NELSON NEWS

Evening Post, Volume CXVI, Issue 142, 13 December 1933, Page 17

NELSON NEWS

A DRY COUNTRYSIDE

SCHOOL EXAMINATIONS

(Special to the "Evening Post") . NELSON, December 12. The best Christmas gift the Nelson District could receive is a good soaking rain. The whole countryside now presents a parched appearance, and in many cases crops have suffered considerably from the drought conditions. Practically no rain has fallen for over two months, and though as a result of the favourable early spfing conditions the grass held out for a lengthy period, in the past week or two a great change has taken place, the green tints being replaced by brown. So dry and hard haa the ground become that a soaking rain is necessary to restore growth, and unless this comes in the near future the position of the dairy farmer will be serious. . Most of the grass hay has now been harvested, and taken on the the wholo the crops have been very poor. In only a few favoured localities have heavy crops resulted. At present there is every indication that hay will be scarce and dear next winter. Those farmers who are fortunate enough to own well established stands of lucerne will reap their reward this year, but even deeprooting lucerne requires' a certain amount "of rain, and the crops this year are lighter than usual. Harvesting operations are in full swing on the Waimea Plains now. Some of the oat. crops gown early hi the autumn have given very pleasing results, but later sown crops are mostly failures. ■■.■'.- During December, root crops, lucerne, and other fodder are usually sown, but with the ground in the present dry condition no seed would germinate and so seasonal work of this nature ha» been held up. The falling price of butterfat, combined with the weather conditions at present being experienced make the outlook for the dairy farmer anything but bright. In reporting to the Nelson Education Board the result of the proficiency examinations, the senior inspector, Mr. G. Overton, remarked that the standard of attainment in standard 6 in Nelson was very high. The test this year was as hard as last year. For a number of years the average; age of Nelson children obtaining proficiency had been the lowest in New Zealand, 13.3 against 13.6. Mr. Overton gave the following results of the examinations:—Public schools: Number of candidates, 655; proficiency, 522 (80 per cent.); competency, 89 (13.6 per cent.); total 93.6 per cent.; failures, .44 (6.4 per cent.). Private schools: Candidates, 84; proficiency 67 (80.per cent.); competency, 10 (12 per cent.); total 92 per cent.; failures, 7 (8 per cent.). In the special examination there were 19 candidates; 10 gained proficiency, 6 competency, and there were 3 failures.