RAGWORT PROSECUTIONS

King Country Chronicle, Volume XXXI, Issue 4953, 9 February 1937, Page 5

RAGWORT PROSECUTIONS

OFFENDERS WITHIN BOROUGH. SEVERAL FINES IMPOSED. For failure to clear their land of ragwort several Te Kuiti residents were fined by Mr. F. H. Levien in the Magistrate’s Court this morning. “This is a particularly bad case,” said Mr. J. Hine when F. B. Hardy was being prosecuted. Mr. Hine said the defendant had a lease of a certain area of the Lusk Estate which had been in a bad state for some time now. The Borough noxious weeds inspertor, Mr. Jones, said the block consisted of 60 acres, and Hardy had leased about half of it. He had been prosecuted for failing to clear blackberry and had permitted ragwort to flower freely. A fine of £4 with costs was imposed. Nora Eketone, charged with the same offence, pleaded she had been unable to get men to clean up the area.

The inspector said that this 12acre farm on the western side of the town had been half cleared, but the remainder had been left and the seed was blowing on to clean property. The fine was 40s and costs.

William Hetet was prosecuted in respect of an area of two acres, which the inspector said had not been dealt with for a long time. The defendant said he had lost six cows and a horse because of ragwort on his 50-acre farm at Waitete, and he could not afford to spend time onjthe smaller place. He was fined 40s and costs.

A charge was brought against a woman, Mrs. Danby who lived out of town. The inspector said her tenants had left just about the time tnat ragwort should have been dealt with. Mr. Levien adjourned the case •to see if anything would be done.