THE BUSH FIRES.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 96, 16 January 1908, Page 7

THE BUSH FIRES.

—: « ' $ ANXIOUS TIME AT PONGAROA. , j ( ■ FURTHER LOSSES REPORTED. : WIND WILL SPELL RUIN. ; . \ (BY ; TBLBGEArn—SrBOIA.Ii' COBBSSFONDENT.I ,i ':•• « ' Walone, January 15. t Last night was an anxious one for, settlers,! ~<ii between' Waiono and Korora, tW two small ?.) •/ ibush ■ settlements. lying- Pongaroa; ,v4x> The ..bush was burning - in .fitful starts of ;,',-;/ laziness and ferocity.:, Smoko hung over ;sll. . a great haze of' pti rplo with a pink tin go, - v.;. through . which ■ tho' sun ;• gleamed blood-rod. The. fetnoke-driod>.air was, almost ; stifliiig at ■ times, and layi-right ;down to the . ground.v ■>.• ~t Every settler and hiß family wero up on ( Jguard. . Their, one ;unitod prayer: Was. for: theuv wind to i keep dtiwn. , " Mr.-Johnson's sawmill was half-surrounded by ai belt of standing timber,- all onifire.t -y,'; '-To* .{jhe-childrenj of tho forest, the nien, whose:-,-: v; young;and old lives-have been spent-within, 'IsoUnd-'of 'the oii'cular saws and tho smell of- • • ,tlio bush, liush fires wore merely an incident; They had; fought.them in almost evoryjv-.. :; sawmill dlfetrJcfMn the! North. Island.:: Sbmo-. times thby had* boin beaten; aild sometimes:-.-!-i i they had,. Won, yltv oyery: case they.' bad done j.' • their best..',, /Twice 1 already tlifey had saved i Mr. , Jphnson's mill-fronuthe flamos. -. People, !;;• I had not givon tho , mill much chance the pre- ,v.v | vioUs night; Mr..Hasler's. family, .residingv ?.« i neai;.'by, Had'' burltid their furniture • and■< valuables. in dug-out pits, and left; to find., sanctuary in a wool-shed, but the mill haridn- j : hadipulled- their; boss throughr - o- ■- * A CONTRACTOR'S LOSS. '< . Some of those men had been: severely doalfc 1 with by .the fire."* One : young follow . ■maW-had- lost -tho profits' of twelve months': ■ industry.:-.-For tlie past year they had been .- ■~ cutting sleepers and posts for the Govern- ■. I■, >mont julider;a Bub-contract.:: ,•Their- plan had ■. been to raft their stuff down the river, butßretho dry weather had dried tho stream, up* ;As Then the fire came along and 1 swept, away ! 6000 Bloopers and EOOO posts.' These two- ; young'follows had• beon ruined • praotioally at :, one sttoop. 1 1 1 ' r- ' 1 As. tho evening wore on the''shght wind . v, dropped almost to a calm, tho air becamemoist and cool, and the,fires slumbered, save. | . for now and< then, when- some-stricken giant: ; -0f... the. forest would. fall with a crafch and ■■■! roar' amidst showers of sparks. ■ ■■ A TRYING NIGHT. v i.TJpon* the blackenod plains slept last ; night who had not taken off. their clothes for „ v fivo days; Tho night passed quietly, but the : wind freshened again to-day from the north- v. .: east; and ..the, fires livening up agarn raced , , j througli'acros v of?dry pastures.. This is where . j farmers will feel the pinch.. The greater - number of them will be forced, to sell their , ij stock, especially the sheep, at a loss. . : ; j V Walter ■is becoming scarcer .day by day.- , , J ' Yesterday: a bnlloik driver,:coming- in from . j the coast stated-tliat'ho 1 hadalmndoned ono : j animal; which, was dying from thirst. Evon i .in' Pbngaroa one is unable to obtain a bath. . j : It is dryer, the residents say, tnan.it was ■-.'a cloven', years/ago,'when, big. fires ravaged; the:, whole'district 1 to Pahiatua. -■ | j Ballaiice, ne&r. Waione; was being watched j and cleared, of burning timber, but farther .; , j 'oni north of the settlement, 'there is' blue,' sky. ■ ; ' . . • . ■It is reported that thorfe were two barrels J of blasting-ipowder near Mr.' M'Hardy's ... 4 dwelling! house, which was destroyed by firo . the- other 'night... .That family had ■« ; most . •-j narrow escape: iri. two, ways.. Nothing waa.- | :siived. : !• 'v. 1 , , SETTLER'S HOMESTEAD GONE. | ' Mr. Malnianche, who resided at tho mill, ,! South ( W.aione. spent only two hours in bed , j :last, week. ;:Ilis houso'.has gene this after-; noon, while his men wero guarding Mr. Bridge's wool-shod'fromva*rushing grass fire. . ; in an adjoining forty-acre paddock. His ; wool-shed shelters Mr. Hasler's fahiily. •. j i , LIST' OF THE. LOSSES. . ' ' /' Sprfi<3 .idea ofthe. magnitude of the fire 1 . may : be;. gained from" the fact that tho conflagfatibn altogether covered over 7000 acres :\ ;-l of land .in j about'. ,25 ■ holdings. , ■ Amongst, • those settlers airected aro Messrs. Murphy, j Dickens. Astwood, Hiitchins, Fulcher, be- ; ; tween ] ongaroa and Waihi; Messrs. M'Alis- j ter, Hansen, Pim, Billington, Sherrad, Mor- m gan, Polglase. Burling, Peck, M'Hardy, Has- ,i ler, Malnianclie, M'Hardy, Johnson, betweon j Korora and Waioue, and Messrs. Dlake, E. -j Transom, Loney, and Bowie, on the AVai- :? patiki.. ,' 1 , ■ , ■ . 'i Waione Village does not anticipate any j further danger, but tho settlements in,the- j !area on to .Pougaroa and Waihi will bo/ >- ■ threatened with extinction till the arrival of rain. ... ' "• . j