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Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume 11, Issue 860, 23 July 1867, Page 2

The Thistle. — The thistle, with its strong prickly leaves and stein, establishes itself in the meadows and corn-fields, when it is not very carefully eradicated, and occupies the place of more useful plants. There are many varieties of the thistle, some of which are not destitute of elegance when in full blossom. Considered as a weed in. our fields, our principal object is to eradicate it, which, in consequence of the ready dispersion of the seeds by the wind, is not easily done, as a slovenly farmer may seed the whole country around ; and when the thistles are not eradicated from the hedges and sides of roads and paths, it is impossible to destroy them entirely. Wherever the soil is newly turned up, especially where it is of a nature that wheat will grow well, thistles invariably arise ; hence the saying of the blind man in choosing land, " Tie me to a thistle." Thosecrops which areusually hoed can readily be cleared of thistles, but where the seed is sown broadcast, the labour of weeding them out is much greater. If they are not extracted with the rootthey will soon grow again with redoubled vigour. In a moist season they may be pulled up by means of a wooden or iron forceps, which grasps them strongly near the crown of the root, and, as it nas a projection which serves as a fulcrum, a pressure on the handle draws the root out when they are brought together. When a field has been long infected with thistles, the best way of clearing it is to watch when the thistle is in full bloom and the seed is just forming ; if it be then cut off at the root, it will die. Thus in two years a field may be entirely cleared of thistles. It is chiefly in arable land that thistles are most troublesome. In pastures it is sufficient to eradicate them once, and to permit none to grow along the hedges or ditches. The seed does not readily vegetate, unless it finds a loose soil ; and little birds are so fond of it, that they will leave none that is not covered with earth, especially in the beginning of winter. In some countries there are penalties inflicted on those who allow thistles to remain in' their hedges or along the high road which borders their land ; and a man may complain to a magistrate of a neighbour who will not destroy the thistles on his land, when the delinquent will be admonished or fined as the case may require. Such a law would be very advantageous in many parts of the country, where no attention is ever paid to the weeds which grow in- the hedges or in waste spots. — " Sham's Dictionary of the Farm. The Flood in New South Wales. — To find anything like this flood, the " Sydney Mail 1 says we must go back to 1806. The same paper remarks : — It is a tale of sudden desolation. Hundreds of families have been compelled, amid the pelting of the pitiless storm, to leave their homes, and huddle together for shelter on the nearest rising ground. Some of them, unable to help themselves, have had to remain for hours clinging to the roof till friendly boats relieved them from their peril * * It is important that- this flood line should be distinctly traced and marked on local plans, if not on the ground, because, after what has occurred, it would be folly, if not worse, to build fresh houses within that line, unless they are built upon piles, so as to raise the floor level above the reach of floods. The" first flood took the settlers by surprise, but no flood is now a surprise. The physical geography of the country and the rainfall being now well understood, we know as a matter of course that floods are sure to happen whenever very heavy rains continue for two or three days. It is as certain as auything in nature can be, that while the climate remains the same, and no fresh channels are cut'to discharge the water, the floods will happen periodically. On an average of, perhaps, once in ©very half-dozen years, all houses built on the flats will be flooded. The people who live in those houses will have to turn out, and that, too, at so short a notice as to be quite unable to drive off their live stock, much less to cart away their furniture, and their barn produce. This being the case, prudence clearly requires either that people should not build houses and barns on the flats, or that they should raise them above the water-level, or that they should keep a boat available for any emergency, and that so far as they risk their property they should cover it by insurance, or else insure it themselves, by laying up in good times a sum to cover the losses that are sure to be incurred when the floods come. Wellington. — The correspondent of the " JS"ew Zealand Herald," under date 9th July, says : — " There has been a bit of a row here this morning touching the new wharf. The Provincial authorities endeavoured to seize, but were opposed by Kennard & Co. A souffle ensued. One man is in charge of the police." The same writer says : — " Two shocks of earthquake have been felt lately. One occurred on the morning of the 6th inst., and the other on the 9th. Both are described as being smart." Ahs on. — Stephen and Jane South have been brought tip in Auckland, on a charge of wilful fire raising, and committed ror trial.