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Waikato Argus, Volume IV, Issue 244, 5 February 1898, Page 2

The present season has lieen (he most disastrous that fanners have ever experienced in this district. The long continued drought, while enabling the cereal crops to te successfully harvested, has reduced the feed to the lowest possible ebb and also prevented the sowing, or if sown, the growth of the turnip crop, on which so many depend fur wintering their stock. In many instances where dairying is followed maize is grown as winter fodder, and with the shortage in the grass it was hoped to tide over with this, but now this stay has been swept away and most farmers at the present time find themselves short of feed, and with little or no prospect of obtaining any. The frost experienced on Wednesday night and Thursday morning, has done irreparable damage throughout the length and breath of Waikato, snd from all sides we hear of ruined maize, potato and pumpkin crops, to say nothing of the loss in other garden produce. The trinity of misfortunes fires, frost and drought —under- which many of our farmers have suffered during (his week, will prove very trying, and we hope that rain will soon come, so as to alleviate their position as much as possible.