EFFECT OF THE DROUGHT

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 198, 16 May 1919, Page 6

EFFECT OF THE DROUGHT

—J —4 ,„ A MILK FAMINE IN-PKOSPECT. Already in tho Auckland province the drought conditions have , very seriously curtailed the supply of milk. With the Wellington province rapidly drying up, owing to the remarkable shortage uf early winter rains, inquiry was made 'yesterday as In whether Wellington's milk supply was being affected. Air. H. A. Ward, manager of the Municipal lUilk, Department, slated to a Dominion re-, purler that already tho dryness of the iseason hud had an appreciable effect on milk supplies. There was usually a drop al this lime of the year, but since the end of March local supplies had dropped 100 per cent. Aβ the result of the sudden shrinkage'they had to go further afield for their supplies, wJiicli meant additional expense to the department. Particularly was that the case in respect to the conveyance to town of Sunday's milk, owing to the inadequacy of the rail-, way service. It. had come to this now, that they bad to send out four big motorlorries—two to Otaki and two to Feathevston—each Saturday evening, and, with luck, they returned to town on the Sunday evening, each bringing from GUI) to 800 gallons of milk.- That is what Wellington depended on for its Monday's milk. If the lorries broke down or one of the many shaky bridges .collapsed whilst a lorry was passing- over, the result would be .an acute shortage. The present condition of some of the bridges over which the lprries had to travel wae not at all satisfactory, ami it would bedoing the city a service if they could be strengthened 'by the local bodies concerned. Both Wairarapa and the Manawatu districts, were very dry at present, and if tho rain held off for another three weeks the prospect of a milk famine in Wellington was not a remote one. Hawke's Bay had dried up completely, and no milk was obtainable from Tara/ naki, ae the farmers there did not afe a rule go in for winter milking. . • Mr. Ward produced a communication from Blenheim which stated that there was a great milk shortage (owing to the dry season); and most of the vendors, were relying on, factory suppliers to. keep them going, so there was no chance of augmenting supplies "from across the strait. "So you see," said Mr. Ward, "whilst flie addition of water to milk is not permissible, wo can't produce milk without i ivatei'." ... ■