THE DRY SPELL.

Press, Volume LX, Issue 18185, 23 September 1924, Page 10

THE DRY SPELL.

FARMERS GREATLY CONCERNED The dry spell, which is at. present prevailing, is causing farmers great concern.. On every, occasion that wind has blown from the nor'-west quarter a hope has been expressed that a change to .sou'-west, with rain, would take place, but so far there has not been a drop and the land is parched and thick with dust. South Canterbury is said to bo suffering far more than Mid-Canter-bury. There were hopes yesterday morning that the wind would veer to the south and bring rain, but as tbo day wore on the wind dropped and the skv became practically cloudless. The rainfall recorded to date this 3ear • 14,368 inches as compared with 26.783 last year. Th-9 present dry spell is shown, by the records, to be the worst since 1910. In that year the rainfall for September, October and November totalled 1.040 inches; but the period did not follow on the heels of such a dry winter as has been experienced this vcar. -The rainfall in 1915, from June Ist to September 30th, was 2.745 inches. The rainfall figures are as follows: — Inches. 1914 4.100 . 1015 2.74--) 1921 ... ... 4.888 The figures for August and September alone, give the following comparison :~ Inches. 1014 ... ""' .:. 0.888 1915 I.JQO 1024 ' ... ... 1.410 Tho following table gives the total rainfall for the separate'mouths for the past twenty-two years up to the end of 1023: Indies. January ... ... 53 sjg February ... ... :<SSI2 March ... 4f>.535 April ... ... 40.054 May - ■ ... -- ... -58.309 ■■ . Jiine ... ... .55.181 July ••■• ... <>I.OGS August ... ... 3!.4!;;0 ■ September ... 4(5.330 October ... ■ ..f 41.-153 November ... ... 3.3. jgg December ... ... 54.463