DRY IN HAWKES BAY

Hokitika Guardian, 31 March 1931, Page 5

DRY IN HAWKES BAY

Not for a long time have Hawke s Bay pasture lands been so terribly dry or feed so scarce at this time of the year, says the “Daily Telegraph. The drought is in most cases far more serious from the point of view of the farmers than the damage to their properties by the earthquake. Tn many oases slips resulting from the big earthquake or those that followed have blocked up creeks and water courses and onused an entire absence of water in paddocks that have hitherto been well served in this respect. An illustration of the general hard times was reflected at the Hawke’s Bay County Council meeting, when a letter was received from CTownthoi’pe settlers asking for permission to graze their stock on the country roads. The practice is of course, illegal and the permission was refused, but several members were of opinion that it should have been granted. Whether permission is granted or not. many farmers in the drought-stricken areas are grazing ‘•the long acre" just now and one cannot really blame them, although the practice is a dangerous one from the motorist's point of view. The dry spell in Hawke's Bay has* now lasted over a vear.