DISTRICT COUNCILS
District Councils. MINTARO, May 1. Present— All. Tenders accepted—Contract No. 10, J. Ryan, £1 12s 6d par chain. For making a new assessment, T. J. Horgan, £15. Tenders for rolling maintenance to be re-advertised. The clerk to get portion of the cemetery re-surveyed, Nominations to be received until Saturday, June 12, 1916, for the election of three councillors in place of Crs. Tickle, Faulkner, and Roberts, and for one auditor in place of Mr. J. C. Hunt, all of whom retire by rotation, but are eligible for re-election. Mr. A. Hay appointed returning officer. Tenders to be called for fencing portion of the cemetery, and for five years’ lease of the portion fenced off. Also for making 17½ chains new road near Martindale station, and for several chains reforming in Hill River Ward. 600 yards mainteance to be broken at the quarry; left to clerk. Payments— General, £23 10s 6d; Main Road, £33 10s 7d.
NAMES OF RAILWAY STATIONS. MEANINGS AND DERIVATIONS.
NAMES OF RAILWAY STATIONS. MEANINGS AND DERIVATIONS. Mr. Alfred N. Day, Secretary to the Railways Comissioner, has, with the assistance of particularly Messrs. J. C. B. Moncrieff (Chief Engineer for Railways), E. M. Smith (Surveyor-General), H. C. Talbot, R. Cockburn, C.H. Harris, and R. Mercer, produced an interesting and valuable pamphlet giving the derivation and meaning of the names of the railway stations in South Australia. The following is the substance of the publication:— … Farrell’s Flat.—Derives its name from the fact that shepherd by the name of Farrell was lost in the locality. … Manoora.—A native name, believed to have reference to ‘spring’ or ‘water.’ The town was founded in 1830, and takes its name from the ‘Spring,’ a favourite camping ground of the natives at that time. … Mintaro.—A word of Spanish origin, meaning ‘camping or resting place.’
SCHOOL EXAMINATIONS
KOORINGA CENTRAL (BURRA). Hon. Local Representative—T. W. Wilkinson, Esq. — School Examinations. — Miss Malone, Mintaro Railway.— P.D. (dis.), pianoforte, M. Horgan. Sisters of St. Joseph Convent— E.D. (pass), pianoforte, G. Nieman; P.D. (pass), pianoforte, D. Rowe, V. Bruce.
Mintaro news
MINTARO, August 11. Owing to the slackness of trade at the Mintaro Flagstone Qurries (sic), the company had to dispense with twelve of their employes (sic) on Saturday last, which will be bad for the tradespeople of the town. Twelve months ago there were 47 men employed on the two quarries, at present there are only 14 employed. An earthquake shock was experienced at Mintaro on Thursday, Aug. 6, which caused several articles at Pulford Bros’, store and at different residences of the town to fall. It lasted for a few seconds. The weather is still keeping very dry, and the farmers would now welcome about two inches of rain for the crops and fallowing.
Church News
CHURCH NEWS Mintaro. The teachers and scholars of the Sunday school, at the close of Sunday afternoon session, took the opportunity of saying good-bye to Mrs. E. G. Priest—one of their oldest teachers who has been connected with the church and Sunday school for over thirty years. Mr. J. C. Hunt, the superintendant, on behalf of the school and congregation, presented Mrs. Priest with a silver afternoon tea service, appropriately inscribed. Eulogistic reference to the good work and untiring enthusiasm of the departing guest was made by Mr. A. Priaulx and A. L. Sandow. The secretary, Mr. Geo. Pulford, in a neat little speech, thanked the school, on behalf of Mrs. Priest, who leaves Mintaro, to take up her abode in Prospect.
LABOR NEWS. MINTARO RELAYING WORKMEN.
LABOR NEWS. MINTARO RELAYING WORKMEN. It is understood that the trouble that occurred a fortnight ago among the men engaged on the relaying railway work at Mintaro, over a non-unionist, has not been settled satisfactorily to all concerned, and yesterday afternoon Mr. J. Murphy (secretary of the U.L.U.), in response to a telegram, left by train for Mintaro.
TROUBLE AT MINTARO. NON-UNIONIST OBJECTED TO.
TROUBLE AT MINTARO. NON-UNIONIST OBJECTED TO. Mintaro, December 9. The navvies employed at the Mintaro station on the railway relaying declined to start work yesterday at noon, as one of their number refused to take a ticket in the union. The head authorities being on the scene immediately paid them off, as they could not settle the dispute. Over 100 men returned to the city by the afternoon train. The cause of dispute is a Seventh Day Adventist, who will not work the full week. He says he is wiling to subscribe to the union, but will not abide by their rules. Work on the relaying is now at a standstill.
THE MINTARO TROUBLE. QUARRYMEN AFFECTED
THE MINTARO TROUBLE. QUARRYMEN AFFECTED. No settlement has yet been effected in connection with the trouble that occurred with the relaying gang on the railway line at Mintaro on Tuesday, when about 100 men ceased work as a protest to one of the employes declining to take a ticket in the United Laborers Union. Mr. J. Murphy (secretary of the U.L.U.) returned to Adelaide by the Melbourne express on Wednesday morning, and, having made enquiries into the matter, he made the following statement:— “I was surprised to learn, on my arrival in Adelaide, that a lockout had occurred at Mintaro. Apparently the man who has caused all the trouble is backed up by some of the officials of the Government, who have notified the men engaged at the Burra quarries, where the ballast for the line is being procured, that they would be required to go down on the line and take the places of the men who ceased work. These men refused point-blank to have anything to do with the work on the line, and they have been told that if they do not accede to the request the quarries will be closed down. Apparently the officials are joining the ‘red-raggers’ in an endeavor (sic) to bring about a big strike. If this attitude is persisted in it will have serious and far-reaching effects, for such actions will not be tolerated by members of the U.L.U.”
UNION TROUBLE AT MINTARO
UNION TROUBLE AT MINTARO PLATE-LAYERS CEASE WORK. Adelaide, Tuesday. The Hon. J. Verran asked the Commissioner of Public Works, Sir Richard Butler, in the House of Assembly to day, if he intended to keep 110 men idle at Mintaro through the obstinacy of one individual. Also whether it was wise to give all these men their walking tickets until that one man came into possession of all his faculties. The trouble referred to by Mr Verran occurred through a non-unionist being employed in relaying work at Mintaro, and who, it was stated, had been informed by the men that he would either have to join the union or leave the job. Sir Richard said he had advised the Railways Commissioner, if that was the attitude adopted by the men they had better be paid off. With the exception of three or four men this had been done. The Government would not allow the men to d[i]ctate to them as to who should be employed by the Government. Neither had the Government made any enquiries as to whether the men were unionists or non-unionists. If they did fairly good work the Government would keep them on, but they would not submit to d[i]ctation of that character.
ORIGIN OF THE NAME MINTARO
MISCELANEOUS. … ‘Martindale.’—Cockburn’s ‘Nomenclature of South Australia’ states that the word ‘Mintaro’ is of Spanish origin, and means ‘camping-place’ or ‘resting-place.’ The version given is that in the early days the Burra Mining Company imported some Spanish muledrivers with their teams to cart ore. On their way to the Burra they were so struck with the fertility of the land on which Mintaro is now situated that they encamped there for some weeks, and subsequently made it a resting-place on their way to Port Wakefield with ore.