Fires in Australia.

Manawatu Herald, 7 January 1905, Page 3

Fires in Australia.

GOVERNMENT RELIEF FOR

SUFFERERS, j

OYER £IOO,OOO WOR'{?H OF DAMAGE.

MELBOURNE, Jan. 5. The bush fires at Ret.nangra destroyed 20,000 acres of igrass. - -At Yea over a. thousand sheep were burned. j At Rusworth several' ’•.veilings were burned. ? I At large areas were swej. . r.., tv, o persons severely bvneu. Bain extinguishedthe Twenty-five per cent i' m raisin crop at Mildura ha" ucc : c4roy d by fire. SYi» ■ Jan. 5. 'The Government, Ini, • .:nscrnci,ed officials in the country iiv . , without restraint, relief in *;■- shape of food, clothes and shfiter to the sufferers by the bash fi ;es-. The Premier lias stated that so long ns a penny reri^e' 1 - h: the Treasury no one would be allowed to suffer from she disaster. The railways are carrying stock from the burnt districts at reduced rates. It is estimated that £IOO,OOO will not cover the losses by the fires. In Delegate district and round Katoomba an area of twenty miles was swept. Many farmers were completely burned out. The Ward Bros, lost their wopl shed, wool, 3000 s’»sep, and 200 cattle. McKillop lost his wool shed and 250 sheep. i |. , IT swept. The small settlers are k suffering extensively. f In the Corowa, Culcairn and Germanton districts the farmers on the half principles are amongst the worst sufferers. Goodwin lost GOO acres of crop; Clifton, 260 acres; Connell, 400 acres of wheat, Brown, 500 bags; Pilkington, 150 bags and 100 acres of crop ; Edol, 40 acres ; Smyth, 250 acres, 500 sheep and some cattle ; Keene, 300 bags of wheat and 250 acres of crop ; Kentucky station, over 1000 sheep. At Culcairn, Kerudeen station lost 15,000 acres of grass and 2000 bags of wheat j Griffith, 4000 bags «of wheat and 300 cattle ; ( otterill and Odewalin, each 2000 bags of wheat; • Kitross station, 70,000 acres cf grass; Higgins, house, machinery, crop and 400 sheep. Hundreds of others all over the country have had smaller losses. FURTHER DETAILS OF | LOSSES. ■L Atf Rye Park six hr Vea were ■ bifraed. Morgan Bros. m> 10,000 ■ jMcea of grass, and Iwstate £IOOO worth of fencing, beHFsides grass. B Vessels report encountering large crowds of butterflies and other inm\ sects many miles out to sea, evidently f having been driven from the heat of of the bush fires. At Adelong, Greenhill’s Station lost all its grass, woolshed, and about 4,000 sheep. The homestead was also burned. jEllerslie * and other large stations were swept of grass and miles of fencing, much stock, outbuildings and machinery being destroyed. h At TreWeek, 600 sheep and an (■old man named Dowdell perished trying to save his hut. Two F others were badly burned while fighting the flames, and have been taken to the hospital. It is estimated the damage in the Albury district will exceed £200,000.