WAIMATE.

Press, Volume LXVI, Issue 13908, 6 December 1910, Page 9

WAIMATE.

Tho clouded sky, moist atmosphere, and general indications of rain of the 2nd and 3rd instants, like occasional similar indications of the last two months, have disappeared,, and tlie weather of Sunday and Monday again became very dry, warm, and bright, with no sign of rain up to 11 a.m. of the sth instant. The wheat and oats crops, or more than half the tillage area of tho district, will bo !i_ht, short straw, _rain .yield considerably below tho averace for this district. Mangel seed in many cases failed in germination, which will be a great loss, as this root has lately sprang up into well-de-served favour for dairy and general feeding purposes. Turnip seeds, now going in, will have a critical time with dry and heated soil. Potatoes are doing well, and there are largo areas of this crop in the Willow Bridge and Waihao districts. Pastures are dry and almost bare on the hills and downs, the watercourses are dry, and the dams are- failing. The prospects to a great extent are unpromising as regards dairy and tillage farming, while the small birds in Tar_e flocks aro taking their toll off the tender young grain of the cereal crops. A meeting of tho committee appointed to carry out the proposal to erect a rotunda in Seddon Park, Waimate, as a King Edward Memorial, was held on Saturday, to devise ways and means of raising the required balance of funds. The report of tho Building Committee was adopted, but members were disappointed at learning the costs of the structure would exceed the estimate by about £100. It was resolved to carry out the original plan with stone steps, and convex ceiling, and that means be devised to raise the additional funds to complete the work. Messrs Hamilton, Brennen, Father Aubrey, and Torlesse were appointed a deputation to interview the Borough Council regarding an application for a further grant of £50 in aid of the memorial funds, and to canvass the town and immediately adjacent suburbs for subscriptions.