THE WEATHER.

Press, Volume LV, Issue 16435, 31 January 1919, Page 9

THE WEATHER.

A BRIGHTER OUTLOOK. Yesterday morning broko with weather conditions the reverse of promising, ghowcrs f°N during tho' greater part of the forenoon, and the afternoon was njgo nnpropitious, but towards 4 o'clock + h e rain clouds lifted, and the subseJraent conditions, although by no means Rattled, indicated clear weather for tho ■eek-end-. An additional 37 points of ram wero registered at tho Ashbitrton Domain Cither station at 9 a.m. yesterday, brtoffßS the total fall U P to 3 - 74 in ctnoe the rain commenced, on Monday morning- Heavy showers of rain foil throughout yesterday. ; The weather remains Trretcnealy weu m % cold in Akaroa. A thick drizzle (eU all day yesterday, a fact that deepened the "discontent of the fanners, irhose grass seed is waiting to be cut or is lyiDS overlong in a well-soaked condi""At "&c last week-end the early corn \ ,^, s in the -Geraldino district were ripening very quickly in the hot, 6ultry Teatber and north-west winds, and on patnrday the reaping machines were avervwhere busy among the oats. oo rapidly had these ripened off, that ?n nlacee"where hands were in short supply it was deemed expedient to go ahead with catting operations, and leave tho gheaves upon tho ground to await etooking. Good, harvesting weather then seemed almost assured, but unfortunately a steady downpour of rain began on Monday morning, and in various places the sheaves have not yet been lifted from the ground. Tho rain has continued, with a short clearance on Wednesday morning, ■until the time when these notes axe written. At the present moment the outlook is extremely gloomy, and unless a change occurs very speedily tho promise of a .'ood harvest will not be fulfilled. In The Orari Bridge, Geraldine, Woodbury, and Pleasant Valley districts many of the best crops have boon badly laid by the heavy rain, but if given a f avounng opportunity much of the damage might &tiU be remedied. Some of the wheat is down, but in this way tho harm generally is not so bad. as was expected. Many of tbe oafc crops are dead ripe imd require to be cut at once. On the "i-ass lands tbe feed is again beginning a rapid growth, and the root crops are making excellent progress. Many of the low-lying lands aro partly under water, and all tho streams and rivers are'in high flood. IX SOUTH CANTERBURY. (press association telegram.) TIMARU, Januarv 30. The ruin which set in on Sunday continues with little intermission. Today was a full holiday in town for the friendly societies' picnic in the Park, but the rain made it a failure. Harvesting, which was in full swing before the rain, has been stopped for some time by the softening of the ground. The crops aro standing better than was expected, but some are down. The weather is cold as well as wet, and hard on newly-shorn sheep. The road to the Hermitage was made good on Wednesday. For some weeks past visitors to the Hermitage have been unlucky in the matter of the weather, being unable to get about. The present change is expected to be in their favour on it clearing. SERIOUS PLIGHT OP STERLING AND KAJTANGATA. RESCUE WORK BY BOAT. (PftESS ASSOCIATION TELIGRAM.) DUNEDIN, January 30. The position in regard to the floods ill the South has improved. At BaJohitha the Molyncus has fallen 2ft Bin. 1 -The bank is holding well, and tho dans> ger is now considered past. > .. Barnemo Settlement is completely inundated. Some sheep havo been lost, and the grass paddocks have been spoilt by silt. At Stirling the water is- subsiding very slowly, and tho outlook is not much improved. Stock losses are Email. The Kaitangata flats from • Lovell's Flat to tho sea are under water, and extensive damage has been ' done. Seventy homes are flooded. Provisions are being supplied by boat to several settlers. The flood water is 18 inches below the 1878 mark. The stocks of butter and flour are almost exhausted. The coal mines arc idle. The mail service is being maintained by boat from Lovell's Flat. Several. families are marooned, and rescue work is proceeding by boat. No' loss of. lifo'is reported. The water is rising slowly. The 3linister of Lands (the Hon. D. H..- Guthrie) visited the Stirling district to-day and got some idea cf the loss sustained by the residents. He re- . - cognised that the damage was serious, both.at Stirling and Kaitangata. Several houses havo collapsed at Stirling, and .the water is up to the eaves of - others. 'The Minister promised assistance to I the most pressing cases, and arranged for an engineer to visit the flooded area to ascertain what was necessary to restore the district to its normal condition. *■ The" - flood- prevented the Minister visiting Kaitangata, where the position is more serious. .SQUTHLAND RIVERS NORMAL. - ; (press association telegbam.) '■■'■' INVERCARGILL. January 30. •Reports at 5 p.m. show that the Southland rivers arc little above nor--Jnal. Light rain is falling, but the settlers do not think there is any danger of floods. FLOODS AT KAITANGATA. AMUSING SIDELIGHTS. Serious as the situation was tangata on Tviosday, it was not devoid "■ of humorous incidents (says tbe "Otago Daily. Times"). ■..-■■;■" The spectacle presented in the early hours of the morning before it was fairly' daylight must have been somewhat reminiscent of the retreat of the refusees. f rom the war zone in Belgium. ' Houses wero speedily vacated, and a steady trek commenced for the hills at tho north and south of the town. It was not an uncommon sight to see what , resembled a huge white bundle with, legs .attached struggling along towards the higher levels, but what, on closer inspection, proved to bo the head of the household laden with bedclothes and family heirlooms, white the mother, m charge of the offspring, brought up the rear.. Bath tubs, carpet bags, kit bags, and dress baskets, were packed with ! clothing and household requisites that .y 7 ) two easily removable, and in one in- -. stance a lad was seen balancing a cage containing a canary on his head as he ... walked along. Another lad, carrying in his arras a pig of tender years, passed' proudly along, evidently fully cofiscious of his great responsibility. Women hurried along with children under one arm .and loaves of bread under the otherT-be-smattered with mud from the motorcars occupied by their more fortunate sisters, the latter also unrecognisable '•■:..: beneath piles of bedding and household; effects. , .. Another amusing, and to some alarniing, feature was a largo number of min- , iature geysers playing in the streets . through large fissures, and even forcing their wav through the asphalt footpaths in the main .street. The §ilt formation •f the ground and the river running •everal feet above the level of tho town ,wers responsible for this unusual under- ' •,. ground activity, and although the main embankment endured the strain put % Opon it, the town was by no means free .from flood water, and several houses ,»«e affected.