METHVEN.

Lyttelton Times, Volume LIX, Issue 6868, 5 March 1883, Page 7

METHVEN.

[rsox oub ovrs cousssfosbebt.] March 2.

The bright warm weather, which on Sunday followed the pouring rain of the day previous, served in a great meant re to dry up the com which is lying oat ia all direction* i had it only continued, no great amount of damage would have been done; but alas ! on Monday there was a return to the old state of thing*, and lor the nest day end fr-half a warn driveling raia prevailed, varied occasionally by heavy showers, eerioe* fear* now became prevalent that the greater part of the harvest, which had is the early part of the season railed men’* hope* to tae highest pinnacle of expectation, moat : ioeritably be seriously injured, if not ah together lost, The weather cleared up a little on Tuesday afternoon, and Wednesday wu all that a farcer could deeire, and was availed of to the uttermost, both in csrting in, •tacking, and threshing, but lamentable re* port® were rife of hundred* of acre* in which >ome of the stock* had fallen and become m firm 1 7 rested to the ground that the wire band* broke in the endeavour to lift them, and the ears standing in stock shoved green blade* two or Hires inches in length. When It is considered that in this district aim® there are several thousand* cf acres of grain that bac been cut, usd lying or standing in •took, for upward* of three weeks, it doe* not require a great stretch of the imagination to foresee that the result most be simply disastrous. Those formers who are fortunate enough to have stacks, end have submitted them to the test of the threshing machine have, in most instances, more than realised their expectation* in regard to the yield per acre. On Thursday, it was very hot, with the wind nor'-west; at times it blew bard enough lo put » stop to steeling and threshing ; calmed down a little in the afternoon, but blew a heavy gale through the night, and on Friday morning, it shifted to the south-east, with shower* and driizlo throughout the day, and it is now (Friday evening) looking as far from clearing as ever. Most of the farmer* in the neighbourhood have refrained from carting all day, some few have continued stacking operations notwithstanding the unfavourable weather, but X fear that they will find it necessary to open out their stocks again. There are some patches of crops nearer the bills, which sre still uncut, the harvest in that direction coming on later.