NEWS AND NOTES.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLI, Issue 1978, 17 May 1919, Page 1

NEWS AND NOTES.

One result of the abnormal gardening - season which we have experienced in New Zealand is that persons who are accustomed to grow their own seeds have not been able to ripen them (says the Dunedin Star). This is peculiarly so in regal'd to vegetable seeds. Hence there will be an extra demand upon the seedsmen in the next spring. One gardener who is in a big way is as a stand-by keeping some of last season’s seed, taking care to pack it in airtight tins.

Threshing operations in the Palmerston South district have been much hindered lately by the exceptionally windy weather. The crop yield generally is very satisfactory, one paddock of wheat thrashing out (our correspondent is told) at about 90 bushels per acre. Good yields of potatoes also are reported in several quarters, but turnips are, for the greater pari, a failure.

The King Country is not generally drought-stricken, as are many other portions of the North Island, writes a Taumarunui correspondent. Fair rains have fallen in the Taumarunui district, where there is good feed. The country round Te Kuiti had a little rain at Easter, but has had none since. Feed is becoming short there, and it must affect the stock in the winter to some extent. Pain now would probably b ,; too late, as frosts would nip off the young growth. The position seems in no way serious, however, for the condition of stock at recent sales was excellent. From Otorohanga southward there is little cause for complaint, and the country round Aria is looking very well.

The yellow (lowered rala is of extremely rare occurrence in New Zealand, and a report that sonic lino specimens had been discovered in the Waitakerc ranges naturally arouses much interest (says the Auckland Herald). There seems, however, to be some doubt whether these are genuine yellows. Mr T. E. Gheeseman says he has seen about a dozen yellow rata. They are seen only occasionally, hardly more than one or two specimens in a clump, and perhaps twenty specimens have been observed. People are accustomed to see the ordinary crimson (lowered variety, and are rather surprised to see yellow (lowers, which may be simply an abnormal colour of the flower of a tree not different in other respects Horn the ordinary autumn flowering rata.

A stirring scene was witnessed outside the Palmerston railway station on Monday afternoon (says the Times). A well-known carrier, assisted by a lady and two dogs, (tiled the principal roles. The dogs concluded a short argument with an appeal to force, and the lady rushed forward with a horsewhip and laid lusty strokes across the back of one of the animals. The carrier who owned that particular dog came quickly on the scene, and, to show Ids resentment of the lady’s action, promptly Snatched the whip and broke it across his knee. By this time quite a crowd of spectators had gathered. The indignation of the fair one was roused to fever heat. Seizing a piece of the whip, she rushed the carrier and administered one or two vigorous blows across his face. Pacifists pronqdly intervened, and the conflict terminated.