COUNTRY NEWS,

Evening Star, Issue 3644, 27 October 1874, Page 3

COUNTRY NEWS,

By-and-bye a steamer will ply between the Taieri River mout'h and the Ferry ; per* haps it may even run in opposition to the railway up the Taieri Liver. Who knows? There is a man living at Waibola town ship who engages to swim anyone in Otago for a reasonable sum staked, distance from one mile and upwards ; the course to be chosen by competent local judges on the Waibola Lake. fey the way, with the facilities now offered, Waibola Lake ought to become a favorite bathing place. Mr Blair, the Government engineer, was over the route of the proposed branch railto the Bruce Coal Company’s property ot hriday. We believe Mr Blair was also over other country in the neighborhood, so that he is veiy likely to know the benefits which a branch line for the district would confer. Mr Higginson, of the Government engineer staff, accompanied Mr Blair. By a telegram received yesterday we learn that the man Lindsay, injured by a horse accident recently, at the (Jlutha, died yesterday. Pheasants are plentiful at Wangaloa. Californian quails ,are often seen at Lower Waipori, as well as hares and other acclimatised animals. Mr Landers, of the Kuri Bush district, has land equal to the famed Clutha bottoms, which are said to produce twenty tons of potatoes to the acre. The want of timber for building and mining purposes is badly felt at the Teviot. the new post office and other buildings have ® een a standstill for upwards of three months, and sluicing in many of the river claims is carried on with difficulty, owing to the want of timber f.. r boxes. A serious accident happened in the Otago Company s claim, Blue Spur, on Monday, by which Langley Popt had one of his legs fraetured and four ribs broken. A large piece of cement, which has been looked upon with suspicion for some time past by the men in the claim, broke in two, and one piece rolled upon Pop®, causing the injuries referred to. Nicholas Mills, who was working with Pope, had his hand grazed with the cement, hut luckily escaped any serious injury. It seems that every precaution was

taken by the men in the vicinity of this dangerous lump of cement, but when it broke the piece rolled further than it had been calculated upon. A large number of cattle and sheep are already falling victims to the poisonous tutu, which is now growing rapidly. fn ordinary seasons this plant caus. s the death of a large number of cattle, and owing to the scarcity of grass this spring the animals devour the tutu eagerly, making the losses proportionately large. An immense amount of damage has been done to the road and fences between Lawrence and Alexandra during the late floods. Culverts have in some places been totally washed away, and drains tilled in by falls of earth from the sidllngs. Between Roxburgh and Coal Creek many chains ®f fencing have been washed down by the floods, aud in some places mueh injury has been done to the growing crops.