moderate, and those who have already purchased seem highly satisfied with their bargains. A close holiday will bo observed at the local Post and Telegraph office bn June 3rd, Prince of Wales Birthday. Mails usually closing on Friday will close at 8 o’clock on Thursday evening. A special clearing of the receiving boxes will be made at 7.15 p.m. on Thursday, the office being open on that evening from 6 to 7 o’clock for a counter delivery of letters. There will be no letter carrier’s delivery on Friday.

A fire broke out in a room above Mr Harvey’s office, Esk street, Invercargill, at 7.30 this morning. The alarm was quickly given, and the brigade was soon on the spot. The outbreak was confined to one room, and the flames were subdued in about a quarter of an hour. The turnip crop throughout the district is large, but in instances where stock have been put on the “neeps,” it is reported that the yield of feed is not so great as appearances indicated in the early part of the season. Load trappers report that rabbits are fairly numerous, but complain very strongly of the number of rejects made at the freezing works. Even when prices are high this is always a serious loss, but at 4id per pair, it reduces trapping to an unremunerative occupation. Evidently the whole trade wants placing on a better foundation if the trapper is to get fair pay for his labor.

Mr Alan Spicer, who has been in business in Riverton as a photographer for the past 14 months, leaves this week for Invercargill, where he intends resuming business on a larger scale. The excel-

lence of his work has earned for him a good reputation, and wo wish him success. Another family left Riverton for the same town a short time ago. We refer to Mr and Mrs McLean. Mr McLean was a member of tlu firm of Messrs Tweedie and McLean, flourmillers. Their departure was regretted by numerous friends, who wish them every succes in their new sphere. John Jones, aged 20, laborer, was sentenced to two mouths hard labor at Winton for stealing Ll 7 odd from the dwelling of James Butcher. It is reported that sportsman have made great slaughter amongst the paradise ducks at Manapouri and on the Mararoa. Years ago big bags could be got in a few hours, but now they are becoming scarce, owing to incessant shooting.

Large numbers of ducks may now be seen on the lagoons at Mr Foster’s Thornhury, and on the Aparima estuary. Every shooting season the birds make for these sanctuaries, where they are safe from the guns of the enemy. Were it not for these retreats they would very soon be extinct as the moa.

As the offence of making false declarations for the purposes of the registers under the Marriage and Registration Acts is a growing one, the Registrar of Births, Deaths and Marriages, for the Riverton District wishes it to be known that the Registrar-General has instructed that proceedings will be taken in future at every possible opportunity to check the evil. In a recent case of (his nature before the Christchurch Supreme Court, the J edge remarked that the offence was a serious one. He would he very sorry that it should be takeiT for granted that a man could experiment in the direction of making a false declaration as to his marriage and get the advantage of the Probation Act or a light punishment. In that particular case the Judge said he was very reluctant to semi to gaol a man who had conducted himself well for years and he sentenced the accused to pay a penalty of LlO.

A two-year-old light draught gelding for sale. Apply at this office. Friday, 3rd June, Prince of Wales’ Birthday, is declared a public holiday. Stock sale, Thornbury, to-morrow. Sale of horses, etc., at Otaitai on Thursday.

Hall and Valentine’s entertainers opened in the Victoria Hall, Riverton, on Monday night to a fair house. The kmematograph pictures shown, both humorous and otherwise, were received with approval, particularly those shown of the Japanese and Russian battleships and cruisers, several of the latter Power’s ships, according to recent cables, now being disabled or sunk. Interesting coloured views were also shown of life in Japan. Throughout the entertainment songs were given, with limelight effect, by Mr Dudley Trent, who is the possessor of a good baritone voice, his rendering of “Daddy,” and “Ora Pro Nobis,” receiving well-merited applause. The latest comic songs and sketches by Bob Hall convulsed the audience. Altogether the entertainment is above the ordinary. The company appear at Colac to-night, Nightcaps, on Wednesday, Ist June, Otautau, Thursday, and Thorubury, on Friday, and patrons in search of a good night’s amusement should not miss the opportunity of hearing this talented com-* P’iny. The Drummond ploughing match takes place on Wednesday, 29th June, in Mr John Oerrard’s paddock, when the usual prizes will be given. The President’s Cup will be again competed for, which must be won twice, not necessarily in succession. Mr R. James, of Aparima, is the present holder of the trophy. The secretary would be j (leased to have all entries made on or before Saturday, 25th June.