WELLINGTON AGRICULTURAL NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 2810, 22 January 1908, Page 21

WELLINGTON AGRICULTURAL NOTES.

IThis district, along with other parts of the "North Island, js The now experiencing a very Ifeathir. " hot spefc Last Tuesday at midday the thermometer read 86deg.' in the shade and 117deg. in ihe sun. . It did not last long at that extreme, however, as "at 2 p.m. it was down to 92deg. in the sun. Since then the atmosphere has been so charged with smoke that the sun has been seldom clearly ■visible." Disquieting accounts are coming in ■from the bush districts of the devasta-' tion being made' by bush fires. On the East Coast the fires are assuming serious dimensions, as a' private telegram to-day from a Hawke's Bay sawmill says, "Tramways and bridges on fire, sawmills m jeopardy," while another message has just come ia stating that the Table Flat sawmill situated at the head waters of the Oroaa above "Kimbbttbn.is burned, and it is' said that a fire has started in the Government totara reserve, on tbe Pohangina River above Ashhurst. Should this fine reserve be destroyed it will indeed be a national loss." There- has been many attempts _mad 3 to get the Government to allow this timber to be utilised, the" argument made use of being that -it would disappear in smoke come day.. ' It is to be sincerely hoped that thi3 will not take place,, but if the fire has g&fc a good hold it is only a good downpour of rain that will save it, and of that there is no appearance at time of writing. — COur telegrams inform us that a timely downpour of rain has stopped the onward course of the fires.— Ed:] A friend who has just come down by the mail train - from the North Trunk railway line gives a doleful account of the state of things aSout^ Oakunie, fires raging amongst the settlers clearings and threatening the homesteads. In the older settled districts the grass is still too green to burn, and the fires cannot do the damage they have done in the bush country "*- The entries for this week's sales are a little larger than they have Stsck Xar-et. been, but there is no rush as yet. • Farmers are, apparently awaiting developments of the weather on the! Bast Coast, ;tne reports not feeing too good t as jo the state, of the pas*ures»" * A -2in" rainfall over there would 6end prices up here considerably! Supply and demand- no doubt commands the market in most cases, but rain has a big: say in the question at the present time. There are about 4000 sheep entered for Palmerston sale to-day, over 3000 of which are two to six-tooth wethers, ' which I suppose hay« iome from the East Coast. Feßdingr has only a 6mall entry of about 2000* nearly all of which aro two-tooths, and local sheep. 4_i lambs are reaching the railrrayi in

moderate numbers, and come farmers have got away afair number of milk lambs. The rape being late the season will no doubt be a protracted one. The Feilding show takes place on February 4 and 5, the entries for Shows. which close to-morrow." La3tf year the weather for the show was very bad, so it is to be hoped that the coming show wjll meet fine sunshine. The association, was out of pocket somewhere about £100 over last year's exhibition. .QTiis last week" or two . some JBIOO has been collected, and as ail accounts have been paid for the association is in a sound financial position. The prize-list is on a moat literal scale, there being many specials given." Fat lambs were a show of themselves last year, and should be better this season, as exhibitors better understand -what is required of them. The school gardens are now being examined and judged, and the results will be' announced' at the .show. The -committee is giving liberal prizes for those, and also for milk-testing by school children for which there is going to be great competition. Mr Brown, dairy instructor for the Wanganui Education Board, has been appointed judge of the "testing." and the Government has promised to send one of the dairy staff to judge the dairy produce. The usual ram fair will be held the day following the show. Masterton show takes place on February 18 and 19, and Woodville on February 26. • Th© weather could hardly; be better 'for this industry, but a considerDsirying, able quantity- of milk has to be refused at the factoriesthrough being l sour. In ' travelling it has often^ occurred to me how careless many dairymen are, when you see milk cans ; standing in the sun all along the road wait- | ing for. 1 - the neighbour whose- turn it is to j take to the.-'factory,- and even at the "i milking sheds 1 there is often no cover over -the ~ milk stand., , _«~— _ w' A dairyman was brought befove the court this week for being unlawMl'k- fully on the premises of the testiiig. Oroua Downs Dairy Company at Himatangi. He .pUaded "Guilty" (he was caught in the act), and was fined £2, with £5 2s 6d costs. It appears that the offender, thinking to catch the- manager over the test, entered the factory in the night in order to manipulate the testing bottles in some way, so as to prove the manager either careless or dishonest. \ However, he was discovered, with the above result. Mr Grahamj wHo appeared. for the accused, pointed out that he had acted very foolishly, but with no criminal intent, and the police said that the man had an excellent character. Th& magistrate (Mr A. D. Thomson, S.M.) said fie was satisfied the man went into the creamery with no criminal intent, but the charge a^inst him was one complete in itself, and the trespass was a- serious offence, as any person convicted was liable to 12 months' imprisonment. Under the act, however, he had the option of inflicting a fine. — — — It Is seldom that there is any great need to take- precautions against Firs iish fires on the West Coast Prerentisv. — in fact it is nine years 1 since there have been any fires of consequence, bu another fortnight's hot weather such as we are having will turn tho~ country into a tinder box — more especially in what has been bush land, where there is still dead timber lying: about. The destructive fires now raging on the East Coast should draw the careless farmer's. attention to the necessity of takingpreventive measures against any outbreak. The best insurance against fire at the homestead is cleanliness and tidyness. On wellmanaged stations or farms in Australia, where files may be expected every- year. as soon -as shearing is over the first thineattended to is to clean up the homestead; hoeing and raking tip all grass and rubbish about _ tbe stables and yards, and where there is no cultivated field with green crops they plough two or three farrows about a chain apart, and on a. calm night burn all the grass between, doing the same along, tbe ' boundary fences. It were well if something on the same lines were attempted in ' New Zealand. The first thing a settler ■in bush country should do is to clear all ', the logs and stumps thai will carry fire ' for a distance of eight or ten chains all round the building, and keep on extending '■ the area, and then by using the plough it is an easy matter to make the home immune from fire. Having effected thai, keep the farmyard swept clean of all inflammable material, and there is little to fear- Some farmers are very particular about not allowing any smoking about sheds or stables, and in South Australia they had a law prohibiting the nse of any. matcfw except "safety." and bo smoking allowed except the pipe had » cover to it- Tbe jnt majority of bosh fires, however, are doe to someone ntkine adranUgo of the wealhar to burn off rubbish, or traveCers throwine down a lighted mitten oa she tcadwdr. aad the railway engine is ako rf«r.ior.niWe Ear * i number. I _____ A confereacs of repxeseexscn-* from fee Xiiar aad three draTn-f boaxde Csaserratiea. net at Fahmentoa S6m& «n Wedaeadar. % 15A. to try to evolve sotxw unmn of nmfwt irtia-^ to safeguard against that aTOWOfH BQw* BCttff

made ,by the Manawatu and Oroua rivers and their tributaries.' The chief question at issue was how to define the area that should b& brought under the control of the proposed board. After many suggestions and amendments the following resolution was carried: — "That this meeting, grior to com*rfi!itting itself to any defined course of action, appoint a committee to investigate the whole question of the control of the Manawatu and Oroua rivers, and especially on the causes operating and their means of relief, and generally to obtain by evidence and inquiry that requisite amount of knowledge which will enable the committee to frame recommendations to place before j the delegates appointed 'at an adjourned meeting, such committee to consist of one j representative from each public body send- \ ing delegates to this meeting." Mr Gower I pointed out that Mr Hary was appointed ] by the Government to report on this river question two years ago, and that the report w&s ready. Indignation was expressed 'it the dilitorinese of the Government in publishing it. There is no doubt that fresh ] legislation wiil be wanted before any : scheme can be brought into force. The chief trouble will be to proportion the rates required. The land-owners away from the rivers will be ha^rd to convince that they should pay anything towards protecting their reighboura' property that is menaced. •Still it is to be hoped that the subject will be discussed from a national point, ac every acre now being carried out to sea means a loss to the Dominion of £20 or £30. Sow many 'goes in the course of the year is a difficult question to answer. ' ANTIGUA OVIS.