NEWS IN BRIEF

Te Ao Hou, Royal Tour 1953, Page 64

NEWS IN BRIEF Ngahape Block runs this rare white bull of Shorthorn breed, which won first prizes at the Te Kuiti A. and P. Show in three successive years. Calves from this bull and Polled Angus or Hereford cows are of magnificent quality. Photo: Ashton * * * Work is still continuing on the large Memorial Hall at Omarumutu, Opotiki, and a start has now been made on the exterior lining and decorating. The Ngati-Poua sub-tribe of the Whakatohea are selecting several women to go to Tikitiki, East Coast, to learn tuku-tuku work and scroll design so that they can return and do this intricate work in the hall themselves. They will be taught by Mr Pine Taiapa, of Tikitiki. * * * Highlight of a round-the-world trip by a Maori sheep farmer from Waiomatatini, Mr Warihi Tako, was a view of the Coronation procession from a window overlooking the route. Mr Tako also attended a garden party at Buckingham Palace and the races at Ascot. He spent a day with Lord and Lady Bledisloe. In Paris he was shown the tekoteko (carved figure), which once belonged to Titokowaru, the famous Maori fighting chief of last century. They have been in a French museum but are to be sent back to New Zealand. On his return Mr Tako spent a week in Honolulu, where he stayed with a Maori clergyman, the Rev. Manu Bennett. The kumara blight has as yet not made its appearance at Opotiki, and as a consequence the demand for kumaras, tipus and kumara plants has been heavy. Most growers predict a good year for kumaras and are putting in larger acreages. Market gardening is also taking on along the coast from Opotiki and the cultivation of tree tomatoes and other sub-tropical fruits is finding new enthusiasts among the Maoris. The export of frozen crayfish tails from Messrs Piacin Bros. factory at Opotiki to the U.S.A. and to Tauranga has given many Maori crayfishers at Whitianga and Te Kaha plenty to do in their spare time, and good money is being earned. Plentiful supplies are arriving at the factory and the demand is keen. * * * Four Maoris have been representing New Zealand's K-Force in the United Nations Platoon of the Eighth Army Honour Guard Company in Korea. They are G. Te Monou, of Feilding; L. A. Kearns, of King Country; D. W. Harris, and W. M. Clendon, both of North Auckland. The company has its headquarters in the South Korean capital, Seoul. * * * High distinction in nursing was won recently by a team from the Queen Victoria School for Maori Girls, Parnell. In the recent Dominion nursing cadet competitions of the St John Ambulance Association held at Dunedin, the team came second for New Zealand, being beaten only by a Canterbury team. It won the Linen Guild Cup. Alice Angell, leader of the Queen Victoria team, won the national championship for team leaders. Special honours were also gained by Toi Te Rito, who was nominated second best team member and scored the highest marks for both boys and girls in the resuscitation tests. * * * * Another Maori who is likely to be decorated by the Queen at an investiture during the Royal Tour is Mr Tohuroa Parata, who received an O.B.E. in the previous Honours List. Mr Parata is a grandson of Kakakura Wi Parata, the first Maori to hold Ministerial rank. For years Tohuroa Parata gave yeoman service to Rugby football, latterly as a referee. Though resident in Wellington, he spends a good deal of his time on his ancestral land at Waikanae. PRINTED BY THE PEGASUS PRESS LTD., 82 OXFORD TERRACE, CHRISTCHURCH, NEW ZEALAND